Last night I saw these three great bands down the street at the Crystal Ballroom. First, The Rising Star Fife & Drum Band took stage... two guys playing snare drums and one playing a bass drum. They walked around the floor for a bit before stepping up on stage. They were then joined by a guitarist (who turned out to be Luther Dickinson of the North Miss. Allstars), who wasn't doing anything too special but was still good. They played some very interesting mixes of music, fusing blues guitar with R&B/rap.

Next the Dirty Dozen Brass Band took stage and rocked as well. Everyone in the band was exceptional... I particularly liked the trombone solo.

Then the North Mississippi Allstars took stage (again.. kinda, since they were on stage with Rising Star) and Luther Dickinson revealed that he was holding back earlier in the show.. he is an awesome guitar player. They had Rising Star on stage a few times with them as well during an old-fashioned anthem-style concert. Some songs must have been 15-20 minutes long with killer slide guitar, drum, and bass solos. If you like rock, blues, and/or rap, these guys are definitely worth checking out.

I highly recommend the North Mississippi Allstars' latest (and live) album, Hill Country Review, which you can download for $9.99 at the iTunes Music Store here.