Arrival in NOLA...

(Don't be fooled by this posting time, it's just formatting. It's really 8:30 on Friday morning by the time I drag myself out of bed and come down to sample the breakfast buffet.)

By mid-morning I've got everything packed (well, The Reet did help out a tad) and I'm waiting to be picked up by the Pool Hall Studs for our trip to Bradley International Airport for our flight to New Orleans. We're flying out at noon on Northwest (the airline, not necessarily the direction) with a short layover in Detroit, arriving in the Crescent City around five o'clock. This schedule will not allow us to get out to the Fairgrounds for the festival, but there is the serious matter of the annual grudge pool matches at Ryan's Irish Pub in the French Quarter with the Pool Hall Studs to address (for those who are new to this, Johnny Gumbo and I have been kicking their asses annually and we intend to continue to do so).

Long flight. We depart from the plane in rainy Detroit and look for our connecting flight, only to find out we are flying out on the SAME PLANE! Smooth. We finally arrive at Louis Armstrong Airport about five o'clock Central. A quick call to Johnny Gumbo finds him down in the Quarter with some devastating news - THEY TOOK OUT THE POOL TABLE AT RYAN'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He'll fill us in when we get there. Meanwhile, Mark connects with Garland, our transportation guy at the Fest. Garland has his own business in Houston, but comes to New Orleans each year, rents a van and does his thing. All his customers are by word of mouth. He supplies the ride, the cold beer and some of the greatest spicy fried chicken wings you'll ever taste. You pay him what you think it's worth. Garland arrives in short order. He's also picked up Joe and Patty, a couple of New Yorkers down for the Fest. Joe, who is a five year veteran of Jazz Fest, has been here for a couple days already, leaving the family responsibilities to wifey to attend to. That done, Jazz Fest virgin Patty is in town and ready to kick some ass (possibly Joe's). Good people. We drop them at the Hotel Monteleone and proceed over to the Staybridge, located on Tchoupitoulas at Poydras just across the street from Mother's.

Quick drop off of my shit and I'm downstairs sampling the reception fare (plastic glass of wine and a little chicken gumbo) as the Celtics/Bulls get under way. We walk the six blocks down to Ryan's where we find Johnny Gumbo in full festival mode. Hugs/kisses all around (not full on the mouth, though, swine flu and all). Big crowd. Gumbo explains that they are filming a street scene for a movie set in New York! Celtics down two at the half. We pick our way around the film crew (seems to be set in the 1930's) down the street to the Old Absinthe House for a quick Abita. Celtics in a battle. Walter Ray! Off wandering about, occasionally peeking in to catch the score, when EUREKA! pool tables! Rake 'em up, studs, and take your medicine. It wasn't pretty, let me tell you. Better luck next time, boys. Celtics blow a chance to win. Overtime. Ray is lighting it up.

Over to Nola for dinner. At the bar, watching the game. The BEST stuffed chicken wings. Pork tenderloin. Duck (look out, duck!). Quail. Abitas. Oh, and maybe we didn't win at pool, because we ended up with the tab! Celts lose, too! Oh well, it's off to Frenchman Street to finish the night off at some bar with an excellent band. Didn't catch the name of either. It's getting late, so Gumbo and I leave the young studs and grab a cab 'home.' Night y'all.

Donna's Bar & Grill on North Rampart...

"Do what you wanna, but don't miss Donna's!"
Presenting the very best
Jazz, Brass & Home Style Cooking available in New Orleans.
800 N. Rampart, NOLA, corner St. Ann
Music schedule @ Donna's
Thu, 04/30/2009 - 9:00pm Evan Christopher and Tom McDermott
Fri, 05/01/2009 - 9:00pm Jesse McBride
Sat, 05/02/2009 - 12:00am Delfeayo Marsalis
Sun, 05/03/2009 - 9:00pm Shannon Powell Jazz Quartet & Friends
Mon, 05/04/2009 - 9:00pm Mark Braud Jazz Jam

We're off to the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival...

We'll be arriving in the Crescent City late afternoon, meaning we will not make it out to the fairgrounds for today's Fest. Unfortunately, we will miss Ben Harper & Relentless7, Emmylou Harris, Solomon Burke, Jakob Dylan, Meter Men: Zig, George, and Leo, Mississippi Mass Choir, the subdudes, Theresa Andersson, Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials, Marva Wright & the BMWs, Nicholas Payton, Eddie Bo, Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes, Anders Osborne, Ronnie Kole, Rosie Ledet & the Zydeco Playboys, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, Sunpie & the Louisiana Sunspots, George Wein & the Newport Allstars feat. Howard Alden, Anat Cohen, Randy Brecker, Lew Tabakin, Jimmy Cobb, and Esperanza Spalding, Banu Gibson’s Hot Jazz with special guest Bucky Pizzarelli, Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir, Delfeayo Marsalis presents “Sweet Thunder”, John Rankin, Creole Zydeco Farmers, Silky Sol, Sharon Martin, Little Freddie King, Jumpin’ Johnny Sansone

Tonight at the Louisiana Music Factory:
Lil' Band O' Gold resurrected swamp pop tradition while putting its own stamp on the rock music coming out of Southwest Louisiana. The nine-piece supergroup, consisting
of singer/guitarist C.C. Adcock, singer/accordionist Steve Riley, singer/pianist David Egan, saxists Dickie Landry, David Greely, and Pat Breaux, bassist Dave Ronson, pedal-steel guitarist Richard Comeaux, and legendary drummer Warren Storm, rarely performed outside its home base in Lafayette, LA, because of its members' commitments to other bands. However, appearances at Midsummer Nights Swing at Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City in 2000 and concerts at the Crawfish Festival in Stanhope, NJ, and at Swamp Stomp at Wolf Trap in Virginia in 2001 exposed the group to an audience outside its home state of Louisiana. -complete bio

Early Tuesday morn....cup 'o jo......listening to...

Miles Davis Kind of Blue
Closing this Saturday at Jazz Fest, Jimmy Cobb's So What Band featuring Wallace Roney, Vincent Herring, Javon Jackson, Larry Willis & Buster Williams will do a set in the WWOZ Jazz Tent called Remembering Kind of Blue @ 50. Although opposite John Mayall, Bon Jovi, Kings of Leon, The O'Jays, CJ Chenier, etc., this might be a keeper!

(Wikipedia, so it must be true) - Kind of Blue is a studio album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released August 17, 1959 on Columbia Records, in both mono and stereo. Recording sessions for the album took place at Columbia's 30th Street Studio in New York City on March 2 and April 22, 1959. The sessions featured Davis's ensemble sextet, which included pianists Bill Evans and Wynton Kelly, drummer Jimmy Cobb, bassist Paul Chambers, and saxophonists John Coltrane and Julian "Cannonball" Adderley. Production for the album was handled entirely by record producers Teo Macero and Irving Townsend. Following the inclusion of Bill Evans into his sextet, Davis followed up on the modal experimentations of Milestones (1958) and the '58 Sessions. Influenced by pianist George Russell's concept of scale-based musical improvisation, Davis conceived Kind of Blue entirely on modality in contrast to his earlier work with the hard bop style of jazz and its complex chord progression.

Though precise figures have been disputed, Kind of Blue has been cited by many music writers as Miles Davis's best-selling album, as well as the best-selling jazz record of all time. On October 7, 2008, the album was certified quadruple platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It has also been regarded by many critics as the greatest jazz album of all time and Davis's magnum opus, and it has been ranked at or near the top of several "best album" lists in disparate genres. The album's influence on music, including jazz, rock and classical music, has led music writers to acknowledge it as one of the most influential albums of all time. In 2002, it was one of fifty recordings chosen that year by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. In 2003, the album was ranked number 12 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2008, a box set release of Kind of Blue was issued by Legacy Records in commemoration of its fiftieth anniversary.

tres días a ir...

babelfish.com

Wynton Marsalis has been confirmed to appear on the ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ on Wed May 13th. The Pulitzer Prize & 9-time Grammy Award winner will perform the new song ‘School Boy’ from his new Blue Note album He & She - his 5th Blue Note release that features 22 tracks of his signature jazz, as well as spoken word and poetry tracks, all centered around the theme of the relationship between man and woman.

Hoping to get some video this year at Jazz Fest, I picked up an 8GB SDHC card late yesterday afternoon at Best Buy. The clerk chuckled when she saw the 128MB one I had in the camera. Hey, what do I know?

Sunday morning (walking) trail-mix...

Everything I Said (The Cranberries) Treasure Box
Love Gone Bad (Guitar George Baker) Mojo Lady
Affection (Jonathan Richman & Modern Lovers) Roadrunner
I Got Mine (Black Keys) Attack & Release
Bad Girl (Miracles) Dean's Top 100- 1959
Every Breath I Take (Gene Pitney) Phil Spector-Back to Mono
Blue Angel (Roy Orbison) Only the Lonely-live recordings
Stormy Monday (Allman Brothers Band) Live at Fillmore
Come to Mama (Etta James) Burnin' Down the House
Just One More Day (Otis Redding) Very Best of...
Betrayed (Lou Reed) Live in Italy
Evil Woman (Yesterday's Children) Self-titled
Monk's Mood (John Coltrane/Thelonious Monk) Thelonious Monk Quartet
Judy (The Pipettes) We Are the Pipettes
God Is Love (Marvin Gaye) What's Going On
Sweet Nothing (Brenda Lee) Hotkennedys Surfing at Groton Long point
Nashville Skyline Rag (Bob Dylan) Nashville Skyline
Without a Friend Like You (Maria Muldaur) Louisiana Love Call
On Your Way Down (Allen Toussaint) The Allen Toussaint Collection
Venus De Milo (Miles Davis) Birth of the Cool
Where Or When (Dion & the Belmonts) The Wanderer
Nothing But Flowers (Talking Heads) Best of...
First Night (Hold Steady) Boys & Girls in America

You mean I can burn my old Richard Torrance album to CD on this thing?...

TURN YOUR RECORDS INTO CDs - NO COMPUTER REQUIRED (from ionaudio.com)
LP 2 CD is the fastest, easiest way to convert your vinyl records to CDs with none of the hassle of connecting a computer. Listen to your music in the car, at home, on your computer, or any place with a CD player! Play your album into LP 2 CD and record one or more CD copies in the internal CD burner. Or, connect your computer and easily transfer your music to your iTunes, iPod, or MP3 player. LP 2 CD comes with software for fast, easy importing to your iTunes library. Just place your record on the turntable and insert a blank CD. Play your vinyl, hit the record button and let LP 2 CD do the rest!

LP 2 CD includes a software CD with EZ Vinyl Converter for PC (with auto track detection) and EZ Audio Converter for Mac. They are the simplest way to record and convert vinyl directly to iTunes. It´s like magic! Before you know it, you'll be listening to songs you haven´t heard in years in iTunes or on your iPod. A free download version of EZ Vinyl Converter with Gracenote ™ MusicID is included for automatic track naming. Now you can listen to your music in the car, at home, on your computer, or any place with a standard CD player. Converting your records is a snap with LP 2 CD. - Price: $400 - review in Htfd Courant

For your listening pleasure...

nola.com - NOLA radio

Rosie came out tonight.....

Bruce, Max, Clarence, Lil Stevie, Nils and the boys came to Hartford tonight and, thanks to Keith 'n Sharie, we had primo seats to see them. Thanks, guys. Got to chow down first, so we go directly to Plan B, without even considering Plan A. Cuban burger /w greens instead of fries. Damage control. Concert is to be at 7:30, which means 8:30, so we park, walk through Bushnell Park (didn't know they stocked the pond, unless those were rats swimming in it) and ease on into Agave for marguaritas (Corona for Sharie) before the show.

Badlands. Excellent start to the show. Lots of energy and it seems everyone is eager to show Bruce they know EVERY word. The guy two rows down takes his sweatshirt off, but exposes his hairy back to all of us. Thanks for sharing, pal. Yuck. We're just left of the stage about 20 rows up. Fantastic. Bruce follows up Badlands with Outlaw Pete off of the new CD (already up on utube, below!).

Not sure I'm buying Pete. Where's Patty? Fell of a horse. Bruce, haven't we heard that one recently? C'mon, buddy, try harder. Oh, alright, she fell off the damn horse. Clarence is looking very frail, no? The Reet informs me the Yankees are down 1-0. Waiting on a Sunny Day

Wild Thing. Yeah, the old Troggs song. I wasn't sure if it was planned or not, but it was cool.


Then:
Well, there she sits buddy justa gleaming in the sun
There to greet a working man when his day is done
I'm gonna pack my pa and I'm gonna pack my aunt
I'm gonna take them down to the Cadillac Ranch

Eldorado fins, whitewalls and skirts
Rides just like a little bit of heaven here on earth
Well buddy when I die throw my body in the back
And drive me to the junkyard in my Cadillac

Cadillac, Cadillac
Long and dark, shiny and black
Open up your engines let 'em roar
Tearing up the highway like a big old dinosaur

Great song, well done! Bruce has lots of James Brown in him. A young, long-haired dude subs in for Mighty Max (Max's kid?) for Radio Nowhere:


Tenth Avenue Freezeout! E Street Shuffle YES! Life is good. No "Sandy" though. Finishing song: Rosalita! Yankees lose. - Eric Dantin's take (including set list)

Separated at birth - Susan Boyle and Mickey Dolenz...

Juan Weak Tugo....

After 4 decades, Jazz Fest grows but honors roots
NEW ORLEANS – Only about 350 people attended the first New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in 1970, and that number included gospel singer Mahalia Jackson and the other 100 or so local musicians who performed. Four decades later, Jazz Fest draws hundreds of thousands of fans from around the world to hear bands perform jazz, blues, country, Cajun, rap and rock. The festival's 40th anniversary kicks off Friday with a tribute to Jackson by Grammy-winning soul singer Irma Thomas and a performance by New Orleans native trumpeter Wynton Marsalis. This year's headliners include Bon Jovi, Sugarland, Kings of Leon and The O'Jays. - complete article

Simmer down, mon, top 10 Jamaican songs...

1. "One Love" - Bob Marley & the Wailers
2. "Oh Carolina" - The Folkes Brothers
3. "54-45" - The Maytals
4. "Got to Go Back Home" - Bob Andy
5. "My Boy Lollipop" - Millie Small
6. "Many Rivers To Cross" - Jimmy Cliff
7. "Israelites" - Desmond Dekker and the Aces
8. "Cherry Oh Baby" - Eric Donaldson
9. "Simmer Down" - Bob Marley & the Wailers
10. "Carry Go Bring Come" - Justin Hinds & the Dominos

KINGSTON (Reuters) – Reggae legend Bob Marley's "One Love" topped a list of Jamaica's 100 best songs over 50 years that was unveiled on Tuesday by a panel of musicians and cultural officials associated with the University of the West Indies. - article

Going to be a tough call...

Never too early to start planning for the music at Jazz Fest. Johnny Gumbo emails from the Great Northwest asking about Patty Griffin, who performs at Jazz Fest on Friday, May 1. Seems daughter Erin, who is a first-weekend Jazz Fester, is excited that Dad can see both Griffin and Sugarland. What the hell is Gumbo doing up this early, anyway? It's like a two-and-a-half hour time difference out in Spokane!

One thing is for sure, this cowboy is not going to see Sugarland (not that there's anything WRONG with that). Patty Griffin is another story. I have not seen her perform in concert, but have sampled her music numerous times and love it. She appears on the Sheraton New Orleans Fais Do-Do Stage from 4:15-5:30, which conflicts somewhat with Bonnie Raitt, who plays at the Acura Stage from 3:30-4:45 (complete May 1 cubes). I've seen Bonnie in many and varied venues, the weirdest being the old Oakdale Theatre-in-the-Round in 1979 (with Steve the Bod), where Bonnie appeared with her famous dad, John Raitt. They both performed separate sets (Broadway, followed by blues), then finished up singing together.

So, guess I'll listen to Bonnie, then make my way over to catch the end of Patty, all the while trying to decide who to close the day with (the Pool Hall Studs, no doubt battered and bruised from the previous night at Ryan's, will have their own agenda):

Sugarland @ Acrura Stage (not happening)

Tony Bennett @ Gentilly Stage (gotta pass on Tony)

Musiq Soulchild @ Congo Square "My Louisiana" Stage (no clue)

Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band @ WWOZ Jazz Tent

John Scofield & the Piety Street Band @ Blues Tent (my early favorite)

Lars Edegran's New Orleans Ragtime Orchestra @ Peoples Health Economy Hall Tent

The Iguanas @ Sheraton New Orleans Fais Do-Do Stage (have seen them several times at Cafe Nine in New Haven - great band!)

101 Runners @ Jazz & Heritage Stage

God's House Westbank Cathedral Choir @ Gospel Tent (we'll get our gospel earlier in the day)

Driskill Mountain Boys @ Lagniappe Stage

WSJ article on a classic jazz album...

Bluesy and Achingly Beautiful
Coleman's 'The Shape of Jazz to Come' lived up to its title

As years go, 1959 was a landmark for jazz recordings. Miles Davis created his "Kind of Blue" and John Coltrane made his "Giant Steps." But the most influential jazz album made in 1959 came from Ornette Coleman, then an outcast in that musical community. It was called "The Shape of Jazz to Come."

The record lived up to its title. Mr. Coleman's innovations are often called "free jazz," but that's an oversimplification. While he did loosen the existing rules in an attempt to bring harmony, melody and rhythm into a more equal relationship within the music, Mr. Coleman was no finger-wagging modernist. Nor did he advocate musical anarchy (though to some ears his music still sounds like noise). He wanted to give musicians the freedom to play in accordance with the emotion of the tune, rather than limiting them to the notes and sequences dictated by chord changes, the progression of notes that create the harmonic structure of a song.

On "The Shape of Jazz to Come," Mr. Coleman's quartet made music that was bluesy and often achingly beautiful. His followers established an avant garde that has grown in the past half-century into one of the most consistently vital wings of jazz. - complete article

Walking the trail early Saturday morning pondering tax season, Danny Ainge and the loss of the Big Ticket for the playoffs...

You Get What You Give (New Radicals) Artist's Choice-Joni Mitchell
She's a Rainbow (Rolling Stones) Their Satanic Majesties Request
Blues in the Night (Van Morrison w/ Georgie Fame) How Long Has This Been Going On
Find Him (Cassandra Wilson) New Moon Daughter
Glad Tidings (Van Morrison) Moondance
Stardust (Hoagy Carmichael) Best of...
Broken-hearted Melody (Sarah Vaughn) Dean's Top 100- 1959
Mister Magik (Esther Phillips) Jazz Moods- Hot
Wherever You Were (Holly Golightly) The Good Things
A Method (TV On the Radio) Return To Cookie Mountain
Changed the Locks (Lucinda Williams) Live @ the Fillmore
Another Place To Fall (KT Tunstall) Eye To the Telescope
Lonesome Day Blues (Bob Dylan) Love & Theft
Over Under Sideways Down (The Yardbirds) Over Under Sideways Down
Martha (Tom Waits) Closing Time
All Things Must Pass (George Harrison) All Things Must Pass
Bend Down Low (Bob Marley) Natty Dread
Nothing But the Soul (Horace Silver) Horace Silver Trio
Change Of the Guard (Steely Dan) Can't Buy a Thrill
She's Still Bewitching Me (Mary Lou Lord) Live City Sounds

Saturday is Record Store Day...

Record Store Day celebrates indie retailers
PORTLAND, Maine – Despite the success of online retailers, explosion of Internet downloads and high-profile closings of Virgin Megastores and Tower Records stores, bricks-and-mortar record stores aren't all spinning toward oblivion. Although hundreds of independent music retailers have gone out of business in recent years, about 2,000 are still around, and many are thriving. The survivors will celebrate Saturday, as acts such as Erykah Badu and Franz Ferdinand gather to pay homage to the hometown record store. Record Store Day was the idea of Chris Brown, a long-haired, goateed music guru from Bull Moose, a chain of 10 record stores in Maine and New Hampshire. - article

Area independent record stores (recordstoreday.com):

Integrity 'N Music Silas Deane Hwy, Wethersfield, CT
Live music @2PM- Jovan Alexandre/Jason Fitch Quintet w/Jonathan Barber-drums

Brass City Records 489 Meadow St, Waterbury, CT

Turn It Up 5 Pleasant St, Northampton, MA
This year, dozens of artists have put out special exclusive releases for this event. You won't be able to get these titles at the big box stores, at the supermarkets, or even at the coffee chains or fast food restaurants. To get these titles you have to go to the Record Store, and where better than your local Turn It up! location?

Louisiana Music Factory 210 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70130
The ultimate indie record store. We will be there in two weeks!

There she goes again....and again....

The La's (Self-titled album one of my all-time favorites)

Lou Reed

Marshall Crenshaw

Babyshambles

Bob Marley

Louisiana Music Factory in-store performances schedule during Jazz Fest (click on image for clearer picture)...

If Monday you got Friday on your mind, what'cha got on your mind Friday?...

Easybeats Friday On My Mind. The Easybeats were a rock and roll band from Australia. They formed in Sydney in late 1964 and split at the end of 1969. They are widely regarded as the greatest Australian pop band of the 1960s and were the first Australian rock and roll act to score an international pop hit with their classic 1966 single "Friday on My Mind." -(Wikipedia, so it must be true.)

Don Kirshner (Don Kirshner's Rock Concert) is 75 today. Liz Phair is 42.

If the Pool Hall Studs get tired of having their asses kicked at Ryan's, we could kick 'em at the new Rock 'N Bowl...

Rock 'n Bowl felt like home, even in a shiny new space
All the essential elements were in place when the new Mid-City Lanes Rock 'n Bowl opened for business the evening of Wednesday, April 15. Live music. Cold beer. And owner John Blancher atop the bar, gyrating in a hula-hoop alongside his wife Deborah and two bartenders in short skirts.

On opening night, Harry Connick Sr. gave the new space a thumbs up. New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival impresario Quint Davis admired the new automated scoring systems and shiny hardwood floors. "This is almost too nice for New Orleans," Davis proclaimed. "Even without Katrina." Davis marveled at Blancher's moxie, to invest in building a bowling alley from scratch in the midst of a recession. Essentially, Blancher had no choice. His relationship with his landlords at the original Mid-City Lanes at the corner of Tulane and Carrollton had grown increasingly testy. With a lease option coming up, Blancher decided to make a move. - complete article

Buy me some peanuts 'n crackerjacks, I don't care if I never get back...

The beloved New York Baseball Yankees open up their cute little ballpark today at 1. Not sure they still sell the peanuts 'n crackerjacks anymore. Sushi. Jeter hits in the clutch. Hope it's a trend, because opposing shortstops are exhausted fielding all those double play grounders. Kelly Clarkson to sing National Anthem.

Dangerous...

But even more dangerous!...

Who is Ava Leigh?...

Notable for being the first and probably last reggae singer to come out of Chester, England, Ava Leigh managed to win over the cynical music press thanks to the authentic sounds of her debut album. Born in 1986, Leigh (real name Hayley Carline) grew up on a musical diet of her mother's lovers rock and ska collection. At a holiday talent contest she discovered her singing abilities, so she joined the school choir and jazz band. Declining an offer from her parents to send her to stage school on the grounds she wanted to do things her own way, she soon signed a deal with 141a Management. Initially approaching record companies with an R&B sound, she soon converted to reggae after being introduced to the Abu Shanti Sound System by manager Raymond Stevenson. - allmusicguide

Easter iPod while eating, conversing and watching the Masters on mute...

Monday, Monday (Mamas and Papas) California Dreamin'
Hurtin' House (Esther Philips) Jazz Moods- Hot
Isn't It a Pity (George Harrison) All Things Must Pass
False Alarm (KT Tunstall) Eye To the Telescope
Swamp River Days (John Fogerty) Blue Moon Swamp
Exactly Like You (Terrance Blanchard) Let's Get Lost
Night Out (Ellen Foley) Night Out
High Flying Bird (Richie Havens) Mixed Bag
All of Me (Billie Holiday) Billie's Blues
The Water (Feist) The Reminder
Down Here Below (Abbey Lincoln) A Turtle's Dream
Songo Song (Lawrence Sieberth) The Key Players
2000 Light Years From Home (The Rolling Stones) Their Satanic Majesties request
Words Fell (Lucinda Williams) World Without Tears
What Goes On (Beatles) Rubber Soul
Natural Woman (Aretha Franklin) Lady soul
I Would Like to Dance (Janis Ian) Aftertones
Autumn Leaves (Miles Davis) Ballads and Blues
Same Old Song and Dance (Frank Sinatra) Come Dance With Me
Aqua (Manhattan Transfer) Brasil
Barroom Hero (Dropkik Murphys) Singles Collection
Peeping Tom (Toots & the Maytals) Best of ...
Isn't It a Pity (Portia Nelson) Sunday in New York
1234 (Feist) The Reminder
All Hands Agaist His Own (The Black Keys) Rubber Factory
Sweet Black Angel (The Rolling Stones) Exile on Main Street
Softly As a Morning Sunrise (Milt Jackson) Early Modern
Into White (Cat Stevens) Tea For the Tillerman
Baby Workout (Jackie Wilson) Hotkennedys Surfing at Groton Long Point
Ghost Train (Counting Crows) August & Everything After
Midnight Lullaby (Tom Waits) Closing Time
Lovers Who Wander (Dion) The Wanderer
Golgi Apparatus (Phish) Junta
Real Gone Lover (Van Morrison/Gail Lewis) You Win Again
Just For the Fun of It (Nat King Cole) Billy May Sessions
Do You Remember (Jack Johnson) In Between dreams
Baby Can I Hold You (Tracy Chapman) Tracy Chapman
Hi Dear (Jonathan Richman & Modern Lovers) Roadrunner
Hymn (Janis Ian) Aftertones
Young Blood (Rickie Lee Jones) Rickie Lee Jones
Crying (Roy Orbison) Only the Lonely
Quarter to Three (Sir Douglas Quintet) She About a Mover
Turn On Your Love Light (James Hunter) Believe What I Say
Cry Me a River (Diana Krall) The Look of love
Thou Swell (Horace Silver) Horace Silver Trio
Tears Dry On Their Own (Amy Winehouse) Back To Black
Nobody's Baby (Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings) 100 Days, 100 Nights
Stick With Me Baby (Robert Plant/Alison Krauss) Raising Sand
Just One Smile (Dusty Springfield) Dusty in Memphis
I'm a Man (Yardbirds) Over Under Sideways Down
Sail On Sailor (Beach Boys) Holland
Words (Lucinda Williams) West
Try a Little Tenderness (Otis Redding) Very Best of..

Happy egg hunting, folks......

Glancing at my Litchfield Jazz Festival 2001 coffee cup - Dave Brubeck * Dr. John * Jane Monheit * Roy Hargrove * Don Braden * John Pizzarelli * Cyrus Chestnut * Renee Rosnes * Mario Pavone * Joey DeFrancesco * Kenny Werner * Joe Lavano * Matthias Lupri * Jane Bunnett * Nicholas Payton



2009 Lineup at the Kent School in Kent, CT:
Friday, July 31
5:30-7:15pm Friends of the Festival Gala at the Morrison Gallery in Kent
7:45 pm Lewis Nash Quintet
9:15 pm Jane Monheit
Saturday, August 1
noon Dafnis Prieto Si o Si Quartet
1:45 pm Trio Da Paz with Leny Andrade
3:30 pm Wycliffe Gordon & Jay Leonhart Quartet
5:15 pm Benny Green and Bucky Pizzarelli
7:00 pm Bill Henderson Quartet
8:45 pm Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Sunday, August 2
noon Ted Nash Quartet - The Mancini Project
1:30 pm Lionel Loueke Trio
3:30 pm Dena DeRose Quartet featuring Claudio Roditi
5:00 pm Houston Person Quartet
7:00 pm Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band

Legendary in its own mind...

This has got to be the corniest sports song ever!...

And it's perfect for the ever-pompous CBS coverage of The Masters. It's a GOLF TOURNAMENT, Jim Nance, not church! And what ever happened to Dave Loggins, anyway?

Who's your daddy?...

In the I want to cash in my my dead old man's name category, here's an email to famed concert promoter Johnny Gumbo from Ike Turner Jr's agent:

I am contacting you to let you know that IKE TURNER JR. & THE SECOND GENERATION are available for live shows after April 15th. This show is a complete retrospective of their family hits. IKE TURNER JR. along with his Dad, received Grammy's in 2006. IKE JR. has toured from 1990 to 2004 in South East Asia, Africa, the United States and Canada. For the last few years, he has been busy producing other artists. However, with his Dad's passing, buyers are looking to this show as the next best thing because the show is being done as a family affair. The show consists of the band THE SECOND GENERATION and 3 back-up singers are often referred to as "The Junior Ikettes". This is a moderately priced show with great hit power. Interviews, meet and greets and other types of promotions are encouraged. Ideal for special events and for situations such as clubs 400 to 800 seats, outdoor festivals (any size), casino showrooms of 800 seats or less and small theaters of 800 seats or less. Some new material will be introduced; however the show is predominantly an Ike & Tina Greatest Hits Show.

I will be keeping you up to date on other shows in the upcoming days. I am happy to send you photos of IKE JR. and The Junior Ikettes if you wish.

Kind regards, JOHN REGNA, Artist's Manager

Tina must love this!

Dominatrixes!!!!!

Huskies win at Final Fur, end at 36-0!!!!

UCONN defeats Louisville 76-54 in Women's Basketball and complete season undefeated. Video of the end of the game and celebration. Interview with Gino Auriemma by Rebecca Lobo - here

Australia's morning after girls' new video- run for our lives

Go Huskies!!!...

While you wait for the UConn women to capture the national championship at the Final Fur tonight (to the chagrin of one particular Volunteer), give a listen to some Solomon Burke Radio.

Solomon Burke was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 21, 1940. Some sources claim that he was born in 1936, others say 1938, but in a 2002 interview with Philadelphia Weekly Burke stated himself that he was indeed born in 1940.[1] He began his adult life as a preacher in Philadelphia, and soon moved on to hosting a gospel radio show. In the 1960s, he signed with Atlantic Records and began moving towards more secular music. His first hit was "Just Out Of Reach Of My Open Arms", a cover of a country song. Though well-received by both peers and critics, and attaining a few moderate pop and several major R&B hits, Burke never could quite break through into the mainstream as did Sam Cooke or Otis Redding, who covered Burke's "Down in the Valley" for 1965's Otis Blue. His best known song is "Cry to Me", used in the dance and seduction scene in the film Dirty Dancing. - Wikipedia

Sunday iPod, brooding over the Huskies' defeat...

While Colin McEnroe rejoices (Won't Go Where The Huskies Go Anymore)...

Tonight (TV On the Radio) Return to Cookie Mountain
Wrap My Head Around That (Lucinda Williams) West
False Eyelashes (Sarah Borges & Broken Singles) Diamonds In the Dark
Louise's Church (Laura Nyro) The Loon's Desire
I've Been Around (The Animals) The Complete Animals
Blessed Are These Tears (Doug Sahm) The Last Real Texas Blues Band
Personality (Dr. John) Mercernary
My Simpathy (Bob Marley & the Wailers) Soul Rebels
I Could Have Danced All Night (Frank Sinatra) Come Dance With Me
In My Head (No Doubt) Rock Steady
I Think of You (Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys) Night Tide
Stuck Between Stations (The Hold Steady) Boys and Girls in America
Never Gonna Change (Drive-By Truckers) The Dirty South
Headlights (Cat Power) Dear Sir
Face Your Fears (Ben Sidran) That's Life I Guess
Rosie's Lullaby (Norah Jones) Not Too Late
The End (The Beatles) Abbey Road
The Night We Called It a Day (Diana Krall) The Look of Love
White Riot Live (Dropkick Murphys) The Singles Collection
Honey Babe Blues (Maria Muldaur) Waitress In a Donut Shop
Sitting Still (R.E.M.) Murmur
Country John (Allen Toussaint) The Allen Toussaint Collection

He's gone in a Gumbo minute...

Dropped Johnny Gumbo off at the New Haven train station Saturday afternoon, closing out his week-long whirlwind tour of central Connecticut, where he hosted a number of intimate get togethers with friends and aquaintances. Sorry to have missed dinner with the Pool Hall Studs At Eli's on Thursday (was I invited?), but business trumped it. We will be reconvening on April 30 in New Orleans for Jazz Fest, so stay tuned.

An added benefit to all who meet the Gumbo is that they are now, because of their proximity to the Gumbo, just two degrees from Kevin Bacon.

A piece of Bristol history passes on...

Email from Jim Kane:
We have truly lost a great Bristol Friend - Stretch Norton. Stretch passed away on Friday. It is because of Stretch and his dad that I have so many fond memories of Bristol. The former owners of Lake Compounce, they brought a lot of happiness to the people of Bristol. Stretch was a former mayor of Bristol. Stretch attended many of our Bristol Friends Parties, and he was always a joy to be around. I really enjoyed his stories about the old Lake Compounce. Stretch will truly be missed by all of us.

‘Stretch’ Norton dies (Bristol Press)
BRISTOL — One of the city’s giants died Friday. J. Harwood “Stretch” Norton — a former owner of Lake Compounce, ex-mayor and a World War II veteran who saw kamikazes plunging into ships off Okinawa — brought a generous spirit and genuine love for his hometown to a lifetime of activity. “He was one of the most gracious, considerate individuals that I’ve come in contact with,” Mayor Art Ward said. “Just a true gentleman.” Norton, 86, has been ill in recent years, and was no longer able to get out much or to participate in the civic life he’d known since a childhood spent roaming his family’s amusement park. - complete article

Wednesday morning wake up call....

I'm Broke - Black Joe Lewis & ...