Flanfire

Sunday I knew wsa going to be busy — but there was more than even I knew, starting with a quiet party at Quin Ulrich’s to honor his dad Steve and the lovely Elizabeth (on their way to Guatemala again!). Mark Ambrose was there, as was Tony Velasco and even Matt Silaski got there bfore I headed out to Threadgill’s for the big GRAM PARSONS TRIBUTE, organized once again by Patterson Barrett.

Now if you konw me, you know I always say that Gram Parsons changed my life with his songs. Sunday night, there were over three hours of Gram songs, songs Gram sang and even a couple of songs ABOUT Gram … most of my favorites except “The New Soft Shoe,” which was on the bill but the performer was unable to make the show at the last minute. Now it being Gram’s music, and it also being a lot of my friends on the stage, I liked everything I heard, especially liked the spirit of the evening (and the weather!). But a few performances stand out, perhaps because of the song itself as well as the performance. Earl Poole Ball (WHO PLAYED WITH GRAM) was his always delightful self, and the handsome Steve Carter has not lost a step. Karen Abrahams, who opened the show, reminded me once again why she is just royalty in central Texas, and Leeann Atherton and Julieann Banks showed that Girls STILL just wanna have fun.
Bu when Brian Pounds broke into “A Song for You,” the tears just started streaming down my cheeks. Same story when Phil Hurley (sans guitar) interpreted a song so good not even Townes could have written it — Thousand Dollar Wedding. And Bill Carter with Will Sexton did Hickory Wind, and Noelle Hampton backed by a quartet of lovely ladies sand “She.” I got to hear Sahara Smith for the first time as she sang (in a voice almost too high for the song) “Sin City” — and there was Dallas Wayne (whose powerful voice just survived the fires that took his home) and so many others … Gram Parsons would have turned 65 on November 5th, and he would be very proud of his daughter Polly, who now lives here in Austin and does amazing work through the Gram Parsons Foundation. The Threadgills audience sang together with an expanded band on “In My Time of Darkness,” one of those songs that once again (and I am surely a heretic as a native Texan for saying this!) NOBODY has reached deeper into our hearts with. My only hope is that next year, someone will sign up to sing “Hippie Boy.”

The night at Threadgill’s was over — but not the night itself — heck, it had hardly begun! Next up was the Saxon Pub, where Amanda Cevallos had gathered another group of fine musicians — some of whom were doing double duty (herself, Steve Carter, and the incredible Mike Stinson among them) — to celebrate the music of Texas music legend Doug Sahm on what would have been his 70th birthday. Performers included Leo Rondeau, Mike Harmeier, George DeVore, the beatiful Beth Lee (and of course the equally beautiful Amanda Cevallos), and David Jimenez. The show stopper, though, had to be the finale, with Tameca Jones belting out “She’s About a Mover” as two of the Southern Sirens shook short-skirrted, fishnet-stockinged booty so impressively that more than one of the players admitted being at least a little bit distracted (not enough to affect their playing, to be sure). The house band for the evening included members of Amanda’s own band, most notably the same Neil Flanz who was a member of Gram Parsons’ band the Fallen Angels. This show was a lot of fun and featured a lot of that San Antonio flavor.
And, yeah, after THAT show was done, I trekked over to Momo’s to catch part of the King Biscuit set featuring Will Webster jamming with David Jimenez and Jonah Kane-West of keyboards, with Wil Landin sitting in on sousaphone. Kurt McMahan keeps finding formulas that work for bringing great players together to have a good time and entertain anyone smart enough to come.

I cannot leave talk of this great first weekend in November without mentioning yet another music legend — the man whom T-Bone Burnett has called “the soul of Texas music.” — Turner Stephen Bruton. Here is a little vignette:

“He was one of the bright spots in the lives of anyone who was close to him,” said Kris Kristofferson, who hired a 22-year-old Bruton to be his guitar player in 1971. The gig lasted 17 years and made the pair as close as brothers. Bruton also played in the bands of Bonnie Raitt and Delbert McClinton, plus he produced career-defining albums by Alejandro Escovedo, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Marcia Ball..
“I feel fortunate that I was able to get back to L.A. last night and say farewell,” Kristofferson said. “He finally knew he was going, after fighting it so hard for so long. I said I would see him again down the road, probably sooner than later.” The two talked for awhile, then, late Friday night, Bruton said he had to go to sleep. He never woke up. He was 60.
“Stephen Bruton was the soul of Texas music,” T-Bone Burnett said in a statement Saturday. “This is an incalculable loss. He was my oldest friend and I loved him like a brother. I learned more from him than I can say.”

TAG — Monday night madness — began at the Whip In, as Stonehoney’s Nick Randolph played his first solo set in maybe a decade before a packed house that included almost the entire California expatriate musician community in Austin (Josh and Teal, Andre and Noelle, Clint and Q, the list goes on). I had invited my friend Lily out to hear some songwriters, and promised her the second half of the evening would be at House Wine. And what an excellent choice! From Marc Palaoro to Will Wallace to Tammy Kantor (with Drew Howard) to Katy Priestley (of KP and the Boom Boom) to Scott Andrews to Luke Benson (just back from Moab, Utah) to Kole Hansen (just back from a four-month tour) to Craig Marshall, there was no letdown at all — and we missed some very good performers who had gone on earlier in the evening. Kole has a major show at Momo’s on November 17th (a Thursday night), and Will Wallace will be sitting in with her band.

FINALLY Flanfire gets out to the Old Settlers’ shindig — and what a lovely day (despite rain all day Friday and ominous skies early Saturday morning)!  Got there just in time to hear the 1 am set from the Fireants (while wearing one of their T-shirts) and a wee bit of Green Mountain Grass (that’s mando player Dave Wilmoth and fiddler Adam “Pickles” Moss shown below) at the Hill Country Stage before heading over to the Bluebonnet Stage for a great set from Lone Star Swing (featuring Gemma Donal on fiddle and my pal Stretch MacFayden (Dawrson) on snare. 

Lest anyone not know, Lone Star Swing is fronted by vocalist/rhythm guitarist Gary Hartman, who is director of the Center for Texas Music History at Texas State and a heluva guy.  Bassist Terry Hale and guitar virtuoso Rick McRae long ago found a young singer named George Strait and are still members of his Ace in the Hole Band, mandolin player Paul Glasse may be found with Willie or Lyle on a given day, and youngster Billy Curtis (well, he has a 2-year-old!) on fiddle, saxophone, and great vocals has done duets with Johnny Gimble.  Billy’s vocal on “Faded Love” was one of the highlights of the entire week of music.  Plus, these guys are maybe MORE fun than the Austin Lounge Lizards.

It was also a day when my pals from Stonehoney (happy birthday, Dave Phenicie) backed up legenday songwriter Dan Navarro and then did their own set on the Discovery stage.  All of these guys had told me to be sure to listen to the Lovell Sisters — and was I blown away by these three north Georgia bluegrass darlings who were debuting their brand-new (second) CD, “Time to Grow.”  Jessica (age 23, fiddle), Megan (age 19, dobro), and Rebecca (age 18, mandolin, guitar) are on their way back to MerleFest and a major world tour — well, of course, their sisterly harmonies are perfect, their musicianship is excellent, and they will hopefully remain unfazed by the publicity that may focus all too much on their good looks than on their talent (think Dolly Parton, one of the finest pure bluegrass singers I have ever heard).  Here they are on stage, and here is Rebecca with Dan Navarro, who got to know their whole family over chicken tacos he made at a festival campsite far away and long ago.

As day turned toward evening (and after listening to the McCoury brothers for a while), I had to stroll back to the Hill Country stage to catch Dave Alvin and the Guilty Women (mostly Austinites of course) — Lisa Pankratz on drums, Cindy Cashdollar on steel guitars, one-time Austinite Amy Farris (and her lovely red hair) on fiddle, the legendary Sarah Brown on bass, and Seattle’s Christy McWilson on vocals.  Earlier, I had caught only a small part of Sarah Jarosz’s wonderful set (with Alex Hargreaves on fiddle and Sam Grisman on bass)  — that’s the downside of too many stages to see everything!  I also caught just a tad of the Colorado-based Spring Creek but enough to be blown away by their banjo player.   Down there somewhere is a photo of Gemma with Billy Curtis warming up before their smokin’ set.

So here are photos of Stonehoney’s Phil Hurley and Shawn Davis with Dan Navarro, Ms. Farris, the Belleville Outfit, and Lone Star Swing.  Yeah, we COULD have stuck around to see more of the McCourys, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and Robert Earl Keen (all good!), but the big “miss” was the campground jam with the “Grass” and The Blue Hit (which features Pickles’ brother David on cello), just back from their West Coast tour and with their brand-new CD ready for a May 9th party at Club DeVille.    But, heck, we were tired enough, and Stretch and Gemma had a long drive out to Turkey, Texas, for a Monday night gig with the house band at the Church of Western Swing just days before the annual Bob Wills Festival there.  But before I move on I have to mention the harmonica workshop with Jimi Lee, Dave Spalding, and Cara Cooke and the songwriter showcase featuring Jenny Reynolds and a heart-wrenching duet by Ben Mallott and Betty Soo on Gram Parsons’ “Grievous Angel.”

To catch up with missed days and nights, there was that Sunday night at Shut Up and Sing when I caught up with Alyse Black and Aly Tadros, who are about to go on tour together.  And here is the handsome (just ask Wendy!) Chad Pope on the indoor stage at the brand-new Red Shed Tavern and a photo of the tavern’s backyard that shows the SHADOW of the beautiful stage that Chad bdesigned and built for the venue, which hopes to get through the tangled web that is the city of Austin to get an outdoor venue permit.  [I also caught a set from Paul Finley, but will write about that when reviewing his new CD, Butterfly, which features both this acoustic virtuoso and artwork by Gregory Gruett Smith.]

But I cannot depart without a short diatribe condemning the city of Austin for its very trange poplicy that has already shut down live music at Freddie’s, Botticelli’s (at least amplified music), and apparently Guero’s and is having a stifling impact on the ability of the Austin  music community to earn a living — not to mention on the entire live music scene for those who want music with their meals.  It is as though the city is telling folks, you can have music or you can have dinner — but not both!  Elections for city council are coming up in just a very few days, and it is time for these candidates to go on record so that we will know for sure who are enemies are and not let them ruin Austin.

 Have to mention the set  I caught at Flipnotics by the Celestialites (Jonny Konya from Belleville, the wonderful Carley Wolf, and Najeeb Sabour), the new trio that I really like, and a very enjoyable Sunday brunch at Threadgills featuring Hank Alrich and his lovely daughter Shairdri, shown here with Threadgills’ own Melanie in what we hope will be a regular feature … their harmonies wowed us!