Reid Paley opening

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Reid Paley is opeing for the Pixies at, at least, two of their six NYC shows in December. Who exactly is Reid Paley and what is he doing opening for the Pixies?

According to wayne-wise.com:

Reid Paley is something of a legend in the Pittsburgh punk scene. In the 1980?s he fronted a band called The Five. After relocating to Boston, The Five found themselves in a burgeoning Alternative music scene. Bands like The Pixies and Throwing Muses used to open for them.

The Seattle Weekly:

Right now, my favorite drinking album is Revival (on emusic), the second full-length by Reid Paley. The gruff Brooklyn bourbon-drinker sounds far from shocked by this disclosure.

This self-described “grizzled old gunslinger” started his career in Pittsburgh in the early ’80s. He relocated to Boston, where his old band the Five shared bills with the Pixies; it was his buddy Frank Black who finally kicked Paley’s ass back into the saddle after a long sabbatical

Frank Black, who produced Paley’s first solo album, weighs in on the subject:

Years ago Reid Paley and I were neighbors, both struggling but not starving musicians (let me say straight out Reid is a fine cook) in a city called Boston.

But is Reid as good a musician as he is a cook?
Not according to triptronix.net (who saw Reid open for Frank Black):

they were better than the losers of the second opening band, the Reid Paley Trio. We at Bleahh respect Frank Black and believe him when he says that Reid Paley is a great guy. And he may be a great performer, but if so he sent his understudy last night, who is not a great performer. His understudy is a guy who doesn?t know when to shut up between songs, who?s been on the road too long acting the Brooklyn Guy and forgets when he plays Brooklyn that people don?t necessarily dig the caricature

Ouch. Luckily, other critics have much nicer things to say about him. You can read those reviews, listen to samples, and buy his albums at CD Baby, and make sure to catch him live at Hammerstein Ballroom this December.

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