James Brown at Magness Arena - January 17, 2001

Most people hear James Brown growing up whether they know it or not. I sure did. James Brown often had controversial messages but he kind of slipped under the radar for a lot of that because his music was undeniable. Even "Sex Machine."



James Brown was not someone I thought I'd ever see play because I remember in the early 90s or so he was in trouble for driving under the influence of crack or something and had to do PSAs I used to play on my college radio show that still make me laugh to this day. But that never meant I didn't absolutely respect James Brown's influence and undeniable talent.

So it came as a surprise when I got to see the great man perform at DU's Magness of Arena of all places. It was the first show I saw of 2001. Of course I went by myself because, well, I never thought anyone I knew would want to go to the show because too many "young" people discount someone like James Brown or some other kind of legend. Or I just didn't want to deal with anyone else's discomfort. James Brown would go on to tour for another year before dying and I missed the Red Rocks show later in the summer.

This was not James Brown of 1963. But he could still do those incredible dance moves and he did not do less than put himself fully into the performance. The charisma was there, his ability to command the band and to sing. He did all the major hits of his career and some music I didn't know as well. It was an odd venue for this sort of music because the rest of the time it was a basketball court or something. But would I not go see The Godfather of Soul just because it's not going to be what some people expect from forty years before? That's the kind of stupid thinking I indulged until my late 20s. It's better to have seen someone like James Brown or Arthur Lee (missed seeing Love when he played in Greeley -- yeah, I know, Greeley) or Leonard Cohen or Gil Scott-Heron and the like late in their career than not a all. Haven't regretted it since and I think James Brown was the first real "legacy" act, as the "industry" outs it now, that I caught.

I didn't take pictures much at shows at this time. More's the pity.

Greg Ginn and the Taylor Texas Corrugators

After getting to the Hi-Dive I realized I had missed Supercollider, which was kind of a shame because Zack Littlefield and some other people I like are in the band. He told me later it was kind of a jazz thing in some ways and threw some people off but I'm sure it was good.

Nightshark

I did, however, get to see Nightshark. This was the four-member line-up with Andrew Lindstrom, Mike Buckley and Neil Keener, of course, but also Brittany Gould. It's pretty much impossible to categorize Nightshark but inside the noisy malestrom of the band's dark atmospheres are aspects of jazz and dub. I'm sure someone at some point will pigeonhole them as a "No Wave" band but that wouldn't be an inapt touchstone for the Nightshark sound. Buckley's finely textured guitar squeal/squal warping in and out of its own structures is always interesting because it seems to fit in well with Lindstrom's often asymmetrical percussion. Keener's deep, rumbly drone seems to be the consistent drive underneath the other sounds and Gould's vocals and controlled noise, white and otherwise, haunt the whole while contributing to its confrontational sonic signature.

Taylor Texas Corrugators

For some reason, I was under the impression that this Greg Ginn project was going to be a jam band like the kind you often see playing somewhere in Denver or Boulder on any given night. Perish the thought. I also thought Ginn would be playing guitar. Instead, this was an improvisational, instrumental rock band that was definitely not the sort of thing you'll see at Sancho's or The Other Side or wherever. Yes, it was more or less a blues jam thing with jazz flourishes and noisy passages that sounded like it was taking blues and jazz into their most experimental reaches. Absolutely Ginn grooved on the bass while Gary Piazza pulled off some Hendrix-esque guitar riffing and Dominick Feedam laid out some surprisingly straightforward drumming. But Ginn's bass tone was gritty and his lines were driving even when they flowed into sinuous grooves. Normally this sort of music bores me to death but somehow Ginn and the guys made otherwise conventional music interesting for the hour they played through their songs. I'd heard about how great a bass player Ginn was from having read accounts of his prowess but seeing it in person left no doubt. Maybe the whole show seemed a little long in parts but it was varied enough to not bore.

Anyone who expected a Black Flag song to be thrown in probably doesn't understand that Greg Ginn isn't someone who wants to revisit the past but, instead, wants to move forward according to his own compass even if no one else understands it or appreciates what he's doing. And isn't that why some of us found his work with Black Flag wortwhile in the first place?