NYC Show Obsessive

  Bill: Towncryer/Sneaky Monkey Venue: Cowgirl Seahorse , 259 Front St. , New York, NY Date: 8/25/25 Door: Free 9pm Towncryer Affiliated: Mirror Queen, Roger That, Hopewell, Ghost of Past Mistakes Active: 2021 (Brooklyn, NY) 8pm Sneaky Monkey Active: Unknow (New York, NY) Kenny was up to his quarterly shenanigans with Towncryer.  Sneaky Monkey came on first doing covers of Midnight Oil, Bruce Springsteen's "Thunder Road" before the audience ganged up to sing along with Bowie's "Starman." Towncryer have evolved into a guitar/bass/drums trio with a keyboardist in waiting but not quite ready for live consumption.  Perhaps next time.  In the meantime, we had to make do with the current renditions of The Byrds "One Hundred Years Ago," The Stones "Dead Flowers" and I think a cover debut of "Every Little Thing" by the Be-a-tles.  Two sets we done, tequila shots were hoisted, and Monday became Tuesday. FOR FURTHER REVIEW:  Towncryer/Sne...

  Bill: Ron Carter's Great Big Band/April Mae Webb (Charlie Parker Jazz Festival) Venue: Marcus Garvey Park at West 122 St, New York, NY Date: 8/23/25 Door: Free 8pm Ron Carter' s Great Big Band Active: Ron Carter: 1959 (Ferndale, MI) Ron Carter's Great Big Band: 2011 (New York, NY) Latest Release: Ron Carter's Great Big Band (Sunnyside, 2011) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist   AllMusic Wiki YouTube 7pm: April Mae Webb Active: 2017 (New Jersey via Kansas City) Affiliated: Sounds of A&R  (Sounds of April & Randall) Latest Release: " Everybody Ain't Gonna Like You " (Sounds of April & Randall), Questions Left Unanswered (Soaring, 2021) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs   YouTube Somehow in 30-some-odd years in NYC I've never been to a Charlie Parker Jazz Festival show at Tompkins Square Park or have set foot in Marcus Garvey Park at all.  No time like the present since I hadn't seen Ron Carter either.  It was a si...

  Bill: Barrington Levy/Brandon Rootz Venue: Sony Hall , 235 W 46 St ., New York, NY Date: 8/15/25 Ticket: $40 (had a free +1) 9:15 Barrington Levy Active: 1976 (Clarendon, Jamaica) Latest Release: " Money Is The Drug " (Black Roses, 2023) " Virus " (Barrington Levy, 2018), Acousticalevy (Doctor Dread Presents/Heartbeat, 2015) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube 8:15 Brandon Rootz Active: 2017 (Kingston, Jamaica via California) Latest Release: " Cruising Girl " (King Jammy, 2025) Facebook Instagram   AllMusic Wiki YouTube Barrington Levy is one of those great Reggae names I've somehow didn't know much of over all these years.  I remember hearing of him in the 80's and thought his name was pronounced Lev-ee.  Then I heard a Jamaican DJ pronounced it Lee-vee with sound convincing authority that from that day forward I never mispronounced Barrington's last name. So all these years later my friend had an...

  Bill: Gary Lucas and Gods and Monsters with special guest Luis Accorsi Venue: Joe's Pub , New York, NY Date: 8/7/25 Door: $36 7pm Gary Lucas and Gods and Monsters Active: 1970 (Lucas) (New York, NY via Syracuse, NY), 1989 (Gods and Monsters) (New York, NY) Affiliated: Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band , Jeff Buckley Latest Release: (Gary Lucas with The Niro) " No One Must Find You Here " (Esordisco, 2019) (with Gods and Monsters) The Ordeal of Civility (Snakefork, 2011) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube Sometimes lightning strikes twice.  It's stuck many more times with Gary Lucas.  He's had the talent since the early 70's when he caught Leonard Bernstein's ear playing lead guitar in the Yale Symphony Orchestra for the 1973 premiere in Vienna MASS  which featured an all-student cast.  He joined Captain Beefheart's Magic Band circa 1980 until Beefheart retired from music.  Gods & Monsters were founded ...

  Bill: Ladysmith Black Mambazo Venue: Blue Note , New York, NY Date: 7/22/25 Door: $65 (won pair from DoNYC) 10:30pm Ladysmith Black Mambazo Active: 1960 ( Ladysmith, KwaZulu-Natal , South Africa) ( Latest Release: Soothe My Soul (Songs From Our South African Church)  (Mambazo, 2023) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube It's a little difficult for me to keep the lineup straight of Ladysmith Black Mambazo since the retirement in 2008 and passing in 2020 of clear leader Joseph Shabala.  I haven't seen the group since 1990 when Nelson Mandela did a US visit and spoke on the Boston Common.  There was a free concert outside prior to the speech which I believe Ladysmith Black Mambazo were part of.  I also saw the Graceland tour where they backed Paul Simon in 1987.   It looks like there are two members remaining from that time: Albert Mazibuko who is the longest running member from the 70's and Abednego Mazibuko, a cousin ...

  Bill: Ghost Venue: Madison Square Garden , New York, NY Date: 7/22/25 Tickets $102.50 + 28.45 fee bought resale gifted 8:15 pm Ghost Active: 2006 ( Linköping ,   Östergötland , Sweden) Latest Release:  Skeletá (Loma Vista, 2025) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube The last time I saw Ghost they were opening for Iron Maiden in 2016.  Singer Tobias Forge noted the bands' NYC debut was 2011 in the short lived (at least for Rock bands) Basement at Webster Hall (actually The Studio).  They've come a long way to headlining.  I had a friend in town and picked this show to see and got some good seats in section 108.  Unfortunately, there are no photos or clips from this vantage point because they band was doing the sporadic Yondr bags.  In the past decade I've only had the Yondr experience twice for the Misfits in Jersey and Bob Dylan at the Beacon. As for the show, there was no opener, so Ghost went on pretty fast ...

  B ill: The Thing/Jesus Christ Taxi Driver Venue: Nightclub 101 , New York, NY Date: 7/10/25 Door: $10 11pm The Thing Active: 2022 (Brooklyn, NY) Latest Release: " Above Snake s" (The Thing, 2025) Bandcamp   Facebook   Instagram     10pm Jesus Christ Taxi Driver Active: 2023 (Denver, CO) Latest Release: Lick My Soul (Daddyrock, 2023) Bandcamp Facebook   Instagram Discogs Setlist   YouTube I had it in my head that I wanted to see The Thing, but I already saw them this year at the end of a long bill at Our Wicked Lady last January.  They are doing a residency at Nightclub 101 (the Knitting Factory's new NYC venue formerly Baker Falls formerly the Pyramid for many many years.  Since NYC is the city that now sleeps, this was the only show I could go to after Los Mirlos at Lincoln Center since the doors were 10pm.  I noticed  The Thing are opening for Jon Spencer in Staten Island Saturday along with SKORTS who were also on the Our Wi...

  Bill: Los Mirlos Venue: Damrosch Park, Lincoln Center , New York, NY Date: 7/10/25 Door: Free 8:00pm Los Mirlos Active: 1972 (Lima via Moyobamba, Peru) Latest Release:  Corazón Amazónico (Los Merlos, 2018), (with Astros de Mendoza)   Abducción Amazónica (Fokoaq, 2021) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube Los Mirlos are the long running Peruvian Cumbia group.  I listened to their first a lbum from 1973,  El Sonido Selvático  the other day and decided to check the band outside free at Lincoln Center.   I hadn't seen anything there for a few years, but NYC has this thing where if you go somewhere you rarely or never go to, you find yourself back there within days. The guitar sounds like a tremolo drenched Latin Ventures.  Live those guitarists Danny Johnston and Jorge Luis Rodriguez Perez the son of founding vocalist Jorge Rodriguez Grandez are Gods.  The younger Jorge joined much later so that makes D...

  Bill: Antone's 50th Anniversary Celebration featuring Jimmie Vaughan/Sue Foley/Benny Turner/Big Bill Morganfield/Lil' Ed Williams/CJ Chenier/Kam Franklin/John Primer/Jivin' Gene/Lurrie Bell/The Texas Horns Venue: Damrosch Park (Gugenheim Bandshell), Lincoln Center , New York, NY Date: 6/29/25 Door: Free 9pm Jimmie Vaughan Active: 1964 (Dallas, TX) Affiliated: The Fabulous Thunderbirds Latest Release: The Jimmie Vaughan Story (The Last Music Company, 2021), Baby Please Come Home (The Last Music Company, 2019) Bandcamp Facebook Instagram Discogs Setlist AllMusic Wiki YouTube 8:50pm Big Bill Morganfield Active: 1983 (Chicago, IL) Affilated: Muddy Waters (father) Latest Release:" Stop This Mess " (William Morganfield, 2020) Facebook Instagram   Discogs Setlist   AllMusic Wiki   YouTube 8:45pm Lurie Bell Active: mid 70's  (Chicago, IL) Affiliated: Koko Taylor, Eddie Clearwater, Big Walter Horton,  Latest Release: Set Me Free (with Frank Catalano) (C...

  Bill: Towncryer/Sneaky Monkey Venue: Cowgirl Seahorse , New York, NY Date: 5/20/25 Door: Free 9pm Towncryer Affiliated: Mirror Queen, Roger That, Hopewell, Ghost of Past Mistakes Active: 2021 (Brooklyn, NY) 8pm Sneaky Monkey Active: unknown (New York, NY) Towncryer  or Town Cryer as it said on tonight's bill did their 2 set Taco Tuesday performance, much like the other shows I've seen.  You can check out further comentary below.  Sneaky Monkey was a one-man pseudonym with covers like Bruce Springsteen "One Step Closer" and David Bowie "Starman."  The room was a little more packed when he played but unfortunately people talk over the performer.  Town Cryer's audience was a bit more attentive. FOR FURTHER REVIEW:  Towncryer @ Pangea, New York, NY 5/3/25 Town Cryer @ Cowgirl Seahorse, New York, NY 4/7/25 Town Cryer @ Cowgirl Seahorse, New York, NY 1/20/ 25

  Bill: Towncryer Venue: Pangea , New York, NY Date: 5/3/25 Door: Free 9pm Towncryer Affiliated: Mirror Queen, Roger That, Hopewell, Ghost of Past Mistakes Active: 2021 (Brooklyn, NY) Another week, another night of Towncryer.  Two sets at Pangea in the East Village. Lychee vodka made a special guest appearance.  Lychee is sometimes considered a nut as opposed to a fruit.  Towncryer can confirm this with ease.  I was listening to Blind Faith on 8-track and realized they also did a version of the Towncryer standard "Well All Right" that Buddy Holly did in 1958. Not too many clips, a couple from the bar were obliterated by chatter. FOR FURTHER REVIEW:  Town Cryer @ Cowgirl Seahorse, New York, NY 4/7/25 Town Cryer @ Cowgirl Seahorse, New York, NY 1/20/25