Weekend Picks: Yonder Mountain String Band, Richmond Bluegrass Festival, Goldrush & Godzilla, 3 Sheets to the Wind, Susan Greenbaum, Fear of Music

The Simpsons marathon has begun.



I've been watching since 5:45 now and this may be the greatest event in the history of mankind. I may try not to sleep this weekend. FXX. All day. All night. For the next 12 days. Soon it will be all yellow.



Onto this weekend's events. I may tear myself away from FXX for a while to see if the sun still shines and to drink beer other than Duff.



Perhaps I can go back to a time before the Simpsons. A time when men rocked from yachts, with copious chest hair and gold chains, and amazingly thick and luxourious facial hair. Perhaps those days of yesteryear would be best brought back by a band called Three Sheets to the Wind, the greatest (and to my knowledge, only) yacht rock tribute band in Richmond's history. They'll be at The National on Friday night. Doors will open at 7 and the show starts at 8. No opener. TSTW doesn't need an opener. And it's only $10 for tix in advance, $15 at the door. Here they are doing a Hall & Oates classic:

Like giant monsters? Me too. At the Science Museum of Virginia Friday evening, they combine kaiju and rock music for a showing of the ninth film in the Godzilla series, "Destroy All Monsters" with live music from Richmond's own Goldrush. Hopefully they are learning a cover of Blue Oyster Cult's "Godzilla". It's $5 to get in. Show starts at 8. Here's Goldrush performing the first song ever played at The Broadberry.

Saturday, it's the Richmond Bluegrass Festival at Hardywood Park Craft Brewery. Things get underway at 2 PM and will run until approximately 9 PM. It don't cost nothin' and it's open to all ages. Food trucks will be there with food. Hardywood will be there with beer. Bands will start with Sturgeon City at 2, then River City Band, Green Boys, Long Branch Ramblers and the Hot Seats close it out starting at 7:30. Here's the Hot Seats on the mean streets of Warrenton last week:



Susan Greenbaum and her band will be at Ashland Coffee & Tea Saturday night. It's $12 at the door and the show will start at 8. If you want to pre-party with Susan, she'll also be at The Sefton Coffee Co. at 28 N. 8th St Friday at 4 PM. Here she is a few months ago at AC&T doing "When Will You Learn?":



Still watching the Simpsons.



Tuesday night at Capital Ale House downtown, the River City Blues Society presents "The Golden State-Lone Star Revue" with Anson Funderburg and Little Charlie Baty with Mark Hummel and the Blues Survivors.Tix are $15 but you must get your tickets throught the River City Blues web site at RiverCityBlues.org. These guys have won or been nominated for a bunch of Grammys and WC Handy (Blues Music) awards between them. Here they are performing "I'm Gonna Ruin You" at BB King's in NYC a couple days ago:



Richmond's own Talking Heads tribute band, Fear of Music, will be at Cary Street Cafe on Tuesday night. Things go down at 10 PM and it's FREE to get in. Here's the Talking Heads doing "Big Business/I Zimbra":

Wednesday night, Yonder Mountain String Band bring their bluegrassy jam band musical stylings to The National. Tix are $25, doors open at 7, show starts at 8 with openers Henhouse Prowlers. If you can't make it to the show, you can catch a live stream of their show the next night in NC at 8 PM right HERE. Here's the YMSB covering an Ozzy tune. Wait. What?



Have a great weekend! Watch lots of Simpsons.

Tony Jordan

Sam Bush, Waybacks, Old School Freight Train, Big Head Todd

Thursday night, Sam Bush & The Waybacks bring their newgrass sounds to the Science Museum of VA. The show is a benefit called Music for Massey and will benefit the VCU Massey Cancer Center. Tix are $25, gates open at 6, show starts at 7, and this is a rain or shine event. Here's The Waybacks, Sam Bush & Emmylou Harris at this year's MerleFest doing the Stones' ""Wild Horses". The Waybacks, Sam Bush & John Cowan teamed up to perform the Stones' "Sticky Fingers" album in its entirity. The camera works is a little shaky but the sound is very good.


Indigo Girls will be out at Groovin' In The Garden on Thursday night. If you are going be sure to bring some people or pet food for the food drive for Central VA Food Bank (people food) and the Richmond Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (pet food). Doors open at 5:30, tix are $25.

Friday, you have two, count 'em two FREE shows to choose from, each with great bands. Friday Cheers at Brown's Island has Old School Freight Train with opener NO BS! Brass Band. Show starts at 6. Old School Freight Train certainly comes with some good recommendations. Here is what their press kit says: "Old School Freight Train, from Charlottesville combines thought provoking lyrics with captivating melodies, soulful vocals, virtuosic instrumentals and imaginative arrangements. Blending folk, jazz, soul, pop, bluegrass, Latin and Celtic, OSFT offers a unique musical experience leading the Boston Globe to call them "the Next Big Thing." Bluegrass innovator David Grisman says, "After forty years of recording acoustic music, it's not very often that a new band catches, and keeps, my attention. Old School Freight Train has done that and more."
"Shades of Jack Johnson, Ben Harper... even a kiss of Van Morrison... Old School Freight Train is off on a timeless new track blending roots and rock to create a sound that's all their own." - Tim Dickinson, National Affairs Correspondent, Rolling Stone "

Here they are performing "Memphis" in Vienna VA in March:


Innsbrook (or as I like to call it Snagletooth Pavilion) has a free show with Big Head Todd & The Monsters and Tonic. Gates open at 6, Tonic starts the show at 6:30. I haven't seen Big Head Todd in a long time but they were always good. Their biggest success came back in the early 90s with songs such as "Bittersweet", "Circle" and "Broken Hearted Savior". Tonic had a couple hits in the late 90s - early 00s with "If You Could Only See" and "Take Me As I Am". Here's Big Head Todd & The Monsters performing the blues classic "Hoochie Coochie Man" in April 2009:


In the battle of the FREE Friday live shows, the nod for me goes to Old School Freight Train, because the venue is nicer (river, skyline, breeze, geese for the kids vs. field in an office park) and because I haven't seen OSFT before. But you can't go wrong with either show. I'll see you on Brown's Island.

I'll leave you with Johnny Trash, er, Cash playing Nasty Dan with Oscar The Grouch on Sesame Street.


Have a great weekend!

Tony Jordan

moe., Dirty Dozen, Fireworks!, Adventure!, Robert Randolph & more

This great week of music starts out with one of my favorite bands from the last 10 years, moe. moe. will be playing at Innsbrook on Wednesday. Tickets are $20 at the gate for general admission and $35 for stupid Gold Circle. Gates are going to open at 5:30 with opener Disco Biscuits starting at 5:45. moe. come on at 7.



If you have ever been a fan of moe. or have ever wanted to check them out, you may want to go see them now. After this summer tour, they are going to take a break until some time in 2009. Hopefully, it will only be a one year break and not a break like The Police took (24 years). moe.'s albums are consistently high-rated because they know how to write a song as well as jam, with their latest "Sticks & Stones" getting 3 1/2 stars in Rolling Stone. They can go from blues to country to electronica to hard rock within the space of a few songs. The guitar duo of Chuck Garvey and Al Schnier was named as one of the 20 New Guitar Gods in Rolling Stone a couple years back.

Hope you can go. I'll be there. Let me know if you're going or look for me. I'll be the guy in the dark blue moe. shirt with the guitar-playing monkey on the front.

Thursday night, more great guitar as pedal steel expert Robert Randolph comes into The National with his Revival show. Show starts at 8 with opener Eli Paperboy Reed & The True Loves. Tickets are $23. The Revival show features his normal band, The Family Band, with some special guests. There will be some new stuff played, some old stuff played, and they'll interpret some gospel standards as Robert gets in touch with his gospel roots.

Saturday night at The National, more great guitar as long time Allman Brother Dickey Betts & Great Southern ramble into town. Show starts at 8 with opener The Dirty Truth and tickets are $22.

Friday at Friday Cheers on Brown's Island, its not great guitar but great....sousaphone? Its the raucous, joyous New Orleans funk of Dirty Dozen Brass Band. As always the show is FREE! and starts at 6:30 with opener Southside Funk. I'm hoping to hit this one up. Dirty Dozen takes the classic brass band line-up and updates it with funk, jazz and rock. Not only have they made great music on their own, but they have also recorded with Elvis Costello, Widespread Panic, Modest Mouse (who they are touring with this summer), Dr. John, Dizzy Gillespie, Branford Marsalis, Norah Jones, Black Crowes, and the aforementioned Robert Randolph. This show should be a lot of fun and if its hot and sticky it will be that much easier to pretend you are in New Orleans.

Also on Friday, new bluegrass band The Waybacks (who recently covered all of "Led Zeppelin II" at Merlefest) will be playing a benefit for the VCU Massey Cancer Center at the Science Museum of VA (where I took Zach to see "Kung Fu Panda" on the IMAX last weekend. Good flick for kids and adults alike.). Music begins at 7 with opener Danny Barnes and tix are $20.

As if that weren't enough on Friday, legendary blues man Taj Mahal plays at Toad's Place. Doors open at 7:30 and tix are $25 for general admission, $37.50 for (blah!) Gold Circle.

When you aren't out seeing live music live, you can tune into the Bonnaroo webcast at the AT&T Blue Room this weekend. The exact schedule hasn't been announced yet, but they will be starting the webcast at 1:30 PM on Friday. At Bonnaroo this year is Pearl Jam, Metallica, Jack Johnson (why is this guy headlining all these festivals this year? His music is pleasant but kind of dull and I can't see him keeping 50,000 people enraptured.), Widespread Panic, Kanye West, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Phil Lesh & Friends, My Morning Jacket, The Raconteurs, Willie Nelson, Death Cab for Cutie, and much much more.

On Saturday at Brown's Island will be the FREE James River Adventure Games featuring athletes competing in seven different outdoor sports events and tons of stuff to see and do. Events start at 9 AM and go until 3:30. Then at 6:30 PM there is a free concert with The Coal Men & DJ Williams Projekt and then at 9:30, FIREWORKS! We went to this fireworks display a couple years ago and it was excellent.

Why Richmond doesn't do fireworks on the James for July 4th is a mystery to me. It would draw people to the riverside, downtown and to Brown's Island from both side of the river and provide a true community event. Instead, you either have to pay for the Braves game or brave the side streets and traffic surrounding the Diamond (though I guess we won't have to worry about that after this year) or get to the Carillon by about 6 PM because you can't see those fireworks unless you are right there. With the Braves leaving, this would be an excellent time to start a new Richmond tradition. Richmond, are you listening.

Anyway, put some music into your life this weekend either live or on the web. I hope to see you at either moe., Friday Cheers, the Adventure Games or the fireworks this weekend.

Tony Jordan