Concerts of the Week

Crowded House
Fri. Aug 3, Foxwoods, Ledyard CT
Sat. Aug 4, Calvin Theater, Northampton MA

When Neil Finn invited former Crowded House members Nick Seymour and Mark Hart to help him on what was to be another solo album, Time On Earth became the first new Crowded House album in nearly 15 years. The group seemed unlikely candidates for a reunion after the suicide of popular Crowded House drummer Paul Hester. The album, which is another lovely outing for the band, begat a tour, with new drummer Mark Sherrod, which began with tryouts at the Troubadour in LA last week, and in a secret concert at a NYC club a few days later, and officially kicks off Saturday at the Calvin with another "tryout" at an Indian casino on Friday. Finn's beautiful folk-pop songs have always been among my favorites, and it's a total mystery that they never made a dent in the US charts beyond Don't Dream It's Over. In some ways, this band would have been a perfect headliner for the Newport Folk Festival (see below) Forget the Police, this is the reunion concert of the week.



Dunkin' Donuts Newport Folk Festival
July 3, 4, 5
Newport, RI

There's a lot of history attached to this festival, founded by George Wein in the early sixties, but that never stopped producers from exploring what's new and exciting in "folk" music. There are big names like Linda Rondstadt, Emmylou Harris, the Allman Brothers, and Ralph Stanley, but there are great new bands to consider like the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, the John Butler Trio and Elvis Perkins.


Podunk Bluegrass Festival
August 2-5
Martin Park, East Hartford CT

An honest-to-God big time bluegrass festival in a city park in East Hartford. Who woulda thunk it. Great bluegrass from Doyle Lawson, the Hunger Mountain Boys, Jesse McReynolds, Lost and Found and Rhonda Vincent.