1. My Morning Jacket at Madison Square Garden -- 12.31.08
Expectations were high for this one, as New York City abounds with options (musical and otherwise) as the days expire on a calendar year. From this vantage point, the lofty expectations for this New Years party were met--and surpassed. From the opening waterfall of tumbling horns that introduced Curtis Mayfield's "Move On Up" through to the always-
mindblowing "One Big Holiday", Jim James and crew delighted the nowhere-near-capacity dressed-to-the-eights crowd at MSG. The extra space made for ridiculously easy maneuvering to be with loved ones as the balloons fell: nuzzling up sidestage with a hundred of your closest friends to welcome '09 made this the year's top show for me. Steven Bernstein's horn section was used judiciously and 
superbly: to augment funky covers that would have been impossible without brass (Charles Wright's Express Yourself, Kool & The Gang's Celebration, James Brown's Cold Sweat), but also used on occasion to bolster some MMJ staples (Evil Urges, Dancefloors) making them the perfect accoutrement for the Jacket on this special evening. Very close to being this here dorky blogger's perfect show.2. Marco Benevento, Joe Russo, and Brad Barr at Sullivan Hall -- 01.10.08
I'm going out on a limb, perhaps, by identifying this little gem as my second favorite show of the year, but for anyone who was in attendance, you can corroborate my wonder at the amazing energy and spontaneity this trio displayed on the old Lion's Den stage. Maybe it was because Brad was arrested on his way to the gig and arrived JUST in time to plug in onstage to 
soundcheck a note or two before diving headfirst into a first-set jam with his old friends, or maybe not. Who's to say where synergy like this is derived: these long-time collaborators have a vast amount of trust in each other's talent and each other's listening skills. The trio had played a small run of shows together in Nov 2007, where Brad was mostly providing complement to The Benevento/Russo Duo's material, but this show didn't even remotely resemble a Duo show. Without an ounce of premeditation on what the set should contain, these three poured out a symphony of rock n' roll, with Barr touching on riffs from Chuck Berry to Jimmy Page, from Django Reinhardt to 
Trey Anastasio, all with a good dose of Slippy guitar in there for good measure. Benevento delighted in having a new partner with whom he could tag team tangling with his regular bandmate, Sir Russo, and the interplay between Russo and Barr was (for lack of a more sophisticated word) SICK. Video footage of this little gem is currently under lock-and-key at Shine A Light Productions, but will surely see the light of day soon, and in the meantime you can enjoy this clip from Benevento's 2008 residency:3. Trey Anastasio at Music Hall of Williamsburg -- 08.07.08
He sounded good. Really good. It was worth the second mortgage I took out on my home to procure that tough ticket. From the oddly-familiar first notes of his new tune,"Alaska" right through to the sweaty last notes of the now-epic "Bug", I was in the zone that I can only get into with a few performers, and I was happy to have him back. Clean and sober Trey has an undeniably purer tone despite still being able to unleash some of the dirtiest licks in guitar history.
Adding the amazingly-underappreciated Ray Paczkowski to his inaugural TAB team (Tony Markellis and Russ Lawton), the quartet debuted newer versions of some TAB standbys (when did "Gotta Jibboo" become sooooo irresistibly nasty? when did Driftin' lose all the schmaltz and deliver Jerry-esque elation?). The intimacy of the venue fed the frenzied energy in the room, and it's safe to say that most in attendance had their aural tubes cleaned out upon leaving the newly-appointed venue almost four hours later. Money well spent, in my books.
4. Radiohead at All Points West -- 08.09.08
It was almost too good... Really. The sound was so good that I felt like I had headphones on. The lights were so good I almost cried. The music, well, there's no one else that does what Radiohead does. How sparse arrangements of songs (like the haunting Nude, which prompted a hilarious "That was impossible!" outburst from my friend) can sit side by side with meticulous cacaphony (the delicious 15 Step) is something to behold live... and yet, I almost felt like it wasn't live. Like it was a pre-recorded show, somehow, too perfect in its delivery (despite a late-concert flub, which friends tell me was executed with the exact same script in Montreal days earlier). I was left loving the show, and yet strangely unsatisfied by how perfect it was. My suspicious sentiments were seconded by a 
much-respected musician who shared that while he was undeniably impressed with their show, he prefers his rock with a little more danger, and I realized that despite the wild rapids of Radiohead's wizardry, I, too, would prefer musicians going into the unknown and risking a little more for their rewards. That said, any person who listens to music in this decade owes it to themselves to go see this band, and any musician playing in this decade who doesn't cite them as an influence is a total lying bastard.5. The Slip at Paradise Rock Club -- 12.27.08
I'm not going to lie to you, I don't recall the details. I spent the day geeking
out in the car on the way to Boston with two fellow Slip-enthusiasts, and thus I was fully prepared to launch into outerspace with the opening notes of Airplane/Primitive. Fact: this was The Slip's third concert of the year. Fact: it fucking rocked. I've double checked this fact by re-living it through the hard work of Clinton Vadnais, and I stand by my evaluation. There is 
only one Slip. These guys are it. They owe it to the world and to themselves to let the Slip out of the bag more often, for they are able to incorporate genres like no other trio, and the intense rapport that comes from playing together for over a decade is something that few young bands can hope to have. It was extra-special to see the boys in their backyard of Boston, for Slip fans have proved time and time again to be my favorite live music concert-goers -- attentive, respectful, and totally into it. Let's all please say a prayer that 2009 sees this trio popping up in lineups all over the country, and do yourselves a favor and go listen to what awesome music sounds like.6. Neil Young & Wilco at Madison Square Garden -- 12.06.08
While the sound in MSG was poorly suited to display the rich tapestry of Wilco's sound, I had to admit that Wilco -- a band who could headline most festivals around the world -- was serving as perhaps the most wonderful opening act in memory. It seems as though Wilco is distinguishing itself as the quintessential modern American Band, as I recall getting whiffs of ZZ Top in there amidst the usual overtones of The Band that Wilco invokes.
And Neil, well, I couldn't have more respect for the aging Canadian icon, and when I compare the energy and preparation that his show requires with the lucklustre performances of some other legends I saw this year (but who will remain nameless because it's sacreligious to say anything bad about Bobby Dylan... I mean, uh...), it is clear that Neil's passion for the music, for performing, for leaving it all out on the stage has not diminished with age. When he closed his set with The Beatles' "A Day In The Life" (featured below), he gave the lyrics a haunting immediacy (not unlike when he sang "Campaigner" at the United Palace last year), making Lennon & McCartney's words from 1967 seem like a current critique of modern media, social apathy, and war.
7. Jay-Z at Pemberton Music Festival -- 07.27.08
I had never seen anything like Jay-Z. I was floored. I want more. When Jay-Z suggested to the burly British Columbian crowd that we ought to get rid of the border between our respective nations so that we could do a whole lot more hangin' out, well, I thought that was a swell idea. His undeniable magnetism and gift for spontaneity become painfully clear seeing him live, where he can deliver several minutes of improvised valentines to the crowd (as he did in the amazing "Girls, Girls, Girls") that are shockingly well-delivered off-the-cuff. Sample the blissful energy that explodes during the "99 Problems" below:For a gal who doesn't get much hip hop in her musical diet, I was admittedly surprised by how much I loved his set, but that is the gift of a true performing star -- the ability to connect and delight crowds supersedes the confines of any genre. Don't ever miss an opportunity to see him for yourself, please.
8. Kronos Quartet with Glenn Kotche at Carnegie Hall (Zenkel Hall) -- 12.05.08
As difficult as it may be to believe, not all of the aural titillation that I enjoy comes at the hands of an electric guitar. This remarkable classical concert featured a handful of world premieres, as well as the seminal 1970 George Crumb piece "Black Angels", which was the inspiration for David Harrington to form the Kronos Quartet in 1973. Kronos Quartet is difficult to categorize, as you will see from their rendition of Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" below.
The highlight of the show, for me, was when Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche joined the quartet to perform the NY debut of his piece "Anomaly", which is the first piece Kotche has penned for instruments beyond percusscion, and in which the strings are meant to emulate the limbs of a percussionist. The 25-minute piece was mesmerizing, clearly demonstrating that Kotche is so much more than a mere Heavy Metal Drummer.
9. Earl Greyhound Acoustic at Calhoun School -- 09.12.08
Nothing against turning the knob to eleven, but when the strumming comes unplugged there is just something so real about it. Brooklyn's Earl Greyhound is known for making a whole lotta noise, but for those who aren't initiated with their honky tonk 
roots, Kamara Thomas and Matt Whyte have been performing acoustic for some time, and thus when they bring the EG material to this stripped-down format, it is truly something special. The audio from this concert is available in a limited release, and the video is (again) in the tank over here at Shine A Light Productions, so 
you'll have to make do with pictures of this one-of-a-kind show. You'll want to try to get your hands on a copy of "I'm On Jupiter Waving My Arms at You" because it features Thomas at her most riveting (causing chills when I witnessed "My Kentucky" from behind the lens, and thereafter in the edit room) and Whyte at his most 
swoon-a-licious (on tunes like "Someone" and "Out of Air"). It was particularly heart-warming to witness EG get the high school crowd to sing along with them on Whyte's children's song, "This Tree". A truly touching show from a trio that is more apt to melt your face off. Seeing them acoustic is a rare, delicious treat.10. Bustle In Your Hedgerow at The Knitting Factory -- 12.28.08
Cover bands are supposed to be kind of lame, even if the band they're imitating is cool. That has never been the case for Bustle In Your Hedgerow, who have always been so-much-more than just a cover band. Why? Because of the talent on the stage, duh. But this particular show was so-much-more than even that -- on this evening where Marco Benevento, Joe Russo, Scott Metzger, and Ween's Dave Dreiwitz would say goodbye to 14 years of memories at the fabled Knitting Factory (over and done in Manhattan, at least, as the club is heading to what we used to call The Luna Lounge in Williamsburg), the quartet truly went beyond any boundaries that were drawn in the sand by Page and Plant so many years ago. Sure, it's always awesome to hear your friends rock the living daylights out of some of the best songs ever written, but this time, they really did it as a band: they went out on a limb and re-arranged my concept of what Zep should sound like, and that's no small task. Witness the transformation on "Out on The Tiles" above, and on "The Song Remains The Same" below:
Honorable mentions:
• Ruby Benevento making her big-stage debut at High Sierra Music Festival, 07.03.08
• Steven Bernstein's Millenial Territory Orchestra at 55 Bar, 11.14.08
• Good Enough For Good Times at Le Bon Temps Roulé, 05.03.08
• Lizzie Powell fronting Land of Talk and then joining headliners Broken Social Scene as the new girl in town. Brooklyn Masonic Temple, 10.24.08
• Brad Mehldau at (le) Poisson Rouge, 10.10.08
• Marco Benevento with Reed Mathis and Jon Fishman at Drom, 11.07.08
• Surprise Me Mr. Davis at Sullivan Hall, 04.20.08
