A half-dozen cool things in music, from two points of view:
6 cool things in music this week: Tyler Childers, Lucinda Williams and Tom Waits
Shoutouts, too, to Mary Jane Alm and the Hilde and Bluestem amphitheaters.
August 4, 2023 at 11:30AM
Jeff Moravec of Brooklyn Park:
1 Lucinda Williams, the Dakota. You're unlikely to see a contrast as stunning as that between Rickie Lee Jones' diva turn (and her disrespect of the audience) in May at the Dakota and the recent courageous and musically rewarding shows by stroke survivor Williams and her band. Instead of resting at home, she has a fine new album and an ambitious road schedule.
2 Tom Waits, "Closing Time." We'll all be tired of 50th anniversary album reissues before long, especially when they're like this. Anti- Records squeezed two LPs from this 1973 debut without adding a single bonus cut. It's one of Waits' best, but I'm too old to be turning the record over every 11 minutes.
3 Bluestem Amphitheater, Moorhead. I mourn the demise of Music in the Zoo, and while our local outdoor music scene looks promising in the long run, it's easy to take a short drive to a great venue in the Fargo/Moorhead area. The summer schedule concludes Sept. 10 with Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit.
Jon Bream, Star Tribune critic:
1 Tyler Childers, "In Your Love" video. The cult-loved country singer, the son of a Kentucky coal miner, has released a new love song from his upcoming album "Rustin' in the Rain." The song's video, a collaboration with Kentucky poet laureate Silas House, portrays a 1950s gay romance between two coal miners who escape the violent repudiation of Appalachia by moving to a farm, where one of the men eventually dies. Inspired by Childers' gay first cousin, this is a touching love story and courageously unconventional country video.
2 Mary Jane Alm Jubilee, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres. The award-winning Minnesota singer celebrated 50 years of performing by doing mostly original material. Even though many of her songs were sad ones, there was a thread of joy throughout Alm's performance. None greater than when her son Sam Frederick, 28, a guitar savant, cut loose with fast yet musical solos in two guest slots. Talk about proud Mary Jane.
3 Hilde Performance Center. This amphitheater in a lush, naturally sloping city park in Plymouth is an underutilized gem. On a beautiful Saturday night, anodyne popster Andy Grammer connected with 4,500 fans (including kids with parents). On Saturday, Indigo Girls take to the Hilde. More Hilde concerts, please.
to contribute: popmusic@startribune.com
Critics’ picks for entertainment in the week ahead.
