Part of growing up is discovering music that your parents hate and playing it as loudly and as often as you can get away with it. It is only natural that the music of one generation is scorned by the next in line. However, some music seems to draw, across multiple generations, admirers of many ages. The Beatles, the Stones, Stevie Wonder, the Beach Boys, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd. All possesses a certain je ne sais quoi. Sometimes confounding but always compelling. <\/p>\n
There\u2019s another name to add to that list, though. I am speaking here of Black Sabbath, a band from the Midlands of England that went from absolutely nothing to worldwide stardom, inventing the genre of heavy metal and providing \u2013 for over 50 years \u2013 music to bang one\u2019s head by.<\/p>\n
Black Freaking Sabbath closed out its performing career over this past weekend, with a mega-concert in the band\u2019s hometown of Birmingham. Kudos to Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, who assembled a top-tier group of musicians to pay tribute to Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne. The grand finale was Black Sabbath\u2019s final performance.
The band looked old. Ozzy is suffering from Parkinson\u2019s disease and had to remain seated during his appearances on stage. But he summoned all of his inner reserves and did his dead-level best. Drummer Bill Ward (who did not participate in Black Sabbath\u2019s farewell tour several years ago due to a contract dispute) was back in the fold \u2013 at least for one day \u2013 and yes, he looked like somebody\u2019s grandpa. And taking his shirt off halfway through Sabbath\u2019s brief set was probably not a great idea. <\/p>\n
But why should he care? He\u2019s a rock god and has nothing left to prove. (See last week\u2019s Concert Watch and the notion of \u201cYeah, I\u2019m old. Deal with it!\u201d) Those who might make insulting remarks can pucker up and kiss his wrinkled ass. The years have been kinder to guitarist Tony Iommi and bassist Geezer Butler, but the passage of time is still evident. Still, they all rocked it hard for four songs. And did themselves proud.<\/p>\n
What a send-off. Imagine a day-long celebration of your music which was capped off by an audience made up of people of all ages singing lyrics back to you that you wrote when you were 21 that still resonate today. That\u2019s how you make an exit.<\/p>\n
Ticket Alert Maybe I am awash in sentimentality after writing about Black Sabbath’s final gig, but I will not say an unkind or snarky word about Shaun Cassidy, who once sold out the Astrodome. Many loved his hits during the \u201870s, along with his acting in \u201cThe Hardy Boys Mysteries\u201d television series. Tickets are on sale now for his concert at the House of Blues<\/a> on Saturday, January 10.<\/p>\n Concerts This Week<\/b>
<\/b> Boney James has been racking up hit records in the smooth jazz genre for almost 20 years. But lest you think that he is limited in his musical focus, bear in mind that this guy has played with Morris Day (of \u201cand the Time\u201d fame), the Isley Brothers, Bobby Caldwell, Randy Crawford and Teena Marie. Tickets for a show by his Boney-ness on Sunday, October 26, at the House of Blues<\/a> are on sale now.<\/p>\n
The current cross-country jaunt co-headlined by Kesha and Scissor Sisters is billed as the Tits Out Tour. Which, I suppose, makes sense, in that there are two featured acts. Not the greatest punchline, but feel free to make up your own. I\u2019m sure there\u2019s a better one in there somewhere. Nevertheless, it is significant that the tour\u2019s promotional material features Kesha on a Jet Ski \u2013 topless, we assume \u2013 with her mammaries obscured by a rectangle bearing the word “Freedom.”\u00a0 However, don\u2019t expect anything too wild at Thursday\u2019s show at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion<\/a>. If Kesha were to actually whip them out on stage, Mrs. Mitchell would no doubt turn over in her grave.
In 1994, Miles Doughty\u2019s band Slightly Stoopid was discovered by Sublime front man Brad Nowell during his stay at a California drug rehab center operated by Doughty\u2019s mother and her boyfriend. Nowell heard the guys rehearsing, was impressed, and offered the band a gig at a bar in Long Beach. Slightly Stoopid was soon signed to Nowell\u2019s label, Skunk Records. Since that time, the band has absorbed a variety of influences, including punk, reggae, rock, hip-hop, funk and metal. Check them out on Thursday at the White Oak Music Hall<\/a>.
As the song says, they\u2019re gonna pitch a wang-dang-doodle over at the Continental Club<\/a> on Friday. Contrary to the song\u2019s lyrics, the shindig won\u2019t last \u201call night long,\u201d but it will be an evening chock full of Houston blues, featuring Trudy Lynn backed by the Sparky Parker Band. Harmonica wizard Steve Krase opens, and Rock Romano will also be along for the ride, so what more can a music lover ask for?
And in other Continental Club<\/a> news, the venerable venue will celebrate its 25th anniversary (has it really been that long?) with a festival on Saturday featuring ten acts: Thunderado, the Footnotes, Amber Digby, the Turnaways, Hate Mail, Beetle, David Garza, the Allen Oldies Band, the Lonesome Haunts and Xanadudes. So much entertainment, in fact, that sister venue Shoeshine Charley’s Big Top Lounge (next door) will be pressed into service in order to accommodate all the music. The Rebirth Brass Band made its name by virtue of a Tuesday night residency at the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans. Television helped to spread the band\u2019s reputation through appearances on the shows \u201cTreme,\u201d \u201cNCIS: New Orleans\u201d and \u201cThe Originals.\u201d You can hear Rebirth\u2019s mix of brass band, second line, funk, jazz, soul and hip-hop on Friday at the House of Blues<\/a>.
The following night (that would be Saturday for those of you keeping score at home) at the HOB<\/a>, it\u2019s back to the \u201880s with the Psychedelic Furs. Though musicians have come and gone since the peak of the band\u2019s success around 1986, original members Richard Butler (vocals, sibling) and Tim Butler (bass, sibling) are still in charge of the goings-on This being the case, you can probably expect fully credible versions of the songs you heard back then on MTV. \u2018Cause Knowledge is Power: \u201cWhy \u2018the Psychedelic Furs?\u2019\u201d you may ask. \u201cCouldn\u2019t they come up with a better name?\u201d Well, the band was previously called \u201cThe Europeans.\u201d So, I suppose the answer would be \u201cno.\u201d
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