My wife is a sentimental and sensitive type, which makes it difficult for her to be a music fan these days. It seems like every time we persons of a certain age turn around, another legend that we grew up listening to has passed on.
With this in mind, my wife has requested that I refrain from saying things like, “Oh, he died” when referring to artists who have gone to the final soundcheck in the sky. Rather, she prefers to think that they are all merely working at a fried chicken joint outside of Atlanta. So you might hear exchanges like this: “Is Kris Kristofferson still alive?” “No, I’m afraid he’s working the fryer for the lunch shift at the Chicken Shack.”
Last week it was ZZ Top’s Frank Beard who put on his apron and started working the drive-through window. This week, we learned that the Chicken Shack has a new manager: Dolly Parton.
Parton, who passed away at the age of 80, was a larger than life figure, and that’s a bit of an understatement. But unlike many entertainers who project a big personality, through it all she retained her humility, her sense of decency and her sense of humor. And she was tough when she had to be. Elvis Presley wanted to record her song “I Will Always Love You,” but he also wanted half of the publishing proceeds. Parton politely said “No.”
After a successful career in music, film and television, Parton engaged in a number of philanthropic efforts, donating money (lots of money) to benefit education, literacy and disaster relief efforts.
And she wasn’t afraid to change with the times. When, in 2018, it was pointed out that the name of her “dinner and a show” franchise Dixie Stampede might not be in keeping with modern sensibilities, she quickly changed it to Dolly Parton’s Stampede. Explaining the rationale for her decision, Parton said, “As soon as you realize that [something] is a problem, you should fix it. Don’t be a dumbass.”
Ticket Alert
Band of Horses is one of those acts that revolves around a central member, with other musicians coming and going from various positions in the leader’s orbit. In the case of Band of Horses, Ben Bridwell has guided the group from behind his pedal steel since its founding in 2004. Catch the band on Monday, November 23, at the House of Blues for a 20th anniversary celebration of the album Everything All the Time.
Heavy metal band Trivium will perform at the Bayou Music Center on Saturday, November 28. These guys write songs with titles like “”A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation,” “Entrance of the Conflagration” and “Contempt Breeds Contamination,” which pretty much tells you what you need to know. As for the name, band lore says that “trivium” – Latin for “where three roads meet” – is meant to reference the group’s combination of metalcore, melodic (as oppose to your atonal) death metal and thrash metal.
Karla Bonoff may have never attained the level of fame enjoyed by some of her southern California contemporaries (Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt), but boy did she write some great songs: “Someone to Lay Down Beside Me,” “Lose Again” and “Home.” Bonoff will play the Heights Theater on Sunday, February 21.
There exists a small niche in country music occupied by, well, dirty songs. Maybe not “dirty,” exactly, but the type of songs that will lead to some pearl clutching. I’m talking here about some of David Allan Coe’s material, along with that of the ‘70s band Country Porn. In the interest of decorum, I will not list any titles. Which brings us to Wheeler Walker Jr., who will bring his brand of offensive (to most) country music to the House of Blues on Saturday, March 6.
Much like Unknown Hinson, a musical character played by Stuart Daniel Baker, Wheeler Walker Jr. is a nom de stage used by comedian Ben Hoffman when he portrays an edgy outlaw type. Previous hits (at least on satellite radio) include “Redneck Shit,” “I Like Smoking Pot (A Lot)” and “Fingerblast,” plus some with titles too extreme for even the Houston Press (believe it or not).
Concerts This Week
On Thursday, yet another co-headliner summer tour arrives at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. This time, it’s Lynyrd Skynyrd and Foreigner, with Six Gun Sally opening. It should be noted that none of the founding members of either band is playing on stage these days. All of Skynyrd’s original crew have passed on, and while Mick Jones (guitar) and Lou Gramm (vocals) are still with us, neither one currently appears with Foreigner. In Jones’ case, he is limited by health issues, and in Gramm’s case, he’s doing his own thing, with the Lou Gramm Allstars.
Get ready for more blues guitar than you can shake a stick at when the Buddy Guy Blues Festival rolls into town on Saturday at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. The festival is a travelling show that features, in addition to Guy, Jimmie Vaughan, Gary Clark Jr., Ally Venable and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram. This means that there are thousands upon thousands of notes to be played, which means that this one starts early, at 6 p.m. Buddy celebrated his 90th birthday this year, but recent reviews indicate that he is definitely still gettin’ it.
Sure, Don McLean is the “American Pie” guy, but let’s remember that he wrote and recorded some other worthy songs during the ’70s, tunes like “Vincent,” “Castles in the Air” and “Dreidel.” Like Buddy Guy, McLean is up there in years (80) but still on the road, appearing on Sunday at the House of Blues. Interpretations of the “American Pie” lyrics differ somewhat, but more generally agree that they provide an abstract history of rock and roll. McLean was once asked what the song meant, and he said that it meant he never had to work another day in his life.
A few years ago, nobody thought that AC/DC would be on tour and playing stadiums in 2026. The band lost guitarist Malcolm Young to dementia in 2017, and around that time singer Brian Johnson was ordered off the road when doctors told him that he was risking deafness by playing at high volumes night after night.
Well, much like the band powered past adversity in 1980 following the death of lead vocalist Bon Scott, the 21st century edition of AC/DC has regrouped and is back and firing on all cylinders. Johnson’s hearing problems have been sorted out, and Stevie Young (Malcolm’s nephew) is now holding down the rhythm guitar position. You can catch one of the (still) best bands in rock and roll on Monday at Reliant (formerly NRG, formerly Reliant, make up your mind, dammit) Stadium on Monday.
