Friday, September 13th turned out to be a lucky day for thousands of concertgoers as huge crowds gathered all across the Del Mar fairgrounds for the elaborate KAABOO music festival. The opening day of the fifth annual gathering featured a variety of upscale amenities for an affluent crowd of music lovers combined with a diverse musical line up of big-name entertainment. VIP ticket holders were treated to an echelon of upscale perks, including a private music stage and a poolside view of the main stage.

Amid a brief West Coast stint, Bob Weir and Wolf Bros graced the newly rebranded Oxbow RiverStage in Napa, California last Saturday. The trio led by the legendary guitarist and bandleader alongside constant collaborator Jay Lane on drums and prestigious producer/bassist Don Was has deservingly garnered an attentive following of its own. For many Bobby fans, his best work after the Grateful Dead was with RatDog throughout the mid-1990s into the 2000s.

Formed by brothers Neal and Alan Evans on organ and drums respectively, and tapping guitar master Eric Krasno, Soulive has continued to make waves in the funk and soul scenes from the late 90s to today, gaining much renown for their ability to lay down the groove and becoming the undeniable leaders of contemporary funk fusion.

The International Bluegrass Music Association named Billy Strings New Artist of the Year, Guitar Player of the Year at its awards ceremony held last night (Sept 26)  in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

Hailed as “the new master of the slide guitar” by the Montreux Jazz Festival, and “the real thang” by the legendary Bootsy Collins, singer-songwriter, Jack Broadbent, returns after 3 years to deliver an upbeat and smooth slide guitar performance in his new single “Wishing Well”.

Tomorrow marks the 20th anniversary of John Prine’s beloved album, In Spite of Ourselves, which was originally released September 28, 1999 on Prine’s own independent label, Oh Boy Records. Prine’s first release after beating cancer, the 16-song record features a collection of duets with some of Prine’s favorite female country artists including the breakthrough title track—a duet with Iris DeMent. In the 20 years since it came out, “In Spite Of Ourselves” has become Prine’s most successful song with over 40 million streams.