Young & Old Folks

Donovan
Tribeca/ASCAP Music Lounge
Canal Room
May 2nd

In my humboldt opinion, there is no artist more underappreciated than 60s Scottish psychedelic folkster Donovan Leitch. He not only influenced a generation of groovy cats, but the mos grooviest of the litter, The Beatles. Without D-Love, the White Album coulda turned out to be any olde album. Not that I take stock in anything that has to do with The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but while many of his contemporaries have already been inducted, Donovan still waits for his number to be called. While the world turns a blind eye, I pray at the feet of this unrelievable Rock and Roll Souljer

Luckily I got the chance to do so the other day as Don played a tight 9 songed set at the Tribeca Film Fest’s lil eggsclusive music lounge-thangie. While most of the subdued crowd didn’t come to life until midway thru the set, when ‘Sunshine Superman‘ was jimmy jammed, I was hooked, lined and sinkered from song one, ‘Catch The Wind‘, til song end, ‘Mellow Yellow‘. In between, he threw in two new numbers on top of such classics as ‘Universal Soldier‘, ‘Season the Witch‘ (which he said was transcendental mediation buddy David Lynch‘s mos flavorite), ‘Lalena‘, and the one that gave me more chills than the ice bath Tim Robbins endured in Jacob’s Ladder, ‘Hurdy Gurdy Man‘, aka one of the single greatestist songs of balls thyme. But 9 songs is not enuff for a ‘van-head like myself. How am I to die and never hear ‘Jennifer Juniper‘, ‘Wear Your Love Like Heaven‘, or one of the mos banana songs I’ve ever heard, ‘Barabajagal‘ [d]. I dunno, but I don’t plan on worrying about it as I’ll see him for showzlle the next time he comes to town, singing his songs of love. For you jerk-a$$es who need their cosmic wheels aligned, show sum respek and buy his Definitive Collection

image from Factor D

Peter Bjorn & John
Fujiya & Miyagi
Webster Hall
May 1st

How does a band who has one of the finestest albums released in the US this year underwhelm in concert? I wish I didn’t have to ask such a question, but after Tuesday’s show, I’m more baffled than Borat in an aisle of packaged cheese! When they plowed thru the highlights of said album, they were good, but not great. Was it too large of a room to perform in? Were they too far from Stockholm to take stock in my adopted home? Did they fall victim to the nasty words of the Wrong Folks? I have no friggin idea, but they still rock, juss not as much as I thought they would in a live setting. Maybe I need to see em 6 times like Vegan. Or maybe they shouldn’t have Fujiya & Miyagi kick the friggin ballastics before they come out. Or maybe, they should literally get their ‘act’ together a wee bit mo cause they could be bigger than Radiohead. I’m not even joking. And I pray to jeebus that that happens cause I’m so sick of Radiohead and the new boring poop they keep a poopin’

image, more of dem and review over at Fresh Bread