The Ponkiesburg Pickin' Party

Tonight, Sean Kershaw is doing his weekly gig at Hill Country, the Sheriff will of course preside over NYC's longest-running bluegrass and old-time jam, and there's music all over Brooklyn -- gypsy jazz in Park Slope, western swing in Red Hook (as a matter of fact, I believe Sunny's is just about the farthest west you can go in Brooklyn), and various roots and rucki in JAB, which is what I just decided to christen the neighborhood Just Above the Battery tunnel.

Thursday night, Boo and Elena host the 2nd annual Mandolin Festival. Everyone will be there. Just go, and settle in for a long and amazing night.

Friday, John Pinamonti plays Jalopy along with Rebecca Turner and the American String Conspiracy. Sunday, Harry Bolick runs a workshop on old Mississippi fiddle tunes and believe me, he knows those tunes, and all their weird and wonderful rhythms. The Paddy Reilly's jam starts at 5, the Birdhive Boys play late at National Underground, and Ponkiesburgers will be picking and partying at Kili, starting around 5.

Jamie Lyn came back to NY to host another great Honky Tonk Angels show, at the venerable Hank's Saloon. I got there in time to catch her set, with Kari back on the fiddle and a great new guitarist named Matt. (Who seems to be following Charlie Shaw's lead in taking his shoes off when he plays, which is something I'd think twice about doing on that stage.)

From there I headed down to Jalopy where M. Shanghai had the house full with their CD release party. There were so many people on stage it took three songs for me to notice Hilary Hawke sitting in with them. Guest stars, harmonicas and saws, and all the usual insanity.

Then down to Sunny's for a happy-birthday to Edith and some good playing. Tony Delillo was there along with another great young guitarist. Dave and Sarah were there so we had two harmonicas, Lenny didn't let a missing B key hold him back on the accordion, and Edith was of course in fine voice.

And that was just one Saturday night. More photos here.

I was honored to again join the Kings County Opry song circle last week. The Opry is in its sixth year now, and I think Dock has always opened it up with a group of songwriters playing their songs. I personally love the song circle format, both as a performer and a listener. First of all, you get to do both. I remember Lyle Lovett, who frequently performs like this with people like John Hiatt and Guy Clarke, saying once that his favorite part about those shows was having the best seat in the house to watch the other players sing.

So, I did a few songs, and got to listen to Jeep Rosenberg's amazing songs (he had a line about things slipping away "like a lizard in a washing machine ... and things still aren't getting clean" that friends of mine are still quoting) and to Dock's always punchy songs, including one I hadn't heard before about going to Target with his girlfriend. If you can get a song out of that you can get a song out of anyone. And Jesse Miller, who brought his own songs to the circle last time I played, backed Jeep and Dock up with some beautifully tasteful guitar work.

After that, the Gowanus Canal Hotshots took over the room. Shlomo inevitably has more instruments onstage than most bands do, while at the other side, Trip and Emily between them bring a few harmonicas, a banjo uke and then rely on the bottoms of their faces for just about everything else. It all adds up to a great time though. I wish I could have seen more of their set but I had to split early. But we got some good photos.

Another big week of music. Head down to Sunny's tonight, and mind your knitting while listening to some Smokey western swing.

Thursday night you (or, at least, I) will want to be in at least three places at once. I'm playing the song circle along with Jeep Rosenberg with Jesse Miller, and Dock Oscar with Anneke Meeker, followed by Sufferin' Succotash and Roosevelt Dime. So that's where I'll be. But you may be at Jalopy, where Hilary Hawke is celebrating the release of her wonderful new CD at Jalopy. It's all her own songs, and features lots of pickers you know and love including, of course, double-H herself. The Woes are also on the bill so it will be a rocking night. Or you may be across the river at Banjo Jim's, where the Bob Jones and Boo Reiners will be plunking and pitching their new CD, with Melissa Faith Cartoun opening.

On Friday, Jonah Bruno's sister is in town with her band Dust Bowl Dreamers, playing an early show in the Lower East Side. He notes that they do not have a banjo player. We're not sure if he means that as reassurance, or as a hint he may sit in. You could walk from there to Googie's, where Kari Denis rejoins Kings County Strings for a night of music also featuring David Moore and Don't Tell Darlins. Or continue west to Ace Of Clubs where Rich Rosenblatt and company will be celebrating the fifteenth anniversary of the Prowlers. Or go to Brooklyn, where you could see The Woes at the Brooklyn Lyceum or Mattison at Sunny's.

Saturday night the Sunny's jam will be a bit special -- Edith is celebrating her 22nd (or was that 88th?) birthday with food and, of course, some wonderful singing. Come down and celebrate with her and all of us at this wonderful bar on the edge of beautiful New York Harbor, into which the Hudson River also empties, a couple of miles away. :-) Mojo was there last week so hopefully we'll see him this week and can wish him well.

Also Saturday, Jamie Lyn's Honky Tonk Angels will be at Hank's, with a bunch of great bands as well as a song circle. Definitely a great Brooklyn night out.

Sunday is Make Music New York, so, get out and make music! Lots of our friends are playing, too many to list here, so look at the calendar online:

http://newyork.timeout.com/make-music/section/music

The jam at Kili will probably be sparse as will other events, given how many people are playing out. It's a great day, though. Finish the night back at Hank's again, where Sean Kershaw will be concluding his long residency there, or at National Underground with the Birdhive Boys at 11.

Kari Denis put together a two-night Celebration Of Song at Jalopy, featuring a lot of songwriters who come from the local bluegrass/old-time scene, myself included. It was a lot of fun, not least because Andy Mullen kicked things off. He's not only a very talented songwriter but a great square dance caller, adept not only at calling the dances but herding hipsters into line and teaching them how to do it. Nothing tells you more about Jalopy than a room full of dancers and great music. More photos here.

John's got, I think, half a dozen albums out now. They're all extraordinary, and mostly filled with his own songs. Two Saturdays ago, he celebrated his latest, filling Freddy's back room with friends, musicians, rocking music and good times. The CD, End Of Smith, is on CD Baby now so get your copy.

Well, you've paid your taxes, so you need a drink, and some good music. All the bands out there need your tips in a big way, and the bars need your drinking habits. So you know what to do, right? All the information you need is right here.

Continue reading "Detaxify Yourself" »

I didn't bring the good camera, but Doug Hatt (in Hatt in photo) held a great birthday jam at Nolita House on Monday night. It was strange to be there when it was dark outside, but the music was great, Doug's brother came in from Michigan (and quite a few people waved at him repeatedly until they realized he was not, in fact, Doug), and we played until last call.

And a lot of special guests. Bob Jones and Boo Reiners, otherwise known as the Plunk Brothers, had a CD release party at Jalopy last night. Their first set consisted entirely of songs from their brand new CD, Two Guitarists and a Microphone, which is not available online yet but hopefully will be soon. It's 40 minutes of wonderful guitar duets and harmony singing. Their live shows are a joy to watch and that spirit comes through on the recording.

In the second set they invited a series of guest stars up to play with them, including frequent singing partner Jen Larson, and also Trip Henderson, Ben Fraker, Elena Skye, the Sheriff of Good Times, and me. It was great fun and a great honor to play with them and a wonderful night overall.

Yes, I'm a Del Rey groupie. Last night I went to the Good Coffeehouse in Brooklyn to see my second show this week -- even though Bruce Molsky was playing at Jalopy and Trip and Emily were opening.

Del is not nearly as famous as she should be. You could pile every well-known living blues guitarist on one side of a balance scale, and put her on the other, and they'd all have to be scraped off the ceiling.

She's a complete master of traditional fingerstyle guitar, but takes it to all sorts of places that the originators of that style -- Blind Blake, Gary Davis, etc -- never dreamed of. Last night, along with clarinetist Craig Flury, she played hot 20s jazz, two calypso numbers, several mind-bending original tunes, and old tunes for which she wrote new lyrics because she thought the original words were stupid.

She's a virtuoso, playing sophisticated jazz fingerings with all sorts of counterrhythms and moving bass lines, all at lightning speed, relaxed and smiling the whole time, or raising an eyebrow at her guitar as if it had considered talking back to her. Her lead playing is mostly beyond my comprehension; if I could play rhythm backing the way she does I'd be happy. Very happy.

Here she is doing a classic blues, and here she is doing a duet with Steve James, a ragtime tribute to many great guitarists including her hero Memphis Minnie.