Willie Nile, nee Robert Anthony Noonan, is one of the best songwriters ever to be born in Buffalo. Which is saying a lot, when one considers our town as the old stomping grounds of Harold Arlen. But Nile came up in the 1970s, and built an impressive reputation in Greenwich Village hootenanny clubs as an heir apparent to Bob Dylan, who’d put the whole folksinger/songwriter thing on the map a few years before. The buzz surrounding him was huge. By the time Bruce Springsteen (who’d been called the new Dylan) was hitting his stride, Nile released two records on Arista that electrified fans of energetic rock-n-roll with a literate twist. He was likened to the Clash, and went out on tour with the Who before musical legal troubles dragged down on him as his star was ascending. He would spend several years without performing or recording. After a decade out of the limelight, he released a couple more albums, and his underground fame was rekindled both here and abroad. In 2006, he released the critically acclaimed Streets of New York, and followed it up last year with House of a Thousand Guitars. By this time, his old pal Springsteen was inviting him up on stage to play at big shows with the E Street Band. Little Steven Van Sandt has said, “Willie Nile is so good I can’t believe he’s not from New Jersey!” Believe it Steven, he’s ours. Opening the show is another hometown boy, Marc Scibilia, who’s been writing songs down in Nashville.
—buck quigley
7pm doors, 8pm show. Tralf Music Hall, 622 Main St. (852-2860 / tralfmusichall.com) $23 presale, $27 day of show
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