Greens loading up for the mountains tomorrow

The Greens will be traveling up to Canaan Valley State Park and resort tomorrow for a new opportunity- to play at the New Years Eve party there. It will be interesting to hear what kind of crowd it is, how they are received, what kind of "perks" are involved. I hope some Greens fans will be in attendance to call out some requests, and get the dancing started off right. These sorts of gigs always have the potential to lead to other gigs/ wider audiences!

success with my first converting of vinyl to CD

I forgot to mention that, despite my technological weaknesses, I was successful at hooking up, setting up, recording and burning a CD using my turntable. Converting a vinyl record to a CD. The first record I did was a Malvina Reynolds album; called "Held Over." From 1975. The album was in excellent shape. I gave the CD as a holiday present. I will be working my way through some albums gradually.

For you Hank III fans out there (you probably already know this.....)

Hank Williams III has announced a string of tour dates for February, 2009, in support of his album Damn Right Rebel Proud. The tour kicks off Feb. 15 in New Orleans and will take Hank III through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California before winding up at the House of Blues in Las Vegas on Feb. 26. For a full list of tour dates, visit Hank3.com.

good opportunity to see another organization's way of doing a tribute show

Attending the Hank Williams tribute show last night gave me a good opportunity to see how another organization does a tribute show. I will be incorporating some of my observations and ideas into the Americana Music Tribute Series we have been running as benefits for Children's Home Society of WV-Parkersburg the last few years. Some early observations: though beer and wine was sold, it being in more of a theater (though there were tables, etc.) was clearly a more pleasant venue, for enjoying the music in a focused way. The show was one set of musicians, all accomplished in their instrument, and allowed quite a lot of versatility in the performance of each song, but a cohesive body of songs. The show was two one hour sets with a 15 minute intermission. The performers themselves were "experts" / knowledgable about the featured artist being honored, and blended solid song performing with in between song stories in an enjoyable way. Having the one taped/ recorded insert of Hank Williams talking/ introducing a band member was a nice touch. Selling tickets, and knowing when you had reached a point of being "sold out" contributes to people making the choice to buy a ticket and attend, rather than just spur of the moment deciding whether to go out on a given night.
These are just some thoughts on the subject.

Hank Williams Tribute last night as part of Woody Hawley series in Charleston

I attended a very enjoyable evening of music last night at the Walker Theater of the Clay Center in Charleston. It was an event of the Woody Hawley concert series (which is primarily a songwriter showcase held approximately monthly). This was a hank Williams tribute led by John Lilly and Rob McNurlin. They have been doing a Hank Williams tribute since 2002 (which was the 50th anniversary of Hank's death here in WV near Oak Hill). They mentioned a previous one being in Princeton, and this was the first time they have been connected with the Woody Hawley series. They had a great line up of musicians playing the various key musical parts to a classic Hank Williams song. These two singer-songwriters both had a great voice for hank songs, and traded back and forth smoothly sharing the leads. The fiddle player was Buddy Griffin, who is at Glenville St. college in some capacity as a bluegrass music instructor. The dobro player I believe was named Donnie Scott. A woman from Nashville was the stand up bass player, and an electric guitar player, (Richie Collins) rounded out the line up. They interspersed the solid renditions of classic Hank songs with little lead-in stories, and history. John Lilly, as the editor of Goldenseal, the state cultural and history magazine, had done a detailed story in 2002 about Hank Williams death in the state that Dec. 31st. He is a master at leading a good combination of great music, and a themed story line through the evening. They even had a recording on Hank introducing Don Helms the original steel guitar player and a short excerpt of his playing. John cited the advance publicity for this event that indicated Don would be here, though he died in August.
John did the song that he won a "Hank Williams-style" song contest in 2005, and Rob McNurlin did a few original songs also. He is from Ashland Kentucky. He wore a very gaudy cowboy jacket, as did Buddy Griffin. This was a packed house in the Walker Theater, good to see for the Hawley series. All these musicians had various CD's for sale out front, and this seemed to be a good way to promote their involvement in the tribute. The next event in the Woody Hawley series is Tim O'Brien there in January (the 10th) at 7:30 pm. You can get tickets at the www.theclaycenter.org website. Todd Burge opens for Tim. I already have tickets to see Chris Smither in April as part of this series (the 18th).

Greens show last night at 6 Pence "review"

The Greens put on a typically fantastic show last night at 6 Pence Pub, to a celebratory crowd of holiday revelers. New and old Greens fans alike; Parkersburgerians present and past; old and young. Since it was a CD release for the Broken Science Vol III, they showcased those songs; probably playing the entire CD song list. There were technical difficulties with the case cover, but the CD in a plan case was selling like hotcakes for $5- lots of CD's went out last night. I made a particularly good contact with a visitor from Wash DC area, in with a friend from here, who enthusiastically talked about some connections they could make for the Greens in the DC area. The dancing was steady and busy throughout the second set, as is the usual case - the Greens giving the audience a great blend and mix of styles and tempos to keep everybody lively. I was a slight bit disappointed in the lack of dancing for Country Maestro late in the first set, but then again, I didn't get up and dance a hoedown myself, so how can I complain? By the time Apocalypso gave the closest thing to a finale, and then an audience participation acapella version of What a Ride; we knew the Greens had given us a great night of inspired music, and holiday cheer. It is encouraging that some folks are trekking up to Canaan to bring in New Year's with the Greens up there; very impressive the lengths folks will follow them. Chris, Jess, Austin, all will be up there that I know of.
Marty and Beth both had good clusters of friends coming out to share the show with them, while they are in town for a rare opportunity. Andy and I had a little 3 song mini-The Band set of The night they drove old dixie down, the Weight, and Cripple Creek. These were early in the evening, and seemed to get a pretty good reaction. Folks came up to me later, appreciating the "blood harmonies." Marty was impressed with the yodeling efforts on Cripple Creek.
Well, the Greens have to be pretty satisfied with a good year of music; some good memories of shows played across several states, some good festival showcasing, some new venues and in-roads; some good recording, a steady flow of new songs, a solid core of fan base in Morgantown and Parkersburg, returns to Huntington, Pittsburgh, the white water rafting country, etc. We'll hope 2009 brings wider and broader acclaim and bigger audiences and music distribution. A van is in the works, which will keep moving toward the summer mini-tour ideas.
Andy had his sound equipment back in full swing this week, and rocked out with some impressive guitar soloes and work; and Ben had a few innovations on bass; Nate, as always was inspired on drums with high energy and versatility. The mp3 "Let's Go Mountaineers" was played after the last song, while the band loaded up equipment; giving the uninitiated a chance to hear this catching WV spirit tune.

Greens tonight in Parkersburg!

The Greens will gather in a post-Christmas holiday show tonight, Friday, Dec. 26th at the 6 Pence Pub in Parkersburg (7th St. ) for a 10 pm show. We expect to see some long time Greens fans, from the local area, and out-of-towners in for the holidays. The Greens are using this for a CD release event, with the CD recorded over the summer, and finally packaged and ready to get out. We've got Andy's brother and sister in town to proudly view the performance, and I'm sure there are similar holiday groupings of family that will be glad to get out and enjoy an evening of great entertainment by the Greens. With the WVU bowl game tomorrow, you can expect to hear a live version of the "let's go mountaineers" song that the Greens have been promoting lately as an mp3. If you haven't heard the Greens for awhile, you'll be pleased I'm sure to get a great mix of the old familiar songs you may have gotten excited about the Greens when they were starting up, but you'll also be impressed and excited by the new songs, and the always guaranteed efforts to please the audience taking requests and going into intriguing segues of covers when the crowd shows some inkling to head in that direction. Bring your dancing shoes and work off some of those holiday calories on the dance floor.

Hank Williams tribute show in Charleston tomorrow- sold out

Friends,
I would love to invite you to a special Woody Hawley Concert on Dec 27th, but I can't because it's all ready sold out! John Lilly will lead a talented band of musicians in a special tribute to the life and music of Hank Williams. For those lucky enough to have a ticket I will let John tell you about the show in his own words. For the rest of you, take solace in that there is still time to buy tickets to Grammy award winner Tim O'Brien's performance with opening act Todd Burge on January 10th.
Thanks supporting live music and making the series a success.
Happy holidays,
Ron Sowell

"Featured performers for this special night of classic country music will be singers John Lilly from Charleston(www.johnlillymusic.com) and Rob McNurlin from Ashland, Kentucky (www.robmcnurlin.com), accompanied by fiddler Buddy Griffin, lead guitarist Ritchie Collins, resonator guitarist Donnie Scott, and bass player Rebekah Long. The group will perform many of Hank Williams' most popular songs, such as "Jambalaya," "Lovesick Blues,"
and "Your Cheating Heart," as well as lesser-known gems from the deep Hank Williams repertoire.
Hank Williams is widely recognized as the greatest country music songwriter and singer of all time, and his music continues to be recorded and performed, more that 50 years after his death in Oak Hill, West Virginia. At the time of Williams' death, he was enroute to a special New Years Eve show at Charleston's Municipal Auditorium on December 31, 1952, followed by two scheduled shows in Canton, Ohio, on New Years Day. He was pronounced dead in Oak Hill, the morning of January 1, 1953.
Lilly, McNurlin, and Griffin, avid Hank Williams fans, presented their first Williams tribute concert to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Williams' death, starting new a tradition, which has grown in popularity through the years. They are pleased to share this night of traditional honky-tonk music with the Woody Hawley audience.
As a special feature, and in keeping with the Woody Hawley Concert Series' emphasis on contemporary songwriting, Lilly and McNurlin, both experienced and widely reknowned songwriters in their own rights, will each perform short sets of original music, revealing their own personal styles as well as Williams' musical influence."

vinyl

I listened to Woodstock on vinyl record last night. Some fresh perspective on the variety of musical styles on display at that festival.
I hope to set up (or at least try) my vinyl to CD converter today. Its been just sitting here for a long time under my technological insecurity about setting up equipment. I'll report back later.

1200th posting

This is Andy and I singing at the Johnny Cash Tribute benefit some year; I don't know which year. The Good Ol' Wheel HOuse. When was there a TV up in the corner? I don't know if we were singing "Long Black Veil" or will the circle be unbroken? or what? I guess I was trying to dress all in black that night. (looks a little gray vs. black).

Speaking of which, let me get a little sign of life out there, if anybody has any suggestions/ ideas for the 4th Annual johnny cash tribute Feb. 28, 2009 here in Parkersburg.

Andy's new(er) song: Power Forward

I can't get this catchy bit of one of Andy's newer songs out of my head:

"I got some cold, cold beer, in the refrigerator
I gonna start drinking them, sooner or later,
might as well be now
there ain't nothing going on
before you know it they will all be gone"

The music, the phrasing, are just very memorable.
Check it out this Friday night, at the Greens show at 6 Pence Pub in Parkersburg. Come out after the holiday celebrations in your own niche of the world, and share some joy with Greens fans from across the Mid Ohio Valley.

Andy's wish list for groups to perform at a festival

But meanwhile, I went on to the All-Good website and voted for The Greens. You can too! Hey! But I also entered my top-ten wish-list which is:
1. The Mars Volta
2. Medeski Martin & Wood
3. Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings
4. The Black Keys
5. Les Claypool
6. Charlie Hunter
7. Wolfmother (although I think they broke up :-(
8. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
9. Modest Mouse
10. Tom Waits ( it IS a wish-list!)
...Anyway, that's how I rolled it.

4th annual Cash Bash (Johnny Cash Tribute as a benefit for Children's Home Society of WV) update

I have secured the 6 Pence Pub in Parkersburg (7th St.) for the 4th annual Johnny Cash Tribute show for Children's Home Society of WV-Parkersburg. These local, live music events are benefits for our agency, with the $5 donation received from the audience supporting our work with area children and families. Local musicians play sets of music honoring the music of Johnny Cash. There will be door prizes and perhaps a few fun contests through out the evening. The date for this year's Cash Bash is Saturday, February 28th starting at 9 pm. I will be providing more advance information in January, as we try to make these events ever more fun and full of good cheer, and make them improved fund raisers for the agency.

maybe this will help you get to the Greens "let's go mountaineers"

West Virginia band, The Greens, just recorded a song for their favorite team just in time for the Bowl Game!Let us know what you think and tell your friends.Request "Let's Go Mountaineers!" by The Greens from your favorite radio station on game days....http://www.thegreensmusic.com

Greens show last night in Marietta

The Greens put on a fine show at the marietta brewing company last night. The mix of songs was somewhat unique and creative for recent Greens shows, due in part, to Andy not having his effects equipment for his guitar, so it was a stripped down (almost) acoustic-like evening of music. This allowed them to play some mellower/ ballad-y type music early in the evening. Some songs such as El Dinero which hadn't been on too many set lists lately, a couple of Bob Dylan covers early on, Anon, Moving Picture, Mercy, Big Old Betsy were among the highlights.
Well, we HAVE to say, those of us who were there, and are Greens regulars, that we had a new experience last night. The mystery guest who danced, including the worm, and who contributed to knocking a few other dancers down, and knocking a few chairs down, was a memorable occasion, sure to go down in the bizarre archives. Our mystery dancer, puts a new image in mind to Big Old Betsy, rumbling along; about to rip her pants. As always, the good nature of the Greens and the Greens fan base contributed to this being a fun and funny occasion rather than a negative experience. Andy obviously felt bad about forgetting some of his equipment, and must have felt constrained in his guitar work, but the change of pace, and the versatility shown, made up for any disappointment. He had a lot of harmonica work during this show, letting the harmonica make up for some diversity in the guitar work.
I appreciated the opportunity to get up and sing The Night they drove ol dixie down; angel from montgomery, and friend of the devil late in the show, with the fellas.
Once again, the MBC provides a welcoming atmosphere for the Greens and the audience.
There were a couple of brand new songs worked in; and a couple of the recent newer ones working solidly into the regular set lists. Next Friday (the day after Christmas) is a CD release opportunity; I mentioned the song list a few weeks ago (look back to those posts).
Nate has sent around a recording (mp3) of the Greens doing "let's go mountaineers" in honor of good ol WVU. Try to get that around to radio stations for some exposure and team spirit. I'll try to create a link to it, or just seek out Danny, or Nate for access to this mp3.

Greens new show added Dec. 26th-Parkersburg

The Greens will be playing at 6 Pence Pub the day after Christmas, and are calling it a CD release party- Broken Science Volume 3!!! Come out and celebrate with the Greens and the Parkersburg area fan base.

apology

I apologize (I am casual and sloppy with this blog, and proper acknowledgement of sources, etc.)
to Michael Smith's website for not acknowledging the source of the story I posted a few days ago about him. I heard from the person who maintains his website, and she said someone else had cited my blog for the information contained. I will try to do better about citing a source for the stuff I pass on. I am mainly guilty of enthusiasm for the kind of music and musicians I like, and like to share information that others might not find!!!

Recent version of a Greens logo for Promo purposes

Cool isn't it?

Odd Urge- gigs throughout WV in early 2009

Todd Burge has a band gig formulating in early 2009 with some shows around the great venues in WV and nearby Ohio- he's calling it Odd Urge (get it, taking the first letters off his names......) Look on his site for these locations; and get out and see what its all about. He's got a songwriter thing this Saturday at the Galley in Marietta (the 20th) with some familiar songwriter names from the area. Support live local music!!!!!

Fred Eaglesmith coming to Stuart's Opera House

I'll get a birthday weekend treat in April when Fred Eaglesmith returns to the area to play at Stuart's Opera House in Nelsonville Ohio on the 25th. He's one of my top performers to go see, and I'll be glad to introduce some folks who don't know of him to him with this show if you want. Trust me on this one!!! Earlier that week, Bruce Cockburn will be there at Nelsonville, at Stuart's on the 19th. So that's a great week of music, Tim P and the crew coming through again!!!

I posted about him before; just stumbled on another reference to this old Yellow Springs Ohio native again

This is what Bodie Wagner (yer friend and hobo) has to say about himself: "I was born and raised as a Quaker in the village of Yellow Springs down in southwestern Ohio. As a child I listened to a lot of Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly and calypso, and by the time that I was twelve, I was playing harmonica and tambourine and singin' in rock and roll bands. After a few years, I picked up my first guitar, started writin' songs, and quit bein' in bands. Upon leavin' high school, I served two years as a conscientious objector, drivin' truck for Goodwill Industries of Indiana. It was during' those years that I really started writin' a lot of songs. Used to keep me from goin' nuts. Well anyway, when twenty rolled around, I had finished my service and had a passel of songs and a load of energy that I promply started spreadin' all over the United States. That was a few years back and that's about all I've been doin' ever since - travelin' by thumb and rail, street singin' and bar buskin'. Although I've worked in factories, washed dishes and bent wrenches, I've never done a job as hard as the one I do now. But I think I'll be doin' it fer along time, because I love my work. So until I see you out on the road someday, I'll bid you adieu and wish you good luck."

Michael Smith writes about his connection with Steve Goodman; and a little about his songwriter life!

December 2008:
Minnette Goodman, Steve's mom, asked me if I'd contribute to a term paper a high school freshman was writing about Steve. This is what I e-mailed to the young lady:
My name is Michael Smith. I am a singer/songwriter and at the moment I am performing in a musical which I adapted from Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen", which is now playing at Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago. I am 67 years old, and have made my living as a musician pretty much all my life, with little timeouts where I have had to get a non-musical job (we call them "straight" jobs) to keep body and soul together. However my last straight job was more than twenty years ago and things seem to go along well enough for me these days. I am not and have never been famous nor do I live a life of luxury but everyday I am grateful to have been allowed to live the life of a musician. I can't imagine wanting to do anything else, other than lying about on a South Sea island somewhere. When it comes to music I can be quite industrious, intense, and opinionated, but I've never been that way about anything else. I have been fired a lot.
I met Steve Goodman in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1969, when I was twenty-seven years old, and traveling with my wife Barbara in a rock and roll band called Juarez. (We called ourselves Juarez not because any of us were Latin but because we loved the first line of Bob Dylan's song "Tom Thumb's Blues" that goes: "When you're lost in the rain in Juarez and it's Eastertime too...") Barbara and I had met in Miami where we had worked at one club called The Flick (they showed movies sometimes). I had started writing songs at the Flick and when Steve worked there later he learned some of my songs and by the time we met he had been singing my songs, along with his own, for some time with much success. He was a personable young man with a tremendous amount of vitality, a kind of speedy quality, easily bored and quick to catch the drift of things and move on. He was also immediately likeable and you could tell he was going places, so I was happy that he was singing my songs to big crowds.
Steve started doing my songs in Chicago and I can't tell you how helpful that was to our careers, because suddenly folks in Chicago were familiar with my songs. Barbara and I moved to Chicago because we had essentially been presented to Chicago audiences by Steve, who had become very prominent and influential in the Chicago (and national) music scene, and we were getting so much work here. In the course of time Steve recorded about ten of my songs, the most prominent being "The Dutchman" and "Spoon River". (I had written "Spoon River" as a kind of theme song for the Edgar Lee Masters book called "Spoon River Anthology", a beautiful book if you don't mind crying a lot while you read it.) Steve and I later wrote some songs together, one of which was recorded by Jimmy Buffett and bought me a new car.
Though Steve has been gone for almost twenty-five years I still receive yearly royalty checks in the mail from songs we wrote together, or songs of mine that he recorded, or suggested that others record. In my more fanciful moments I think of these as "letters from Steve". He has taken care of me awfully well thoughout my life and I feel grateful to him and to his spirit. He had the kind of personality that to this day I can see and feel in my mind's eye. He was so alive, and in some big ways for me he continues to be. I still talk to him sometimes...and continue to thank him for his benevolent effect on my life.

Greens newz

The Greens were doing some recording last evening. Eager to hear about that.

The Greens have been listening to some audio footage of the Green Acres outdoor concert from September - I am hoping it will be converted into a CD- nothing like capturing a little of the live Greens sound!!! There is a sneak preview on the my space site; Conversations with the LUnatic in the Mirror.

You'll note there are beginning to be a few 2009 dates popping up on the my space upcoming shows calendar. Check out some of the video footage - the "scary" show where Andy threw down his guitar (ouch- protect that equipment!!!!!)

Greens Friday night show

In a rare event, I couldn't stay for the whole show Friday night; needing to get up at 4 am the next morning to drive to Indiana. So, this doesn't feel like a FULL report on the Greens show at the River City Grille in Marietta. Someone is more than welcome to add to this post!!!
The Greens played a spirited show, with a good celebratory crowd, particularly Lyndsey's crew dancing up a storm. Andy was stiff in the back from a lifting over-exersion earlier in the day, but his guitar playing and singing did not suffer; only his gyrations and dance moves. They played a solid list of all time favorites in the early set; had a Jimi Hendrix set upon request; played Swamp Queen after a little lull/ lapse in recent set lists. This seemed to be a good venue; nice wide open space with many good tables and vantage points. It will be interesting to hear how it was received there, and any future possibilities for the venue and live music. Greens are in Marietta again this Friday at the Marietta Brewing Co for a pre-Christmas weekend gig.

lyrics to Everyday People by Sly and Family Stone

Sometimes I'm right and I can be wrongMy own beliefs are in my songThe butcher, the banker, the drummer and thenMakes no difference what group I'm inI am everyday people, yeah yeahThere is a blue one who can't accept the green oneFor living with a fat one trying to be a skinny oneAnd different strokes for different folksAnd so on and so on and scooby dooby doo-beeOh sha sha - we got to live togetherI am no better and neither are youWe are the same whatever we doYou love me you hate me you know me and thenYou can't figure out the bag l'm inI am everyday people, yeah yeahThere is a long hair that doesn't like the short hairFor bein' such a rich one that will not help the poor oneAnd different strokes for different folksAnd so on and so on and scooby dooby doo-beeOh sha sha-we got to live togetherThere is a yellow one that won't accept the black oneThat won't accept the red one that won't accept the white oneAnd different strokes for different folks

There is a reason I have posted these lyrics on this particular day.

Greens tonight in Marietta at River City Grille

The Greens will be braving the cold elements to warm up an audience of pre-holiday season revelers tonight at the River City Grille in Marietta (just off I-77). I believe the show may start at "the usual time"- of 10 ish. Say congrats to Lyndsey; and come see what special mix of tunes Berry Delicious and the guys have in store. I believe the Greens scurry on back to Morgantown, and up to Nemacolin tomorrow night for a private holiday party near Uniontown PA. Say hello to Mary and Keller for us! I hope to get an update on the CD release details and the New Years show at Canaan Valley. I hope to hear that Andy is done with all his coursework for his Bachelors degree as of today! "there will be a time when real soul music comes back" "you end the song by coming on strong" "they have a word describing beautiful sadness"

you never know if this is a scope or just a wild goose chase

a hint of a new Todd Snider album in 2009? a quote from an interview: who knows?


"It sounds silly, but I really don't get to control where these songs go," Snider said. "In that sense, I guess I'm more of an editor than a writer. I really teetered on whether I would even let these songs out of the house. They were planned for the next album (the just- completed The Excitement Plan, due out in 2009), but they didn't really fit in."

review of Todd Snider / Mary Gauthier show in Covington KY before Thanksgiving

*interesting review of a recent Todd Snider show; not primarily focused on "Peace Queer" and willingness to take lots of requests!!! And Mary Gauthier as an opening act! Wish I coulda been there!!!!



A bit more than halfway through Todd Snider's sold-out show here in Covington, just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, it occurred to this writer that he had learned the lessons of the older Bob Dylan - the Dylan of the 1990s and this decade - better than just about any younger touring musician out there.


His band, comprising members of Leftover Salmon and Yonder Mountain String Band, while primarily (amped-up) acoustic, had played "hot" and rockin.' The sound was not so much folk or alt-country, nor anything overtly traditionalist, but a freewheelin' polyglot also encompassing bluegrass, blues, country-swing and Chuck Berry-driven rock ‘n' roll. There was also the knack for pop hooks and chord changes, to keep the rootsy songs from all sounding the same.


And then, as if to underscore the connection, the 42-year-old Snider slowed things down a bit - his harmonica on a holder - and covered Dylan's "You're a Big Girl Now."


One doesn't want belabor the Dylan connection, since Nashville-based Snider (who previously recorded for labels owned by Jimmy Buffett and John Prine) obviously has a lot of influences. He reminds one of a lot of other people, with his casually friendly stage demeanor, equal parts sincerity and smartness with a little silliness tossed in; his reed-thin physique and longish brown hair - Tom Petty, Brad Pitt and Beck come to mind. He can also be compared to Linda Ronstadt, since he performed barefoot like she used to.


Snider didn't dwell much on his latest album, Peace Queer, although he did insert a snippet of Creedence's "Fortunate Son," which he covers on the disc, into his "This Land Is Our Land." Instead, energized by his band - Vince Herman on guitar, Jeff Austin on mandolin and Ben Kaufmann on stand-up bass - he hollered for requests from the audience and then played just about everything he could. It was a veritable greatest-hits show for a crowd that knew his material extremely well - "Alcohol and Pills," "Easy Money," "D.B. Cooper," "Carla," "The Devil You Know," "Enjoy Yourself," "East Nashville Skyline" were among the standouts.


Snider actually wound up sharing the spotlight with fearlessly energetic mandolin player Austin. Besides his muscular playing, Austin provided forceful harmonies, higher than Snider's and just a pinch off the beat, that were very reminiscent of how Rick Danko would add his voice to ringing, rustic multi-part vocals of The Band's songs.


***


Opening act Mary Gauthier, who performed solo, was less familiar to the crowd. But by the time she was done, she received hearty applause and some new fans. She accompanied herself with acoustic guitar and harmonica. With a Louisiana twang reminiscent of Lucinda Williams, but more interest than Williams now has in singing exquisitely crafted story songs, she displayed droll, wry humor while introducing her material.


After the ironic "Christmas in Paradise" and just before "Thanksgiving," about visiting relatives in prison on that day of feasting and happiness, she said, "This is the second in what I hope is a series of miserable holiday songs."


As opening act, she got but seven songs to show her stuff, and made the most of it with her lonely portraits of "The Last of the Hobo Kings" and the "fallen angels" at low-rent "Camelot Motel," among others. The material exuded sadness, but also beauty and honesty.


"I can't say why singing blue makes me feel better," Gauthier said toward set's end. "But after 40 minutes I go home and feel damn ecstatic." As she should.

A Weedhawks biography/ story

Weedhawkstory Current mood: animated Category: Music
A grizzled journeyman rocker washing dishes to pay the bills, meets a charming and talented symphony violinist.She moves in with him while he's in the midst of a Hank Williams/honky-tonk obsession.She starts to dread the orchestra and begins exploring classic country music and western swing stylesWhen the two met Ruby Jean also played violin in a local band called The New Relics. Ruby remembers: "The Relics had their own studio, a brand new van and more equipment than they could use but they couldn't grab anyone's attention. Bobby Lane on the other hand had only his songs,his guitar and everyone's attention." Their partnership raised a lot of eyebrows in their little town. Ruby remembers being warned about getting mixed up with this nut job:"Bobby had attained a reputation around the area as being quite a wildman. Everybody from my parents to even our landlord told me to get away from him, but I thought he was a nice guy deep down.He was the first person that I ever played with who put on a show from start to finish."Their difference in age is 19 years. Bobby Lane, born in July 1962, played his first show in 1981, when Ruby was two months old.Ruby Jean was named after her mother Ruby Kay and her Grandmother Jean Hornsby.She started formal training at the age of 3 and a half with WVU graduate student Beth Williams.Bobby Lane was named after his Grandfather, Robert A Hurley a former Connecticut Governor.He started informal training after seeing a Springsteen show when he was 16 in August 1978.Three days later Bobby bought a Fender guitar and set out on a mission to learn to make it talk."I remember the big decision back then was between a Fender or a Gibson. I chose a Fender because Ed King in Lynyrd Skynyrd played one and I really liked his sound, and of course Springsteen had that old Esquire that he held on the cover of Born to Run."Ruby Jean's house was filled with music while she was growing up in the hills just outside of Morgantown."My dad played guitar and my mom played harmonica. Mom took me to see Kathy Mattea in concert when I was 8 years old.I knew that she was from West Virginia so I felt a connection with her.That show inspired me to want to sing more .My dad and I learned some songs together and he took me to an open mic when I was 8. That started my interest in becoming a performer."While Ruby Jean was being inspired by Kathy Mattea, Bobby was playing in a thrash metal band called Senslis Killin.He also ran a small recording studio in an office building where he lived on the sly and made demos for Death metal bands for rent money. It was there where he recorded a demo for a New York band called Brutal Truth that helped lead to a recording deal for the group and got Bob a job as traveling sound man. "Danny Lilker in Brutal Truth asked me if I did live sound, and I lied and said yes because I loved their show and wanted to work with them. My first gig as a sound man was at The Ritz in New York City in front of four thousand people. Talk about being thrown into the fire." Bobby traveled the USA with different bands bands as a sound man, roadie, and driver for the next couple of years. In 1992 he formed a group called Brain Police that toured on and off through '95. It was while on the road with Brain Police that the band got caught in a blizzard in Morgantown, West Virginia at the end of 1995. "We were stuck in Morgantown for a week and everybody was so nice we just fell in love with the town and the people." After getting back home we all decided to pack up and move back to Morgantown. "It was a great place to get away and concentrate on song writing which at that point was my main interest."Fast forward to Morgantown, Fall 2001. Ruby Jean is a student at West Virginia University. "9/11 changed the way I looked at life. I was thinking If it can all be over in a minute do I want to be having fun or be locked in some room with a bunch of orchestra geeks. Around this time I met a really flashy eccentric guy named Marcus and he kept telling me 'you gotta meet my room mate, Bobby Lane.' He said that he was a singer/songwriter doing his own thing, which was what I aspired to be. The afternoon that I met Bobby we passed the guitar back and forth and played our songs for each other. I found Bobby's songs to be very personal and I related to them immediately. Bobby remembers: "Ruby and I were on either side of my room mate and while we were singing this Steve Earle song together he had this freaked out look on his face. The blending of our voices was really there and for some reason he got up and quickly rushed Ruby out the door. I didn't see her again for months. I kept asking him for her number, but he was wouldn't give it to me. After a while I was almost ready to turn him upside down, so he finally gave me her phone number. I walked to a pay phone right away and invited her to perform with me at a show I had two days later. That was December 27, 2001. A week later she moved into a new apartment with me and we've been playing music together ever since."Ruby Jean decided to quit school and focus on music full time in 2002. The pair stopped at any place that sold beer and had pick up trucks parked out front. They would whip through a quick 3-song burst, pass a tip jar, and head out the door to the next joint. "Hit 'em and quit 'em" they called it. Soon a steady stream of gig requests started coming in.Competing with bands who played for only beer as payment was the battle. Bob looks back on those days: "If you wanted to earn the money, I figured you had to play harder,better and longer than the competition. We had one gig back when we first started that promised a decent guarantee and then only four people showed up. I knew that If we took a break they'd try to cut our set short and send us home with less money, so we played straight though for four hours without a break.We didn't even pause between songs,just bang bang bang bang until 2AM. They gave us our money."This became a way for us to stand out from the crowd. We were starting to become known as the band that plays all night without a break. One night we played for seven and a half hours straight. One group would leave and another would come in so, we'd just keep going. We definitely had something to prove, and I think we proved it."The other thing that separated us from the pack was our original songs. We had a lot of good ones and people came to hear them. It wasn't a question of sneaking them in, the way other bands spoke of doing. If anything we were sneaking in Hank Williams,and Johnny Cash songs in between our own.We were making a living doing what we loved on our own terms and at that time that was enough for us.
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another music venue in Parkersburg closes

We were gathering (a few of us) to throw around ideas for the 2009 Americana Music Series events last evening, and decided to stop by the 5th St. Pub; venue for the two most recent shows (John Prine and Neil Young tributes), and discovered that it had closed within the past week or so. Sigh; well, that eliminates one decision (whether to have the Cash Bash there......) Stay tuned for updates! Unfortunately, that seemed likely (the closing) with the small crowds and lack of business for the place in my encounters over the last few months. Scott made a try of it!
Thanks to Stephen Peck for some good input and feedback and reaction to the events of 2008 that he was a part of. He was encouraging overall for sure. He looks forward to the Johnny Cash tribute in February, as well as some of the others. Thanks to Ken and Andy for hanging in there, offering encouragement, too. Thanks to JT and Linda for always trying to promote live entertainment in any form around here! Its always fun swapping stories and ideas!

Wednesday evening 5 pm; 2009 Americana Music Tribute Series planning session

If you'd like to offer some input, or hear what other people are thinking, come on out tomorrow evening at 5 pm here at my office at 1739 St. Mary's Ave. Parkersburg (third door) where I've invited a variety of music lovers and supporters of live local music to get together to talk about events for 2009. I'm trying to get my thoughts organized and have a few of the ideas I have to present, and look back at how things have gone. If you can't attend the meeting, just sending me some ideas is fine. Some folks already have. Modest or ambitious is okay.

Greens at Canaan Valley for New Years

According to the my space site, the Greens will be playing at Canaan Valley on New Years. Ask for more details when you see them. A few 2009 dates are starting to filter in too. I was asked for some contact info yesterday to see if the Greens would play at a benefit in the spring here in Parkersburg. We'll see what adventures are in store for 2009.

Lyndsey's graduation party at River City Grille

The Greens will be playing this Friday night at the River City Grille (in Marietta, not Parkersburg) (which is in a motel by the interstate in Marietta). This has been a long awaited celebration for Lyndsey's college graduation this month. She has been a long time enthusiastic Greens supporter, as well as a hard working woman, and I am sure she is glad to have accomplished this landmark of education!!! The Greens have not played this venue I don't think, but Andy played a solo show there during the summer or something; an early evening show before a later night at the Marietta Brewing Co. The Greens are most recently coming off a show at Gibbie's, and have a few more private parties during the holidays. We are eagerly awaiting news finalized about any New Year's Eve show. I have the multiple Gaudy Green Party hats, ready to bring to wherever they might be playing; to memorialize Greens' New Years Eve shows of the past 5-6 years at the Wheel House. Apocalypso will always be the ultimate New Years Eve song in the Greens repetroire (did I spell that right? Is this thing working? Is this thing on?) The joyous cavorting that goes on during Country Maestro comes a close second. I could go on and on......... Come out and see the greens and wish Lyndsey a congrats! (I don't know if there are any hotel rooms available, but that was part of the draw; come and celebrate and don't worry about getting home!!!)

Actually, the first part of that last article- again: I wish I could write reviews like this; I enjoy them immensely......

Small Axe, Altered Statesmen, Lone Official, The Duke Spirit and more
Published on December 03, 2008 at 10:28am
Official businessA sizable and pleasantly diverse crowd shook off their tryptophan-induced comas and braved the gloomy weather to join Altered Statesman and Lone Official for their 7-inch release at The Basement Saturday night. We entered to the hyper-funk sounds of Small Axe, a slick five-piece armed to the teeth with sticky chops and a smooth-ass front man. Seeing a funk rhythm section—and believe us, this was the genuine article—was somewhat refreshing, and we thoroughly enjoyed their song "Pimps," a tune about the rigors of pimpology in which Small Axe's trumpet-toting lead singer warned us to "watch out for them pimps," because "a pimp gotcha lookin' for the king and queen while he's sitting on that ace."
Photo: Tanya Wright
Button Fly Lone Official

Lone Official
By the close of Small Axe's set, The Basement was mostly packed, with members of Lambchop and Silver Jews making up a good portion of the crowd. Altered Statesman set to their hypnotic, practiced grooves with singer Steve Poulton leading the pack and local jack-of-all-trades Luke Schneider kicking ass on vibraphone.
Altered Statesman's energy definitely isn't through the roof—they're more " 'n' roll" than straight up "rock"—but their ethereal soundscapes are certainly impressive and atmospheric. Folks drifted back and forth between the smoking porch and the bar throughout the set, but we were dismayed to see that the cash bar up front—one of our favorite Basement features—was unmanned (or unwomanned). As the Statesman wrapped up their set, Poulton left us with his sales pitch for the split: "Buy one of those damn records."
Lone Official's set-up was a bit delayed as Grimey fiddled with the bass settings and blasted the vocal mics with a healthy dose of disinfectant. (It is cold season, after all.) We noticed immediately that Lone Official was missing the ivory-tickling of one Mr. Ryan Norris, but L.O. still worked as a no-frills, streamlined four-piece. Guitarist Sami Elamri and lead singer Matt Button's riff-swapping was pretty handy, though occasionally not perfectly in tune, on favorites like "Amelia Earhart" and "Le Coq Sportif."
For a band that constantly seems on the verge of no longer being a band, Lone Official definitely sounded well rehearsed. Button's wife was front-and-center for most of the evening dancing her ass off, which set the tone perfectly. We can't say the same for The Basement's hitherto unnoticed disco ball, however, which inexplicably kicked on mid-set, casting its bizarre sequined glow over the room and sending out vibes not unlike that of a middle-school dance. By the time Lone Official started in on their last song, we decided to slink back outside into the shadows—far from the dazzling lights that threatened to shatter our anonymity.
Dukes of hazardWe almost didn't make it to Exit/In Sunday night. With the rain, the cold, the Sunday-ness and the end-of-holiday-weekend blahs, it was almost too much. But we got it together enough to show up late, as usual, and when we walked through the door, openers The Black Fortys were in the middle of what turned out to be their last song. It didn't do much for us anyway, so we tried to shake off the cold with a cold one and do the attendance math. That didn't take long because the place was mostly empty. Which didn't surprise us, really, what with the rain, the cold, the Sunday-ness and the end-of-holiday-weekend blahs.
After setting up their equipment, which included a gigantic old Slingerland marching-band bass drum, the unfortunately named Eulogies came on and did a lot of things we like—poppy eighth-notes, major chords and straightforward drumming—without ever adding up to anything. All line and sinker, no hook. Kinda like Grandaddy lite (and that's saying something), with a bit of Arcade Fire smoldering over the top. If it's shallow to say the singer's fedora tipped us off that this band was not going to rock us very hard, then fine. We said it. We were slightly rocked, if at all, but we were at least distracted by the band's "lead" guitarist, who bore a real resemblance to a certain actor. "I feel like that guy's gonna try to sell me a Mac," one of our companions said.
People started showing up as the Eulogies drew to a close, including both Little Jack Lawrence and, oddly enough, a Little Jack Lawrence look-alike. Someone to our right (who is new to town) said, "Did you see there are two guys here who look like Garth?" Party on, dude to our right. Between bands, Modest Mouse's The Lonesome Crowded West played on repeat. We really don't need to ever hear that album again, much less three times in a row.
When The Duke Spirit finally took the stage, they did so to a canned recording of "I Do Believe," the a cappella opening salvo from their latest album Neptune. They threw on their instruments, got in place, and then, just as they do on the record, blasted into "Send a Little Love Token," which brought people to the front of the stage. Where they would stand mostly motionless for the rest of the night like—well, like a Nashville audience.1 2 Next Page »

I wish I could write reviews of live shows like this.....

We'd like to think that's just because singer Leila Moss was utterly mesmerizing. From her gold sequined dress to her spidery, double-jointed rock postures to singing the fuck out of every song, Moss slunk and fist-pumped and pounded her chest—commanding the stage like firecrackers wrapped in dynamite wrapped in, like, bombs or something. Her energy was contagious. Sort of. Someone handed her a cell phone at one point, and asked her to read a message: "Sunday night is no excuse for not dancing," she obliged, to tepid applause. Talk about being set up. No, Nashville was not in a dancing mood, even if everyone was pretty into it (which they seemed to be, despite the standing-stillness).
Photo: Tanya Wright
Altered Boys Altered Statesman
Photo: Steve Cross
I Found It! The Duke Spirit
When the band started "The Step and the Walk" it was with a different intro from the album version, but once they hit the verse, a ripple of recognition travelled through the crowd, inspiring at least one person to sing along. Yes! The band soldiered on through a set heavy with tunes off Neptune, playing tight and big. After they finished their last song and left the stage, someone tried to slow-clap the crowd into demanding an encore, but everyone seemed a bit too sleepy for that.
We ran into Moss as she came back out to help pack up the band's gear. "Great show," we said, meaning it more than usual. She shrugged her shoulders and smiled sheepishly. "Eh," she managed. I guess we couldn't blame her for feeling a bit bummed, what with the rain, the cold, the Sunday-ness, the endless touring and playing-to-a-half-empty-room blahs.
Panty time"Nashville, stop throwing your panties at me," sings Dawn Oberg on the bonus track to her first full-length solo CD, "it's embarrassing after a while." Perhaps best known for the booze-soaked laments of her Honky-Tonk Happy Hour, the self-described "middle-aged library worker" emerges on her album Horticulture Wars as a fierce, dry wit with a smoky middle range and a world-weariness as becoming as a plume of smoke from Marlene Dietrich's cigarette holder. Thanks to co-producer Robin Eaton and top-flight backing from Jim Hoke, Brad Jones, Joe Pisapia, Fleming McWilliams and pedal-steel great Al Perkins, among others, Oberg's piano-centered cabaret pop has a lush, intimate sound that avoids turning facile and loungy. She belongs in the company of Aimee Mann and Amy Rigby, grown-up women who give off the kind of knowledge that makes their pop-tart competition sound like mewling Brownies. (And check out the cool Kelly Williams painting on the cover.) Oberg plays her CD release show 7 p.m. Dec. 5 at Club Roar, 710 Fessey Park Road—and if you insist on throwing panties, she sings, "at least could it be a clean pair?"
We loved you when no one else would. Send your $10K in back rent via PayPal to thespin@nashvillescene.com.

This is the kind of tribute shows I'd be organizing if I lived in a bigger metropolitan area!!!!

3rd Annual Tom Waits 'Get Behind A Mule' Tribute/Birthday Party/Benefit feat. Matthew Ryan, Korean Is Asian, Joshua Black Wilkins, Wess Floyd and the Daisycutters, Ballhog, Travis Stephen, Afton Wolfe & more
Date/Time:Sun., December 7, 8:00pm
Price: $7

Mule-tide Greetings
Emily Bartlett Hines
Tom Waits isn’t from around here; he was born in California, where he still resides. But it wouldn’t be surprising if his version of ramshackle, scratchy-voiced blues—suffused as it is with such Southern topics as drinkin’, heartbreak and mules—resonated with heartbroken drunks in the Music City. And it must be so, because The Basement’s “Get Behind a Mule” tribute night has been raising money for the Second Harvest Food Bank three years in a row. This year, you’ll have a chance to see local acts like Korean is Asian and Afton Wolfe offer their take on the great man’s songs, both classic and obscure. Waits buffs will enjoy guessing which tunes they’ll select: Will someone finally have the courage to cover “What’s He Building in There?”

No travelin' music today; just car companions and conversation

I drove to Morgantown and back today; no music at all. Had riders and we talked instead of listening to music. We had lunch at the Black Bear, and saw Andy is playing there tomorrow (Dec. 4th) at 6:15 pm for folks' dinner time entertainment. The Weedhawks are there, Dec. 12 6:30- 9 pm and Mike Morningstar and Rick Roberts are there the 13th of December; same hours.

Odetta died

I saw where Odetta died; at the age of 77. This folk singer influenced a lot of other musicians and was part of many of the great festivals/ events/ etc. of the folk music world of the past 50 years. We saw her on Mountain Stage within the last few years. We have a number of her albums gathered in the ever growing "Tuck folk music archives." Be on the look out for some good tribute reflections on her life and music, and impact on so many; let me know if you find a good one to post here. She had that big ol' deep powerful voice.

Venue search for 2009 Americana Music Series

I am approaching 2009 Children's Home Society of West Virginia-Parkersburg Americana Music Tribute Series with a very fresh and openmindedness toward the venues for the events. Any input is appreciated. I will likely have a brainstorming session next Wednesday, the 10 of December to get any interested folks together to talk. Stay tuned for finalized plans and location. Meanwhile send me ideas or thoughts or reactions or reflections!

If you've never seen me in my thunderwear costume

For those who don't know, the Greens have a song called Thunderwear. This is a surrealistic barrage of images regarding "influences" of various musical kinds and having problems with mustard, ketchup and the like. And not being able to keep up with Bob Marley, etc. So in honor of the song, I dressed up in some "thunderwear" clothing last Halloween; prompting an enthusiastic call for there to be a complete line of Thunderwear" clothing promoted by the Greens merchandising team and juggernaut. Alas, to say, this has not yet transpired. But you can get an idea what it takes to get me out on the "younger generation's" dance floor.

Yesterday's benefit at North End Tavern

This was a great musical event and benefit for John Oesterle (I hope I got that right without checking!). The place was packed all day, and there was obviously a lot of love and caring displayed. The music was solid all day, with diversity among the performers and some impromptu jamming among different folks of a spontaneous nature. It could have stood a larger venue, but I think the familiarity of the N.E.T. for most people was part of the draw, so that would have been lost. Smokestack Betty got a good response, Joe Mullenax (spelling?), and of course, Mike Morningstar and Rick Roberts, and Todd Burge. Joe Mullenax had some hot Hendrix covers going towards the end of the day.
A shout out to Bill Poole who was setting up the sound, and during the set changes was playing some music, he got a couple of Greens songs into that mix, giving them some exposure!!! Drag Yourself (through the day) and Tide Turns Again, got some air play in amidst the classic rock tunes being played!
I got a chance to get caught up a bit with Todd Burge which was nice, hearing about some of his upcoming stuff, and his perspective on the live music scene, and venues, and benefits, etc.
I'll reflect a little more later, on all these people from a certain era in Parkersburg getting together again, it was really a reunion it seems, capturing a purpose/ reason to get together, but catching a very good time- the end of a holiday weekend, a time in people's lives (these were dominantly 55-60 year olds). This was their time to shine and harken back to early times (musically).