Junior Brown

Musicians who invent stuff are way cool. There's Boston's Tom Scholz, who developed the hugely popular Rockman headphone amplifier; New Orleans soul-punker Quintron and his bizarro, light-activated Drum Buddy; and, of course, Junior Brown, who, two decades ago, came up with his signature "guit-steel" — a Frankensteinian double-necked instrument that's a six-string electric guitar on top and a lap steel on the bottom. The 54-year-old, Indiana-bred, baritone Brown — a born showman if ever there were one — has used his contraption to great effect over the years, concocting a rollicking mix of honky-tonk, blues, Tex-Mex, surf, and almost every other form of American roots-based music under the sun. Like the Reverend Horton Heat and Southern Culture on the Skids, Brown and his band are seriously good musicians who don't take themselves seriously. You'll laugh at the tongue-in-cheek tales of drinkin' and hell-raisin', and you'll be blown away by Brown's inventive guit-steel licks. Good luck not having a great time at this show.