Pass the Jar - Zac Brown Band and Friends (From the Fabulous Fox Theatre In Atlanta)

Not only is this a stellar recording of a nearly flawless performance, but it's also peppered with star-studded cameos and a few cover songs of the household-favorite variety. More importantly, it reveals Zac Brown and his band in their most comfortable and confident element—the live setting. Nothing against Brown's recorded material, but after hearing this October 30, 2009 concert from Atlanta, there's really no argument that Brown and band prefer the stage to the studio. The fawning "Whatever It Is" opens the set with rootsy instruments twanging and grinding under Brown's good ol' boy drawl, but you can almost hear the high-fives in the crowd following an excellent cover of the Band's "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down." They do similar justice to a barn-burning rendition of ""The Devil Went Down To Georgia."" Kid Rock lends his graveled growl on a Zippo-hoisting version of Marshall Tucker Band's "Can't You See" and it's great to hear Shawn Mullins pipe in on the Jimmy Buffett-esque "Toes," though it's Little Big Town's lush harmonic panorama on the heartwarming "Colder Weather" that shines brightest here.