Flanfire

Ricky Stein is throwing a party at the Continental Club on May 14th.  Slowtrain opens, then Chris Brecht and the Dead Flowers Band, and about midnight Ricky [shown here at a show in 2006!] strides out on the stage.  The very next day, Ricky and his band, The .44, take off on a whirlwind tour of the Eastern U.S. — Galveston, Houston, New Orleans, Chapel Hill, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Asbury Park (home of Springsteen), New York City, Pittsburgh (home of Brett Staggs and his band the Longtime Darlings — and who played drums on Ricky’s record), Columbus (OH), Nashville, Memphis, and Dallas.  Then it’s back to the Saxon Pub on June 6th.

Oh, the band.  Longtime collaborators Phil Morris on bass, Nathaniel Klugman on keyboards, and current Baltimore resident (but former Austinite and longtime band member) Josh Weinholt on drums, plus Stuart Burns on lead guitar.  Slowtrain’s Adoniram Lipton played guitar on the record, as did “Spencer Jasper” (a local guitar legend who prefers the relative anonymity that his rockstar son may draw him out of someday).  Matt Hubbard (one of the real geniuses in this town) produced and plays organ and harmonica on the record — and Lacey SImpson adds some vocals.  And, yes, “Crazy Days” was appropriately produced at Willie Nelson’s World Headquarters in Luck, Texas (and at the Hub).

Now for me, this recording is like meeting an old friend after a long separation.  Ricky has gone from playing at the Hole in the Wall every week to solo shows at the Saxon and around to a few shows here and there at Antone’s and around to mostly working at the studio to finish up the CD.  For those of you who might be new to Ricky’s music (probably a majority of Flanfire readers), Ricky has a BIG voice and an infusive energy that keeps people on the dance floor or just dancing in place (as the venue requires).

I remember Ricky doing Chuck Berry covers and other old R&B — and he could make a nice living playing covers at dance halls and weddings.  But the guy is a SONGWRITER (and journalist, for that matter) — and a real friend.  A guy who can be conversant on a broad range of topics.  A guy who sizes people up to see if they are just chattering or actually saying something worth hearing.  We have been cheering him on as he struggled for years to find the right way to record his music — the right people, the right studio, the right sound (he toyed with doing an acoustic solo record, for example), and the right timing.  But of course he has rolled a 300 game on all of the above. 

Matt Hubbard is the right producer, Willie’s is the right studio, the players all know Ricky and his music well (as shown by their interpretation), and there could be no better time than now (even with the down economy, or maybe because of it) for songs that evoke an earlier time when all was good in America — you always leave a Ricky Stein show with a smile on your face and a bigger one in your heart.

I gotta say that the title cut — the lone truly acoustic cut on the record — is a MASTERPIECE!  This has been a favorite song of mine and so many others for a very long time — and this is classic R&B pop.  You have to think this guy is George Thorogood or someone who has “seen his share of miles” especially as you realize these songs are three or four or more years old — not the work of a guy still in his early enough twenties.

From the very first line on the record, you quickly realize that the T-Birds and the Black Joe Lewises and the Soul Track Minds of Austin music were not even on the scene in Austin when Ricky Stein was tearing it up with his R&B influenced rock and roll.  Morris’ athletic bass and Klugman’s funky keyboards for years have helped create that Ricky Stein sound. 

“One and the Same” gets you going, but “Don’t Leave Me Hangin’ On” has that energy from the thythm section that you know is about to EXPLODE!  This is CLASSIC stuff — so when you come to the Continental (and, yes, you T-BIrd and Black Joe and Donovan Keith fans, you would be wise to come) you better bring your DANCIN’ SHOES.  And your vintage Fifties clothes.  [I hope Ricky shows up with flowers for all the ladies -- cause when he sings, "maybe there's somethin' else goin' on," they will want a little reassurance and love.

"Keap St." (which I have always known as "We've Come a Long Long Way") is like butter on toast with a hot cup of coffee on a Saturday morning after a great Friday night out with your honey.  A song of reflection of good times, hard times shared together and that realization that life is good.  [And you can swing dance to this one!]  “Tarrytown” is a plea for love (of sorts) — “to find your heart, I had to lose my mind” — the cut on the record has Hubbard playing a caliope-sounding keyboard while Klugman’s piano provides a fine counterpoint.

Then comes the hard-rocking “Shreveport Blues,” which opens with “A dark day in Louisiana feeling like I’m gonna die….”  This is a screamer — I know that Sasha Ortiz used to listen to Ricky a LOT (not saying which clubs) — that only gets better live and in person.  It is a guitar player’s song!

“I Don’t Mind” is maybe the newest song on the record — sounds more like a Grateful Dead song than anything else Ricky has done.  The guitar solo here is just lovely.  Then there’s the walking blues, “Down and Out in Dallas,” which has a shout-out to “Rebel Radio” — another great song to dance to.  Maybe Drew Smith learned his vocal pacing from Ricky (who has been doing it here in Austin for years).  And, yes, there’s another (very different) guitar solo of note here (likely by that Spencer Jasper guy who may have toured with Calvin Russell a few times).  And one suspects a Hubbardian organ solo.  Did I mention these songs are all singalongs when Ricky’s crowd is in the house?  Kinda like a testosterone version of Shelley King’s songs and shows. 

“Strange Sense of Humor” opens with Hubbard on harmonica — and moves into that shuffle that once again lets you swing her in and out and back around — or better yet, a jitterbug party.   [Imagine this band outdoors on a cool summer evening in Colorado or an early spring or late fall evening in Texas!]  And while I am at it, “Crazy Days” is a great hold her tight song — both the music AND the lyrics .. “Was I wrong to treat you right … I never knew the easy life could be so hard…”  This is the guy apologizing to his lady (who may think she doesn’t love him anymore) and reassuring her that he has become the man she was always training him up to be…. and he has finally begun to appreciate her.

Which of course leads into “We’re Gonna Make It,” because now that he has changed … the future is so bring they both have to wear shades.  Or something like that.   This is a great closing song — and Ricky here goes from crooning to shouting and back to crooning all in the same song.  I hope he ends the show at the Continental with a 10-minute version and everybody who worked on the record plus his dad and half of Austin on the stage or on the dance floor — and then jumps off the stage right into the arms of …. Steve Wertheimer with a HUGE “thanks, Ricky, for doing this show HERE!”

Thanks to a “chance” encounter at Flipnotics,  Flanfire has become friends with Scottish Western Swing  King Stretch MacFayden and the lovely Gemma Donald from the band Stretch Dawrson and the Mending Hearts who just performed with the Texas Swing Kings at the Old Settlers Festival (among a number of gigs in the Lone Star State).  Stretch had a couple of days off in Austin, so I took him out on the town for some major fun and music.

Last Monday, for example, was the second anniversary of Ming’s Cafe in Austin  – yes, the same Ming’s that graced Houston’s Montrose district for over a decade — and owner (and good buddy — see photo) Fai Jow provided his friends and patrons with an amazing gumbo on top of his tasty Chinese dishes.  Ming’s is one of Austin’s hottest Monday night music venues, thanks to the Mingtones and special guests, and this night was no exception.  Pedal steel genius Gary Newcomb showed ow the instrument works in the jazz idiom, performing with Brad Houser, Eldridge Goins, and an all-star cast that included Jane Bond, Matt Hubbard, and Cole El-Saleh – and later it was Laura Scarborough showing she too can entertain on a drum kit (or just with her hands in the air).  In the house for the annual photo were such luminaries as Shelley King (new CD on the way that is awesome, baby!), Carolyn Wonderland, and others too numerous to mention.

 Later that evening, Stretch and I stopped by the Hole in the Wall to catch a preview of the big Tuesday night bash at the Continental Club at which sets by the Lonesome Heroes and Shotgun Party were wrapped around the big CD release party for Leo Rondeau (see our review, archived at this site).  Mind you, this show came right after the historic Hippie Hour and founder and sequined songbird Toni Price stuck around for the whole shebang (as did earth mother/barn dance queen Leeann Atherton and many of the Hippie Hour regulars).  Now Stretch, being an old friend of Greg Garing, is also an old friend of Shotgun Party’s Katy Rose Cox, who has also been doing shows this week in Austin with the Maybelles (including Happy Hour at the Contintental the very next night).

But let’s get down to basics here — top left below is Shotgun Party with Leo, Missy Beth, and Vaughn Walters of the Shake ‘Em Ups celebrating the debut of fellow Shake-Em-Up Andrew Thomas Austin-Petersen as Shotgun Party bassist and sometime vocalist.  Top right – same group dancing and singing along with the dancing and singing crazy audience.  Bottom left – Leeann and Toni having a ball; bottom middle -Katy Rose with the Maybelles; bottom right – Leo Rondeau and Jenny Parrott.

 Okay — Stretch was already in Bandera on Wednesday evening when Flanfire kicked off a stellar evening that began with the bluegrass trio the Maybelles (Katy Rose with Jan Bell on guitar, harmonica, and British accent, and Eureka Springs, Arkansas, native Melissa Carper on upright bass — and all three on vocals (see photo at top right below with Landry McMeans of the Lonesome Heroes with Melissa and Jan and a handsome devil in the middle). 

Then it was over to Antone’s for a powerful set from The Tiny Tin Hearts (top left below) who OWN that room with their wall of sound, followed by Chris Brecht (bottom left) with ALL of his Dead Flowers Band, and the wonderful Jess Klein (with Scrappy Jud Newcomb, no kin to Gary, apparently) who showcased songs from her forthcoming CD done at Aerie Studios here in town.  Later, a bunch of us went over to Momo’s Club for a late-night set from Deadman, featuring bassist John Michael Schoepf along with frontman Steven Collins, Scott Davis on lead guitar, Kevin McCullough on harmony vocals, Todd Pertll on pedal steel, and with special guest (from the Dead Flowers Band) Matt Mollica on Hammond B-3 (which he lugged up the stairs at Momos after a hot set with Brecht at Antone’s).