Dave's Journal

Thursday, December 2nd, 2021

Steppin’ Out! at Godfrey’s – Day After Thanksgiving

It’s been a couple of years since our last gig at Godfrey’s. We’ve managed a few rehearsals locally this fall, but none with Reid. That’s no big deal. Reid is a rock.

We got together earlier on Friday, checked in on our recent health escapades (old guys, ya know…) and went through the set I had prepared. We were aiming for an hour and a half set, so I did my best to figure out how to balance each lad’s voice, diversify the rhythms, genres, etc. and add in old and new songs. It’s a long process preparing for rehearsals and the gig.

Anyway, it was a fairly good session, and several times we remarked to each other, “Hey, this is a good band!” We were in good shape for the show after three hours together. Amazing, actually. Some of the tunes sounded better in the afternoon, too.

We did an extra sound check with Jason, stepping up himself to cover our show. He had the whole board set up for him from the morning, so he as prepared as could be. Nothing like going into the studio with 12 tracks and a live band. (It’s unfortunate that we weren’t able to get a good tape of the show. Jason was a bit overwhelmed to think about the recording.)

Choo Choo Cha Boogie, and we are away in style. Don’t Call Me Early, Got What It Takes, Payday Blues, How Can I Miss You and Bloodshot Eyes, all relatively familiar tunes that got us comfortable. Still, often a crap shoot as to who’s lead it is. That’s when we miss the tightness we used to have, or could rehearse several times ahead. Again, old guys with old brains.

Kris did Waits’ Til The Money Runs Out, staking out his corner in this band. Water of Love was a new one for the band, good but not great. The new stuff usually gets the lads’ creativity up. Tornado, Giant and Delilah followed. We were getting louder…

Hub’s spotlight was You Don’t Know Me with Reid and the others chipping in atmosphere. Twenty-four Robbers got me on mandolin for the first time tonight. Jeff followed by stepping out from the drums (catch that?) and fronting the band for Old Cowhand, Ooh, Baby Baby and Too Old To Die Young, last two new songs for the band.

We headed for the final stretch, back on our regular instruments and I did Heart of Saturday Night, another Waits’ tune and a new one for the band. It was solid but their was some fatigue on our parts, and, frankly, the audience. Sluggish applause.

We tried Good Hearted Woman, and, per usual (I get one mulligan), I screwed up the key and we started over again. (Last time it was Angel from Montgomery as a waltz. We actually pulled it off.) I did Santa Assassin, Reid did Shorty (loud) and Lessons from Pete. That came out really nice with lots of controlled spaces for leads and dynamics. We quickly begged for an encore and did a spritely Texas Swing. Good night, all.

Immediately after steppin’ off stage (again!!), a friend and long-time supporter said, “You were too loud.” Yes, we were. We’re old guys who get together every year and crank it up. But she was right, too. Too Loud!

By most standards, we put on a good show and played well. We all could have played better individually, and could have shaped our sound better. It would have been nice to have a better and more complete recording (we’ve got a very small archive of tapes).

The important thing is that we could celebrate our friendships. We are all good, good friends, still able to gather to make fine music, put on a show, and share our scars from the last two years. Deep love, actually.

 

 

Saturday, November 20th, 2021

Nazareth Library Benefit on Friday

This one was on the books for six months or so when Craig asked me to join Dick Boak, Cliff Starkey and him for a concert benefitting the Nazareth Library. It was held in a large hall at a local Catholic parish, complete with a bar (small, small glasses of wine, apparently) and tickets were steep ($35) for some folks. But, it was sold out and the audience was appreciative and listening. I had fun with them.

Dick started out with a short set of his originals on autoharp while Craig backed him up on guitar. Dick was pretty nervous, but, as usual, he pulled it off in fine style. I was up next.

Craig asked for a 20 minute set so I lined up 4 songs: Don’t Call Be Early, Giants, Branching Out and Lessons from Pete.

Don’t Call Me Early is a great opener because it’s strong on guitar, has a chorus and sounds traditional. It also gives me a clue as to how the audience is going to sing along, or, at least, open up my expectations for them to sing.

Giants gives them no choice but to participate. Since there were six sections of seating, I experimented with having each section contribute their spooky sounds and it was a good way for the audience to hear what the rest of the crowd was doing. A little competition never hurts. It went well.

I threw in John Gorka’s Branching Out next. It’s got a sing-along part that’s easy (call and response) as well as some of John’s sly and clever songwriting. It’s a gentle and warm song, and philosophically true for me.

I invited Craig up to finish with Lessons From Pete, and, with a tip of the hat to Pete Seeger, Craig and I pulled it off nicely, with Craig nailing the final lead which got some applause. It was one of the better times we’ve done it. It’s a pleasure to have him compliment me on this song.

Craig and Cliff followed with their set and I got a good chance to hear them as a duo. Cliff’s got great chops on piano and vocals. And then all four of us finished out the night with three songs. Surprisingly, my choice of We Are Welcomed turned out to be the finale. Craig’s familiar with it, not so much Cliff and Dick due to its modal sound, so I laid it out with my guitar and vocals. It was a good way to end the evening, and we got a standing O. Sometimes, I don’t take a second to take these moments in; I’m always a little embarrassed.

I sold some CDs afterward and got to chat with the folks, many of whom talked about their kids listening to my music some 30 years ago. I gave away some of my Peanut Butter CD’s to them to give these kids a Christmas present.

It was a long gig, with set up at 4:30 and breakdown until 10:15. I was beat. Craig’s the one who really stepped up though, due to his recovering from some serious chest surgery in the last month. He is a wonderful friend and a great player. It was nice to play for his supportive audience again.

 

Sunday, November 7th, 2021

Elizabeth Public Library in NJ on Saturday.

I had booked this gig a long time ago, and, at one point during the pandemic, I was going to do this online. But, in the spring, the events coordinator Jeff Cupo decided to try it live in the library and also broadcast it online to the library’s audience.

I got there in the nick of time, walked in with my guitar and mandolin and was escorted to a large room on the 4th floor. Confident that there wasn’t going to be a big audience, I’m glad I didn’t haul my sound system in with me.

Again, it was a strange gig. I set up on a stage in the room facing chairs socially distanced about 6 feet apart. So much for a nice, cozy fire-side music session. As it turned out, there were only five folks who showed up, along with Jeff and library guard in this cavernous room. A small lap top was set up to my right that broadcast my session.

I was asked to do a general folk music show, so off I went, mixing up my material, chatting about the songs, folk music in general and my strange life as a traveling musician. Any attempt to sing along was futile, especially with masks and the spaces in between folks. I thanked folks for coming out and said that it was especially hard for them in this situation, but I appreciated their presence. I did about 50 minutes, finished with We Are Welcomed.

One gent came up and said that he remembered me from a RockRoots that we did there years ago (I had no recollection of the gig), recognized my name and made a point to come out to see me. That was particularly interesting. And, as I exited the building, two of the ladies thanked me for the show and that they really enjoyed it. Again, that made it all worth the three hours of travel to Elizabeth and back. Jeff would like to have me back for the children’s library, too.

This old classic building was built a century ago by funds from Andrew Carnegie. Apparently, this captain of industry funded many libraries during the early part of last century, part of his vast philanthropic endeavors. Good for him.

 

Sunday, November 7th, 2021

Easton Public Market on Friday

The Easton Public Market is an interesting place. It’s a large old building with old wooden floors, tall ceiling and vendors wrapping around a central row of more vendors. Lots of interesting stalls, food vendors, etc. with tables and chairs for folks to hang out and eat. It’s quite a novel arena.  I only get to do gig only this a couple times a year. The last time was on the back landing overlooking some tables, due to the Covid protocols, and this time it was inside the market.

I was set up near the rear entrance facing one pizza vendor with a dining area off to my left. It was a weird set up with little connection with the “audience”. I was booked from 6 – 8 pm. There was a good influx of folks ordering food, drinking beer, etc. and enjoying a Friday night out on the town.

I finally had a chance to try out my new SC13E Martin through my small sound system and it was a rocking start. As I found out, the tuner installed in the guitar, when switched on, deadens the output to the sound system. So, as I was setting up, I though that my guitar chord was screwed up. I eventually figure it our, but not before doing some last minute sweating. I also had some adjusting to the volume and tone knobs inside the sound hole, adjust the amp. Anyway, I got started and worked on my sound on the fly.

There were a few folks who came to hear me, which was welcome and I got some applause after each song, though from off in the distance. I played well, though I was still trying to gauge the new guitar’s personality. It has koa wood sides and back, a spruce top, and it’s still pretty stiff, sound-wise, though fairly easy to play. It will be a work in progress.

Folks thinned out at after 7:30, which was good. I was getting fatigued dealing with the circumstances, packed up my stuff and about $45 in tips (not too shabby), and headed back to Bethlehem. It was a tough gig, but it paid well enough, and I learned a whole lot about my new guitar in the process.

Thursday, October 28th, 2021

Dave’s Night Out with Rolly Brown on Wednesday at Godfrey Daniels

Basic RGB

I was looking forward to getting back to my Dave’s Night Out series, especially since last month’s session was cancelled for Covid protocols. Rolly Brown is a world-class guitarist, excellent songwriter and we have developed a friendship over the last decades here in Eastern PA. I had tagged this session: Music Helps, Making Music in the Pandemic. Rolly had developed a wonderful series of live broadcasts online during the pandemic, and now hosts three shows a week, featuring three songs and an instrumental. We had a good chance to disect his philosophy on starting it out, and how it has blossomed into a nice community for his music.

I talked about my route through the last two years with the individual videos/songs that I did over 500 days in a row, and continue now by posting songs from my copious You Tube library. We had a good chance to get it all out and found, as always, a highly intellectual, informative and humour format.

Rolly backed me up on several songs (Simple Gifts, Rodeo Rider, Branching Out, Shoo That Fly, while showcasing several of his original songs and instrumentals. He is a brilliant player and storyteller. We’ve both upped our game during the pandemic.

Of course, there was under 10 people in the audience, several of whom came up to see Rolly. I find it disappointing to not have an audience for my work, especially in my home town.

Pealing the plastic off the pick guard.

I did introduce my new Martin SC-13E, and play a full song on it for the first time (Branching Out). As we sat on stage before the show, Rolly noticed that I hadn’t taking the plastic off the pick guard yet, so we decided to throw that into the show. It was pretty funny and raised some attention on FB. Made in Mexico, it has koa wood back and sides, a nice spruce top and an unique shape to facilitate playing up past the 12th fret. It played really well, and I could feel it teaching me things that all new guitars do. This is going to be a good guitar.

It was a good night spent with a fine guitarist and friend, and I can’t think of a better was to spend my night out.

Thursday, October 28th, 2021

RockRoots at special needs school on Tuesday

The RockRoots shows are far and few between these days. As Kevin pointed out on Tuesday, we used to do close to 20 shows a month, often 3 or 4 times a week. This was only the second one this fall. It was a good one, though.

This was a special needs school in nearby Warren County, NJ. There are usually few students and more teachers per student. Today there was roughly 20 kids (mostly boys) from ages 10 to 17, and they were an excellant audience. I was more comfortable with the show’s format now that I’ve done it a couple times since the pandemic, and it rolled well and the band played well.

At the end, I decided to open the floor up for questions, and we were able to talk about how each of us started out playing music at their age, how we play regularly with other bands, that we don’t necessarily rehearse with this band since we’ve been doing it so long. One kid asked if we started playing in order to get girls. That brought a big chuckle from everyone in the gym.

The show was a hit and several teachers and the custodian commented that it was the best assembly they had seen in years. That’s always nice to hear, and something we don’t always get to hear before we leave the school. A good day.

Sunday, October 24th, 2021

Last Farmers’ Market of the season

It’s a late Sunday in October and my last farmers’ market of the season. These events have really kept me in the ball game all summer with few festivals and school gig on the books. The Saucon Valley one is a regular one for me and I appreciate the work as do the other vendors. I even got some applause and appreciative waves from several of them.

It was in the low 50’s and mostly cloudy today, but I played well, and, as long as I didn’t stop for long, my fingers did fine. I was able to throw a couple of songs on the fire from my notes – a couple of Beatle tunes, a Bo Diddley song so that kept things fresh for me. It started to sprinkle close to the end, so I packed up a little early. A couple of vendors came over with some nice tips: a bag of mushrooms and a small jug of maple syrup. Yes, yes, yes.

These gigs give me 2 hours of uninterupted practice, working on my material, my vocals, my arrangements and a chance to play for some kids and adults. I’m going to miss these for the winter months.

Saturday, October 16th, 2021

Godfrey Daniels on Friday

It’s always an honor to play at Godfrey’s and I appreciate the challenge that it provides. I was looking forward to sharing the stage with good friend Kris Kehr and I decided to bring out the full rack of guitars for this one.

As always, a disappointing turn out here on my ‘home court’ with only about 9 folks in the house. Still, Kris and I put on a good show, lots of good chat and we played really well. I guess all the farmers’ markets and my 365 series had me in good shape.

It was fun to prepare each guitar for particular songs – open tunings, capo placements and use each for different styles of songs. It provided for a good variation in sound. I didn’t break any strings and really enjoyed the differences that the guitars provided.

Kris does his homework and had to prepare for several new songs (for him). We talked after the show about avoiding ‘clams’. He did fine and also afforded me a big comfort zone in presenting the songs.

As always, I’m disappointed that I can’t get an audience here at the club. I did one of the best shows I’ve done in years.

 

Guitars and mandolin: Martin 000-15M (’19), Martin M-36 (’80’s), Republic Tri-cone, Gibson mandolin (’20’s), Martin C-3 (30’s), Sigma 12-string (80’s), Martin 000-1R (’90’s).

Saturday, October 2nd, 2021

Rose Garden Farmers’ Market on Saturday

I had a long day on Saturday, starting with my last Rose Garden Farmers’ Market of this season, a two-hour set from 9:30 to 11:30 am. It was another spectacular day on the planet and a pleasure to play outdoors. It was a slow day at the market, due to a downtown Bethlehem event, but it was relaxed and friendly, with several friends stopping by to chat. It is neighborhood, after all.

With the recent rash of FM gigs, I’ve been playing strong, working on songs and simply enjoying playing my repertoire, regardless if it’s perfect or not. The time goes very quickly. The tips are a bonus.

I had a birthday party to attend mid-afternoon for my grandson, Jayden close by. I took some time to readjust for a somewhat stressful visit to my former wife’s house for the party. I am not comfortable among them but felt it necessary to connect with my son, his wife and Jayden. I was hoping that other kids would be there so I could play some music, but not to be.

My next gig was a Camels Hump farm for an “Open Gate” event. When I got there, there wasn’t much action. Several snafus had curtailed the responce to the event, so I bided my time and finally played a set in the barnyard, without a PA. A few folks were there, including a young family with a precocious girl, so I mixed my set up with some good adult material and then concentrated on the young family.  As the sun set, I pulled it in, gave out a CD to the girl and headed home. I gave back most of the money to the woman in charge.

A long day.

Saturday, October 2nd, 2021

Madison Farmers’ Market on Friday

I got a call from the Madison FM on Tuesday to see if I could fill in for a cancellation, and, of course, I said sure. Let’s drive for 3.5 hours up and back, play for 3 hours for $100. No problem.

I still had a good time since I played well and made some great connections with some adults and a bunch of kids in the process. The first two hours has me playing towards the vendors as the elite clientele goes walking by. About 45 minutes in, one woman tossed in a couple of bucks and I shouted, “Ladies and gentlemen, I finally got a tip! Thank you, Madison!” It was taken in good spirit but it needed to be said.

As folks gather on the lawn behind me, I turn my chair around and face the large green. Families tend to set up a little scrum of blankets and chairs, order pizza from the vendor, let the kids loose and socialize. It’s really two gigs in one. The kids come up and dive into my bag of instruments, puppets and scarves and we have a great time.

I am giving out a bunch of CDs these days, especially to the kids and families that interact at close range. I play right to those folks, and it’s important to seal the deal with a CD. Worth it.

The drive home is not so bad, with a fresh stick of podcasts and some adrenalin from the gig. I’m nuts to do this but I love it, for some reason.

Thursday, September 9th, 2021

Farrington Square Farmers’ Market on Thursday

This was my second Campus Square (old name) Farmers’ Market of the season, a bonus from the single shots of past years and the swing-and-miss of last year. I’m glad Deb gave me an extra one, since I’m a local guy living a block away. The day started out cloudy but eventually turned to sun.

We were under new Covid protocols since there were 150 new cases of the virus on campus in the last two weeks. I masked up and set up for a 11:15 start for a two hour set. Students were milling around so there was at least some movement, unlike the June gig. Crazy Joe and his peanut butter got his tune early on.

There were a bunch of students sitting at a few tables up front and I started some chatter, refering to days at Lehigh as an Arts-Engineer, which brought a rise from the kids. There were a few in the group. About 20 minutes in, my friend Amy Forsyth showed up, and I found out that these were her students in design. That explained why they were hanging out with sketch pads. They stuck around doodling away, and it was good to have Amy’s ears in the audience.

I played well and, as usual, the vendors appreciated the sound. I did take the mask off to sing. A friend Lisa A. dropped by towards the end, a big fan of July, so I did it up for her, gave her the CD compilation that it was on. I makes a difference to have friendly ears in the crowd.

I actually got a few $1 tips from the students, though I did shame the art students into donating. (Amy insisted) They simply do not make the connection of why the tip mandolin case is there. One student said that they never carry money with them – they have cards now But, I still find that hard to believe. Still, I was glad to make it out with $30 or so.

A good day for play.

Wednesday, September 8th, 2021

The Great Allentown Fair

I’ve been doing a couple sets for my friend Jeanine Villano-George every Labor Day  Weekend (‘cept for last year, of course) as a freebee just for the opportunity to play for this interesting cross-section of people: kids, families, old folks, wanderers, etc. Some how, I seem to find the material to entertain the folks and get them invovled. Always a challenge. This year, I had Thursday and Monday in the afternoon – Thursday was relatively light and Monday pretty busy.

Things were on a budget this year with the stage not so far off the ground, but not a big deal. The 4-H display was pretty skimpy but that’s all a function of the strange year it’s been.

Diving into Americana

I put up this image for the Thursday gig on FB, saying that I was diving into Americana. It raised a ruckus and I had to add that no guitars were harmed in this performance. I like the fact that I will take on these gigs that few other folkies will do.

Giants and Thundertubes

I’m always open to doing adult material but will definitely lean on doing the family stuff if there are kids in the audience and that was the case for both days. My obligation is to entertain the kids and the adults always get a kick out of those interactions.

Jelly in the Dish

Barnyard Dance, We Gave Names to the Animals, Giants (of course), I Like Peanut Butter, The Cat Came Back, I Wanna Be a Dog, etc. This weekend I tried Jelly in the Dish with the scarves as my final piece and it worked quite well, especially when the kids started off with the scarves, and, bit by bit, I was able to put the scarves in the hands of most of the adults so that the piece became a unifying spectacle. I brought up a young girl to lead the folks with the scarves on Monday.

I received some good feedback from folks who work the fair: Jeanine, Sam, the sound man, the security guard, the 4-H lady, and, I hear tell, the woman who works the rest room. They all say I’m the most entertaining of the acts, which is gratifying though I still feel I’m just winging it. A lot comes from my commentary that I pepper my “show” with, and folks appreciate the spontenaity of the situation.

I gave away my Peanut Butter and Playground CD’s to the families, sold a few Troubadour CD’s on Sunday, and did alright on tips for both days. The best payoff is the responce I get from this really diverse audience.

 

 

Sunday, August 22nd, 2021

Dog Days Farmers’ Market on Sunday

Sometimes there’s not much to say about my gigs other than “Thank god for the opportunity to sit and play for two hours.”

I had actually counted on having the day off from a run of gigs over the last 5 days. I  was also glad that I wouldn’t be playing in the rain. Well, thanks to social media, I found that I had this Saucon Valley FM gig misplaced in my book as being next Sunday. Phew….

The hurricane Henri is skirting up the coast east of here and the weather wasn’t awful; only a few sprinkles during the set and I was covered with a pop-up tent. Half the vendors didn’t show up so things were really slow (except for the dog-walkers coming to visit the puppy biscuit stand in front of me). I dragged out my bag of instruments but never opened it since there were very few kids in tow today. Just as well.

I banged out my repertoire, found a few holes in my memory on some tunes, played some of the Beatles tunes that I had worked out during the end of my pandemic series, worked out on the mandolin – rusty… – and played to the big void in the middle of the market, glad to add some vibes for the vendors as they endured this slow day. I only got about $20 in tips but glad that folks made an effort to trek over my corner of the market.

I’m glad to be busy and that I’m putting $$ in the bank in case things get locked down again. I’m beat though.

Saturday, August 21st, 2021

St. Ann’s Summer Festival

I was asked to serve up some family music at this friendly (and large) late summer community festival at St. Ann’s Church up in Emmaus for a Friday and Saturday 5 pm set. I’m not sure how this landed in my lap, but, apparently I did play the St. Ann’s school last century, and several folks suggested me. Since I’m getting used to playing for folks these days, I jumped at the chance.

I was able to set up on the stage in a tent before the evening’s rock and roll bands went on at 7 pm. I brought my small system and it seemed to be enough for the space. At 5 pm, there’s not much action so I started out solo, and gradually some kids, girl scouts, parents and grandparents moved into range. I brought out the stuffed instrument bag, opened it up and away we go….

Friday had a bit more kids joining in and Saturday was a bit tougher, though one dad/son boogied for the whole set. That was cool. I ran into a few folks who knew who I was (the music teacher at the school who plays oboe!) but it was sparce. The small interactions were good, but, again, I really have no draw for my kids’ shows.

The sponsors were appreciative and thanked me for providing some music for the kids. They also helped me get my stuff to and from the stage which was a big help. They paid me well (what I asked for…) and will let me know about next year. It was a tough gig though.

Saturday, August 21st, 2021

Bill Schachter celebration at Touchstone on Thursday night.

Bill, Dave,, Rachel, Ben and Frank on the outdoor stage.

I was invited to be part of a musical celebration of my friend Bill Schachter’s life on Thursday. Held on the large outdoor stage in the parking lot of Touchstone Theater, I was joined on stage with Bill Hall, Rachel Schachter, Ben Wright and Frank Pappalardo, complete with good sound and lights. Ben was in charge and based the format on a Dave’s Night Out round robin.

Tables and chairs were set out with pizza, ice cream and surprisingly good weather for a summer night. Carol, Bill’s wife was in good and boisterous spirits and was the designated heckler for the evening, often chiming in with wonderful asides. Rachel and Bill did some wonderful songs and I added (We Are Welcomed, Branching Out, Giants (Bill S’s favorite one of mine) and Shoo That Fly.

Rachel’s voice!

Folks remenisced about Bill’s quirky songwriting and Rachel, Ben and Frank talked about their times playing his music and his songs. It was quite moving.

We were invaded by some nasty flies as the sun set, and all of us were dealing with singing and playing while we dealt with this plague. So, when I played Shoo That Fly, the audience gladly stepped it up with the singing and the shooing. Funny how these moments literally come out of the ether for me.

We finished up with David Mallett’s Garden Song, which was a touchstone for Carol and Bill’s relationship so many years ago. Bill wrote some great verses to it as he wooed his future bride.

A motley crew.

Ramona just stopped up to the apartment as I’m writing this and said that she hadn’t seen me smile so much in a long time. There ya go.

Friday, August 20th, 2021

Saucon Valley Community Center day care on Thursday

My friend Angela Reese invited me to return to this small day center in Hellertown. The weather was iffy so we stayed inside for this one. It was a mixture of ages so I had my job cut out to engage the older girls and the toddlers at the same time. Phew.

Since masks are required inside, I did the show with a mask, which is always a bother, but so it goes. We’re all in this together. The kids warmed up easily and Thunder Tubes always gets the older kids to step up. I Like Peanut Butter, Tutti Tah, I Wanna Be a Dog, Giants, and then I broke out the bag for Names of the Animals (shakers), Down By the Bay (puppets) and finished with Jelly in the Dish (scarves).

At the end we talked about what the kids and the teachers liked (reflection). The teachers like the scarves and the rhyming in Down By the Bay.

It was a good hour’s set and I drove away satisfied and pleased to play locally.

Angela posted these pictures on FB and added: “As always, you’re the BEST, Dave Fry! Everyone, teachers included, had SO much fun today! Without a doubt, you definitely make this world a happier place! ??“

Wednesday, August 18th, 2021

RockRoots in North Philly on Wednesday

We’ve done this North Philly day camp a couple of years ago and it was a little tough for us since we did our straight historical show for a fairly young and black camp group. A lot of the show went over their heads so I was glad that they asked us back and asked us to vary up the show a little. We did a library show in Jersey a month ago and I got to try out this “new” show back then and it worked out well. Today was the situation that I had planned for back then.

Actually, the kids got up and danced from the get-go and we didn’t have a problem when we stuck to the basic “roots” portion of the show early on.  I stuck in Names to the Animals after the swing era. It was a good break and re-engaged the kids nicely. We did the early R&R stuff, did I Like Peanut Butter, followed with My Girl. Another break with Giants and finished with a great version of All Around the Kitchen with everybody up and dancing, with some of the counselors showing off some nice moves. (One older woman came up and did “Smooth” which the kids and the band thought was really good. She knocked it out of the park.)

We were lucky to miss the heavy rains later in the day, and the camp and counselors had a great time. Sometimes I worry too much. It was a long haul down and back on a very humid day. I’m beat.

Monday, August 16th, 2021

Summer Jam at WLVR-TV 39 on Sunday

On the final day of Musikfest, I performed in the studios of TV-39, our local PBS station for the last day of their 10 day Summer Jam series. For me, it’s an honor to be part of this run since the other performers are, for the most part, national family music professionals. I’m still a little uncomfortable to be in this fraternity. As it turns out, the crew and staff at the station think I’m right there.

Only a few weeks ago, the sessions were scheduled to be in front of two sets of kids and parents in the studio. I did a show a few weeks ago there and it was a hoot. But, with Covid restrictions rising in the last 10 days, TV-39 switched to doing one show in the studio without a live audience and extending the show to include a live TV broadcast from the station as well as a broadcast to the big Jumbotron outside of the station.

An elegant stage set.

I got there at the proscribed 8 am for the 11 am show and the 9 am sound check. No one was there and that was somewhat expected: a Sunday, the crew knew my specs and they had everything set up for all the shows that week. I finally got in by 8:30 and went through the Covid checks. All the staff had to be masked but as the performer, somehow I got off the hook. They told me that I was going to do a 27:30 set (I had planned for 45 minutes.) and that there would be a countdown clock right it front of me. I would have a few seconds leeway at the end. No problem.

My sight lines, with my monitor to the right.

Since there was no audience to play for (drat, one of my strongest suits for television) I decided to bring out some bling – my mandolin and banjo and added them into my short set. We got a sound check on everything and I settled in for the show to start. I changed strings on the mandolin, visited the deli tray in the lounge, meditated, etc.

At 11:00 they started the show and away I we go: Peanut Butter, All God’s Critters (banjo), Giants, I’m Gonna Tell (mandolin), We Gave Names to the Animals and (with 2:30 left) I finished with an abriviated Jelly in the Dish. I worked the cameras with lots of facials, finger-pointing at the audience and as much gravy as I could muster. And, as the countdown headed to 0:00, I finished by doing a “studio fade” (softer and softer) in the studio on Jelly and nailed the time with a “thanks.” I could tell the crew loved it. It was pretty cool, I must say myself. After we went off the air, the crew cheered. They were as good an audience as I could hope for.

The show was broadcast outside the TV-39 studios to any families that came by on the Sunday morning. I have no idea how many showed up but the pictures are cool.

The crew was asked not to react during the show, in that it would sound pretty weak with only a few folks in the house. But, as I found out later, during Names, my remark about a butt-saggin’ dragon made one of the camera women laugh out loud. At the end, I thanks TV-39 and the camera crew and the “camera person” in particular for their warmth and professionality. She delighted in that I gave her a shout-out and said “camera person.”

The producer Kira Willey was there, as was Katie Brennan, the production manager. Both were very appreciative of my show and they hope to use my show to help put together a potential package for a family music series with myself and the other performers in the series. I can see something nice coming out of my Sunday morning at the station.

It was great to be treated like a professional in my home town.

 

Saturday, August 14th, 2021

Final Musikfest gig at Martin Guitar Stage on Saturday

This is a freebee gig that I sign up to do, just to have a little more presence at Musikfest. It’s a 30-minute set in a large tent under the Hill-to-Hill bridge in the thick of the festival – Lagerplatz. Yes, beer.

On one end is a big trailer of beer and rows of taps of Yuengling and on the other end is MF merch so there’s stuff going on both ends. In the middle is the stage and tables and chairs with chatter and noise going on. It’s up to me to try to gain some semblance of a show while everything is going on. It’s a bar gig.

My friend Nick was on sound and he did a great job to get as much umph out of my Martin, but there’s only so much a solo guitarist can do. Still, I managed to chat, play strong and engage as best I could. Giants is always a good tune to do early in the set. Don’t Call Me Early, July, Giants, Giant, Rosie, Pay Bo Diddley, Lessons from Pete. It was good, but I found myself exhausted after only a half hour set, especially with my voice.

I treated myself to some Rita’s on the way home. I sold a couple of CD’s, ran into Tommy Crist from the old R&R band Pickens, and chatted with a couple of other fans. It wasn’t as hot as the last couple of days, but still I was drenched.

Off to TV-39 tomorrow morning for my big Kids’ Jam on television – no kids. It will present its own challenges.

Thursday, August 12th, 2021

Musikfest never disappoints

with Kris Kehr.

This is my umpteenth Musikfest in a row (since the beginning) and, as always, it remains a touchstone for me as I crawl through each year. The set usually defines the material I’m comfortable during the year and I had the time to play and comment on the things I’ve be concentrating on for the last, very strange, year.

New Liederplatz stage

As usual, I could depend on my good friend, Kris Kehr, to follow me through my material, a credit to his work before hand on the material, and, especially, the on-the-spot improvisations on my improvisations. Kris cares.

I wasn’t expecting kids to be there, so I had put together a fairly adult set. But, early on, two factors happened and one fed the other. My good friend Pat Richard was there; a woman who lives to dance – and she even comes to my shows! Also, some young girls were there and looked like they needed to be part of the action. So, I invited the three or four girls to come up, and Pat was already dancing to my tunes. They connected and it became a show unto itself. I love to channel the energy back to the audience, and they pick up on it. Cool.

Car Dealership Dance

Early on, I talked about my gig at Camp Happiness last week and about the dance The Car Dealership. I got the audience up to do it, and it was hoot. A great moment.

Kris and I ran through Don’t Call Me Early, July (with some bragging), Blue Mule, Summertime Blues, Blue Mule, Giants, We Gave Names to the Animals (from Donegan), Welcome, Rosie, Giant, Vegetable Song, BoJangles, Legends, Lessons from Pete. Time’s up.

My very good and talented friend Bruce Gaston came up for his traditional guest set during my gig. As always, he knocked it outta da park with his manualism: Take Me Out to the Ball Game and Beer Barrel Polka. It really doesn’t matter what he plays. I simply love watching the audience while he rolls through his craft. It’s a gift to have him in my circle of players.

These Musikfest gigs are also some of the few times I get to play with a real sound system/crew. The experience on a sound stage is as enjoyable as playing for the audience. With monitors, a good guitar sound and vocals, the experience is similar to being in the studio. The connection with overall sound is delishious. Kris would agree and make the whole gig great for the both of us.

There was not a great turnout for my 5 pm set, though the audience was great. A mix of familiar faces, some kids, and the responce was quite gratifying. The heat index was over 100, humid and oppressive, and a Wednesday early evening. I’m somewhat under the radar again with the MF muckitymucks, and that’s okay. But, still, I would like to put together a full band again, in a prime time spot, for real pay. Those days are past.