uh, the entire indigo girls catalog (both released and unreleased songs).
same goes for all of amy ray's solo songs.

there are more (black crowes, grateful dead, U2, the coup, etc), but IG and aray solo are the only artists whose entire catalog i know by heart and can quote without thinking.

hell, i know "shame on you" better than amy herself. ;)

amy ray west coast solo tour jan 2009 pics!



more amy ray (and kaia wilson, melissa york, and julie wolf) here...

i am so tired and i leave for the pacific northwest first thing tomorrow morning.

the san francisco shows (show and in store) were amazing. the slim's show was one of the best amy ray shows i have ever seen. ever. and celebrating joey's birthday there (with so many of our friends) made it uber special. the all acoustic in store at amoeba records was fantastic.

here are photos. i seriously need to sleep:

slim's show

in store

i seriously love love love having amy ray in my hometown. and i am sad we're all going to the pacific northwest tomorrow (and not staying in san francisco). and i am sad the san francisco/bay area run is over. but the tour must go on! ;)

amy ray, west hollywood pics here.

they suck. my camera's settings were JACKED. the lighting sucked. and i might have been a little *too* close... ;)

photos are up (pomona, california - 27 jan 2009 - amy ray @ the glass house).

follow the link to go to my flickr.

i'm off on the west coast amy ray tour tomorrow (it's 'bout time, eh?)!!! i will be posting photos and setlists (and maybe reviews, but anyone who has been reading my blog for a while knows that the term "reviews" is often an empty promise). stay tuned!

and if anyone is going to be at the shows in pomona, west hollywood, santa cruz, san francisco (and the in-store), eugene, portland, or seattle, hit me up!

i usually do a live music roundup at the end of every year. usually it's about 90-95% indigo girls shows. 2008 was very different for me. and i have to say, 2008 was awesome in terms of concerts i attended.

there were a few house concerts and private shows that i went to that i can not write about publicly (sorry for the vagueness), so with the exception of those, here is my year in terms of live music:

january 2008:
i saw lady miss kier (yes, of dee lite) DJing at the mezzanine here in san francisco. the show was on the eve of joey's birthday, and we went to celebrate his birthday (and because he is/was a dee lite fan). the show was actually a lot of fun, and i have never been asked for so many hard drugs in my life (some kid came over to us looking for e and/or coke. we had neither. of course.)

i was supposed to attend four indigo girls shows in the midwest. all of them were either canceled or postponed due to emily coming down with the flu. some of the shows were rescheduled, but since i didn't want to go back to the midwest, i didn't go to any of the rescheduled dates. it was very disappointing, but thankfully the whole trip to the midwest wasn't a bust, i had to be in chicago anyway because my flight for africa left from o'hare. sadly, my friends laura and bonnie flew to the midwest for these shows too, and they really ended up in the midwest in january/early february for no reason. sad.

february 2008:

i was in africa for most of the month. while i didn't seek out any shows while i was there, i happened upon a traditional african duo in mozambique. that was quite cool. for the second half of their set, they did not play traditional african music and instead played beatles covers on their guitars. not quite as impressive. (what is it with beatles covers? i've seen "yesterday" covered by bands in japan, mozambique, france, and vietnam now. i know it's an insanely popular song, but come on!!!)

march 2008:

holyshit. i saw the black crowes live for the first time and was immediately in love. joey had loaded up my ipod with crowes music for my africa trip, and i was actually a very casual crowes fan throughout college and high school, but seeing these boys live blew me away. all of them (with the possible exception of adam) are real musicians who know how to jam. this one show made it so i will now travel for the indigo girls/amy ray AND the black crowes (for years, i'd only travel to see the indigo girls/amy ray solo. not any more. this was epic for me.)

april 20008:

joey and i went to tahoe to see the crowes. i don't really remember any details from this particular show except that i had an amazing time. i even made "friends" with some crowes fans in line. OH! and i saw mona (one of their backup singers, who i have a "thing" for) before the show. i said "mona, i love you," and she told me she loved me back. i also sweet talked the casino worker into giving me the poster for the show. good times.

the next night we went to see mark ford (former guitarist for the crowes) at blake's in berkeley. sadly, i got sick during the show and missed most of it, but what i saw/heard was impressive. joey said it was really good. i will take his word for it.

may 2008:

i saw girlyman, one of my past favorites, in berkeley at the freight and salvage (i hate that venue). it was a very "meh" show, and despite being far from sober, i found myself quite bored. by far the least impressive girlyman show i had ever seen. i slowly began losing interest in them after that show. that girlyman gig was perhaps the most disappointing show of 2008 for me.

june 2008:

the indigo girls were on the west coast, and where they were, i was there too (with the exception of the horrible venues in southern california. i actually skipped those shows). i love love love love the indigo girls (as 99% of those reading this know), but i am sad to say, i found the summer shows to be really weak for them. i am not saying i didn't have a good time - i had a GREAT time. and the shows were still awesome, hey, when amy and emily are on stage together, awesomeness occurs. but there were very few setlist surprises, and out of the 200+ indigo girls shows i have seen, i have seen MUCH better. none of the summer 2008 shows made my list of "top 10 indigo girls shows i have seen," or even top 20 for that matter. it wasn't all about the concerts, though. i had gotten some really bad news on the morning of one of the shows. and despite all of that, i still managed to have fun. plus it was so much fun to go up to the pacific northwest and see bonnie, courtney, and julianna. annnnd, joey got to see lovely oregon for the first time, so that was fun too! out of all of the shows, i think the best was the first one i saw, in yountville, california (near napa). i was stoked to be seeing the girls again, and there were some, um, very entertaining audience members. ;) the veneta show was also a highlight of that tour for me, not for the actual show, but for the fact that it was at one of my favorite venues (a general admission winery in beautiful central oregon) and because i got to meet a lot of really awesome people!

july 2008:

i saw the weirdest gov't mule/ratdog show EVER! the show was supposed to be at this outdoor venue on the peninsula (the mountain winery), which is a bit snotty, but it's still an outdoor venue. however the day before the show, the crew at the mountain winery realized that the renovations would not be completed in time for the show. so this hippie show was moved to the san jose center for the performing arts. yes. that kind of venue. however, i am pretty sure the venue staff was given clear instructions not to bother any of the concert goers about anything. no one was in their "assigned" seat. and the best parts?!? people were straight up smoking up inside the venue. the san jose performing arts center smelled like a marijuana collective! and the hippies did not leave their hippie dogs at home! joey and i witnessed a few big digs running up and down the ramps at the performing arts center. as for the concert itself, i was impressed with gov't mule (warren haynes can have my babies), but not so much with ratdog. oh bob weir... sorry, but the former members of the grateful dead are nothing without jerry. sorry.

august 2008:

thanks to my friend lynn, i got to see dolly parton for free at the greek theater in berkeley. it was a lot of fun. we had amazing seats, and dolly sure knows how to put on a great show!

while we didn't have tickets, joey and i headed to golden gate park to see radiohead at the first (and maybe last) outside lands festival. although i wished i could see better, thom yorke and radiohead put on a fucking amazing show. radiohead is a band that i like. a lot. but i hardly listen to their recorded music. live is where it is at for them!

on the last day of the month, i got a very special treat (and kind of a lifelong dream of mine). the indigo girls were playing a mere six blocks from my house! the people at the oakland art and soul festival somehow managed to book them. it was an amazing show, and i think it was the best IG i saw in 2008. it wasn't the setlist (though it was quite varied, even for a festival), but it was the fact that i was seeing a band i have traveled to the UK to see within walking distance of my house. i was in my usual spot (front row, amy side/center) and many of my non IG fan friends came to the show (namely marin and kelley), and i had a freaking blast! matt nathanson "opened" for them and i was a lot more impressed with him than i thought i would be. really, can it get much better? the indigo girls for $10 six blocks from my own bed. nah, it can't! and to add to the specialness, laura came up from san diego for the show.

september 2008:

joey and i went to power to the peaceful (free spearhead festival in golden gate park) to see warren haynes play solo. that day solidified the fact that warren haynes can have my babies. while i really like gov't mule, i would say warren solo is probably in my top five or six of favorite musicians. he ended his set with "soulshine" and while it's "the 'galileo' of warren haynes," i genuinely love that song and i loved singing it with all of the hippies at golden gate park. joey and i were going to stick around for spearhead, but it was an unusually hot day in san francisco, so we went to the beach instead. it's all good - i have seen spearhead several times.

a few weeks later, we drove up to arcata (humboldt county) to see the black crowes at a small theater on hsu's campus. i really liked that show because a) it was mellow and b) they played "forgiven song," which i was creaming over. but chris' voice was bad. way bad. bad enough that the rest of the tour was canceled due to his illness. major bummer for joey and me because we had tickets to two more shows. both canceled. i think in 2008 i had a record number of concerts canceled on me (indigo girls earlier in the year). but of all of the shows on that tour, i was glad that humboldt was not canceled! seeing the crowes (big stoners) in humboldt county (and we all know what humboldt is known for) was sweet. and yes, i brought some "souvenirs" from humboldt home with me (although i get them here at home, regularly ;) )

october 2008:

i went to the hardly strictly bluegrass festival (free. again, in golden gate park. i love san francisco!) to see robert plant (of led zepplin) and allison krauss do their thing together. it was kind of a cluster fuck of people, and the show was a lot flatter than i had expected. then i gave their duet cd a listen, and it was flat flat flat. still, i had a good time in the park with my friends.

in mid-october i flew to the midwest to catch a few of amy ray solo gigs since (at the time) she did not have any west coast dates up. i fucking love that woman solo and had not seen her solo since 2005 (which, fair enough, was the last time she toured solo). i had a blast at all of the gigs (of course). i hooked up with some old friends on the road (jib, sarah, amy, nancy) and it was great to see them! hearing the songs off of didn't it feel kinder live gave that album a whole new dimension for me. plus arizona, her opening band, was great as well. i simply can not wait to catch amy's gigs on the west coast later this month. whereas the indigo girls shows were mediocre (for IG shows), the amy shows were fan-fucking-tabulous! she even played "chiapas bound" at a small club in champaign, illinois.

november 2008:

the night before flying to kentucky and illinois for an extended thanksgiving holiday, joey and i saw gov't mule at the fillmore. it was a really fun show, and i was glad that mule played a full set as opposed to their opening set for ratdog. plus the fillmore is a better venue for them. the show didn't end until after one in the morning, but it was worth it to stay for the whole thing. not only was the whole set really great, but the poster (fillmore poster) is one of my favorite fillmore posters that i have. i will gladly pay to see gov't mule again.

december 2008:

on kind of a whim, joey and i went to the fillmore to see the coup, my favorite hip hop band (local bay area too). that show was so memorable in that neither of us were expecting it to be as much fun as it was. for now on, anytime the coup is in town, i will see them. we were in the front row (which is not unusual for me at concerts) right in front of pam the spinstress. joey and pam even had a few "moments." sadly, we were also by the rude drunk girl and the drunk couple who almost threw up all over me. but hey, it all goes with the territory.

and finally, the crown jewel of my 2008 concert going came in mid-late december: five nights of the black crowes at the fillmore (i was starting to feel like i should just live at the fillmore i was there so often). joey and i went to all five nights. kenny, my favorite member of joey's family, flew in for four out of five of the nights (joey thinks that the first show was the best and can't believe that he missed the first show!). there were so many amazing moments and so many highlights. since this wasn't so long ago, i am still processing it all myself. so instead of a recap, here are a few things i learned at the five night black crowes' fillmore run: 1) i am not a fan of phil lesh. 2) if there's not a barrier up and someone jumps on stage, there will be a barrier up the next night. 3) some crowes fans are amazingly awesome. we made some new friends. 4) some crowes fans are psycho ie the crazy dancer and the "YOU DON'T THINK I'M PRETTY?!??!" low self esteem girl. 5) a band that plays an unexpected setlist filled with surprises owns a piece of my heart. and 6) i can't believe the black crowes were in freaking oakland in 2007 and joey asked me if i wanted to go and i told him no. *KICKS SELF HARD. VERY HARD* i have recordings of all five nights and am constantly rocking out to them, letting the memories last a little longer.

so while 2008 wasn't a great year for me and the indigo girls (shitty venues, bad tour dates, my unwillingness to go to the east coast, canceled shows), 2008 was a great year for live music all around. i want to send a super loud "THANK YOU" shout out to joey, who basically pulled me out of my indigo/aray exclusivity and introduced me to so much more.

here's to a great live music year in 2009. we're already off to a great start... amy ray is coming west in about three weeks!

amy ray SOLO on the west coast in january. so far i have found out about two dates (since there was not an official announcement yet):

30 jan - santa cruz, california @ the rio
31 jan - san francisco, california @ slim's

i am batting two for two thus far. ;)

and here's a non-west coast date:

16 jan - birmingham, alabama @ work play

i love me some amy ray solo...

amy ray, madison, wi (26 oct 08)


birds of a feather
late bloom
bus bus
she's got to be
driver education
blame is a killer
blender
black heart today
slc radio
rural faggot
give in
lucystoners
covered for you
who sold the gun
cold shoulder
on your honor
stand and deliver

(encore)
johnny rottentail
laramie

amy ray, champaign, il (28 oct 08)

birds of a feather
late bloom
bus bus
she's got to be
driver education
mtns of glory
blender
black heart today
slc radio
rural faggot
give in
(kaia's fun solo song... sorry, i don't know the title)
covered for you
who sold the gun
cold shoulder
put it out for good
on your honor
stand and deliver

(encore)
chiapas bound (!!!!!!!!!!!)
laramie

amy ray, chicago, il (29 oct 08)

out on the farm (during arizona's set with arizona)
___
birds of a feather
blender
black heart today
bus bus
she's got to be
late bloom
driver education
blame is a killer
slc radio
rural faggot
give in
lucy stoners
(kaia's fun solo song)
covered for you
cold shoulder
who sold the gun
stand and deliver
on your honor
put it out for good

(encore)
johnny rottentail
laramie

amy ray's solo tour, fall 2008

pics from the midwest:

on my flickr

there are a few videos on my youtube too. i will add more later:

link to my you tube

i promise to post setlists soon.

10/19/08 Nashville, TN 3rd & Lindsley
10/21/08 St. Louis, MO Blueberry Hill
10/23/08 Omaha, NE Slowdown
10/24/08 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Cafe
10/25/08 Ames, IA Maintenance Shop
10/26/08 Madison, WI High Noon Saloon
10/29/08 Chicago, IL The Metro
10/31/08 Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom & Tavern
11/01/08 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Smalls Theater
11/02/08 Buffalo, NY Tralf Music Hall
11/04/08 Toronto, Ontario Mod Club
11/05/08 Burlington, VT Higher Ground Ballroom
11/07/08 Somerville, MA Somerville Theatre
11/12/08 New York, NY The Bowery Ballroom
11/14/08 Washington, DC 9:30 Club

i am trying to figure out a way to make at least two to three of these work for me...

* gaaah, i still need to update that icon. it's so outdated!

there have been a ton of great (and not so great) articles about amy ray (which often turn into articles about the indigo girls) floating around over the past week. i refrained from posting most of them because they're easily searchable. but this morning, i woke up, went through my morning internet ritual, which includes checking the news at cnn. on cnn.com's front page, i found this:



yes, amy ray made the front page of cnn.com today!

( text from the article under the cut )

and as long as i am at it, here are a few other recent interviews. these are my favorites.

( sovo article... one of the best! )

and this one... ( queerty article )

and finally, the long awaited "amy answers her fans' questions at after ellen. to be perfectly honest, i was not too impressed with this one. but there are some gems in here as well.

( after ellen.com 'interview' )

wow! that was a lot of information for one blog post!

there's an alternative version of "blame is a killer" on napster.

amy ray goodness for the win!

emusic.com is offering two bonus downloads for didn't it feel kinder as well:

cold shoulder (alternative version)
angel egg

plus emusic offers a FREE trial period with 25 free downloads. ;)

happy amy ray day, y'all!

an alternative version of "who sold the gun" is available for download on amazon.com.

yay for amy ray release day (and it's not even the 5th here yet!)

it's officially 5 august on the east coast (happy didn't it feel kinder release date, y'all). aaaaand... difk is up on itunes. along with two bonus tracks (that you need not buy the whole CD to acquire, thankfully for those of us who got our CDs from daemon records) that are downloadable for 99 cents each. the bonus tracks are an alternative version of "she's got to be" and a song called "me and my baby."

more amy ray for 99 cents each at itunes. what a deal!

Amy Ray
20 Questions

[21 July 2008]
Amy Ray: Talking the talk and walking the walk, this singer/songwriter brings you the world with each song.
by PopMatters Staff

Amy Ray talks the talk – her lyrics fearlessly nail issues of violence, environmental issues and other pressing topics; her Indigo Girls concerts often serve as fundraisers for various deserving organizations. And she walks the walk as a human rights activist on many fronts, including co-founder of the human rights / environmental organization, Honor the Earth. While on a flight from New York to her home town in Georgia, she penned these sometimes poignant, sometimes playful responses to PopMatters 20 Questions.

Her third solo album, Didn’t It Feel Kinder, with Led Zeppelin, The Shins, and Judy Garland influences, releases August 5th on Daemon Records.

1. The latest book or movie that made
you cry?
Actually, it’s a song, “Top of The World” by Patty Griffin.

2. The fictional character most like you?
My friends say I’m a “Pony Boy” from The Outsiders, but I always wanted to be Dallas, ‘cause he’s so hot.

3. The greatest album, ever?
Who knows. It changes every day and there are thousands of records I’ve never heard. Any music that inspires, comforts, provokes, creates change, makes you wanna dance, puts you to sleep when you need it, makes you scream when you need to, heals, breaks down, or creates divine harmonics is worthy. Different paths to the same god and all that stuff…

4. Star Trek or Star Wars?
I am a trekkie all the way. Next Generation is my vision for an evolved future. George W. could have used a dose of Star Trek, but it might confuse him even more than he already is.

5. Your ideal brain food?
I eat chocolate whenever I am doing anything challenging. I’m not sure it helps, but it makes me feel smarter. Avocado, sushi and edamame are good, too.

6. You’re proud of this accomplishment, but why?
Activism is done in a community context. I am only proud of myself in the context of community.

7. You want to be remembered for...?
My work as an activist—indigenous, environmental, queer, and race and class issues. I think it’s a long road and a hard balance and hopefully when you die, if you’re remembered for these kinds of things, then people will be inspired to keep up the work and carry the torch.

8. Of those who’ve come before, the most inspirational are?
There are three very special women that died between 1998 and 2004. Ingrid Washinawatok, Marsha Gomez, and Nilak Butler were among the founding mother’s of an organization called The Indigenous Women’s Network (IWN). I met them through my work with Honor the Earth, a group founded in the early ‘90s when Indigo Girls met Winona LaDuke at an Earth Day rally.

These three women were incredible activists on both a local and global scale. Their work in defending culture and land was revolutionary and precedent setting. Their deaths were poignant reminders to me of the need to gather in community, work hard for sustainability, and laugh a lot while doing it.

Marsha died an untimely death at a young age in 1998 at the hands of her son who had a mental illness and had no idea what he was doing. We lost Ingrid when she was kidnapped and killed in Colombia by rogue members of the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia). She was working on behalf of the Uwa peoples against oil exploration projects in their homelands.

What is written about Nilaks’s death on the IWN web site could really apply to all three of these women and many other indigenous peoples.

Nilak Butler died after a two and a half year battle with ovarian cancer, largely a consequence of her circumstances. Nilak fell through the cracks of American society. Nilak did not have access to Indian Health Service facilities as she was not an enrolled member of a federally recognized tribe—a circumstance of adoption. Nilak viewed her illness much as a mirror of the illness of Mother Earth: toxified, ill cared for, and challenged with constant crises. She challenged all to work harder to defend Mother Earth, and to care for each other in difficult times, now and in the future.

9. The creative masterpiece you wish bore your signature?
The song “Strange Fruit”. I was first introduced to this song in the Billie Holiday recording, then I heard Siouxsie sing it.

The Indigo Girl’s toured with Budgie on drums for a summer and it was wild because Siouxsie came along on the bus. She ended up doing a few songs in our set. One of them was “Strange Fruit”. It made me love the song even more to see her do it live.

That was a fun tour. The Goths caught on early that Siouxsie and Budgie were traveling with us and doing some Creatures songs, so they would hang out in the lobby during our show until Siouxsie went on. My mentor, folkster Ferron, was opening the show and I’ll never be able do better than Ferron and Siouxsie singing “Down by the River” together for the encore.

After the shows we played poker until the crack of dawn. I think Ferron was the only one who was sober, so she left with all our money.

10. Your hidden talents...?
I give great pedicures.

Amy Ray on the True Colors Tour at Radio City Music Hall, June 2008 - photo (partial) by ©Jason DeCrow

Amy Ray on the True Colors Tour at Radio City Music Hall, June 2008 - photo (partial) by ©Jason DeCrow

11. The best piece of advice you actually followed?
I have a bunch of cats that I adopted in one way or another. A few of them have litter box issues. They won’t go inside the boxes with the tops and they used to always miss and hit the wall behind the box—gross. My vet told me to get some of the cheap plastic place mats and velcro them to the back of the litter box to keep the cat from spraying the wall. Okay? Well it worked like a charm.

Other than practical tips like that, I have a really hard time following advice until I screw up and learn myself.

12. The best thing you ever bought, stole, or borrowed?
When I was a youngun’ I found some Playboy magazines in someone’s fort in the woods.

I took them to my fort. Wow. For a southern suburbanite that was quite a revelation and a little confusing, but it opened up a world of possibilities.

13. You feel best in Armani or Levis or...?
Thrift store stuff.

14. Your dinner guest at the Ritz would be?
My mom. She would never think she deserves it, and never go there on her own, but it might feel good to be doted on for a night.

15. Time travel: where, when and why?
It depends on whether I am allowed to mess with the time-space continuum. If I could, I would go back in time and try to change the approach to all things nuclear, by showing what a mess we’ve made with uranium mining, nuclear weapons, and radioactive waste. It’s doubtful anyone would listen, though, because we don’t listen now.

If I can’t mess with outcomes, then I want to go back to the 1700s in the southeast and be in some patch of forest where I can see all the wildlife and the lay of the land.

16. Stress management: hit man, spa vacation or Prozac?
The gym or a long hike.

17. Essential to life: coffee, vodka, cigarettes, chocolate, or...?
Chocolate.

18. Environ of choice: city or country, and where on the map?
Southern Appalachian Mountains.

19. What do you want to say to the leader of your country?
To George W. Bush, besides “fuck you”, I’m not sure he would understand anything I had to say. He really seems absolutely clueless to me.

20. Last but certainly not least, what are you working on, now?
Getting my shit together for the release of my third solo CD, Didn’t It Feel Kinder, releasing August 5th. Restructuring and organizing my indie label, Daemon records.

I am also in the studio in Atlanta for another week to finish a new Indigo Girls record that Mitchell Froom is producing. We’re making a band record and a separate acoustic album.

I just planted two pear trees and a hibiscus. I’m getting the mats out of my five dogs’ fur. The summer Indigo Girls tour season is coming up, so I’ll be practicing with Emily for that.

Right now I am on an airplane from New York to Atlanta. I get on another plane tomorrow to San Francisco to play an Honor the Earth benefit. Delta Airlines is really losing it’s grip these days, so I’m crossing my fingers.

source, with photos.

you can pre-order didn't it feel kinder from daemon records now. if you order before 31 july, daemon promises that you will have it on or before release date (5 august). unlike amazon and sony, daemon is actually really good about this. there's a CD version and a collectible LP version. me, being the proud owner of the indigo files (basically eight filing cabinets filled with indigo girls and amy ray memorabilia), ordered both of course (though the CD is included with the LP).

go order it from daemon records now! i am so much happier supporting daemon than i am supporting amazon or any chain music store.

and while i'm on one of my many amy ray plugs, i am sure just about everyone knows this, but just in case you don't, you can download the mp3 of "blame is a killer," a cut from didn't it feel kinder, from various websites. since it's all over the internets, i uploaded it for anyone who doesn't have it yet. from what i've heard of the new album, "blame is a killer" is my favorite track. download "blame is a killer" (mp3)