The Flesh Eaters @ Pyramid Scheme 3/11

#TMGR Sanctioned Event: Last leg of The Flesh Eaters tour rolls through Grand Rapids March 11 at The Pyramid Scheme. Original 1981 lineup intact: Chris D. (vocals); Dave Alvin (guitar) and Bill Bateman (drums) of the Blasters; John Doe (bass) and D.J. Bonebrake (marimba) of X; and Steve Berlin (saxophones) of the Plugz (later the Blasters and Los Lobos). Word is out on the street about this one. Not to be missed. #punkrock #frightful #live #settopetrify #TMGR @tastemakersgr @TasteMakersGR Taste Makers GR FB   

#TMGR Essential Events May 2018

I’ve Got the Month of May (I Guess You’d Say): #TMGR Essential Events –

Hank Mowery & The Hawktones, Thursday May 10, at Founders Taproom: Harmonica player/singer Hank Mowery has held this particular band together as long as any of them. They’ve toured and recorded themselves into a highly cohesive, dance-friendly unit. Hailing from the southeast corner of the state, drummer/singer Chris “Count” Bracey spent formative years playing in Ann Arbor/Detroit. Keyboardist Chris Corey gigs in jazz bands. Guitarist Troy Amaro owns an amp once belonging to Rick Holmstrom (Mavis Staples, Johnny Dyer, William Clarke).

The Devil Makes Three, Sunday May 13, at The Intersection (Elevation): The folk/blues trio, featuring tenor banjo, return to the Intersection for first visit in new Elevation space.

Big Sandy & his Fly Rite Boys, Monday May 14, at Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill: Western swing, rockabilly, and a doo-wop crooner from California converge nightly on one stage. Bandleader/guitarist Ashley Kingman is as good as they get in all those styles. Upright bass player Kevin Stewart happens to be quite the golfer. Vocalist Big Sandy (Robert Williams) is a nationally recognized MC/host for various roots music causes; with all that going on, you can’t go wrong.

Little Charles Baty, Saturday May 19, Founders: This is the same Little Charlie that fronted Little Charlie & the Nightcats all these years. The guitarist was recently part of the Golden State Lone Star Blues Revue with Mark Hummel (harp) and Anson Funderburgh. #TMGR will keep you updated when we learn the identity of the top-notch players Baty brings along. Jump blues (early rock-n-roll ish) at its danceable finest.

Los Lobos, Friday May 25, Bell's Eccentric Café (Kalamazoo) Editors Choice: First visit to Bell's for iconic East LA crew. The same Los Lobos blues band has been together and through every imaginable thing for over 40 years. Two lead singers add dynamic vital to any live performance. All band members are multi-instrumentalists in folkloric Mexican instrumentation, assorted reeds and flutes, and percussion. Everybody cumbia!

Hank Mowery

Big Sandy

Little Charlie

Los Lobos

Mike Dillon Trio @foundersbrewing 11.25

(Photo credit Lisa Boehm)

Of all the music that spoke to a young Mike Dillon--prog rock, jazz vibe greats Milt Jackson and Bobby Hutcherson--punk rock has had the longest lasting, most viable effect on the versatile New Orleans vibraphonist/percussionist. With the amalgamation of his various trios (Mike Dillion’s Go-Go Jungle) coupled up with the showmanship and raw energy of performance, Dillon ventures forth with bold mallet strikes.

“I was into King Crimson, Yes and, of course, Frank Zappa,” Dillon said in an interview with #TMGR. “Zappa’s humor, his compositions, and the ways he crossed musical boundaries spoke volumes to me.”

But when the punk rock of Mike Watt and The Minutemen came around there was no turning back. Here was yet another musical entity that sought to blur and obliviate conventional lines. Similarly, harmonic battling, tons of movement, and plentiful space are features Dillon values in his current trio.

“I tour with bass, drums, and vibes,” Dillon says. “The first thing the sound guy says is ‘Where’s the guitar?’ I point at the vibes and say this is the guitar tonight.”

Dillon feels it important to give his band members—drummer Brendan Bull and bassist Nathan Lambertson—the freedom to do what they do best as long as they don’t get in the way.  

“It’s pretty much free range chicken in my band,” Dillon said with a laugh. “I get people in my band because I like them. I never tell them what to do or not to do unless it’s something musically I don’t agree with.”

Dillon says the old school punk bands that left an impression veered from Steely Dan covers to ‘Tequila.’ What he’s doing now with his vibe-based outfit is the esthetic concept of The Minutemen and a little New Orleans funk.

“Jazz of the 1950s through the mid-1960s and classic punk rock is where I come from,” Dillon said. “I also study world music and pay respect to it, but I like to mix it all up. To me that’s what jazz is all about.”

Roosevelt Collier + Genetics members & Mike Dillon Trio, 9:30 p.m. Saturday @foundersbrewing

FB Event Page:  https://www.facebook.com/events/1417425045041235/

Grasshoppah at Billy's Lounge Aug 4

Homecoming of Bluegrass jam-band Grasshoppah on Friday: West Michigan favorite reunites for Eastown show with original line up. Guitarist Glenn House moved to Oregon a few years ago, mandolin player Brian Oberlin goes his own way, bassist Chris Carr stays put and gigs with Thirsty Perch Blues Band. They all come together for Grasshoppah 2017 Michigan Tour at Billy’s Lounge August 4. @billyslounge #TMGR @tastemakersgrandrapids @TasteMakersGR

Pilfers @PilfersNYC featuring Coolie Ranx August 13 at Founders Brewing

Veteran singer Coolie Ranx of the Pilfers is thinking it's time to get back to the roots of his performing life. And he's not ready to just phone it in either. Ranx has been on the scene long enough he can essentially write his own ticket about when to perform.

“I have a different strategy right now,” Ranx said. “I can go play the big shows and make the big money. That’s very easy for me to do.”

But he says the chance do something different, meaningful perhaps, is now most important.

“I’m starting again over again,” Ranx said. “I believe I should refresh from where I came from and get a new audience.”

Ranx made his name early on as singer of influential Two Tone, Third Wave ska band the Toasters and many others since (Reel Big Fish, Catch 22, Pietasters). The Toasters were strict traditionalists; his current band is not.  

“It’s a lot different now,” Ranx said of the Pilfers ska/punk style. “It’s not as restrictive as The Toasters. There’s not a set style I have to follow which allows me the freedom to explore and create.”

The brand new Pilfers release, From Far, is a prime example of the musical experimentation he mentions. Ranx says it goes heavy on old-style ska, smidgens of pop, and a dollop of new wave. From Far was recorded with the original band line up along with renowned trumpet player Kevin Batchelor (Steel Pulse, The Skatalites, Keith Richards 2015 disc).

“Each record has similar elements but they’re different,” Ranx said in a recent interview. “This new one is true hardcore punk style with heavy guitar riffs and trumpet over the top.”

The Pilfers show Founders Taproom August 13 spotlights New York musicians on drums, bass, guitar, and trombone—valued instrumentation in the land of live authentic ska.

Ranx says that should the Founders crowd need prodding he’ll be forced to deploy the new tune “Nothing’s Ever Good Enough,” with a driving pulsating beat underneath Batchelor's trumpet, and have the masses take to the dance floor.

“All of my songs are mood songs,” Ranx said. “They go up and down: sentimental, romantic, energized.”

He says the current tour is not just about grabbing the money and running but rather reconnecting and rebuilding his fan base.

“It’s good to go back to the basics,” he says. “It’s humbling and builds character.”

Most of all Ranx insists he’s not afraid of putting forth the effort. He says he's seen what happens to people when they don’t.

“There’s nothing wrong with hard work,” Ranx said. “People get really complacent when it’s just handed to them all the time. They don’t appreciate it in the manner they should.”

Pilfers featuring Coolie Ranx wsg J. Navarro & The Traitors, The Sailor Kicks, 9:30 pm, Saturday at Founders Brewing. 21+ $5

Pilfers Merch: http://pilfers.storenvy.com/

Linsey Alexander Blues Band May 14 at Dreamers Blues Bar Muskegon

Linsey Alexander’s life journey is as familiar as it is timeless: Born in Mississippi, raised in Memphis, and transplanted to Chicago following a girl and work—all part of the historical narrative of African-American blues musicians.

Alexander worked as a cook and later for the Chicago Police Department where he was wounded and received a pension. Times like these would have any other man throwing in the towel and moving to milder climates back home. There must be something about blues music to keep a man going day in and day out after 43 years in the competitive Chicago music environment.

“It’s a job and something to do,” guitarist/singer Alexander said when asked what keeps him engaged. “I make a pretty good buck at it.”

“You have to love the live the life you love and love the life you live,” he adds.

Linsey Alexander and his blues band return to Dreamers Blues Bar in Muskegon on May 14 for a night of world-renown Chicago blues.

Chicago blues bands of today almost always include a steady wallop of bass-driven funk in the repertoire, necessitated to keep crowds interested and gigs coming. Not so, however, with Alexander’s recordings.

“I got no popping bass strings on my records,” Alexander said during a recent telephone interview with #TMGR. “I ain’t trying to take (anything) from the blues. I just leave it where it’s at.”

Where Alexander picks up the blues lineage, in addition to his original compositions often featured on the respected Delmark record label, is in the revered style of none other than B.B. King and Albert King. 

“You got to call the blues where it’s at,” Alexander said. “B.B. is the master of the blues. I don’t care how you put it. Chuck Berry might have brought out the rock-n-roll but Albert King and Albert Collins are the blues.”

Linsey Alexander has spent the last 16 years with a steady gig at Chicago’s world famous Kingston Mines blues nightclub. Lately it’s apparent to Alexander he’s not the man he used to be. But even on nights when the crowd starts out lame he says he doesn’t know any other way but to keep on trying to be the best he can be. 

“It gets in my blood,” Alexander said. “I just like playing guitar and singing. You just have to push yourself out there no matter what.”

Linsey Alexander and band, 8:30 pm (doors 7:30), Saturday, at Dreamers Blues Bar. Dreamers is located at 978 Pine St 49442 in Muskegon. Telephone: (231) 728-9157

Dreamers Blues Bar FB: https://www.facebook.com/Dreamers-Blues-Bar-211298861412/?fref=ts

Linsey Alexander website: http: www.linseyalexander.com

 

Donna the Buffalo at The Intersection April 16

For today’s active touring musician nothing beats a pair of coveralls for crawling around grimy stages setting up gear. Jeb Puryear knows good coveralls when he sees them. The founding member of Donna the Buffalo is often zipping them up when his tour vehicle breaks down.

“We bought our own tour bus early on,” Puryear says as one mechanic of a few who have repaired Donna's vehicles since the beginning. “We were fortunate as a group to be mechanically inclined enough to keep one going.”

For most independent bands, where there is no financier or new deluxe tour coach, band members perform what grunt work they can do for themselves. If anything Donna the Buffalo is a study in self-sufficiency.

Ever popular rock-based zydeco/fiddle outfit Donna the Buffalo brings their unique presentation of music, dance, and social consciousness to the Intersection on Saturday, April 16.

Donna either makes their own records or works with small independent labels like Sugarhill. Puryear admits they’ve "done things in not-so-normal fashion." Call it a lifestyle choice if you will.

“There were no Colonel Parker’s (Elvis Presley manager) here,” Puryear said with a laugh. “Nobody saw us and perceived they could make millions of dollars. But we’ve always been able to make a living and have successful artistic experiences with audiences. For that we are grateful.”

Donna the Buffalo is 26 years into producing their own Finger Lakes and Shakori Hills GrassRoots music events. These festivals take cues from pioneering folk-life celebrations Blissfest and Wheatland in Michigan.

“The definition of a festival is shifting with Coachella calling itself a festival,” Puryear said. “To me they’re more like giant rock concerts in a way.”

For better or worse Puryear’s festival idea has come a long way from the 3-day weekend camping excursion with an emphasis on live roots music. Original organizers probably never imagined a lap top computer would headline the coveted Saturday night slot.

“The organizers of Bonaroo saw our kind of festival as doing well so they said we’re going to make a mega-festival,” Puryear said. “They succeeded in intimating that and now you have massive events like Electric Forrest.”

Women like men who can fix things. They almost always love a man who plays guitar. Puryear not only wields a mean guitar and fiddle but his game with a wrench and ¾ inch socket is strong. He continues this journey because he cherishes his role as a performer in creating an opportunity for all people to be part of something larger than themselves.  

“The feeling is hard to describe sometimes,” Puryear said. “But a show is still about this one thing where the music is really happening and anybody who is there, or within listening distance, can be a part of it. That’s the most amazing thing.”  

Donna the Buffalo wsg Big Dudee Roo April 16 at The Intersection

The Venue: sectionlive.com

The Herd: donnathebuffalo.com

Mavis Staples w/ Rick Holmstrom Band July 9 @ Frederik Meijer Gardens

At one time the mention of amplified harmonica was considered wild and far out. Little Walter and Snooky Pryor experimented with the idea, always looking for the newest thing. No one threw a parade either when they started using tremolo and inserting country & western themes in blues music to make rock-n-roll. But that’s exactly what Chuck Berry and Bo Diddly did--and you know how they are revered today. Although heavily steeped in West coast jump blues tradition, guitarist Rick Holmstrom is of similar ilk. The unassuming Holmstrom is always reaching for the outer limits of the musical Milky Way.

The impetus for Rick Holmstrom’s genre expanding 2002 Hydraulic Groove release, featuring DJ Logic and loops de jour, was found in the making of RL Burnside’s Wish I Was in Heaven Sitting Down (2000), which his band had just worked on.

“On the Burnside disc they asked us to listen to Lowell Fulson’s “Tramp” and Otis Redding’s version too,” Holmstrom told #TMGR. “Then they asked us to play a version of all that. The producers cut it up, made loops out of it and other crazy stuff, and then had RL sing on top of it. I still like that disc. They kept the tones and grittiness of what we did but boosted it up with hip-hop production values.”

“We decided to try the same type of thing with my stuff. I’m influenced by Pee Wee Crayton. So let’s make something that sounds kind of bizarre using electronica and a Pee Wee Crayton idea. That’s how we came up with the song ‘Pee Wee’s Nightmare.’”

Guitarist Rick Holmstrom leads the Mavis Staples band when they appear as part of the Sweet Soul Harmony tour stopping July 9 at Frederik Meijer Gradens.  

Blues music purists can be some of the most intolerant listeners. If you ain’t playing “Sweet Home Chicago” they’re heading for the exit. As you might expect Hydraulic Groove was met with indifference at best.

“For me it was a fun chance to push myself,” Holmstrom said. “I never claimed that it was trying to progress the blues or anything like that. I was just trying to do something creative. Isn’t that what we’re supposed to be doing anyway, creating something not just recreating?" 

As fate would have it there was a sliver lining to all of this. An associate of Holmstrom’s who helped work on that record went on to a future in artist management.

“One of the guys who worked at Tone Cool records (label for Groove), Dave Bartlett, is now Mavis Staples’ manager. Mavis was his first client. I would have never got the Mavis gig if I hadn’t done that record.”

Holmstrom says a big portion of him landing this current job has a lot to do with his willingness to bend rules and think outside the box. In true big picture form he says Hydraulic and the RL Burnside effort might have attracted music fans to the blues who might have otherwise dismissed it.

“There’s a valid argument against doing it,” Holmstrom said of adding hip-hop to blues. “The criticism of that record was not even half the amount of the good things that happened as a result. I think it widens the umbrella that much more.” 

Rick Holmstrom appears with Mavis Staples in the Sweet Harmony Soul tour July 9 @ Meijer Gardens.  

Rick Holmstrom website:  rickholmstrom.com/

The Lustre Kings wsg Truckstop Cobras June 26 @ Tip Top Deluxe

For Mark Gamsjager, guitarist and singer of the Lustre Kings, work life is pretty good right now. His Albany NY-based rockabilly band gigs about 150 dates a year. The versatile unit performs club dates, concerts, and festivals and supplements the rest with weddings and special events. Throw in a newly recorded Luster Kings CD and you can say he is already living the life of a King.

“I manage the band and I have a day job as a school bus driver,” Gamsjager said. “Other than that I work on my guitar playing and singing which keeps me busy.”  

The Lustre Kings bring their heralded brand of East Coast rockabilly to Grand Rapids on June 26 in an 8pm show at the Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill.

Gamsjager is the first to admit he’s not been much of a songwriter. Performing pure DNA songs from the lexicon of American music is really where he’s at.

“My hat is off to anyone who can write quality material,” Gamsjager said. “But there’s so much bad stuff out there too. Maybe I’m not giving myself enough credit to try it. I just don’t have time to sit down and write 12 or 14 songs like they’re all going to be great.” 

The latest CD by the group, Go Green, came out in May. Gamsjager explains how the title and material contained therein by Big Joe Turner, Johnny Horton, plus a new version of Sleepwalk, are essentially re-purposed.   

“Basically I wanted to do a CD of tunes that we do live at a show,” he said. “Every time we play these songs people always ask for them, so we recorded a couple. In a way they’re kind of like recycled songs.”

You might be surprised to learn that Elvis-mania is alive and well all over the world, almost like to it never went away. Every year in January the Lustre Kings embark on a month-long Elvis Birthday Bash Tour.

“I’ve been into this kind of music since I was a kid,” Gamsjager said. “It’s ingrained in me. I am also a big fan of Chuck Berry and the blues." 

Gamsjager has figured out that audiences want to hear what they’ve already heard from the band whether they’re original songs or not. But he admits it is hard work when trying to spruce up the already nattily attired.

“Overall I’d rather record and perform good songs,” Gamsjager said. “There’s a craft to that. I’m not trying to change the world I’m just trying to entertain the best way I know how.”  

The Lustre Kings wsg Truckstop Cobras, 8pm, Friday @ Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill. 

FB Event Page: www.facebook.com/events/923665154366758/

Lustre Kings website: www.lustrekings.com/

Doug Deming & the Jewel Tones w/ Dennis Gruenling 6/13 @ Tip Top Deluxe

Maybe it wasn’t the biggest shock for Dennis Gruenling to find his likeness pasted on the cover of a new Hohner Marine Band Crossover harmonica box, their latest in high performance harps. They would have already seen him around the office or over in Quality Assurance. 

“I’ve been playing Hohner’s since day one, literally,” Gruenling said during a recent tour stop in West Virginia. “I tried others during my first years playing but I kept going back to the Marine Band.”

So now without ever hearing a note you might surmise how Dennis Gruenling, sought-after music instructor and part-time radio host, has the tools to make a run at a spot on the short list of Harp Players to Watch.

Gruenling appears with Doug Deming & the Jewel Tones, one of the very best swing and traditional jump blues bands, in a show Saturday at the Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill.

Ahead of the curve for certain, Gruenling came up ordering and playing specialty low key harmonicas designed by harp historian and technician Joe Filisko. Hohner recently released a line of low key harmonicas similar to Filisko’s customization. Gruenling is a product tester for the German company and helped with the design of this new Thunderbird series.  

“I’ve been playing low tune harps since before my first record in 1999,” Gruenling said. “No one else was even making them back then. I had Filisko custom make me those harps before you could get them anywhere.”

Greunling is all things harmonica if you hadn’t already noticed. But wait, there's more. If you look closely on Saturday you’ll notice the chrome microphone he uses to amplify his instrument. He probably refurbished it himself at some point as part of a side business he runs. Gruenling got into restoring these 1940s-era vintage “bullet” microphones, like the Astatic brand, almost out of necessity.

“When I was first on the scene I bought a microphone from this guy and it didn’t work that well so I kind of got ripped off a little bit,” Gruenling said. “I think because I was so mad at getting ripped off I started looking out for and collecting them. I have hundreds of old vintage microphones. I started repairing them for myself and now I have customers worldwide like Kim Wilson (The Fabulous Thunderbirds), Charlie Musselwhite, and Tom Waits.”

Gruenling

According to Dennis Gruenling, in a fitting gesture, Joe Filisko’s face is purported to grace the covers of the new Thunderbird harmonica box. These guys will say it’s all about nothing but, really, how cool is that?

“It’s kind of like getting your picture on a box of Wheaties,” Gruenling said with a laugh. “Whatever happens I’d still be playing a Hohner no matter what.” 

Doug Deming & the Jewel Tones w/ Dennis Gruenling, 8pm, Saturday @ Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill

FB Event Page (Get signed up and go!)

Dennis Gruenling's Wide World of the Harp and Microphone: badassharmonica.com/
 

Sugar Ray Norcia, Hank Mowery & the Hawktones wsg Nick Moss May 1 at Billy's

(Sugar Ray Norcia)

In 1991 just as singer and harmonica player Sugar Ray Norcia was signing on with the Roomful of Blues band, the latest swing dance/music craze was taking over the US. Luckily Roomful and Norcia already possessed the horn and jump blues credibility to fit right in with the retro crowd of the day.

“We started out in a small cramped van but finally graduated to a tour bus,” Norcia said. “Roomful of Blues did 250 dates a year in those days. I was with them for 7 years and they were some of the best times of my life. My last show was New Year’s Eve 1999.”

Prior to Roomful Norcia had been playing harp and singing for over 10 years with his own jump combo, Sugar Ray & the Bluetones, but this new gig pegged him primarily as a vocalist.

“Understandably with a horn band like Roomful you aren’t going to get the opportunity to play harp much,” Norcia said in an interview before a recent sound check in Wilmington, DE. “I played two harmonica songs per set if that. Above all I wanted the world to see that I could harp.”

West Michigan music lovers have a chance to hear one of today’s best singer/harp players when Sugar Ray Norcia joins Hank Mowery & the Hawtones wsg Nick Moss May 1, at Billy’s Lounge in Grand Rapids.

Over the years Roomful has processed some 55 band members. More than just another hired gun, front man Norcia wielded extra clout.

“When I joined Roomful they hadn’t made a record in 6 years,” Norcia told #TMGR. “I was instrumental in getting them back in the studio and getting the recording ball rolling. I’d say we had good success.”

But what Norcia longed for most was a return to a band where his harp playing reclaimed prominence. He says he feels most comfortable with a smaller band who knows their way around the intricacies of the singer out front. That is one reason why Norcia showed no hesitation in accepting a recent offer to play with the Nick Moss Band from Chicago.

“I didn’t even bat an eye, didn’t even think twice,” Norcia said. “Nick and I played together a bit in Chicago at Buddy Guy’s club Legends. We’ve passed paths many times throughout the years. I know he’s played with some of the same people I have like Jimmy Rogers.”

So similar is their influence and experience there was no discussion about which material to cover for a recent East coast tour “we just got together and went,” Norcia says.

The legend of home town backing bands is among the richest of blues traditions. The local guy accompanying distinguished visitors is storied practice. So if a first-call backing band is what Norcia expects, such a band he will get in the form of Hank Mowery & the Hawktones. Mowery’s been working hard at this band stuff; he is currently paid up on all his dues. His fellow Hawktones boast experience with harp heavies like Dennis Gruenling, Jim Liban, and Gary Primich. Nick Moss fills the role of honorary Hawktone this particular evening.

Norica and the Bluetones spent their youth welcoming to the East coast and playing behind Chicago blues luminaries Otis Rush, J.B. Hutto, and Hubert Sumlin. With recent opportunities to tour with current Chicago blues bands he says his musical world feels more complete.  

“Now Nick Moss and these guys are doing the same thing I did by offering to tour and play behind me. It’s pretty cool, like I’ve gone full circle.” 

Sugar Ray Norcia, Hank Mowery & the Hawktones CD release party for Excuses Plenty wsg Nick Moss, 9:30 p.m. Friday at Billy's Lounge. $7

The band plays the 8th annual White Lake Blues Festival, 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Howmet Playhouse (Whitehall, MI) see www.killerblues.net/ for more info

'Freedom & Dreams' by North Mississippi Osborne (N.M.O.)

Freedom & Dreams (2015) by N.M.O. is the result of a recent collaboration between Luther & Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars and New Orleans singer-songwriter Anders Osborne. Freedom & Dreams sounds as if the North Mississippi Allstars dropped a yard of fertile heritage soil on a Delta blacktop with Osborne’s evocative lyrics seeding the top. Kneel down, breathe, feel the moist life-giving nutrient between your fingers. The blossoms harken a timeless portrait of southern folk life today. Freedom and Dreams is the smell of dust, flowing water, soybeans and sweet potatoes. You can almost hear the droning insects on a steamy late afternoon heading towards sundown (Many Wise Men). NMA’s time-honored musical approach is firmly rooted in the Mississippi hill country blues region of Otha Turner and Junior Kimbrough. Throughout the recording Osborne gives a sturdy but tender voice to the hill country spirits; he paints a picture of the American south so accurate it somehow contradicts with his Swedish homeland upbringing (Junco Pardna). All of these guys were influenced by the jam bands of their generation; Osborne still plays with members of the Grateful Dead (Brush Up Against You). At press time personnel credits were sparse for Freedom & Dreams. As expected Luther Dickinson’s slide work is the sinewy thread that holds it all together. Brother Cody's textured percussion is spot on; he also finds added piano playing time. 

North Mississippi Allstars & Anders Osborne present North Mississippi Osborne (N.M.O.), 7:30pm, Thursday at the Intersection.

Sectionlive.com event page

Purchase N.M.O. Freedom & Dreams link  
 

JJ Grey & MOFRO March 1 at the Intersection

Photo by Jim Arbogast

It’s been a tough year for blues-based band institutions from the southeastern part of the US. The Allman Brothers Band called an end to their long and storied career; they go out on top. Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes throws the towel directly at the other founding members of the band; the Crowes limp to the sideline for now. Bands Galactic and Dumpstafunk are still up and running although their New Orleans funk qualifies them for categorization of their own. As horn-driven, Hammond organ-grounded, soul singer-led, recording and touring acts go JJ Grey & MOFRO and the Tedeschi Trucks band remain atop a dwindling lot.

Grand Rapids music lovers get a rare chance to see a southern soul music scene contender when JJ Grey & MOFRO, America’s premier rock/funk/blues/jam band, makes a March 1 stop at the Intersection in Grand Rapids.

Tedeschi Trucks and JJ Grey go back many years now and both approach their zenith at about the same time. Plus they share more than a geographic association: MOFRO’s Todd Smallie played bass with the Derek Trucks Band for 15 years.  

“Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks are the matriarchs and patriarchs at the top now,” Grey said on the way to a recent tour stop in New York. “I wouldn’t be able to do what I do today if it wasn’t for them. Susan’s given me so many opportunities back in the day to open up for her. Derek obviously did for years and they still do.”

“It’s great to see Tedeschi Trucks doing so well. I think it inspires other bands and cats like us at the lower level. They're lighting the way, so to speak.”

Grey is a singer/songwriter at heart, trapped in a surfer’s body. And like a lot of surfers growing up in Jacksonville FL he felt the impact of the hip-hop movement early on. Grey recalls kids from high school, with aspirations of becoming DJs, pretending to scratch records on imaginary turntables on the dashboard of their cars.

“I just downloaded By the Time I Get to Arizona by Public Enemy the other day,” Grey confided. “I’m a big fan of Hank Shocklee (Public Enemy Bomb Squad) and Chuck D’s voice. I loved all that stuff: Run/DMC, Sugar Hill Gang, the Beasties.”

Even before the hip-hop bug bit Grey, he recognized how the songs of his biggest musical hero, country funk pioneer Jerry Reed (Lord, Mr. Ford), were partly spoken and partly sung. Grey cites his own songs in that vein as “70 percent Jerry, 30 percent hip-hop influenced.” So if you detected a hint of spoken word on Grey’s song “Your Lady, She’s Shady,” which Grey now says is “70 percent hip-hop, 30 percent Reed,” you are correct.

“I wanted to tell that story but it didn’t make any sense to just sing-it, sing-it. It made more sense to do it like Reed and talk-sing it.”

Grey plays guitar and harmonica in performance but he’s primarily a soul singer and lyricist with original compositions. He’s certainly not down with telling anyone how to feel or what to think. But if you go to one of his shows to forgo life’s reality for a spell, as people often do, Grey suggests that you be open to all manner of truth. In other words you might go instead to embrace reality for a couple of hours rather than not.

“How great the show is always rests on one factor: how much are you are truly there?” Grey said. “How far are you willing to go into all the moments while you’re there? The deeper you go into that, the more real everything is. The more real it gets the better the chance you’ll have a real relationship with yourself and everyone around you. My goal is to share an honest moment with everybody.”

JJ Grey & MOFRO wsg The London Souls, 7pm, Sunday at The Intersection in Grand Rapids

Sectionlive.com event page

JJ Grey web presence

The London Souls webpage

Celebration of Friendship Aimee Warren Fundraiser Jan 25 at Billy's

Restaurant and hospitality workers share a kinship not readily apparent in other professions. Their bond is a solid one forged over staff Christmas parties in January and service industry recognition nights at corner pubs.

This spirit of togetherness and caring goes on display Sunday January 25 at Billy’s Lounge when a fundraiser is held to help cover medical expenses for longtime bar employee Aimee Warren. Warren, on leave from her managerial position at Mulligan’s, is currently undergoing treatment for cancer.

The afternoon will feature live music, a silent auction, and raffles. There is a $10 suggested donation at the door.

“Dennie Middleton is taking care of the entertainment,” event organizer Rick Dion said. “Dennie’s got three different acts he does. He’ll have various guests showing up at different times including some from Papa Vegas.”

“We’re open all day at Billy’s but we start this at 4:00. We’re also having a live auction for a couple of the bigger items.”

Dion says people have been dropping off goods at Billy’s all week. Among the items lined up for the raffle are a new iPad and a yet-to-be-determined amount of cash money to be auctioned off. Prizes so far include a drum head signed by Mick Fleetwood of Fleetwood Mac, an autographed picture of Conway Twitty, and other music memorabilia.

“So far we’ve got gift cards from several different restaurants,” Dion said of the items donated. “Smitty’s Specialty Beverage is putting together a craft beer basket. Billy’s is doing liquor baskets with various liquor swag included.”

“I think we’ve had a pretty good response so far. Many people have called me out of the blue for this one.”

You might not recognize Warren’s name right off but chances are you’ve seen her working behind the bar somewhere in West Michigan during the past 30 years. Her employment resume reads like a Who’s Who of local dining and entertainment establishments: Tootsie Van Kelly’s, Shout!, The B.O.B, Billy’s Lounge, Elbow Room, Mulligan’s Pub. 

“We started planning this around Christmas,” Dion said. “Dennie picked a date that he could make work with his band mates. But it’s been a short process.”

Due to the tight window of time they’ve had to operate under, Dion says he’s hoping word of mouth will help get people in the door on Sunday. All that remains is delivery of the items and services to the donation location.

We all know how life often presents the unexpected challenge however Dion sounds like he’s taking this latest development in stride. 

“Never would I have guessed that something like this would come about,” he said. “It was completely unexpected. She’s a vibrant healthy person and all of a sudden this caught us off guard.”

Celebration of Friendship Aimee Warren Fundraiser, 4-9 pm, January 25, Billy’s Lounge, 1437 Wealthy St SE. $10 suggested donation. Bands scheduled to appear include American Heartbreakers, The Hype, Bimini Brothers, plus special guests. 

Donations can be made by contacting Rick Dion (616) 293-9352 (rickdion7@gmail.com) and Dennie Middleton (616) 260-8947 (denmid@comcast.net)

Link to Facebook event page

Dan Tedesco Jan 8 at Founders Taproom

Singer/songwriter Dan Tedesco is one of the fortunate few to attend college based on musical talent--in a warm climate, no less. The Chicagoland native was the recipient of a scholarship to the music school at Arizona State University.

“I was given a scholarship to study jazz performance for guitar and that helped me make my decision initially to go in that direction,” Tedesco said during in a recent interview.

But after two years in Tempe he says the educational side of music was getting mechanical and a little too scientific

“That’s not a bad thing to explore,” Tedesco said of the rigors of advanced study. “But I felt like it was getting to the point where if I kept going down that road I might lose my original attachment to music.” 

Faced with delving deeper and deeper into the theoretical side of things, including melodies that were derived from mathematical sets, Tedesco switched study areas for fear of losing the organic accent.

“I graduated with a double minor in music and business,” Tedesco said. “I did that to get more of a well-rounded experience and knowledge before I was done.”  

Folk/rock musician Dan Tedesco looks to put his musical education in the spotlight when he appears January 8 at Founders Taproom.

Tedesco acknowledges one thing the music regiment at the college level taught him: the importance of overstepping your comfort zone.

“It’s a healthy thing to stretch your brain and push yourself in areas where you might not stumble on your own because that’s how you grow,” Tedesco said.

Sticking with the fundamental side of music has paid off for Tedesco. To date he's recorded 3 CDs including the 2014 release Death in the Valley. 

On Death in the Valley, Tedesco addresses the exploration of human habits and ditching of stagnant routines. Conceptual topics center on growth, endings, and renewal. He said the record examines how life leads to death but how death also leads to new life; good things are born out of the expiration of old ideas. The songs appear tailor made for the season.

“It’s never too late to try something new,” Tedesco said. “Challenge is the only way you grow. It’s important not be afraid of it.”

Above all some of these guys talk the good talk. What shakes out in the end is sometimes interesting. Tedesco, however, sounds like he’s walking the walk.

“It’s a hard thing to say goodbye to something you’re comfortable with because it’s going to be different in the morning,” Tedesco said. “That’s a scary thing but also very exciting and that is important to remember.” 

Dan Tedesco wsg Nicholas James & Bigfoot Buffalo, 9:30, Thursday, at Founders Taproom. Free

Founders dot com event page

Nathan Kalish and the Lastcallers Dec 20 at Elk Brewing

On Saturday night Nathan Kalish and the Lastcallers whisk into Grand Rapids on a greased rail looking all the while like svelte short track speed skaters. OK, it’s more likely the twangy twosome shows up wearing football helmets and double runner skates. Either way, dagnabbit, these boys kick up a rooster tail spray of musical ice chunks on the hard stop and turn.

The last time Kalish and company were on this end of town it was a Thursday night at Elk. They went on to play an unprecedented six more times in the area--including two gigs in one day—at the Intersection and Salt of the Earth in Fennvile, among others. But that’s the kind of crazy schedule it’s been for Kalish in 2014.

Nathan Kalish and the Lastcallers are set to let the yuletide ring with a memorable holiday show December 20 at Elk Brewing in Grand Rapids.

“We’ve been all playing over the country all year, pretty much any place that will have us,” Kalish said. “We played upstate New York at the B-Side Ballroom in Oneonta a couple of months ago. Then we played the Taste of the Catskills festival. They let us go on the big stage second to last and gave us food tickets for all the local vendors.”

Their most recent travels have landed them in Nashville. TMGR caught up with Kalish as he was going over to the studio to put finishing touches on a new project.

"Me and Eric Soules (dog house bass) made a record of the songs we've been playing on the road all year," Kalish said. "We had our buddy Robbie Saunders from Texas put guitar on it. Next we're adding pedal steel and other instruments.”  

Kalish says he’s enlisting help from the Nashville music community, utilizing the many connections he’s made over the past two years.

“Next we're doing overdubs from other people we know from around the country,” Kalish said of the recording process. “It's turning out pretty good too.” 

Kalish is excited to feature the talents of producer Gordon Hammond. Hammond is considered the go-to guy for his recent work with Willie Nelson and Don Williams.

“Gordon is about our age,” Kalish said. “He’s worked on some very cool stuff.”

Kalish says together they are trying to capture the essence of the stripped down, minimalist early Sun records days

“It’s country and roots music,” Kalish said of the new material. “We’re striving for the sound of the Tennessee Two.”

The historic sound of early Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two never featured a drummer. Kalish is steadfast in following that inspiration to the letter.

“We don’t do drums ever,” Kalish said. “The no-drum thing doesn’t affect the band at all.”

Kalish says he and Soules provide more than enough rhythm, particularly on the rocking numbers when they employ what has become known as the "freight train" sound.

“Drums don’t make it more fun or upbeat,” Kailsh said. “In fact it detracts from the fun because they’re so loud and distracts from the rhythm sometimes. 

“We’re a rock-n-roll band,” Kalish points out. “You can play faster, tighter grooves with no drummer. That’s what makes it fun.” 

Nathan Kalish and the Lastcallers, 8-11pm, December 20 at Elk Brewing.

Connect on FB: https://www.facebook.com/events/307483172791671/?ref_dashboard_filter=upcoming

The Toasters NYC Ska Oct 26 at Founders Brewing

A defiant punk attitude lives on in Robert “Bucket” Hingley. When Hingley started his ska band the Toasters in New York City in 1981 he was influenced by the 2 Tone bands he was hearing in his native England. 2 Tone music is characterized by the infusion of energetic punk rock with traditional horn-based sounds coming from Jamaica.  After 35 years in the business, including stints as record company owner and industry consultant, Hingley maintains an anti-establishment streak true to his punk roots.

“Streaming music services like Pandora have totally undercut the hard sales of CDs.” Hingley said. “We are expected to provide content for virtually free. The music business is now the enemy of the musician. How distorted is that?”

True originators of the Third Wave of Ska, The Toasters bring their energetic, dance-friendly presentation to Founders Brewing on October 26.

As royalty checks shrink more music acts are forced to remain on the road touring. It’s the only way they can make money.

"There's a downward squeeze from the top of the music industry," Hingley tells TMGR. "Bigger acts are playing smaller rooms. There are almost too many bands out there."

As an independent record company owner (Megalith Records) Hingley is a witness to the change of scenery and tactics of big record companies.

“There are hardly any indie labels anymore,” Hingley said. “Mainstream record companies are vultures. I prefer not to deal with them.”

With no distribution available for independent records, indie labels can't survive in the current zero income scenario, Hingley said.

The Toasters are renowned for blending ska with rap, R&B, and calypso. They've endured for the simplest of reasons. 

“Musically the band is back to playing American 2-tone which is where we started. But the landscape for indie bands is extremely desolate.”

Hingley feels the ska bands of the 1990s disappeared for one reason. They weren’t really ska bands.

“Music lovers know what’s going on,” Hingley said. “People want to see the real deal. That’s what we bring them every night.” 

The Toasters wsg The Sailor Kicks, 9 pm Oct 26, at Founders Brewing. Free. 

Connect to event: http://foundersbrewing.com/taproom-events/toasters/