Regi Matthews

Matthews Southern Comfort is a transitional album for Matthews. Having recently exited Fairport Convention, this record pays tribute to that period of his career in both material ("A Castle Far") and in the choice of musicians who back him (many of them from Fairport Convention). At the same time, songs like "A Commercial Proposition" indicate where Matthews' future work is headed. With Second Spring, the other album included on this two-fer, Southern Comfort is a real band, and in addition to Matthews also includes Roger Swallow (ex-Marmalade) and Marc Griffiths (ex-Spooky Tooth). Although there is really nothing that makes this a memorable record, it's still quite nice overall.

Live Trax Vol. 60 takes us back to 1995, finding the band in the middle of forging a now classic sound; with a twist. David Ryan Harris, who was touring in support of DMB as part of Dionne Farris’ band, sits on electric guitar to add some firepower to Rhyme & Reason and Jimi Thing. Near the end of a segue way laced set, Dave gives a glimpse into the future with a solo acoustic version of an early Raven, with Little Thing folded in throughout. Listening back to this era, with its equal parts intimacy and intensity should be a joy for fans of any era of the band!

The typical DMB concert during the Summer of 2014 was a little experimental. The band played two sets, the first featuring a cast of rotating acoustic performances of songs both old and new. The second set was a full fledged electric rock show. This set from the band’s stop in Tampa features unique versions of favorites from Snow Outside to I’ll Back You Up. We also get to hear some bowed bass in #27 and great percussion from Carter in the song Sweet. The second set features all bangers with the soaring vocals of So Right and the jazz explorations of Seek Up among the highlights. The evening ends with a great version of Good Good Time followed by You and Me.

On June 6, 2014, Dave Matthews Band returned to the state of Maine for the first time since 1997. With an acoustic set to open the show, fans got a taste of classic DMB tunes in stripped down arrangements. An intimate Oh and Bartender kick off the evening with Dave and Tim. By the end of set 1 it’s all hands on deck for an acoustically joyful Tripping Billies, gearing the crowd up for the electric second set. This show from the Summer of 2014 touches upon all eras of the DMB catalog from the radio hit, Crush, to the hard hitting Drive In, Drive Out.

This 2001 DMB performance from Toronto is the band’s first Live Trax release out of Canada. From the very first pulse of the heartbeat intro to Pantala Naga Pampa and Rapunzel and all the way to the last beats of Two Step, this show offers solid renditions of songs off the new album, Everyday, as well as road tested gems like JTR and Say Goodbye. The Lovely Ladies' extra vocal power elevates the performances throughout and specifically on Don't Drink The Water and Stay (Wasting Time).

The Dave Matthews Band may not have released the Lillywhite Sessions – the semi-legendary soul-searching album recorded in 2000 but abandoned in favor of the heavy-handed, laborious Glen Ballard-produced Everyday – but they couldn't escape its shadow. Every review, every article surrounding the release of Everyday mentioned it, often claiming it was better than the released project – an opinion the band seemed to support by playing many numbers from the widely bootlegged lost album on tour in 2001. Since they couldn't run away from the Lillywhite Sessions, they decided to embrace it, albeit on their own terms. They didn't just release the album, as is. They picked nine of the best songs from the sessions, reworked some of them a bit, tinkered with the lyrics, re-recorded the tunes with a different producer (Stephen Harris, a veteran of post-Brit-pop bands like the Bluetones, plus engineer on U2's All That You Can't Leave Behind), added two new songs, and came up with Busted Stuff, a polished commercial spin on music widely considered the darkest, most revealing work Matthews has yet created.