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.

Jackie Washington

On Wednesday night McMaster University celebrated the life and music of Jackie Washington. Months of preparation had gone into this evening, and it paid off because a spledid time was had by all.
Jackie received an honorary doctorate from "Mac", and has donated his archives to the University. Those archives include copies of all his albums, an old 45rpm vinyl record which features King Biscuit Boy on harp, the infamous Jackie Washington songbooks (which are essentially a storehouse of the popular music of the last century). Over 1200 songs, lyrics and guitar chords, all the songs Jack has sung over the last eight and a half decades. That's right...he's been performing since he was FIVE years old! His mother bought a guitar from Eatons for his brother to play so the boys would sound more like the Mills Brothers, but it was Jackie who took to the fretboard (he also plays piano) like a duck to water. Oh, and there's more...photos, posters, diaries (with some very interesting entries), and some delicate pen and ink drawings of trains. Jackie loves trains, he worked as a porter for Canadian Pacific back in the day.
The night began with a bit of a scare. Mose Scarlett and Ken Whiteley were tuning up, when a phone call came in. Jennie was driving Jack to the event and she was worried...the man of the hour was having trouble breathing. Should she drive him to Emergency? I ran downstairs to meet the car, and found a very wheezy Jack, and a pretty nervous Jannie. But Jack started breathing a bit better and agreed to go ahead with the night. By the time he got upstairs, and he was surrounded by well-wishers, he was beaming, and he just got better as the night went on.
Chief Librarian Jeff Trzeciak welcomed all the guests and introduced the event, President Peter George (who six years ago had presented Jackie with his Doctorate) spoke about Jack's achievements, and then yours truly Rylander Dave himself got to speak. I talked a bit about the importance of music and the active scene that has existed in Hamilton for as long as I could remember, and then introduced Ken and Mose for a set of good old fashioned toe-tappin' music. They played songs they've been playing with Jackie for the past 20 years, and finally invited the guest of honour to join them. Jack had said he wasn't going to sing, but he loves an auidience and couldn't resist. He sang along with a couple, and then did a risque recital of a Woody Herman tune and thanked everyone for such a great night. And it was a great night. Tom Wilson, Brent & Liam Titcomb, Eve Goldberg, Marg Stowe, Michelle Josef, Festival of Friends founder Bill Powell, members of the Friends of Jackie Washington Committee, McMaster's Provost, Donors, folkies, rockers, little kids, they all came to pay tribute to Jack.
Thanks to everyone who played a part in this event. Thanks especially to Anne (you know who you are) for all your hard work. Thanks Doctor Jackie! For the healing power of music...and love!

LeE HARVeY OSMoND

So, Friday night we go to see Lee Harvey Osmond at the Casbah. Not the place where the Beatles were born but not unlike that little club. The tickets say the show begins at 9pm, so we arrive a bit early to get a good seat...however there are very few seats at all, and they've been claimed by others who arrived even earlier. We post ourselves next to...well...a post, so we can lean against it. We're not as young as we used to be, and both of us have back issues. The first band comes on just after 9pm. Tom Wilson and Brent Titcomb are here, we see them wandering around all night, but this is not Tom Wilson who takes the stage, it's a buxom young lass in a red dress with a couple of associates who perform one of the least professional acts I've seen in a long time. She holds a Seagull acoustic guitar and strums it from time to time, her partner on electric guitar seems content to show off his psychedelic jazz guitar licks throughout the song, playing things that are irrelevant but flashy. The bass player and drummer are...forgettable and suit the songs well. It's a long first set. I wish I drank more!
After she's done and her personal fan club has congratulated her Tom and Brent and a few other Osmonds appear. But the band that takes the stage is Rattlesnake Choir. It's now after 10pm. I know I'm going to be turning into a pumpkin. People around me are yawning. It's contagious. Rattlesnake Choir are a sort of weird country-Celtic band with a hot redheaded fiddler and a percussionist who plays the Slinky, and musical saw! Normally I would think this was cool, but I find myself sliding down the post which is the only thing holding me up. I'd like to see this band under different circumstances. I'm glad that my boss declined our invitation now!
Finally, some time after 11pm Lee Harvey Osmond comes on, Tom Wilson swears and comments that he's glad they arrived at 6 o'clock for a sound check, since the on-stage monitor isn't working. He speaks sharply to the soundman. Am I the only person who remembers that Rattlesnake Choir asked for that monitor to be turned off? By song 3 the monitor is turned back on.
At least the sound that we're hearing is better for LHO than for the openers. This is a great band. They play through the new CD, and add some Wilson solo material, a song by Brent Titcomb, one or two from the guys from Huron and just in general rock the joint. The day is done, I am sinking even lower against this post. We go home and miss the end of the night.
Never one for the bar scene, I am still embarassed to admit that I left before the end of the show. I'd go see them again though, any time...hopefully with an earlier start!

Tom Wilson Live

Saturday night we went out to dinner at LaLuna for tabbouleh and shawarmas, a glass of beer and some fine conversation. Then over to the Downtown Arts Centre for the latest Freewheelin' Folk Concert! Jim Marino hosts a local radio show (on CFMU 99.3) and he (with a couple of friends) have organized a series of live shows. This one was a sell out. Tom Wilson, from Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, and Junkhouse, and the Florida Razors, and his newest project LeE HARVeY OsMOND was the headliner in a rare (these days) solo appearance. And everybody from the arts community in Hamilton seemed to be there.
The show opened with Lori Yates singing from her new release The Book of Minerva. Backed by local guitarist Brian Griffith (who could've used one more run through of the songs, in my opinion) Lori put on a dandy show. She chatted with friends in the audience, and it was just a relaxed and comfortable set of new country tunes somewhat reminiscent of Emmylou Harris.
After a 20 minute break Jim Merino introduced Tom Wilson who came out to make an announcement...he introduced his son's band who played a rootsy mini-set.
Then it was time for the main event.
Tom Wilson dressed in a thousand dollar suit holding an acoustic guitar which was plugged into an amp he decorated himself, played his unique brand of folk music. He calls it acid folk...think loud...very loud...and very good.
He misses the stunning lead flourishes of Colin Linden, and the harmonies of Stephen Fearing, but Wilson sure holds your attention. He owns the stage. No doubt about it, he's in charge. His full baritone is a delight after years of wheezy tenors. His rocking tunes filled with observations of this...our hometown...are welcome. Local boy makes good!
A great show!
And...home by 11:30!

Steve Strongman CD release...

Saturday night we attended the release party for Steve Strongman's new album, Blues In Colour and it was a great night. If you've been reading my exploits here, you know that my wife is a big fan of Steve Strongman, so we've seen him live about four times in the last 12 months. And the Studio Theatre at Hamilton Place is the way to go! It's an intimate venue, if you buy your tickets early you get a table in the middle of the room, a place to keep your beverage, and a small lamp so you can read the upcoming events brochure. We were at table 9, on the stage right side of the room, second row of stations. Close with a great sightline. The couple we shared the space with were not chatters, so we didn't find out much about them. It was clear that they were fans though...and they enjoyed Coors Lite!
The show started with Harrison Kennedy, playing the country blues on an old Stella. Very authentic, although Harrison still needs a bit of work on his guitar playing, but compared to what he was doing a couple years ago he's coming along. His voice is powerful and pure, just like when he sang "Give Me Just a Little More Time" with the Chairmen of the Board. He closed with that one...acapella! Nice touch. He has a new CD coming along very soon.
Then a ten or fifteen minute break, for everyone to pick up a couple more brews, or to check out the merch counter and it was the Steve Strongman Band. Just a trio, they make enough noise although I do miss Jesse O'Brien tickling the ivories! This time the trio was Alec Fraser on bass, and Dave King on drums. Oh, and of course, Steve Strongman on lead guitar and vocals. Dave King produced this latest album and if the live versions of the songs are any indication, this album is a keeper.
Steve usually puts on a great show, and this weekend he didn't disappoint. Of course, when everybody in the audience is either family or friend it's not hard to feel comfortable.
The crowd sure loved him. And he loved 'em back. Although...asking after every song "Is everybody having a good time?" did get a little tired after a while...I would've thought it was obvious...everybody was having a great time. Especially those girls at the back!
I am not going to spend a lot of time describing the show, just to say whether on electric or acoustic, or harmonica, Steve Strongman is a bluesman to be reckoned with. Grab yourself a copy of Blues in Colour or Honey slip it into the car CD player, and crank the volume up. Roll down the windows. Get out on the open road. And have a ball! Oh! And if Steve and band come anywhere close...make sure you're there!

SETH (the cartoonist)

Friday night I went to the Dundas Town Hall (now unused since we've been amalgamated with Hamilton) to witness a conversation with SETH. Seth is the artist and writer responsible for such classic examples of comic book art as Wimbledon Green, It's a Good Life If You Don't Weaken and Clyde Fans Book 1. Oh, and Palookaville, his self published irregular comic wherein these books had their beginnings. He was appearing in Dundas, in this glorious old building, to speak about a project of his. In the basement of his home in Guelph, he's been building a city. If you've read any of the books you'll know the City of Dominion. It's a sort of typical Ontario city, of a certain age and size. Seth sees it as having grown to about 300,000 population, but he knows the history from its origin since...he created it. He created the businesses, and schools, the shops and factories, even the water tower. And he made them out of corrugated cardboard, house paint and ink. Lots of glue and a huge amount of imagination!
Seth is an odd fellow, he dresses as if he's an insurance salesman in the mid-1950s, right down to the fedora. But then in his jacket pocket he carries a handful of pencils. His hair is slicked back, and he sits bolt upright in his chair. When he speaks it is with a quiet yet assured voice. He knows why he does the things he does. He traces his own position in the history of cartooning, linking back to Thoreau MacDonald, Windsor McKay, the Katzenjammer Kids, right through to Chris Ware and Art Spiegelman.
This evening he is interviewed by Andrew Hunter whose interview style is a bit reminiscent of Brian Linehan. Okay you did the research, but we really want to hear Seth speak...not you!
He describes the development of the city of Dominion, which he has built, and it seems to exist comfortably next to a project of my own. Well, my wife's really. Together we are walking the streets of the city of Hamilton, until we cover each one. We don't expect to finish this year, or next. We park the car somewhere and then spend an hour zigzagging back and forth through a block of the city. When we're not walking my wife researches the area, and as we walk she tells me of the history...when this building went up, what used to occupy that empty space, and so on. Seth knows all these details of Dominion. He has them written down in his notebooks. He knows when this building was built, by whom, how the Toboggan Factory fared, everything a civic historian would know.
The cardboards buildings are also on display at the Dundas Museum, and it's a fascinating collection. From the portrait of the first mayor on the wall (flanked by the Ontario ensign and Union Jack) to the carefully constructed models laid out throughout the room, in grids, it's like a big boy's train set.
I'll post a photo or two to give you the sense of the scale of the project. Or you can look at and search for Dominion Dundas to download a little booklet with pictures of some of the buildings.
Capped off with a viewing of Milk with its powerhouse performance by Sean Penn...and no e-mails (I made a pact) this was an altogether enjoyable weekend!

Remember Muddy!

Last night I was driving to a practice, guitar in the back seat, thinking how tired I was and how I hoped this practice wouldn't go on too long, when I decided I'd had enough of the radio so I pushed the CD button to see what my wife had been listening to. She drives the car most of the time, so the music is her choice, mainly blues. There was the new Buddy Guy, Honey by Steve Strongman, Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt and then...the one that I listened to...Jimmy Rogers. Not the Singing Brakeman he spelled his name Jimmie Rodgers. This guy was from Muddy Waters band, he played rhythm guitar alongside Little Walter (harp) and Otis Spann (piano) to make one of the most potent blues lineups ever. Second only, and arguably, to Howlin' Wolf with Hubert Sumlin. This band was responsible for classic blues like "Blow Wind, Blow," "Hoochie Coochie Man," and "I'm Ready."
Jimmy passed away just before Christmas in 1997, but before he died he finished recording a dandy album with guests Keith & Mick, Jeff Healey, Stephen Stills, Eric Clapton and while it didn't come out til 1999 it's a total classic. Blues Blues Blues is the name, and on it he does some of Muddy's big songs. Look for it, it's dynamite!
Anyway, it made me think of the night I saw Muddy himself at Hamilton Place and was able to snap a couple of pictures which I'll try to post. We had great seats about ten rows back. John Hammond opened the show with a brief set on Robert Johnson songs and then Muddy's band blew the roof off the place. Within a couple of years he would be gone, but that night...he owned the place. I'm just glad I was able to see some of these originators before they passed away. I saw Count Basie, Elizabeth Cotton, Doc Watson, and others live and in person! And there's nothing like live music...whatever they tell you. I found this 35mm slide in a box of slides I had almost forgotten about, along with some family pix, and Ed scanned a few of them for me (Thanks Ed!) so I thought I'd share this one here on Rylander! Enjoy!