Whisky Priest - Dustin Welch.

Dang.. I should have known Jessie with MusicFog.com would have recorded a song I've fallen in love with...#25 in the 40 day journey.

Phoebe Hunt - what a talent

First I need to apologize, it is totally unacceptable to not post to this blog at least once a week.  February 1st to February 19th means that my weekends have been filled, thus no Saturday mornings to blog in excitement for either a new artist, a new song, something funny, or something about Mary (Lady that is for you blog followers).

So this morning finds me with a half hour to ponder the past posts that should have happened since I'm sitting I a hotel room waiting to go a funeral.  Sadly my fourth this year.

Enough with the banter, let's talk about Phoebe Hunt.  A little over a month ago I got an email from my friends at the Pump House that the ticket sales had been slow for Phoebe's show and could I help.  Well a quick view of the MusicFog.com video, and I was hooked.  Readers of the blog know I'm a sucker for a pretty fiddler that I should add a post just to give them all a shout out.  Quickly I was in for Two then quickly 4 tickets with friends.  Gave it a shout out on my FB page, the Great River Folk Fest page, and of course the House Concert page.  Then sadly, I put it out of my mind and got back to the many things that I'm behind on.



Before the concert I did have a chance to hear that circumstances put Phoebe playing alone, and while I wondered how a solo fiddler can pull it off, I've booked a solo bassist Seth Horan and marveled.  Figured I was still going to enjoy it.

Well another busy Saturday rolled around, quick clean of the house, organize Church music, practice and play for a service, put our faces in to a birthday party and run down to LaCrosse for the concert.  Tony was nice enough to reserve seats for some of the help we did so we were the last to sit down and the concert started at 7:30.  Phoebe can in shyly with a uke in her hand and sang Good Blood, and it just put a smile on my face.  It would be a great night.



About the third or fourth song in she mentioned that she used to tour with the Belleville Outfit, and the light went on... I knew that name before and I of course had a crush on her before.  A quick search found two other postings.  That was back in my MySpace days, and it seems I lost track of both the Belleville Outfit and Phoebe after I left my MySpace Zeman persona dry up.  Good thing I've maintained the blog.

Since that night I've kept in touch with Phoebe, a wonderful soul on top of a fantastic.  She even does a live one hour show every Monday in Concert Window.  There should be more in this blog about her, and when I find time there will be.  Got to run and have to add in the other things I've been up to.. I promise to be a better blogger.  Her website is filled with music, but to see her live is really when you sense the humble twinkle mixed up with amazing talent and lots of passion.

And if you would like to watch a nice half hour set from SXSW 2013: here you go...

Merry Christmas it's Danny..

In keeping with Small Business day yesterday, I bought a few cd's from artists I hosted at my house concert yesterday.  Two from Danny Schmidt... the new great Texas poet.  Here is from my favorite music video channel, Music Fog.



The song above is Better off Broke, and Carrie Elkin (Danny's fiance) was on harmonies.

Lyrics below from Danny's site:


BETTER OFF BROKE

All by my lonesome and by myself
Ain't no soul left this boy can sell
Cause there ain't no reason to make no rhymes
Oh child, you're right on time

Oh child, the things I could tell
The things I could tell you, but you already know
Those rhymes ain't cards you play like poker
They're jokers so hold 'em til the fools all fold

So the child came over or the child came out
Speakin' in a whisper what a man might shout
About dreams and devils and dollars and dimes
Oh child, you're right on time

Oh child, the things I could tell you
The things I could tell you, but you already know
Keep drawin' them dreams in the dirt with your finger
Cause singin's about bringin' that mud some soul

So we sing all night and we talk all day
And we sleep while the farmers of the world make hay
And throw pennies in the well, and we pull back wine
Oh child, you're right on time

Oh child, the things I could tell you
The things I could tell you, but you already know
Water to wine and wine to wishes
And wishes to something you can drink down cold
Why now, why all now?
Hope's just something we need somehow
Why now, why all now?
Tomorrow ain't going away

Golden-tongued child and a fireside night
Spittin' songs in the kettle with the heat up high
When the blood's to a boil then the soup's sublime
Oh child, you're right on time
Oh child, the things I could tell you
The things I could tell you, but you already know
You're better off broke with soup in your belly
Than sittin' there hungry round a pot of gold
Copyright 2008. Words and music by Danny Schmidt.

Carll Hayes & Bonnie Whitmore

My absolutely new favorite song... "you're probably a democrat... " Such a great duet that I first found on a free iTunes mix on SXSW, but leave it to MusicFog.com to have another fantastic video.

Wow the Trishas blew me away...

After I heard this song thru the help of MusicFog.com, I rushed out and bought all 5 songs they had available in iTunes.

Old Tin Can by Catherine MacLellan

Another gem from Music Fog

Daily song : Heroes : Train people

I grew up blocks away from a train track. In my childhood, I was immersed in Johnny Cash. Then came my formative music life, you know when you know it all.... late teens early twenties... then it was Prine, Goodman, and Croce. Trains are in my gypsy blood, and I think even the bums are heroes. Here's a great video of Todd Snider done by who else... MusicFog.com



There... I think I caught up now... sorry I lost a day or so along the way.

Bonnie Bishop "Every Time You Come Around"

Wow... the beautiful & soulful Bonnie Bishop.. another great video from MusicFog.com... and read their blog HERE

The Trishas "Blue" from MusicFog.com

Leave it to MusicFog.com to introduce me again to a wonderful band, The Trishas.Per their MySpace they are :

The Trishas got together towards the end of 2008 for what they thought was gonna be one show, a tribute to songwriter Kevin Welch at 2009's Steamboat Music Festival. The four songstresses, Jamie Wilson, of the sweetheart band of the hill country The Gougers, Liz Foster, late of Liz & Lincoln, Kelley Mickwee, formerly of Jed & Kelley, and Kevin's daughter Savannah Welch, permanently and evermore of the Welch clan, came together to do just that, sing...for the sake of the songs. And sing they did, around one microphone until there wasn't a single dry eye in the place.From the moment they stepped off the stage, it was obvious to all attending that this wasn't just for one show, no matter what they said.

To give you an idea of the sound you'll hear, think of what would happen if Texas dirt, Mississippi River water, City Lights, and Apple Pie all sat down in a pickin' circle at an Austin, TX backyard party. This combination creates a kind of soul that no definition is worthy to define, and plants a seed of bluegrass that gives blues a place to grow from. Add a couple country accents, a lot of truth to be told, and rhythm you couldn't shake a stick at...but you'll want to...and you've got The Trisha



And earlier they we recorded :

Yonkers NY, Chip & Kendel

So after reading Wildy's review of Chip Taylor's Yonkers NY it was on my mental list to go to iTunes and check for Charcoal Sky. So wouldn't you guess the best internet video place MusicFog.com would post it in a video with that hard to look at fantastic fiddle player named Kendel Carson. So I'm off to iTunes now with TWO songs in my head...

Send for me...

I had a great night listening to incredible taped live music on Music Fog. This one touched me as new but old....



of course the intimacy of their recording and James McMurtry's lyrics and vocal interpretations... (a 12 string no less)



This is only a taste.... great music tastes from a person with great connections and great equipment...

In case Music Fog doesn't exist anymore

It just might have to do with this:

JD Souther

Wow.... can I die and be reborn as MusicFog.com? I am sooooo envious, but at the same time thankful.

Belleville Outfit

When in doubt how to spend five minutes of time to kill... go to Music Fog's You Tube site So it'll be a good day if I ever get a chance to see this group... wow another female fiddle player that I'm in love with, and I don't know her name yet. The group, three acoustic guitarists? they must love to hang with her too.... as a commenter mentioned though the 3rd guitar player is normally their keyboard player... a quick stop to their website....http://bellevilleoutfit.com/cms/ and you will be wowed.

Black T-Shirts by Slaid Cleeves

I ran into Slaid from the oddest of marketing gimmics, but it worked. iTunes has collections that are called Essentials, so I meandered through Essentials in Folk Music or Americana or something like that and ran into that story telling voice that I love so much in Broke Down. Since I've dabbled through a few of records, and bought the CD called Unsung. I have never been disappointed. Today I ran into the second video from an account called Music Fog I highly recommend if you like good acoustic music subscribe to this YouTube account, or even go to their website, http://www.musicfog.com/ where they add stories to the videos.


So here's the Broke Down story that got me hooked:


And the new Video from Music Fog: