Blackie and the Rodeo Kings. Roots power trio out of Canada: Tom Wilson, Colin Linden, Stephen Fearing. They wear knockoff Nudie suits and kick ass.

Great Big Sea. Newfoundland chantey singers and popsters. Big energy. Eye candy for the girlies as well.

Chuck Prophet is scary good.

Seconding endorsements of Cheryl Wheeler and Girlyman--among the outstanding acts on what's generally called the folk circuit. Also Maktub--excellent funk band.

And Joan Baez deserves some kind of medal for continuing to be so vital and relevant after so many years, when so many of her kind have faded. A sense of humor and a respect for younger artists--many of whom she's mentored--have a lot to do with it.

Did I mention Richard Thompson?...

They sound incredible. Best live show I've seen in years.

I've enjoyed Neil Finn and Crowded House's records only in a peripheral sense. I've always been aware of them, and have liked what I've heard, but I've never sought them out or bought any of the records. My wife, on the other hand, is an obsessive. She's taken me to see Neil Finn with three different solo bands, and I've been blown away every single time. I still don't feel a need to listen to his records at all, but I'll see him perform anytime. I think this says volumes about his ability to engage an audience. He's just that good.

Sloan - maligned in the article - did a terrific live show at the tiny TT the Bear's Place in Cambridge, MA last year, and they did the coolest (non-) encore ever. Boston's morality laws mean that bands have to wrap up by a fixed time. Sloan simply announced that, because they would have to finish at midnight, they weren't going to do an encore; they would just play until they weren't allowed to play any more. And then they did precisely that, and when they had to stop playing, they set down their instruments, sat down on the front of the stage, and began to talk with their fans.

In general, I think there is an inverse correlation between what you pay for your ticket and what you get, in terms of the live music experience, but this is contingent on you developing your own musical tastes and seeing smaller bands in small clubs (I recommend TourFilter, if it's in your area, or Pollstar). For less than fifteen dollars, I can stand close enough to the stage to get dripped on, I can hear every note and see every nuance, I can yell at the band and have them respond (although I usually don't), and I can go talk to them afterwards. When you're not dropping a hundred bucks on your mediocre seat, you can afford to be a lot more generous towards the band, in terms of whether it was a 'good' or a 'bad' concert.

I had to think of shows that not just I enjoyed, but ones that I could recommend to anyone, anywhere. And these are all bands I love (I did pay to see them)

Not Recommended:

Iggy and the Stooges. Boring and predictable.

The Fall: Might be some interesting moments, but again a bore.

Red House Painters/Mark Kozelek/Sun Kil Moon: He writes some good stuff, but live... oh my...zzzzzz.

Go now:

TV on the Radio: Nice mix of genres, fun.

Gang of Four: Reformation held up pretty good. Not as earth shattering as 25 years ago, but not bad, not bad at all.

Starlight Desperation: Not sure if they are still around, but they played to three people at the show I was at (including me) and it was astonishing.

Back when they were around;

Mclusky: Man, they were good.

Guitar Wolf: Dont know if they are still around after the bass player passed away. Non stop.

The Grifters: Hit or miss, but that was part of the charm. And when they hit... no one close.

I'm not going to insult you with acts that aren't touring (or even together) anymore. I've gotten sick of hearing things like, "Aw, you shoulda seen [insert cliché here] back when [insert another cliché here] was still with them!" Great shows, yes, but it's asinine to tell you you ought to see something that hasn't existed for the better part of one (or two, or three) decade(s).

Acts I'd sent you to see now...

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum. They've got something to put off nearly anyone, but if you can listen to a wide, wide range of music in one song without pulling hipster attitude they absolutely rock. Swinging from metal (Obituary, not Iron Maiden) to Swans-ish pounding to folk to Weimar-era Brecht in tone, they always play with enthusiasm and amazing, extremely tight musicianship. They engage the audience, they engage the music and they want you to feel as well as hear what's happening onstage. Challenging songs of mourning for the Earth, departed friends, the Italian Futurists and James Joyce. Nice folks, too.

Mission Of Burma. That these worthy gents not only reformed after a 19-year layoff but are still an absolutely awesome live act is astonishing. The sound of the band straining at the seams to contain (but never tame) the twin poles of influence, The Stooges and Pere Ubu, wrings absolute joy from Miller's feedback and Conley & Prescott's thundering, loping rhythms. The only band I've ever taken an airplane to see.

Erase Errata. Jagged, stiff music, evoking the best of bands like The Minutemen, The Fall and Gang Of Four without becoming anything other than themselves. If anything I'd say the live show is more powerful than the recorded work, if only because the music has a visceral lurch to it that is best experienced at high volume and up close.

The Black Keys. For the record, I saw them play a two night stand opening for another band, but they threatened to steal the stage. Simple, stripped-down blues, shambling and rough-hewn, with none of the lighter-in-the-air B.S. that plagues acts like Big Head Todd & The Monsters. If you can see them in San Francisco you may get the added bonus of seeing national treasure Ralph "Uncle of the Drummer" Carney sit in with them on, among other things, slide sax. Wild show.

My concertgoing has tapered off over the years, due to age and time commitments, so it's tough to say who not to see. Big Head Todd & The Monsters, who opened a show I saw not too long ago, would be the most obvious example. The combination of jammy, vapid, technically proficient blooze and incredibly annoying fans would have driven me from the venue had I gone solo. (Folks, if you're going to dance you really ought to A) put the beer down, and B) not move as is every vertebra in your body formed a single, solid mass.) The worst shows are often so due to the audience or venue, and a common thread among the acts I list above is that none of them play terribly large shows (and, largely, draw engaged, intelligent crowds, myself possibly excepted). As well, both Sleepytime and Burma tour with their own sound crew, so it's a rare night when the venue defeats either band on that front. (Speaking of front, I love being front & center but it's never the place for the best sound. Generally speaking, anywhere within the first 10' in front of the stage is likely to be a dead spot for more heavily amplified sounds, such as vocals. If good sound is a must, find the sound board & stand there.)

I could go on about how good Guided By Voices were in 1995, or how terrible Mary's Danish was in 1990 (jerks, too, until they wanted something), but you can neither see nor avoid either of them. Other bands have changed so much since I last saw them that I'd be hesitant to send you to a show. The four above, though, are worth spending an evening in a crowded, strange-smelling room to experience.