Have you ever attended a concert? If you have, you no doubt encountered a variety of concert attendees.
Depending upon the show and the venue, a unique group of people can gather and sometimes be as entertaining if not more entertaining than the group pouring out their guts on stage.
Out of that unique group, which of the following concert-goers are you most like?

1. Dancy Nancy
This girl has no concern for others around them. They have lived their whole lives for that moment – the moment to dance like a ferocious wet noodle before their musical idols.

2. Phil Spectator
This guy spends most of the evening in awe of the human condition. On occasion, he will watch the people on stage, but is usually more enthralled with the show happening all around him.

3. Make-out McQueen
This person takes every opportunity to demonstrate how much they feel toward their concert partner. Nothing left to say here that can be said.

4. Drunken Duncan
This guy makes it his mission to consume as much alcohol as possible, and potentially ruin the show for others around him. He can go from screaming his love for the singer, to giving the band the bird as they exit the stage at the end of the night (if Drunken Duncan is still standing).

5. Kevin Keigley
Sometimes nods in time, never claps (especially with his hands over his head) and then blogs about the evening.*

I am sure I missed someone.
If you feel that I have, please enlighten us to a concert attendee you have witnessed (or that best describes you).

*This does not apply to the time that I saw Paul McCartney in concert.
If it did, #5 would have read like the following:
5. Kevin Keigley
Turns into an unsightly girl.

Sometimes, you just need it.
You can’t deny it – you just need your Hall and Oates fix.
Rich Girl, One On One, Private Eyes - do I need to continue?
Dubbing their own music as “rock and soul,” these guys still have a grip on budding musicians today.

Case in point: Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers.
Enjoy, but don’t watch whilst driving (leave recording a music video and driving to the pros).

The Bowerbirds have music that I would liken to a piece of earthen clay that has been crafted by a skilled artisan at a well-known folk festival.
In other words, I think that their music has fingerprints.
Bowerbirds were formed in 2006 in Raleigh, NC and are comprised of Phil Moore, Beth Tacular and Matt Damron.

I have a few Bowerbirds essential tracks for your playlist.
“Hooves” and “In Our Talons” from their album Hymns for a Dark Horse. And from their more recent album, Upper Air, I prefer “Teeth” and “Northern Lights.”
This is creative music.
By that, I mean it is music to play whilst drawing, sketching, sculpting, cooking — anything that requires you to tap into a deep place and make something — this is the theme music.
So get some of their ear candy and go create.

I don’t know about you, but for many reasons, I have always loved Steve Martin.
He is a comedian.
He is a magician.
He is an author (you must read Born Standing Up).
He is an actor.
He is a director.
He is also an accomplished musician.
Steve Martin is a modern day renaissance man.
He probably even gardens and raises a rare breed of goat.
And I like him.

WORDS ARE NOT HERE

I think you should at the very least have an appreciation for him.
Therefore, I am providing you an opportunity to begin that journey by clicking below.

Torch songs are not typically acquainted with Christmas music.  This year, I appeal to you, add this music to your holiday playlist.  Over the Rhine is awesome for numerous reasons.
Is it because they are from Ohio?  Yes.
Is it because they are a husband and wife band?  Yes.
Is it because they make incredibly delicious ear candy?  Yes.

This pair of musicians, pianist/guitarist/bassist Linford Detweiler and vocalist/guitarist Karin Bergquist, produce some of the most heartfelt, raw, soulful, forlorn music of which I am aware.  There are two Christmas tunes that I would highly recommend, especially if you are aching.  They are “All I Ever Get for Christmas is Blue” and “Darlin’ (Christmas is Coming),” both from the album Snow Angels.
Be forewarned — these songs can cause one to wallow in pain in misery during an otherwise delightful and restorative season of Christmas.  So if you feel as though you are covered in the muck and mire of the pain and misery in which you wallowed earlier, turn on some Nat King Cole or Judy Garland for an instant lift.  If that doesn’t work, hit the eggnog.
I hate eggnog.

Do you have some go-to Christmas music that is like an arrow through the heart?
Are there some Christmas tunes that are guaranteed to put a smile on your face?
Is there a song, that when you hear it, you are instantly transported to a certain place and time?  Where and what?

The Tallest Man on Earth is no stranger to the Eleventy Million Dollar Blog.  Some time ago, I featured an animated video featuring the music of Swedish folksinger/songwriter Kristian Matsson.  At the time, I didn’t know that he was the Tallest Man on Earth, I thought it was this guy.

THIS IS A WHITE LINE OF TEXT THAT IS MEANINGLESS
Matsson wrote the theme song (“A Field Full of Birds”) for the Yellow Bird Project , but since then, I have found several songs that grab me by the collar and kick me in the throat whistle.  Those songs are “I Won’t Be Found,” “The Wild Hunt” and “Honey Won’t You Let Me In.”

…and in case you missed it, below is the video for the Yellow Bird Project.

In recognition of all of you that are trying to stick to the rule of No-Shave November (the simple rule that states: don’t shave your beard), I have a couple bits of ear candy that focuses on our follicles and also tickles our ears (like our beard hairs oft times do).

Clem Snide is described as being somewhat of an alt-country band.  I honestly don’t hear it.  What I do hear is a serene and a melodic stream of music that flows like a newly discovered creek that runs through a dense forest.
I adore their song of stubble called Beard of Bees. It is a gentle love song.  Burn the Light is another amazing offering by Clem Snide .

Neil Halstead also has a song for those with fuzzy faces.  In Baby, I Grew You a Beard, the British folk singer creates an ethereal tune focusing on growing his beard for the girl he loves.  What a lucky gal, yes?
Yes.
He also has another great tune called Elevenses. I loved it for the title.  I bought it and it gets a lot of play on my trusty iPod.

So, how is No-Shave November coming for those of you participating?
Maybe you are a dude that wants November to go all year long…
Maybe you are a lady reaping the enormous benefits of having a man with a sweet beard…  Maybe you are a lady ready for December…
Whatever the case — let your beard bashing/blazoning begin!

Did you ever dream that when you were young, your dad would have had really talented musician friends that would come over at night and hang out on the front porch with their guitars and banjos and fedoras and vests and maybe a bottle of spirits?  Well, for me, The Wood Brothers produce that almost-familiar sound that I wanted to hear on the front porch of my childhood home (if we only had a front porch – it was more like a concrete step that served many times as a G.I. Joe base).

Chris and Oliver Wood combined their love for jazz, rock and blues and have produced some soulful and almost tangible music that is great for every occasion.  If you are going on a cross country road trip, cleaning your kitchen or skinning a rabbit (for supper), just about any Wood Brothers song is the right choice.  A few of my favourites are “Luckiest Man,” “Up Above My Head,” “Pray Enough,” “One More Day,” and though I am quite wary of Beatles covers, their cover of “Fixing a Hole” is unique and absolutely incredible.

I also think it is worth noting that in 2008, Chris Wood collaborated with some other guys in the form of Medeski, Martin and Wood (these guys also host a music camp that would blow your mind – Camp MMW).  They released an incredible album for kids that I play loudly through the house when I am raucousing in the house with my children.  The album is called Let’s Go Everywhere.  Check it out.  Or not.  It is a free country.

What musician or musical group did you want to show up on your front porch (or concrete step) and play music late into the evening while you sat on the ground listening whilst wearing one of their fedoras that sat crooked on your little head?

Have you ever wanted to do something?
Did it scare you?
What scared you about it?
Was it because you might fail?
Or look silly?
In front of people?

The other night, I decided I was going to try something.
Something I have never done before.
It came about after I had judged some local musician, as if I was some musical giant.
I am not.
I saw the link to his site, I visited it and decided, “Eh.”
I began to critique him and make a short list of the reasons why he wasn’t as good as he made himself out to be.
Then it hit me.
Who am I to judge this guy — a guy that is taking a chance and daring to step out in front of people and open his mouth and sing.
Who am I to sit in the safe confines of my house and judge him?
So I decided to do something about it.
I got my guitar and headed to downtown Greenville, SC to stand on the corner and play my guitar and sing.
I wondered if I would have the nerve to do it once I actually got downtown.
I did.
Here’s proof.

I now have a newfound appreciation for sidewalk musicians.
And I also have a new take on that musician — now I can go back and really judge the crap out him.

I have always been a fan of animation, especially of the stop-motion variety.
This short animated film was made for the Yellow Bird Project by a man named Jonathan Lindley.
The film features the YBP theme song, “A Field Full of Birds,” by Swedish folk singer/songwriter Kristian Matsson.

The Tallest Man On Earth – A Field Of Birds from Yellow Bird Project on Vimeo.