The Third Mind, The Troubadour, Los Angeles

February 2, 2024   This post also appears in MusicFestNews. Consider my Third Mind officially blown. While I’ve covered Dave Alvin for many, many years, when the first Third Mind album dropped in 2020, it was a revelation. Those…

Jim Irsay Collection, Shrine Auditorium

January 17,  2024   This post also appears in MusicFestNews.com. To collect is to “bring or gather together”. When it comes to the Jim Irsay Collection it is truly a gathering, together. Mr. Irsay the billionaire Indianapolis…
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A Year In Review Like No Other, Really

It was a classic July evening in L.A. as I rolled my camera case the mile or so up to the Greek Theatre from Los Feliz Boulevard. I was excited to be covering one of Neil Young’s two shows at the Greek as part of a brief West Coast solo tour…
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Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, Greek Theatre

October 18, 2023 Those who know me, know there are a few particular bands for which I have deep loyalty. Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, aka “JRAD", is at a high elevation on that list. I may have been a little late to this party some years…
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Neil Young’s Solo Tour Finds the Eye of the Hurricane

This post also appears in MusicFestNews.com July 14, 2023 It’s good to remind ourselves we live in a world where Neil Young thrives. At 77 it’s not a matter of raging into that good night, he’s never gone quietly and never will,…
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THROUGH THE LENS: Everything Everywhere All at Once for Roots Music Fans at the 2023 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

May 17, 2023 I'm still drying out from the seven days of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in at least a few ways.  The 2023 edition really is best described as everything, everywhere, all at once for those who live for live…
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Joni, Jazz Fest and the Continuing Journey – The Year in Review

December 20, 2022 What a difference a year makes, right? Some 12 months ago I wrote I don’t know jack and I still stand by that. Would stadium concerts rule (they did)? Would the world flock to music festivals in huge numbers (they did)?…
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THROUGH THE LENS: Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, and More 2022 Newport Folk Festival Highlights

August 2, 2022 I still have not completely absorbed the remarkable three days of the 2022 Newport Folk Festival that brought Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell back to the stage. It had been 8,660 days since Joni Mitchell last performed with guitar…
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Through the Lens: The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Returns In All of Its One-of-a-Kind Splendor

  May 18, 2022 After three years of a pandemic pause in an ever wobbly world, the 51st New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival returned, and in a big way. Around 475,000 attended the seven days of  music, culture, food and art…
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Reflections on a year of music photography like no other

There is no rewind to this year, nor any fast forward. We are stuck in uncertainty. A year ago, the prospect of live music coming back, let alone shows of major touring scale, was the stuff of pure fantasy in a locked down world. Now, after…