*Bruce Cockburn* will return to the United States for a run of shows beginning in early February. Cockburn will pick up his You’ve Never Seen Everything Tour with performances in his native Canada in late January, with the first announced date on January 27 at the Rebecca Cohn Theatre in Halifax. From here he will perform a few shows in New Brunswick before crossing the border for a February 3 gig at the First Parish Church in Portland on February 3 and then routing to the south. Incidentally with December 25 approaching it is worth noting that Cockburn’s traditional Christmas CD is another fine holiday spin……….

“The Motet”:http://www.themotet.net/ will perform the music of Fela Kuti and 70’s Afrobeat Funk on New Year’s Eve. The group will add a full horn section for this show which will take place at the Abbey Theater in Durango. The band will also perform two nights later in Denver at Cervantes. The band indicates that this January 2 performance will be its last local gig for some time……….

Bounding back to Canadian performers, former new groove of the month, nero has announced the dates of its ‘annual holiday tour of southern Ontario.’ The group which shares a disdain for capital punctuation with the band moe. also shared the stage with the members of that group on multiple occasions last month while opening a string of moe. dates. nero will perform in Guelph, Toronto and London From December 18-20 with shows at Trasheteria, El Mocambo and the Bacchus Lounge.

Brian Haas and Mike Dillon to Anchor ‘Take A Seat Sessions’ with Skerik, Mark Southerland and A Rotating Cast of Drummers

Keyboardist Brian Haas (Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey) and percussionist Mike Dillon (Critters Buggin, Frog Brigade) will host six evenings of improv at the Knitting Factory Tap Room on December 8-13. The pair will be joined at the ‘Take A Seat Sessions’ by Skerik and Mark Southerland. The two sax players, who share a penchant for incorporating samples and loops into their sound, will divide the gigs, with Skerik performing on the first half of the run (both musicians are former bandmates of Dillon – Mark Southerland in Malachy Papers, Skerik in Critters Buggin, Frog Brigade and Garage a Trois). The drummer’s chair will vary from night to night with appearances by Kenny Wollesen (8th), Bobby Previte (9th), Calvin Weston (10th), Joe Russo (11th), Andrew Barr (12th) and Adam Deitch (13th).