As the end of the year approaches, it’s time to look back at 12 months of music and memories. 2010 saw a fair share of emerging jambands and many concerts to remember. It seems that all is well in the jamband world— Phish just came off what is arguably the band’s most impressive tour since the reunion, Widespread Panic delivered a moving and cohesive new record, the Allman Brothers Band returned following Gregg’s liver transplant, moe. just celebrated 20 years together, The Disco Biscuits have a new studio album out for the first time in eight years, God Street Wine reunited, and String Cheese Incident is playing the odd show together. 2010 also saw Trey Anastasio team up with a new songwriting partner, Amanda Green, with whom he is scoring a musical, while Phish lyricist Tom Marshall went off to write with teenage jamband wonders The McLovins; Phil and Bobby returned to Madison Square Garden and The Greek Theatre in Berkeley with Furthur, while Bill Kreutzmann has moved into smaller venues with 7 Walkers.
To close out the year, we turned to some of our favorite musicians and industry personnel to share their thoughts on the year in music. Each week, we will be featuring a new set of responses. Set 1 features Jackie Greene, Fred Tackett (Little Feat), Patterson Hood (Drive By Truckers) and Billy Martin (MMW). Be sure to check back for set 2 next week.
JACKIE GREENE
What will you remember most about 2010?
The San Francisco Giants, of course!
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
I actually barely use iTunes.
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
The summer Gov’t Mule tour we got to open for. Fun times.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
Wish I knew. Somebody should let me know when they find ‘em.
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Tom Waits.
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FRED TACKETT (LITTLE FEAT)
What will you remember most about 2010?
This year we lost Richie Hayward, a great friend and amazing musician, and our world will never be the same.
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
The most played albums in my itunes library are Breakestra by Dusk Til Dawn, Allen Toussaint The Warner Collection and Electric Funk by Jimmy McGriff (although uncredited, The Meters are the backing band).
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
Our annual trip to Jamaica is really hard to beat as the tour of the year and 2010 was great. We go March 4 – 7th this year and I know it will be great. Otherwise, we really enjoy visiting most of the places Little Feat plays.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
I got to play on a song on Tiffany Christopher’s CD. She is one of the coolest, young Arkansas/Missouri songwriters and musicians I have met. She is a great guitarist and we play together whenever I get to Arkansas.
Joel and Shawn Eckels are great guitar players and songwriters from there as well. I have jammed with Shawn’s band, Speakeasy, a number of times. They are an amazing band of 4. Joel lives in Los Angeles so I get to jam with him. He has a great group, Paper Moon.
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Bonnie Paine from Elephant Revival out of Colorado, is a great songwriter and singer and she rocks her washboard. She has jammed with Little Feat on “Cajun Girl” a bunch. She also has a band with her sisters from Oklahoma called My Tea Kind that is great and one of a kind. I think they will be really successful. I hope to play with all of them this coming year.
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KENNY LINER (The Bridge)
What will you remember most about 2010?
The thing I remember most about 2010 is being in Amsterdam with my mom and dad and partying our asses off.
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
Los Lobos Tin Can Trust, Caleb Stine I Wasn’t Built For A Life Like This and Big Hits by Ray Lewis [ed. note: Kenny is from Baltimore].
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
My Morning Jacket with Preservation Hall Jazz Band at Merriweather Post Pavillion.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
Caleb Stine
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, Papa Grows Funk
PATTERSON HOOD (Drive-By Truckers)
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
Probably the Broken Bells album, although Springsteen’s The Promise is catching up. Black Keys, Spoon, Hold Steady and Deerhunter have all been played a ton also.
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
The Hold Steady at The 40 Watt Club (Athens GA). We toured with them a couple of years ago and they were always fantastic, but the show I saw this year smoked all of those shows. Incredible.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
DEERHUNTER!!!
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Bobby Womack, Tom T. Hall, Booker T. (again). I have a pretty big list of artists of all kinds of genres that I’d love to collaborate with, either with the band or as a producer, writer or player.
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STUART BOGIE (Antibalas, Superhuman Happiness, Iron & Wine)
What will you remember most about 2010?
My most memorable moment of 2010 was the Festival of the Dessert right outside of Timbuktu.
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
Constant rotation: Jamie Principle’s tracks on Frankie Presents, LCD Soundsystem This is Happening and their first record, Beyondo Gold Tone, Shit Robot, Matt Bauder’s Day in Pictures, Original Sufferhead by Fela, Crescent City Collection – lots of Allen Toussaint in there, Peter Gabriel Security, Fine Young Cannibals “Johnny,” Tortoise’s latest – of course!
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
My favorite show of 2010 on a rooftop in Timbuktu watching Khaira Arby – whoa!!! Also amazing was Elysian Fields at LPR.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
Emerging artist to look out for is YOU – art is how you see what you see, to a great degree. Pay attention to your own preferences and you can hear inspired music all over – right? If your itching for hidden gems you can check out Beyondo, Minerva Lions, Jersey Band, EMEFE, Glass Ghost, Sam Cohen’s YellowBirds, Boy King Islands, Nomo, Rubblebucket, Chico Mann, and Knights on Earth.
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
I look forward to collaborating with my friends in Superhuman Happiness and I am most excited about that! I also plan to work with Sway Machinery, Lexy Benaim, Antibalas, Iron and Wine, Gomez and the brilliant comedic improviser Matt Higgins. If I could manifest another collaboration it would have to be one of those artist I have been listening to a lot – but it is always a little weird going from fan to collaborator. It is usually easier to become a fan as you work with an artist.
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HOWIE SCHNEE (CEG Presents, Sulivan Hall)
What will you remember most about 2010?
Lots of firsts for my son and the year I became disillusioned with our political system.
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
Anders Osborne American Patchwork.
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
Phish in Telluride.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
Groundation, Ikebe Shakedown, Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds, Consider the Source
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ROB BARBATO (Darker My Love)
What will you remember most about 2010?
Recording Alive As You Are in San Francisco
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
Andrew Graham & Swarming Branch – Good Word.
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
Furthur- Greek Theatre LA Sept.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
White Fence.
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Phil, Bobby, Mickey or Bill.
BILLY MARTIN (Medeski Martin & Wood)
What will you remember most about 2010?
It was a very frugal year for mice-elf and others around me.
What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes?
It’s gotta be the Limits of Control soundtrack or a song by the Magik Markers called “Taste.”
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
The Masada Marathon in Milan was definitely a highlight for me.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2010?
The Wood Brothers
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Ralph Carney, a great multi reed player/instrumentalist from San Francisco.
DENNIS MCNALLY
I guess all my answers come down to one sentence: My favorite show of the year was the December Rex Foundation show in San Francisco at the Fillmore, featuring Jesse McReynolds, David Nelson, and Peter Rowan. Jesse is a bluegrass legend who recently released a tribute album to Hunter and Garcia, Songs of the Grateful Dead. It isn’t GD music bluegrass-ified. Instead, he picked out great ballads like “Standing on the Moon” – his performance of that at the Rex left me and lots of others in tears – and “Black Muddy River.” He’ll be at the festivals next summer, and he’s special.
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SAM COHEN (Apollo Sunshine, Yellowbirds)
What will you remember most about 2010?
Driving from Houston to Brooklyn with my dad. Memphis. Monticello.
*What album or albums appeared most often in your iTunes? *
The Sound of Wonder Bollywood comp.
What was your favorite show or tour in 2010?
There was a band playing at the replay in Lawrence, KS who blew my mind this summer and i can’t remember their name, but they were wearing strange masks and had their bodies painted with glow in the dark paint and had moves like the end of Bill and Ted’s excellent adventure. If you see this band, share my joy.
What emerging band should readers watch out for in 2011?
Bell and the Bees – peaceful, pure and perfect. I love Sue Bell. There’s also a Brooklyn artist called Wish that I just found out about and really like.
What artist or artists would you most like to collaborate with next year?
Stuart Bogie.
