Levon Helm at Summerstage in Central Park (more by Chris La Putt)

The Band's Levon Helm will step outside of his weekly Midnight Ramble for a show at Wellmont Theatre on February 10th with Peter Wolf. Tickets are currently on AMEX presale and go on regular sale Friday 11/18 at noon. The show, along with a pair of dates that he has lined up at Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston, NY (11/18 and 5/25) are his only non-Midnight Ramble dates announced thus far. Full tour schedule is below.

Meanwhile, the Midnight Ramble continues this weekend with special guest Hook Herrera and on 12/3 Helm will welcome Jimmy Vivino (of Conan's Basic Cable band) and Dawes. Tickets for that show, and all others are still available (either seated or Standing Room Only).

Dawes will also head down to NYC & NJ that same week. Both Maxwell's shows, which Robert Ellis is opening, are now sold out though. You can catch Robert Ellis though during a tour with John Doe that hits City Winery on December 4th. For the X man, it's one of many gigs that will be keeping him busy through New Year's Eve.

All Levon and Dawes and Robert Ellis and X dates and a video below...

Continue reading "Levon Helm, Dawes, Robert Ellis & John Doe shows (dates)"

Peter Wolf will play a Brooklyn show at The Bell House on October 28 in addition to the the previosuly mentioned Manhattan and CT shows he has scheduled. According to The Bell House's website, the show will be a special seated show. Tickets are on sale now for that, and for his Bowery Ballroom show happening two days earlier (10/26).

Still no full Peter Wolf tour to announce, but as mentioned, his band the J. Geils Band also play August 27 at Jones Beach and August 28 at PNC Bank Arts Center as part of Rib Rock Fest. Both shows are with blues legend B.B. King The 8/27 show also includes Buddy Guy and others. The 8/28 PNC Bank Arts Center includes Gary Clarke Jr. and others. Tickets are on sale for both shows.

Continue reading "Peter Wolf playing Brooklyn, BB King playing w/ J. Geils Band"

Peter Wolf @ Highline Ballroom in 2010 (more by Jacob Blickenstaff)

J. Geils Band frontman Peter Wolf, who we last saw when he was a guest of Yo La Tengo at Maxwell's for Hanukkah, went on a short tour this past March that never hit NYC. It looks like he'll head out on another one this October that does include a NYC show happening on October 26 at Bowery Ballroom. Tickets go on sale Friday (7/29) at noon. He also plays CT on 10/30. More dates TBA?

Peter will also play as part of the J. Geils Band on their tour this August which includes a show on August 27 at Jones Beach. Tickets for that show are on sale now. All dates below...

Continue reading "Peter Wolf schedules shows, J. Geils Band too (dates)"

photos by Andrew St. Clair

Peter Wolf & Ira

As someone promised, Syl Johnson was the opener for Yo La Tengo at Maxwell's on Saturday night (12/4). Syl was also in town to play Southpaw on Friday which was the night Jeff Tweedy opened for Yo La Tengo at Maxwell's. Saturday night's comedian was 'Rabbi Attitude' aka Jon Glaser. The special guests were Peter Wolf and Ira's mom who made an appearance in 2008 as well. The mixtape was by Numero Group. Full setlist and more pictures from the fourth night of Hanukkah, below...

Continue reading "Yo La Tengo, Syl Johnson, Jon Glaser, Peter Wolf & Ira's Mom @ Maxwell's (Hanukkah night 4 pics & setlist)"

photos by Jacob Blickenstaff

Betty LaVette

""How good was that!" an enthusiastic audience member yelled after the ever-soulful Bettye LaVette wrapped up her heartfelt version of George Harrison's "Isn't it a Pity" on Wednesday, May 26, 2010, at the Highline Ballroom. The petite Detroit native was in top form, putting on a show that was, truthfully, too powerful for the venue. The Highline is an intimate venue with great seating, but it seemed most of the crowd was unprepared for the singing chops that Ms. LaVette had to offer. They don't make song stylists like her anymore, so most of the audience members had to appreciate how lucky they were to witness her rich, artful performance." [Examiner]

Bettye performed her entire new covers album at the show.

Peter Wolf

"Peter Wolf took the stage at 10 P.M. and launched into a rocking set, that at this point in the evening, was most needed. The set included songs from his fantastic new record, mixed with older solo stuff and of course, some J. Geils gems. His band, with Duke Levine on guitars and the absolute monster Marty Richards on drums, turned this night into the houseparty the crowd was hoping for." [Burning Wood]

Peter Wolf continues his tour in support of his new album TONIGHT (5/28) at The Bell House in Brooklyn (no Bettye on that show). More pictures and a bunch of videos from Highline Ballroom below...

Continue reading "Bettye LaVette & Peter Wolf @ Highline Ballroom - pics, video"

DOWNLOAD: Bettye Lavette - Salt of the Earth (MP3)

"Wolf was born in the Bronx, New York. He planned a career as an artist, but he got a job in the late 1960s as a disc jockey on then-cutting edge Boston FM radio station WBCN and began exploring his interest in blues and rhythm and blues music, giving himself the nickname "the Wolfa Goofa", sometimes expanded to "the Wolfa Goofa with the Green Teeth" (as mentioned in the intro to "Must of Got Lost" on the Blow Your Face Out album). Later as solo artist he called himself Woofa Goofa Mama Toofa. He formed a group called the Hallucinations who performed with The Velvet Underground, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Van Morrison, John Lee Hooker, and Sun Ra. He then saw the J. Geils Blues Band in concert and quickly joined. He was the vocalist and frontman, and often acted as a sort of manager. Wolf was known for his charismatic stage antics of fast-talking quips and "pole-vaulting" with the miorophone stand. He and keyboard player Seth Justman were responsible for most of the songwriting. Creative differences followed their Freeze-Frame album, causing the J. Geils Band and Peter Wolf to part ways in 1983." [Wikipedia]

As mentioned in today's What's Going On post, J Geils Band singer Peter Wolf was added at some point to the Bettye LaVette show tonight at Highline Ballroom (no more advance tickets obviously, but they venue writes that standing room tickets will be available at the door). At the gig, Bettye will perform songs from her new CD, Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook, out now (get the Stones cover above). Peter Wolf co-headlines and will play second.

If you miss it, Peter has another NYC gig happening this Friday, May 28th at the Bell House with Kenny White. Tickets are still on sale. Both shows are part of a tour he's been on for most of May and which ends May 30th in Virginia.

Peter Wolf (not to be confused with Peter Wolf Crier) is touring because he has a new album, Midnight Souvenirs, which came out in April on Verve/UMe and has guest spots by Merle Haggard, Shelby Lynne and Neko Case.

"Kicking off with the hook-heavy "Tragedy", Wolf and Lynne trade vocals that plant one foot in the soul firmament and the other in country, crafting a catchy tune that cleverly melds the two styles. Case elicits chills when her beautiful, expressive voice transforms "The Green Fields of Summer" from a slow, fiddle-driven ballad featuring Wolf to what sounds like a long-lost folk classic featuring a lush string arrangement." [PopMatters]

Wolf will perform with the J. Geils Band again, at a show with Aerosmith at Fenway this August. Videos of Wolf with the band and solo, and all tour dates, are below...

Continue reading "Peter Wolf released an album (w/ guests Neko Case & others), playing w/ Bettye Lavette & in Brooklyn Friday"

Bruce Springsteen & Tom Morello @ MSG (BMoreSweet)

U2 closed the second night of the MSG Rock & Roll Hall of Fame shows on October 30th. At the first (10/29), it was Bruce Springsteen & Billy Joel (before one big group sing on Jackie Wilson's "Higher and Higher")...

After "Badlands" much of the drained audience began leaving and then rushed back to their seats when Billy Joel sat down at the piano and launched into "You May Be Right," "Only The Good Die Young" and "New York State Of Mind." (The pair were uniting the kindred spirits of New Jersey and Long Island, Springsteen explained.) "Higher and Higher" wrapped up the night. The official set list had the show ending at 11:36:55 (yes, they thought they had it down to the exact second), but the final notes rang out at 1:31 a.m. Six straight hours of music, and that was just the first of two nights. [Rolling Stone]

Bruce was actually there both nights (one of many possibly "filling in" for Eric Clapton, who canceled last minute on the second). Those in attendence on the 30th got to see U2, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith sing together on "Because the Night." (And U2 + Mick Jagger (another unannounced guest) + Fergie + Will.i.am sing "Gimme Shelter"...). Ray Davies, Lou Reed, and Ozzy Osbourne all performed with Metallica. Many played with Stevie Wonder. Full setlists below.

HBO will be airing four hours of highlights on Thanksgiving weekend.
(November 29th at 8PM ET).

Bruce's current tour wraps up November 22nd in Buffalo. He was at Giants Stadium earlier this fall, playing the last concerts ever there. U2 also played the venue for two nights in September, and will be back in Jersey in 2010 as part of their just-announced tour.

Set lists for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame shows are below...

Continue reading "Rock & Roll Hall of Fame hosted 2 very long shows @ MSG (setlists), will air on HBO Thanksgiving weekend"