photo by: Marc Millman

Preshow: Got to the Bowl a little late – it was a snowy day in NYC, perfect for lounging, horrible for motivation. I had also been out late the night before, seeing the Drive By Truckers at The Capitol Theater, and then late night at B. B. King’s to see Berry Oakley Jr.  Tired indeed – yet one happy lady.

Opener – Alecia Chakour Band: I missed the whole set except the last song.  She blows me away everytime I see her.

Bottom line is: The Alecia Chakour Band is one you must go see.  Alecia’s voice is, well, just incredible. See Chakour with The Warren Haynes Band for a sample, find The Alecia Chakour Band for a full show.  Trust me on this, she is amazing, Neal Evans is on keys, there is a plethora of horns and it is just a great band, great lyrics, great vocals.  Yum.

Setbreak:  The usual – bathroom break, try to get to the bar and get a drink, find a place to settle in, say hi to the Bowl Family. Check out the sold out crowd.

Random Thought: The Bowl was amped.  You could feel the electricity in the air.  People were psyched, and since it was St. Patrick’s day weekend, it has an extra special twinge of Party on this closing night of Bowlive.  I saw a bridal party, complete with bride and groom come in and celebrate..kind of a cool after party show, Bowlive IV!

Set 1: Soulive w/ The Shady Horns & The London Souls

It was great to see Soulive up there, doing their thing, seemingly relishing the last night of Bowlive IV.  Soulive is a strong band, they get fuller, stronger, funkier when there are horns.  The Shady Horns including James Casey (sax, Trey Anastasio Band), Eric Bloom (trumpet), Ryan Zoidis (sax, Lettuce) with special guest Cheme Gastelum (sax/flute, Dap Kings).  Again, you can’t go wrong with horns on the stage.  Ever.  They hit their staple songs, “Uncle Junior,” the Beatles’ “Come Together,” and the low/funky tune, “One in Seven.”

The London Souls also got up there and played the last couple songs of the set.  The lead guitarist, Tash Neal, was in a pretty serious accident last year, but no one would have guessed by seeing him play on Saturday night.  I heard the same thing about them about Friday night’s Bowlive – they crushed it.  I’ve always liked these guys – check out my old Bowlive reviews.

Photo by: Jen Bernstein

Random Thoughts:  Sirius XM was broadcasting from Bowlive for their Jam On station and I saw fellow press people Scott Bernstein, editor, Glide Magazine/Hidden Track; Jen Bernstein (no relation), editor, High Times and Ari Fink and Steve Brandano from Sirius.  The booth looked like it was a party in amongst itself. Continue reading →