[Note: This is the final installment of Aftermath's survey of memorable 2008 concerts - the ones he attended and reviewed (mostly, but not always, by him) anyway; kudos to Valient Thorr, Ice Cube, Dr. Dog, Son Volt, Journey/Heart, Wilderness, the HPMA showcase and many others. Don't miss parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, and here's hoping 2009 is as bountiful.]

Black Crowes, House of Blues, November 20: "Of course, the Black Crowes are a band for whom no two set lists are alike, but so many coats of Warpaint meant some other era must suffer. In this case, it was their underrated middle period, offering just one song from Amorica (frequent live favorite "Wiser Time") and - sadly - nothing from Three Snakes and One Charm." (Bob Ruggiero)

B.B. King, House of Blues, November 22: "King had the luxury of acting as comic relief in his own show because he relies on his superlative band - "'bout half of 'em are from Texas anyway," he said near the end - to handle the musical heavy lifting, and did they ever."

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Cheech & Chong/Willie Nelson, Verizon Wireless Theater/House of Blues, October 31: "This morning Aftermath thought his notes had vanished entirely before realizing he had simply mistook the back cover of his notebook for the front. Halloween 2008 was high times indeed."

Randy Weeks, Discovery Green, November 6: "New songs like 'Fine Way To Treat Me,' 'Hard To Believe' [and] 'Just A Little Bit of Sleep" all melded perfectly with Weeks' previous material and a funky cover of 'Down Home Girl.' (William Michael Smith)

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Jay-Z, House of Blues, October 16: "Jay-Z and his dozen-man band tore through the Brooklyn rapper's phone-book-thick catalog -- topped by the thunderstruck, 'Back in Black'-­borrowing "99 Problems" -- as Bun B, several Houston Texans (and Texans Cheerleaders) and the rest of the sold-out house got their swerve on in high style."

Butthole Surfers, Meridian, October 23: "I can't speak for the band, but frontman Gibby Haynes was either on something unknown to even Central American shamen or, well, just being Gibby Haynes. It took an hour before I understood a single lyric that came out of his mouth."

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Silver Jews, Walter's on Washington, September 18: "[Silver Jews frontman David] Berman strode around the stage with confidence; you wouldn't know he's still getting used to playing live. At times, he looked so loose that he might slump to the floor had he not been leaning on the mic stand." (Troy Schulze)

Drive-By Truckers, Meridian, September 24: "The Truckers have gradually infused more and more pre-rock music (both black and white) into their songs, which have as many gnarled roots and branches as the average Southern family tree. But at the core they remain a rock and roll band, and that core melted down all over Meridian's main room."

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King's X, Meridian, August 19: "[dUg] Pinnick's bass was very much the lead instrument, negotiating the distance between the complicated vocal harmonies and searing chainsaw riffs with a low-to-the-ground, almost nonchalant assurance."

Masters of Metal, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, August 23: "Dilettantes contented ourselves with their screaming (for vengeance) renditions of metal mainstays 'Breaking the Law,' 'Electric Eye' and an absolutely insane 'Painkiller,' which closed the main set as [Judas Priest singer Rob] Halford deliberately stalked the main stage like a cross between Merlin and the biggest, baddest gay biker to ever walk the planet."

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Metallica, Toyota Center, November 20: When Death Magnetic came out in September during Hurricane Ike, initially I dismissed it as I was knee-deep still in the new Black Keys and Beck albums and fence rubble. But somewhere along the line I picked this up again and destroyed my car stereo speakers.

The show was one of those magical metal things that only metal-heads can truly fathom. And seeing as I end up going to most of those, I'm hard to impress. But seeing the interplay between the bandmates, almost thirty years into their career was brutally magical. And my face was still red two days later from the pyro.

Hootenanny One, The Mink, January 5: Seeing members of the Mathletes, Young Mammals, and the Wild Moccasins bust through a cover set of Talking Heads tunes made me hopeful for the future of Houston music after being disillusioned for a good five years.

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Cyril van der Haegen

​Ah, that nasty Grim Reaper took a lot of great musicians this year, and his scythe cut a wide swath across all genres, including many heavyweights in the blues and R&B world. The greatest loss comes in the form of someone who was a man, a song, and a beat all in one...

Bo Diddley, singer-songwriter, guitarist, co-founder of rock and roll, all-around Bad Ass (1928-2008): If we ever get around to blasting a Mt. Rushmore to the founders of rock and roll, the faces on rock would be Chuck Berry, Little Richard, a rotating white guy (Elvis, Buddy, Jerry Lee...depending on the season, I guess) and "the Originator," Bo Diddley.

Yes, this is the blues/R&B list, but Diddley's wide stance encompassed many genres, starting with his early days at Chess. He had the attitude, the songs ("Bo Diddley," "Who Do You Love?" "Pretty Thing," "You Can't Judge a Book by the Cover") and - most importantly - the beat.

Bo Diddley didn't invent the "shave and a haircut" rhythm (Bomp-ba-bomp-ba-bomp-ba-BOMP-BOMP), but with it, he drew the blueprint of ground zero of rock and roll. Just listen to "Not Fade Away" by Buddy Holly, "Magic Bus" by the Who, "She's the One" by Bruce Springsteen, and "Desire" by U2 - Bo's beat is in them all and so many more.

Though he never stopped bemoaning slights - both real and imagined - in his place in history (locally, a shocked Rockefeller's crowed in the early '90s squirmed while he beat up on Elvis from the mike), his legacy was always secure. Diddley suffered a stroke in 2007 and suffered from hypertension and diabetes, finally dying of heart failure. At his funeral, it seemed wholly appropriate that mourners broke out into a spontaneous chant of "HEY, Bo Diddley!" as a way to send him home. Perhaps it was more of a warning to St. Peter. 

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"Whiskey Deuce," News on the March: Oh, snap. Bet you thought we'd pick "Moving Pictures." Nope, that's a good one, but there is something a little more memorable track 2 off the country-fied/barber shop quintet's first official EP, Glory Be! "Whiskey Deuce" has pitch-perfect harmonies, two-step-ready drums and guitars and talks about Wisconsin -- where this Rocks Off writer spent a better part of her summers growing up. If there was ever a place to forget your sour sweetie, it's the Dairyland bluffs.

"Alien," Something Fierce: It only took nearly three years, but we finally got a new set of tunes from SF in the form of full length There Are No Answers. Well done. We dig the added harmonization where vocals seem to come from ten different people in ten different directions. We never knew punk rock could be so chapel-ready. 

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5. Killer Mike feat. Ice Cube, "Pressure"

4. Weezer, "Pork and Beans"

3. Justice, "Stress" (above)

2. Hayes Carll, "She Left Me for Jesus"

And the best video of 2008 is... 

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Tom Waits, Jones Hall, June 22: "Us Rain Dogs fans had to make do with a spastic "Cemetery Polka" that was a fair representation of Waits' cross-pollination of beatnik jazz and guttural blues; whether or not he's your cup of bourbon, the man does have a unique sound."

Peter Murphy, Meridian, July 10: "The rest of the set was dominated by snaky, sexual rock similar to the Cramps, Stooges or Gun Club that also flirted with metal in patches. This sound hit its zenith on Murphy's 1990 hit 'Cuts You Up,' which wouldn't have sounded out of place in a strip club."

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