Woody Guthrie Tribute tonight!

The day has arrived for the Woody Guthrie tribute here at Children's Home Society of WV-Parkersburg. This evening we will be starting the festivities at 7 pm, with some music by local musicians celebrating the life and music of Woody Guthrie. We are located at 1739 St. Mary's Ave. Parkersburg WV. The setting will be a coffee house style arrangement with a donation accepted at the door. We also have Series t-shirts for sale, and we are finishing up a raffle we have been holding for a trip for 2 to Nashville for the Americana Music Association festival in September. Come out and hear, Todd Burge, Nick Barry, and Steve Peck play some music.

Some music coming up

Larkin Poe will be in Marietta next Tuesday at Adelphia. Check them out.
The Big Bend Blues Bash is this weekend in Pomeroy. There is a "roots" night Thursday (sorry we have a conflict!) and then two solid nights of music Friday and Saturday.
Mountain Stage on Sunday in Charleston is looking like a great show; check it out at: mountainstage.org for the exact line up.

If you stop by Children's Home Society Thursday night for our Woody Guthrie Tribute, I'll update you on all these fine opportunities with the exact details myself; as well as our upcoming events.

Americana Music Association festival: some showcase acts

Showcase artists confirmed so far include:

18 South, Black Lillies, Cadillac Sky, Hayes Carll, Peter Case, Exene Cervenka,
Chapmans, Cherryholmes, Elizabeth Cook, Susan Cowsill, Kevin Gordon, Will Kimbrough, Randy Kohrs Band, Jon Langford & Skull Orchard, Charlie Louvin
Raul Malo, Chuck Mead, Micky and the Motorcars, Over the Rhine, Dex Romweber Duo, Stone River Boys, Abigail Washburn and more than 50 more to be announced in the coming days and weeks!

All these great acts; performing around Nashville, September 9, 10, 11, during the AMA festival - take a chance on winning a trip to this great event; as a raffle fund raiser for Children's Home Society of WV-Parkersburg, contact our office at 304-485-0650 for a ticket. $20 for a trip valued at over $1000- 3 nights lodging in downtown Nashville; tickets to the awards show, and the wristbands for the showcases; spending money, too.

Carpenter Ants show last night in Marietta

I went to the new venue in Marietta, the Adelphia (connected to the Galley) to see the Carpenter Ants last night. Opening act was Hey Mavis. I really like this venue and wish them well; both at the bringing in of some acts from around the country, and whatever local music they can put together and bring in some crowds.
The Carpenter Ants put on a great show; lots of enthusiasm from the audience for their great songs and friendly banter. Lots of good gospel harmonies; lots of funny songs; lots of good rich historical weaving of traditions and influences. Steve Forbert, Lucy Kaplansky, Patrick Sweany, all upcoming at the Adelphia.

Woody Guthrie Tribute updated

We are within a week and a half of the next tribute benefit for the 2010 Americana Music Tribute series here in Parkersburg. This is July 29th at 7 pm at the Children's Home Society storefront on St. Mary's Ave. Three local musicians will be performing sets celebrating Woody Guthrie. Todd Burge, Nick Barry and Steve Peck. Todd recently wrote a song about the agony of the Gulf Oil Spill (and similar topical issues!) in a nod to Woody. Steve Peck has worked up a nice set list of Woody songs. Steve will be bringing his sound equipment. Its been a while since we've had a coffee house setting in our store front; we hope we get a nice little crowd. We will be having the drawing for the raffle for the trip to Nashville that night (the September trip to the Americana Music Association festival and awards). This should make for a fun evening of music and celebration.

The Greens have been in the recording studio

The Greens did some recording last week. These were instrumental numbers. It will be exciting to hear how the sound comes out. The Greens have been getting back into action after a respite during June. They have a show in Akron Ohio this week, did a wedding in Parkersburg this past weekend. Have regular shows in Morgantown lined up and a few miscellaneous festivals and college shows coming up. Andy has a few new songs worked up also.

More Updates about the Americana Honors and Awards Show

AMERICANA HONORS & AWARDS SHOW
AT RYMAN AUDITORIUM SEPTEMBER 9


Confirmed performers: Emmylou Harris, Avett Brothers, Rodney Crowell, Wanda Jackson,Rosanne Cash, Patty Griffin, Sam Bush, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Ryan Bingham, Corb Lund, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Joe Pug, Will Kimbrough
The Honors & Awards are presented by the Gibson Foundation. Jim Lauderdale will continue his tenure as master of ceremonies, joined for another year by Buddy Miller and his all-star house band. More than 2,000 artists, music lovers and industry executives attend the annual show, which is broadcast internationally via Sirius/XM Radio, BBC2, and Voice of America.

Over the years, Americana Honors & Awards shows have featured historic moments including Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash’s last live performance together, as well as breath-taking sounds courtesy of Robert Plant and Allison Krauss, John Fogerty, Lyle Lovett, Solomon Burke, Old Crow Medicine Show, Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson, Levon Helm, and many more.

About the Americana Honors & Awards
Each year, the Americana Music Association honors distinguished members of the music community with six member voted annual awards and with Lifetime Achievement Awards. Presented by the Gibson Foundation, the Honors & Awards are attended by over 2000 artists, music loving fans and entertainment industry executives in one of America's musical shrines, the historic Ryman Auditorium. The event has been broadcast internationally via Sirius/XM Radio, BBC2, WSM and Voice of America. The Honors & Awards have featured many amazing moments over the years including Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash's last live performance together, as well as show-stopping appearances by John Fogerty, Lyle Lovett, Rosanne Cash, Solomon Burke, Old Crow Medicine Show, Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell, the Avett Brothers, Mavis Staples, Robert Plant, Patty Griffin, Guy C lark, Levon Helm, and so many more.

About the Americana Music Association
The Americana Music Association is a professional trade organization whose mission is to provide a forum for the advocacy of Americana music and to promote public awareness of the genre to support the creative and economic viability of professionals in this field. Dedicated to building and promoting the Americana genre and the individuals who participate in that industry, the Americana Music Association works closely with artists, labels, radio stations, retailers, print media, festivals, agents, publishers and more to help organize and build the infrastructure necessary for the Americana genre to achieve success both creatively and financially.

Jason Wilber's radio show

I've mentioned this before, but Jason Wilber does some interviews for a radio show out in Indiana, and you can find it: http://insearchofasong.com Recent interviews include: John Prine, Todd Snider, Mary Gauthier (all favorites of mine of course!!!!)

Songo the Day

Over there in Facebook land, I have continued to post a "song of the day" (songo for short). I try to not only pick songs I like, but mix them up in a way that serves to intrigue someone trying to figure out a pattern or themes, etc. Some days I WILL make an obvious connection and other times its very random. I have been enjoying, even among the limited "friends" that I have, the comments and connections and sparks I have been able to generate with my song of the day. The reactions are simple and quick but satisfying enough for me to continue. I try to (hopefully) expose some folks to music they may not know about, and then other times its purely, unabashedly nostalgic. When I reach some landmark vantage point, I'll figure a way to post the cumulative list over here on blogspot/ blogger.

Woody Guthrie Tribute here in Parkersburg

We've added a music event to our 2010 Americana Music Tribute Series for Thursday, July 29th at 7 pm, here at our Mid Town Family Resource Center (the "coffee house" mode!) It will be a Woody Guthrie Tribute, featuring several local musicians playing songs of Woody Guthrie, or songs inspired by Woody Guthrie. Todd Burge, who is a prominent musician in the local community, and across West Virginia will be participating. Nick Barry, who does a number of our tribute shows, and also does some painting and repairs around our facilities, will also perform. Nick has a very entertaining song writing style, and a deep appreciation for the legacy and history of music and influences (as does Todd!) Steve Peck, who has become a mainstay performer for the Americana Music Series has also agreed to do a set. We may have a few more, but this makes for a great line up of entertainment! AND, we will be drawing for the raffle for the Trip to Nashville (Sept. 9-11) to attend the Americana Music Association Festival - tickets for 2; including lodging, and gas/food money. We have had a few other Woody Guthrie music events over the years, and they are always memorable; its not necessarily the annual ones, like the Johnny Cash, John Prine tributes, but we've had some fun with them!

From the Court Street Grill (Pomeroy OH) e-newsletter

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST
Damn! Hate to announce this, but due to hard times, The Thirsty Turtle in Parkersburg has closed its doors. The Turtle had a very nice back room for "live" music. And even though they didn't book a lot of acts, owner/manager Mike Umensetter was always cooperative when ask to book some blues on occasion. The place has been a bar on and off for years and probably will be again someday. But this time around they never seemed to attract enough crowd to support the music and were never consistent with the bookings. Seems the regular Friday afternoon crowd wasn't least bit interested in the blues. And the blues crowd never became part of the regular Friday afternoon crowd. Although no doubt some of the biggest crowds ever in the place were made up of blues fans to see Johnny Rawls or Dennis McClung. But all too often blues fans were ask to pay a cover (which they were more than willing to do), while non-cover paying customers could sit at the front bar, drink the same cold beer, eat the same good food and hear the same good music. Sometimes this made for a unique mix of clientele. So long Turtle, hate to see ya go.

This brings to mind some others who have shut down over the past few years. Places like Haggi Cabana (Parkersburg), The Crow Bar (Marietta) Blues Angel Cafe (Parkersburg) all come to mind. All were very popular at one time but weren't able to make it. Can't blame it on the "no smoking" law. That ain't it. Some it seems just got away from what they did best. Or never did anything best, other than the music. ex: The Cabana once offered some of the finest Caribbean fare anywhere. But cut back on the menu. Some may remember they actually began on 5th St downtown in a place the size of a closet, offering great Jamaican food. They all probably tried to do too much in the way of booking blues acts. And some probably had a little too much chrome and neon lights. And none at that time had a reliable website. Things have changed in recent years with the World Wide Web.



Sooooo.... as a point of interest. And keep in mind I ain't ever owned no bar, juke joint, tavern, restaurant, movie theater or nothin'... but have been know to frequent a few. Next time someone in Parkersburg, Marietta, Reedsville, Belleville, Letart Falls or New Haven is thinking of opening a blues bar, consider this. For one thing, ta hell with location. You ain't looking to buy a house, so you don't care who your neighbors are or even if you have neighbors. Dammit! It's gonna be a juke joint! Don't worry 'bout WHERE it is. If you're doing it "right", peoples gonna search you out! Decide who you are and who you wanta be and go with it. You CAN'T please all the people all the time, so DON'T try to. You CAN'T rely on "live" music to keep your doors open unless you're only gonna be open on weekends and special occasions. So best offer some DECENT food and be CONSISTENT with it. BBQ works well with the crowd I run with. So does fried catfish, hot wings and popcorn. In other words.. back off with the twigs & nuts! Well stocked jukebox that kicks on during band breaks is nice. And DON'T worry about too many bells and whistles aka flashing neon lights & chrome. But most importantly, DON'T over extend yerself. Ain't never seen no bar owner yet that had deep pockets enuf to book everyone the fans wanted to. Yeah, it'd be great to have BB King on Friday and Buddy Guy on Saturday... but can that be done? And pleeeese, NEVER on no occasion ever offer karaoke or gambling machines. Most all blues crowds would be way more than happy to see a place with dim lights, simple wooden bar, low stage, small dance floor, retro furniture, strings of Christmas lights, domestic longneck beers (back off the imports & micros), and cheapass whiskey. Ya get the picture? So ends the crawlinkingsnake Success in Jooks 101 seminar.

Hold on, think maybe just described The Court Street Grill, The Canal House, The Thirsty Ear, Moondog's, BB Kings (Memphis), Bradfordville Blues Club (Tallahassee), Red's Lounge and Ground Zero Blues Club (Clarksdale). Huh, go figure... must be something to what was just said

Jason Wilber reports on being at Bonnaroo

We Had An Absolute Blast At Bonnaroo!

I played the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival this past weekend with John Prine. What a fun festival! I ran into my old friends Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, who were there to perform on the same stage as us with David Rawlings Machine. I hadn’t seen Gil and Dave since the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in San Francisco last year. So it was fun catching up with them.

Before we went on, I saw a great band I hadn’t heard before called Mumford and Sons. They played a rockin’ set right before us. If you haven’t heard them yet, check them out!

We (John Prine and co) had a great set. The crowd was fantastic and really pumped. The fabulous Ketch Secor and Willie Watson from Old Crow Medicine Show came out and played a couple of songs with us. Those guys rock! You can check out this video of them playing Lake Marie with us on YouTube.

Then for our encore, Kris Kristofferson came out and sang with us. Ketch, Willie, and Morgan from Old Crow came out too. The applause from the audience as we walked on stage for the encore was deafening! We played John’s classic “Paradise”. Kris sang a verse and I think Ketch and Willie split one. A fantastic way to end the set! As we were walking off stage afterwards, Kris said to me “Man, you’re a hell of a guitar picker!”. That made me feel pretty good. Kris and his wife Lisa are wonderful people, very kind and down to earth. We’ve had the pleasure of doing a few shows with them here and there over the years. It was great to see the Old Crow Medicine Show guys again too. One of the best things about festivals like this is getting to hang with friends and fellow artists who we don’t get to see very often.

After our performance, I just had enough time to grab a quick dinner (a big “thank you” to Bonnaroo’s awesome backstage hospitality staff!) and then catch one of my all time favorites, Stevie Wonder, on the main stage. Stevie and his band were in top form. Smokin’! I had high expectations and was not disappointed one bit. I only had time to listen to a few songs because we had to hit the road. But I did get to hear “Superstition”! A sweet cherry on top of a wonderful day.

A million thanks to our old friend and promoter Ashley Capps and all of the other people who make Bonnaroo possible. It’s a HUGE undertaking! If you aren’t familiar with it, Bonnaroo is a four-day, multi-stage camping festival held on a 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tennessee every June. The musical artists chosen to perform at the festival represent a wonderful cross-section of styles and genres. There are bands and artists representing just about any contemporary style of music you can think of. There are also visual arts and crafts people, comedy performances, movies, and all kinds of entertainment, including a silent disco (where everyone wears headphones!).

Tags: jason wilber, john prine

Another long stretch of not posting.... sigh....

I have gone into another long stretch of not posting on the blog. No Depression on line continues to inspire me; lots of good things I COULD be blogging; lots of dibs and dabs of music I listen to; gearing up for another music event later in the month as part of our Americana Music Tribute Series; the Greens on hiatus, with Andy's trip out west. Not much by way of excuses, but that's that. Keep visiting back, it will pick up I promise!

Mzrk Stuart and Stacey Earle returning to parkersburg

Mark Stuart and Stacey Earle, two fantastic musicians, songwriters, and great people, will be returning to parkersburg on Thursday September 16th to do a show for us. Mark does their own booking, and so contacted me about the September date, as they have done twice before, it fits into a tour up toward, or from the northeast, as they make their way to or back to Nashville. They are hard touring folks, who have a great connection to an audience. They have beautiful harmonies, and heart-touching songs, and unique and mesmerizing guitar work. I will be reporting on the venue and details as the event approaches.