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February 20, 2008
Hi,
Well, things are coming together. Arrangements have been made to go back into the studio and put some finishing nails into the coffin of the new album. Don't let that picture up above fool you-I'm really excited about it. Shoveling takes it out of me.
The album will be acoustic but loud. Also there is clearly more than an albums worth of material available, which is a good thing - that way I can pick and choose. I'd rather have this record present a strong 50 minute collection than an uneven 75 minutes. This isn't really a concept album, but there will be a common thread. The trick is to pick the strongest songs that'll contribute to the thread. There's a joke in here about buying a puppy, but I'll let it go.
I'll go back into the studio in late April, yep. Why am so I excited?
Because I'm going to get to work with the usual suspects - Guy Divito and Mitch
Chakour. Very, very talented folks. There are more details to follow but the dates are firm. Constant
is flux, so I'm working on planning ahead to get this done with as few snafus
as possible.
I'm shuttling regularly between the land of ice and snow (New
England) and the Frozen Apple these days. Hoping to sit in on Pan
Morigan's concert this weekend, it's not firm but that I'll make it. None
the less it'll be a great show, so if you're around Northampton on Saturday
night it'll be a good show I'm certain. Pan is actually in NYC rehearsing
the players for Saturday. Saturday Feb. 23rd, 8:00 P.M. at
Helen Hills Chapel on Rt. 9 at Smith Campus.
If you're in New York City on Friday, check out the music of Spiff Weigand and the
Ladies Auxiliary at Hank's Saloon on Atlantic & 3rd Ave in Brooklyn NY at
10pm. Their first and final show? We'll just see about that.
And when the hell am I playing out, eh? No gigs since new years eve, am I a hermit now? Nope, I'll be up in New Hampshire at Franklin Pierce University on March 10th. After that it will get busier in New York, stay tuned.
If you can
x
Greg
January 28, 2008
Hi all,
I just finished working on a project that could expand. "John and Paul" is the working title of an original musical about the life of Lennon and McCartney. Danny Eaton and Mitch Chakour were heading this project which was written by Danny Schecter. I was asked to sing a few of the songs in this nearly rock opera. I say that because there was no character dialogue per se. I and three other singers played multiple characters.
I was not John or Paul, by the way. When Danny called me I
figured I'd be Billy Preston. Just my luck he's included in the show. Then
again neither are George or Ringo.
Cliff says "it takes you right to the clubhouse door and stops just
outside". While there is no actual Beatles music in this original piece, it
does have a lots of music delivered in a particular style. I think if you like
the Beatles this show will be up your alley.
We had two performances of the material (running about 90 minutes) for backers and some arts folk. The producers were looking for input on the show and capital, of course.
Skeptical? You bet, after working on it for a week, the show seems very feasible. I hope it gets the legs to live again. It may come up on the Majestic Theater schedule in the summer of this year.
September 11, 2007
Still feel like writing on this day. Anyone on the east coast of the US has feelings about this, as do others I'm sure. But being close to ground zero (still) means there is still an ongoing impact. An event like this does not go away; we simply behave as if it does.
What a waste. The whole thing. The attack, a brutal action to perpetrate against an unknown (although clearly targeted) enemy. And the response, an equally vicious long ranging campaign designed to devastate two countries and at the same line the pockets of large corporations.
Remember the book and film "Catch 22" ? War is a perfect time for the rich to get richer. All at the expense of the common people of Iraq, the United States and countless others.
What the hell is wrong with us? With the American people? This war goes on and on, and in the US we protest, but it's wan - not enough to rectify the situation. And we send our own people off to do something we know is wrong - deep down, we know. Some protest that it's for our own good, for the good of the world. But, deep down I think we all know that this is wrong and lots of us simply can't admit it.
Where is our outrage, our revolution?
This is a rant............time to write.
peace,
Greg
July 31, 2007
Hi there,
Still recovering from Falcon Ridge. What a well rounded festival this year. I made new friends, players and others ( how nice for me !) and the new site is starting to get comfortable. Although being up on the hill is beautiful-it still feels dangerous because of it's pitch. RVs need to shy away from up there. Everyone gets nervous just watching them think about negotiating the terrain. They all think better of it and go to more lever pastures.
The musical stand outs this year? Marshall Crenshaw was great, who knew? This was the year of heavy weather, but if you stuck it out you got a real treat at the end of the night with this guy. He's not a typical FRFF performer, electric pop. But boy, did he deliver.
Sunday. Great day, Gandalf Murphy made us all think we were hippies for awhile, they are the best at what they do and Falcon Ridge is coming around to falling in love them. Arlo Guthrie was fantastic on Sunday afternoon. Played solo with only his son on keys for support. The guy just puts magic into the air by simply being his own self effacing self, know what I mean? Mary Gauthier went on before him. She played solo, and that's just when she shines the best. She can string together songs with the most meaningful, simply patter. Her set was unaffected, and breathtaking.
There's more of course, there's always more when it comes to Falcon Ridge. But, I need more sleep and to check my mini discs before I go any further.
As for roaming the grounds I did find a few new players, and never did find the PACE bunch, maybe I'm still looking.....
I'll talk more when I wake up.
yours,
Greg
May 7, 2007
Happy Spring, folks. How is it that the time just goes and goes? It's all about
recording and writing new material. There is studio time and recording
that is already done. There is lots more to do. I'm looking forward
to good music and weather. That's it, short and sweet. Just keep the faith and
keep making music. Is that advice for you or me? Sound advice for us all,
even ragtime cowboy Joe!
peace,
Greg
October 5, 2006
Kieran Ryan - An Unrepentant Rocker
Kieran was a truly unique, wonderful man. He showed us more about the good
in people in an afternoon that most folks display in a lifetime.
Love you
Kieran, miss you.
If I don't see you no more in this world, I'll meet you in the next one, and
don't be late.
-Hendrix
For a glimpse at Kieran's life go to The Prodigals website.
Funeral
Services
For
KIERAN RYAN
were held on
Thursday evening October 5th
at the
Church of the Most Precious Blood
(N train to Broadway stop)
Followed by a gathering at
Gibneys
Pub (on Broadway – near N train)
The
Prodigals,
a band Kieran worked with and loved, played
Everybody who knew Kieran has a good story about him; although no one told
a story as well as Kieran could tell one.
Soon as I get my thoughts collected I'll tell you one.
October 20, 2006
Addendum
Here's a story about Kieran:
[Note: There are times when only expletives will do. Feel free to insert more,
you'll know where they fit in.]
Last year about this time I went out for lunch during a rehearsal and came back
to the theater in Brooklyn with a bad case of food poisoning. It was my Birthday
and I figured I could do just about whatever the hell I wanted to do. Bad idea.
It took about an hour for the Jamaican beef patties to take effect.
Someone found me in the 2nd floor men's room, I can't remember who, that's how
much in distress I was at the time. But I do know that it was Kieran who stayed
with me in the bathroom when the cops wouldn't come in once they saw me on the
floor, it Kieran who got me onto a gurney when the EMTs wouldn't
touch me or help me to my feet. It was Kieran who went with me in the
ambulance and actually made sense while the EMTs sang a little rap they had
written called "Don't eat off the street". And finally it was
Kieran who went into ER and made sure I got looked at. He actually stayed with
me until my family arrived.
It was when the painkillers started to kick in, through the sick and the mess -
I realised I already had family with me. Kieran would stick up for people in
need, consequences and appearances were someone else's problem. His issue
was making sure you got a fair shake, and he didn't give a damn how it looked or
if the reaction wasn't popular. That's one of the things that made him the coolest
guy on the block. Not cool in temperament, but in conviction. Kieran Ryan just knew what
time it was.
peace,
Greg
September 14, 2006
Hello there,
I'm off to Florida next week to work on a project called "From Page
to Stage". This is a 50 minute show that celebrates American
literature from the viewpoint of the outsider. The show is put together by
the Enchanted Circle Theater, an educational theater based in Holyoke
Massachusetts.
The show is geared to high school aged folks and deals with alienation and how
reading tales of adversity from others can help us all deal. So it's a
combination of readers theater and scene work. We'll perform material from a
variety of sources; from Langston
Hughes to Hemmingway to Emily Dickinson.
Performances are scheduled for Broward County schools and even a local correctional facility.
If you'd like to go contact Enchanted
Circle Theater. Since the shows will be in auditoriums, if you're
local and would like to attend, I bet you could contact the schools and they'd
let you in; especially if you're interested in sampling the programs for future
booking criteria in Broward County school system.
While I'm there I will check out the Broward County folk scene.
I've been on the South Florida Folk list serve for a few years. Now I'm fixing
to check out a few venues and see what the lay of the land is like. Any
ideas? Please contact me. Thanks.
peace,
Greg
P.S. Doing some recording next month with Mitch Chakour and Kevin Pare. How cool can cool be, eh? I'll tell you later.....
July 31, 2006
Hi there,
The Falcon Ridge Folk Festival went off at the new location this past week. It takes me about a week to get used to being indoors after Falcon Ridge. All that exposure, listening to and playing music outdoors in all kinds of weather for five days takes a toll.
It was in a new location, just a few miles from where the old
festival had been held for many years. There were a few hitches here and there,
where to get water, more than a little trouble getting around on the roads after
the rain, and a vehicle fire on Saturday night (final determination was an
electrical problem with the car). Overall, I'd say they have an interesting new
venue to grow into.
I spoke with promoter Howard Randall, he seems satisfied with the outcome.
"We had some things that needed preparation, and we'll get
even more done."
I think that means that the festival will stay right where it is, that's very
good news. Randall commented that the owner of the new property is said to be
pleased with how the festival went as well.
I'm still writing this. Tell you more about the music soon. The short version
is: the musical performances were eclectic and very, very good. Surprise!
Greg
July 3, 2006
Hi,
Happy summer. Hope you're well. I'm just getting over my post
show depression from closing Miss Saigon at the Majestic Theater. It was a
stretch, and that's in a good way. I now have a little more musical
theater in my brain.
A musical-sized company, around 50 including the band and crew- one great big
happy family; as it turns out-that's what we had. A respectful, energized bunch,
many of whom eat and sleep theater. I tend to forget how cool people can be,
these folks were together and as much fun as any company or band I've worked
with. It's a comfort simply to know they're out there. I'll keep in touch.
The role-John, in fact the entire score is high (I mean it, really high-even the
women in the show would say "Damn, this is high." ,it opened up my own
range quite a bit. Mitch Chakour went a long way in making a comfortable
environment in which to work. Now the trick will be to keep the headroom that
opened up for me during the show.
It was rough on my voice, I got sick in week 6 of the run and really had to protect what was left of my voice. That was a real trip, I never worked hurt before. Chinese medicine, Mitch and Pan got me through. Mitch gave me techniques and Pan turned me on to the medicine.
This run was long, from 1st rehearsal to last show was just over
12 weeks. The beauty of that is during the run the show comes first. . . you
eat, sleep and stay healthy for the show. Now that it's over I have to write
checks for the bills I didn't pay, get back to scheduling 2007, oh yeah- make a
record.
Mark Peterson is on tour with James Blood Ulmer for the summer. So I'm off to
Vermont to find an upright bass player and check out other recording
studios. Fact is. . . without Mark Peterson the balance of players is now
in New England and not New York. I'll look into recording up in NE and see
what and who is available.
peace,
Greg
February 15, 2006
So here's the dream scenario:
Mark Peterson on upright bass- I met him when he played Joe's Pub with Susan
Werner.
Leopoldo Flemming on percussion - I've known Leo for years, we do African shows
together. He was Nina Simone's percussionist.
Mitch Chakour on keyboards- He's directed me in a couple of shows and
helped me do things I thought I could never do. A great musical director, an incredible
player.
The idea is to lock us all in a room together; maybe Hugh Pool's Excello
in Williamsburg and just to have fun. No sleep 'til Brooklyn.
Love,
Greg
February 3, 2006
Welcome to the new year. I'm thinking recording these days. I simply want
to make a simple recording, who knew it'd be so complicated getting things to be
simple. Even so it's a blast, an expensive blast-but a blast none the
less.
I'm recording stripped down demo versions of the chosen 11 tunes onto my
computer. The recording program Cubase is kicking my butt all around the
keyboard, but I'll figure out what I need to get the job done. I'm passing the
demos out to the upright bass and the percussionist in preparation for the
studio work. Then I'll just keep breathing deeply and let the
engineer have a free hand.
Hey, I went to the Joni Mitchell tribute at Carnegie Hall on Wednesday. What a great evening. No Joni though, the producer came out and read a note from Joni saying
she was taking care of a sick cat. Half the audience went "awwww" the
other half went "awww", know what I mean? Cat people were united
again while the allergic and the rest of us had to suck it up.
If you had looked extreme house right, then up and up and up you may
have seen my seat, front row balcony A 64. They call it the Balcony,
it's really the 4th balcony.
As I got closer to the top one usher joked to me:
"we don't have any oxygen available",
I was sweating like a stuck pig from climbing the 7 flights of stairs.
"The wheelchair folk do not put up with this",
I thought to myself. To be fair there is an elevator but there is no wheelchair accessibility
past what I'd call balcony #2. So it's definitely reserved for special case
use.
The balcony usher looked at my ticket and crowed
"front row" and swept her hand toward the doorway. I didn't realize
that she didn't point it out directly because it was a twenty degree down angle
from where we stood.
I made my way down the stairs of the balcony aisle holding every hand rail
I could find. Then I realized I had my eyes closed. Carnegie Hall is a
hand made space. Even the individual steps in the aisle can be a
little different in height. So while I make my way and try to maintain
my cool one step at a time, every few steps I stick out my foot and
feel nothing- just stumble down to the next level. Getting to my seat
and anchoring to the velvet railing in front of me- I didn't look straight
down for a few minutes. After the house lights went down was truly
fun.
From up there, you could check the stage layout and equipment; Laurie
Anderson's station with her toys was quite obvious, pedal board and
all.
The things that stand out in my mind? The entire package makes me warm and fuzzy
all over.
Laurie Anderson doing "Both Sides Now"-wow; but we knew she would
reinvent whatever she covered. Remember back in the old days when she didn't
even sing? Only spoke in that perfect Standard American dialect? As she sang
we whispered "What's Judy Collins gonna sing if Laurie is covering
this?"
Richie Havens, I could watch him all night; I agree with you- his latest CD
is a great combination of musicianship and material. He finally got the
formula just right on the latest recording "Grace of the Sun".
Him covering "Woodstock" is the perfect fit considering his
connection to the festival, feedback and all. You mentioned the Nudes with
Richie- so is Stephanie Winters the other half of the Nudes?
Judy Collins was terrific, wow she just kept hitting those notes while
keeping the tempo up up up.
Betty Le Vette, that was a nice surprise-she was so intense with that guy
playing electric guitar. I'd never heard of her, her performance was so
passionate, it brought tears to my eyes.
Everyone had so much to offer; the fact that folks had the where-with-all to
come out and perform live, with out pitch shifters and effects. Live
performance can be worthwhile, it's a shame when some - performers and audience
alike - take it for granted. That live element of the show stayed with me for
days and let me forgive things I would not have normally taken so lightly.
Michelle N'Degeocello turning her back to the house is a case in point.
She's a pro, I'm guessing she turned away so the audience would not distract her
from her bass playing; but she is so interesting to watch (from above we could
see her play) from the sound check on the fly through the rest; why not share
that? The visuals are an integral part for an audience. That's
why folks go to "see" people play. None the less she was a thrill to
see and hear.
{ Note: I learned later from Susan on the South Florida Folk list serve that
Michelle has epilepsy; camera flash from the audience is very disturbing for her
and could possibly trigger a seizure. She turns her back to prevent this.
- G.A.}
Oh, and Martin Sexton, man - if he's that good without warming up, just
imagine how he can cut loose in a full set. We're both from Massachusetts
and I haven't seen him live yet.
Marc Cohen, got the brass ring of the evening for me. He got to play
"For Free" the perfect mixture of lyric and melody. He performed
admirably, but I got distracted by thinking of his trouble in Denver and how do
you come out on the other side of a situation like that. I guess the
answer is you play great music like Joni's.
Nobody did "A Case of You". . . has Diana Krall's version put that song to
rest for everybody?
It was the kind of night that makes you look for summer festival tickets in
the middle of winter.
stay warm . . . we'll be in shorts again soon.
Greg
September 19, 2005
Hi there. From the sublime to the ridiculous. Either you're having
the greatest week of your life or you're in line for the most humiliating
experiences you can imagine. It really gives you perspective. We'll laugh about
it later; hell - it'll make great stage banter someday, once I've processed it
all. Treat life as a comedy rather than a tragedy. Otherwise you may end
up in the tower with a sniper rifle.
OK, let's take 'em one at a time.
August 27th- Meganfest
I love doing this. It's outdoors it's got an audience that actually listens and
performers I love to listen to. Will it have enough momentum to sustain
itself? Well, we're gonna work on that. Thanks to Tom Stokowski, Pan
Morigan and Wendy Farley for making it happen and getting our own little
festival off the ground. We start planning next year right after
Halloween. Can't wait.
September 3rd - Club Passim Campfire Festival
On September 3rd I played the Club Passim Campfire Festival in
Boston. A series of round robins, my round included Ellis Paul. . . what a great
surprise. One of the great things about Club Passim is that it's a listening
room. Great sound, great staff, an audience that came to check you out. And with
EP in the round, lots of folks did show up to check us out. It's always great to
perform alongside talented players, it ups your whole level of performance.
Suffice to say that Justin Rosolino, Kate Schrock, and I all had a great time
sharing the stage with Ellis, and EP was cool about it too. Making jokes
and putting everybody at ease. For just a moment Katrina is on the back burner. All we had to do was have a good time.
Play
for each other, with each other. We made out like bandits.
Flash forward 10 days to Washington DC.
Ah, the people you meet in DC ! I just got back from the
Cornucopia Music Festival. Also known as the Cornucopia Summer Music Festival or
the Cornucopia Jams Festival. See a pattern here? Not just yet. Musicians
and performers from all over the US went to DC this week. All different
kinds of acts were encouraged to come and play.
Bottom line, artists do best when we stick
together, work together and share as much as we can. We respect each other's
work, and when it works we're family. And family looks out for each other, right?
We can also help new festivals by telling them what works for us. They need to
know our opinions.
Talk to you soon.
September 22, 2005
Got this email the other day:
September 20, 2005
20:02:36
Hey Greg, I got the Megfest bootleg CD today I love it I love all the new
stuff.. the "good time song" and the one about leaving are my new
favorites. Sounds great. I'm copying it for all my friends. Should we each send
you a dollar or something? And why do you bury your comments and note
pages? It takes me a lot of work to find it.
Feel free to pass the music around. Although Tom Stokowski and Pan Morigan have
not consented to have their music taped, so you'll have to contact them. And yes
contribute to their music works if they see fit. As for the gregnotes page, the
music is the main thing. And folks do find their way here. As for the
comments page, it's getting revamped. It'll be up soon.
August 16, 2005
The hackers have gotten their hooks into Greg A dot com. We actually
went offline for a weekend in an attempt to clean house. A lot of elements have
been corrupted and therefore were removed from the website. All of my posts in
gregnotes from the last year, all of the message board posts from the last six
months or so, and other parts of individual pages have been lost. I'm in
the process of restoring what I can, but not being a computer wiz, it's been
difficult. This is why it pays to have someone (a pro) run your
website. I haven't gotten that message just yet, but I'm definitely in the
market now.
Back in the real world I'm working on new music and getting
ready to record again. The pre production is done, now it's a question of studio
time and picking players. I guess that is pre production, isn't it? At any
rate the studio work will happen in the fall. Meanwhile I'm booking for '06,
it's gonna be a play everywhere concept. I'll do my best to keep everyone
in the loop.
Yesterday I recorded my song for "The Ride" sound track in Mitch
Chakour's studio. I'm not certain when it'll be commercially available but hope
for later in the fall.
Looking forward to the annual house concert we call Meganfest.
That'll be next Saturday August 27th in South Hadley Massachusetts. It's
going to hold a sizable amount of people. Peter-Michael Kinney and Tom Stokowski
will also perform. You can drop Wendy Farley an email for directions, so that
plans can be made.
I'm going to write out the email address so that web crawlers (computers that
search the internet for information) will not pick up her email and send her a
bunch of spam.
So here's the email address: quabbinsun at hotmail dot com
*Posts from January 2005 to July 2005 have been lost*
For past posts go to the Greg Notes Archives