Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/748197
Songs such as "Sam Stone," "Paradise," "Angel from Montgomery," "Hello in There," "Spanish Pipedream" and "Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven" are now considered classics of the genre and have been covered by artists such as Bonnie Raitt, Bette Midler, Johnny Cash and Carly Simon. Pretty hard to top, but Prine has been plugging away and gaining new fans, two Grammy Awards and several critically acclaimed albums, "In Spite of Ourselves," "Fair & Square" and 2016's follow up to "In Spite of Ourselves," "For Better, Or Worse," which featured duets with female singers Kacey Musgraves, Alison Krauss, Miranda Lambert, Susan Tedeschi, Lee Ann Womack, Kathy Mattea, and frequent col- laborator Iris DeMent. Opening will be the acclaimed and influential folksinger and song- writer Ramblin' Jack Elliott, a protégé of Woody Guthrie and an influence on Bob Dylan. Using the word "legend" with these two is not over- stating the case. www.goldenstatetheatre.com. Windham Hill 30th Anniversary Winter Solstice Saturday, December 17, 8pm Sunset Center, Carmel R emember "New Age" music back in the '80s? It was mellow, instrumental, acoustic even dreamy music that incorporated classical, folk, and jazz and dovetailed perfectly with the New Age consciousness that permeated popu- lar culture back in that decade. Windham Hill Records was at the forefront of the New Age music boom in the '80s and '90s. It was founded in 1976 in Palo Alto by guitarist Will Ackerman, but didn't really become nationally known until the release of pianist George Winston's 1980 solo album, "Autumn," which was the first of his seasonally themed albums to sell a million copies. Before long, Windham Hill artists such as Alex de Grassi, Barbara Higbie, Michael Hedges, Tuck & Patti, Michael Manring and Liz Story were making waves, establishing the label as a force in music. De Grassi's 1978 Windham Hill debut, "Turning: Turning Back," was named by Acoustic Guitar magazine among the top 10 finger-style guitar recordings of all time. This 30th anniver- sary celebration of Windham Hill music features Ackerman, Higbie, DeGrassi, and Todd Boston. www.sunsetcenter.org. First Night Monterey Saturday, December 31 Various venues, downtown Monterey I t's hard to believe that First Night Monterey will be celebrating its 24th year on Dec. 31 in downtown Monterey. When it started in 1992, a lot of folks hadn't even heard of the First Night movement across the globe. Now, First Night Monterey is the biggest annual event on the Monterey Peninsula in terms of numbers; an estimated 40,000 people attended last year. This alcohol-free New Year's Eve celebration of the visual and performing arts features hundreds of musical, theatrical and dance performances and interactive art installations in dozens of venues in downtown Monterey. There's something for everyone, from 8 to 80, and if it rains, no prob- lem, 85% of the venues are indoors. www.firstnightmonterey.org. An Evening with Chris Botti Sunday January 29, 7pm Sunset Center, Carmel B otti is one of those artists who defies cate- gorization. Critiqued by purists as a pop artist, Botti cut his teeth with jazz stalwarts such as George Coleman and Woody Shaw and con- tinues to collaborate with jazz artists such as Herbie Hancock. Sure, he's toured extensively with pop artists Paul Simon and Sting, but Botti's jazz credentials remain intact. In fact, you could say he even takes jazz beyond its limits to incor- porate pop, rock, classical, and country. His 2012 album "Impressions," for example, features gui- tarist Mark Knopfler, country singer Vince Gill and composer/pianist/producer David Foster, among others. That album won the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album. With more than 4 million albums sold, he has become the largest-selling American instrumental ar tist in the world. www.sunsetcenter.org. Chris Botti performs Jan 29 at Sunset Center in Carmel. Windham Hill will perform on Sat., Dec. 17 at Sunset Center in Carmel. C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • H O L I D A Y 2 0 1 6 95