Steve Earle – European Summer Tour Announcement

steve earle tour

Steve’s “Alone Again Tour: Solo + Acoustic” officially kicks off in Europe this June with special guest Roseanne Reid. Join Steve this summer for an intimate and special night of music.

Get tickets here.

April 22 – Grand Ole Opry – Nashville, TN
May 7 – Wavy Gravy’s 87th Birthday at Herbst Theatre – San Francisco, CA
May 14 – Rehearsal Show 8th Annual John Henry’s Friends Benefit @ The Loft at City Winery – New York, NY
May 15 – The Town Hall – New York, NY
w/ David Byrne, Kurt Vile and Terry Allen
May 27 – Grand Ole Opry – Nashville, TN
June 2 – Café de laDanse – Paris, France
June 3 – De Oosterpoort – Da Groningen, Netherlands
June 4 – Poppodium 013 – Tilburg Netherlands
June 5 – Tivoli Vredenburg – Utrecht, Netherlands
June 7 – De Roma – Antwerp, Belgium
June 9 – Grand Opera House – York, UK
June 10 – PLAYHOUSE Whitley Bay – Whitley Bay, UK
June 11 – Queens Hall Edinburgh – Edinburgh, UK
June 13 – Galway Folk Festival 2023 – Salthill, Ireland
June 15 – Azkena Rock Festival 2023 – Vitoria, Spain
June 17 – Birmingham Town Hall – Birmingham, UK
June 18 – Black Deer Festival 2023 – Tunbridge Wells, UK
June 19 – Buxton Opera House – Buxton, UK
June 21 – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall – Liverpool, UK
June 22 – St. George’s Hall – Bristol, UK
June 25 – Barbican Centre – London, UK
June 27 – Ulster Hall – Belfast, UK
June 28 – Knocknarea Arena – Sligo, Ireland
June 29 – Vicar Street – Dublin, Ireland
July 1 – American Music Festival 2023 – Berwyn, IL
July 6 – The Heights Theater – Houston, TX
July 7 – The Kessler Theater – Dallas, TX
July 20 – Neptune Theatre – Seattle, WA
July 21 – Mount Baker Theatre – Bellingham, WA
July 22 – Revolution Hall – Portland, OR
July 25 – Mystic Theatre – Petaluma, CA
July 27 – Golden State Theatre – Monterey, CA
July 28 – Fremont Theatre – San Luis Obispo, CA
August 12 – Big Top Chautauqua – Bayfield, WI
August 17 – Eagles Theatre – Washburn, IN
August 26 – Point of the Bluff Vineyards – Hammondsport, NY
September 5 – Camp Copperhead – Big Indian, NY

Links of the Day: April 26, 2023 – Wilco, Martin Scorsese, and Lucinda Williams

It has been a while since I’ve done one of these. Google changed the way they send me their alerts and it became a bit of a pain. But I’m trying to do lots of things to make this site interesting again just to see where I can take it. So hopefully I’ll do links posts more regularly.

Photo Gallery: Wilco at the Classic Center: Flagpole

Timothée Chalamet and Martin Scorsese Rode the Subway: Curbed

Lucinda Williams and her suitcase full of songs: NPR

Lucinda Williams on her soul-baring memoir: The Independent

See Faye Webster Join Wilco For Stirring ‘Jesus Etc.’ In Athens: Jambase

Lucinda Williams Bit Ryan Adams and Other Big Reveals in Her New Memoir: Rolling Stone

Awesome ’80s in April: The Final Countdown (1980)

the final countown

I used to be really fascinated with time travel. I guess I still am, but I used to spend a lot of time pondering whether time travel could ever be real. One of the questions I raised was that if you could travel in time then wouldn’t you try to kill Hitler? Wouldn’t you find a way to stop the Holocaust from happening? But then maybe there is such a thing as fixed points in time. Certain events have to happen and you simply cannot stop them.

Or maybe time travel is real, but it isn’t invented for many thousands of years in the future. The Holocaust is one of the more terrible events of the last century, but for those removed from it by millenea it might just become a footnote in the history books.

Or something. I’m not smart enough to understand the complications of time travel. But I still enjoy a good time travel story. The Final Countdown is about an aircraft carrier from 1980 accidentally traveling back in time to 1941 just one day before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The ship’s crew must then decide if they will try to stop it from happening.

That’s a pretty cool idea, but the film doesn’t seem to know what to do with it.

Kirk Douglas is the captain of the ship. Martin Sheen is a civilian observer on board to make suggestions on how to improve efficiency. Charles Durning plays a US Senator from 1941 who just happens to be taking a leisure cruise on his yacht along with his assistant – played by Katharine Ross – off the shores of Hawaii on that fateful day.

The Senator is important because in real life (or at least the film’s version of real life) because he was someone who had warned of the Japanese attacking Pearl Habor and was in a position to become Vice President before the attack. But he mysteriously disappeared on that day. If the ship can save him it would impact history in unknown ways. Destroying the Japanese fleet would impact history too, of course, but there is a question of when they should attack. If they hit the Japanese before they hit the US then that could be seen as a sign of aggression, an act of war. But if they don’t then American lives will be lost.

Again all of this is interesting, but the film never makes it exciting. It is too busy moving to the next scene to allow time for the characters to chew on the dilemmas.

One of the difficulties for a film like this is how to end it. If they change history then we, as an audience, know the film is a fraud. It feels fake somehow. All cinema is fake, but alternate histories feel even faker. But if the characters wind up not changing history, then what’s the point?

I don’t mind so much when the film is good. But I found The Final Countdown to be rather dull. It doesn’t help that they gained full cooperation from the US Military and in return the film is filled with a lot of footage of the ship’s crew going about their work. If you like to see planes take off and land on a carrier (and it is technically impressive) then this film is for you. If you want some real action or drama, then you might look eslewhere.

Billy Strings Confirms Fall Headline Tour 

billy strings tour

Billy Strings is one of the most exciting musicians playing music today. At least in my opinion, and according to the concert recordings I’ve seen. Dude is a hell of a guitar player, a good singer, and quite the performer. He’s got a bit tour coming up and here are the dates. You can buy tickets on his website.

He’s coming to my neck of the woods in May. Things have been tight for me and my family but I’m gonna do my best to find a way to see him.

BILLY STRINGS CONFIRMED TOUR DATES
BOLD on-sale this Friday, April 28 at 10:00am local time

April 29-30—Los Angeles, CA—Hollywood Bowl – Willie Nelson’s 90th Birthday (SOLD OUT)

May 11—Morrison, CO—Red Rocks Amphitheatre (SOLD OUT)

May 12—Morrison, CO—Red Rocks Amphitheatre (SOLD OUT)

May 13—Denver, CO—Mission Ballroom (SOLD OUT)

May 17—Phoenix, AZ—Arizona Financial Theatre (SOLD OUT)

May 19—Los Angeles, CA—Greek Theatre (SOLD OUT)

May 20—San Diego, CA—Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre (SOLD OUT)

May 21—San Diego, CA—Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre

May 24—Las Vegas, NV—Brooklyn Bowl (SOLD OUT)

May 26—Napa, CA—BottleRock Napa Valley 

June 2—Austin, TX—Moody Center

June 3—Austin, TX—Moody Center

June 7—Tulsa, OK—BOK Center

June 9—St. Louis, MO—Chaifetz Arena

June 10—Indianapolis, IN—TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park (SOLD OUT)

June 11—Indianapolis, IN—TCU Amphitheater at White River State Park (SOLD OUT)

June 13—Cleveland, OH—Jacobs Pavilion (SOLD OUT)

June 14—Cleveland, OH—Jacobs Pavilion (SOLD OUT)

June 16—Clarkston, MI—Pine Knob Music Theatre (SOLD OUT)

June 17—Chicago, IL—Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island (SOLD OUT)

July 13—Cary, NC—Koka Booth Amphitheatre

July 14—Cary, NC—Koka Booth Amphitheatre (SOLD OUT)

July 15—Cary, NC—Koka Booth Amphitheatre (SOLD OUT)

July 19—Norfolk, VA—Chartway Arena

July 21—Bridgeport, CT—Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater

July 22—Essex Junction, VT—Midway Lawn at Champlain Valley Expo (SOLD OUT)

July 23—Essex Junction, VT—Midway Lawn at Champlain Valley Expo (SOLD OUT)

July 25—Boston, MA—Leader Bank Pavilion

July 26—Boston, MA—Leader Bank Pavilion

July 28—Portland, ME—Thompson’s Point (SOLD OUT)

July 29—Portland, ME—Thompson’s Point (SOLD OUT)

July 30—Newport, RI—Newport Folk Festival (SOLD OUT)

August 7—Frankfurt, Germany—Batschkapp

August 8—Berlin, Germany—Huxleys

August 9—Hamburg, Germany—Grobe Freiheit 36

August 11—Gothenburg, Vastra Gotaland County—Way Out West

August 12—Oslo, Norway—Oya Festival

August 24—Knoxville, TN—Knoxville Civic Coliseum (SOLD OUT)

August 25—Huntsville, AL—Orion Amphitheater

August 26—Huntsville, AL—Orion Amphitheater

September 14—Louisville, KY—Bourbon & Beyond Festival

September 22—Buena Vista, CO—venue announcing soon

September 23—Buena Vista, CO—venue announcing soon

September 27—Nampa, ID—Ford Idaho Center Arena

September 29—Portland, OR—Moda Center

September 30—Portland, OR—Moda Center

October 1—Seattle, WA—WAMU Theater

October 4—Sacramento, CA—Golden 1 Center

October 6—Stanford, CA—Frost Amphitheater

October 7—Stanford, CA—Frost Amphitheater

October 8—Stateline, NV—Tahoe Event Center

October 10—West Valley City, UT—Maverik Center

October 13—Independence, MO—Cable Dahmer Arena

October 14—Independence, MO—Cable Dahmer Arena

October 31—Grand Rapids, MI—Van Andel Arena

November 6—Amsterdam, NL—Paradiso

November 7—Amsterdam, NL—Paradiso

November 8—Antwerp, BE—De Roma

November 10—Cologne, DE—Carlswerk Victoria

November 11—Luxembourg—den Atelier

November 12—Munich, DE—Neue Theaterfabrik

November 14—Paris, FR—La Cigale

November 15—London, UK—Roundhouse

November 17—Manchester, UK—Manchester Academy

November 18—Glasgow, UK—O2 Academy Glasgow

November 19—Birmingham, UK—O2 Academy

December 6—Greensboro, NC—Greensboro Coliseum

December 8—Baltimore, MD—CFG Bank Arena

December 9—Baltimore, MD—CFG Bank Arena

December 12—Pittsburgh, PA—Petersen Events Center

December 13—Pittsburgh, PA—Petersen Events Center

December 15—Wilkes-Barre, PA—Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza

December 16—Syracuse, NY— The Oncenter

December 29—New Orleans, LA—Uno Lakefront Arena

December 30—New Orleans, LA— Uno Lakefront Arena

December 31—New Orleans, LA— Uno Lakefront Arena

Awesome ’80s in April: Night Game (1989)

night game poster

Jaws (1975) is one of my all-time favorite movies. It is practically perfect in every way. It is a film I’ve seen dozens of times. It is a film that I put on when I’m sick and miserable. It cheers me up every time. I love Roy Scheider in that film and he’s only my third favorite character in that film.

Scheider was an interesting actor. He starred in many movies through the 1970s and 1980s and was by all accounts a big film star (he made lots of movies up until his death in 2008 but these two decades saw him as a big movie star). But I feel like outside of Jaws, and maybe The French Connection, he’s mostly been forgotten.

He’s about the only thing that makes Night Game interesting. He plays Mike Seaver a Texas cop who might just love the Astros more than his (much younger) girlfriend Roxy (Karen Young). Somebody is slicing and dicing hot blondes on the oceanfront and it is up to Seaver to figure out who.

Given the title and his fondness for the Astros you know the killer is going to have something to do with baseball. If you are a fan there is quite a bit of gameplay on-screen and parts of it are filmed in the Astrodome. If you aren’t, well there is still Scheider doing his darndest to make a limp script exciting.

I didn’t hate it, but it is definitely forgettable. I watched it this weekend and I had to brush up on the plot via Wikipedia to write this review. It feels like a made-for-TV movie but with more violence and naked parts.

Awesome ’80s in April: Yes, Madam! (1985)

yes madam

When I decided to watch a bunch of movies from the 1980s this month I was thinking about all of the stereotypical films from that decade that I knew of as a kid. I was thinking about dumb comedies, big action flicks, slashers, and low-budget B-movies. Lots of other movies were made in the 1980s, of course, but my plan was to stick to the kinds of movies that made me think of the ’80s. I wasn’t interested in foreign language films, or art-house movies.

I’ve mostly stuck to that, but the Criterion Channel is running a series of films starring Michelle Yeoh and I just “had” to watch at least one. Yes, Madam! is the film that made her a star in Hong Kong and is at least partially responsible for a slate of action films starring women that became popular at the time.

Yeoh stars as Senior Inspector Ng, a Hong Kong detective who teams up with Senior Inspector Morris (Cynthia Rothrock in her first big role) from London. They are after some secret microfilm stolen by some gangsters.

Well, actually it was accidentally stolen by a couple of bumbling crooks, but the gangsters want it so you get the cops and the gangsters chasing the dimwits, and the gangsters doing everything they can to keep the cops from getting it first.

It is very similar to a lot of American action movies made in the 1980s. The plot is pretty silly, and the acting is not always great, but the action is a lot of fun. American films tend to involve a lot of gunplay, but Hong Kong films eschew the bang bang for the kung pow. Both types of films usually involve some comedy, but American films tend to have a wise-cracking lead hero, and their Hong Kong counterparts are more slapstick, and more physical with the comedy.

So it is with Yes, Madam! Yeoh and Rothrock kick some serious ass. There are a lot of fight scenes and all of them are fun to watch. The comedy doesn’t fare as well, but I’ve never been a fan of slapstick silliness. It is big, goofy fun, and well worth the watching.