The Pearl Company...

Friday night we went to see Joe Clark and Randal Hill perform a mandolin extravaganza at The Pearl Company. Now the Pearl Co. is an old warehouse, at one time home to the Evel Casket Co., then the space was occupied by the Canadian Pearl Co. who made, as you might expect, pearls. Plastic pearls, remnants of which can be found ground into the wooden floor. Parking is at a premium in this neighbourhood, and although they have an arragnement with a local pharmacist, if you don't put the handy little note on your dashboard you might be in for an expensive surprise after the show.
Barbara Milne and her partner Gary Santucci are the hosts, and they live on the third floor in a beautiful open concept space, which they graciously showed off to us during the intermission.
A bunch of Hamilton musicians were there, all to see Joe Clark and Randal Hill play their mandolins. Although the crowd was small, Randal and Joe gave it their all. These guys are amazing. Fingers flew on the little fretboards, and yet it wasn't all flash. There was a wonderful musicality to it all, whether playing bluegrass classics from Bill Monroe, or Duke Ellington's "Caravan," or even the theme from "Never On Sunday" the melodies were strong, and the improvisations always led back to the main themes. Both Joe and Randal doubled on guitar, and sang. They sang those high, lonesome harmonies that mark bluegrass music. Clark grew up in the same area as The Stanley Brothers. His stories are peppered with tales of meeting Dr. Ralph, or Bill Monroe, John Hartford, and other legendary characters. Hill has stories about others, his career reaches back to the Humber River Valley Boys.
The Pearl Co. offers coffee, tea and some baked goods, and comfortable seating in an intimate room. The sound is warm, perfect for this acoustic music. There's an art gallery downstairs, with crafts and jewelry for sale. But the main event Friday night was the music...and it was extraordinary.

Me & the Devil Blues

Just picked up this giant manga 500 page graphic novel called Me & the Devil Blues. Now, since I wrote a novella with the same title, I was immediately drawn to the 1 1/4" brick on a high shelf in the back room of a local bookstore. I haven't read it yet, but it looks beautifully done. All black and white illustrations, plenty of representations of Robert Johnson and the denizens of 1920s Mississippi. Have a look for it. Only problem is reading from back to front, but for a southpaw it shouldn't be too big an issue!

Video

Apparently Blues Hamilton has posted a video of my tune from the Festival. Here it is. Go figure!

Festival of Friends

Well, I did it! I sang at the Festival of Friends. I've attended many, many Festivals down in Gage Park, I even used to bring my guitar to play the open stage, or sit under a tree with some friends to sing "Mr. Tambourine Man" or "Catch the Wind." But this time I was actually part of the programme! Under the direction of Margaret Stowe, I took part in the Memories of Jackie Washington tribute.
I wasn't sure I wanted to do it. It was a bit stressful, imagining myself up on stage flanked by professional musicians who do this for a living, but I did it. Accompanied by my good friend Sylvia we arrived at the stage a few minutes early. There was some confusion about which stage we would be at, but when Marg Stowe arrived, and then Cathy Powell, we knew we had founf the right one. Marg set up guitars and mics, and the other performers started arriving. Hamilton poet James Strecker, who read from his biography of Jackie; local bluesman Alfie Smith; Toronto bluesman Brian Blain; songster Paul Langille and more all came to pay tribute to Jackie.
I brought along some lyrics of songs that Jack had recorded over the years, for volunteers to read. I set the bar by doing Bert Williams "Nobody". A couple of others took up the challenge. Some folk from the audience told stories of their experiences with Dr. Washington. The 'band' played on!
Cathy Powell told her story of the man who had been her friend for almost a lifetime. Then I was called back to sing Colin Linden's tune "Jackie Washington". After that it was a reading of "We'll Meet Again" and the tribute came to an end.
The day was humid, with only a slight breeze to cool us off. But the feeling was warm and mellow, and so filled with love that nobody cared about the weather.
A splendid time was had by all.

Rufus, Nathan, and Jackie

I discovered that the date for Rufus Wainwright was the same as the date for Nathan's wedding. As Nathan's family has been good friends for many years I had to decline the Rufus show. Jeff was going to go with someone else. They were both looking forward to it, and I was curious to hear how it went. Nathan's wedding (okay, sure, it's Katelyn's wedding too...but she got all the attention at the event) ummm...Nate & Kate's wedding was a lovely occasion. I am pretty much "weddinged out" but this was a good one.
Came in Monday to ask Jeff how Rufus was, and he said, "We didn't go...one of the dogs got sick!" So, anyone who attended Rufus at the Winery, let us know.
This weekend is the annual Festival of Friends down at Gage Park. It's the biggest free festival in the known universe I think. I like to call it Festival of Frenzy just because it is a frenzy trying to find a place to park, or a seat for the mainstage acts. Last year it was Steve Earle and Alison Moorer...Canned Heat and John Sebastian played on the Sunday during heavy rain. We've had enough heavy rain in the past week or two so we should be clear...but HOT! I'm playing a tune at the Tribute to Jackie Washington session. Organized by Margaret Stowe, it promises to be an interesting 2 hours. I haven't played in a setting like this for...a LOOONNNGGG time.
I'm getting a bit nervous.
Wish me luck...or tell me to break a leg...or something!

The last month...

Jackie Washington passed away. A couple of weeks after the delightful celebration of his life and work at McMaster, he went into hospital and after a week of fighting it, finally slipped away. He was in his ninetieth year.
On Monday, July 6th his friends organized a Memorial Evening at the Jackie Washington Park. It was attended by a large crowd of friends and family, and featured performances by Ken Whiteley, Mose Scarlett, Tony Quarrington, Paul Langille, and others. Poems were read by Holmes Hooke and James Strecker, reminiscences shared by Bill Powell, it was hosted by Bob Bratina and all put together by Margaret Stowe. I've left out lots of names ofd folks who were instrumental in making this happen...but you know who you are! Thank you! Jackie...we miss you!
A couple of days after that, Rich and I travelled to Toronto to visit Susan (Java Mama) who we'd met at Hugh's Room. We had a well brewed coffee and a chocolate brownie and listened to more stories about Richie Havens. Thanks Susan!
Then vacation time. Away to Scotland with my wife and our friends Kevin & Fran. Two weeks touring around, from Glasgow to Skye, from Skye to Inverness, Inverness to Pitlochry, to Edinburgh (Rebus-land!) and then down to Catlowdy (actually in England). From there we attended the Elliot Clan Gathering, drove to Hadrian's Wall, and had sufficient single malt or lager and surprisingly wonderful Scottish grub until we drove back to Glasgow for our flight home! A splendid time was had by all.
I picked up the new Ray Davies CD, The Kinks Choral Collection which is perhaps the most interesting idea for a "hits" album I've ever heard. I wish Ray sang on more of the songs, but the Choir is excellent, and their interpretation of "You Really Got Me" needs to be heard to be believed! Found Ian Rankin's QuickRead A Cool Head which is unavailable on this side of the pond. As promised I finished it in a day but it is a fine little story, as was Some People Are Crazy: the John Martyn Story. I've never been able to get into Martyn, but I'm going to give him another try after reading this biography.
Arrived home to find a signed copy of Los Angeles Stories waiting for me. Paul Martin (another Rylander) picked it up for me in Barcelona! It's Ry Cooder's first book! Self-published and only available during the European Tour it turns out to be a well written collection of short stories all set in Los Angeles through the last few decades. Character development and a sense of place are excellent! Thanks Paul!
I have my tickets for Bruce Cockburn, and for Billy Bragg, both coming to the Studio Theatre at Hamilton Place, a week apart in November. Looking forward to that! Supposed to be seeing Rufus Wainwright this weekend. More as that develops!

Richie Havens

I first saw Richie Havens on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. I loved him then. Open tuning, fretted with his thumb, cool. I tried it. My guitar didn't like being tuned to an open E, and my thumb hurt like crazy! Besides my voice isn't as rich as his...so it didn't sound the same anyway, and just how did he play minor chords? I bought a copy of his first album in NYC on a trip there with Lester Bilbo. Same trip where we saw Performance and discovered Ry Cooder.
Then Richie became a star with his featured role at Woodstock (the festival and the film). The next year he played at the Burlington Arena! Lester's mom drove us to the show, and Richie was right there, to talk to. We listened in on a conversation, got an autograph, and then watched the concert. I remember best a long rendition of "Rocky Raccoon" where he left the stage still playing, circum-navigated the arena and found his way back to the stage...well he was not so lively this week at Hugh's Room in Toronto. He's 68 now, and he's slowed down. When we spoke he seemed frail, and tired. His concert this night was only a little over an hour long, and featured at least one long, rambling narration about stickball, Superman, and "truth, justice and 'the American way[?]'" We could've done with another song instead of that. And yet, there we were in the presence of an icon. He still plays a big Guild guitar, tuned to open E, he still frets with his thumb, and goes through a pick in two songs! He is a rhythmic guitarist, doesn't need a drummer (although he used to travel with at least one percussionist). Now it's just Richie and Walter Parks (the lead guitarist) and a bunch of new songs Richie is writing about peace and love and goodness. Sure, he still does a couple of the favourites. "Here Comes the Sun" and "Freedom" but many others have been lost along the way. No "Just Like a Woman" this time, although everyone called for it. His guitar playing has got a bit sloppy, he missed the 5 chord once or twice, and he seemed to get lost with the lyrics of The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" but everybody had a good time.
We met Susan, an old friend of Richie's, and she introduced us to him. He was gracious and charming and posed for a photo or two. Again...a wonderful night. And when I got home...the newly released 40th Anniversary edition of Woodstock was waiting for me.