Lucero; Howard Tate & The Sweet Divines @ Madison Square Park

Leave it to the nature of the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party to bring about an eclectic afternoon of free music, headlined by the Memphis band Lucero who are Social Distortion-gone country. Lucero have a bi-polar image: they're an older group of guys (well...they LOOK older but it may just be the beards and the premature gray hair) who appeal to a young crowd, and they, like their crowd, look menacing until they turn out to be a bunch of softies. They have the cred of a respected country-punk band but there is more than a whiff of suburban-esque, trashy (in a bad way) blase about them. Nevertheless, it is a solid time - especially when the keyboards and pedal steel fire up. Ben Nichols is a country punk in every sense of the word, and any guy who writes a record inspired by a Cormac McCarthy novel is alright by me.

Howard Tate would be a legend if more people knew who he was. The original soul singer of a couple of hits (including the superior cut of "Get It While You Can"), Tate's voice is a stirring, stark reminder of what may have arguably been the most consistent genre in any stretch in any period of American popular music. His talent may only be outmatched by his personal story, wracked by the worst of musical career downfalls. In his recovery over the last few years, he's taken on new challenges (weight gain in exchange stopping drugs), but his voice is still crisp and heart-rendering. Backed by the Sweet Divines (one of the two spin-offs of the late, great Dansettes) and their relaxed, able backing band (some of the unsung heroes of garage soul, lost in the spotlight of the Dap-Kings and the Shrines), Howard captured the hearts of the bbq-stuffed, rain-soaked crowd.

On the bbq - I had some whole hog on a bun with slaw from Martin's of Nashville - mmmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. That is some tangy spice right there on some succulent meat. Yowsers.