The Inside of Outside

A much better deal for the Sox. That was an expensive physical that Napoli had with the Red Sox a month or two ago.

I have found myself in the crowd. I can see the back of my head in several shots. It confirms that I already had loads of gray hair before I was thirty. It was a different show. A rawk extravaganza, and rough around the edges. Great energy.

I second that - as good as Kind of Blue for me.

Ditto to the January birthday (same day as Kidsmoke, no less). There is something special about your own birthday month. Hurray for longer days (we've gained 14 minutes of daylight since Dec. 21st already here in Maine). Great time of the year for skiing, pond hockey, snowshoeing, and fires in the fireplace. I don't watch a lot of NFL regular season, but I do like the playoffs in January.

I played it Sunday while taking down the Christmas tree. I had seen somewhere on Saturday (facebook, probably) that it was turning 40. What a great record - possibly my favorite of his.

I thought the same thing when I first thought about it, too. But we got I Might, Born Alone, Whole Love, and Dawned on Me the first night and Dawned on Me, Standing O, I Might, and Born Alone on the second (plus I Love My Label). I remember thinking I Might was a rocking tune (if I remember right, that was available as a single at the festival), and then I remembered his falsetto at the beginning of Whole Love got a few laughs the first night. Another 4-5 new songs at SS III would be a nice bonus.

That sounds like a very cool show.

What a cute baby! Maybe they are all cute, but Evelyn is particularly so. Enjoy every minute. Even the 2:30 AM feedings. You might even miss those in a few years.

A few folks have noted that there was a mention that Wilco would curtail their concert schedule in order to record an album in 2013. I remember that, too. What I did not expect is that they might release it this year as well, which is what I read into their facebook post. No matter what happens, I would welcome hearing some new songs at Solid Sound in June. Hearing Born Alone, I Might, Dawned on Me, Whole Love, etc. at the last Solid Sound, a few months before the release of the record, was a treat.

Wilco......

Here is an update from Wilco on facebook: Thank you all for a fantastic 2012. We've got a lot to look forward to in 2013 -- including a new record, another Solid Sound Festival, and bunch more gigs and other surprises. Happy New Year to all from the band and the HQ crew. Cheers! New record?!? Hooray!

I know nothing about this show, but looking at who was in it, and who was behind it, I am going to watch a few episodes.

The Head and the Heart at the State Theater in Portland, Maine. Great, youthful energy. Solid harmonies, and the young woman in the band, Charity Rose Thielen, can sing like nobody's business. Wilco at the Adler Theater in Davenport, Iowa. A good show, but frankly the real joy was driving 19 hours in a VW Vanagon with three old college friends to see the show. Wilco at Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, New York. Wilco, at a brewery, near the Baseball Hall of Fame. Perfect.

Samuel Smith's beers are just about the best across the board. Their oatmeal stout was my first love. Well, I thought my first love was this girl I dated in college, but then I had one of their oatmeal stouts, and I realized what true love was.

Summer of '07 was the first time that the current line up really blew my mind. I saw them about a week after the show above, in Vermont, and they were blistering. I thought the Sky Blue Sky material held up really well live. Shake It Off, a song that some folks are not enamored with, was a highlight for me. Not trying to quibble, but I see the above show as 1 set and 3 encores. And that run from The Late Greats through I'm a Wheel in the second encore must have been a barn burner.

For what it is worth - 3 AP music writers' choices for best albums of the year: http://www.pollstar.com/news_article.aspx?ID=803705

The Blue Jays are getting serious about winning, maybe for the first time in about 15 years. Makes the AL East really interesting. A few teams in that division are going to be disappointed come September, because they all seem to have hopes of winning now. Out of the Sox, Rays, and Yankees - might 2 of these finish fourth and fifth in the division?

Fairly random, but Graham Parker does live in the Hudson Valley. As a solo act, I believe he has played small places north of NYC for years. And he stars in Judd Apatow's new movie that also has a Wilco song on the soundtrack. Not a strong connection, but a thread maybe. Hopefully his current tour lasts longer than the dates he has scheduled for this month, which I guess it will. Maybe all the way to June???? Now that I think of it, SS 2 had veteran acts - The Levon Helm Band, Syl Johnson and the Sweet Devines, Dave Douglas, Neil Finn of Pajama Club - I could see Graham Parker and the Rumo

A perfect Saturday evening opener for Wilco.

The Outfield.

Me too!

Nothing on that list I would argue with.

I like it when there are bands that I have never heard of at a festival - like Purling Hiss. They were pretty heavy, and a good find.

I like that.

Saw him open a couple of times for Clapton in 85 - the Shot was his backing band then I think. I remember a pretty high energy show (though that was a long time ago and my memories are hazy....).