Concert Review: Haley and Black Widows at the Dakota Jazz Club

Black Widows at the Dakota Jazz Club, November 20, 2024. 

Haley, with Corinne at the Dakota Jazz Club, November 20, 2024.

My wife and I with Black Widows, what a fun evening!

Last week I saw Haley and Black Widows play at the Dakota Jazz Club in Minneapolis. It was an awesome show, full of good, vibrant energy. Mayda also sat in with Black Widows on a couple of songs, and she rocks, she played blistering guitar solos that fit well with Black Widows’ sound.  

Black Widows played an instrumental set, showing off the prowess of Corinne Caouette on guitar, Pamela Laizure on bass, and Madalyn Rowell on drums. While I missed hearing Corinne and Pamela’s vocals, it was still a very fun set, showing off Black Widows’ fun mix of surf and punk. I don’t know all of the songs that they played, but they did “Dance with the Devil,” one of my favorites of their instrumental songs. Corinne showed off her mastery of guitar sounds and tones, shifting easily from surf rock reverb to punk rock distortion, ably assisted by her guitar pedals.  

Haley joined Black Widows for their last song, a version of Lesley Gore’s “You Don’t Own Me.” It was lovely, and I would love to hear Black Widows do a full vocal version of this early feminist anthem.  

Haley has a beautiful voice, and she played a largely solo set, accompanying herself on piano and electric guitar. Haley’s voice has a wonderfully clear tone, with a hint of country shadings to it. Haley was joined by Corinne for a couple of songs at the end of her set, and they sounded great together. I’ve known of Haley’s music for a long time, but I think this was the first time I’ve ever seen her live. From what Haley said, it sounds like this will be her last live show for a while, as she is putting more of her time and focus on a career in education. I’m very glad that I was able to see Haley live, better late than never! And it’s always a treat to see a concert in the intimate setting of the Dakota, with its fantastic acoustics.  

Haley started her set by reading a short story she had written. It was a fun and engaging way to start her set, and it really drew me in. She said she’s working on a book of her writings, which I would eagerly anticipate. One of my favorite songs that Haley sang was “Good Things,” a Sleater-Kinney song that is a lovely fit for Haley’s voice. “Good Things” was featured on Haley’s most recent album, 2023’s Hunca Munca.   

Haley’s encore was an improvised song, which I’ll call “Fuck Your Tesla,” after a line that was repeated several times during the song. It was an awesome song, full of the harsh energy and indignation that many of us are feeling right now. The song felt very cathartic, and the audience responded strongly to it. I’ll be fascinated to see what Haley’s next steps are going to be in the future. It was an excellent show, and I’m looking forward to seeing Black Widows again soon.  

At the merch table, my wife and I got our copy of Hunca Munca signed, and I got my Black Widows CD’s signed as well. And we discovered that Pamela worked at my wife’s birthday party two nights before! It’s always a delight to chat with such nice people.

Concert Review: Michael Feinstein at the Dakota Jazz Club

 

Michael Feinstein in concert at the Dakota Jazz Club, Minneapolis, April 3, 2022. You can also see pianist Tedd Firth and drummer Mark McLean. (Photo by Mark C. Taylor)

One of my favorite performers, Michael Feinstein, came to the Dakota Jazz Club over the weekend. I’ve been a fan of Feinstein’s since I was a little kid. I was entranced by Feinstein’s 1989 album The M.G.M. Album, on which he sang songs like “It’s a Most Unusual Day,” “If I Only Had a Brain,” and my favorite song when the album was released, “Singing in the Rain.” Yes, I was a strange 9-year-old. But Michael Feinstein became the gateway to the Great American Songbook for me, and that led to discovering singers like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin.

Wikipedia tells me that Michael Feinstein is 65 years old, but my eyeballs would swear that can’t be true. Feinstein has always projected a boyish exuberance, and that remains true in 2022. His vocals have gotten better and better over the years, and it’s great fun to see him with just a trio of Tedd Firth on piano, Mark McLean on drums, and an excellent bassist whose name I didn’t write down and can’t find online.

Feinstein’s voice is always warm and inviting, which serves him well on up-tempo material, and over the years he’s added a tenderness that makes him a very affecting ballad singer as well. His version of “The Time Has Come,” a Marshall Barer song about gay rights, was especially affecting.

The concert started with a rush, as Feinstein charged into a bright and snappy rendition of “Hello, Young Lovers,” which brought to mind Bobby Darin’s version. Darin’s version was recorded in the 1960’s, but went unreleased until the late 1990’s, so it might be unlikely that Feinstein was influenced by Darin’s version, but then again, Feinstein’s knowledge of music is encyclopedic, so it’s still possible. “Hello, Young Lovers” was combined in a medley with “It’s All Right with Me,” by Cole Porter, from the musical Can-Can, and “Come Back to Me,” from On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. It was a fun and energizing way to start the evening.

Another highlight was Feinstein’s rendition of “You and Me Against the World,” a hit for Helen Reddy, which Michael used as an example of how the Great American Songbook is like an expanding and evolving museum of the best of American culture. As Feinstein put it, “If a song transcends the time and place in which it was written, it becomes part of the Songbook.”

Feinstein also sang the 1950’s classic, “You Belong to Me,” originally a hit for Jo Stafford, although my favorite version is Dean Martin’s. Before he sang Cole Porter’s “Just One of Those Things,” Feinstein reminded the audience that Frank Sinatra had once called the song “the saddest song I ever heard.” And that’s really something, coming from a man who recorded entire albums made up of nothing but sad songs! (See In the Wee Small Hours, Frank Sinatra Sings for Only the Lonely, etc.) I’ve always wondered if Frank had his relationship with Ava Gardner in mind when he said that about “Just One of Those Things,” that theirs was a “love affair that was too hot not to cool down.”

In honor of Doris Day’s 100^th birthday, which was Sunday, April 3^rd, Feinstein sang “Fools Rush In,” which Day recorded for her 1962 album Duet, with the pianist Andre Previn. Day had told Feinstein that album was her own personal favorite among her recordings. Feinstein sang “The Trolley Song,” from Meet Me in St. Louis, and the exuberant spirit of the song fits perfectly with Feinstein’s own musical personality. During the requests part of the show, Feinstein started with “Pure Imagination,” from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which is one of my wife’s favorite songs. My wife chided me for not shouting out “Rhode Island is Famous for You” during the requests, as it’s one of my own favorite tunes of Feinstein’s that I remember from my childhood, from his 1987 album Live at the Algonquin.

If you love the Great American Songbook, or simply great music in general, go see Michael Feinstein if you have the chance. He’s sure to put a smile on your face.

Concert Review: Peter Asher at the Dakota Jazz Club: "A Musical Memoir of the 1960's and Beyond"

Peter Asher at the Dakota Jazz Club, Minneapolis, January 14, 2020. (Photo taken by my better half.)

Peter Asher and Gordon Waller, 1960's.

Last week my wife and I saw Peter Asher at the Dakota Jazz Club in Minneapolis. He was performing his show, “A Musical Memoir of the 60’s and Beyond.” I’ve seen Asher perform this show twice before, once in 2012 and again in 2017. I also saw Asher perform at the Dakota with Albert Lee last summer. (However, I missed seeing him and Lee open for Leo Kottke at the Guthrie in November.) 

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Peter Asher, I’ll give you a brief rundown on his musical career. Asher was part of a successful pop duo, Peter & Gordon, with his schoolmate Gordon Waller. Peter & Gordon scored 10 Top 40 singles in the US, including the number one smash “A World Without Love,” and the top ten hits “I Go to Pieces” and “Lady Godiva.” After Peter & Gordon split up, Asher moved into record production, becoming head of A&R at the Beatles’ Apple Records. Asher discovered a talented young American singer/songwriter. Asher became this guy’s manager and produced his first album for Apple Records. His name? James Taylor. Asher also managed Linda Ronstadt, and has been one of the most in-demand record producers since the 1970’s. He has twice won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year. 

Asher may not be a household name himself, but he has connections with anyone who’s anyone in music. In his show, he tells his life story, and how he went from child actor to pop star to mega-producer. Peter & Gordon mixed many different musical influences, and they were originally envisioned as a sort of folk duo. But while recording their first album, they came in with “A World Without Love,” a Lennon/McCartney song that the Beatles weren’t going to record. How did this unknown vocal duo score such a coup? Well, Paul McCartney, the song’s author, happened to be dating Jane Asher, an up-and-coming young actress who happened to be Peter’s sister. Asher had heard McCartney play the song and asked him if he and Gordon could record it. McCartney said sure, and after some badgering by Asher, finished off the bridge of the song “in something like seven minutes,” according to Asher. “A World Without Love” went to Number One in both the UK and the US, and it was the first British Invasion single by a group other than the Beatles to hit the top spot in the US. 

Asher was involved in many other Beatle-related adventures during the 1960’s, including the Indica bookstore and art gallery. Asher helped organize a show at the Indica art gallery in November of 1966. It was a show by a Japanese American artist named Yoko Ono. And, of course, it was at a party for the opening of this exhibit that Yoko met a certain Beatle named John. 

If you’ve listened to Asher’s radio show From Me to You, on the Beatles’ Sirius XM channel, you know that Peter Asher is a highly engaging storyteller, and his tales are full of British self-deprecating humor. I’ve listened to Asher’s show a lot, partly because I’m a huge Beatles fan, and because my 5-year-old son only wants to listen to the Beatles every time he’s in the car. Asher even addresses his physical appearance in the 1960’s being an influence on Austin Powers’ signature look. (Red hair, thick Buddy Holly glasses, bad teeth.) I also appreciated that at the end of the show Asher made a plug for contemporary music—he basically said, there’s still lots of good music being made today. I appreciated hearing that coming from a 75-year-old who has been in the music industry since 1964. The point of his show isn’t to tell us about how wonderful everything was back in the day, and how everything now is just crap. 

On a slight digression, I think it’s amazing how much the music and culture of the 1960’s is still with us today, 50 years after that decade ended. Sure, that’s partly due to the continuing influence of the Baby Boomer generation on pop culture. But think about how prevalent the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan, to name just three artists, are in pop culture today. Now think about going back 50 years into the past, and if the same thing were happening then. It would be as if the musical stars of the 1910’s were still household names in the 1960’s. That wasn’t the case. It’s remarkable that this music has lasted for so long. Obviously, it’s a testament to the quality of that music, but I think it’s fascinating how this music and culture has survived and thrived through the decades. 

Back to the show! Asher performed with Jeff Alan Ross on piano and Jennifer Jo Oberle on bass guitar. They did a great job of making the songs sound good. I didn’t miss not having drums at all. Ross, a former touring member of Badfinger, got a solo spot when he sang the group’s lovely song “Day After Day.” Oberle soloed on “Blue Bayou,” the Roy Orbison song that Linda Ronstadt had a big hit with, and she did a great job, offering up a soulful vocal. 

If you go see Peter Asher, be warned that there’s a lot of talking in between the songs, and he doesn’t really play that many songs during the evening. Still, you’ll get to hear some great Peter & Gordon songs and some fantastic stories. The show we saw was the last one of the tour, and Asher held court for about 2 ½ hours!