All Summer Glory

You might recognize the title of this post as the name of a Casey Neill tune ... in fact, it's the lead track off of Casey Neill & the Norway Rats' outstanding new CD, Goodbye to the Rank and File. But the title serves a twofold purpose .... To remind you of Casey's CD release show this coming Saturday, and to point out that the summer concert season will be upon us soon ... in fact, shows have been announced and tickets are on sale.

First Casey. The new CD just knocks me out ... it's absolutely his best yet (and the Norway Rats - Jenny Conlee-Drizos, Chet Lyster, Little Sue, Ezra Hollbrook, Hanz Araki, and Jesse Emerson - are just about my favorite band in Portland). And, this Saturday at the Doug Fir, Casey officially kicks off the release. Whether you're a fan of Casey's or new to his music, I highly recommend this show ... and pick up a copy of the CD ... 9 pm, $10

Next: summer concerts.

Check out the lineup at The Oregon Zoo. A few stand out for me - Carolina Chocolate Drops, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, the Quebe Sisters, The Swell Season and Black Francis, and .... Levon Helm. Holy crap ... Levon ... makes my summer, thank you.

Then there's the McMenamin's Edgefield Concerts on the Lawn, including the Avett Brothers, Crowded House, Pavement, and ...Willie Nelson!

No whining about Maryhill Winery's summer shows that include Lyle Lovett, Jackson Browne with David Lindley, and Natalie Merchant.

Of course the July 4th weekend brings us the Waterfront Blues Festival - once more with an outstanding lineup of national headliners, regional acts, and locals tearing it up for four days in Waterfront Park.

The first weekend of August (6th-8th) brings the annual Pickathon out at Pendarvis Farm, also combining an eclectic mix of touring and local artists ... roots music, folk, bluegrass, indie pop ... in a beautiful setting just outside of Portland.

And there's lots more (like all of the free music in the parks around the region) ... but I'll only mention a couple of indoor shows of note on the schedule - Marcia Ball at the Aladdin on May 26th, David Hildago and Louis Perez (of Los Lobos) at the Aladdin on June 12th, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings at the Crystal Ballroom on June 22nd, and John Hiatt at the Aladdin on August 29th.

Summer music in Portland .... does it get any better? So start filling your calendar ... I'm working on mine...