The Knickerbocker Cafe Grand Opening Weekend

Last weekend was the grand opening of The Knickerbocker Cafe in Westerly, Rhode Island. Three nights of great music, dancing, food and more than a few cocktails marked the rebirth of this historic venue.

 Everybody on the Knick team worked very hard to get ready for this event. The place looked fantastic and a sell out crowd enjoyed the shows.

Saturday night was a blues review featuring Guitar Johnny Nicholas, Duke Robillard, Greg Piccolo and Sugar Ray Norcia. Joining Johnny on the bandstand from Texas were Joel Guzman on accordion, piano and B-3 organ and the incomparable Al Gomez on trumpet. Guitar Johnny was in rare form that night. Beside acting as the MC, his singing and tasty guitar work lit up the room. A great night of blues.

It was a treat to see Duke and Greg back on the stage at the Knick, where the Roomful of Blues made so much history years ago. When Duke and Sugar Ray traded verses on Honey Hush, I was taken back to the night I saw Big Joe Turner play the Knick backed by Roomful. That was a memorable night and I was lucky to be present in The Alcove for both shows.

On Sunday night, Delbert McClinton brought his brand of Texas roadhouse music to Westerly. Backed by a band of young guns, Delbert showed a sold out crowd what real country music is suppose to sound like. You don't hear music like that coming out of Nashville these days. I guarantee Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift will not be playing the Knick. Not even on Sh*T Night.

Besides the locals, there were some real Delbert fans in the house, including a couple that drove from Pittsburgh for the show. I think everyone enjoyed the show. I know I did.

Be sure to catch James Montgomery and J. Geils tonight. It will be another great night of blues at the Knick. I have known James since The Maniac introduced him to the Floyd's Hotel crew in the '70's. He is an energetic player who always puts on a good show.

See you there.

Jason and the Scorchers - Absolutely Sweet Marie

The quality of the video isn't that great, but you can get a feel for how well Jason covers this classic Dylan song.

Absolutely Sweet Marie by Jason and the Scorchers

I have been working on a post about Jason and the Scorchers for over a week. When I heard their cover of Absolutely Sweet Marie on Outlaw Country yesterday, I knew it was time to get back to the keyboard.

In 1983, I heard one of my favorite Dylan songs on an album by a Nashville band called Jason and the Scorchers. I was completely blown away by their version. It is not easy to take on a Dylan song from Blonde on Blonde. Those songs are so definitive that most covers sounds like wedding band material. After hearing Sweet Marie, I bought the album and I was not disappointed with the rest of the cuts.

 Formed in 1981, Jason and the Scorchers were a Nashville based band that pioneered the punk/country sound that predated all of the alt-country bands. Led by Jason Ringenberg, their energetic live shows and inventive covers of rock and country classics made them popular with critics and country music fans. They released Fever in 1983 and Lost and Found in 1985. These are now available on a a single CD.

Besides the Dylan song, they play a great cover of Hank Sr's Lost Highway, which sounds like Hank on steroids.  Several original songs by Ringenberg also deserve mentioning. Harvest Moon, Hot Nights in Georgia, and Pray For Me Mama are well written and and show off the energy and style of the band. 

Unfortunately, the band was probably a little ahead of their time and they broke up in 1990. If you like your country with a little harder edge, I would recommend this CD. It is available on iTunes and from Amazon.

Muddy Waters on The American Folk and Blues Festival

As I mentioned in my last post, this is a great cut of Muddy and Sonny Boy Williamson, with Willie Dixon on bass and Otis Spann on piano doing Got My Mojo Workin'. Notice the style of the players and the especially the conk on Muddy. Also, check out the audience in the last shots.

All three DVDs of The American Folk and Blues Festival are full of classic performances like this one. Available from Amazon.

The American Folk Blues Festival 1962-1966

After almost a week, I have finally gotten rid of the mint julep flu. Trust me, it is much more deadly than anything you can catch from a pig. The Derby is a hard road, but it is still the best day of the year.

About two years ago, Guitar Johnny Nicholas turned me on to this series of three videos called The American Folk Blues Festival 1962-1966. If you like the blues, you will enjoy these fantastic DVDs of great American blues artists performing in their heyday.

From 1962 to 1969, a group of top American blues musicians toured Europe. I have written in this blog about British musicians being interested in American blues and roots music. Seeing our best blues players on these tours had a huge influence on the musicians of that day. In the forward to the first volume, Bill Wyman writes: "Things would have been a whole lot different in Britain without the American Folk Blues Festivals; they proved to be a rich legacy for musicians throughout Europe."

This footage, which were unreleased for over 40 years, captures these musicians live in front of a German audience. Wait until you see what a German blues audience looked like in the early '60's. The sound is excellent and the black and white cinematography is wonderful.

The highlight of volume one is Muddy Waters playing Got My Mojo Working with Sonny Boy Williamson on harmonica. Muddy is impeccably turned out in a suit and his hair in a huge conk is perfect. Rounding out the band on this cut is Willie Dixon on bass and Otis Spann on piano.

Other songs on the first volume include Otis Rush singing I Can't Quite You Baby, Junior Wells doing his classic Hoodoo Man Blues, and Sonny Boy playing Nine Below Zero. All of the songs showcase the class and talent of these great artists.

On the next two volumes, you can see T-Bone Walker doing Don't Throw Your Love on Me so Strong, as well as several songs from Willie Dixon, Howlin' Wolf and Magic Sam. There are also great performances from Big Joe Turner, Buddy Guy, Lighting Hopkins, Big Mama Thornton and John Lee Hooker.

These DVDs are a rare opportunity to see great blues musicians in their prime. Available from Amazon.

Kentucky Derby, Larry Redmon and Mint Juleps

The first Saturday in May is the best day of the year. It is better than Christmas, birthday, golf weekend or the first day of quail season. If you have to ask what happens on the first Saturday in May.....hit delete now.

The Kentucky Derby is one of the premier sporting event in the world. For 135 years, the race has showcased top equine athletes at Churchill Downs, which is one of the great race tracks in the country. In addition to the horse racing, the Derby is a great spectacle of people watching. On Saturday, over 100,000 people from all walks of life will be at the track. There will be movie stars, rock stars, racing fans, show ponies and drunken college kids in the infield who might not even watch the race. There is a very wide range of fashion on display at the event.

I was lucky to be introduced to Derby in 1983 by a true gentleman and good friend from Louisville, Bill Blodgett. It was a great start on a lifetime of Derby experiences, because Bill has a true love for the Derby and everything that goes with it. Bill had access to a great box and the best parties in Louisville. He showed me the ropes of Derby, included how to "sweeten" a mint julep from a hip flask of bourbon. Over 25 years later, I am looking forward to seeing him at the track on Saturday.

In 1987, I joined the Walmac Derby posse. Since this group is based in Lexington, the Derby schedule is slightly different. It might seem strange to do the Derby from another city (Check with Perry S on this), but it does open up some other social events. When the Madden Party was still in existence, it was the only way to go. I could tell you more about the Madden Party, but this is a family blog. Seriously, it was a huge charity party on the night before Derby every year. Held at Hamburg Place Farm, the party was an extravagant event that included interesting costumes and usually some kind of nudity. Many lasting friendships were made under those big tents.

Part of our Derby routine is going to see Larry Redmon play on Thursday night. I have seen Larry at many places over the years, but recently he has been playing at his own club called Redmon's in downtown Lexington. If you have never heard Larry, you are missing a great live act.

Before a crowd of rowdy college kids with only an acoustic guitar, he holds court. Drawing on a lifetime in the Bluegrass and a love of real country music, he puts together a set that includes original songs like Garth Brooks Ain't Playing Here Tonight, Last Kiss, Another Blue Grass Morning, and Propane. The later is my personal favorite. Sung to the tune of Cocaine, it is a comic tale of white trash country life that includes the memorable lines: When your hands are hot/And your cousin's not/Propane. Redmon's show is a celebration of the music of the American South and it is damn good. He plays real country music and calls bullsh*t on what Nashville is putting out these days.

In the live show, Larry also covers a number of classic songs by John Prine, Chuck Berry, John Fogerty, Steve Earle and David Allan Coe. Every night ends with the unfurling of the confederate flag and a rousing version of Dixie that morphs into Sweet Home Alabama. I hope to see you there on Thursday night.

Being a wine and vodka drinker, I don't drink bourbon during the rest of the year. I guess I am scared if I drink any of that dirty water, I might end up on the ground or dancing that old Saratoga no-step. Mint juleps at the Derby are a different thing. I don't know what they put in those drinks, but they taste good and do enhance the whole Derby experience. I am looking forward to have more than one this weekend.

The Great White Wonder: Bootlegs and My Life Part 2

As we get ready for the release of Bob's 33rd studio album next week, I am thinking about all of the great music Bob has produced over the years. There are many classic official albums as well as so many great songs that would never have seen the light of day without the bootleg industry.

This has all become very commonplace today. Bob plays a live show and within a week or two, you can buy it on a bootleg CD. Ah, the modern world.

This was not always the case. Before September 1969, the only unofficial Dylan material I had ever heard was on the tape featured in a post from March 16th. During the summer of 1969, word filtered out through Rolling Stone that a bootleg album of unreleased Dylan material had been released in California. In September, I went to a record store in downtown Philadelphia and came home with a copy of The Great White Wonder.

It is hard today to describe my excitement at the time to own a double album of Dylan music that was all new to my ears. After playing all the official albums to death over the previous years, it was a big event to have some new Dylan material.

The four sides of the double album were filled with a curious collection of Dylan material. Two sides contained songs from the legendary 1961 Minneapolis Hotel Tape. There was also a sampling of mid-60's outtakes and of course the seven songs from the Basement Tapes.

Although at the time it was a treat to have any new Dylan material, the real joy of the record for me came from the seven tracks from the Basement Tapes that were found on the end of side two and all of side four. These were:

1. Mighty Quinn (Take 1)
2. This Wheel's On Fire
3. I Shall Be Released
4. Open the Door, Homer (Take 1)
5. Too Much of Nothing (Take 2)
6. Nothing Was Delivered (Take 1)
7. Tears of Rage (Take 2)

First, it was a real improvement to have a few of the songs from the Basement Tapes on vinyl. It was a little easier than cranking up a reel to reel tape machine. Besides that, the highlight was to hear Dylan's version of Tears of Rage. Since it was released as the opening track on the classic Band album Music From Big Pink, Tears of Rage has always been one of my favorite Dylan songs. The fact that it was written with Richard Manuel, who met such a tragic end, makes the the sadness and emotion of the song that much more poignant to me. It is a beautiful song:

TEARS OF RAGE

The Great White Wonder made an impressive debut as the first of many bootleg albums. I am proud to still have my original copy.