John Craigie has mastered the art of creating live shows that feel more like intimate conversations than performances. Infusing humor, wit, and poignant storytelling, his shows are a space where audience members feel like old friends. Whether he’s headlining solo or sharing the stage with longtime collaborators, Craigie’s ability to make his crowd laugh, reflect, and connect is second to none. As he prepares to release Greatest Hits… Just Kidding… Live – No Hits, his latest live album captures the warmth and spontaneity of these memorable nights.
At this point, there have been quite a few good shows in the rearview…
As a tried-and-true performer, he has regularly sold out solo tours in addition to hitting the road with the likes of Langhorne Slim, Brett Dennen, Mason Jennings, Bella White and Jack Johnson. He has picked up fans with sets at Newport Folk Festival, Pickathon, Edmonton Folk Festival, and High Sierra Music Festival. Including numerous European tours and his first Australian tour in spring of 2024 Moreover, his annual river trip on the Tuolumne River—just outside of Yosemite in California—has remained a hit with his audience, hosting one sellout after another. Giving back as much as possible, he notably launched the #KeepItWarm Tour during the holidays. By donating $1 from every ticket sale, this headline run has raised money for regional non-profits with the goal of fighting food insecurity. An avowed Beatles acolyte, he has performed acoustic renditions of the albums Abbey Road and Let It Be live in front of packed crowds and partnered with Record Store Day for limited-edition vinyl releases of those concerts..
Simultaneously, his catalog has continued to reel in tens of millions of streams fueled by favorites such as “I Am California,” “Highway Blood,” “Don’t Ask,” and “Microdose.” Maintaining a prolific pace, 2024’s Pagan Church saw him join forces with TK & The Holy Know-Nothings. Among many highlights, it logged six weeks at #1 on the Americana Radio Albums Chart. Inciting critical applause, Pop Matters raved, “All of Craigie’s songs are made of something truly ineffable,” and American Highways assured, “Along with excellent musicianship across the album, there are genuinely pretty moments on ‘Pagan Church.’” Meanwhile, he joined forces with Langhorne Slim for a duet song “Out On The Road.”
To him, the live albums seek to achieve a sound where the listener will feel like they’re in the venue, sitting and experiencing the show with the rest of the crowd.
Craigie certainly accomplished that mission on Greatest Hits…Just Kidding…Live – No Hits by threading together tunes like “Rachel,” “Michael Collins,” and “Laurie Rolled Me A J” with moments of insight, signature wit, and unexpected catharsis as he reminds the crowd, “You guys are my therapists, and I missed you a lot.”
At the same time, he capped off the proceedings with two new gems, namely “Mallory” and “Summer 2020.” In “Mallory”, a song about a deaf woman who came to one of his shows, breezy chords underline the heartfelt melody as he declares, “Sound is all I have, but I’ll come back for you.”
Then, there’s the alternately provocative and intensely heartfelt “Summer 2020.” Chronicling his experience of lockdown and marching in the protests of that year in what he calls “the worst and most important summer of my life”. His deep intonation bellows over a deftly finger-picked guitar as he sings, “I was tired of being silent so I headed downtown to the heartbeat of it all and I saw veterans and mothers linking arms with one another.”
Ultimately, Craigie’s story continues with more shows and music.
Glen Phillips (of Toad the Wet Sprocket)
During his years as lead singer and main songwriter of Toad the Wet Sprocket, Glen Phillips helped to create the band’s elegant folk/pop sound with honest, introspective lyrics that forged a close bond with their fans. When Toad went on hiatus, Glen launched a solo career with his album Abulum, and stayed busy collaborating with other artists on various projects including Mutual Admiration Society, with members of Nickel Creek and Remote Tree Children, an experimental outing with John Morgan Askew.
“Until recently, I’ve seldom stayed in one place for very long,” Phillips says, explaining the genesis of his new album, THERE IS SO MUCH HERE. “I was lucky during the COVID lockdown to move in with my girlfriend, now wife, and to be home for the longest stretch I’ve had since the birth of my daughter, 20 years ago. I began noticing the little things. After a life of travel and seeking out peak experiences, I began to appreciate sitting still, watching the paint dry and loving it.
“I’ve been playing a songwriting game with Texas folk singer Matt The Electrician, for about ten years. Every Friday, he sends out a title. We have a week to write a song that includes it. The process allows me to write songs I wouldn’t write on my own. I’m always surprised at what comes out.”
“When my friend John [Morgan Askew] invited me to come up to his studio and make music, I said, ‘Yes’, as I collected a bunch of the new songs and headed up to Bocce Studios, in Vancouver, WA. John invited drummer Ji Tanzer and bass player/multi-instrumentalist Dave Depper along. When we started playing, I wasn’t sure we were aiming for, but as the process unfolded, the songs began to make sense together.”
Phillips’ previous solo record, SWALLOWED BY THE NEW, was about grief, a post-divorce outing while THERE IS SO MUCH HERE finds Phillips writing love songs again focusing on gratitude, beauty and staying present. “With this batch of songs, I noticed I was writing hopeful music again. I’d turned the corner and was more interested in curiosity and play than I was in gazing at my navel. I was finally in a state of being that wasn’t about grief and loss. Things felt doable and even exciting again.”
“As I sat still during the lockdown, I realized how much is always here – in the space around me, in the sensations of my body, in the sounds and smells and tastes and thoughts that emerge and drift away. It’s not a new concept, but it is a novel experience when you’ve spent your life running from one thing to another.”
Ultimately, as Phillips reflects on the album, he shares: “This is an album about showing up for what is and letting it be enough.”
