Having hit the road again earlier this week to tour the US, Carolina Chocolate Drops make four stops in the Midwest this weekend. This afternoon, the trio performs at the Minnesota Public Radio booth at the Minnesota State Fair; tune in to 89.3 The Current at 4 PM CT to hear the band perform live. The Minnesota Zoo’s “Music in the Zoo” concert series features the band tonight at the Weesner Amphitheater in Apple Valley, Minnesota, and Saturday they play a free show at the Orton Park Festival in Madison, Wisconsin. The Chocolate Drops make a second festival appearance Sunday, this time in St. Louis, Missouri, at LouFest.

The Wisconsin State Journal, previewing their Orton Park appearance, asserts that, on their Nonesuch debut album, Genuine Negro Jig, the Carolina Chocolate Drops “celebrate the long history of folk and bluegrass music, and push it forward into new areas.”

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, previewing the band's LouFest appearance, understands why the Drops prove to be such crowd-pleasers whenever they play live. "Listen to the trio's major-label debut, Genuine Negro Jig," writes Calvin Wilson, "and it's easy to understand what all the excitement is about. Yes, the Carolina Chocolate Drops perform old-time music—but with such spirit and imagination that it goes down as easy as lemonade on a scorching day."

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Bill Frisell performs at the Village Vanguard with the Paul Motian Trio, with Motian on drums and Joe Lovano on tenor saxophone. Lovano had to cancel the first week, including this weekend’s dates, and is being replaced by Tony Malaby and Mark Turner, both tenor saxophonists. New York Times music critic Ben Ratliff praised the new group in a recent review, saying “don’t miss what’s happening there now.”  Lovano will return on Tuesday, and the band will perform week two with its original line-up. 

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After making an appearance at the BBC Proms last weekend, Richard Goode travels to Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw Grote Zaal to take part in the Robeco Zomerconcerten Festival tonight. He performs works by Byrd, Bach, Chopin, and Schubert. 

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Following a number of performances in Florida, Natalie Merchant heads to the Cobb Energy PAC in Atlanta, Georgia, tonight, and then to the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Saturday. In anticipation of Saturday’s show, The Tennessean writes: “It’s quite an understatement to call Natalie Merchant’s first album in seven years, Leave Your Sleep, a pleasant surprise.” Following additional stops in Durham and Knoxville Monday and Tuesday, the summer tour draws to a close on Wednesday at the Peace Center in Greenville, South Carolina. Merchant will embark on another US tour in October, this time performing with symphony orchestras. 

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Philip Selway, ahead of next week’s Nonesuch release of his solo debut album, Familial, has launched a month-long tour of Japan and Europe. He performs tonight at Club Quattro in Osaka, Japan. Selway heads next to Ireland and the UK for several shows, including three with Wilco.

Thursday's tour opener in Tokyo featured songs from Familial that were "warm, tender acoustic nuggets," reports SPIN's Daniel Robson. "With a new Radiohead album reportedly almost complete, it won't be long till Selway returns to his usual spot: a drum stool at the back of a cavernous stage. All the more delicious, then, to spend an intimate summer evening in his company as talented frontman."

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Chris Thile plays to a sold-out crowd at Rockwood Music Hall in New York City on Saturday. Next weekend, Thile and his fellow Punch Brothers will travel upstate to perform at the moe.down festival in Mohawk, New York.
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Allen Toussaint performs tonight as a special guest with Cyndi Lauper at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. Toussaint was featured on Lauper’s most recent release, Memphis Blues, along with such other blues legends as B.B. King and Charlie Musselwhite.

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Sara Watkins, Garrison Keillor, and the cast of A Prairie Home Companion bring their Summer Love Tour to Oregon for two stops this weekend: the Cuthbert Amphitheatre in Eugene tonight and the Oregon Zoo Amphitheatre in Portland on Saturday. On Sunday, the tour heads to the Denver Botanic Gardens in Denver, Colorado. Reviewing last weekend’s show in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake magazine said "the evening was in all ways wonderful"; the Salt Lake Tribune called Watkins “the best part of the night.”