Photo by Samir Shukla
Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band
Live in Charlotte, NC Time Warner Arena, Sat, April 19, 2014
Bruce Springsteen opened his show in Charlotte with the poignant “Iceman” (originally an outtake from Darkness on the Edge of Town) and proceeded to blow the roof off the arena for the next 3 hours and some 14 minutes. Lead guitarist Little Steven was somewhere filming TV shows, but Tom Morello (ex-Rage Against the Machine) and E Street Band veteran Nils Lofgren backed Springsteen up with their mighty guitars. Morello especially roused the crowd with his wizardry on “Ghost of Tom Joad.” Other rockers, like the Celtic-flavored “Death to my hometown” brought the crowd to its feet, fists in the air. Springsteen makes no qualms writing about things that he perceives are wrong or have gone wrong; he takes everyman words and phrases and turns them into songs about the longings, disillusionment, as well as joys of growing up and living in America. The Vietnam War has affected his writing since the mid-70s. His heart wrenching rendition of “The Wall,” a song written after he visited the Vietnam War memorial and is on his latest record High Hopes, was one of the most moving songs I’ve heard anyone perform. He referred to it as a “prayer for my country.” Springsteen is a street fighting man, deeply spiritual when singing about the country he loves, but not afraid to shed light on its failings, foibles, and missteps. A personal highlight of the night was a blazing rendition of “Wrecking Ball.” (Note to Miley: Listen to the Boss’s title track from his 2012 album and learn). Springsteen has always been fan friendly, as several audience members were invited on stage during various songs to dance and sing along. He covered songs handed to him on homemade signs by fans including, “Louie Louie,” “Brown Eyed Girl,” “Shout,” and “Mustang Sally.” Springsteen never left the stage during the concert, no breaks or handing vocal duties to someone else. He closed the show with another cover, the band Suicide’s 1979 song “Dream Baby Dream,” another track off High Hopes, a simple song, a chant almost, of hope.
Live in Charlotte, NC Time Warner Arena, Sat, April 19, 2014
Bruce Springsteen opened his show in Charlotte with the poignant “Iceman” (originally an outtake from Darkness on the Edge of Town) and proceeded to blow the roof off the arena for the next 3 hours and some 14 minutes. Lead guitarist Little Steven was somewhere filming TV shows, but Tom Morello (ex-Rage Against the Machine) and E Street Band veteran Nils Lofgren backed Springsteen up with their mighty guitars. Morello especially roused the crowd with his wizardry on “Ghost of Tom Joad.” Other rockers, like the Celtic-flavored “Death to my hometown” brought the crowd to its feet, fists in the air. Springsteen makes no qualms writing about things that he perceives are wrong or have gone wrong; he takes everyman words and phrases and turns them into songs about the longings, disillusionment, as well as joys of growing up and living in America. The Vietnam War has affected his writing since the mid-70s. His heart wrenching rendition of “The Wall,” a song written after he visited the Vietnam War memorial and is on his latest record High Hopes, was one of the most moving songs I’ve heard anyone perform. He referred to it as a “prayer for my country.” Springsteen is a street fighting man, deeply spiritual when singing about the country he loves, but not afraid to shed light on its failings, foibles, and missteps. A personal highlight of the night was a blazing rendition of “Wrecking Ball.” (Note to Miley: Listen to the Boss’s title track from his 2012 album and learn). Springsteen has always been fan friendly, as several audience members were invited on stage during various songs to dance and sing along. He covered songs handed to him on homemade signs by fans including, “Louie Louie,” “Brown Eyed Girl,” “Shout,” and “Mustang Sally.” Springsteen never left the stage during the concert, no breaks or handing vocal duties to someone else. He closed the show with another cover, the band Suicide’s 1979 song “Dream Baby Dream,” another track off High Hopes, a simple song, a chant almost, of hope.
Photo by Samir Shukla
Jake Shimabukuro at McGlohon Theater, Charlotte, Monday, February 3, 2014
The Ukulele is a corky little instrument. It’s a mini guitar with four strings. It’s small. Musicians with big fingers find it confounding. The Hawaiian instrument has had a, shall we say, less than stellar reputation for years. Bugs Bunny and Tiny Tim are among those giving it a cartoonish rep. Jake Shimabukuro is out to change that. He is a ukulele master. He strums and picks the strings of the humble uke so cleanly that one would think a classically trained guitarist is on the stage. During his performance, he made the ukulele sound like a rock guitar, flamenco guitar, and classical guitar. Some of the songs included originals like “Gentle Mandolin” and “Blue Roses Falling” along with his take on rock classics “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Bassist Rich Glass accompanied Shimabukuro on a few tracks, adding depth with his deep, resonant bass strings. But otherwise it was Shimabukoro playing solo and keeping the crowd mesmerized with his flawless playing. There were no pretentions and the neatly coordinated lights added a colorful mood to the evening.
The Ukulele is a corky little instrument. It’s a mini guitar with four strings. It’s small. Musicians with big fingers find it confounding. The Hawaiian instrument has had a, shall we say, less than stellar reputation for years. Bugs Bunny and Tiny Tim are among those giving it a cartoonish rep. Jake Shimabukuro is out to change that. He is a ukulele master. He strums and picks the strings of the humble uke so cleanly that one would think a classically trained guitarist is on the stage. During his performance, he made the ukulele sound like a rock guitar, flamenco guitar, and classical guitar. Some of the songs included originals like “Gentle Mandolin” and “Blue Roses Falling” along with his take on rock classics “Bohemian Rhapsody” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Bassist Rich Glass accompanied Shimabukuro on a few tracks, adding depth with his deep, resonant bass strings. But otherwise it was Shimabukoro playing solo and keeping the crowd mesmerized with his flawless playing. There were no pretentions and the neatly coordinated lights added a colorful mood to the evening.
Photo by Samir Shukla
Shankar Tucker Live at McKnight Hall, UNC Charlotte, November 22, 2013
Clarinetist Shankar Tucker is a meld of two worlds. His name reflects East (Shankar) and West (Tucker). Classically trained in concert clarinet at New England Conservatory, Tucker also studied Hindustani music extensively in Mumbai. So his music and compositions are a fusion of the two. Tucker performed live on November 22, 2013 at McGlohon Theater, UNC Charlotte as part of a fundraiser concert for the non-profit Association for India’s Development (AID). Four top-notch Indian singers, trio of women and a male singer, all well-versed in Indian music, floated their vocals above the music. A guitar player, bassist and drummer/tabla player held up the rhythm section. It was a trance-like show at times and a progressive rock outing during other songs. The show opened with a sinewy semi classical number and then the evening expanded into a freeform musical mélange of jazz, pop, folk, Indian pop, classical and more. The show was as much progressive rock as it was a blend of classical, both Indian and Western. Tucker has opened a crossroad where Indian and Western music meet. It’s an expansion of previous efforts by the likes of Zakir Hussain, Ravi Shankar, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and others. Listen to some works on Tucker’s popular YouTube channel called the ShrutiBox.
Clarinetist Shankar Tucker is a meld of two worlds. His name reflects East (Shankar) and West (Tucker). Classically trained in concert clarinet at New England Conservatory, Tucker also studied Hindustani music extensively in Mumbai. So his music and compositions are a fusion of the two. Tucker performed live on November 22, 2013 at McGlohon Theater, UNC Charlotte as part of a fundraiser concert for the non-profit Association for India’s Development (AID). Four top-notch Indian singers, trio of women and a male singer, all well-versed in Indian music, floated their vocals above the music. A guitar player, bassist and drummer/tabla player held up the rhythm section. It was a trance-like show at times and a progressive rock outing during other songs. The show opened with a sinewy semi classical number and then the evening expanded into a freeform musical mélange of jazz, pop, folk, Indian pop, classical and more. The show was as much progressive rock as it was a blend of classical, both Indian and Western. Tucker has opened a crossroad where Indian and Western music meet. It’s an expansion of previous efforts by the likes of Zakir Hussain, Ravi Shankar, Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and others. Listen to some works on Tucker’s popular YouTube channel called the ShrutiBox.