Old and In the Way were (ironically) mostly not old – and certainly not at all in anyone’s way! – when they gathered in 1973 to play about 50 live shows. Fiddler Vassar Clements, born in 1928 and having joined Bill Monroe and his Bluegrass Boys at 21, was still under 50. The other members of OAITW were only about 30 at the time, give or take a few years.

Space Bacon, the late-night jamtronica specialists hailing from Brooklyn, NY, brought plenty of greasy jams to Hill Country Live on December 29, 2023. This was part of the Phish After Show series, and certainly an easy location to get to from Madison Square Garden. The band consisted of guitarist Fred Rylands, drummer Sam Crespo, keyboardist Chris Gironda, and bassist Kevin Legall.

Brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson have been on a musical journey together for almost thirty years. They both possess acute knowledge of many facets of music and the music industry. You might say it’s in their blood, coming from a very musical family. This knowledge and inspiration were largely inspired by their father, legendary producer and musician Jim Dickinson. Since they were teenagers, they have been producing records for themselves and have applied their creative skills in various ways.

The Declaration of Independence. Rocky Balboa’s boxing boots. Instruments used by members of the Beatles. John F. Kennedy’s rocking chair. These are just a few of the items I saw last Thursday night at the Jim Irsay collection at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. Jim Irsay, owner of the Indianapolis Colts, has amassed an incredible assortment of relics that would make Indiana Jones blush.

I could tell you how their set included fun covers like the Rolling Stones’ “No Expectations,” John Hartford's "Granny Wontcha Smoke Some Marijuana," and Jesse Stone’s “Don’t Let Go” (a familiar Jerry Garcia Band tune for many in the audience who sang along with the refrain). I could tell you they picked and fiddled as tight as ever. I could tell you they had a guest fiddler named Coleman Smith and that he and Piccininni had a lot of fun fiddling eye to eye. So much to tell!

The Independent in San Francisco, hosted three up-and-coming bands for a night of funk and fun on Thursday, January 11, 2024.  If you’re looking to get a party started, keep it going, or make it last all night, you might want to check out Object Heavy, Boot Juice, and Litty deBungus.

“Best Damn Band We’re Ever Gonna Hear.”

In a year filled with a multitude of successes for Dogs In A Pile (DIAP), perhaps December 2023 will go down in band history as one of the most important stretches for the Asbury Park quintet. But we’ll get to that in a moment.

The Bay Area was awash with live music during the final days of 2023. During the week leading up to and including New Year’s Eve, live music fans in the region could choose The String Cheese Incident, LCD Soundsystem, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, Les Claypool’s Bastard Jazz, Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew’s “Remain in Light” Talking Heads tribute, Charlie Musselwhite, and Jerry’s Middle Finger, among others. And of course, some folks stayed home to stream Phish.

Bob Weir & Wolf Bros, accompanied by the vibrant Wolfpack, delivered a spectacular New Year's Eve performance at Ft Lauderdale's Au-Rene Theater on Sunday evening.