After February 14th, I'm going cold turkey for awhile.....unless it's an artist I've never seen live before.

1/4 - Peter Wolf, City Winery, NYC
1/6, 7, 9, 10 - Neil Young, Carnegie Hall. NYC
1/16, 17, 18 - The Radiators, Tipitina's, New Orleans, LA
1/24 - Martha Reeves, BB Kings, NYC
1/25 - The Detroit Cobras, Wonder Bar, Asbury Park, NJ
1/28, 29, 31, and 2/1 - David Crosby, City Winery, NYC
2/8, 9 - BeatlesFest, NYC (Donovan, The Smithereens, others)
2/14 - Cheap Trick, Wellmont Theater, Montclair, NJ
4/29 - Merle Haggard, MAYO Theater, Morristown, NJ
6/22 - Happy Together 2014, Bergen PAC, Englewood, NJ

Three comedy shows - Jim Jefferies, Amy Schumer and Bill Engvall - and the Decibel Magazine Tour with Carcass are all that are on my schedule for now.

Nothing booked for 2014 yet but I do have my eyes on the Red Dragon Cartel with Jake E Lee playing here in Amityville this April.

If they come here, I may go to that. I saw Jake on both tours he did with Ozzy.

I stopped by the Garden box office on the way home today, and procured a single seat for Billy Joel on May 9. That show is on his 65th birthday, hoping some famous friends might drop by to help him out. Sec. 221, Row 3. Side of the stage, but the vendor said it'll be an open stage, no obstructed view.

Plus, buying at the BO eliminates all those Ticketmaster fees.

Oh I did sign up to see Dream Theater in NYC to be able to see John Petrucci in late March. The Red Dragon Cartel show didn't go on sale yet.

That's about it till the Summer I would guess.

They're playing here in Seattle in June, in some crappy little club. I'm still undecided about going.

Yeah the place near here in Amityville is basically a small bar but what a chance to be in the room near one of rocks greatest guitarists who uses Charvel (one of my favorite guitar companies).

I saw him with Ozzy in 86 at Monsters of Rock in Germany. The reason I'm undecided is the Youtube videos of a RDC show. I'm not sure I want to listen to the singer for a whole show.

I'll probably be forced to wear ear protection anyway.

Not technically a concert, and not 2014, but it IS New Years related -

Last night/this morning at 1:00 AM at Las Vegas Fremont Street Experience, BLUES TRAVELER taped their segment that will air on Fox News' All American New Year show tonight (9 Eastern/6 Pacific). We had to pretend that last night was tonight and party it up for the New Year!

If you see a tall guy in a blue/orange NY Islanders jacket standing next to a girl who is way too pretty for him (that would be my wife) - that's us! We both have on those 2014 party eyeglasses.

Blues Traveler performed the songs They will be playing a full 90 minute set tonight.

The only ticket I have thus far for 2014 is for Green Day's musical "American Idiot".

We saw Blue Rodeo back on January 2nd at the Orpheum Theatre in Vancouver, BC - the first night on the tour.

We saw them on January 5th last year at the same venue, and they previewed a few songs from the album they were about to start recording. They had two new full members at that show - Mike Boguski on keyboards (who had played sessions on the previous album, after Bob Packwood left) and Colin Cripps on lead guitar, because Greg Keelor's hearing problems now prevent him from playing electric on-stage. This year's show started with them playing that new album "In Our Nature" from start to finish. Midway through, Jim Cuddy said something to the effect of "Just in case you're sick of the new stuff, here's one you know" before tearing into a cover of the Stones' "The Last Time." Everybody who had bought 2 tickets to the show got a code in their email to get a free CD of the new album, and I got mine in late November. It's good - Nothing groundbreaking, but some really great stuff, like Greg's "Mattawa" and Jim's "Made Your Mind Up."



After the new album, they took a 10 minute intermission, and came back with an incredibly powerful rendition of the classic "Diamond Mine." After letting Colin handle the leads for the new material, it was nice to see Jim rip out an amazing solo on that. Then a couple more big hits - "Til I Am Myself Again" and "After The Rain" before they dove into some deeper stuff I hadn't heard before at my 3 earlier BR shows. "5AM (A Love Song)" was a lot of fun. But the real pinnacle of the show for me was "Disappear" from the oft-overlooked "Tremolo" album. The song's painful story of cruel rejection borders on sadistic - "You closed your eyes and made a wish/You laughed and looked at me and said 'What are you still doing here?'" and it brought back every heartbreak I'd suffered in the 15 years after it came out.

I should also mention what a find Mike Boguski has been on keys. Everything from his jazz influence to his crouched posture reminds me of BR's original keyboardist, Bobby Wiseman. Every solo he played got applause.

Opening act was The Devin Cuddy Band, a Blues/Honky Tonk act fronted by Jim Cuddy's oldest son. They had a great song called "Afghanistan" about joining the Army for a lack of anything better to do.

I've talked to Devin Cuddy at The Cameron House in Toronto a few times. His CD is wonderful, but I haven't seen him play live yet.

The first show for me is on the 17th, The Jim Jones Revue at the Horseshoe Tavern.

I saw them New Year's Eve......a great way to start 2014.

The O'Jay's next Saturday at Buffalo Bill's in Primm, on the Nevada/California border.

2nd row!

Free English Beat show next Friday at the Vegas Hard Rock. Looks like a definite for us!

I have John Hiatt/Lyle Lovett this Saturday. I've seen them together once before and they are terrific.

Was on the fence about it, but I just grabbed tix for THE STRAITS. Some former members of DIRE STRAITS (no Knopfler, of course) playing their classics.

March 29 at The Cannery, Las Vegas. Front row - $30 per seat.

Grabbed tix for Gary Clark, Jr. in March. A smallish club - a friend from a guitar board says he thinks this may be the last tour to see him in a smaller place. We'll see.