A Few of My Favorite Things

November 6, 2017 5:45 PM

Chris Thile and his Prairie Home Companion band cover Vulfpeck's Fugue State.
posted by stinkfoot (24 comments total)

It Gets Funkier remains one of my favorites.
posted by mhoye at 5:50 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

Same, although I'm partial to Part II.
posted by stinkfoot at 5:53 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Nickel Creek covers "Toxic" (original, Britney Spears)
posted by Guy Smiley at 6:11 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Chris Thile looks a lot like I pictured him, but with a dash of young Tarantino thrown in.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 6:26 PM on November 6, 2017

Chris Thile is a musical phenomenon, and he and his bandmates in Punch Brothers are some of the finest performing musicians I've ever heard live (and I've heard more than a few great ones). This cover is great.

I still cannot stand Prairie Home Companion, and am disappointed at that. I wanted to love his version of it.
posted by LooseFilter at 6:31 PM on November 6, 2017

I've been to very few concerts in my life. I've seen Nicklecreek three times. That's how great they were each time. Cowboy Mouth is the only other band I've enjoyed as much/more then them. Chris Thile is amazing and I hope to get lucky and see PHC live sometime soon.
posted by RolandOfEld at 6:34 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

Ahhhhhh I'm at work right now where yt is blocked but I love Chris Thile (and Nicklecreek, both of which were primary inspirations for me to learn the mandolin when I was a teen), so I can't wait to watch/listen to this when I finally get home.

However, I haven't thought about him in years, so you are all more than welcome to share your favorite performances so I can gobble them up later (er, but only if that isn't hijacking the thread for my own selfish mandolin-loving purposes).
posted by paisley sheep at 6:44 PM on November 6, 2017 [4 favorites]

He's had fantastic performances at NPR Music's Tiny Desk with most of his recent projects:

Chris Thile & Michael Daves (2011)

Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile And Stuart Duncan (2011)

Nickel Creek (2014)

Punch Brothers (2015)
posted by stinkfoot at 6:59 PM on November 6, 2017

Favourite performances? Still has to be the set with David Grier at the Prism Coffeehouse from 2002 or something (if you can find it). His album with Mike Marshall was a nice mandolin nerd-out too.
posted by transient at 7:01 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

That was great, two worlds I quite like colliding unexpectedly!

Chris Thile and Mike Marshall: What a Blast!

The track that Nickel Creek did with the Chieftains is pretty swell.

And I'm now reminded how much I enjoyed his solo album Deceiver, on which he took a hard left turn from bluegrass-Americana stuff, playing all of the instruments himself. 13 years later it looks like the Amazon reviews have balanced out; last I remembered it was all one/two star reviews from righteously indignant bluegrass purists.

Shout out to Vulfpeck too! Adrienne & Adrianne (Happen to Bossa Nova) is probably my favorite. They are so damn tight.
posted by Funeral march of an old jawbone at 7:47 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Vulfpeck is amazing. I see your Adrienne & Adrianne and raise you one Cory Wong.

Chris Thile is remarkable as well.

Vulfpeck and Thile, gateway drugs to nirvana.
posted by ashbury at 8:17 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

Chris Thile and David Grier at the Prism Coffeehouse, part 1
Chris Thile and David Grier at the Prism Coffeehouse, part 2

If you want wma or asx instead of mp3, go to this site and search for PrismCoffeehouse (all one word)
posted by blob at 8:25 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

A very young Chris Thile as part of Nickel Creek. There are more early performances out there.
posted by blob at 8:27 PM on November 6, 2017

Oh shit, Vulfpeck's latest drops tomorrow and is already available in some places. It looks like there's a lot of vocals on this one.
posted by ashbury at 8:33 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

I still cannot stand Prairie Home Companion, and am disappointed at that. I wanted to love his version of it.

I loved PHC when I was a small child, but as an adult I mostly can't get into it--except for the musicians Thile brings on, who represent a great cross-section of my interest in folk/Americana. The other day I stumbled across this rendition of American Tune by Thile (who I would love to see live) with Margaret Glaspy and Rachael Price (you owe it to yourself to check out her band Lake Street Dive if you haven't) and I've listened to it, um, a lot.

My overall favorite Thile performances are probably the Goat Rodeo performances; I think this set at Google is pretty good (and they're clearly having fun, which is probably my favorite thing about watching live music anyway).
posted by egregious theorem at 9:25 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

I had no idea about Vulfpeck. I like! Thanks for this!

but only if that isn't hijacking the thread for my own selfish mandolin-loving purposes

Oh, goodness no. All good.

Thile w/ Sam Bush - Brilliancy

Punch Brothers, JS Bach Brandenburg Concerto 3-iii, Allegro in G Major

And, finally, a little Groundspeed.
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 9:28 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

Nickel Creek - When You Come Back Down
Nickel Creek - House Carpenter
Nickel Creek - Smoothie Song
posted by TrishaU at 9:51 PM on November 6, 2017 [1 favorite]

This video is incorrect. (it's thee-lee)
posted by Guy Smiley at 9:57 PM on November 6, 2017

I attended PHC in Seattle last year and was particularly blown away by the Song of the Week segment--a song composed by Thile and band earlier in the week. For a one-off, off-the-cuff song, "'17 (Modern Friendship)" was a powerful, gorgeous statement.

Recent favorites:

* No Place Like Home (new Nickel Creek tune)
* Put Your Mask On (Halloween show)
*Music for Leaves That are Changing Colors and Not Making Me Think About My Own Mortality
* Stanley Ann Dunham
* full SotW playlist
posted by prinado at 10:53 PM on November 6, 2017 [2 favorites]

I have been contemplating a Fpp about the new reincarnation of PHC with Thile. The slow, dad-jokey Tales From Lake Woebegone are over and in its place is some great music from Thile, the house band and the amazing musicians he is bringing in.
posted by nestor_makhno at 2:15 AM on November 7, 2017 [5 favorites]

Chris Thile is amazing -- I've seen Nickel Creek twice and they put on one of the most amazing concerts ever.

For me, nothing tops You Don't Know What's Going On -- angry mandolin punk. The bridge is nothing short of cathartic.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 6:17 AM on November 7, 2017

Ooh, thanks for this. I'm a big Nickel Creek (& Thile) fan (saw NC 3 times) but I'd never been introduced to Vulfpeck. They are fantastic!

One of my Nickel Creek favorites is Helena.
posted by Quiscale at 6:26 AM on November 7, 2017

Thank you everyone for so many linky-links, I love you all <3
posted by paisley sheep at 8:47 PM on November 8, 2017 [3 favorites]

Also, this is cute:

Chris Thile and Rob Moose played an impromptu concert in Charleston for about four people. I happened to be one of the lucky ones!!
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 5:40 PM on November 10, 2017