Last night Zinnia got back from house-sitting at around 5:00. I had a little amplifier set up on a kitchen chair and a bigger one plugged in in the living room with a mic propped in a shoe a few feet in front of it. (The even bigger ones weren’t in use that day). I had been recording, in stereo, a few single distorted notes and some feedback for a remix for a download EP to be entitled either “Comets” or “Et Tu, Bruno?”, depending.
While we ate dinner I made the first copies of the forthcoming Amanda Jo Williams cassette release, which will feature live clips from Abuelita’s (featuring Kevin Killen on lap steel) and our KXLU appearance from May (which you can look at here, bear with the sound: http://kxlu.typepad.com/wes/2010/06/51710-amanda-jo-williams.html) …
Then we headed for one of my favorite venues, Viento y Agua in Long Beach, where I played a 45-minute set of improvised acoustic guitar music (one, maybe two, long suites) to about three people. There were more there when I started. I have cleared rooms faster, but usually when I am playing louder.
Next we went to the Cinema Bar in Culver City. We missed Tommy Santee Klaws but when we walked in Moris Tepper was partway through his set. He invited me up to play so I plugged in and did my best Robbie Robertson / Blonde On Blonde for the next six or seven tunes.
Then it was Amanda’s turn so we got that all set up … did I mention the tiny room was packed? Props to BIKOS who put the night together … we played a stomping Amanda set, loose and wiggy, complete with 12 minutes of May The Circle Be Unbroken to close it out. Lots of long jams, people dancing, weird noises, and the bass player from Tommy Santee Klaws (whose name, strangely, is Tom) was wearing an amazing coat that I stared at through most of our set.
During Bikos closing set (I believe they opened as well) Abilene explained to me how she is part mermaid and then headed for the ocean.
Somehow when I wasn’t looking, I got a lot of shows on my calendar … for example:
Saturday March 27 2010 Amanda Jo Williams record release party
featuring Matthew O’Neill, He’s My Brother She’s My Sister, Paul McMahon, others
will be performing at The Echo Country Outpost 1930 Echo Park Ave, Echo Park, Los Angeles, California, 90026
6pm, all ages, $5
followed immediately by
Saturday March 27 2010 (later on that night) Cricket & The 2:19
with special guests Jon Franco, Jef Hogan and Secret Weapon Woody
will be performing at TAIX 1911 Sunset Boulevard, Echo Park, Los Angeles, CA 90026
all ages, 10pm, free
… that should be a full night. In the afternoon I’m driving out to Whittier and Pico Rivera to collect Jon Franco (Cricket drums) and Secret Weapon Woody (guest Cricket guitar) and bringing them to Jef’s house for a quick rehearsal. Jef is playing electric bass that night with Cricket and also playing upright bass with Amanda Jo.
After that rehearsal, I have to split back to Echo Park because I am playing bass with Matthew O’Neill at Amanda’s record release party around 6:15pm. Then I’m playing guitar with Amanda. Then I’m hauling my ass over to TAIX to play guitar with Cricket.
Fortunately both shows are in Echo Park which makes this not just easy but fun. I am especially looking forward to playing again at the Echo Country Outpost … then again, TAIX gives me awesome dinner. It’s a toss-up.
Meanwhile…
Thursday April 1 2010 Amanda Jo Williams and Matthew O’Neill / 6Jaguar
will be performing at Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace 53688 Pioneertown Road, Pioneertown, CA 92268
That one’s out in the desert, folks. Not sure where (or if or how) I’m sleeping that night … but I guarantee the gig will be lovely. I’m playing guitar with Amanda Jo and bass with Matthew, Jef will be out there to play upright bass with Amanda, and Tribe Of Scott Keil will be along to drum with Matthew. Any excuse to go to the desert, and devil take the logistics.
Now, how about this: looks like I booked a show for my own band, for a change! How’d that happen?? We’re gonna have Simon Thomsen (of Cricket & The 2:19) on the drums, something I’ve been wanting to do for months and months; Jef Hogan on the bass; and Secret Weapon Woody on the guitar (gotta get my use out of that boy before he goes back to Seattle!) …
Friday April 9 2010 5-TRACK (glass goblins)
will be performing at Abuelita’s
137 S. Topanga Canyon Blvd. Topanga, CA 90290
10pm, 21+, free
There’s more after that. But I don’t want to think that far ahead. We’re also moving house this week. With luck, all the music I’m playing will give me the strength I need to move all the books and records and CDs and cat and etc
{March 12, 2010}
I had the opportunity to play two wonderful shows this week, both with Amanda Jo Williams.
The first was held at a place called the Echo Country Outpost, which co-owner Chris insists is “not a venue”! What it is, is, is a funky little store on Echo Park Blvd (corner of Duane, out past Chango a ways) that I couldn’t tell exactly what they sell but I am certain it is cool, whatever it is.
For the occasion (perhaps the first show held there? perhaps it will be a monthly event from here out?) a stage existed at the back of the main room, on which played first a group (in this instance a duo tho sometimes they are larger) called Verb The Adjective Noun. Originally from Boston, temporarily not living in their bus, they were very tight and propulsive, not just for a duo but all around. One of them played guitar and sang, and the other played guitar, banjo and lap steel with equal and impressive facility. Good vocal harmonies. Rootsy without spilling either too far into tradition or too far into singer-songwriter ickiness.
The headliners, Abilene of whom I believe set up the show, were called Sundays Soundtrack. They had a wonderful upright bassist and two wonderful women and they were vibey and moody and harmonistic and bouyant and I enjoyed them a lot.
We played in between.
So, a little show in a little store, but there were at least 60 people in there which made it FULL, and I don’t think I’d ever met more than a half dozen of them before. We had a rough set, new bass player (he did a fine job, but it was his first show with us) and tuning issues for me and Amanda, but the people really dug it, they laughed with us not at us and by the end we had a wonderful energy going, the best energy I’ve felt in a room yet at a Los Angeles show. Score one for Echo Country!
…
OK, and then last night we played at the Echo Curio, which is very possibly my favorite in-town venue to play at. It’s run by the awesome Grant-and-Justin dynamic duo, there’s an amazing stream of art that passes across the walls and a room full of weird records for cheap, we played at the top of a bill of ridiculously talented women (which was a new and wonderful context to hear Amanda’s music in) and once again a room full of 60 total strangers and a few good friends just dug us to death, kept us going for an extra tune or so past what Amanda had intended to play. Let me tell you, we felt GOOD. And the new bass, upright Jef Hogan (with one ‘f’), really makes it.
Also on the bill last night were Fort King (who I didn’t get to hear cos I was eating a burrito next door, but they were very nice) … Beliss, a duo of sisters (I am told) whose vocal harmonies are unusual and beautiful and who feature lush acoustic guitar voicings and electric-upright bass-playing to die for. Or at least to swoon about … and Ora Cogan, who might be a cosmic parallel to Elizabeth Cotton or Karen Dalton, who sings like no one else I’ve heard (beautifully, swoopingly, in a round and full voice) and who coaxes lovely rich tones from an electric hollowbody Gibson tuned in an array of unusual manners.
Jon Franco said (words to the effect of) “Hey guys, you know what? Me and my roommate Josh were thinking we should have a benefit, you know? For, like, Haiti? Since we’re all musicians and this is a way we could do what we do and try to make a difference. You know? Guys?”
So we all said, “Sure, go for it!”
And Scott Keil said, “Oh, hey, you got it man,” and he went and found a venue (Los Angeles Music Academy, in Pasadena, where Scott went to school and where he is now employed) and some sponsors (Red Cross, Habitat For Humanities) and set up about twenty bands, who were generally amazing (I was in three of them, and I had friends in a few more, and then there were these amazing 70s-era samba-funk people from Brazil called “Muamba” and some great locals called “Big Moves” … and on and on…) and there was food and two stages in different rooms and … wow … what a solid cool day. Mad thanks to everyone who put it together.
I’m pretty sure John Boyd got Cricket’s and Amanda Jo’s sets on video, so those might show up online eventually. Amanda’s set included debut performances of her songs “Get It On Up” and “Ho Dogs Rocka Rocka Anybody See Them” and also guest performances by Jef Hogan (electric bass guitar) and Jym “Snake” Fahey (harmonica).
A while back, a local organisation called “When You Awake” (named perhaps after the tune by The Band?) which is dedicated to the celebratory perpetuation of neo-retro faux-rural style and culture (though they don’t phrase it that way) took part in a George Harrison Tribute Concert at Spaceland, to raise money for a charity intending to get music lessons to needy kids.
I had the good fortune to be in one of the bands recruited to perform: the Amanda Jo Williams band. We played three songs, with special guests including a tap-dancer and a moog-ist. The house band was SICK good!! Andy Creighton and company. Solid work - we didn’t have a single rehearsal.
I had been hoping for videos of our set to turn up, and they have not, but When You Awake has posted a recording… for the full story and the complete show, dig their site.
Meanwhile, here’s our three tunes for your consideration:
Not so often I get to play with a really good band to a packed room of muy enthusiastic dancing fools. This was a highlight of my musical life, so I’m passing on to you THE ENTIRE SET, in no particular order. If the footage from Boyd’s camera, whenever it turns up, has better sound, I will post that as well (or instead or something). Z took these. Enjoy!
