Last night the Dave Rawlings Machine sold out the Abbey Pub in Chicago. Tonight they play the High Noon Saloon behind one of the best albums to arrive in the second half of 2009. If you are a regular reader of this site and have not yet picked up a copy of A Friend of a Friend, make it a priority.

Rawlings musical trajectory is on highlighted by his contributions and influence as a behind the scenes man to some of today’s greatest songwriters including Ryan Adams, Bright Eyes, and Gillian Welch. He also produced my favorite Old Crow Medicine Show album, Big Iron World.

The aforementioned release, A Friend of a Friend, find Rawlings personalizing his To Be Young (Is To Be Sad, Is To Be High),” (which previously appeared on Ryan Adams’ Heartbreaker), teasing Neil Young’s “Cortez The Killer,” and dusts off a rendition of “Monkey And The Engineer,” which I first came to know via the Grateful Dead’s take on the traditional number. In an album that is loaded front-to-back with greatness, it’s the opening tune, “Ruby” that stands out amongst the diamond filled release. It’s definitely one of the best songs of this year and I’m looking forward to hearing it live tonight in Madison.

Buy: Dave Rawlings Machine – A Friend of a Friend
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Myspace: Dave Rawlings Machine

OK, so this sounds amazing. Old Crow Medicine Show, David Rawlings Machine (with Gillian Welch), The Felice Brothers, and Justin Townes Earle have all joined forces for The Big Surprise Tour. This is an event worth traveling for as far as I’m concerned.

Here’s the skinny: “Shows will be composed of two 90-minute sets broken up by an intermission. In a free form ramshackle flow the bands and artists will share the stage, taking part in each other’s songs, resurrecting old standards, and playing newly written collaborative material as they go. Each evening is sure to be a unique experience as they all put their many combined years of musicianship and knowledge of song-craft and American music into play for these sessions.”

I think a road trip may be in order…

August Tour Dates:

04 – Hampton Beach, NH @ Casino Ballroom
05 – Boston, MA @ House Of Blues
06 – New York, NY @ Beacon Theatre
07 – Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
09 – Charlottesville, VA @ Charlottesville Pavilion
10 – Cary, NC @ Koka Booth Amphitheatre
12 – Louisville, KY @ Waterfront Park
13 – Nashville, TN @ Riverfront Park
14 – Knoxville, TN @ World’s Fair Park

Buy: Old Crow Medicince Show

Myspace: Old Crow Medicine Show
MP3: Old Crow Medicine Show – “Caroline”

I’ve been on a diet of The Band, including watching The Last Waltz and planning a possible trek to the state of New York for one of Levon Helm’s legendary Midnight Ramble’s. Imagine my elation when a YouTube binge led to the above collaboration of Gillian Welch + Old Crow Medicine Show on The Band’s “The Weight.”

Myspace: Gillian Welch
Myspace: Old Crow Medicine Show

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Unrelated:

Milwaukee Concert Announcement: 4/24 – M. Ward – Pabst Theater, Milwaukee
Aquarium Drunkard: Jim White :: A Funny Little Cross to Bear
Video: Fever Ray – “When I Grow Up”

Madison’s own Pale Young Gentlemen are reviewed on Pitchfork today (7.3): “Despite massive turnover amidst its ranks and less than a year removed from Pale Young Gentlemen, what distinguishes Black Forest is the patience of confident survivors, not just of their first tour, but the easy comparisons to more maudlin and forthright old world-influenced acts like Beirut.”

Madison Concert Announcement: WUD Music Presents: Mason Jennings w/ Special Guest on Friday, April 17th at the Majestic Theatre.

Tickets: $15 Students / $20 Public ($2 increase d.o.s.)
On Sale: Friday, February 20th @ Noon
Student Tickets available at the Memorial Union Box Office
Public Tickets available at the Memorial Union Box Office and all Majestic Theatre outlets

There are plenty of great Ryan Adams live recordings to mine in your spare time. I can kill hours perusing both the depths of YouTube and the Live Music Archive in search of my Ryan Adams fix. This morning I’ll start you off with one of my favorite songs, penned by Gram Parsons, made famous by its countless adaptations by others since his early and unfortunate exit.

Below, you’ll find Ryan Adams with Emmylou Harris for a gorgeous video version of the song only to be followed (and possibly topped) with another Ryan take on the classic enhanced by the lovely Gillian Welch.

Ryan Adams & Emmylou Harris :: “Return of the Grievous Angel”

MP3: Ryan Adams (with Gillian Welch) – “Return Of The Grievous Angel” (Nashville, 1999)

Find more MP3′s at The Hype Machine or buy stuff from Strictly Discs | eMusic

Austin City Limits 2008 is in the bag. It gave us some good times, a sunburn, and some new favorites to take back home. The final day of the festival brought a lot of favorites that have alluded me for some time. The highlight of the day was Band of Horses who completely owned their audience for an hour. Too bad the Foo Fighters didn’t wait for them to finish their set before launching into their opening number.

One of the best new discoveries of the entire festival was Austin native Scott Biram. Biram played a gritty, foot-stomping, alcohol fueled set, spiked with a bit of gospel for a Sunday afternoon. I stuck around after his set for Priscilla Ahn, who wasn’t on the schedule, but whose Blue Note debut, A Good Day, has gotten some play and whose Take Away Shows were pretty nice as well.

Gillian Welch brought along the legendary David Rawlings for her entire set and later brought out Alison Krauss for a lovely harmonious take on “Don’t Leave Nobody But The Baby.” Neko Case kept the vibe going, mixing new material with deep cuts from her catalog. Together both Neko and Gillian’s sets were some of the most beautiful over the three days in Austin.

Finally, let’s not forget AA Bondy who started out the day and watched his crowd swell in size as the latecomers worked off their hangovers during his set. Filled with the same mysterious/funny banter we got when he opened for Bon Iver, Bondy has proven himself, both on record and in person, that he’s an artist we’ll be following for some time.

Thanks Austin, we had a good time. Maybe we’ll see you again. Until then, here is our last round of photos:

AA Bondy

Scott Biram

Priscilla Ahn

David Rawlings

David Rawlings & Gillian Welch

David Rawlings, Gillian Welch, Alison Krauss

Against Me!

Neko Case

White Denim

Band of Horses

Foo Fighters

Related: Don’t miss Gorilla vs. Bear’s ACL wrap up, complete with Polaroids.

Discuss: Did you attend Austin City Limits this year? What were your favorite acts? Who were some of your new discoveries?