https://spoti.fi/3HWeHza

1

When was the last time you heard “Bette Davis Eyes”?

I can’t remember when, but I remember the track, it was ubiquitous back in 1981. Forty plus years ago if you’re counting, and I am.

I got this e-mail from John Ingham today:

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“Subject: Re: Springsteen Tickets

Here in the UK BBC TV has a quiz show called Pointless. A subject is chosen and a set of questions is displayed. The questions have previously been asked to 100 people, who answer as many of the questions as they can. The object is for the studio players to correctly  answer the question with the lowest number of people getting it right.

Yesterday one of the questions was photos of five artists who were ‘Grammy Winners With More Than 15 Awards’ — a combination of people like Beyonce (nearly everyone knew) to Alison Krauss (0 people recognized her). Among them: Bruce Springsteen. Not only did the studio players (both young and retired) not know who he was, out of the 100 people only 23 people knew.

Outside of his fans he’s history and forgotten.

Cheers,

John Ingham”

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Unfathomable. And if they posted Kim Carnes’s photo I’d bet no one would know who she was, but there could be a case of mistaken identity.

That was the name of the album, that opened with “Bette Davis Eyes.” Which I purchased as a promo. For a couple of bucks I’d take a risk, and I did like “Bette Davis Eyes.”

I’d even proffer at this late date if Kim Carnes appeared on the Super Bowl more people would know her big hit song than those of Rihanna. Well, maybe not, but can I admit I don’t know a single Rihanna song? I didn’t have to hear them so I didn’t. Back in the sixties we were prisoners of AM radio. But then FM came along and unless you were in the car, you only listened to FM. And soon every automobile came with FM. So why listen to AM? It was a badge of honor not to.

And this persisted until the days of MTV, which created a monoculture. We all knew the same stuff. And although the division line (bell?) was history, at least we were all on the same page, today we’re all on a different page.

As for listening to terrestrial radio… I can’t remember the last time I did. And SiriusXM has a zillion channels and… Why should I listen to what I don’t want to?

As for listening to albums…

I subscribe to the Apple News. A bargain for ten bucks a month. But I read less and less. At first I was excited that they had all these magazines I didn’t subscribe to, like the English version of “Esquire” and even “Mojo,” but the truth is most magazines have piss-poor writing, oftentimes by the uninformed. Yes, I have skiing as a favorite in Apple News and most of the articles are worthless, freelancers delivering an overview on that which they do not know well.

But all this is to say I’m overloaded on input, and oftentimes this means I shut down and don’t even partake. As for those people surfing constantly for new music… Wow, what a waste of time, there are too many tune-outs. And when you find something you like, you feel like you’re the only one who’s ever heard it.

Not that anybody is addressing this.

Algorithmic playlists were exciting upon their introduction, but the truth is people curate better than machines. Because art is subjective. It’s about feel. It can’t be quantified. So…

I know Rihanna was all over pop radio. But I don’t listen to pop radio. Sure, I knew the title of the track “Umbrella,” but where and why would I hear it?

2

So I was lying on the couch and a song came into my head. “Draw of the Cards.”

This was the surprise on “Mistaken Identity.” The one track that did not sound like anything else. With the prominent synthesizers of the day. Hypnotic, akin to an extended Loggins & Messina track, or one of the multi-minute opuses of the late sixties and early seventies, made to relax you, set your mind free, to drift, thinking…

That’s what the hit parade is rarely about, and certainly not today. You’ve got to make it obvious, with edges in order to hook listeners. Album tracks only matter for established fans. Therefore most of the attention is on a couple of cuts, they bring in a zillion writers, remix it, trying to get it just right, squeezing the humanity right out.

And the funny thing is this synth-based track has more humanity than those old cuts. And “Draw of the Cards” resonated.

But that’s not why I’m writing this.

You see albums used to be digestible. Under forty minutes. 39:57 in the case of “Mistaken Identity.” I’ll posit streaming didn’t kill the album, but the CD, when you could suddenly fit 80 minutes of music and acts did. And it was oftentimes one seamless stream of crap. There was no opening track on the second side. As for the closing cut, most people never made it that far.

But when albums were shorter and you bought them you played them. And hidden gems were revealed.

And that’s “Don’t Call It Love,” in the middle of the second side of “Mistaken Identity.”

3

“Nobody believes that I really care for you”

Kim Carnes did not write “Don’t Call It Love,” although she did write the haunting title track, “Mistaken Identity.” And she got and gets props for covering Frankie Miller’s “When I’m Away From You,” another musician lost to the sands of time. Sure, there were his health issues, but before that…he could write and sing and play, I know, I bought the albums.

But “Don’t Call It Love”… I remembered it was written by Tom Snow. Who had a solo album distributed by Atlantic. And Wikipedia told me he cowrote it with “Fame”‘s Dean Pitchford. And I wondered if Tom ever covered it. So I started searching on Spotify and I didn’t find a version by him, but I did find one by Dolly Parton. DOLLY PARTON?!

Reached number three on the country charts back in 1985, who knew?

So I hit play.

I expected a complete reworking, but it’s the same damn song, and I couldn’t stop playing it.

4

Now how do I explain the magic of “Don’t Call It Love.” I’m talking about the Kim Carnes version, let’s start there.

Sure, there are the lyrics, but the song is a hit without them.

First and foremost it’s the groove. Up and down, like a merry-go-round, you start to nod your head in time.

And the cheesy keyboard that sounds so good. Not exactly like an organ, but even more ingratiating.

And then there’s Carnes’s voice. A female Rod Stewart. Sure, people commented on her throatiness back then, but today we’re looking for colorless voices, it’s all about range, not about edge. And edge is the essence of rock and roll.

And speaking of rock and roll, “Don’t Call It Love” has guitars.

And then there’s Jerry Peterson’s sax solo. Which is icing on the cake. It does not descend the cut to schlock, this is not latter-day Chicago, BS&T, this is still a rock track.

“Nobody believes that I really care for you”

Do they really care for you? It’s hard to know. You’re not exactly sure. They’re here, but in an instant they could be there.

“They don’t think my heart is true

I don’t think you agree”

Never ever listen to your friends, unless they tell you your significant other is doing drugs or stepping out on you. Only you know what’s between the two of you, what turns you on.

“You know I’m a lifetime guarantee”

That’s what we’re all looking for. Like our parents had. Well, if you’re an old enough baby boomer, before the Louds got divorced on PBS. You want to be able to rely on them, count on them, through ups and downs.

“So if they ask you what you mean to me

Don’t call it love, heavens above

We got a better thing

Don’t call it love, that ain’t enough

Tell ’em you’re my everything”

I play this game with Felice’s four year old grand niece Ella. I ask her if she likes something and she says, “I don’t like it, I LOVE IT!”

The exuberance of this magical chorus conveys how she feels about him. It’s a ringing endorsement. She really cares for him.

“Nobody believes

We got something they ain’t got

They never seen a fire this hot

They never got that far

We’re burning as bright as any star”

Here you hear the magic of a songwriter, not just another person in the band laying down lyrics atop a track. What is captured here is the universality of that moment in a relationship when you can’t think about anyone else, when you’re elated, when you’re so happy to be alive. And if you’re lucky you’ll have moments in the future just like this one, albeit more brief and more infrequent. And if you’re searching for this hit constantly…you’ve probably been married multiple times and still haven’t found what you’re looking for, which probably doesn’t exist.

Then there’s the bridge:

“(Feels so good) Feels so good

(Holding tight) Holding tight

(Tight and close) Through the night

(Through the night)

They can call it what they like

They ain’t got it right”

Positively revelatory in the era of today where tracks don’t even have chord changes, you can listen to them, but you can’t sing them. And singing them is so joyful, it makes you feel so happy.

So “Don’t Call It Love” is a bit more obvious than your usual AOR fare. But it’s not a sellout, it doesn’t pander, and it’s got the underpinnings, the building blocks of the classics.

And that’s why it’s a hit. This is the kind of fare the label was looking for when they said they did not hear a single.

The track overflows with exuberance, it just makes you feel good, it’s the essence of the musical experience. It’s a hit, but it wasn’t for Kim Carnes.

5

But it was for Dolly Parton.

That loping groove is still there. But Dolly personalizes it with her own throaty vocal. And in truth, it’s not in the league of the Kim Carnes version, but a hit song works for everybody. And put a name brand with the right song and the right team and it runs up the chart.

So what have we learned here?

Possibly nothing. Because first and foremost you have to want to learn, and many people don’t, especially when it comes to decades-old tracks that have not survived in the public consciousness.

However, you’ve got the essence right here.

Like they say, it all comes down to songs. And some performers can write A+ material, like Lennon and McCartney. And then there are others who write songs only they can perform. Come on, “Midnight Rambler” or “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by anybody but the Stones? Sure, you can sing them, but they lose their essence.

And somehow we’ve lost the magic of songs. Maybe because songwriting is not as lucrative as it was previously. Furthermore, songwriting, as referenced above, is oftentimes done differently today. You cobble together the track from as many as twenty sources, building it up, creating a confection. But oftentimes there’s not a solid base. Not only are the fundamentals nonexistent, there are no hooks.

Then again, you can write a hit today and nobody can hear it. There’s no magic formula of success. It’s more about hoovering up and amplifying that which raises its head.

6

Now in truth Kim Carnes was sui generis. A singer with rock roots who also lived in the middle of the road, back when music was the foremost art form and everybody was following and aware of it. We loved Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin. And Cat Stevens. The only criterion being that it was good. We were open. And when something caught fire we all shared in the joy. There was a plethora of riches, in different sub-genres.

Don’t call it love, that ain’t enough, I can’t stop playing “Don’t Call It Love,” I’ve never burned out on it. It’s one of those cuts with a little something extra, that makes it rise above, that when it ends you need to hear again, that evidences humanity.

That’s what we’re looking for.

They’re going for bupkes. People keep e-mailing me about this. Like this gent:

“From: Russell Altman

Bob I’d like you to post this. Most of Bruce’s shows are dead on arrival. He is big on the eastern seaboard Denver and Southern California. No one gives a f**k about him. I doubt you will put this up but you should to let the public know. Bruce also has been dropping GA Seats and best lower level seats day of show. Were these tickets Jon Landau and Bruce holds? You won’t tell the public how they f**k the public.

“Bruce Springsteen Tickets For Houston Now Cost The Same As Two Gallons of Gasoline”: https://bit.ly/3I4ojrP

There’s a lot to unpack here.

First and foremost, if you want to see Bruce Springsteen live, you’ll have no problem getting a ticket. There are tons available on the Ticketmaster site, and not at exorbitant prices either.

From: Steve Hutton

“Springsteen Tulsa next week.

Wonder what the Taylor Swift bottom will be”

Attached is a listing for five pairs of two tickets in Tulsa, six are going for $10 and four are going for $9. You can see the screenshot here:

https://bit.ly/3YxyGLG

So all that hoopla about the four digit Springsteen tickets?

The dirty little secret is it SOLD tickets. Not at that value, but the less expensive ones were scooped up. Because people were afraid of being left out, because people wanted to scalp the tickets themselves.

Let’s be clear, a cursory survey of availability at Bruce’s dates shows mostly resale tickets. However, in some cases there are still primary tickets available.

And believe me, when you see resale tickets from behind the stage, from the upper deck, these are definitely individuals. Scalpers don’t buy these tickets, there’s no demand beyond face value, and that’s the paradigm the professionals employ. The last thing they want is to be left holding the bag, i.e. the tickets, they’re worthless after the show plays. So the scalpers only buy good inventory.

But the punters are unsophisticated. Furthermore, they don’t know that they can’t compete with the professionals. If you drop the price of your ticket, they’re going to drop the price of their ticket by a dollar or more. It’s all done automatically, there are computer programs. You can’t beat the scalpers at their own game, impossible.

Not that the scalpers are always right. Sometimes they do end up with inventory they can’t sell, or that they take a loss on. But one thing is for sure, scalping is a business, and if you think you can buy four tickets to a hot show and sell the other two no problem…you’ve got another think coming.

As for Taylor Swift… Insiders know she didn’t go clean everywhere last time. Which was an incentive to put all her tickets up for sale on the same day, to create mania, to get people to buy tickets for fear of being left out. Springsteen is playing arenas and there are tickets available. Swift is playing stadiums, you’ll have no problem getting a ticket at a cheap price. Face value at worst. Maybe below, because all the fans are scalping themselves.

So, the fans are guilty.

As for Bruce… I’m sure there were some holds, but not many, certainly not in the middle of the country. And there are always tickets released at the last minute due to stage configuration, there are holdbacks to make sure the stage fits, you certainly don’t want to cancel people’s ducats because their seat is squeezed out.

And the only entity not at fault here is…TICKETMASTER!

Well, it’s not that simple. You see Ticketmaster does make fees on tickets resold on their platform, not that you must use their platform.

However, pointing the finger at Ticketmaster as the culprit…is oftentimes wrong.

Don’t believe the hype.

Then again, they said that back in the seventies, not today.

Since you can’t get certain gaming consoles, since you can’t get the electric car you want, people believe they’re not going to get tickets to the show they want. And when you deal with superstars like Swift, who appeals to a younger demo, you have inexperienced parents caught up in the maelstrom as they try to get tickets for their kids. Pros know if you want to go, just wait. For the market to settle. For the prices to come down. Until the day of the show.

So would Swift have gone clean everywhere if it were not for the Ticketmaster slowdown? Maybe not. And if she went market by market, some dates might have been hot, and others colder. And margins are thin and acts do not want to play to empty seats, EVER!

Not that the media can fathom all of the above. The same media that does not understand that the Luminate/”Billboard” numbers are manipulated, to the benefit of the labels. Record companies don’t want pure streaming numbers because they can’t game the system! Want your album to move up the chart? Release some vinyl, or lower the price at the iTunes Store, physical and sales are weighted more than streams in Luminate’s scam system.

Not that this “corruption” is solely in the music business. It’s everywhere. Like slotting fees at supermarkets. You pay to get your items on the shelves, most people think it’s a gentleman’s agreement, but no way. And if your product doesn’t sell, they pull it, because slotting fees are just an element of the overall profit at the store, the items actually have to move across the scanner for the virtuous circle to be complete.

And the funny thing is the flames of the mania are often fed by very few people. Post somewhere that tickets have gone up in price to over four figures and that spreads like wildfire, that becomes the story, even amongst people who don’t want to go!

There are shows where it’s nearly impossible to get a ticket. But if you pay the scalper enough… The scalper always has tickets. But their inventory can be low, they can sell out. So if you really need to be in the building you get caught up in the buzz and buy. Maybe tickets you really didn’t want, whether it be a matter of price or location.

Turns out tickets have a value. And to a great degree this is established by the people, the marketplace, not the act. If a show goes clean instantly, the mantra in the business is you undercharged. Then again, if a show does not sell out instantly, it’s not a good look. And after the initial on-sale it’s so hard to build further momentum, move tickets. The promoter does not want to be stuck with inventory, because of the aforementioned thin margins.

Oh, margins could be better, but the acts take almost all of the face value of the ticket. Margins are way down in the single digits. So the promoter has to sell nearly every ticket to make a profit.

By now your head is probably spinning. Which is just the point. It’s too complicated, you just don’t understand.

Get it?

Hey Bob,

So in 2016 REO was touring as special guest with Def Leppard…it was a big tour. We had a show coming up in Greenville, NC when the governor of the state signed a silly red-meat bill regarding which gender was allowed to use which public restrooms. As if they were going to station genitalia police to decide sure who should pee where.

Bruce Springsteen also had an upcoming date in Greenville, about a week before ours, and upon hearing of this ludicrous law, cancelled his show in protest. I loved that Bruce had the stones to take that action. But it left me in a tough spot. I agreed with Springsteen’s position, and at the same time was in no position to bow out of our slot with the Lepps. I suppose I could have refused to perform, but it is a bit different for bands than for solo artists.

I regularly post on the REO Speedwagon Facebook page. Mostly it is fun road stories or promoting various band projects, but sometimes my inner Irishman takes over…and I was pissed at the powers-that-were in the beautiful state of North Carolina. I wrote up what I felt was a reasonable response to this nonsensical, unenforceable, uninformed “bathroom law”, and although we played the Greenville show, I felt at peace, knowing that I had made my feelings about public restrooms, well, public.

You would have thought I dissed puppies, babies, and hamburgers! The first raft of responses, to what I felt was a reasonably stated opinion piece, were just plain ugly. And it was shocking to (naive) me. Why couldn’t I just play the gig, and keep my big mouth shut? I’ll tell you why, because I supported Bruce’s decision to cancel his date, and had I not spoken up, it would have felt like tacit support for a law which I found to be ignorant and unacceptable. That said, I had alienated what appeared to be a significant portion of our fan base.

But after the initial onslaught of hater-posts, something quite wonderful happened …Love began to appear! People on my side of the issue slowly began to speak up, until love had outnumbered hate by a country mile.

So my long-winded point here is that while I have the utmost respect for artists like Bruce Springsteen, Neal Young, and the late great David Crosby, we can each affect change in our own way. REO Speedwagon is a bar band. We come to your town bearing joy, fun, good old rock’n roll. But as my daughter Holly taught me in the wake of George Floyd…silence is complicity. Not everyone can be an activist, but in this country we can all speak our truth, and let the chips fall.

Onward and upward…Kevin Cronin

I was with you on Larkin Poe. I roamed the hall and ended up right down front because the Allman’s, ZZ Top, & Led Zeppelin were in the air but with harmonized blues shouting vocals. The look of the place, the size and that incredible band. Tight as a snare from weeks on the road. The played like THEY MEANT IT. I time travelled back to a hundred concerts at the Fillmore East. Larkin Poe were transcendent. That doesn’t much happen anymore. Did I mention the vocals!!

Small note, I love their Covers. Missed one or two of those, especially their soulful  “Bell Bottom blues.” But “Running Down a Dream” with Campbell, Rebecca & Megan toe to toe was Duane & Dickie for 2023, and most of all  they made it all their own.

Allan Arkush

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Will Lee sent me your letter about Larkin Poe. Wonderful! I’ve been a supporter of their music since I met them in 2017, and they are a staple of my radio show. They play wonderfully, and have a musical community around them that encourage me to think that the art of making music isn’t dead, or dying. Goodnight Texas are going to get a play on my next show too. I do my bit on Tom Petty Radio to help keep musicianship a focus. It’s not much, but for some of these hard working musicians it’s a lot as the “business” seems more focused on if you can “vogue” more than if you actually have substance as an artist. I felt the need to reach out and tell you that I really appreciated your ability to put into words my feelings about this wonderful art we call music.

Stephen Ferrone

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I was there last night as well. I’ve been into Larkin Poe for some time and convinced some friends to go too.

What a fantastic show! I was was mesmerized by Rebecca  and Megan!

Larry Green

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I was at the show with my 19-year-old son who loves 70’s rock and we both loved the show. He’s been listening to Running Down a Dream all day since.

The whole show was fresh and hard-driving, but a huge highlight was their cover of Preaching Blues by Son House. Letting Megan lead it off with a long lap steel solo – divine.

Best rock and roll sister act since Heart?

Mark Netter

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Saw Larkin Poe open for E. Costello here in Fort Lauderdale at the Broward Center back in 2015. They were new to the “scene” and I got to interview them in one of the dressing rooms for Deco Drive, the Miami-based entertainment news show I work for. Megan and Rebecca couldn’t have been nicer — or cooler. We talked guitars, we talked guitarists, we talked the art of covering songs — we talked way longer than I thought we would. I walked out a major fan, the way you do when you meet an act and connect with them. Later that night, they knocked me out with their set.

Matt Auerbach…

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I’m sure there are folks who can tell you their entire genesis but I first came aware of them during the lockdown when everyone was making and posting home videos. I have no idea how theirs first got on my FB feed but I soon followed them. They seemed to make several videos a week, all classic covers. Their playing and singing was top notch and their sister harmonies are perfect. Also, they’re pretty cute (show biz, after all).

The re-hits kept coming and they proved their depth. I believe their Dad is a musician, so it’s in their genes. And they were ready to go when things started opening up.

I’ve not seen them live but their live videos are fantastic.

Songs, yeah. But I’m sure everyone in LA and Nashville are clamoring to write with them so we’ll see. I mean, who writes songs like “xxx” from 1963-1985 anymore anyway?

About them “sounding like guys”, if you take a not-too-deep dive on YouTube, it won’t take long to realize that “playing like a girl” ain’t a diss anymore and hasn’t been for quite some time.

Jack Morer NYC

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I’m glad you dug it and gave them a nod. 3 years ago when The Immediate Family played the Legends Rock Cruise with a bunch of other great but older acts, they were incongruously booked. Didn’t know them so I went to see their set. Like you, I was in from the first bar. And they are humble and personable as well, no rockstar attitude, it’s all about the music.

Steve Postell

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Hey Bob,

I love this story . . . Sounds like a great night!

My daughter and I went to the Mercury Lounge in NYC’s East Village to see Larkin Poe a few years ago . . . I was floored by their show, their chops, and when we got a chance to hang for a minute after the show, they were wonderful, engaging, humble, and friendly!

I love their music, the grit that they’ve shown by staying in the game, and their trajectory reminds me of a couple of other bands, The Warning on Lava and Ripe on Glassnote. All three bands are literally one hit single from taking over the industry . . . get ready to open the floodgates!

I believe Jason Flom saved rock-n-roll when he signed Greta Van Fleet . . . Perhaps Larkin Poe, The Warning, and Ripe are about to bring the rock format back to the mainstream for good!

Be well, God bless, and GOGETEM Bob . . . You ROCK!!!

Pat O’Connor

PS – I met Mike at The Joint several years ago when Mudcrutch filled in for Waddy one night. What a nice guy . . . it’s so refreshing to meet a Rock-N-Roll Hall of Famer who feels just as comfortable with a bar crowd as in a stadium. Must have been electric at The Fonda!

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about ten years ago I drove a limo all day for the Lovell sisters and the rest of the band supporting a private gig in SC behind Kristian Bush. By the end of the day, I was their committed fanboy. They were the nicest, most down to earth people I’d met in a long time. On the way to the venue that night, I realized Rebecca was battling a raging stomach flu. As l watched from the wings, I was amazed at the energy and professionalism she showed, knowing she probably wanted to go barf behind the stacks. One of the gutsiest things I’ve ever watched. They were just launching Larkin Poe (Edgar Allen was an ancestor) and I became a slavish fan. Bring it, ladies! You add some much-needed class to today’s music world.

David Bohn

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Larkin Poe are undeniably GREAT! Excellent players and writers and they’re blessed with strong passionate voices that blend perfectly in sibling harmony. They’re indeed the real deal.

I’m glad you’ve helped bring some more positive attention to them and their rootsy blues rock, Bob.

Bill Mumy

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They are a killer band. Waited for about 2 years for them to come to Seattle and it was everything I expected. Blood Harmony their new release is unique in that every cut is a good listen. Bob, you are correct, for us classic rockers they are a definite throwback and we do remember!

Allan Gastwirth

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Bob

“Self Made Man” is f**kin “pipe layer”

Jeff Laufer

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I’ve seen many YouTube cuts of LP.  They’re organic and authentic. Taking the blues and making it their own sound.  Hard to do in these times.  Making their guitars talk..

Tim Pringle

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Years ago Megan and Rebbecca performed with older sister Jessica. They lived about 30 miles down the road in Calhoun. They were about 15, 17, & 19 at the time and really hitting hard in the bluegrass world. As I recall Rebecca one year won the mando contest in Wifiled, Kansas. She could really tear into the mando with great fluidity and precision.  I am sure they have worked hard to master their craft.  The sisters had all taken classical violin lessons and probably piano as well.  I have had the pleasure of seeing them “grow up” musically so to speak. A group I play with was forrtunate enough to open for them a few times. Nice talented young ladies pursuing their own path! I always love it when I hear one of their songs played on the area NPR affiliate. Soulful, passionate, and well crafted songs.

T. Brown

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I’ve been a major fan of Larkin Poe for years (have you by any chance seen their tiny desk version of Phil Collins’ “In The Air” tonight?”): https://youtu.be/I-PDliZYV_c

Thrilled that you highlighted them like this. They’re the real deal and the antithesis of “pretty good for a girl.” They’re just plain great, and they make it look easy, which is the definition of genius.

John Henry Jones

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love them…they’ve been at it for years and as you said they are the real thing…

Michael Rosenblatt

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I told you so!! A couple years ago I wrote to you that Larkin Poe was slaying it and that the future of rock Is female.

Paula Franceschi

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Man, I’d have paid to see this show. Just listened to some of their music, they’re on my radar now.

Kenneth Williams

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Finally!

“I got hope”.

I’ve been reading your column awaiting this feeling/these words.

Bonus: “emotional excursion”.

Well worth the read.

Thank you Larkin Poe!

Rochelle Harper

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I saw Larkin Poe at the Peach Festival a couple years ago pre pandemic. They were playing the main stage at noon. Not many people were awake yet and they missed out  I was hooked and got their albums.

Joe Frischman

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So great to hear you call them out. We fell in love with them on the jb ktba cruise when they were an unknown baby band 6 or 7 years ago. We now see them everytime and they keep getting better and better. They are also opening for some high end big names. Reminds me of Samantha fish and her meteoric rise the last few years.

Thank you sir!

Phil Bergman

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We saw Larkin Poe at willie Nelson’s outlaw festival last summer. They killed. I started a Spotify station from them. Nathaniel Ratcliffe was undone by his sound man and lightning designer. Billy Strings was incredible. No lighting tricks. Just kick ass guitarists.   But for me, Larkin Poe stole the show.

Glad you found them.

John Daingerfield

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FYI… Steven Ferrone

Acyually he “made his bones” with Brian Auger & The Oblivion Express where he replaced Robbie McIntosh. Robbie left to form AWB and when he passed was replaced by… Steven Ferrone!

Mike Marrone

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Very cool, I like their music but have never seen them live. Yet.

Toby Mamis

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Authentic music…..it’s the reason my career has been devoted to Blues and Roots Rock.

Gina Hughes

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Thanks Bob,they rock.I found out about them in guitar magazines.I love their shows,and wish them the best.Thanks Bob,stay well,Ted Keane

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Bob, I’ve been waiting since 2014 for you to take notice of these power sisters. They registered on my radar when I saw them playing in Sugarland’s Kristian Bush’s band in Chester, PA. They were a powerhouse pair. Megan’s slide playing and Rebecca on guitar and mandolin were badass, I had a nice conversation with them in which they told me the origin of their name (an ancestor, I believe) and Rebecca and I shared our enthusiasm for Rickenbacker horseshoe pickups. It’s so great to see them get the recognition for which they’ve tirelessly worked.

Eric Bazilian

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So happy you enjoyed Larkin Poe. I first heard them three years ago at the Mariposa Folk Festival north of Toronto, and again at the Edmonton Folk Festival last summer. The breadth of their repertoire is amazing, b ut my best memory was when they played a small daytime workshop stage with two superlative Canadian guitarists, Cecile du Kingue and Kevin Breit. The look of surprise, amazement and joyful pleasure on their faces was something to see. These women are so open to new things, but will always stay rooted in the blues. And, yes, they ARE fantastic!

Richard Flohil

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These (then) very young ladies warmed up Elvis Costello and his band almost 10 years ago at Interlochen (in northern Michigan).  We had A) never heard of them before, and B) were absolutely FLOORED.  They looked about 16 at the time, but had the swagger, talent and stage acumen of Ann & Nancy Wilson in 1978.  The sisters were a revelation that night, and we’ve been following them ever since.  The real nod was, Elvis invited them onstage for the last few numbers of the night with his band.  Elvis doesn’t do that to teenage nobodies unless they seriously warrant props.  And, they did.

Thank you, Elvis.

Pete Kehoe

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I first heard of Larkin Poe when I saw them as Elvis Costello’s band mates at the Paramount Theater in Denver back in 2016. I was absolutely blown away. The chemistry between them and EC was beautiful. It was a companion piece to his biography and while the show was absolutely focused on his music and life Larkin Poe brought an energy to his songs that I’ll never forget. Thanks for the review of their recent show. I hope to see them as headliners after reading this.

Kevin Bennett

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Between 2020-2021, I produced a podcast called “Past, Present, Future, Live” which featured conversations with artists about the music that influenced their careers. At the end of each episode, each guest performed a 3-song set, on video, which usually included a cover or two inspired by the conversation, plus songs from their own catalog. This was during the in-and-out of lockdown, so most guests were still off the road and game to do the live performance. (and we got some incredible performances as a result)

At the urging of one of my co-producers, we booked Larkin Poe for an episode. I’d never heard of them, but he was sold on their talent. When I received their 3-song set after the interview was recorded, I was floored. It just was a simple video of Rebecca and Megan playing “Who Do You Love” plus their tunes “Self Made Man” and “Holy Ghost Fire”, but their exceptional talent and obvious love for what they do made it a moment. When I tell people to listen to the episode, I encourage them to watch the video first, then go back and listen to the podcast episode.

The thing about Larkin Poe — and a generation of musicians who are their peers, like Maggie Rose, Tyler Bryant (who also happens to be Rebecca’s husband), Daniel Donato, Emily Wolfe, Gary Clark Jr., Black Pistol Fire, to name a few — is that they truly embody the rock and roll spirit that you write so often about. They’ve got talent and dedication, but they’ve also got soul. And that’s the thing that turns just another concert into a transcendent experience.

Larkin Poe don’t mess around. I can’t wait to see them at Webster Hall next month.

— Kirsten Cluthe

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Glad to hear you’re now an official Poe Boy.

Bill Weaver

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Great to see you giving some love to our hometown women, Larkin Poe. They’ve worked their asses off, year after year. They’ve toured, they’ve played, they’ve backed others, they’ve written songs, they’ve toured, and they’ve toured, and they’ve toured. They come upon their skills and sound the hard way, they’ve worked at it.

They’ve always been good and it’s nice to see them finally getting the recognition they deserve.

Years ago they recorded a video at my house (I’m not sure they ever released the song, but they should!)

Was honored to know them then and now.

Thanks,

Matt Arnett

Atlanta, GA

Here’s the video-Larkin Poe, Mad As A Hatter

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Wow! Thanks so much for the review. Never heard of them and after a diet of YouTube I am an instant fan. BTW, I am 78 years old. Not too old to dig great music.

Jan Burden

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Welcome to the bandwagon Bob (not meant as a backhanded compliment) LP have are a great live act and while for my money on record they sometimes get a little too slick it’s great to see young artists keeping this sound alive. The Blues has never been a mainstream top 40 genre so the chances of it being heard on mainstream radio or showing up in a spotify top whatever list is about buckleys to none. That being said, there’s more than a few great modern day acts flying the blues flag if you’re willing to go searching for them and I highly suggest you do.

Chris Xynos

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Video here, and yes, it rocked!

“Larkin Poe – Running Down a Dream, Fonda Theatre, Hollywood CA, Feb 11, 2023”

Ben Parent