POP/ROCK

Don't dismiss Joan Osborne as a one-hit wonder ("One of Us"). She's had an artistically rewarding career, touring with the surviving Dead and famed Motown session players the Funk Brothers. Last year at the Dakota, the Kentucky-bred, New York-based Osborne proved to be a wonderful vocalist, covering jazz, R&B, blues, rock and pop — originals and covers, many heard on her tasty 2012 blues/R&B collection "Bring It on Home." Highly recommended. (8 p.m. Fri., Dakota Jazz Club, $35-$45.) Jon Bream

The closest Minneapolis gets to hosting a multi-venue festival like Austin's South by Southwest, Saturday's West Bank Music Festival boasts a main outdoor stage surrounded by showcases in neighboring venues. Headlining this year is sociopolitical rap hero Brother Ali in his first public local show since an emotionally racked Soundset performance (9 p.m. Sat.). He's preceded by Doomtree's "Hand Over Fist" heavy hitter Mike Mictlan (8 p.m.), new punk doo-wop darlings Southside Desire (7), rock's marathon man Mark Mallman (6) and scorching garage-punks the F- Knights (5). Other stages include Van Morrison tribute kings the Belfast Cowboys (4-8 p.m., Whiskey Junction Courtyard), 2013's breakout rapper Haphduzn (midnight, Red Sea), the Como Avenue Jug Band and Nightinghales (11 p.m.-1 a.m., Palmer's Bar), Black Diet and Tramps Like Us (10:15-2 a.m., Acadia Cafe), nearly a dozen bands at the Triple Rock, including Dear Landlord and Arms Aloft (6:30 p.m.-2 a.m.), and more. ($5-$10, free passes on Metro Transit via WestBankMusicFestival.com) Chris Riemenschneider

Let's hope Glenn Danzig likes Myth nightclub better than the Cabooze. The goth-punk/metal lord infamously, inexplicably canceled last-minute after he arrived at the latter club in 2011, one of several tour dates at which the howling Misfits singer and "Mother" hitmaker reportedly displayed primo prima-donna behavior. Back on the road to mark his namesake band Danzig's 25th anniversary, the muscular leather-bound rocker seems to be playing nice. "Last Caress" and a few other Misfits tunes have been included in recent set lists. Scar the Martyr and Huntress open. (7:30 p.m. Sat., Myth, all ages, $25.) Riemenschneider

Here's something new at the Minnesota Zoo: music for tweens and teens. Canadian pop star Carly Rae Jepsen delivered the best pop song of 2012 — the perky hook-up request "Call Me Maybe." Maybe she'll call Owatonna's own Adam Young, a k a Owl City, to join her for their collaborative hit, "Good Time." Joining her for sure will be opening act the Wanted, the U.K. boy band known for scoring the hit "Glad You Came" and being managed by Scooter Braun, who guided Justin Bieber to superstardom. (7:30 p.m. Sun., Minnesota Zoo, $60-$72.50.) Bream

Ke$ha is the musical equivalent of "Jersey Shore," but with a higher IQ — though she tries to let us believe otherwise. Crafty as a Nashville songwriter (which her mother is), she has recorded nine Top 10 pop tunes (including three infectious No. 1's), published a trashy autobiography and starred in an MTV reality series about her slackerish, sleazy, salacious and successful life. In concert, she uses silly props, dancers dressed up like giant stuffed animals and irresistible dance beats to convince you that she is one crazy party animal. Opening are Semi Precious Weapons, the New York rockers who opened Lady Gaga's Monster Ball Tour, and Mike Posner of "Cooler Than Me" fame. (6:30 p.m. Mon., Myth, $55.) Bream

Now labelmates with Metric, Sleigh Bells and our own Poliça on Mom + Pop Music, Chicago trio the Smith Westerns are a lot less hipster-y and quite a bit more generic than those acts, especially on their latest album. "Soft Will" trades in the punkier sound of previous records for sleepy psychedelica and stylish power-pop, sort of a cross between Big Star's hazier stuff and Love & Rockets. The lead single from the album is titled "Varsity," so they picked the right venue. New-wavy local openers Strange Names have been getting Current airplay with "Potential Wife." (9 p.m. Tue., Varsity Theater, $15-$20.) Riemenschneider

Last year at the Dakota, Leon Russell, a Buddha-like figure with a statue-like demeanor, talked more than he has in his many Twin Cities gigs combined. He told a joke about Prince and stories about visiting the Mall of America and Starkey Hearing, and working with Bob Dylan. Russell also played some of his own songs ("Delta Lady," "A Song for You") and covers of acts he's played with (Dylan, the Stones, the Beatles). But he didn't showcase any of his session work with the likes of the Beach Boys, Gary Lewis & the Playboys, the Byrds and Joe Cocker, which landed him in the Rock Hall of Fame as a sideman. (7 p.m. Tue.-Wed., Dakota, $45-$70.) Bream

Even though he has performed 952 shows in various Twin Cities venues since 1987, Lyle Lovett has not heretofore brought His Large Band to the Minnesota Zoo. After testing the waters at the zoo last summer with His Acoustic Group, Lovett arrives with the bigger ensemble for an evening in which folk, blues, country, gospel, jazz, R&B, storytelling and humor meld into a captivatingly original Texas-flavored concoction. (7:30 p.m. Wed., Minnesota Zoo, $68.50-$80.50.) Bream

Two Texans known for different kinds of high-revving entertainment, the Rev. Horton Heat and Wayne "The Train" Hancock meet at the rugged intersection of modern punkabilly and old-school country. The Reverend (Jim Heath) has been a leader of the former genre since his 1990 debut, produced by the Butthole Surfers' Gibby Haynes. He has a new deal with Victory Records that should accentuate his punky side. Hancock — Hank Williams' rightful music heir, according to Hank III — added a bluesy twist on "Ride," his latest record for Chicago's Bloodshot label. Vintage surfabilly guitar wiz Deke Dickerson makes it a triple as the opener. (8:30 p.m. Thu., First Avenue, $20-$22.) Riemenschneider

Sort of a female answer to Townes Van Zandt, Mary Gauthier sings of life's underbelly, including drag queens, a hobo king and a female double murderer. Her detailed, finely told story songs are dark, heavy stuff. So the New Orleans-born, Nashville-based Gauthier lightens things with her cutting and often hilarious patter between the tales of drinking and dying. This riveting performer will be joined by another colorful singer/songwriter, Texas all-timer Ray Wylie Hubbard, known for writing "Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother." (7:30 p.m. Thu., Cedar Cultural Center, $30.) Bream

HIP-HOP

With a weirdly laid-back delivery that belies his seriously thought-provoking lyrics and madcap wordplay, Homeboy Sandman is as unique a voice in indie-rap as his recent tourmate Brother Ali. The New York City rapper just issued his second album for Stones Throw Records, "All That I Hold Dear." He's on tour with another odd duck of a rapper, Chicago's Open Mike Eagle, who played the Soundset fest back in May. (9 p.m. Fri., 7th Street Entry, $10-$15.) Riemenschneider

JAZZ

Recently returned from dates in France with great British keyboardist Tony Hymas, bassist and composer Chris Bates gathers the latest two editions of his critically acclaimed Red 5 band for a weekend of musical intrigue. The combo includes brother J.T. Bates, who was also part of that overseas Tony Hymas Trio, plus saxophonist Brandon Wozniak and Southside Aces trumpeter Zack Lozier. On Friday, the lineup will be completed by a new face on saxophone, Milwaukee native Nelson Devereaux. On Saturday, the second saxophonist will be Chris Thomson. (9 p.m. Fri.-Sat., Artists' Quarter, $12.) Surowicz

Erudite New Orleans jazz pianist Tom McDermott will be a special guest of the quirky Twin Cities band Patty and the Buttons in this month's best free indoor show. Founder of modern brass band the New Orleans Nightcrawlers and a longtime member of the Dukes of Dixieland, McDermott is a versatile player who has recorded sublime albums co-starring clarinetist Evan Christopher as well as French and Brazilian music. So he should fit right in with the frisky trad band led by accordion wizard Patrick Harrison. He'll also play some piano solos. (7 p.m. Thu., Dakota Jazz Club, no cover.) Surowicz

ROOTS/BLUES

Walter Trout's latest album is his first ever set of covers: "Luther's Blues," honoring fiery guitar slinger Luther Allison. It even features a brief track where the blues legend, who played one of his last shows at the Minnesota Zoo, shares a bit of his philosophy from beyond the grave. So expect to hear some Allison favorites, along with originals from Trout's 22 CDs and counting, at this weekend's gig with his quartet the Radicals. (9 p.m. Fri., Famous Dave's Uptown, $10.) Surowicz

New Orleans all-pros the Iguanas were supposed to have a new album out now, but fans will have to make do with "The Iguanas Live at Jazzfest 2012," which features new versions of such trusty favorites as "Boom Boom Boom," "Para Donde Vas" and "Oyé Isabel." Or better yet, experience these guys in the dark and intimate confines of the downtown danceteria's hip annex. (8 p.m. Tue., 7th Street Entry, $15.) Surowicz

In a long and fertile career in R&B and rock 'n' roll, 76-year-old Andre Williams has piled up a Top 10 R&B hit ("Bacon Fat"); songs for Stevie Wonder, Funkadelic, and Ike & Tina Turner; a pair of countrified albums backed by the Sadies, and the salty 2007 documentary "Agile Mobile Hostile: A Year With Andre Williams." This "black godfather" is a dogged survivor of lots of bad things, including more than a decade lost to drug addiction, homelessness, jail and the inevitable whims of the record business. L'Assassins open with their self-styled "post-apocalyptic vixen rock." (9:30 p.m. Thu., Lee's Liquor Lounge, $12.) Surowicz

STATE FAIR

If you're one of the wise people who gets a jump on the Minnesota State Fair before the weekend crowds, you will be rewarded with a nice little lineup of free opening-day music Thursday. One of Texas' purest country music purveyors, Dale Watson is a regular locally at Lee's Liquor Lounge and a fair vet who just issued a new album, "El Rancho Azul," via St. Paul's Red House Records (3:30 & 4:45 p.m., Leinie's Lodge Bandshell). He's preceded by Louisiana dance favorites Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band, part zydeco dance band and Fats Domino-style R&B (1 & 2:30 p.m., bandshell). The night's bandshell headliner is another Texan, Sunny Sweeney, who opened for Blake Shelton at the grandstand last year and had the 2010 country hit "From a Table Away" (8:30 p.m.). For local acts, Lucy Michelle & the Velvet Lapelles offer whimsical folk-rock with a vintage, ukulele-laced flavor (7 p.m., Heritage Square), and the Roe Family Singers play front-porch-style country-folk akin to the Carter Family (10:30 & 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., Heritage Square). Riemenschneider