Bonnie Raitt's been rakin' in the raves during her latest tour, which showcases songs from every phase of her blues-making, 30-plus-year career — from old faves like "Angel From Montgomery" to newer numbers like "God Was in the Water." Always a generous performer, Raitt has been pulling opener and kindred spirit Keb' Mo' onstage during her set as well, where he's blown audiences away on Wilson Pickett's R&B classic "634-5789 (Soulsville, USA)."

—Nicole Pensiero

A quintet of improvisers — from NY, trumpeter Nate Wooley and percussionist Aaron Siegel; from Philly, bassist John Barrios, laptop manipulator Joe Lentini and percussionist Toshi Makihara — stand alone to follow their whims in a Bowerbird-presented evening of solo sets. Wooley's impressionistic textures create surrealistic environments from sounds not meant to come from a horn, while Makihara's quick wit on the traps turns his drum kit into a conversation at the Algonquin Round Table.

—Shaun Brady

San Francisco-based pop-rocker Tom Luce — fronting the four-man band that bears his name — is known for his catchy, Beatlesque pop songs, the latest collection of which, Never Ending, chronicles the life cycle of a romance. Aussie blues-rock guitar opener Mia Dyson (pictured), meanwhile, has caused a stir in her homeland with sophomore CD Parking Lots, a disc that nicely showcases her earthy, powerhouse vocals.

—Nicole Pensiero

WXPN's Bruce Warren brings three of his favorite up-and-comers to the Beta-Hi Fi Festival tonight, including the headliners Animal Liberation Orchestra, whose funk-laden, electric-jazz grooves have a West Coast audience smitten. Opener Elvis Perkins (son of actor Anthony) has jolted audiences with the gently heartbreaking song "Ash Wednesday," a six-minute elegy to his mother, actress-photographer Berry Berenson, who was on American Airlines Flight 11 on 9/11.

—Nicole Pensiero

Crowds will always need pleasing and egos will always need stroking, which goes a long way toward explaining how Maynard Ferguson has maintained his relationship with undemanding jazz audiences for nearly six decades. Finesse be damned, Ferguson can make the trumpet squeal in ear-piercingly high registers and still maintain tonal control, and some ponies only need one trick.

—Shaun Brady