First Draft

Tony Bennett recently retired from live performances. What a career. what a singer, what a mensch.

Here he is live in1991 at London’s Prince Edward Theatre.

In case you were wondering if I like Stevie Wonder, wonder no more. Here he is live in 2010 at the Glastonbury Festival:

I have a fatal weakness for swing era music. Presenting the King of Swing with a small group:

The famous French fiddler is joined by David Grisman and his band in this 1982 set. Note that the person who posted this isn’t a good speller either. The second number should sound familiar to Friday Cocktail Hour fans:

Longtime readers know that I’m a fanatical Smithereens fan. I thought I’d seen every Reens set available on the YouTube. I was wrong.

Lead singer Pat DiNizio had just a year to live in 2016. He looks terrible but sounds great. He does not, however, play rhythm guitar. Jim Babjak makes up for that with a bravura performance.

The most interesting thing about this set is the presence of keyboard player Andy Burton. The Reens rarely had a keyboard player in concert. Burton is good and kills it on the rarely performed song Indigo Blues.

And yes, Pleasantville, NY looks pleasant.

This show was filmed in 2019 after Utopia regrouped. I missed the tour, but my friend Mike saw it. He’s my own personal Todd oracle. He was blown away by this tour.

Adding to the fun is the fact that this video was posted by Utopia drummer Willie Wilcox.

I found this set fascinating because Dwight had a cold but still put on a good show thanks to his band. Well done, guys.

I am not making this up. Here’s a 2010 show from the Anchor and Hope, Charlton. I believe it’s Glenn Tilbrook’s local pub but don’t hold me to that.

The camera work is a bit shaky but the sound is good.

There hasn’t been enough Oscar Peterson content on First Draft of late. It’s time to remedy that with this 1972 performance on German television.

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Oscar Peterson?

I knew Chris Isaak back in the day. He turned out well. Here he is live on PBS in 2005.

Here’s  52 minutes of magic from 2014:

Here’s the legendary Nina Simone live in London in 1985:

The great Ella Fitzgerald live on Australian teevee in 1960. Be patient because she doesn’t hit the stage until the 2:37 mark:

On Independence Day in 1985, Hall & Oates performed in Liberty Park in Jersey City. The concert aired live on HBO and the proceeds went to restore the Statue of Liberty. Thanks, guys.

The Cars rumble in Brighton in 1979.