Critic's Pick: Little Feat

I got into Little Feat backwards, which means I was already a fan of their 1975 full-length The Last Record Album before I discovered 1972’s Sailin’ Shoes. Sailin’ Shoes skirted power pop with “Easy to Slip,” which should have been a hit, while The Last Record Album was a bit artier, as if The Meters — a key influence on the band — had taken Los Angeles ennui as their subject and played the songs like they were reading their charts upside down. For me, the later albums by the 1970s Little Feat, which include The Last Record Album and 1977’s Time Loves a Hero, might be my favorites, since they combine jazz-rock fusion with the New Orleans-style R&B they’d perfected on 1973’s Dixie Chicken. Another reason to listen to the band is Lowell George’s slide-guitar work — George, who died in 1979, could say more with two notes than many other players could in 10 minutes of jamming. I couldn’t put together a ’70s playlist without including, say, 1975’s “All That You Dream” and 1977’s “Time Loves a Hero.” Little Feat has continued to tour and record, and the current band includes former Gregg Allman Band singer Scott Sharrard and original keyboardist Bill Payne. Maggie Rose opens Thursday at the Ryman.

7:30 p.m. at The Ryman

116 Rep. John Lewis Way N.