Saving Grace
Robert Plant with Suzi Dian
A carefully assembled collection that became my favorite album of 2025—and one of my favorite Robert Plant solo projects.
Listening, collecting & live shows
Music and programming
If I’m not programming or listening to music at home, I’m probably at a small live show—something I do nearly every week.
Often playing
Grateful Dead · Jerry Garcia · Counting Crows · Jason Isbell · Gillian Welch · Dave Rawlings · Lucinda Williams · Genesis · Steeleye Span · Sandy Denny & Fairport Convention
The Dead
Dead shows and the music around them
The Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia remain at the center of my listening. My first Dead show was Hartford 1987. More recently, I was able to experience 64 Dead & Company shows, including the Sphere. The differences between the Grateful Dead, the Jerry Garcia Band, and Dead & Company—and a live repertoire of more than 400 songs—give the music a depth that makes every show worth exploring.
Europe ’72 is my favorite Dead album. Noblesville 2023 remains my favorite show. People are on their feet and dancing from the opening notes at every Dead show, but this night felt different. When I looked back, it seemed as though every person in the venue was standing, dancing, and moving together. The connection was stronger than at any of the 64 Dead & Company shows I attended. For any Deadhead, the “Dark Star” is essential listening—a song performed hundreds of times, but never quite like this, reimagined in the style of “Big River.” “Sugaree” was another high point, and the ending of “Uncle John’s Band” was amazing.
Thank you, Bob Weir and John Mayer, for a real good time. ❤️
Live Music
Seeing music live
I listen to plenty of albums, but live music is where it all comes together. Concert halls, old theaters, small clubs, festivals, the Ryman, the Hollywood Bowl, the State Theatre in Sydney, Wells Cathedral in the U.K., or wherever the next trip leads—the best performances feel specific to the place, the night, and the setlist.
Travel and concerts now go naturally together. A show is often a good reason to see another city, revisit a favorite venue, or spend a few days somewhere new.
This page can grow slowly: favorite shows, albums worth mentioning, or simply a short note about what I’m listening to now.
Album picks
2025
Foxes in the Snow
Jason Isbell
An intimate acoustic album whose directness and songwriting held up from beginning to end.
Sad and Beautiful World
Mavis Staples
Warm, full of presence, and unmistakably Mavis. From Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings’ “Hard Times” to “Satisfied Mind,” every song works—it’s a great album from cover to cover.
Recent concerts
August 2026
Counting Crows
Hollywood Bowl
Los Angeles, CA
Willie Watson
Felton Hall
Felton, California
Alex Jordan and Friends
Club Fox · Redwood City
Stu Allen · Cheryl Rucker · Sunshine Becker · Burt Lewis · Jerry Saracini
🔥