Ten Top Concerts of 2001
Andrew Raff
January 09, 2002
10. Jeff Coffin @ The Knitting Factory, January 10
Good stuff. Jeff Coffin is one of my favorite sax players, and this
was the first time I saw him leading his own group. The Mutet had a
number of guests on stage and the show had a very loose, informal
vibe.
9. Jump, Little Children @ The Village Underground, November 3
This is the first time I had heard Jump, iIttle Children. These guys
are good. They have a diverse set of sounds to draw on, from sweet
sounding ballads, to outright rockers to dark funky sounds. It's
enough to keep interest in a full set without all the songs blending
together. THey have good songwriting and put on a fun and
entertaining show.
8. James Carter @ The Verizon Jazz Fest (at Columbia University), August 11
With his "Chasing the Gypsy" band, JC played some very cool music by
(and inspired by) Django Reinhardt. Eastern european jazz meets
post-bop. Not to mention that he is just an outstanding sax player.
7. Radiohead @ Madison Square Garden, August 7
This show had a great setlist and probably would have ranked higher
if I wasn't sitting high up. From the upper level in the Garden,
Radiohead was not as engaging as they are in other venues. This was
the first time I saw opening acts the Beta Band and Kid Koala, who
are both excellent. The Beta Band's sound is very unique. Kid Koala
is an outstanding DJ.
6. NY Philharmonic w/ Bobby McFerrin @ Avery Fisher Hall, December 4
Bobby McFerrin is one of the most underrated talents in music. Not
only is he a good conductor, but in addition to the two scheduled
pieces the philarmonic played (Ravel's "Le Tombeau de Couperin" and
Rimsky-Korsakov's "Capriccio Espagnol"), between the two McFerrin
did some great vocal improvisations with jazz bassist [name],
including "Here Comes the Sun" in honor of George Harrison. In one
of the improvs,he combined conducting and singing, by conducting
the philharmonic for some 'doos' and 'dahs.' Some of the
Philarmonic members were having fun with this and some weren't.
Among the bassists, one was totally digging the improv material and
another looked on with complete and utter scorn and disgust.
5. Agents of Good Roots @ Alley Katz, December 31
For their last concert, Agents of Good Roots played one long set
covering songs from all eras of the catalog, including oldies from
their original demo tape, unreleased songs and even "Come On,"
which was the one video on MTV. And the Wurlitzer keyboard was in
the house for the first time in a while. This was the first time
I'd seen the band with original bassist Stewart Myers since his
return. After seeing them a couple of times with Kevin Hamilton on
bass, they sounded much better with Stew. While the jazzier angle
was interesting, this show reminded me just how unqiue their sound
is.
4. The Philadelphia Experiment @ Bowery Ballroom, December 14
For a genre-meeting experimental album, the Philadelphia Experiment
was suprisingly great. Seeing the group in concert (this was the
first half of their extensive tour) demonstrated why the group
works. There's real chemistry between the four members (?uestlove
(of The Roots), Christian McBride, Uri Caine w/ Pat Martino) and
the songs are good. Besides featuring mind-bendingly sick funky
jazz, this was an entertaining show because ?uestlove and Christian
McBride were telling stories about trying to turn every song in high
school orchestra into james brown style funk.
3. Radiohead @ Liberty State Park, August 16 & 17
OK, I may be cheating by including these two consecutive nights as
one entry. Liberty State Park is a great place to see a concert--
the stage was set right on the river with a view of the manhattan
skyline. The weather cooperated and the shows were great. Beta Band
and Kid Koala opened again. There were enough variations in the sets
that they were both unique-- True Love Waits made an appearance at
night 1, but Just and Optimistic were played on night 2. The second
night ended with 4 encores-- with the closing one being "The
Bends." Rock.
2. Agents of Good Roots @ The Wetlands, January 13
This was the last show featuring bassist Stewart Myers before his leave of absence (which only lasted a few months.) As the first of two
farewell shows happening within the same calendar year, the overall
level of this one seemed to be higher. I may also just remember
this one better. The setlist was great and the encore was long and
involved.
1. U2 @ Madison Square Garden, October 27
U2 makes a very convincing case for still being the best rock band
in the world. While Radiohead seemed small within a cavernous
Madison Square Garden, U2 made the Garden feel small. My seat was
about the same for both Radiohead and U2, but at Radiohead, I felt
like I was far away from the stage. At U2, I felt very involved.
This was simply one of the best concerts I've ever seen, as U2
simply entertains as well or better than any other band and they
entertain BIG with style. U2's music just seems right for the mood
in the wake of terror-- songs like elevation, walk on, sunday
bloody sunday, new years day, beautiful day and one simply work.
Music can be reassuring and energizing and u2 was both at once.
They acknowledged the tragedy (videoscreens behind the band listed
the names of casualties during 'One') and helped us to move past it
and walk on. I don't think I've left a concert feeling better than
after leaving this U2 show.
