O Positive, Paradise Rock Club, 8/7/08

And, last but not least, the final coincidence of this trip was that a band I had liked many years ago (actually multiple decades ago), O Positive, would also be playing at the Paradise Club. I first learned of them when I went on a trip to Boston (first time there) in probably 1987. I met some people, one of which used to send me cassette tapes of Boston bands and other indie gems. It was probably my first exposure to "new" music. So, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to finally see them live. I feel my life has now come full circle.

They were having the rare gig in support of a friend who was in a car accident. Learn more about it on their Web site.













With You


Talk About Love


Up, Up, Up

Paul McCartney at Fenway Park, 8/5/09

The next happy coincidence for my Boston trip was learning that Paul McCartney would be playing shows at Fenway while I was there. I'd never seen a Beatle before, had always wanted to see him, and was pleased to find out there were still some decent (yet expensive) tickets available. Sir Paul played for 2 1/2 hours, the hits just kept coming. And, although there were lulls early in the show with some of the newer material, there were really touching moments: mentioning how he wrote "My Love" for Linda and playing a ukelele that George Harrison had given him. A most emotional performance was when he played "Here Today," the song he'd written just after John Lennon's death, expressing the things he'd never said to him. The set list included Wings' songs "Band on the Run" and "Jet" and Beatles hits like "Drive My Car," "Got to Get You into My Life," "The Long and Winding Road," "Blackbird," "Back in the USSR," "A Day in the Life," "Hey Jude," "Yesterday," "Helter Skelter" ... I just keep remembering more and more of them. Before the show, a cool slideshow played on the jumbotrons displaying lots of Beatles images and media, and playing unique mixes of classic tunes, also played Michael Jackson duet "Say, Say, Say." There were pyrotechnics and confetti. It's really a show I'll never forget!

























Band on the Run


Blackbird


A Day in the Life


Eleanor Rigby


Got to Get You into My Life


I'm Down


Opener - MGMT

Fastball with Sugar Ray at Paradise Rock Club, 8/4/09

I've had a great summer of combining work with play. First it was my trip to NYC to visit The New York Times, where I was able to see Better Than Ezra, Old 97's (twice) and the Lemonheads. This past week, I went to Boston for the annual gathering of journalism and mass communication educators, the AEJMC conference, but was lucky that many fine bands were playing during this visit as well. Arriving on Tuesday afternoon, I headed over to the Paradise Rock Club to see Fastball, who happens to be opening for 90's spectacle Sugar Ray right now. Fastball, who is out promoting their latest Little White Lies, was tight and rocked the crowd, who sang along loud and often to their hits. Sugar Ray was entertaining, with frontman Mark McGrath enthusiastically leading the crowd in sing-a-longs as well, not only to their hits "Every Morning" and "Fly," but also to recorded tracks of Journey, Guns N Roses... you name it. More party than concert, cheesy... yes, yet oddly compelling.

Next up, my images from the Paul McCartney show...










Fastball - Fire Escape


Fastball - Seattle


Sugar Ray - Fly

The Steps, Waterloo Records, August 3, 2009

One more show with the Steps, this time a lovely afternoon instore performance at Waterloo. I am increasingly impressed with how tight this band is under any circumstance, and they just keep getting better. They have a unique balance of youth and maturity. Great songs and fun to watch.

Nice to see all their families and friends in attendance. See my post below for pics and video from their Stubbs EP release.













Head Games


Loose Mind

The Steps EP Release at Stubbs, Aug. 1, 2009

The Steps rocked the hometown crowd at Stubbs and didn't look a bit road weary after being out on tour for the past several weeks. This was their EP release, for Take It All In, on the Playing in Traffic label. The show was high energy, the crowd loved it. And, if you want to know more, check out the articles I did on them in the recent TX Music Magazine and the online newsletter www.txmusic.com/enewsletter (two different articles; EP review in the online newsletter). Enjoy!

















The Steps - Give It Up



The Steps - Cold Floors


The Steps - Out Tonight


Rocketboys


Dear Future