Dave Matthews performs at Concert for Compassion

Published 1:03 pm Thursday, April 10, 2008

Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds will perform in an acoustic Concert for Compassion tonight in Seattle that benefits Seeds of Compassion, an initiative to bring world attention to the value of nurturing kindness and compassion, particularly in children but extending to those around each of us.

Prior to the concert, Matthews and Reynolds will be joined in a dialogue about the role of music in building bridges with the Dalai Lama. The concert celebrates the five-day Seeds of Compassion event centered on the Dalai Lama’s visit.

Matthews is the frontman and guitarist for the Dave Matthews Band; Reynolds is a multi-instrumentalist and frequent guest in Matthews’ band.

Ultimate Doo-Wop Show: The 10 original artists of the record-breaking PBS-TV music specials “50 Years of Doo-Wop” are back on the road, bringing songs once sung at sock-hops, over the radio waves and on 45s.

The line-up includes Gene Chandler (“Duke of Earl,” “Groovy Situation”), Jimmy Beaumont &the Skyliners (“Since I Don’t Have You,” “Pennies From Heaven”), Blue Suede Orchestra (“Harlem Nocturne”) and The Edsels (“Rama Lama Ding Don”), Dale Hawkins (“Suzy Q”), as well as The Contours, The Fleetwoods, Kathy Young, The Pentagons and the Magnificents.

Cat Power: Charlyn Marshall’s performances are sparse and sometimes disjointed, possibly because she’s battling stage fright. That’s either classified as a lack of professionalism or spontaneous but the word is that she’s been polishing her act. She delivers songs from the singer-songwriter, indie rock, blues and folk genres, using guitar and piano.

Marshall — Cat Power is her stage name — has been nominated for a Brit Award in the Best International Female category, despite her being outside the mainstream, and this year Marshall and her Dirty Delta Blues Band released “Jukebox.” While she does cover songs, her interpretations frequently ignore what’s expected.

Two Loons for Tea: Seattle-based duo Sarah Scott and Jonathan Kochmer are touring with music from “Nine Lucid Dreams.” Pop, jazz, folk and ambient music combined with Scott’s hypnotic melodies and Kochmer’s musical vision adds up to an unusual concoction as they strive to make a connection with something larger than themselves. Anyone can star in their songs: circus characters, prostitutes, Beat surrealists and a hair stylist on a friend’s murder.

What’s equally intriguing is that his background is in academia and technology, while hers is linked to her free-spirit single mom who took her to San Francisco’s Haight-Asbury, next to a nudist colony in the Santa Cruz Mountains and to Spokane. Scott carries the bohemian lifestyle into the next generation.

Jane Arden: Canada’s talented singer-songwriter now has 16 Top-10 singles, a collection of awards and a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame. Arden also hits comedy festivals, is a best-selling author, performed in Eve Ensler’s “The Vagina Monologues” on Canadian stages, and filmed a documentary.

Deep Blue Organ Trio: The B-3 group features the combination of instruments played by guitarist Bobby Broom, now teaching at DePaul University; organist Chris Foreman, blind at birth, rooted in church music and now a blender of blues, gospel and jazz; and drummer Greg Rockingham, who started playing with his father’s jazz ensemble at age 5. The trio’s latest CD, “Folk Music,” earned the Best Jazz CD title last month at Chicago Music Awards after being a top-five CD on the Jazz Week chart for two months.

Avett Brothers: A second show has been added to the Seattle stop, testifying to the popularity of the up-and-coming indie-roots band. Enjoy their non-traditional take on bluegrass, old-time country, a little punk and rock ‘n’ roll, folk and ragtime.

But don’t waste time pigeonholing them. A band that can play “Paranoia in B Flat Major” defies a one-word categorization. Just know that they won the 2007 Americana Music Association’s Duo-Group of the Year and the New-Emerging Artist of the Year.

Celtic Woman: Fronted by four sopranos and a fiddle player, the 19-member group has been a hit wherever they’ve stopped. In Seattle’s case, that’s for four performances, part of a tour rising from the TV special “Celtic Woman: A New Journey.” This is one of those easy choices because no matter what your musical taste, this group will win over with its interpretations of Irish standards, modern hits and classical favorites.

Out and about: Kayne West’s Glow in the Dark tour stops in Seattle with Rihanna, N.E.R.D. and Lupe Flasco (Wednesday, KeyArena) … NPR called the 2006 debut of the Wood Brothers and their CD “Ways Not to Lose” one of the top-10 discoveries of that year. Now they have “Loaded,” a soulful-rootsy collection (Thursday, Triple Door) … Seattle Women’s Chorus’ “Vixen Fiction/Siren Song” celebrates author Ann Bannon and women’s music icon Cris Williamson (Saturday and Sunday, Meany Theater) … Mark Kozelek (Sun Kil Moon, Red House Painters), whose credits include acting in Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous,” a project of classic rock covers and a John Denver tribute CD, stops in Seattle (Wednesday, Town Hall).