{"id":11994,"date":"2016-12-29T05:30:01","date_gmt":"2016-12-29T10:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=11994"},"modified":"2016-12-29T08:16:35","modified_gmt":"2016-12-29T13:16:35","slug":"best-music-of-2016-concerts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2016\/12\/29\/best-music-of-2016-concerts\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Music of 2016: Concerts"},"content":{"rendered":"

There’s a bit of overlap where my best albums and best concerts of 2016 are concerned. And there are some old favorites, too.<\/p>\n

John Mayall<\/b><\/a>
\nNeighborhood Theatre, Charlotte NC
\nMarch 11, 2016
\nIt was only around this time that I pivoted to writing as a full-time job (in other words, how I make my living). I interviewed Mayall twice around this time. Well into his 80s, he’s still a mightily impressive performer. Some months after this show, guitarist Rocky Athas<\/b> exited the band, which is now a three-piece featuring Mayall on guitar. Good for him, but I’m convinced that the four-man show I saw was superior.<\/p>\n

Steve Hackett<\/b><\/a>
\nSymphony Hall, Atlanta GA
\nApril 17, 2016
\nIn recent years, the former Genesis<\/b> guitarist has traded on the work he did back in the 1970s with that band. His concert \u2013 which featured Roine Stolt<\/b> on bass \u2013 was split into two parts: one featuring his post-Genesis work, the other on that early 1970s music. Both were exceedingly enjoyable.<\/p>\n

Brevard Sinfonia \u2013 Mozart and Wagner<\/b><\/a>
\nBrevard Music Center, Brevard NC
\nJuly 2, 2016
\nWith orchestra selections including Tristan und Isolde<\/em>, all performed in the wonderful semi-indoor venue on the campus of BMC, this was an extraordinary treat. I don’t take in a lot of classical music, but this experience reminded me that I should make an effort to do so more often.<\/p>\n

\"concert_brian_wilson\"<\/p>\n

Brian Wilson \u2013 Pet Sounds<\/i> Live Tour<\/b><\/a>
\nThomas Wolfe Auditorium, Asheville NC
\nAugust 18, 2016
\nEnough time has passed that I can admit the obvious: Brian Wilson can be a problematic interview subject! He’s often on autopilot for those things. And as a performer, he looks as if he’d sooner be anywhere else but onstage (he was the same way at soundcheck). But his music is transcendent, and his band is stunning. (And I’m deeply honored to have had the opportunity to interview and meet him, however briefly.) His presence at the concert didn’t make any kind of musical difference, but it allowed those of us who love his music to shower him with gratitude. Fair enough.<\/p>\n

\"concert_arw\"<\/p>\n

Anderson Rabin & Wakeman<\/b>
\nDurham Performing Arts Center, Durham NC
\nOctober 9, 2016
\nI had the pleasure of interviewing both Jon Anderson<\/a> and Rick Wakeman<\/a> ahead of this tour. I had seen Anderson with Yes way back in the 90125<\/em> era, but never Wakeman. A superb show that leveraged their deep catalog of work together.<\/p>\n

\"concert_fantastic_negrito\"<\/p>\n

Fantastic Negrito \u2013 The Last Days of Oakland<\/i> Tour<\/b><\/a>
\nAsheville Music Hall, Asheville NC
\nOctober 16, 2016
\nOne of the most fascinating people I’ve ever interviewed, and one hell of a concert. I’ll remember this one for a long time. My wife and I had driven home form visiting family; we had been in the car 12 hours and were exhausted, but we still went out to this late-night show. It was the right decision.<\/p>\n

\"concert_esperanza_spalding\"<\/p>\n

Esperanza Spalding \u2013 <\/b>Emily’s D+Evolution<\/b><\/i> Tour<\/b><\/a>
\nThe Orange Peel, Asheville NC
\nOctober 20, 2016
\nLike nothing I’ve ever heard nor seen, Spalding’s show was truly odd, truly original and truly awe-inspiring. I’m keen to find out how she follows up the stunning Emily’s D+Evolution<\/em>; I have every confidence that it will be remarkable.<\/p>\n

\"concert_mike_mills\"<\/p>\n

Mike Mills \u2013 <\/b>Concerto for Violin, Rock Band and String Orchestra<\/b><\/i>
\nNewberry Opera House, Newberry SC
\nOctober 25, 2016
\nIt’s always the quiet ones! Who could have ever expected that the R.E.M.<\/b> bassist would make a musical excursion into orchestral music? His Concerto<\/i> is one of the most effective hybrids of the two musical forms I’ve ever witnessed. And I saw Electric Light Orchestra<\/b> in concert!<\/p>\n

\"concert_sweet_claudette\"<\/p>\n

Sweet Claudette \u2013 Whiskey Drunk on Puppy Love<\/i> Album Release Party<\/b>
\nThe Mothlight, Asheville NC
\nNovember 4, 2016
\nThe only local act on my list, Sweet Claudette deserve big-time fame. They combine an Americana musical foundation with Motown\/Stax arrangements, and top-notch four-part vocal arrangements. I rarely interview four people at once, but I did in their case, and it made for one of my most enjoyable interviews.<\/p>\n

\"concert_steven_wilson\"<\/p>\n

Steven Wilson \u2013 <\/b>Hand. Cannot. Erase.<\/b><\/i> Tour<\/b><\/a>
\nCenter Stage Theatre, Atlanta GA
\nNovember 17, 2016
\nI’ve followed Wilson’s career for nearly a decade now. He never disappoints, and his most recent album may be his best yet. Wilson was kind enough to make himself available for a last-minute scheduled interview while he was on tour in Brisbane, Australia. When he came ’round my part of the world a couple of weeks later, I had to go. He and his band gave it all they had, playing nearly two and a half hours.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There’s a bit of overlap where my best albums and best concerts of 2016 are concerned. And there are some old favorites, too. John Mayall Neighborhood Theatre, Charlotte NC March […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11998,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,9,17,31,44,51,56,62,69],"tags":[2924,416,2869,2868,1186,2551,2922,1843,2047,2059,2876],"class_list":["post-11994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-americana","category-blues","category-classical","category-funk","category-live-shows","category-pop","category-prog","category-rawk","category-soul","tag-arw","tag-brian-wilson","tag-esperanza-spalding","tag-fantastic-negrito","tag-john-mayall","tag-jon-anderson","tag-mike-mills","tag-rick-wakeman","tag-steve-hackett","tag-steven-wilson","tag-sweet-claudette","cat-6-id","cat-9-id","cat-17-id","cat-31-id","cat-44-id","cat-51-id","cat-56-id","cat-62-id","cat-69-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11994"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12196,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11994\/revisions\/12196"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}