I FINALLY got out to hear some live music the other night. Tuesday (12/8), I visited 2 places. The first was the illustrious Handlebar, and Gene Dillard's jam. I had fun listening to Jim Rollings and Charlie McDaniel sing, while drinking a beer and cutting up with some of the regular patrons, that have become some really good friends. Charlie's wife is always so nice to me, and can be an absolute HOOT to hang out with.
I listened to them do about 5 or 6 songs before Jerry (my business partner, best friend, and jam buddy) wanted to go check out Smiley's. I forced him to stay a little longer, because I wanted to hear Charlie do "Drinking Dark Whiskey" (Steeldrivers). Charlie does a SUPERB job on this song, as his vocal style matches that of Chris Stapleton's.
We arrived at Smiley's somewhere around 10, and the stage was being occupied by a duo (guitar and mando). I didn't get their names, but they were obviously grass fans. They were just finishing up what was obviously their first set, and came off stage soon after finishing a song.
When going into Smiley's, you definitely feel like you are downtown. The atmosphere is great, and Smiley has done a great job decorating for the winter solstice holidays. I noticed that Charles Hedgepath (The Work), was hanging out in the back of the bar, and when the guys returned to the stage, Charles joined them. They did an eclectic mix of Bluegrass, Blues, Country, Rock, and Alternative Rock, so Charles' influence from The Work band was obvious.
Hopefully, I'll get out again and see some live music and jams sooner than this last blank spot in my life.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Whew! What a weekend!
Friday
Oolenoy was fun Friday night. I jammed with Don Delillio, Oregon Lawton, Matt Oglesby, Will Clark, and a few others came and went throughout the night. I played mandolin once again, and was thrilled when most of my breaks were not bad. Every time I pick with Don, it's not long before he asks me to do "Back To The Barrooms". I don't mind that, except I don't want it to get old. Of course, I always oblige, and generally get a grand response from it. I tried a song that I haven't done in a while, later in the evening. "Big Spike Hammer" is one of my favorite songs, and I used to do it a lot with one of the many versions of Big Iron. I certainly didn't do the song justice, but it was so late that it really didn't matter. I tried another new one for Don, which was "Them Blues" (LRB). It worked much better than I expected, mostly (I think), due to Will playing the guitar and Matt on the banjo, and both of them knew the song.
Saturday
Oregon asked me to play a show with them on Saturday up in Dacusville. He said that there would be several other Bluegrass bands playing throughout the day, so I wanted to hear them. I ended up getting there around 2 pm. There was a country/classic rock band playing and the singer was terrible. The music was great, but the vocals just weren't there. I hung out for a bit, but soon left since there wasn't much else to see. There were about 15-20 cars on display and the band, so once you had your eyes and ears full, there was nothing left to do, but leave. I drove around and made my way back to Easley, where I walked in Lowes and looked at some dishwashers. I eventually made it back to Dacusville around 4. According to Oregon, he was going to be there by 4:30. About one minute past 4:30, they were calling for the next band. Nearly all the cars were gone and the only folks left were the previous band and the people working to produce the event. Oregon, Don, and Terry and Patricia all rolled into the parking lot about 10 minutes later. We played to a practically empty field, but still enjoyed ourselves. Hunter showed up about 15 minutes later and joined us. We left and headed (separately) to Brazeale’s store.
I arrived a few minutes before them and we stood around the front porch and talked for a while, waiting (once again) on Hunter. While we were picking, I noticed someone on the other side of the porch from us. I couldn’t remember his name, but I had met him up at SPBGMA. Once he did make his way over to our jam, someone else called out his name, which gave me a reprieve of embarrassment. It was none other than Glenn Pace. Now Glenn is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, and a great musician. He wanted to pick a little, but Don wanted to take a break, so Oregon took the bass and I stayed on mandolin. I convinced him to play “Twister (Devil’s Dance”. He wrote that song, and it was recorded by Mountain Heart. He has written some really good songs, and I hope to write with him one day. I got his number so that if I ever get into a good jam, I’ll give him a call. About 20 minutes later Don called us to go up on stage, where we did our usual stuff, then all of them left. I hung out for a few minutes because I wanted to play Glenn’s bass. It was an awesome bass. It fit well in my hand and even though the action was low and easy to play, it was loud and rang true on the lower end (the real test of a good bass). I hope that I can someday find a bass that’s as good as or better than that one. Whew! What a weekend!
Oolenoy was fun Friday night. I jammed with Don Delillio, Oregon Lawton, Matt Oglesby, Will Clark, and a few others came and went throughout the night. I played mandolin once again, and was thrilled when most of my breaks were not bad. Every time I pick with Don, it's not long before he asks me to do "Back To The Barrooms". I don't mind that, except I don't want it to get old. Of course, I always oblige, and generally get a grand response from it. I tried a song that I haven't done in a while, later in the evening. "Big Spike Hammer" is one of my favorite songs, and I used to do it a lot with one of the many versions of Big Iron. I certainly didn't do the song justice, but it was so late that it really didn't matter. I tried another new one for Don, which was "Them Blues" (LRB). It worked much better than I expected, mostly (I think), due to Will playing the guitar and Matt on the banjo, and both of them knew the song.
Saturday
Oregon asked me to play a show with them on Saturday up in Dacusville. He said that there would be several other Bluegrass bands playing throughout the day, so I wanted to hear them. I ended up getting there around 2 pm. There was a country/classic rock band playing and the singer was terrible. The music was great, but the vocals just weren't there. I hung out for a bit, but soon left since there wasn't much else to see. There were about 15-20 cars on display and the band, so once you had your eyes and ears full, there was nothing left to do, but leave. I drove around and made my way back to Easley, where I walked in Lowes and looked at some dishwashers. I eventually made it back to Dacusville around 4. According to Oregon, he was going to be there by 4:30. About one minute past 4:30, they were calling for the next band. Nearly all the cars were gone and the only folks left were the previous band and the people working to produce the event. Oregon, Don, and Terry and Patricia all rolled into the parking lot about 10 minutes later. We played to a practically empty field, but still enjoyed ourselves. Hunter showed up about 15 minutes later and joined us. We left and headed (separately) to Brazeale’s store.
I arrived a few minutes before them and we stood around the front porch and talked for a while, waiting (once again) on Hunter. While we were picking, I noticed someone on the other side of the porch from us. I couldn’t remember his name, but I had met him up at SPBGMA. Once he did make his way over to our jam, someone else called out his name, which gave me a reprieve of embarrassment. It was none other than Glenn Pace. Now Glenn is one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, and a great musician. He wanted to pick a little, but Don wanted to take a break, so Oregon took the bass and I stayed on mandolin. I convinced him to play “Twister (Devil’s Dance”. He wrote that song, and it was recorded by Mountain Heart. He has written some really good songs, and I hope to write with him one day. I got his number so that if I ever get into a good jam, I’ll give him a call. About 20 minutes later Don called us to go up on stage, where we did our usual stuff, then all of them left. I hung out for a few minutes because I wanted to play Glenn’s bass. It was an awesome bass. It fit well in my hand and even though the action was low and easy to play, it was loud and rang true on the lower end (the real test of a good bass). I hope that I can someday find a bass that’s as good as or better than that one. Whew! What a weekend!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Oolenoy and Brazeale's (5/15/2009-5/17/2009)
Friday (5/15), I went to Oolenoy to jam. This has become, over the last 5 years, a very well rooted part of my life. For those who have not been, let me describe the atmosphere. On highway 135, head north out of Easley, towards Table Rock. Just half a mile before 135 meets and intersects highway 8, you will see a quaint wooden schoolhouse of old on the left side of the road. It's interesting, to me, that the schoolhouse is still standing. It's been around for quite some time and has housed school lessons, church services, festivals, and other gatherings for the entire time it's been standing. There is a history on the wall just as you walk in, so I would invite anyone interested in the history of the building to visit and take a look.
The building has 2 rooms, a main hall, and a smaller room. The large hall is around 30 feet wide by 60 feet or so long, with a stage on one end. When the Bluegrass jams began, they centered around the stage, with a sound system pumping out all the tunes. However, years ago, they decided to form a large circle at the foot of the stage, akin to a symphony box. Just outside the circle that forms are some church pews, after that they set out chairs for the audience to enjoy the music that proceeds. The circle is a very efficient way of sharing the microphone among the many pickers that attend. You can pass the mic, as soon as you finish your song.
The other room is mainly used by hardcore jammers. Some people refer to this as the "Battle Jam", but as negative as that sounds, I don't consider it to be bad. If you aren't good enough to take a break on a song, or sing, you just back out of the small circle that inevitably forms, or shake your head "No" when you're offered the opportunity. This is the room I usually hang out in during the winter months. There are at least 2 other places to jam at Oolenoy. One is the front porch/walk. This is usually where I hang out in the summer months. The other is the renovated back porch. Sometimes some of the best jams can happen in the oddest places, and Oolenoy is no exception. I have been in jams in the small hallway between the large room and the back porch, which were some of the best jams I've ever been a part of. Cramped as it is, the acoustics in that room make it very desirable to some of the better pickers, so things can get a little tight.
Friday night was not an exceptional night for me, other than I played mandolin most of the night. I'm not a good mandolin player, but I enjoy it when I play, so I'm not sure why I don't do it more often. I haven't played mandolin in at least 5 months (maybe longer), and it showed. The night ended early, as I took my wife and youngest daughter (1 year old) along. Just as I was leaving, Gerald Elenburg walked in, and I wished at that point that I could hang around a bit.
One night, about 4 years ago, Gerald walked in as the jams were breaking up. He jammed for a little while and Matt Oglesby started asking him about his songwriting. If you know me at all, you know that I have written several songs, and am very interested in the methods or madness of other songwriters. I cued in on this and listened intently to their entire conversation. We sat at Oolenoy until nearly 4:00 am Saturday morning listening to Gerald talk about songwriting and meeting some of the biggest names in the business. That's one of the coolest things that's ever happened at Oolenoy.
On Saturday night, my wife wanted to go out with my sister for a "Girls night out". I certainly didn't have a problem with this, since my Bluegrass habit causes her to get mad at me for going out so frequently. I decided I'd go to either Brazeale's store (178), or Owings. Both have advantages and disadvantages. One advantage Brazeale's has over me is distance. It's a 40 minute drive to get to Owings, so I don't get down there much.
I decided, since I was starting late (8:20), to head down to Brazeale's. It ended up being a good decision since Don and Oregan had decided to do the same. I played mandolin once again and enjoyed my time. After Don broke 2 strings on stage, he decided that was enough, and left. I hung around for a little while longer, talking to David Clark, but I left before 10:30.
I have a tendency to "bang" on the mandolin in between songs, when there's a "lull". There was one of these moments where I was working on a lick on the mandolin, when I heard something familiar. I started trying to figure out on the mandolin what I was hearing in my head. It sounded so familiar, yet so strange. I worked on it for a while, but was unable to figure out what song it is, or if it is a song already written. If I can't figure it out soon, I might just have to claim it for my own.
They had had a hot dog supper Saturday evening, which went well as far as I could tell. As I said, I didn't get down there until later, so I wasn't able to enjoy the festivities. Maybe next time.
Sundays I usually spend with my parents at the farm. We have dinner, then usually sit on the front porch and watch the kids play. This Sunday was no different, other than the rain prevented the kids from playing in the yard. I pulled out my mandolin and worked a little while on that tune in my head. I asked several times if any of my family recognized the song, but since they don't keep up with Bluegrass like I do, they wouldn't know the difference between Salt Creek and Old Joe Clark (which is not much). It's still bugging me, even now that I can't figure out what the song is, and it sounds so familiar that I don't believe it isn't one.
So, at the end of the weekend, it was rather uneventful. Hopefully I will have more to present during the week or next week.
Oolenoy
State: SC
Town: Dacusville
Cover charge: $0
Bands featured: Jam only
Opening/Starting time: 7:00ish (pm) (some of the older crowd gets there earlier)
Type of music: Bluegrass/Old time/Old Country
Contact: ?
Brazeale's Store
State: SC
Town: Closer to Pendleton than anywhere else
Cover charge: $0
Bands featured: Jam with open stage
Opening/Starting time: 7:00 (pm)
Type of music: Bluegrass/Old Country
Contact: Don Acevedo
The building has 2 rooms, a main hall, and a smaller room. The large hall is around 30 feet wide by 60 feet or so long, with a stage on one end. When the Bluegrass jams began, they centered around the stage, with a sound system pumping out all the tunes. However, years ago, they decided to form a large circle at the foot of the stage, akin to a symphony box. Just outside the circle that forms are some church pews, after that they set out chairs for the audience to enjoy the music that proceeds. The circle is a very efficient way of sharing the microphone among the many pickers that attend. You can pass the mic, as soon as you finish your song.
The other room is mainly used by hardcore jammers. Some people refer to this as the "Battle Jam", but as negative as that sounds, I don't consider it to be bad. If you aren't good enough to take a break on a song, or sing, you just back out of the small circle that inevitably forms, or shake your head "No" when you're offered the opportunity. This is the room I usually hang out in during the winter months. There are at least 2 other places to jam at Oolenoy. One is the front porch/walk. This is usually where I hang out in the summer months. The other is the renovated back porch. Sometimes some of the best jams can happen in the oddest places, and Oolenoy is no exception. I have been in jams in the small hallway between the large room and the back porch, which were some of the best jams I've ever been a part of. Cramped as it is, the acoustics in that room make it very desirable to some of the better pickers, so things can get a little tight.
Friday night was not an exceptional night for me, other than I played mandolin most of the night. I'm not a good mandolin player, but I enjoy it when I play, so I'm not sure why I don't do it more often. I haven't played mandolin in at least 5 months (maybe longer), and it showed. The night ended early, as I took my wife and youngest daughter (1 year old) along. Just as I was leaving, Gerald Elenburg walked in, and I wished at that point that I could hang around a bit.
One night, about 4 years ago, Gerald walked in as the jams were breaking up. He jammed for a little while and Matt Oglesby started asking him about his songwriting. If you know me at all, you know that I have written several songs, and am very interested in the methods or madness of other songwriters. I cued in on this and listened intently to their entire conversation. We sat at Oolenoy until nearly 4:00 am Saturday morning listening to Gerald talk about songwriting and meeting some of the biggest names in the business. That's one of the coolest things that's ever happened at Oolenoy.
On Saturday night, my wife wanted to go out with my sister for a "Girls night out". I certainly didn't have a problem with this, since my Bluegrass habit causes her to get mad at me for going out so frequently. I decided I'd go to either Brazeale's store (178), or Owings. Both have advantages and disadvantages. One advantage Brazeale's has over me is distance. It's a 40 minute drive to get to Owings, so I don't get down there much.
I decided, since I was starting late (8:20), to head down to Brazeale's. It ended up being a good decision since Don and Oregan had decided to do the same. I played mandolin once again and enjoyed my time. After Don broke 2 strings on stage, he decided that was enough, and left. I hung around for a little while longer, talking to David Clark, but I left before 10:30.
I have a tendency to "bang" on the mandolin in between songs, when there's a "lull". There was one of these moments where I was working on a lick on the mandolin, when I heard something familiar. I started trying to figure out on the mandolin what I was hearing in my head. It sounded so familiar, yet so strange. I worked on it for a while, but was unable to figure out what song it is, or if it is a song already written. If I can't figure it out soon, I might just have to claim it for my own.
They had had a hot dog supper Saturday evening, which went well as far as I could tell. As I said, I didn't get down there until later, so I wasn't able to enjoy the festivities. Maybe next time.
Sundays I usually spend with my parents at the farm. We have dinner, then usually sit on the front porch and watch the kids play. This Sunday was no different, other than the rain prevented the kids from playing in the yard. I pulled out my mandolin and worked a little while on that tune in my head. I asked several times if any of my family recognized the song, but since they don't keep up with Bluegrass like I do, they wouldn't know the difference between Salt Creek and Old Joe Clark (which is not much). It's still bugging me, even now that I can't figure out what the song is, and it sounds so familiar that I don't believe it isn't one.
So, at the end of the weekend, it was rather uneventful. Hopefully I will have more to present during the week or next week.
Oolenoy
State: SC
Town: Dacusville
Cover charge: $0
Bands featured: Jam only
Opening/Starting time: 7:00ish (pm) (some of the older crowd gets there earlier)
Type of music: Bluegrass/Old time/Old Country
Contact: ?
Brazeale's Store
State: SC
Town: Closer to Pendleton than anywhere else
Cover charge: $0
Bands featured: Jam with open stage
Opening/Starting time: 7:00 (pm)
Type of music: Bluegrass/Old Country
Contact: Don Acevedo
Friday, May 15, 2009
Blind Horse jam night with One Eyed Jack
I’m not sure that my first post should be about Country, since I’m going to tailor this blog towards the Bluegrass jams/shows, but I will mention that I went to the Blind Horse last night (Thursday 5/14/2009). I read somewhere online that Thursday nights are “jam” nights, so I decided I’d see what kind of response they were getting. I don’t know of any other Country jam in the upstate. I stay pretty well in-tune with the Country scene in the Greenville area (or at least I THINK I do).
The band “One-Eyed Jack” is the house band for the Blind Horse. They are exceptional musicians. They kicked things off with some rocking Country, featuring several new and old styles. They didn’t play a slow song until they returned from their break, which was a sigh of relief from me, and apparently the many line-dancing students that were there. Several of the line-dancers graced the floor the entire time I was there, which was well over 3 hours.
I really enjoyed hearing One-Eyed Jack this time. They didn’t leave much time for talking (or losing interest) in the music between songs, so it made time go by really quickly.
As far as jammers, in the Bluegrass sense, there were none. The protocol is to give your name, choice of instrument (voice included), and song choices to the sound engineer, and after a few numbers from One-Eyed Jack, they would invite you onstage to either play with them, or solo. There was a guitar player that played with them all night, that was obviously not part of the standard band. He was really good, but I could tell he was nervous. I’m sure in a different setting he would thrive and really show-out. Two drummers joined the band, on different occasions, and faired well, but I could tell that without the standard drummer, the other musicians in the band were having a hard time predicting certain cues. One guy did a solo bit, which was not great, but I’ve heard a LOT worse. The band seemed to know him, so he must be there a lot.
The overall atmosphere was great. The bartenders were really helpful, especially when I asked for a beer that they don’t stock. Instead laughing egregiously at me, he simply suggested an import that might be comparable. Nice touch. The waitress was cordial in asking me if I wanted any refills, or anything else for that matter. There was a $3 cover-charge, and they asked for ID so they could either mark both of my hands with an “X” (under 21), or slap a disposable hospital type bracelet around my wrist.
I had a very enjoyable evening in the end. I didn’t jam, sing, or dance, although several times I wanted to. I’ll definitely go back, and am looking forward to the trip.
The band “One-Eyed Jack” is the house band for the Blind Horse. They are exceptional musicians. They kicked things off with some rocking Country, featuring several new and old styles. They didn’t play a slow song until they returned from their break, which was a sigh of relief from me, and apparently the many line-dancing students that were there. Several of the line-dancers graced the floor the entire time I was there, which was well over 3 hours.
I really enjoyed hearing One-Eyed Jack this time. They didn’t leave much time for talking (or losing interest) in the music between songs, so it made time go by really quickly.
As far as jammers, in the Bluegrass sense, there were none. The protocol is to give your name, choice of instrument (voice included), and song choices to the sound engineer, and after a few numbers from One-Eyed Jack, they would invite you onstage to either play with them, or solo. There was a guitar player that played with them all night, that was obviously not part of the standard band. He was really good, but I could tell he was nervous. I’m sure in a different setting he would thrive and really show-out. Two drummers joined the band, on different occasions, and faired well, but I could tell that without the standard drummer, the other musicians in the band were having a hard time predicting certain cues. One guy did a solo bit, which was not great, but I’ve heard a LOT worse. The band seemed to know him, so he must be there a lot.
The overall atmosphere was great. The bartenders were really helpful, especially when I asked for a beer that they don’t stock. Instead laughing egregiously at me, he simply suggested an import that might be comparable. Nice touch. The waitress was cordial in asking me if I wanted any refills, or anything else for that matter. There was a $3 cover-charge, and they asked for ID so they could either mark both of my hands with an “X” (under 21), or slap a disposable hospital type bracelet around my wrist.
I had a very enjoyable evening in the end. I didn’t jam, sing, or dance, although several times I wanted to. I’ll definitely go back, and am looking forward to the trip.
Welcome.....
With a myriad of jams and live music venues out there these days, it can sometimes be hard to decide just where to go to get your weekly “fix” of music. I aim to either help this, or make it worse. I have a few places that I go to frequently, which will probably end up being a regular feature here, but there are a few places that I go, where I get to hear bands that don’t go to my regular haunts, and I want to make sure that they are covered as well.
The format will not be very structured at first, at least by my standards, but I will eventually come up with a review method that I like and will probably evolve into a standard format. I’ll not only discuss the band whom I’m listening to, but also the venue, the people, and probably the most important part (to me), the jams that inevitably break-out around the hallways and openings of the various places.
I’m hoping to not only express my feelings of what is going on, but to give a full picture of the overall feel and what is happening at each of the places I visit. Many of these places don’t have a web presence, and may not ever, so I hope I can do them justice here with this format. I subscribe to the phrase that pictures are worth 1000 words, and I will post pictures as I can remember to take them, but I rarely think about taking pictures when I’m knee-deep in a Bluegrass jam.
I’ll say now that I’m not going to be objective about some things. I have a very rigid structure in my mind about good music, and if things don’t fall into that structure, I’m going to speak my mind. This may make some folks mad, in fact, I hope it does. I don’t want ill feelings, but if someone is doing something that they shouldn’t I feel someone should let them know how bad it sounds so they can decide whether to continue or not. I think I should also say that I am not a standard audience either. I have had 20 years of musical training and experience, so I’m not going to be hearing things from a layman’s ear. I will hear certain intricacies that a general listener will not hear, and I hate that to an extent, but it’s the way things are, and I’m not going to apologize for it.
So here’s to hoping for a steady blog topic, and many, many opportunities from such. I’ll post my first review/comment blog later today or tomorrow, after my weekly visit to the Oolenoy schoolhouse jam (Pumpkintown, SC).
The format will not be very structured at first, at least by my standards, but I will eventually come up with a review method that I like and will probably evolve into a standard format. I’ll not only discuss the band whom I’m listening to, but also the venue, the people, and probably the most important part (to me), the jams that inevitably break-out around the hallways and openings of the various places.
I’m hoping to not only express my feelings of what is going on, but to give a full picture of the overall feel and what is happening at each of the places I visit. Many of these places don’t have a web presence, and may not ever, so I hope I can do them justice here with this format. I subscribe to the phrase that pictures are worth 1000 words, and I will post pictures as I can remember to take them, but I rarely think about taking pictures when I’m knee-deep in a Bluegrass jam.
I’ll say now that I’m not going to be objective about some things. I have a very rigid structure in my mind about good music, and if things don’t fall into that structure, I’m going to speak my mind. This may make some folks mad, in fact, I hope it does. I don’t want ill feelings, but if someone is doing something that they shouldn’t I feel someone should let them know how bad it sounds so they can decide whether to continue or not. I think I should also say that I am not a standard audience either. I have had 20 years of musical training and experience, so I’m not going to be hearing things from a layman’s ear. I will hear certain intricacies that a general listener will not hear, and I hate that to an extent, but it’s the way things are, and I’m not going to apologize for it.
So here’s to hoping for a steady blog topic, and many, many opportunities from such. I’ll post my first review/comment blog later today or tomorrow, after my weekly visit to the Oolenoy schoolhouse jam (Pumpkintown, SC).
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