Off Broadway, KDHX, Marshall Crenshaw, Bottle Rockets and Dale Watson

Sooooo...I am falling in love with Off Broadway and with KDHX all over again. Last things first but KDHX in my adultery.... or in my adulthood has become such a mature, yet still such a fun station. We have no idea how lucky we are in a market like St. Louis to have a good NPR station and a good independant music station. There is NOTHING play listed about KDHX and if you know their programming schedule the chance to hear eclectic music in a genre that you like is awesome. They have always promoted live music in town but have gathered the people and economic resources so it seems like they are always promoting great music coming to town. Here is site for their schedule of weekly shows:

http://kdhx.org/radio/881-kdhx-schedule-shows-and-playlists

On to more important matters. Off Broadway was formerly a nightmarish venue. It had a lot of character. It had cold beer. It had good shows. But it was dirty, beaten up, looked like a big version of my old dorm room only the wagon wheel was a chandelier rather then a coffee table. That was not the problem though, the problem was that the shows would be doors at 8 and show at nine. More often then not the show would not start till 9:30 and then they would book three acts (two local) which meant that the headliner often did not start till 11:00 and sometimes would not be done till 12:30 or 1:00. That just became too late for and aging man like myself. They have a very accsesable web site which i link to from the Diner review home page but it is good to keep an eye on. I cannot complement the place enough and for the first time in a long time it seems like we have a somewhat worthy successor to the niche that Mississippi Nights formerly held. It can be a little “close” sometime but that does not change the...awesomeness of having great bands playing at a reasonable time, close enough so that the guitarist can spit on you... should he have a mind to.

I have seen two shows there already this year. the first was the Marshall Crenshaw show where he was backed by the Bottle Rockets. I got a little confused by the billing not understanding that the Rockets would be his back up band and then still not expecting an opening set from them. You can say what you want about Bryan Henneman but he has become a local treasure and he really knows how to put on a show. There is none of the shoe staring mopiness of a Jay Farrar show and of course though Tweedy is great... he did leave us... the bastard. So Henneman comes out and the place is packed. Easily 20% of the folks were out just to see a Bottle Rockets show and he did a great job... just the hits folks...just the hits. The bottom line is that he puts on a great show, works the audience and delivers... every time. Then Crenshaw came out. Marshall Crenshaw was the next big thing for a solid 5 years. he was a critics darling who wrote some excellent songs, had a distinctive sound and great pop sensabilities. But... he could never quite crack it. He got to play Buddy Holly and continued to put out quality, crafted pop but he never made it, as making it was defined in the day. His debut album in 1982, the epynomous Marshall Crenshaw is a pop gem. Buy it. But he is old. With the Bottle Rockets and Henneman all wearing what looked to be J Crew style pork pie hats they looked like a group of middle aged men very uncomfortable with their baldness. Still, Crenshaw worked through his beautiful jangly songs and it was just a lot of fun. As I said the place was absolutely packed and it was a lot of fun. it remined me again about how fun a show was and I saw local music head R. Brightman who informed me Dale Watson would be playing the next week... and I needed to see him.

I had no idea who Dale Watson was. But Brightman has an ear for the twang and he seems to have a lot of the Bakersfield penchant that has grabbed me for a while so... I trust him. he has also gotten me into a couple of house concerts and that is something for which i owe him no small debt. So... on a Sunday night after the first football playoff game and during the second one I headed out to the show solo. There were not quite as many people there and he had a nice big bus in front of the place but he came out and... he was site. He has a pretty regular gig at the revered Continental Club in Austin and I would judge his age at somewhere north of 50. I have never seen hair like his in my life. There was a good crowd there and he came out with a very tight band and a sweet lap steel player. Beatle Bob was there doing his thing (he made the Marshall Crenshaw show as well and he rocked us through a set made up of his own classic country relating to liquor, death and sadness. It was a well received show that had people two stepping the night away on the dance floor in front of the stage.

St. Louis is not grateful enough for it’s music scene. Off Broadway and KDHX are partnering to put on some great shows. Pay attention. In the words of Neil Young, “Live Music Is Better! Bumper Stickers Should Be Issued!” Amen.