Reverend Horton Heat

No Bummer Summer

Concert Listings, Concert review, Music, podcast

We have so much for be grateful for this summer, especially if our cars don’t have vinyl seats.

Let’s peel our butts off our chairs and head to some concerts, shall we?

Tuesday:

  • Band of Horses plays Bogart’s (I’ll be there with list members Deuce and Matt V.). Maybe I’ll run into BoH drummer Creighton again like I did outside the Ryman in Nashville in 2013.
  • Former Tom Petty Heartbreaker Mike Campbell and his band The Dirty Knobs play the Taft
  • Old Crow Medicine Show is at the Rose in Dayton, with Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway also on the bill

Norah Jones plays the Rose on Wednesday.

Thursday gigs:

  • The Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band and The Tillers play Memorial Hall
  • Sungaze and Sylmar will be “Rockin’ the Roebling” at Smale Park
  • Blueswoman Lauren Anderson plays a free show at the Levitt Pavilion in Dayton
  • The Artimus Pyle Band (“honoring Ronnie Van Zant’s Lynyrd Skynyrd”) plays Ludlow Garage

Whoops, wrong Pyle.

On Friday, Arlo McKinley will headline the “Indie Friday” free show at Fountain Square. And Tye Dye Band (featuring list member John Sandman) will play Carriage House Farms.

Other Friday night gigs:

  • Riverbend hosts a tribute to Planes, Trains and Automobiles…

OK, actually it’s Boats (Yacht Rock Revue), Train (the band) and Automobiles (REO Speedwagon).

  • Old Crow Medicine Show will be roosting at the Cindy Brady, with the Del McCoury Band – Tiger better behave himself!
  • Whiskey Myers plays the Rose, with Whitey Morgan & the 78s and Reid Houghton
  • The Samples play Ludlow Garage

Whoops, wrong Samples. Wrong band too!

On Saturday, there are two festivals of note(s):

Or you can head to the Madison Theater to catch Genesis ReTouched – a Cincy band that claims “our live shows capture the aural and visual essence of Genesis between the mid 80’s and late 2000’s.” So go to the (Tony) Banks to get money for tickets, then treat yourself to a Tom Collins at the show while the ersatz Phil Collins steps up to the Mike (Rutherford). Gotta be better than the other Genesis gig in the area:

Next Sunday (7/14):

  • Lake Street Dive plays the Bobby Brady, with The Lemon Twigs as the opener
  • Southgate House hosts The Good People Festival, a benefit for the Incubator Kitchen Collective. Featured acts include: The Local Honeys, Maria Carrelli, Ben Knight & David Faul, Stephen J Williams & The 1865, Ray Vietti, Tinfoil Hat Cowboys, Chelsea Ford, and Adam Lee
  • And Ludlow Garage has the “We Love Zappa” tour:

On Monday, 7/15, Hurray for the Riff Raff will play the Woodward, with Hannah Frances. I’ll be there… mostly because I’m riffraff, but also because the last H4TRR show at the Woodward gave me all the feels.

Musiq Soulchild kicks off a three-night residency at the Ludlow Garage on Tuesday, 7/16.

On Wednesday, 7/17, The Tillers play a free show at the Delhi Park Pavilion, and The SunBurners do the freebie at Burnet Woods. Both shows start at 7 p.m. (although Delhi is so far west that it might be on Central Time).

Jon Spencer plays MOTR on Thursday, 7/18, with IdleAires opening the 8 p.m. show, which, in a concession to the average age of Jon Spencer fans, will offer some seated tickets.

That evening (7/18) also features an overwhelming slate of free shows:

  • Erin Coburn plays Smale
  • Carriers play Washington Park
  • Buffalo Nichols (blues) at Levitt in Dayton
  • RiversEDGE in Hamilton has Foreigner’s Journey with Draven & the Ravens
  • Lawrenceburg Civic Park hosts Gone 2 Paradise: the Ultimate Jimmy Buffett Tribute
  • Fairfield Village Green features The Eagles Project
  • Marsha Brady (the band) plays the Marsha Brady Ault Park

On Friday, 7/19, Aaron Lee Tasjan headlines the Indie Friday show at Fountain Square. I’ll be there, and you should go too!

“My most effective tool in sharing my music and live performances with new listeners is word of mouth, and you can do so much to support me when you invite people into this lovely little world we’ve built and continue to build.”

Aaron Lee Tasjan

That same evening:

  • Torres plays the Woodward
  • moe. plays the Rose in Dayton, with Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country
  • Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire play Riverbend
  • Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience will play for free at Levitt in Dayton
  • Ludlow Garage has Adrenalize: the Ultimate Def Leppard Experience
  • If you want to catch the band X on their farewell tour, they’ll be at their closest stop to the Tri-state: The Vogue in Indy. Here’s a tune from their new album, out 8/2:

Acoustic Alchemy plays the Ludlow Garage on Saturday, 7/20, and Rick Springfield and Richard Marx play the Fraze in Dayton.

That ageless cat Al Stewart plays Ludlow Garage on Sunday, 7/21 and MOTR hosts Thelma & The Sleaze.

Monday, 7/22, PNC Pavilion hosts Slash’s S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Festival, with blues stars Keb’ Mo’, ZZ Ward and Jackie Venson on the bill. (In case you were wondering, “S.E.R.P.E.N.T. is an anagram that stands for Solidarity, Engagement, Restore, Peace, Equality N’ Tolerance.” And now you know. Quiz next week.)

The Best Sibling Duo from Dayton ain’t the Wright Brothers

Orville and Wilbur are no match for Kim and Kelley Deal. A Breeders show at the Henry Miller Library near Big Sur got rained out last fall, so they played an impromptu stripped-down gig among the redwoods. Gorgeous!

It’s always a treat to feel the Heat

The Reverend Horton Heat put on a spectacular (free) show at the Levitt Pavilion in Dayton on 6/22 (wrapping up their encore with a killer version of Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades.”) List members Dave Tellmann, El Blanco, Michael T. and I were there, along with list member Gene “The Photo Machine” Dow, who snapped these stellar shots:

You can check out more of Gene’s photos from the show here, and view more from his portfolio here. Gene’s available for weddings, senior photos, and general lifestyle photography, yet he refused to do a bit of boudoir photography for me. I can’t imagine why not.

Valley Heat is a treat too!

I know I’ve sung the praises of the Valley Heat podcast before. It’s the aural equivalent of Fernwood 2 Night meets Arrested Development. Hilarious. In the clip below, the host Doug sings the praises of the lowly 8-track, while also pointing out the challenges of playing an LP … and taking a few spot-on shots at vinyl snobs.

I missed the hottest heat

List member Mighty Joe Sampson pointed out a glaring omission from last week’s heat-related visuals:

Jesse is a friend, with some really cool friends

In December, Jesse Malin will be back on stage for the first time since his spinal stroke in May of ’23. And he has an all-star cast joining him for two benefit shows (read more on Relix). The first gig on 12/1 sold out quickly; the 12/2 show still has a few tickets left.

Life imitates Art (but not Art Garfunkel)

Album Cover of the Week(s) – Retail Nostalgia Edition

Why yes, that is Bonnie Raitt’s dad John Raitt in the middle… and yes, that’s a Record Theatre 4.99 sticker too!

This band is as-advertised… they look pretty plain to me. And yes, that’s a Swallen’s sticker! Maybe this album was free with the purchase of any white appliance.

Hot June, Hotter Tunes

Concert Listings, Music

Gee Willikers, it’s not officially Summer yet, and we’re already melting. Just as the great Rod Serling predicted.

We’ve got more sizzling shows than Rozzi Famous Fireworks, so let’s plunge right in.

On Thursday, you have your pick of freebie shows:

  • The Tillers play at Washington Park
  • The Menus serve up a freebie at Ault Park
  • Noah Wotherspoon will be (blues) Rockin’ the Roebling (Smale Park)
  • Fairfield Village Green hosts the Fooz Fighters
  • Proxima Parada and Happy Landing are doing the free show at RiversEDGE in Hamilton
  • Wildermiss and The Smug Brothers play Levitt Pavilion in Downtown Dayton (BYOB!)
  • Lawrenceburg Civic Park has an Elton John tribute

If you insist on spending your hard-earned cash, you can check out Al Di Meola at Memorial Hall or Robert Glasper at Ludlow Garage.

Friday night:

  • Reverend Horton Heat and Supersuckers (Eddie Spaghetti! Metal Marty! Chango!) play the old Annie’s
  • TyeDye Band (feat. list member John Sandman) plays Plain Folk Café in Pleasant Plain, OH
  • The Used are at Bogart’s (seems fitting – that venue is quite used)
  • Mike Wade and the Nasty NATI Brass Band play a freebie at Levitt in Dayton
  • Last and certainly least, New Kids on the Block, Paul Abdul and DJ Jazzy Jeff will be at Riverbend.

Or a colonoscopy.

Friday (June 21st) also marks the 27th wedding anniversary of your humble scribe and his long-suffering wife. She will be celebrating by going to West Virginia for a “trail run.” Which basically means that instead of spending time with me, she’d rather hang with this guy:

And no one in their right mind could possibly blame her for that choice.

The Right Reverend Horton Heat is back in action on Saturday, this time playing a free show at Levitt Pavilion in scenic downtown Dayton. (Or maybe it just seems scenic after you’ve had a few free beers.) I’ll be at that show, stocked cooler and lawn chair in hand, along with list member Dave “the Father Murphy of Modern Rock” Tellmann and our friend “El Blanco.” Earlier that day, Tracy Walker plays for free at the Smale Esplanade (5-7 p.m.)

Non-free shows that evening include Charlie Musselwhite and Elvin Bishop at Ludlow Garage, Matt St. George at MOTR, Mr. Speed (a KISS tribute band) at Fraze, and Janet Jackson at Riverbend. I’m sure the Janet Jackson show will be Dyn-O-Mite!

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday:

  • Kurt Vile and the Violators play the Taft
  • Moonbeau is at Madison Live
  • Will Kimbrough is at Southgate
  • Krystal Peterson plays Carriage House Farm in North Bend (1 p.m. show)
  • The Robert Randolph Band plays a freebie at Fountain Square, with Lauren Eylise and The Perfect Children (that’s a band, not to be confused with my kids)

Blues rocker Carolyn Wonderland plays Southgate on Tuesday, June 25th, with Shelley King opening the show.

Next Wednesday (6/26), Noah Wotherspoon plays a free show at Fountain Square, and Donny Osmond plays the Carol Brady.

Next Thursday (6/27) is plenty busy too:

  • Eric Johanson (blues) plays Ludlow Garage
  • Chris Knight plays a full-band show at Southgate
  • Ben Levin performs at HighGrain Brewing’s new Brentwood location
  • Dreamboat Annie (a Heart tribute band) will play Lawrenceburg’s Civic Park
  • Camp Spring Tavern has their bi-weekly Bluegrass Jam

Next Friday (6/28):

  • Dada does a “Return to Dizzkneeland” show at Southgate
  • Santana and Counting Crows at Riverbend
  • Ghostface Killah at Madison Theater
  • Hollywood Nights (a Bob Seger tribute band) at Ludlow Garage
  • The Vindys with The Hathaways at Levitt in Dayton. Who’s your favorite Hathaway? Here’s mine – she’s smokin’:

Buddy Guy plays the Taft on Saturday, June 29th, with Christone “Kingfish” Ingram as the opener. Did I ever tell you about when I was working at B-105/WDJO (“all oldies all the time!”) back in the late 80s and somehow finagled a photographer’s pass for that year’s Chicago Blues Fest, and was front row for Buddy Guy and Junior Wells playing an acoustic set? Lying pays off, kids!

[The photo above wasn’t taken by me (Paul Natkin took it), but it could’ve been if I knew how to operate the prop camera I brought along.]

Other 6/29 shows include The Arcadian Wild at the Woodward, Mad Anthony at Southgate, Yonder Mountain String Band at the old Annie’s, and Nashville singer/songwriters Sarah Peacock & Dannie Nicholls playing a Downtowne Listening Room show at the Hellmann Creative Center in Covington.

The Beach Boys, having tired of Aruba, Bahama and even Kokomo (Indiana), are taking their surfboards to Kettering, Ohio on Monday, July 1st. Because it’s the Fraze that pays.

On Tuesday, July 2nd, Riverbend will have a show by Third Eye Blind… as predicted by the great Rod Serling:

We can’t tout two Reverend Horton Heat shows without also mentioning a rockin’ Sister.

Er, actually it’s Sister Hazel. And the only people who could make you believe that they are as good as Sister Bertrille would be the best spin doctors. Well, it’s your lucky day, because Spin Doctors are on the bill with Sister Hazel at Mason’s “Red, Rhythm & Boom” show on July 3rd! SH and SD both will be opening up for Rozzi Famous Fireworks.

[Sidebar: I get the “rhythm” and the “boom” part of the Mason show, but what’s up with the “Red”?… Is it because it’ll be “red hot”? Or because it’s MAGA country? If they’re trying to play off “Red, White & Blue” then “Rhythm” is… out of rhythm… OK, I realize I’m giving this waaay too much thought. Better to be like the WVa banjo player.]

That same evening, Tinfoil Hat Cowboys will play the free “Wildcard Wednesdays” show at Factory 52.

Ernie Johnson from Detroit will bring a different kind of fireworks to Smale Park on the 4th of July and Hamilton’s RiversEDGE has That Arena Rock Show, just as our Founding Fathers intended.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers will sock it to you at Riverbend on Friday, July 5th.

Domecrusher (a band featuring list member Todd Quincy on keyboards) plays 513 Hamilton on Saturday, July 6th.

The holiday weekend wraps up with The Amish Outlaws at the old Annie’s on Sunday, 7/7.

We love it live

Pixies/Modest Mouse/Cat Power at the Brady was a great triple bill.

I met up with a college buddy in D.C. for GBV at a tiny club (The Atlantis, modeled after the famous original 9:30 Club) – killer show!

On Father’s Day, I got to see my son’s band play a brief opener set at Madison Live.

(He’s on drums… drummers never get much photo love.)

And last night, Dave Tellmann, Todd Quincy, Todd’s wife Christy (or Christi, or Kristy, or Kristie, or Kristi…) and I were treated to Los Lobos and Little Feat. Los Lobos are an American treasure – always stellar. And Little Feat “knew the assignment” – they were “Willin'” to play the hits.

Have van, won’t travel

I also was supposed to see S.G. Goodman at Southgate this past Friday, along with list members Matt and Pam Fellerhoff, and “Rico”… but S.G.’s van had other ideas:

Thankfully Rico and I, along with another co-worker and their friends, made lemons out of lemonade by having dinner at Tuba Baking Co. in Dayton, KY (great German food, including veggie options) and then playing semi-inebriated pickleball in Ft. Thomas. Because I am humble, I can neither confirm nor deny that I crushed Rico and our colleague Cathy in a 2 vs. 1 match, then proceeded to beat Rico in a head-to-head matchup (because he thought Cathy was “holding him back.”) *Ron Howard “Arrested Development” voiceover: “Cathy was NOT holding him back.”*

A gentleman never reveals the score of his pickleball matches. But suffice it to say that the next point Rico scores against me will be his first.

Album Covers of the Weeks: Whipping out the organ

Exactly what type of “organ” are we talking about here?

Oh, I see, the woman on the first album cover is staring at Eddie Layton’s organ. We’ve gotta admit, it’s quite impressive! And apparently he’s into bondage.

OK, enough of these organ double single entendres. Let’s switch to something wholesome, like piano.

There, that’s much better. No one could possibly find something puerile and vulgar about a Dick Hyman album, right?