Released shortly after "You Are My Sunshine," Sheila Jordan's first album came out on Blue Note, with music as soulful as the cover.

The story of children in an Oklahoma day care singing “You Are My Sunshine” while a tornado attacked the building is deeply moving. The fact that a seemingly happy-go-lucky children’s song provided them with much-needed strength deepens our appreciation of the timeless classic.

Over fifty years ago “You Are My Sunshine” also received a radical reappraisal, and this story also involves hope and courage in the face of adversity.

Two artists played a key role in making “You Are My Sunshine” a jazz classic. In 1961 composer, band leader, theorist and pianist George Russell (a Cincinnati native, by the way) had several ground-breaking jazz albums under his belt when he entered a Greenwich Village club where a singer he’d never heard before was performing.

“Where do you come from to sing like that?” he asked afterwards.

If you’ve heard Sheila Jordan sing a ballad—and be careful, because she’ll rip you heart when she does—you can understand why George Russell asked that question. As it turned out, Sheila Jordan grew up amongst coal miners in Pennsylvania. Intrigued, Russell drove with Jordan to that area.

The poor and depressed rural setting was hardly the typical breeding ground for a jazz musician. At a tavern Russell and Jordan visited the sole patron was an out-of-work coal miner who had heard Jordan sing before. “I’ll never forget his face,” Jordan later said in an NPR interview. “It was down and out. He said, ‘Well, do you still sing ‘You Are My Sunshine?’’”

She wasn’t planning to perform the song, but she granted his request.

A few months later Russell invited Jordan to a recording studio. After she arrived he played her a recording of his introduction to “You Are My Sunshine”—all six minutes of it. Russell’s interpretation was anything but standard. His knowledge of harmony was such that even when his horn section quoted the perky melody it sounded wistful, and there were plenty of slow, brooding passages between the swinging ones.

When the music stopped Russell asked Jordan to sing.

“Sing what?” Jordan asked.

“’You Are My Sunshine,’” Russell answered.

“Are you kidding?” Jordan said. “With no background? Nothing?”

What happened when Jordan did sing was remarkable. For over two minutes she performed acapella, and when Russell’s sextet joined in the fractured harmonies and slow drum roll complimented her perfectly. Some jazz singers are boisterous and extroverted, but Jordan sounded as frail and vulnerable as an abandoned child. You feel the pain of someone desperately seeking sunshine—but you also feel a sense of hope.

On two levels “You Are My Sunshine” was a tribute. Russell was showing his respect for a vocalist who, although previously unrecorded, was already a major talent. Also, the song was dedicated to the out-of-work coal miners in Pennsylvania.

“You Are My Sunshine” quickly became a classic that joined other re-readings by jazz artists of compositions that originally didn’t necessarily seem like heavyweight material. When John Coltrane told his band members that they were going to take on “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music, pianist McCoy Tyner wondered why his bandleader picked a Julie Andrews tune. The recording that ensued was remarkably powerful, however—and that was just the beginning of Coltrane’s association with the song. Ultimately he performed it so many times that it almost seemed like an obsession. “First it was an infant,” Tyner later wrote, “and later it became an adult. A song is somewhat like a person if you allow it to live.”

Similarly, before Chet Baker (Miles Davis, too) got hold of it there were plenty of versions of “My Funny Valentine” that could make you feel warm and fuzzy, but in their hands it became spellbinding.

The notion that a song can take on a deeper meaning would make perfect sense to the children who sang “You Are My Sunshine” while a tornado was raging.

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Robillard is one of the most sought-after guitarists out there, his resume including stints with some of the biggest names out there, including Bob Dylan and Tom Waits. My in-concert introduction to him came during the Tom Waits tour of 2006. As usual, Waits performed at only a few cities, and he picked places other than the huge metropolises. I was lucky enough to catch him in Louisville due to a last-minute change of plans with a buddy of a buddy. Here’s a performance with Robillard in the line-up:

And here’s footage of Duke Robillard leading his own band. This is from his new album, Independently Blue, on Stony Plain Records. Robillard had this to saw of the record: “Independently Blue is a special album to me because it blends many of my favorite elements of blues, early rock & roll and jazz music. First of all, I am happy about all the songs and the feeling we captured on all the tracks. The variety of musical styles is all part of what I am all about and the blues sensibilities within all the tracks – even when nodding to rock and roll, R&B or jazz – shows our strength as a band.”

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“We’re going to kick it off with WARM 98,” she said. “They’ll be there for music on Friday at 6 when it opens. We’re going to have live bands Friday and live entertainment all weekend.”

Summerfest promises to be fun for adults, teens, tweens and toddlers.

“We have a petting zoo on Sunday and miniature pony rides,” Alice said. “We’re going to have the Cincinnati Circus there all three days, and we have a Kiddy Corner for toddlers. There’s a space there for parents. The children have climbing, toys, face painting, and arts and crafts. While they’re doing that the parents can sit at picnic tables and relax.”

Other parental options include a tiki bar with pina coladas and plain and strawberry margaritas—and after a couple drinks the adults may wish to win a little money, which they can do by playing cards, the big six wheel and roulette. And don’t forget the raffle tickets: the June 7th drawing prize is $500; the June 8th prize is $1,000; and the June 9th prize is $1,500.

After winning money a bunch of money folks can sample some of the food, which will include, for the first time at an Annunciation event, Thai Express. Also, La Rosa’s will provide pizza and China Kitchen will have egg rolls. On Sunday there will be a chicken dinner from 2:00-6:00 p.m.

The very best thing, about Annunciation events, though, is the chance for people from all over Greater Cincinnati to reconnect with old friends. Every time I attend an event at Annunciation it surprises me how many people I know; truly, it really brings ‘em out of the woodwork. The warm weather can only enhance that.

Here are the hours:

• Friday, June 7, 6:00-11:00 p.m.
• Saturday, June 8, 6:00-11:00 p.m.
• Sunday, June 9, Noon-6:00 p.m.

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Later this week I’ll have more information on the details of this event, but count on it being significant: last year the job fair hosted 28 employers for over  100 job openings.

I assume some readers will be interested in attending this event, and if you know anyone else looking for work, pass this link along. Call Alicia Reese’s office (614) 466-1308 if you have questions. When the job fair was held last year, Reese said, “The economists are saying the economy is recovering, I thought it was time for citizens to feel that recovery at their dinner tables by connecting them to real job opportunities.” Those words areas are as relevant now as they were then.

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If you walked into the recent Todd Rundgren show at Bogart’s, you could feel the nostalgia in the air. The audience primarily consisted of baby boomers, and many of them came as couples. Todd has long enjoyed what marketing pros would refer to as “brand loyalty;” an old buddy I ran into exclaimed that was his thirtieth Todd show, and someone else said that she had now seen him 21 times.

Surely the long-term fans felt a sense of nostalgia seeing Todd again, and surely there were plenty of people there who, as soon as they walked through the doors that evening, got a whiff of Auld Lang Syne as they returned to the nightclub they first attended as teenagers. But it wasn’t all nostalgia, as Bogart’s has undergone some very positive changes recently. One of the first things returning baby-boomers would have noticed was that the lack of smoke. That, of course, is Ohio law, and a good one. Recently, though, Bogart’s set up a cool outdoor smoking patio, which was plenty popular that evening.

Baby boomers may also have been a bit shocked to visit the restrooms, which in the old days were rather frightening and now seem as stylish as a museum lobby. Boomers also would have noticed the VIP seating, which allows groups to have a private party in the middle of everything. What all this points to is that, far from resting on its laurels, Bogart’s is striving to make the concert experience that much more enjoyable. Manager Karen Foley has gone out of her way to not only take the club up a notch but to focus on Corryville in general, including the Saturday morning Cleanup Corryville events.

As for the Rundgren’s performance that evening, let’s just say that this rolling stone ain’t gathering no moss either. Todd has long been a musical iconoclast, completely unpredictable and ready to shed his skin at a moment’s notice, and at this concert he certainly lived up to his reputation. Primarily performing new stuff, he concentrated almost exclusively on vocals. The guitarist and drummer accompanying him were playing over pre-recorded tracks, and it was odd witnessing this half-live /half-programmed performance.

I would describe the sounds that evening as “club music;” there were even points where I almost felt as if I were time traveling to a rave party back in the nineties. The baby boomers weaned on classic rock had settled down by the time that scene came around, and one of the ironies of the show was that, for many in attendance, this was something new and different, the music Todd was performing actually seemed kind of dated (and intentionally so).

The dense sound and frenetic light show were so distracting that it took me a few songs to zero in on the fact that underneath all the hoopla was solid songwriting. Let’s face it: when it comes to writing and performing blue-eyed soul, Todd has few peers. Had he recorded the same tracks with a band that included a horn section and him at the piano, it would have sounded perfectly natural.

Not this week, though, and I respect that. With many classic rockers you get the feeling that the chess pieces have been moved in such a way that their only choice is to play it safe. Todd still keeping us guessing, and people still love him: many of the crowd members in the front half of the floor were dancing, and at times I’d catch people all the way in the back raising their arms in synch with the singer on the stage. Now that’s what I call brand loyalty.

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Incline Ridge Apartments in East Price Hill. Call 513.861.6000 to learn more.

The Incline Ridge Apartments, located at 2361 – 2377 Maryland Avenue, are now ready to rent. Located in the Incline District in East Price Hill, these freshly-renovated apartments feel brand new at the same time that they’re located in a classic Cincinnati neighborhood – in other words, they offer the best of both worlds.

“The best of both worlds” would also apply to the fact that the apartments are on a peaceful and quiet street at the same time that they’re close to downtown and Northern Kentucky and within walking distance of places like the Incline Public House in East Price Hill.

Incline Ridge Apartments contain newly renovated apartments with brand new, stylish, stainless appliances. These two-bedroom apartments contain 875 square feet, and they feature long balconies — long enough to link the master bedroom and the living room.

And those balconies offer a fabulous view. In fact, the view competes with any in Price Hill or for that matter the whole city. If you have any interest in finding out more about these or any of the other apartments Gaslight Property has to offer, call us at 513.861.6000. Our agents would love to tell you more about these apartments!

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Gaslight Property is excited to announce some freshly renovated apartments that have very recently became available in East Price Hill. Much of our enthusiasm for the Incline Ridge Apartments, located at 2361 – 2379 Maryland Avenue, has to do with the neighborhood itself, which, in the accurate words of eastpricehill.org, “is experiencing a renaissance of sorts.” Recently we talked to Tom Gamel, President of the East Price Hill Improvement Association. His enthusiasm for the neighborhood is contagious, and for a good reason: he’s a life-long resident. Here are some of the things we like about East Price Hill:

Convenient Location. Tom Gamel put it well: “Our community is so close to everything. It’s so close to the expressway. It’s convenient for getting to key shopping centers in Northern Kentucky, and it’s within five minutes of downtown Cincinnati.”

A Fabulous View. You can’t beat the view that East Price Hill has of Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, and—best of all—the downtown skyline. “It has better views that some of the Mt Adams sites,” Tom Gamel said. And the view our newly available apartments offer is as good as it gets.

Things to Do, and Places to Go—A Mixture of Old and New. Talk to someone from East Price Hill, and they’ll very quickly mention the Incline Public House, a restaurant that opened in March of this year. The restaurant—which along with great food and craft beer has a breathtaking view—has been a hit from the beginning, and when we were there it was packed. As Tom Gamel put it, “The newness has not worn off. It’s going to be a sustainable business. We haven’t even gotten to the warm months yet, when the deck will be fully utilized.” Also of note is The Queens Tower, a high-rise condo tower with the Prima Vista (which was named “Best Italian Restaurant” in Cincinnati Magazine) on the ground floor. Other East Price Hill landmarks include Holy Family Church and St. Lawrence Church. Tom Gamel also spoke highly of Cincinnati Christian University, which used to be Cincinnati Bible College. “They’ve invested a lot of money in community and have expanded over the years,” he said. “They’re good partners in the community.”  There has also been an award-winning makeover of the historic Elberon Apartments for seniors. And let’s not forget Mt. Echo Park, an 82-acre park with a panoramic view of the river and the Cincinnati skyline. It features two shelters, hiking trails, a playground, and lots of green space.

A Rich History. East Price Hill is a classic Cincinnati neighborhood that’s associated with The Incline, which was completed in 1874 and was instrumental in the development of the neighborhood.

Community Pride. When you talk to residents of East Price Hill – or if you visit their website –  you see evidence of the pride the citizens feel for their community. For example, check out the signs people were holding when this photograph that was taken on East Price Hill Cleanup Day:

In our next blog entry we’ll zero in on the Incline Ridge Apartments. First, though, check out these photographs taken in the neighborhood where you would be living, East Price Hill.

Inclie Public House

Queens Tower, with the Prima Vista Restaurant on the ground floor

A view of downtown Cincinnati from East Price Hill

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Makin Heads Turn Salon is a full-service salon located in the Gaslight District.

Here’s a figure to throw at your next cocktail party: 12,618 people live in Clifton. That’s a lot of folks, but I’ll bet dollars to donuts that there are people living in Clifton who think they have to go elsewhere to get a haircut.

That’s because the two salons that do exist in Clifton are located in inconspicuous places. Head First at 329-1/2 Ludlow Ave. is behind and under Aquarius Star/Om Cafe, and people walk past the building with no idea there’s a hair salon there.

And there are people who eat at Bruegger’s Bagels who are unaware that the salon Makin Heads Turn, which opened late last year, right is across the street. (Technically the address is 3307 Clifton Avenue, but the entrance is on Terrace Avenue.)

Things have been going extremely well for the salon’s owner, Saira Huckleberry, and when I got my hair cut there last week she filled me in on some of the latest. Since I last talked to her the staff has expanded, and Saira was especially excited about the work that Ebony Collins has been doing there. Ebony has been teaching hair for seven years, and her specialties include extensions, braiding, and dreadlocks. I should add that the services Making Heads Turns offers include eyebrow waxing and nails. Call Makin Heads Turn at 513.407.3911 and see what Saira, Ebony, or one of the other stylists can do for you.

I should also mention that Saira is receiving so much business that she is eager to expand, so any stylists to call her and talk about future opportunities.

***

In other news, Northside Farmers Market has moved outside. Now through October 16^th Northside Farmers Market will be located in Hoffner Park on the corner of Blue Rock and Hamilton Avenue in Northside. The NFM continues rain or shine, so check them out every Wednesday from 4-7pm.

Northside Farmers Market has food-to-table demonstrations, live music and more every week. May is “planting your garden month,” and a lot of vendors will have vegetables, herbs and native plants to grow in your garden. New vendors such as Goodin Tasty will have delicious rubs for your meats, Probasco Farm will have veggies that were grown in Northside and Mr. Gene’s Mustards will garnish your picnics. Returning for another summer with NFM is Street Pops, Happy Chicks Bakery, Sweets by Shannon, Backyard Orchard and Idyllwild Farm.

***

And finally, this Friday, May 17 the hip-hop band iswhat?! will have an album release party at MOTR Pub. The new release is called things that go bump in the dark, and it is available on both CD and vinyl. It should be a fun night,  and a chance to show some support for a band that’s been getting attention around the globe. In fact, I’m guessing that it’s because iswhat?! is so busy touring that this album release party didn’t happen a little sooner.

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Did you know that there are special events and special prices seven nights a week on Ludlow Avenue? Here’s something to stick on your fridge: once-a-week special events and specials that take place every week on Ludlow Avenue in Clifton.

• Sundays

Sitwell’s serves Belgian waffles from 8am to 4pm.

• Mondays

Habenero’s serves $5 burritos + $2 Tecate bottles.

J. Gumbo’s Clifton serves $5 red beans and rice .

• Tuesdays

Habanero’s serves $2 tacos + $2 Dos Equis draft beers.

Esquire Theatre hosts “Bargain Day.” All seats are $6 for the whole day.

Olive’s hosts “Trivia Tuesday” from 7pm to 9pm.

• Wednesdays

Olives on Ludlow has a wine special from 5pm to 9pm; all bottles are half-price.

Sitwell’s hosts the Faux Frenchmen, a gypsy jazz quartet.

Arlin’s serves 45 cent wings + $2.75 imports.

• Thursdays

Arlin’s has free pool.

J. Gumbo’s Clifton serves $1 fountain drinks.

• Fridays

Ludlow Wines hosts a wine tasting from 5pm to 8 pm.

• Saturdays

Ludlow Wines hosts a wine and beer tasting from 5pm to 8pm.

J. Gumbo’s Clifton serves hangover jambalaya, which uses beer instead of water to cook the rice, making it spicier. This special costs $8 for a bowl of hangover jambalaya + a drink.

The post Special Events Every Night on Ludlow Avenue! appeared first on .

When I think of the phrase “listening party,” I think of all those great album covers from the 1950s and 1960s that show mom and dad sitting on the floor listening to records with their children (that or a cluster of of parent-free kids or teeny boppers enjoying the pleasure of spinning vinyl). Ah, the old days…and Listen to This! is helping to bring back that time-honored tradition. Every other Wednesday, from 7pm to 8:15pm, folks sit around and listen to music. They discuss the music a little but not too much.

The next Listen to This! takes place this Wednesday, May 8, and for this round I’ll be the host. For an hour and fifteen minutes I’ll play music connected in one way or another with my Grodeck Whipperjenny article that appeared recently in Cincinnati Magazine.

The story centers around some ground-breaking and very talented Cincinnati jazz musicians who, between sets one night, were approached by a highly enthusiastic James Brown about the possibility of recording at King Records. Some wonderful things happened as a result of that conversation.

Chronologically speaking, the listening party will, in true Alice in Wonderland spirit, begin at the beginning. The band in question—they called themselves The Sound Museum—recorded an album before James Brown entered the picture. The 1968 recording wasn’t released until 1980—but fortunately, it did finally come out. The listening party will start with the composition “Algunas” from that album, then visit the more psychedelic Grodeck Whipperjenny and James Brown’s Sho is Funky Down Here—and from there I’ll explore some of the offshoots from these projects.

When librarian Steve Kemple asked me to host one of these events, I immediately agreed. As we were about to hang up, a question popped into my head that I hadn’t thought about at first.

“Do you have a…record player?”

He explained that the library hadn’t purchased one yet, which I understand, as they are kind of a new thing.

“Can I…bring one?”

Absolutely, he said.

That came as a great relief, because I don’t have any of this stuff on CD. In fact, much of it hasn’t ever come out on compact disc (makes sense, as those things are kind of behind the times). So, folks, this is going to be a real old-fashioned listening party. I’m bringing my own portable record player, like the one your teacher used to wheel in on an audiovisual cart back in the day—although some younger people may not have experienced that particular ritual. (It’ll change back, though. Trust me.)

Heck, we may even sit on the floor.

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Which Wich

About a block up I dropped into Island Frydays at 2826 Vine St, where for $3.50 I bought a jerk wrap that rocked. While I was there I made a couple new friends, Schnell and Sasha, who also agreed to pose out front of their restaurant, which has been a bright spot on Short Vine for what, a couple years now?

Schnell and Sasha from Island Frydays

Another food venue, Alabama Que (located at 2733 Vine), appeared on the next block. When I checked the Facebook page for Alabama Que, I came to realize that today marks an important milestone for the restaurant. Here’ s what they posted a few hours ago: Today marks the one year anniversary of our Clifton location. One year ago we open the doors with one cashier and one cook. Now Alabama Que has 14 employees. We can’t make everyone happy, but we are ok with 98% .. #OoooWeee !!!!!!!!

Alabama Que

On the same block as Bogart’s is the new Mio’s, which, when I walked in, looked like a good place to eat and have a drink:

Mio's

Speaking of having a drink, don’t forget Dive Bar located at 2608 Vine St, which has a great outdoor deck in back. A great place to go before or after a Bogart’s show:

Dive Bar

Across the street from Dive Bar is Caribe, at 2605 Vine St. Caribe features both Spanish and Caribbean Food, and it’s an opportunity to eat some very affordable food that you don’t see every day (such as empanadas, coconut chicken, citrus chicken, and tostones). Caribe has been up and running for a couple months, and the manager of the restaurant, Russ, was enthusiastic about the progress he has seen on Short Vine even in the short time he has been there.

Caribe

I could go on, but that begins to give you a taste of the new business and new life on Short Vine. The street is coming back to life, and I’m happy to see that happen, especially with small, people-owned businesses playing such a large role in it.

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Contact Cat Harpen from Aquarius Star's Om Cafe if you would like to perform at Clifton Plaza's live music series.

How do we know it’s spring? Because the Clifton Plaza live music series is back in action. Hosted by the adjoining Aquarius Star’s Om Cafe, the series kicked off Friday, April 26, with the band Vinylraptor.

The series takes place every Friday and Saturday, and runs from April 26 to September 21.  For right now the shows will run from 6pm to 9pm, but that will probably change from 7pm to 10pm fairly soon (we’ll let you know).

When I spoke today to Cat Harpen, an employee of Aquarius Star’s Om Cafe, she emphasized that these music events are free, family friendly and a great way to meet new people.  ”We need some fun on Ludlow,” she added. “It’s time to spruce things up!” Examples of “sprucing up” she gave included Compassionfest,  yoga on the plaza, art displayed in the plaza, and a very diverse mix of music. “We also have weekly events happening inside of Aquarius Star’s Om Cafe, such as Lyrical Insurrection every Wednesday through June,” she added, “and musicians who play live music in the store during the week, such as Twig & Leaf.”

All of that begs the following question: what if you want to perform as part of the Clifton Plaza Live Music Series, or host another type of event at the space? The answer: call Aquarius Star’s Om Cafe at 513-381-3436 and ask for Cat Harpen—or stop in Aquarius Star’s Om Cafe (their hours are Monday-Friday 7:30am-9pm, Saturday 9am-9pm and Sunday 9am-6pm).

Here are some of the other artists performing at the Clifton Plaza live music series:

4.27 Steve Falmmer

5.3 No Intent

5.4 Nick Sudbury’s Acoustic Philosophy

5.10 Jamie Willard

5.11 Twig and Leaf

5.17 Vinylraptor

5.18 Steve Flammer

5.24 Susan Gray Collective

5/25/13 A major fundraiser event  called Compassionfest will be taking place in the plaza from 12pm-5pm. It’s a dog rescue fundraiser, and music will also be at this plaza event.

5.31 Red Beard’s Revenge

6.1 Joe Berger

6.7 No Intent

6.8 Rob McAllister

6.14 Correyville Sazuki with the Retreat Bluegrass Band

6.15 Cain

6.21 Destiny N August

6.22 Steve Flammer

6.28 Mike Connolly

6.29 Gypsy Cab plays with Ruthie Allen Lincoln

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Jimmy McGary Live at the Sungarden Vol. 1

For decades Jimmy McGary was the premier tenor saxophonist in Cincinnati. He passed away twenty years ago, but his music is still very much alive, and I’m happy to report that a new CD has been released that consists of a performance he recorded at the Hyatt back in the 1980s. (To purchase it, call Jimi’s son Sean McGary at 513. 708.2497.)

Recorded on August 29, 1986, Jimmy McGary: Live at the Sungarden Vol 1 consists of music McGary performed as part of the popular Jazz at the Hyatt series in the late 1980s. Any new release by the great tenor player would be welcome, but what adds something even more special to this release is the fact that Jimmy reunited with a drummer who, almost twenty years before the Sungarden gig, often played with Jimmy six nights a week, as a member of the Sound Museum.

And we’re not talking just any old drummer here. When the situations called for it, Grover Mooney was a highly colorful and melodic drummer, but when it came time to kick things up a notch, watch out. Grover was a member of the Sound Museum, which was the Jimmy McGary-led band that James Brown came to visit at New Dilly’s, after which many interesting things happened (you can read about that in the Cincinnati Magazine article I published this month). What all this means is that when they got together in 1986 the saxophonist and the drummer shared some common and very interesting history.

Grover was living in Boston at the time this CD was recorded, and he drove here with the pianist for the session, Pat Battstone, who also lived in Cinci before heading east. The bassist for the session was Ed Felson, currently one of the owners of the Blue Wisp, and someone whose discography includes his work on the Ran Blake Quartet masterpiece Short Life of Barbara Monk.

Technically bebop is about the most difficult music there is to play, but technique is only part of what makes a player memorable. Many of the best bop players had grittiness and a gutsiness to their playing, and those were qualities Jimmy McGary had in spades. Even people who weren’t typically drawn to jazz picked up on that, which helps explain why, during his long stint at Cory’s in the late 1980s, McGary played every weekend to a packed house full of fans who whooped it up so much you would have thought it was a blues concert. It wasn’t, but emotionally it had that same ability to hit you where you live even though by the end of his solos McGary could become very adventurous, including octave leaps with lots of honks and squeals, prompting my friend Greg Turner to elbow me and say, “There’s your boy David Murray.”

That same soulfulness that we heard at Cory’s also comes through on Live on the Sungarden. Sure, the Hyatt’s a fancy hotel, and there were probably some folks there that evening wearing fancy threads and drinking expensive cognac. It didn’t matter. When you listen to Jimmy play, you hear smoky nightclubs and you hear the street. The CD, which consists of standards by folks like Miles, Duke and Prez, strikes a nice balance between uptempo bop and ballads. The accompanying musicians are all top-notch, and that includes guest artists trumpeter Al Nori and pianist Ed Moss. Locally Jimmy was very, very popular when he was alive—unusually so for a jazz musician—and I encourage people to pass the word along on this one, as I’m sure the list of people who would love to have a copy is long. (Again, to purchase a copy, call Sean McGary at 513. 708.2497.)

Recently I’ve been emailing and chatting on the phone with the pianist for these sessions, Pat Battstone, who continues to play jazz in Boston. In part, I wanted to learn a little more about Grover Mooney, and I am going to be sharing some of Pat’s memories of Grover in future blog entries. Pat wrote some words on the Sungarden gig, and rather than encapsulate what he wrote, I’ll just turn the blog over to this very entertaining writer:

Pat Battstone:

Spring 86- i’m sharing a 2nd floor of a duplex with Grover and his family. ( this is about the 5th time we are living in either the same or close quarters ). Im starting to play jazz after not playing for 8 yrs ( went to college, did the casting gig, studied classical pno ) .. I’ve started studying with Joanne Brackeen in NYC once every 3-4 weeks. The house situation allows us to play pretty much anytime either in his side or mine.( ive got 2 baby grands – a steinway on my side and a vose on his ) there is a family of junkies below me so they are laid back. upstairs, from me there is a low life, beer drinkin taxi driver who is dragging the scene.. I finally spook him out of the place ( an old wm s burroughs trick of putting on music that is very dissonant but can barely be heard. I think i used a Scriabin “mystic”chord and left it on a synth all day for weeks ) He leaves within a month. so there’s nooe upstairs. its like the old daze.. we have a session house!! and im getting my jazz chops back together. ( more on the sessions later )

Grover and I do some recording and it wasnt bad. I start hustlin gigs and send out tapes to cincy.  I think Steve Schmidt and Phil DeGreg helped get me the contacts. The mgr at the Hyatt calls back and would like us in his lounge .. Grover and i are thinking of going to visit our mothers. So, we get dates at Hyatt and at CoCos.. Ed Felson has just moved from Boston to Cincy so he’ll be playing bass.

word is out and there is a buzz in cincy.. the Moon man Returns!! Nemo calls up and asks if there is anything he can do.. Sandy Suskind is also helping get a crowd going.. Moss is in the shadows but we all know he’ll appear and take over the piano ( we’re just not sure how ) .. McGary gets wind or this and goes to the Hyatt..

“Do you have any idea who is playing here next week?”

“Some piano player from boston and a drummer that came from here (duhh)”

“are you kidding me?? You dont have a fricken clue?? This man is a music school all in one person !! ”

“no shit”

“Yea, no shit, and you are hiring me for that gig !!”  — that was mcGarys way.. This gig’s for me ! that was it

McGary comes in when we are getting set up and tells us that he’ll be playing. “hope that is ok”.. shit  !! im not the level of musician for this gig.. But mcGary had such a good nature, he made you do what you could.. and he never asked if you could play at a tempo, he just counted it off and you played it.

Moss makes his appearance near the end of the night and I give him the seat..  He, Grover and Jimmy had a long history of playing together so this was reunion time.

I brought a Teac reel2reel and a number of good ampex tapes. Night one the sound guy was very good and we got a lot of things recorded ( unfortunately, the tape ran out during moss’s solo ). Night 2 we played more adventurous but the sound guy was incompetant and didnt  think much of turning the recorder on. so most of the tunes are missing beginnings and endings..

There is a lot of funny shit going on between songs. Jimmy used to tell stories or crack jokes between the tracks.  I remember him doing a gig up here a few years later - at the end of the gig, the bass player says – when i get to be your age, I want to be like you !!

So Grover passes 5 years back and Shawn Marsh wonders if i have any tapes ( do you know Shawn?? Hes close friends with Cassandre Steep. He’s also grover’s 1/2 1/2 brother ) . He knows someone who can bake them.. ( whatever that means. ) Well that takes a while and i end up getting the tapes back without them being baked. Old Ampex tapes need to be put in a well regulated oven – so they are literally baked to get the glue and the particles set correctly, else you get a pile of brown dust at the bottom of your tape deck and that is the end of whatever was on it.

Theyve been sitting next to me for 4 yrs waiting to get baked. Last Aug.. Arthur Quitman bugged me about them. Felson didnt even remember doing the gig, but he said he’d kick in a few $$ if i were to try to do something. So,  I found a baker, and he did good!! there’s no hiss between cuts.. I used audacity to get the edit points and went to my friend who did the mastering for the other CDs . that took 4 hrs and we had a CD’able copy. Artwork was next and got a good price, then it was off to diskmakers and the result is what’s in your hand.

Prolly the best we could have done wrt the sound and more than adequate grapics. ( Turns out graphics are what costs on a cd – it aint the music – its the printign costs . )

So.. there’s a long winded account of the odessey.. some good ole Jimmy mcGary stories. and a little production history.

The post New Jimmy McGary CD appeared first on .

PLEASE NOTE: I HAD THE WRONG DATE FOR THE ISHWAT SHOW, IT’S NEXT MONTH, SORRY FOR THE CONFUSION

This Friday 4/19 On Friday, May 17 the hip-hop band iswhat?! will have an album release party at MOTRPub. The new release is called things that go bump in the dark, and it is available on both CD and vinyl. It should be a fun night,  and a chance to show some support for a band that’s been getting attention around the globe. In fact, I’m guessing that it’s because iswhat?! is so busy touring that this album release party didn’t happen a little sooner. A few weeks ago I wrote a blog entry about the album, and here’s what I wrote:

things that go bump in the dark is the new full-length release by Cincinnati’s iswhat?!, a hip-hop band that has toured the US and Europe and performed with major jazz artists, among them Archie Shepp, Oliver Lake and Hamid Drake. It’s a fine record, and I’m happy to report that, along with being available as a CD or a download, this full-length release had come out on vinyl. Locally the CD and LP are available at Shake-It and Everybody’s; online you can buy it on cdbaby and iTunes.

If you’ve caught ishwat?!, chances are you’ve seenNapoleon Solo Vox fronting a trio. On things that go bump in the dark band members change and band sizes fluctuate with each song, and others artists share some of the vocal duties. My sense is that Napoleon is still the mastermind behind the music, but, like Kip Hanrahan, he constantly shuffles musicians in order to make the words and music come to life.

More than half the cuts feature Hamid Drake, who happens to be one of the best drummers in the world. He’s also one of the most versatile, and he’s as comfortable laying down a hip-hop groove as he is playing avant-garde jazz with Ken Vandermark or Peter Brotzmann.

Also noteworthy are the contributions from core ishwat?! member Jack Walker, whose saxophone and flute playing add color, texture and a jazzier vibe to the proceedings. His contributions sound all the sweeter against Napoleon’s consistently provocative wordplay.

This is music that gets inside you. At times it seems like a stream-of-consciousness collage that ties together seemingly random thoughts and melodies like the ones that go through your head during the day. Maybe they’re not so random at all; maybe they can tell you something.

If you gravitate toward colorful music, a nice groove and lyrics with depth, check out things that go bump in the dark.Along with making interesting music, Napoleon has helped bring some superb (and very unlikely) concerts to town; good to know the muses are being kind to him. Here’s some ishwat?! concert footage that quotes from  Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir:”

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Bernie Worrell

Bernie Worrell’s hour-long set at Shake-It yesterday did not let up; constant non-stop highly-danceable funk was delivered. Good songs, and a good band composed of young musicians who were clearly enjoying themselves immensely, as you might imagine considering that they were playing with a major funk legend. Tonight (4/16) the band will be performing at the Blue Wisp; if you have questions about the show, call 241-WISP. This footage I taped gives you a taste of what went down last night and will go down tonight, although from comments that were made near the end of last night’s gig I get the impression that they’re going to add a turntablist and a rapper to the mix!

In other music news, two very talented female jazz vocalists will be performing this week, both on Friday (4/19) night, but at different venues. Andrea Cefalo will be at Chez Nora in Covington, and she’ll be accompanied by Al Beasley (drums), Billy Larkin (piano), and Eugene Goss (vocals and percussion). I had a chance to interview Andrea a few months back, and here’s a link to that blog entry:

http://www.gaslightproperty.com/interview-with-andrea-cefalo-shes-at-the-blue-wisp-sunday-evening/

Also on this Friday (4/19), April Aloisio will be performing Brazilian-flavored jazz at the Centennial Barn at 110 Compton Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45215. I only recently discovered that the centrally-located Centennial Barn exists (it’s on the border of Hartwell and Wyoming). The Centennial Barn is a great and very flexible space that people use for music, yoga, massage, business meetings, weddings, and – well, I think people are still finding fresh new ways to utilize this space that location-wise is smack dab in the middle of everything, yet once you get there, you suddenly feel like you’re out in the country! April’s performance is from 7:30pm to 10pm and features Phillip Burkhead on keyboard and George Simon on guitar. Here’s footage from a recent April Aloisio performance at the Greenwich Tavern:

The post Footage From Bernie Worrell In-Store; He’s at the Blue Wisp Tonight appeared first on .

I’ve seen Bernie a few times – with the Talking Heads, the Golden Palominos, Jerry Harrison’s Casual Gods – and, back in the antediluvian era, the Mothership Connection tour with Parliament-Funkadelic. Seeing that spaceship landing on the stage of Hara Arena really did a number on me – so much so that I wrote about it many years later for crawdaddy.com, which has since folded, but before that happened some other websites grabbed hold of it. Here’s a link to the article for anybody who has a couple extra hours:

http://thefalconsnest.wordpress.com/2011/04/28/funkhippies-and-the-landing-of-the-mothership/

And here’s some footage of Bernie during a live performance with none other than Bootsy Collins – which leads me to wonder…What the heck is Bootsy going to be up to Tuesday night?

The post Bernie Worrell In-House at Shake-It + Live at the Blue Wisp appeared first on .

Upcoming Bogart’s shows include Insane Clown Posse on May 13 and Todd Rundgren on May 18.

A week later I was back up on Short Vine, where I visited the new Mio’s Pizzeria at 2634 Vine St.

Mio's Pizzeria

But the night did not end there, my friends. Somehow I ended up in the basement of Daniels watching the Nelson Slater album release party. Everyone who knows me knows that I can ramble on and on about the merits or unmerits of a piece of music….I have put people to sleep. However, for this particular performance I prefer to let the music speak for itself:

Speaking of letting something speak for itself, here is some information about a discount for Gaslight Residents to see the new play Apartment 3A at Clifton Performance Theatre.

The post Bogart’s, Daniels Pub, Nelson Slater, Short Vine, Wish You Were Here, & Gaslight Night at Clifton Performance Theatre appeared first on .

The New Nelson Slater Album

This Friday, April 12  Nelson will be playing at Daniel’s Pub, which is still there after all those wild years, at 2735 Vine Street. Great things have been happening on Short Vine lately (including some new developments at Bogart’s), and this will be an opportunity to bring some of the old spirit back. Going to Daniels will bring back old memories for us veterans and launch new ones for the newcomers. Folks, this is an event, let’s get out and show some support! The music starts at 9, Something Groovy will be Nelson’s special guests, and other performers include Grow Horns, Large Hadron Collider, and The Special People. Also, rumor has it (we’re not certain yet if this is just another one of those unfounded internet rumors) that Mr. Jerry Parker will be in attendance Friday evening.

The post Nelson Slater Album Release Party Friday at Daniels Pub! appeared first on .

James Brown with David Matthews - keyboards; Kenny Poole - guitar; Michael Moore - bass; Jimmy Madison - drums

My article in Cincinnati Magazine’s April issue covered lots of ground—decades, actually, but the connecting thread was a band that in 1968 started performing at a club in Mt Adams six nights a week and remained at that location for about a year. The name of that band was the Sound Museum, and it was led by saxophonist Jimmy McGary. After the Sound Museum crossed paths with James Brown, a spinoff of that group became Grodeck Whipperjenny, and that same band recorded an album that is credited to James Brown even though his contribution was minimal.

In the article I discuss three albums that were recorded by Cincinnati Musicians during that period. Although it wasn’t released until 1980, the Sound Museum’s jazz recording Two Tone Poems was recorded at Jewel Recording Studio in 1968. More rock-oriented, the eponymous Grodeck Whipperjenny is a 1970 release, and the funkier James Brown release Sho is Funky Down Here came out in 1971. There’s a lot of overlap in personnel on these records, which is intriguing because the scope of the music is so broad. As David Matthews explains in the Cincinnati Magazine article, with Grodeck Whipperjenny he was (due to James Brown’s prompting) exploring what was for him a different style of music. So there was an element of naiveté—but when you combine that with brilliance, interesting things can happen.

I’ve spent a lot of time listening to those three records, and one of the things I came away with—and couldn’t fully explore in what was already a lengthy article—was the depth of talent in the city during that period. In the article I said a lot about the talents of Jimmy McGary and David Matthews, but I should say more about the other musicians. Other than David Matthews, there’s one musician who appears on all three albums. Guitarist Kenny Poole is the epitome of lyricism on Two Tone Poems, where he has a dry tone you’d associate with the jazz tradition that was his foundation. He sounds much dirtier on Grodeck Whipperjenny and Sho is Funky Down Here; here his playing ranges from straight-up in your face rock and funk to wide-open improv (as on “Evidence for Existence of Unconscious”). Many people in Cincinnati love Kenny’s playing but who aren’t aware of these recordings, and I hope that some of them will be able to enjoy the same sense of discovery that I experienced when I first listened to these albums. (I should mention here that  Grodeck Whipperjenny and Sho Is Funky Down Here are both widely available. You can also hear them on youtube, and representative tracks from all three records appear at the bottom of Cincinnati Magazine’s link to my article.)

I first saw Kenny Poole one of the first times I went to the Blue Wisp (the old one in O’Bryonville), where he sat in the whole evening with Tal Farlow, one of the most important guitarists in the history of jazz. I caught Kenny a few times after that, but then there came a long period where he wasn’t playing the clubs as much (turns out private parties and corporate affairs were more lucrative and probably less of a hassle). Then one night Jim Hall performed at Xavier’s jazz guitar series, and Kenny was in attendance. At intermission I asked what he thought of the music. That question launched what turned out to be an amazing soliloquy. Kenny raved about Jim Hall in the most unbridled fashion. He listed Bartok and Stravinsky as influences, and he also threw in a bunch of other names that I can’t remember anymore. “He sounds like so many people,” Kenny said, “and none of them are guitarists!” I loved the Jim Hall concert, but on that evening I got as much pleasure from listening to a fellow guitarist gush about one of his heroes.

I got to see Kenny Poole one more time, this time by chance. Occasionally I would drop by Awakening Coffee House in Hyde Park to hear jazz, and one night Kenny Poole happened to be filling in for the regular guitarist. Kenny was a great bebop player—in fact, I remember a rendition of Charlie Parker’s “Billie’s Bounce” that burned—but this evening he was more in more a bossa nova mode. Among the highlights that evening was a beautiful rendition of Bacharach’s “The Look of Love.” Kenny passed away not too longer after that, and I feel lucky to have a chance to at least have a glimpse of how his art was still evolving near the end of his career.

Kenny Poole was, like Jimmy McGary, a Cincinnati jazz musician who stayed here. He recorded at different points of his career, however, and word got out. In fact, the video that I posted here has almost 90,000 hits and long string of very positive comments. Way back in the day Kenny was performing with the likes of David Matthews, James Brown, Michael Moore, Grover Mooney and Jimmy Madison. For this solo performance decades later he was playing music that’s similar to what he performed at Awakenings the last time I saw him. As with Jim Hall at Xavier, this solo guitar music is characterized by warmth, subtlety and richness. The song, by the way, is “Brazil;” if you want to hear it sung, look up Antonio Carlos Jobim’s version on youtube.

The post Kenny Poole, Guitarist appeared first on .

As you might imagine, there’s a lot to the story. When I pitched it to Cincinnati Magazine I created what was quite possibly the longest query letter ever. I had never written for them before, and this was an out-of-the-blue pitch. There was some interest on their part, but there was no guarantee that it would be a good match.

I went ahead and wrote the article, all 5,500 words of it (the first draft, that is; eventually we trimmed it down to about 4,000). Shortly after I sent it an interesting twist of fate occurred for an article that very much hinges on the activities of James Brown: RJ Smith, author of the recently published JB bio The One: The Life and Music of James Brown, joined Cincinnati Magazine’s staff. Prior to that time RJ had never lived in Cincinnati, so that was a huge and quite welcome coincidence; he ended up providing invaluable assistance during the editing.  Also, the magazine did a great job of designing and laying out the piece both in print and online.

As I stated near the end of the article, ultimately this is a story about friendship, and I made several as I delved into this slice of Cincinnati musical history. The people I talked to the most were David Matthews, Carmon DeLeone and RJ Smith. It’s also because of this article that I was able to meet Lou Lausche, Carol McGary, Sean McGary, Phyllis Boyce and many others. I also benefitted from chatting with someone I already knew, Shawn Marsh, who I nicknamed “Shawn Marsh of Sound Museum fame” (sometimes shortened to “Sound Museum fame” or “Sound Museum”) for reasons that—well, I’ll let him explain it to you.

I’m going to write a couple entries on the musical side of this subject, but that will make a lot more sense after you’ve read the article. Here’s a link to the Cincinnati Magazine article:

Tomorrow Never Knows in Cincinnati Magazine

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How long has Wish You Been Here been together?

We formed in late 1995. It’s one of the longest continually running Pink Floyd tribute bands. We’re coming up on 20 years, and it’s been a successful run.

What’s the biggest challenge about playing the music of Pink Floyd live?

You have to be careful not only what you play but what you don’t play Often the space between the notes is just as important. You have to play it in the style of the artist. Details, sound effects, specific notes, drum fills, also the sounds. It helps to use the right gear , the effects, the keyboards.

Pink Floyd live isn’t just musicians playing instruments; there’s also the  lights and the props and so forth, yet a club setting is on a smaller scale than the stadiums and coliseums where Pink Floyd has played, do you also have to scale down some?

Sometimes we have to scale down, but we’ll still be flying our pig; he’s about as big as a Volkswagen! Usually we tailor the size of production to venue we’re playing at. Even for an intimate venue we still put on quite a production.

Do you ever have an evening where you play an entire album?

We do that a lot, In fact, we’re doing two albums at Bogart’s , Wish You Were Here and Animals. The last time we played Bogart’s we did Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety

Have you ever done The Wall in its entirety?

Yes; in fact, it got so big had to retire it.  That culminated at Time Warner Cable Ampitheater; that was in 2008. We also performed it in theaters. Ultimately it got too big for us to do it anymore.

What’s your favorite Pink Floyd song?

I would say “Dogs.” That’s my favorite song to play live. “Hey You” is one of my favorites, and “The Great Gig in the Sky.”

Do you ever travel back to the Syd Barrett days?

We always at least two Syd Barrett tunes.

The post Wish You Were Here Update: Interview with Band Member Eric Sosinski appeared first on .

Rose Room

There’s some exciting and free music coming in the next few days at Sitwell’s, starting with the Rose Room on Monday, April 1, at 8 pm. Two of the four members of the Rose Room – George Cunningham on guitar, and Don Aren on upright bass – are also in the Faux Frenchmen, so as you might expect their music explores a period of jazz whose roots preceded bebop.

There’s less of a gypsy jazz, emphasis, however, and more of a focus on swing, with clarinetist Joe Lukasik echoing the days when Benny Goodman was all the rage. Chris Arducer, a veteran of the Bears, rounds out the group on drums.

It also bears mentioning that the Faux Frenchmen will be performing Wednesday, April 3 at 8 pm. They’re at Sitwell’s almost every Wednesday, and I’ve never walked into one of their shows when there wasn’t a crowd. Those Wednesday night gigs are a cheap (i.e., free) and very convenient way to hear some great music and mingle in a low-key setting.

I’m also very excited to hear that J. Gumbo’s (at 286 Ludlow Avenue) is now hosting open mics every Saturday from 6pm to 10pm. It’s been a long time since there have been open mics on Ludlow Avenue; they used to be a mainstay at Arlin’s, but not any more. I’ll be writing more about the J. Gumbo’s open mics, but for now I’ll just add that the shows are hosted by Nicholas Lawson, who interested musicians can contact by phone (513.312.5204) or email (nickyisdeep@gmail.com).

To get back to Arlin’s for just a second, I noticed the other night that their increasingly interesting draft beer selection now includes a Three Floyds beer. There was a time, not too long ago, when in order to enjoy a Three Floyds I had to drive to Indiana. I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the experience, but now I can take a few steps and enjoy a Three Floyds on tap. The beer in question was a Pride and Joy, as as someone who has sampled much of their product as part of my never-ending goal to find out what is the best beer in the world, I can only say,  this very drinkable yet flavorful mild ale is one of the best Three Floyds beers I have had.

Also, a reminder that Gaslight Property still giving away tickets to the Wish You Were Here concert at Bogart’s on Saturday, April 9. To receive free tickets, just drop by the Gaslight Property office at 311 Howell between 9am and 5:30 pm Monday through Friday or Saturday 10am to 2pm. Or just call me and I’ll give you some myself; I live in the Gaslight District and my phone number is 513.281.3266.

The post Music on Ludlow Avenue appeared first on .

Writing about music is something I’ve always enjoyed, and from the beginning contributing to TAS was fun. Quickly, though, I grew to love it. Partly that’s due to a coincidence: I was a vinyl record lover even when records bordered on extinction, and shortly after I joined the magazine a vinyl resurgence began taking place. It turns out I was at the perfect place to celebrate that  surprising bit of news. I doubt any magazine on the planet grumbled more about the fact that vinyl had become an endangered species; now we celebrate both analog and continually improving digital recordings.

That’s part of what I love about the magazine. Also, I chat a lot on the phone and email back and forth with people from around the world who are connected to the music industry in one way or another. As opposed to corporate behemoths, these folks selling music, stereos, record cleaners and other accessories work on a smaller scale, emphasizing quality over quantity. Often they’re testing unknown waters and taking risks, and they do so because they’re driven by a passion. Examples include the Rune Grammofon label, whose new deluxe 7-LP release by Norwegian musician Arve Henriksen epitomizes the labor of love record-making can involve. The Lithuanian label NoBusiness Records also come to mind; in a few years this new small label has put out dozens of avant-garde jazz records on vinyl. I’m also impressed by the Paris-based Sam Records, whose passion for reissuing killer jazz LPs includes recreating album covers from the original artwork. And there’s Gotta Groove Records in Cleveland, a record pressing plant that didn’t even exist a few years ago. People must have thought they were crazy to open a plant at that time; now they need two full-time shifts to keep up with demand.

Clearly that same passionate and devil-may-care spirit was embodied by William Ackerman when he founded Windham Hill Records in 1976. He didn’t foresee or plot to achieve massive success; he just wanted to release some good music. In fact, when the label got too large, he went the other way. Now Ackerman has started over. Before I interviewed him for TAS I had no idea that the result would be so provocative and inspiring. In a later email he compared our discussion to a tennis game, and I feel that when I read the interview. The Absolute Sound posted it online, and here’s a link to it:

William Ackerman Interview in The Absolute Sound:

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What enhanced the vibe was the music, which seemed to fit the space and the ambience so well you mighta thought the music was created first and then the room was designed to complement that. On guitar was Brian Lovely, who along with a host of other musical pursuits performs every Wednesday at Sitwell’s with the Faux Frenchmen. As with that ensemble, Lovely combined jazz with a gypsy style, and he blended in perfectly with a female vocalist who was unfamiliar to me. After one song (a cool rendition of a Dean Martin’s “Sway”)  the band went on break, whereupon I learned that she was Annette Shepherd, who I’d read about in cyberspace but never heard before. While I was able to hear another set, and enjoyed it (especially the cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Dance Me to the End of Love”), I was disappointed to learn that I missed, in the previous set, her take on “Walk Like an Egyptian.”

Knowing that she had recorded my nearly favorite song—not, by a mile, your typical fare for such a jazzy ensemble—was enough to convince me that I needed to buy Annette’s new CD, I Only Have Eyes for You, which I listened to when I got home. As a writer for The Absolute Sound, I once embarked on a feature article that was an overview of up and coming female jazz vocalists. My research involved asking record company marketing reps from round the world to send me CDs by vocalists on their labels, and by journey’s end I’d sifted through piles of new recordings. Some were great, some were horrible, and most were in between.

None of those CDs did a better job of mixing styles in a way that kept the CD fresh from beginning to end than I Only Have Eyes for You. It begins with a straightforward jazz version of the jazz standard, “I Remember You,” and although the tempo’s a little sped up, the title track is also a nice straightforward jazz performance. At times there’s more of a European flair, as you might expect from title like “Veinte Anos” and “La Vie En Rose.” The CD also has a sense of humor, as evidenced by the Bob Dorough gem, “I’m Hip” and the aforementioned “Walk Like an Egyptian,” where the band—which includes some colorful improve from a band that includes Brian Lovely and another Faux Frenchmen member, violinist Paul Patterson—takes off on a magic carpet ride; I can almost see the foreign types with their hookah pipes.

Good song selection, thoughtful arrangements, and a willingness to take chances (she serves up “Autumn Leaves” with a twist, but it works) distinguish I Only Have Eyes for You. Oh, and Annette’s singing is spot-on throughout: natural, unforced, and free of the histrionics that in the wrong hands can make jazz singing a painful experience.  I found out during the break that, after years of performing there, this was to be her last night at The View Cucina, which only underscores the notion that Jeff Wilson finds out about cool things right as they’re about to end…but I have a hunch that Annette Shepherd will soon find a regular gig in another perfect place. You can hear I Only Have Eyes for You on soundloud – here’s the link:

Souncloud – I Only Have Eyes for You by Annette Shepherd

Also, check out her website, www.annetteshepherd.com/

***

I also wanted to pass along that Gaslight Property just had a great 2 bedroom apartment open up in the highly sought-after Clifton Manor building, in the heart & soul of the Gaslight District, at 3654 Middleton. It’s a nice stroll to Ludlow Avenue, Clifton Cultural Arts Center, Fairview German Language School, and Mt. Storm Park. It has beautiful hardwood floors, and gets a ton of sunlight. Call 513.861.6000 to schedule a tour.

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(Update: The Midnight Express has now expanded its hours: service now begins at 5 pm. The phone number, again,  is 513.462.1562.)

A door hanger ad appeared on my doorknob a couple days that, when I looked at it, sparked this thought: Shazam, that’s a good idea!

It’s one of those ideas that many of us have imagined at one point or another—especially when it’s late at night and we have the munchies but we’re too tired to go out for food—but it’s one thing to imagine something and another thing to do it.

The Midnight Express (513.462.1562) is a new business serving the Clifton and downtown area that delivers food and beverages from nearby restaurants from midnight to 6 am seven nights a week. On their door hangar they throw out suggestions that include fast food (White Castle, Skyline) and fancier fare (Shangai Mamas); they also deliver from places like Walgreens and CVS, which means they don’t limit what they can deliver. As the mastermind behind The Midnight Express (Cassidy Mullen, aka “Dr. Midnight”) put it when we chatted on the phone, “You tell me what you want the Midnight Express to be, that’s what we will be.”

His flexibility extends to locations for delivery as well. His door hanger ad listed Clifton and downtown, but during our phone chat I quickly learned that the neighborhoods he’s delivered to include Clifton Heights, Corryville, Walnut Hills, Northside and northern Kentucky. Although he cannot yet deliver alcohol, he’s working on that. The fee for the service is $5 plus 10% of the sale price; tips are accepted but not mandatory.

Also, he has specials, including:

• Sunday is J. Gumbo’s night, with a $3 surcharge instead of a $5 surcharge;
• Monday is Ladies Night, when all females get a $3 surcharge instead of a $5 surcharge;
• Tuesday is Skyline night, with a $3 surcharge for all Skyline deliveries;
• Wednesday is White Castle night, with a $3 surcharge for all White Castle deliveries.

I like this idea on all kinds of levels. One of the things I’ve always liked about Clifton and thereabouts is their convenience, and Midnight Express just made it more convenient. A delivery service means fewer cars on the road and less gas consumed, and it also means fewer drunk drivers. Also, I like small business entrepreneurs. When I spoke to Dr. Midnight he was enthusiastic and polite and very professional. He envisioned a day when The Midnight Express would expand its hours, and it sounds as if that day will come soon.  Per Dr. Midnight, “5-2-5 is what this service will be, and be referred to very shortly.” So save his phone number—513.462.1562—on your cell and call him the next time you have a hankering for food or whatever else you need. I also recommend checking out his Facebook page to find out more about him.

*

Also, a quick reminder that  Gaslight Property has  free tickets to give away for the Pink Floyd tribute band Wish You Were Here on Saturday, April 6 at Bogart’s. To get a free ticket, all you have to do is:

• Subscribe to this blog, which takes seconds (on the right side of this webpage, type your email address where it says Subscribe to the Blog and then click Subscribe); and
• Pick up the tickets at Gaslight Property’s office at 311 Howell Avenue (right behind UDF) in Clifton from 9am – 5:30pm Monday through Friday and 10am to 4pm on Saturday. If you have any questions, call Gaslight Property at 513.861.6000.

And that’s it! You do not have to be a Gaslight Property tenant, but you definitely can be. Also, anyone who was already subscribed to the blog is also entitled to free tickets. Please note that there’s a two ticket limit. The show starts at 8pm, and it’s an all ages show.

The post A New Delivery Service – What a Great Idea! appeared first on .

In other “progressive rock news,” I should remind folks that Gaslight Property has 200 free tickets to give away for the Pink Floyd tribute band Wish You Were Here on Saturday, April 6 at Bogart’s. To get a free ticket, all you have to do is:

• Subscribe to this blog, which takes seconds (on the right side of this webpage, type your email address where it says Subscribe to the Blog and then click Subscribe); and
• Pick up the tickets at Gaslight Property’s office at 311 Howell Avenue (right behind UDF) in Clifton from 9am – 5:30pm Monday through Friday and 10am to 4pm on Saturday. If you have any questions, call Gaslight Property at 513.861.6000.

And that’s it! You do not have to be a Gaslight Property tenant, but you definitely can be. Also, anyone who was already subscribed to the blog is also entitled to free tickets. Please note that there’s a two ticket limit. The show starts at 8pm, and it’s an all ages show.

The post Guitarist Peter Banks Passes Away appeared first on .

Gaslight Property is happy to announce that we have 200 free tickets to give away for the Pink Floyd tribute band Wish You Were Here on Saturday, April 6 at Bogart’s. To get a free ticket, all you have to do is:

• Subscribe to this blog, which takes seconds (on the right side of this webpage, type your email address where it says Subscribe to the Blog and then click Subscribe); and
• Pick up the tickets at Gaslight Property’s office at 311 Howell Avenue (right behind UDF) in Clifton from 9am – 5:30pm Monday through Friday and 10am to 4pm on Saturday. If you have any questions, call Gaslight Property at 513.861.6000.

And that’s it! You do not have to be a Gaslight Property tenant, but you definitely can be. Also, anyone who was already subscribed to the blog is also entitled to free tickets. Please note that there’s a two ticket limit. The show starts at 8pm, and it’s an all ages show. For some music fans it will be an opportunity to visit the iconic Bogart’s for the first time, and others will have a chance to see just how both the club and the neighborhood have been coming along, as I began to address in this previous blog entry:

http://www.gaslightproperty.com/free-tickets-to-santigold-friday-night-and-whats-new-at-bogarts/

Since that blog entry some new restaurants have been popping up on Short Vine, and in near-future blog entries I’ll be highlighting some of the cool new things on the strip that’s really coming into its own again.

Wish You Were Here has been performing all-Floyd concerts since 1995. Along with playing songs from every period, Wish You Were Here goes for full Floyd experience, including lights shows and inflatables that fly overhead. To whet your appetite, here’s some footage from a recent Wish You Were performance of the Pink Floyd classic “Comfortably Numb” from The Wall (how about that guitar solo?):

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TICKETS FOR CHRIS COMER AT CCAC

Underscoring the musical nature of the event is the special preview of the Dick Waller Retrospective: Music at an Exhibition, which will have its full opening celebration on March 17. Along with founding the Linton Chamber Series and being principal clarinetist of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Dick Waller has developed a style he calls free association painting. A chief source inspiration for Waller’s painting has been the classical composer Bela Bartok.

The Chris Comer Trio stays very busy playing jazz in the Greater Cincinnati area, but the pianist and band leader had time to answer a few questions I threw his way recently:

Tell me about the Chris Comer Trio.

The CC3 is a “traditional” piano trio format consisting of piano, upright bass and drums. We play mostly standards from the American Songbook. We do try to work in a few more contemporary tunes than your more traditional trios, though, like an occasional Frank Zappa or Pat Metheny tune, or a few pop tunes. We’ve even been known to do a Kristofferson or Willie Nelson tune once in awhile. Christmas music is big with this trio, but that’s limited to six weeks out of the year!

What do you like about the piano trio format?

A jazz piano trio is a “pure” format, like a string quartet in classical music. There’s a limitation to the voices and sounds, since we stick with piano, bass & drums…but it’s what you do with that format that either stands out from the rest or not. Perhaps a piano trio is a dime a dozen, but what Bill Evans or Keith Jarrett do with the trio is an amazing things indeed, like what Bartok does with a string quartet. The piano trio in jazz is the ultimate canvass to paint on.

Who are some pianists you like?

Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Hampton Hawes, Duke Ellington, Monty Alexander, Steve Schmidt, Ricky Nye, Roy Meriwether, Tord Gustaffson, Bobo Stenson, Ahmad Jamal….. I used to really like Paul Bley too.

I know you play all over the place, but is there a venue where you appear every weekend, or…

We play the Chez Nora Rooftop Lounge pretty often, but nothing is currently booked. We like that room  alot. It’s a REAL jazz club. Come see us next time we hit Chez Nora! We’ll be back soon.

If someone wants to book you for an upcoming event, how should they get in touch with you?

For more information on The Chris Comer Trio go to http://www.chriscomertrio.com/

Chris Comer

The Chris Comer Trio

(513) 351-7502

Chris@ChrisComerRadio.com

Finally, here’s some youtube footage of the Chris Comer Trio with a guest guitarist at the Greenwich Tavern:

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For a quick update to some of the new things happening at Aqaurius Star Om Cafe, here’s a link to a recent blog entry I wrote:

Link to Aquarius Star

After the menu party my friends and I dropped by Mediterranean King, which was also packed, and while we were there we learned something important: on the right night this restaurant will keep its doors a little past their posted hours. Which was good, because were hungry:

Here’s a link to a recent blog entry I wrote about Mediterranean King. To that post I will only add what a friend said while we were there, in response to how fresh the food was: “It’s like eating at home.”

Link to Mediterranean King

From there we visited the Bockfest downtown, where Jim Tarbell was in full regalia:

At MotrPub a group named The Steepwater Band was performing music what sounded to these ears like an early 1970s combination of blues and boogie; the band I most thought of was Savoy Brown (and it turned out, when I talked to band members after the gig, they’d opened for that band). I videotaped part of their performance of Robert Johnson’s “Crossroads.” This was after the sang all but one of the verses. Things got quieter and sparser and then built up slowly – great music, and a band I look forward to seeing again:

On Saturday night I called my buddy Nelson Slater and said let’s go to the Platter Party Records fundraiser at the Rake’s End on Central Avenue, and I’m glad I did. Turns out Nelson used to trade sets with 400 Years of What back in the day, and Nelson had a chance to trade memories with the leader of the band, Gordon Hickland. (The fundraiser was being held in order to help pay for the double LP of a live 400 Years of What show that was caught on tape.) Here’s the mayhem we witnessed upon entering the party:

Chris Burgan  was DJing. He’s told me before that when he DJs his favorite song to play is James Brown’s “Talkin’ Loud & Sayin’ Nothing,” which features then-local musicians David Matthews, Michael Moore, Jimmy Madison, and Kenny Poole. Chris said it always packs the dance floor, and true to form folks got moving as soon as that song came on:

I had a chance to meet Gordon Hickland from 400 Years of What, who was there with his wife Wilma, owner of Wilma’s Treazures in Northside (4008 Hamilton  Ave to be exact; the phone there is 513.693.2922. They took this lovely picture together:

Gordon showed me some pictures of him and his bandmates. With this one, he explained that one night there was a hot pants contest and the winner would win $200. Eager to pocket a little extra cash, he dressed for the occasion – and won (he’s the guy on the right.

Part of the fundraising involved a raffle, and for the first time ever, I actually won something! My prize was three albums that I was interested in because I liked the album covers. After I won them I learned that the owner of the label, Pete Fosco was there, and I had a chance to meet him. The label is Greenup Industries, and their focus is on experimental music, which is right up my alley. I’ll focus on the Greenup Industries record label in an upcoming blog.

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Last night trumpeter Barry Reis, who’s giving classes at CCM, led Ed Moss’s piano trio through some standards. There was an off-the-cuff feel to the performances; pre-song discussions included what tune to play next. At one point Reis handed the sheet music for Thelonious Monk’s “Light Blue” to pianist Ed Moss and bassist Lou Lausche, and I recorded the piece through the end of the trumpet solo. You don’t get to hear enough Monk in clubs, and when you do hear it, the musicians usually stick to the more well-known compositions – so it was doubly nice to hear them perform this lesser-known gem. Schwartz’s Point has a website to fill you in on some of the goings-on there – Schwartz’e Point Website – and Barry Reis will be performing there tonight, Friday, and Saturday. Here’s Barry Reis with the Ed Moss trio performing “Light Blue:”

Also, I’m finally getting around to posting footage from the evening of duets that took place at the Greenwich Tavern in early January. On that night pianist Charlie Wilson and vibraphonist King Reeves traded sets with vocalist April Aloisio and pianist Phillip Burkhead.  Fine music was made by both groups, and, as duet artists, they complemented each other extremely well. Early in the night pianist Charlie Wilson sounded as abstract as ever heard him – and by end (the song I’m posting here), he sounded more straightforwardly soulful and righteous  than ever (and how about his pre-song soliloquy!):

I’ve been a fan of jazz and bosssa nova vocalist April Aloisio for a long time, but I’ve never heard her sound as good as she did that night at the Greenwich. Having an acoustic piano and perfect sound had something to do with that, and I’m happy to report that the same chemistry she shared with Phillip Burkhead that evening is evident on their CD of duets, Daydream, which you can buy on amazon. Here’s April Aloisio and Phillip Burkhead performing Duke Ellington’s “Prelude to a Kiss:”

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(NOTE: THIS IS ONLY PART 1 OF THE TOUR; I’LL SHOW YOU THE REST IN THE NEXT ROUND)

Because the weather was sunny and warm, I grabbed the camera and went for a walk a couple days ago. Roaming around the University of Cincinnati sparked memories that included, in some cases, the actual construction of some buildings. The first structure I witnessed was the DAAP building, designed by the starchitect Peter Eisenman. Cincinnati is known worldwide for its high concentration of signature buildings, and the DAAP Building is among the most famous. In 1996 I was there the evening that the building was officially dedicated. Eisenman was there, and so was Michael Graves, whose nearby engineering building was another new signature building. Graves (whose architecture is considerably less avant-garde than Eisenman’s) ribbed his colleague a few times during their talk, as when someone apologized for being late because he couldn’t find the auditorium in the maze-like structure. “If you want to understand my architecture,” Eisenman explained to the audience, “you have to start with the fact that I’ve my last 20-? years on the couch.” A short time after the very colorful structure was finished Cincinnati author and UC creative writing professor Dallas Wiebe wrote a letter to the editor that noted the uncanny resemblance between the colorful and sprawling DAAP building and the under-appreciated El Rancho Rankin. Sadly, Cincinnati’s finest motel has since been demolished, a tragedy that puts me in mind of an old Joni Mitchell song where they paved paradise and put up a grocery store. During the talk, Eisenman lamented the fact that current architecture students are now required to delve more deeply into the mechanical side of things, which he considered beneath their profession. Since it was built in 1996, the DAAP building has had numerous mechanical problems, which may be more of a blessing than a curse: it shows DAAP students that architecture is a process as opposed to a series of structures that exist independent of time. Presently it’s undergoing its second major renovation that will address, in part, water leakage. Here are some pictures I took this week of the current construction:

You really have to go inside the DAAP building to appreciate how unique it is. If you walk around inside it, you’ll notice how the hallways expand and contract, and there are times – as when you climb a stairway that, at the bottom, was wide enough for a truck to pass through, but at the top only one person can pass through – when you’ll catch a whiff of claustrophobia that creeps up on you slowly and messes with your subconscious. Here I recall Eisenman discussing his phobias on the couch; I think I know what one of them is.  Even from the outside  of one of the entrances you get a sense that the building is closing in on you:

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Those changes include new hours – 7:30 am to 7 pm 7 days a week – and a streamlined focus. “The Om Café is our main focus now,” owner Lydia  Stec said. “We’re putting the seating up front, when people walk in the door, because we want to bring the cafe front and center.” The cafe is also going to look different, with (among other things) new signage in the windows. New look, new focus – and yes, new menu.  When I talked to Lydia, she seemed most excited about the fact that Gary Garitson is joining the staff as the new chef. The emphasis will continue to be on locally grown and organic ingredients, and the menu will continue to be affordable. The cafe is excited enough about his skills as a chef, however, that it’s having this special event Friday night.

A quick reminder that there are several apartment buildings Gaslight Property owns within walking distance of Aquarius Star & Om Café—and, in fact, one of them is right across the street, as Gaslight rents apartments above Graeter’s (the street address is 3405 Telford). Call 513.861.6000 to set up an appointment to look at one of these units today.

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After Bathing at Baxter’s

At that point Grace Slick was the most ambitious composer in the band, but both “rejoyce” and “Two Heads” are well-crafted as opposed to mindless self-indulgence. Those are great tunes, and Kantner contributed a couple gems as well (“The Ballad of You and Me and Pooneil” and “Martha”). The other great song was Marty Balin’s “Young Girl Sunday Blues,” which evokes the Summer of Love in such a potent way that, given that criteria, I don’t know if another song could top it. It has a whiff of psychedelia, but it’s also a catchy pop song with some of the mushiest over-the-top heart-on-your-sleeve sensitive hippie lyrics you’ll ever hear. Again I think of Robert Hunter’s comment about Marty Balin: “I mean, what do you want from a man in the way of laying it right up on the table, vulnerable and undressed?”  That describes to a T “Young Girl Sunday Blues,” which is also funky, with a grungy bottom-heavy sound that offsets the high-flying vocals. At every turn the song seems to build in intensity:

Another Balin song that that stands out is  “Volunteers.” It’s funny: other members of the Airplane were writing revolutionary protest songs left and right, but Balin was seen as the mushy love song writer. For two minutes and eight seconds Balin threw his hat in the ring, but he did it in his own way. The impetus for the song when Volunteers of America garbage truck awoke Balin one morning. Sounds as if he casually slapped together some lyrics, and although the more serious-minded Kantner put his two-cents worth in, on listening to the final product you can still imagine Balin rolling out of bed and thinking, ‘What the hell’s going on out there?” It’s a great protest song, and a unique one at that, because it makes protesting seem like fun (“Ain’t it amazing all the people I meet”). Cranking the song in my uncle’s car (he let me sit out there and play eight-tracks one day while he hung out with my parents), I imagined how much fun it must be to be a college student. Even as a seventh-grader I could visualize the following schedule: go to class, study for a test, grab some of the Molotov cocktails the police toss during the afternoon demonstration and throw them back, study some more, go to a concert….That sounded like a good life to me. By the time I went to college, though, my fellow students were complaining that Nixon got a bad rap, and Foreigner performed at Homecoming. Here’s “Volunteers:”

Finally, a reminder that Marty Balin will be playing at the Fairfield Arts Center Saturday, March 2, at 8 pm. The Center is located at 411 Wessel Drive; tickets are $40 orchestra/$35 stadium; you can buy them by phone (513.867.5348), in person at the center, or online at this link. The show is a fund raiser for  Sojourner Recovery Services, an organization that provides substance abuse treatment.

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Like I said, that’s the first I heard of this show, so I figure that this is new news for other people as well. Balin was, to the extent that they ever had one, the leader of the Jefferson Airplane early on; definitely he played a central role in forming the band. When I first started buying Airplane albums, they had already morphed into the Starship. I listened to everything from Takes Off (their 1966 debut) to Thirty Seconds Over Winterland (a 1973 live set). Like the Beach Boys and Fleetwood Mac, the Airplane was one of those bands where different artists grabbed the spotlight at different times. Sometimes that was due to shifting personnel, but that also occurred when the lineup stayed consistent.

Balin was with the Airplane from the beginning through Volunteers (1969), when, for his fellow band members, music seemed to take a back seat to drugs. I was just getting my groove on with early Airplane when I read an article that the lyricist for the Grateful Dead, Robert Hunter, published in Crawdaddy in 1975. It’s a great piece of writing (to read it all you have to do is google Robert Hunter + crawdaddy). As you might guess, Hunter came across as literate, well-read, sophisticated, and a pretty down to earth guy who was surrounded by the madness that surrounded the Dead…a man of letters typing lyrics from the eye of hurricane. Although we tend to underestimate Hunter’s role in the Dead, it’s obvious from this article that he was an essential member of the group. When asked who he liked as a songwriter, Hunter only mentioned one, saying this: “Some of Marty Balin’s stuff around the Surrealistic Pillow days contains some of the sweetest and most potent statements in the idiom. ‘I’m so full of love I could burst apart and start to cry.’ I mean, what do you want from a man in the way of laying it right up on the table, vulnerable and undressed? Yeah, I guess that’s how I judge a good lyric: vulnerable, unique, universal, graceful and craftsmanly.”

Although I already liked Marty Balin, those words deepened my appreciation. I mean, talk about a ringing endorsement. What a great way to put it: “laying it right up on the table, vulnerable and undressed.” And isn’t he right? I mean, if someone gets behind the mic who wears his heart on his sleeve—and I mean really wearing his heart on his sleeve as opposed to faking it (in other words, the norm)—right away I think that artists deserves some credit.

This blog entry has already run long, but I have more to say about Marty Balin. There are a couple songs I want to highlight, plus I want to talk about a concert he played where the Hells Angels made their presence felt. The Stones were headliners that day. Subscribe to my blog and you’ll get an email with Part 2 of Marty Balin.

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With a title like Sing, Sinner, Sing, you can guess what the public thought about the matter. Yet no one was ever convicted, as authorities were never able to determine whether 20-year-old Zachary Smith Reynolds, heir to a huge tobacco fortune, committed suicide or was murdered.

Born in Cincinnati in 1904, Libby Holman pursued theater and music during high school and college. After graduating in 1923 she moved to New York, where after a string of small successes and the occasional flop, she went over big with The Little Show, a musical that included the song “Moanin Low.” That song will forever be associated with Libby Holman, and she also put her stamp on such standards as “What is This Thing Called Love” and “Body and Soul.” This was the kind of music that would have played at a party thrown by Jay Gatsby while flappers downed bathtub gin.

No Libby Holman compilation would be complete without “Find Me a Primitive Man,” a hilarious Cole Porter song that provides a refreshing perspective on the relationship between the sexes:

When the Depression came, the wild Jazz Age lifestyle was no longer in vogue. Far from becoming irrelevant, however, Libby Holman kept evolving. The “earth music” she recorded in the 1950s was very different in character from her early musicals. The music reflected a social consciousness that rang true and was deeply moving.

It seems that, as soon as Holman left Cincinnati for New York, she was ready for the big city. While Holman was still living here Sinclair Lewis was working on Babbitt, a novel that we have an easier time associating with the Queen City than Libby Holman, but I suspect that our image of old Cincinnati is oversimplified. I gotta wonder too: I read once that Lewis lived in the Roanoke Apartments while he was here, which puts him within walking distance of Holman. I wonder if they ever met. I also wonder if she ever caught any of the local blues artists documented on Shake-It’s new anthology, Play It Like You Did Back to George St. That could well have been her first exposure to a musical style that she later performed.

A reminder to folks that, if you’re interested, you can subscribe to this blog; you can sign up where it says “Subscribe to Blog via Email” on the right side of this page.

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Part of the salon’s appeal, then, is its extremely convenient location. Employees at Good Samaritan could walk over during their lunch hour or after work, and so could residents of the Gaslight District (and UC students, who receive student discounts). The owner of Makin Heads Turn, Saira Huckleberry, cut hair for many years at Head First Salon on Ludlow Avenue, so she’s a veteran who decided it was time to launch her own business. I recommend checking out the salon’s Facebook page, where Saira posts some of the cool haircuts that she’s given. So much of the reason that the Gaslight District is a great neighborhood is due to the fact that it has so many small businesses, and we’re happy to have this new addition. To make an appointment for a haircut, styling, coloring, hair treatment, re-texturizing, or waxing, call Saira at 513.407.3911.

Gaslight Property owns a wide variety of apartment buildings in the Gaslight District and within walking distance of Makin Heads Turn (and for that matter dozen of other small businesses on or near Ludlow Avenue and Jefferson Avenue). You can call 513.861.6000 to set up an appointment to look at a unit today.

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Today is your final chance to show vote for Tudor Court Apartments in City Beat’s new Best of Cincinnati Readers Poll. The ballot is organized into six major sections, and one of them is Urban Life. At the top of Urban Life is the category of Apartment Community. That’s where you have an opportunity to vote for Tudor Court Apartments, which are owned by Gaslight Property and have a long Clifton history. You’ll also see lots of other Clifton businesses and venues worth voting for on the list:

City Beat Best of 2013 poll

In other news, there’s free live jazz at Sitwell’s this Monday, February 18. The group is known as Rose Room, a name that stems from a jazz standard that has long been associated with guitarist Charlie Christian in the company of Benny Goodman. Makes sense, then, that the group has described its sound as “Goodman/Christian-driven swing and other stuff.” Elsewhere, the band put it this way: “We ask Jazz out on a date and take it to White Castle.” The Faux Frenchmen have long been a hit at Sitwell’s on Wednesday nights, and Rose Room features two members of that band plus the drummer from The Raisins, The Bears, and The Psychodots. The lineup is Joe Lukasik clarinet, Don Aren bass, Chris Arduser percussion/vocal, George Cunningham guitar. The show is at 8 pm, and it’s free. On their Facebook page the band listed its interests as Misanthropy and Meat Loaf collecting, so between sets like-minded people might want to compare notes on those two very common areas of interest. Here’s a rendition of the song “Rose Room” that spawned that spawned the band’s name:

Finally, Valentine’s Day has passed, but we’re all still feeling it, right? My valentine came the day before Valentine’s Day this year. It came after driving around and taking care of fifty little chores and then finding out after I got home that one of them was only half-done. Earlier that day I went to a hospital to have my blood drawn. After I got home one of the nurses informed me that she only filled one tube when she needed to fill two. So I hopped back in the car and returned to the lab/draw room, where a different nurse took me back to do the second drawing.

On the wrong day the oversight by the earlier nurse was the kind of thing that could have me thoroughly irked, but I was busier trying to cheer my new nurse, who I noticed was even tenser than when I stopped by earlier. During round one someone sent her a script in twelve parts, but instead of putting it on one pages, they made each part a page—which translated into twelve pages to scan instead of one.

“Sounds like every job I’ve ever had,” I said, which got a laugh. About the time she started assembling a needle. I sensed someone approaching, and then I felt someone holding my hand. When I turned and looked, it was the nurse from earlier in the day. She held my hand before, during and after the blood was drawn, not in an apologetic way but just a nice way, and she continued to hold my hand as the three of us chatted about this and that. Normally with strangers our code of conduct is so limited that when something like this happens you really notice it. Pardon the pun, but I was touched. For her, here’s a rendition of “My Funny Valentine:”

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Their “taste of New Orleans” menu includes such medium zesty items as gumbo, etouffee, bumblebee stew, and white bean chili; hot & spicy meals include drunken chicken, voodoo chicken, and voodoo chili. The special today is bumblebee stew. For future reference, here’s their contact info and their hours:

J. Gumbo’s Clifton
286 Ludlow Ave.
Phone 513-407-6930
Fax 513-407-6931

Hours:
M -TR: 11:00 am – 3:00 am
F – SAT: 11:00 am – 4:00 am
SUN: 12:00 pm – 12:00 am

Also, don’t forget to vote for Tudor Court Apartments for City Beat’s Best of Cincinnati 2013, And don’t forget about all the other great Clifton businesses that make us proud to call the Gaslight District home! Here’s the link:  City Beat Best of 2013 poll

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It’s old, and it has character. Tudor Court was built in 1930, when buildings had more style, and before prefab apartment complexes took over.

Location. If you’re looking for an apartment in Cincinnati, you couldn’t find a more central location than Tudor Court Apartments. Located on Ludlow Avenue, it’s inches from dozens of stores and restaurants.

Wide variety of apartments. Tudor Court has 88 apartment units, and that includes efficiencies, one-bedroom apartments, and two-bedroom apartments. That means that people who are looking for an apartment in Clifton have every possible choice for a dwelling in a single building.

History. You would have a tough time finding a person who has lived in Cincinnati and/or gone to UC who hasn’t been in Tudor Court or for that matter lived there. Mention the name Jerry Santini (the apartment manager for a looong time), and the odds are (if it’s a person over a certain age), they’ll know who you’re talking about (and probably have a story to share). Plus there’s always been someone renting the space near the corner of Ludlow and Middleton. Now it’s the Clifton Performance Theatre; past tenants included the Cove Café (an earlier incarnation of Sitwell’s), the Cove Lounge (a bar), and a ballet studio.

The City Beat best-of poll also provides plenty of other opportunities to vote for other Clifton businesses. Clifton choices include (but are not limited to) Arlins, Habaneros, Aquarius Star & Om Café, China Kitchen, Bogarts, It’s Yoga, Sitwells, Clifton House Bed & Breakfast, The University of Cincinnati, Burnet Woods (for best hiking trail), and many others. Here’s a link to the poll:

Best of Cincinnati Poll

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Tudor Court Apartments, owned by Gaslight Property (513.861.6000)

I’ve been writing this blog for about a year now. Rather than run out of ideas,  I’m just scratching the surface. Mostly I try to focus on small businesses and creative types in the core of city (Clifton, Northside, Over the Rhine, downtown, etc.) with particular emphasis on spreading the word about people who are either the new  kids on the block – like Mediterranean King, for instance – or below the radar, like the Loft Society. It’s actually gotten to the point where people are contacting me to tell me about their new album, book, store, etc., which is great – and I encourage anyone reading this to do the same. My name is Jeff Wilson; call me at 513.281.3266 or email me at disdat@hotmail.com, and I’ll be happy to give you some publicity. As for subscribing, there’s a place to do that on the right side of this page, where it says Subscribe to Blog via Email. I update three times a week normally, and I promise to keep it informative and entertaining. Some folks ask me how I can be an expert on both avant-garde jazz and turncoat football coaches (Brian Kelly, for instance), and I don’t know how to explain it; it just is. I also like to write about apartments in Clifton, especially the ones connected with Gaslight Property, and you’ll see more of that.

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That’s the third compilation in a series devoted to songs released on a Cincinnati label whose depth of talent was remarkable. This Hipshakers includes some of the better-known artists— Little Willie John and Freddy King, for instance—as well as a bunch of names that, for me, were either less familiar or totally unfamiliar.

For me, that’s much of the fun of the compilation—tuning into artists whose output was sometimes limited to a handful of singles (or in some cases one). People like Tiny Topsy, a female singer who belts out “Just a Little Bit” like it was nobody’s business. Or El Pauling and the Royalton, a 5 Royales spinoff; their “Solid Rock” has a mean guitar lick and is a much an early rocker as it as an R&B dancer.

Listening to this compilation, I keep thinking, these people passed through this city, performed here, recorded here, and some of them lived here. Much of my time recently has been spent talking to and reading about musicians who were active locally at that time, and the message that keep getting repeated is what a vibrant music scene we had at that time, with clubs everywhere and musical talent on a level that a town of this size didn’t deserve.

What’s intriguing about this collection is that it’s not from Cincinnati or Ohio or for that matter anywhere in the US; it’s a label from Madrid, Spain called Vampisoul. Per their Facebook page, “Starting in 2002, Vampisoul is now established as one of the hippest and most respected reissue labels on the planet. New Orleans funk, deep southern R&B, East Harlem boogaloo, Cuban jam sessions, exotic soundtracks, tail-shaking soul, trippy tropical sounds, Peruvian groovers, West African highlife, East European jazz, Nigerian Afrobeat.” They have a very colorful website  devoted to all kinds of great sounds. Check it out and see who’s on all three Hipshaker compilations; you can buy it on Amazon as a CD – or on vinyl, as a 45 box.

Here’s a cut from the compilation, “Dry Bones Twist” by The Drivers:

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Monday at 9 pm a New York band called The Kissing Club will be performing at Sitwell’s Coffee House. Their music has been described as “two people making music with guitar, cello, electronics, and voice. Quiet, intimate, and explosive. Like Philip Glass, Nick Cave, and CocoRosie sharing a French cruller while reviewing divorce papers.” Word has it that the Kissing Club just released Tapdancer, which probably has something to do with the fact that they’re hitting the road to play some shows in Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Even though their competition included bigger names, Little Acorn by The Kissing Club managed to show up on this best-of list for 2011. In the reviewer’s words, “This little four-track EP is like a handcrafted invitation to a divorce, or perhaps a peace offering of love gone awry. While the very slow songs scratch at the bones, a classic-rock-style guitar solo on “Someone Else” breaks the supposed tranquility and reminds us just how purposefully restrained these “sweet” songs really are.”

Here’s footage from a recent Kissing Club performance:

If you haven’t done so yet, make sure you take the City Beat “Best of Cincinnati” poll for 2013. There are lots of Clifton businesses and locations listed that deserve a vote, including Tudor Court Apartments on Ludlow Avenue,  which are owned by Gaslight Property. Tudor Court has been part of the Clifton experience for longer than any of us have been alive, and Gaslight Property, a family-owned business located in the Gaslight District. The owners grew up in the Gaslight District and still live there, and they’re strong supporters of the community.

Here’s a link to the City Beat poll:

http://citybeat-survey.wehaaserver.com/survey-6-best_of_cincinnati_2013.html

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In other words, if you want to sit down and experience a meal in an environment that’s relaxing and aesthetically pleasing, I recommend Mediterranean King. On the other hand, if you’re on the run, Mediterranean King can be counted on to deliver quick and affordable foods that are much tastier than you would expect when you read those adjectives.

I tried their chicken kabob and falafel sandwiches and loved them both. Typically I find falafel way too greasy, but with theirs all I tasted was falafel. They serve a buffet Monday through Thursday from 11 am to 2 pm (and Saurday from noon to 3 pm), and on Monday through Friday they also have a special that they announce on their Facebook page. Every day the special highlights food from a different country, including Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Palestine and Jordan.

Their hours are Monday through Thursday, 11 am to 9 pm; Friday, 3 pm to 10 pm; Saturday, noon to 10 pm; and Sunday, noon to 9 pm. Their phone number is 513.221.7222. The foods’ great, so’s the atmosphere, and the location is great for UC students, employees of Good Samaritan Hospital, and anyone who happens to be renting from any of the buildings that Gaslight Property owns in the Gaslight District of Clifton.

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At the top of Urban Life is the category of Apartment Community. That’s where you have an opportunity to vote for Tudor Court Apartments, which are owned by Gaslight Property. Tudor Court has been part of the Clifton experience for longer than any of us have been alive, and Gaslight Property, a family-owned business located in the Gaslight District. The owners grew up in the Gaslight District and still live there, and they’re strong supporters of the community.

Here’s a link to the City Beat poll:

http://citybeat-survey.wehaaserver.com/survey-6-best_of_cincinnati_2013.html

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Three years is long enough to become a staple in the neighborhood; it’s also long enough to take stock of how things have gone thus far and make some changes to better serve customers. When I spoke to the owner of Aquarius Star & Om Café, Lydia Stec, she mentioned that the store’s hours are going to change. Right now it’s open 8:30 am to 5 pm every day, but starting March 1 their hours will be 7:30 am to 7 pm every day.

Things will also be simpler and more streamlined. “The Om Café is our main focus now,” Lydia said. “We’re putting the seating up front, when people walk in the door, because we want to bring the cafe front and center.” Lydia also mentioned upcoming changes for the kitchen and the menu that coincide with the March 1 deadline, and when that date gets closer I’ll devote an blog entry to the subject.

Speaking subjectively, I want to mention two things that for me make Aquarius Star & Om Café such a welcome addition to the Gaslight District. For me the burning issue is coffee, and they have some really good ones. Their house coffee and their #1 seller, the rich, hearty Om Blend, is roasted locally by Coffee Emporium. “All our coffee is organic, shade-grown and direct trade,” Lydia said. “My roaster has direct relationship with farmers. It’s shade-grown, which makes it less acidic.” Another highlight is their Mexican coffee.

Also, I like the space itself, which is large and open, with plenty of seating options. You can go there alone to read or study, or you can socialize with your friends (or hold a meeting). The front windows off the best of both worlds: you can see what’s going on out in the busy world, but you’re sitting in a space that’s quiet and relaxed.

Aquarius Star & Om Café have a website, www.aquariusstar.com. Also, feel free to like them on Facebook, where they’re listed as Aquarius Star, Om Cafe & Shangri-La Spiritual Center.

There are several apartments building that Gaslight Property owns within walking distance of Aquarius Star & Om Café—and, in fact, one of them is right across the street, as Gaslight rents apartments right above Graeter’s (the street address is 3405 Telford). Call 513.861.6000 to set up an appointment to look at one of these units today.

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Partly that’s because I’m a sucker for documentaries, and this was a well-made one that fully revealed Vreeland’s vibrant personality. During the 1960s, when other editors debated whether to connect with the youth culture, Vreeland plunged headfirst into what was happening. Here she comes across not as opportunist but as someone who truly embraced the wild energy of that period. And while there were people around her who made a lot more money, on her modest salary and her so-so looks she became a sort of rock star whose “work” was extremely creative. Her discoveries included Edie Sedgwick and Lauren Bacall; Jackie O was a fashion advisee; and her friends included, well, rock stars, among them Mick Jagger.

What set Vreeland apart from other people was her extreme openness. In her mind everything overlapped; somehow she connected to fashion things like surfing, horses, and planes that did or didn’t fly right above her when she was a child. At the beginning of the movie I thought we were worlds apart, but by the end I felt differently. Like many people I’m a fan of sixties pop culture, including pop music, and this movie showed me how the fashion world intertwined with that, especially in Diana Vreeland’s head.

If you’re curious what else is showing at the Esquire, here’s their website: www.esquiretheatre.com. Also, be aware that Gaslight Property has several properties within walking distance of the Esquire, including Tudor Court Apartments; 3405 Telford, which is above Graeter’s; and the Jonathan Apartments at 451 Ludlow. You can call 513.861.6000 today to set up an appointment to look at these spaces or any of the other apartments Gaslight Property has in greater Cincinnati.

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Two Brothers is a brewery out of Illinois that can currently only be found in five states. So, we’re among the lucky few. You’d be even luckier if you could walk to and (especially) from Olive’s. Gaslight Property has several properties within walking distance, including among them Tudor Court Apartments; 3405 Telford, which is above Graeter’s; and the Jonathan Apartments at 451 Ludlow. You can call 513.861.6000 today to set up an appointment to look at one of these spaces.

Here’s the flyer with more information about the festivities on Wednesday:

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More than 35 years have passed since Nelson released his first LP, Wild Angel. The record was produced by Lou Reed, who roomed with Nelson at Syracuse University. The two of them played together in bands before the Velvet Underground formed and then remained friends. Since Wild Angel Nelson has continued to play music, and lots of it; every time I visit his house I see stacks of cassette tapes that contain music he and his cronies have taped over the years. But a new, full-length LP on vinyl has eluded him—until now, that is.

The release of the new full-length Steam-Age Time Giant is big news, and I felt honored that he chose me to be the person who first person to drop the needle on the test pressings that arrived in the mail yesterday. Never mind that I was perhaps the one buddy within walking distance who had both a turntable and at least a fairly decent-sounding stereo; I’d like to think to think that our friendship and our shared love of music had something to do with it as well.

The record is a lo-fi affair due to low recording levels. As far as I can tell all the cuts are “live,” i.e., no multi-tracking or overdubs, and at times things get kinda messy. That’s fine with me. In this context the strength of the songs comes through, as does Nelson’s voice, which is as strong as ever. That’s what matters.

I hear two distinct periods of music when I listen to Steam-Age Time Giant. One is early, mostly pre-Beatles rock, pop and soul—everything from Phil Spector to King Records to the stacks of R&B 45s Nelson has sitting around his house. That music got under Nelson’s skin at an early age and it never left. That’s part of what makes his music so unique.

I also hear the 1980s. I’m thinking here of cuts like “Panic” and the gloomy “Slaves of the Modern Age,” an all-too-true observation about how civilization has devolved.

A big surprise is the short off-kilter blues number “Just a Taste,” featuring acoustic piano and a saxophone. My favorite cut may be “Lonely Weekends,” a revved-up garage rocker. It blasts out of the gates and is still in hyperdrive during the fade-out. I also like how Nelson’s voice blends with Lesli-Anne Nachbauer on “Complete This Story.”

Steam-Age Time Giant is coming out on Are and Be Records, a subsidiary of the Lost Treasures of the Underworld label from Columbus. You can order a copy through the Lost Treasures of the Underworld website, losttreasuresoftheunderworld.com. Also, Nelson’s New York posse should know that his records will also be available at Kim’s on First Ave, Rebel Rebel in the West Village, and Academy Records on East 11^th.  As for us Cliftonites, if you see Nelson walking around Clifton with Isis and Riley Martin (or holding court in the Aluminum Room), feel free to discuss business (and get the latest on Arcturus).

Here’s some footage of Nelson Slater performing at Arlin’s, a bar  that’s located within walking distance of several Gaslight Property apartment buildings, among them Tudor Court Apartments; 3405 Ludlow (above Graeter’s); and the Jonathan Apartment Building (451 Ludlow). Arlin’s is also a hop, skip and a jump away from the Proud Rooster and Ludlow Wines, which are also owned by Gaslight Property.

http://youtu.be/dtBaEQ3dE2k

Finally, here’s a picture I snapped of the irrepressible Riley Martin, who immediately claimed a seat atop a chair and stayed there, knowing the whole time where he wanted to be in the room. “Don’t tell him he’s a dog,” Nelson advised, “because he doesn’t know that.”

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“Faculty will be on hand to give guided tours,” she said. “Come see what we’re all about. We’ll be accepting open enrollment beginning on Monday, January 28. We’ll be accepting applications for preschool through eighth grade. Many classes are at or near capacity, so don’t wait too long.

Located at 3545 Clifton Ave., Annunciation is a staple of Clifton that benefits from a convenient and centralized location that encourages a strong sense of community. Many kids walk or ride bikes to school.

That sense of connection is shared by the teachers. “Our teachers are vested in the school and community,” Cindy said. “I live in the neighborhood and some of our teachers do. It’s definitely a community school.”

Annunciation also boasts a sense of continuity and shared history. “We teach kids whose parents also attended Annunciation,” Cindy said. “There’s an element of legacy.”

Cindy also mentioned perks you wouldn’t necessarily expect from a small, family-oriented school. “We have a full-time preschool,” she said. “We have afterschool care. Also, we have basketball, volleyball and track. We have a choir. We have art, music and PE.”

At Annunciation 100% of the teaching and auxiliary staff are fully certified and hold Bachelor Degrees, and 70% hold Masters Degrees. Annunciation School’s current 1st & 2nd grade teachers are sisters and have been giving young children a very strong reading and learning foundation for decades.

This testimonial from a Clifton resident shows appreciation for a quality education: “Our family lives, works, and plays in Clifton Gaslight. It is very important to us to stay community oriented and send our children to a grade school in our neighborhood. Annunciation is that school for us. Currently, our family has 3 young children attending Annunciation. Our extended family includes several Annunciation alumni who have gone on to excel academically and professionally.” – C.C.T. (Clifton Resident)

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things that go bump in the dark is the new full-length release by Cincinnati’s iswhat?!, a hip-hop band that has toured the US and Europe and performed with major jazz artists, among them Archie Shepp, Oliver Lake and Hamid Drake. It’s a fine record, and I’m happy to report that, along with being available as a CD or a download, this full-length release had come out on vinyl. Locally the CD and LP are available at Shake-It and Everybody’s; online you can buy it on cdbaby and iTunes.

If you’ve caught ishwat?!, chances are you’ve seen Napoleon Solo Vox fronting a trio. On things that go bump in the dark band members change and band sizes fluctuate with each song, and others artists share some of the vocal duties. My sense is that Napoleon is still the mastermind behind the music, but, like Kip Hanrahan, he constantly shuffles musicians in order to make the words and music come to life.

More than half the cuts feature Hamid Drake, who happens to be one of the best drummers in the world. He’s also one of the most versatile, and he’s as comfortable laying down a hip-hop groove as he is playing avant-garde jazz with Ken Vandermark or Peter Brotzmann.

Also noteworthy are the contributions from core ishwat?! member Jack Walker, whose saxophone and flute playing add color, texture and a jazzier vibe to the proceedings. His contributions sound all the sweeter against Napoleon’s consistently provocative wordplay.

This is music that gets inside you. At times it seems like a stream-of-consciousness collage that ties together seemingly random thoughts and melodies like the ones that go through your head during the day. Maybe they’re not so random at all; maybe they can tell you something.

If you gravitate toward colorful music, a nice groove and lyrics with depth, check out things that go bump in the dark. Along with making interesting music, Napoleon has helped bring some superb (and very unlikely) concerts to town; good to know the muses are being kind to him. Here’s some ishwat?! concert footage that quotes from  Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir:”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBEaL57ppYE

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Not so long ago a Great American by the name of Bill Cunningham placed a curse upon Brian Kelly, once the coach of the UC Bearcats football team, and we all know why that curse was placed.

Many of us wondered when the curse was going to kick in. During his first season as the coach of Notre Dame Brian Kelly won a game or two, and then at times he won two games in a row! That doesn’t sound like a curse.

And then this season where Kelly won game after game after game. It was as if he had forgotten how to lose; it was as if he were invincible.

Or so, at least, he imagined—and so others imagined who overlooked the fact that he had a wimpy schedule.

Last night he did not have a wimpy schedule. He played Alabama, and he got whooped so bad that everyone watching knew that Bill Cunningham’s curse had finally come true.

Had Brian Kelly won that game—and there’s no way that he would have, but let’s play pretend—he would have marched across that field like a Roman emperor.

Instead he looked really tiny—Lilliputian, in fact.

While watching him, I remembered a scene from Orson Welles’ great film The Magnificent Ambersons. Although Welles doesn’t appear in that film, he does some great voice-overs, and his best one appears after the Ambersons’ world comes crashing down. Re-watching that scene on youtube last night, I thought of Brian Kelly as I heard Orson Welles voice these words: “And now it came at last; George Amberson Minafer had got his comeuppance. He got it three times filled and running over.”

I’m sure that anyone else who watches that scene will juxtapose Brian Kelly with George Amberson, and for that reason I urge you to check it out. In the end, it’s almost as if Welles had predicted Kelly’s rise and fall:

http://youtu.be/9DFpfNFvnfM

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Because this blog is connected with a rental company, I sometimes address issues renters face. Recently I decided to track down an old friend in order to ask her about something you might not think about when you rent, but you should. Renter’s insurance doesn’t cost a lot, and that’s especially true when you bundle it with other types of insurance, as people tend to do. Because Alea Bruggeman has been a good friend whose upbeat attitude lifts my spirits whenever I run into her, I recommend her unconditionally as an agent for renters insurance as well as other types of insurance. In order to contact her, call 513-985-9300 or email at abruggem@amfam.com. I also recommend checking her website, www.aleabruggeman.com, for more information. Her office is located at: 9737 Kenwood Rd, Blue Ash, OH 45242, and her office hours are 10am-6pm M-F and Sat 9-12 (with evenings and additional hours by appointment).

An agent with American Family Insurance in Blue Ash, Alea has been a Clifton resident for six years. Alea attended Xavier University and holds Property, Casualty, Life & Health licenses from the State of Ohio.  Alea is also a member of the Greater Cincinnati Relocation Council and in her spare time. She enjoys listening to many types of music, traveling, helping others in need, and doing volunteer work for various organizations in the area. The Alea Bruggeman Agency aspires to be a great community resource, providing exemplary customer service and professional advice to clients. Recently she responded to the following email questions:

So let me get this straight. When I rent in an apartment, my possessions aren’t automatically insured through my landlord?

Your landlord’s insurance doesn’t cover your belongings such as electronics, collectibles, video games, clothes, jewelry, etc so if you suffer a loss, the replacement cost could be quite high.

What are some items that you might not think about that should be insured when you’re renting?

I would imagine many people wouldn’t think of clothes, furniture, appliances, tools, home furnishings, jewelry and many more….People also don’t tend to think of the liability coverage that renter’s insurance provides.  If someone hurts themselves or conditions are unsafe, renter’s insurance liability coverage will help with those costs.

Is renter’s insurance prohibitively expensive?

Renter’s insurance is very inexpensive, especially for the coverage it provides.  It’s even more inexpensive when combined with an auto policy.   We have great multi line discounts for this. In fact, I’ve seen renters insurance as low as $7 a month when combined with auto insurance

Can you think of anything offbeat that people have ended up buying renter’s insurance for?

I can’t think of anything offbeat, but people like to insure their guitars and other musical instruments, as well as some expensive workout equipment.  Another thing that renter’s insurance provides, however, is the additional living expense.  In the event your rental is damaged and you are forced to move out temporarily, the insurance company will pay for any increase in living expenses so you can maintain your normal standard of living.

I know that renter’s insurance is only a small part of your agency. What else do you focus on?

We also focus on Auto, Homeowner’s, Life, Business and Health.  There are many options available for every person to assure their assets are protected.

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Spirits are high at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center after exceeding their 2012 campaign goal, and they want to celebrate by projecting your artwork on a three-story high building.

The celebration will take place over two nights. Artifact: Art Altogether kicks off this Sunday, January 6, from 6:30 – 8:30 pm with the Opening celebration. “Bundle up and bring a lawn chair,” the press release advises. “The hot cocoa is on us, and Waffo Truck and Fireside Pizza will be there selling tasty dinner.”

On both nights projections based on your drawings will be the center of attention. When I spoke to the CCAC’s Program Coordinator, Missy Miller, she told me that the idea for this creative and fun event came from local artist C. Jacqueline Wood.

“Jacqueline has created a template of the exterior of a wing of our building,” Missy explained, “ which will become a giant architectural canvas. Jacqueline will take your creation and use a special projector to beam it three stories high, so it will look like it’s been painted across the entire side of the building. We’re asking you to share a drawing, or a doodle, or a love story—anything your imagination can conjure on paper. Thanks to Jacqueline’s creative vision and the community’s incredible generosity, we’re able to turn our walls inside out and share the artistic expressions of everyone who makes CCAC possible.”
Personally, I’ve always loved images of rows of rows of windows on old buildings; in my mind they seem tailor made for silhouettes, and that will be my contribution to the genre. So how do you become a three-story artist? Start by downloading the template:

http://www.cliftonculturalarts.org/upcoming-exhibits.htm

You can print the pdf and work your magic or electronically doctor it via PhotoShop or whatever software works for you. Then, after coloring, drawing or writing to your heart’s content, send a copy either by email (artifact.ccac@gmail.com) or in person to the CCAC, which is located at 3711 Clifton Ave. Call them at 513.497.2860 if you have any questions—and then, along with viewing your own work, come see what other people came up with based on the same template! If you aren’t able to make the opening, you still have one last chance to see the projection on Monday, January 7 from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.”

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The headliners for the evening are the duet of King Reeves on vibes and Charlie Wilson on piano. In my mind the two of them together are the best jazz group in the city. In fact, I like King and Charlie even better as a duet than when they form two-fifths of a quintet, as they sometimes do. In the more scaled-down setting their sense of time is more elastic than it could ever be in a larger group setting. Also, you can tell that they push each other. If Reeves is that much more groove-oriented, when the situation warrants Charlie whips out some Filthy McNasty himself—and just about the time you think Charlie Wilson has out-razzledazzled  all competitors by deconstructing and reconstructing a melody in every possible way, Reeves comes back with something even wilder. Really there’s no need for a rhythm section, as these guys are gonna swing no matter what.

Tickets are ten bucks for the show, and food will be provided. I’ve seen King and Charlie play before at the Greenwich, and one of the pleasures of their performances is the rapport they share with an audience that’s followed them for a long time. Today I called King Reeves and asked him a few questions, and among other things I discovered how he crossed paths with (I wasn’t ready for this) Conway Twitty.

What are you playing tomorrow night?

We’re going to play some standards, we’re gonna plays some Monk tunes, we’re gonna play some Wayne Shorter compositions, and we’re gonna play some Charlie Wilson originals.

Describe Charlie Wilson as a pianist.

Let me say this: I’ve been playing music for over 60 years. I’ve played with 15 to 20 pianists, and Charlie is the most accomplished pianist I’ve ever played with. He brings to the table the old and the new plus his own originality.

Why did you choose vibes as your instrument?

I started off on drums and I decided to have melody in my playing, so I switched over to vibes. At the time there was a guy named Conway Twitty, a country musician. He was messing around with them and he sold them pretty cheap.

Conway Twitty as in…the Conway Twitty.

That’s right.

Do you still have those same vibes?

I still have them. I have four or five, but those are my main set.

When did you buy then?

61 or 62.

You must really like those vibes…

I always go back to them because they got the quality to them.

What’s the brand?

Musser. It’s the same set that Lionel Hampton played.

What can you do in a duet setting that you can’t do in a larger group setting?

You can venture off go into different harmonies than if you have a bass player. It gives you a little freedom. It makes you start listening better too.

Finish this thought. Jazz is great when:

When it’s played by guys who don’t have alternatives motives. They’re not trying to be stars; it’s playd by heart. The thing about this music is, it’s become a commodity and it has no value for expression. We play for emotions.

Here’s some footage I shot of King and Charlie during a recent live performance. Yeah, the visual ain’t all that good, and I guess the sound could be better…but on the other hand you can still tell that both of these dudes are complete bad asses.

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In fact, I would guess that some days contained so many plots and sub-plots an entire novel could be written about one of them.

Probably there are thousands of stories to tell, and what impresses me about The One is Smith’s ability to tie together so many tales and still craft an entertaining and highly readable book. The One clocks in at just shy of 400 pages, but so much is packed into those pages that, considering how much information it contains, you would expect it to be twice that length.

Much of the book is focused on Cincinnati, where James Brown recorded countless singles and albums for King Records, hung out, met people, made friends and enemies, and worked with local musicians.

My favorite part of the book is where Smith recounts how Bootsy Collins added something to the band’s chemistry that helped take James Brown’s music to the next level. What happened seemed to be a combination of serendipity, raw talent and the kind of immersion in music that people experience when they’re aware that they have a chance to break something open.

Speaking of serendipity, I should mention that RJ Smith, whose extensive writing creds include gigs with Village Voice and Spin, is now moving to the city where James Brown recorded for King Records. A prior resident of Detroit and LA, Smith was recently hired as an editor for Cincinnati Magazine. As a music geek, I’m excited that he’s moving here, especially at a time when recognition of our rich musical history seems to be growing.

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I have some friends whose endeavors – be they artistic, commercial or a combination thereof – I’m about to publicize, but because readership tends to lag when eggnog get consumed and mistletoe talks I figured I would choose one of my own pieces to go under-read.

So here it is, folks, a slice of history, a blast from the past. In 1996 I read a couple short stories at a literary reading at York Street Cafe, back when Terri Ford presided over that superb series. At that point my goal in life was to write four-page short stories as opposed to the more open-ended and expansive fiction to which I am naturally drawn. I never quite achieved that goal, but I did whittle my stories down to reasonable lengths. After my York Street reading someone called me from City Beat to ask if she could run my Thomas Pynchon piece in City Beat in place of the literary news that she normally covered, and I said yes.

This is definitely a piece that could have been a lot bigger – a thousand pages bigger if I had let my imagination run wild. Thomas Pynchon is a Big Picture kind of guy, and I have that in me too. The condensed version has its own appeal, though, or so I hope. Here’s a story, half-true and half-concocted, about what took place or might have taken place when a post-modern novelist did or didn’t check out our town. The cast of characters includes the post-modern band Lotion, the post-modern laundromat known as Sudsy Malone’s, The Twilight Zone and the Sub Galley (misspelled the Sub Gallery – what was I thinking? No – wait a minute…blame it on the editor!).  At some point a Pynchon scholar contacted me about the piece; I can’t remember why, but it was nice to know that word traveled. Thanks to Amy from Working America for scanning this and saving to a pdf so I could convert it to a jpg for this blog:

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Sean McGary, owner of the Music Salon, recently announced that The Music Salon recently moved to Silverton, next door to the DrumCenter of Cincinnati.  I’ll have more details soon, but in the interim I recommend calling the same number as before – 859.444.6231 – to look into music lessons.

The Music Salon / 859.444.6231

Do you want to learn how to play an instrument? If so, you should know about a new music studio that opened recently in Dayton, Kentucky, a mile down the road from Newport on the Levee.

The Music Salon teaches both beginners as well as musicians who know a few things but are eager to advance to the next level. One-on-one private lessons are offered for guitar, bass, piano, vocals, drums, and most brass and reed instruments.

Along with boasting a long track record of performing and recording in a wide variety of musical settings, the owner of The Music Salon also has great pedigree, as you might guess from his last name. Sean McGary is the son of Jimmy McGary, a tenor saxophonist who was one of Cincinnati’s best jazz musicians ever.

Understandably, Sean got the musician bug at an early age, and he’s been involved in a wide variety of noteworthy projects, including a lengthy stay with Freekbass. As a member of Freekbass, he recorded with Bootsy Collins, Catfish Collins, Bernie Worrell, and Buckethead.

On a way different end of the musical spectrum, Sean also recorded tracks with country legend David Alan Coe.

Sean plays out three to five nights a week at greater Cincinnati clubs, and stylistically he’s performed everything from quiet, introspective acoustic duets with a female singer to hard rock.

It seems safe to assume, then, that no matter what style of music you’re interested in playing, Sean, who teaches guitar and bass, has experience in that genre. He’s also been around long enough to know who to hire as fellow teachers; his colleagues include Holly Spears, who has collaborated and toured with Blessid Union of Souls

Sean has also fifteen years of experience as a teacher at various music stores and education centers. So why did he decide to go out on his own?

“I wanted to open up my own place to help people with the gift of music,” he told me recently. “It helped me growing up to find an identity and feel part of something. Playing guitar kept me out of trouble and was instrumental in my development as a person. Corny, but true.”

Now for some quick reminiscing: My first music lessons were a frightening affair. In a small windowless room a short white-haired lady by the name of Mrs. Shook, who gave me no shortage of hell my when fourth-grade fingers failed to arch properly over the neck of a violin.

I mention that sad tale because there are alternatives, such as The Music Salon. Sean describes it as “a place where beginners, aspiring musicians—and including experienced ones—can learn how to play (or perfect!) a favorite musical instrument from a qualified, professional teacher in a fun, relaxed, and musically enhancing environment.”

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Before he moved off to rural pastures Jeff was quite active musically in Cincinnati. During its glory days he played Friday afternoons at Sudsy Malone’s, and he also was also a frequent performer at Murphy’s— and, well, probably twenty other places. Among the artists he opened for at Bogart’s were Leo Kottke, America and John Prine.

Because of Jeff’s amazing technical ability on instruments plus his vast knowledge of musical theory, fellow musicians had a great deal of respect for him and were eager to learn from him. One example: Rob Hamrick, who at that time sang for Sleep Theater and is now with Tone Farmer, took lessons from Jeff, and if you’ve heard Tone Farmer—a band with a rich harmonic palette and sophisticated songcraft—you can see why Rob might have sought out Jeff as a teacher.

So who did Jeff King study under? More than any other musician, Michael Hedges had a deep and lasting influence on Jeff. Every time Hedges would play Bogart’s a wide-eyed Jeff King would, the next week, play me tapes he surreptitiously recorded at the show. Hedges had a penchant for bizarre tunings on acoustic guitar, and Jeff King had a penchant for hitting rewind and play over and over again on his bootleg cassette tapes until he figured out what the hell Hedges was doing. After Jeff began incorporating Hedges songs into his setlists, he led many folks from around the area to discover the extremely innovative guitarist.

Michael Hedges and Jeff King ending up becoming friends. One weekend Jeff and some buddies hung out with Hedges, and interestingly, there was no shop talk—no questions about what strings he used or any of that business. Surely that indicates that Hedges like Jeff’s company—a break from the business.

Every year Jeff King sends a video of his version of a Christmas carol for his buddies, and they’re always excellent, but this one stood out for me. Is there a whiff (or more than a whiff) of Michael Hedges in this video even though the performance is on mandolin rather than guitar? Definitely. And there’s also a solid arrangement that really brings out the mysterious melody that makes this Christmas carol so memorable.

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Remember New World Bookshop? A small, privately-owned bookstore in the heart of the Gaslight District, that was an integral part of the neighborhood for thirty-three years? New World was owned by Ed Kluska, who along with running a bookstore offered astrological readings, taught meditation, and helped develop the local New Age community.

The bookstore is no longer, but everything else Ed Kluska did before  it closed he continues to do from his home in Clifton – and that includes writing. This week Ed published a book entitled Mayan Calendar Ends, Fiscal Cliff Begins: There’s Hope for 2013.

I don’t want to give too much away, but Ed does not think the world is going to end on December 21. Okay, I’ll say just a little bit more: he does, however, see evidence that something significant is happening, and we should know about it.

If you’re interested in Ed’s new book, you can call him at 513.861.6100 to arrange a payment, or you can simply mail him $18 ($15 plus $3 postage). The mailing address: Ed Kluska / 545 Ludlow Ave. / Cincinnati, OH / 45220.

I should also mention that, along with publishing a website, Ed writes a newsletter that you can subscribe to. To do so, visit his website at edkluska.com.

And now to editorialize, briefly: this is an exciting event. New World Bookshop helped make the Gaslight District such a unique and desirable neighborhood. New World’s spirit lives on in the work Ed has done since then and in his new book. I’m sure that many people reading this blog entry will have fond memories of that store, and you should be aware that Ed is available for consultations on relationships, children, business, etc. (check his website for more information).

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This Sunday promises to be a big day at the Esquire Theatre. As part of Cincinnati’s newest holiday tradition, the Second Annual Interactive White Christmas event will be taking place. Both screenings of the classic movie White Christmas starring Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney have already sold out, but you can still celebrate the spirit of Christmas by showing some love for military personnel currently assigned overseas.

To go along with their White Christmas theme, the Esquire Theatre is working with the Yellow Ribbon Support Center to collect items and send care packages to our troops. If you’d like to help, you’re welcome to bring cards, letters and much-appreciated items for Active Duty Military Personnel this Sunday, December 16, from 12:30 pm to 9 pm.

The items to donate include:

Personal Care Items

• Hand sanitizers/hand lotion
• Chapstick/lip balm
• Toothbrushes/toothpaste
• Nail clippers/nail files
• Band-Aids/blister pads
• Dr. Scholl’s foot powder
• Lysol/Clorox cleaning wipes

Sports Equipment

• Footballs
• Baseballs
• Soccer balls
• Basketballs

Miscellaneous Items

• Books/music CD’s/DVD’s (comedy)
• White cotton  socks
• Granola bars
• A T & T International Phone Cards

Also, we’re told that what the troops appreciate more than anything else are cards, letters and kid’s drawings.

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Three years ago the Heartless Bastards returned to Cincinnati to play a packed house at the Northside Tavern. Somehow I managed to wedge myself into the middle of the crowd, drink beer, and shoot some footage.

It was at the third task that I was perhaps least accomplished, as people were bumping into me every second or two, but I filmed some of the show and then created a youtube page devoted to that performance.

Although my camera work that evening was less than perfect, I had the good fortune of filming an exciting live band – so it feels good to finally post the footage I took that evening of the Heartless Bastards in their second incarnation, before the second guitarist was added. Here’s the Heartless Bastards performing “Done Got Old.”

You might also want to check out some of my other videos on that same youtube page, cincinnatishines, which is all footage I shot. It includes a couple other songs from the Heartless Bastards show, plus other locally-shot footage of performances by Radiohead, William Hooker with Ed Ricart, Jane Bunnett with Candido, Zamuto, Sao Paulo Underground, Carmon DeLeone, uKanDanZm, A Juliet Bender, Donald Fagen, and Santigold.

*** A quick note to subscribe to this website if you’d like to hear about things going on in Cincinnati, and especially in the core of the city (Clifton, Over the Rhine, Northside, downtown, etc.). You can do so on the right side of this webpage. Also, feel free to call me at 513.281.3266 or email me at disdat@hotmail.com to tell me about events that you would like publicized; I do it all the time.

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Sometimes that’s a tough decision because nothing really stands out, but this time we have a clear winner.

Let’s start, though, with the also-rans. Here’s a photo of the wall inside Brown’s Tours and Travels, where travel agent Suzanne Sanchez helps people plan their dream vacation, including destination weddings, which are all the rage these days. Her office is located at 3410 Ormond Ave; her phone number is 513.731.3369; and her email address is Suzanne@BrownsToursandTravel.com.   This rather psychedelic photo is a combination of Christmas lights and brochures for vacation packages to exotic places (like Norway, for instance):

Next, the free carriage rides:

And the Sinfonian Brass Ensemble playing Christmas carols:

That was near the Clifton Plaza, where I chatted with Rob Taylor from Gaslight Property; they were collecting canned good donations that will be given to FOCAS Ministry’s Foodshare program. The collection was very successful that evening, but it’s not over:  Gaslight Property will collect canned good donations through the New Year at their office at 311 Howell Avenue in Clifton. As I continued to walk, I saw Lagniappe performing in front of what will soon be our newly revived grocery store (which would be good, because then I won’t be hungry all the time):

There was a big crowd inside Ludlow Wines:

There was some serious hat-making taking place at Aquarius Star, where I took this photograph of hatmakers hard at work:

While I was there I met Missy Miller, who’s the Program Coordinator for the Clifton Cultural Arts Center. In that role she’s passed along information to me about upcoming events at the Center that we’ve posted on the website, so we had met in cyberspace – but it was good to meet her in person and witness the  hatmaker handiwork:

Those were some of my favorite pictures, but now all that’s left are the very, very best photographs of the evening. Winner of the runner-up prize is this pic of Christopher Pazowski in a photo-op with none other than Santa Claus:

And finally the winner (and by a landslide). While at Aquarius Star I of course asked permission for all the photos I took. “Will she let me take her picture?” I asked an adult as both of us faced a child who was wearing one of the recently-made hats. ”Her? She’s a ham,” the adult said. The child was happy to have her picture taken, and it shows. (If someone knows her name, can you email me at disdat@hotmail.com; I’d like to give her credit.)

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A celebration of Christmas in the heart of the Gaslight District, Holidays on Ludlow returns to Ludlow Ave this Friday, December 7 from 6-9 p.m.  There will be free parking in the Merchant Lot on Howell Ave. after 5 pm. Here are (drum roll, please) the top five reasons to check out Holidays on Ludlow:

• It’s a great way to get in the Christmas spirit. There will be free carriage rides with luminaria along the route, caroling courtesy of the Clifton-Fairview German Language Choir, and free pictures with Santa Claus.
• This is an event for both children and adults. “We’ll have bobbing for apples, tea parties, and Kiddie Cocoas for the little ones,” Sitwells wrote on their Facebook page. “No worries, parents, we’ve got our delicious Spiked Mulled Cider for you!”
• It’s a chance to do some shopping. On the off-chance that you haven’t finished all your Christmas shopping, this is an opportunity to support lots of local business within walking distance of each other.
• Arts and crafts. Holidays on Ludlow will include holiday hat making at Aquarius Star plus a snowflake making contest.
• It’s a chance to help the needy. Gaslight Property will once again be hosting a canned food drive on the Plaza during the event. Please bring your cans and other non-perishables and be generous with our less fortunate neighbors during the holidays.

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It was great seeing how many people came out for the first-ever Northside Record Fair this morning. There were almost fifty tables of people selling vinyl, and there came a point when every crate in the place had someone pawing through it, and it stayed that way a long time. I have to think it was more fun for everyone because it was so dang overdue.

Chuck Cleaver from Wussy was selling records and memorabilia, and I bought publicity photos of Tom Waits and Elvis Costello from him. I also had a chance to talk to the owner of Phratry Records, Jerry Dirr, about some of his projects. It turns out he’s been extremely happy with Gotta Groove Records, the record pressing plant in Cleveland. He also spoke quite highly about the new Phratry release by Food, a band that includes Ed “fROMOHIO” Crawford, who was once a member of the fIREHOSE, a band that was once on the  SST label. The new EP is Four Pieces from Candyland, and it’s available here:

Because I got there early I was worn out by 1, so I missed some of the music – but I was able to catch a set by Wussy’s Lisa Walker, who announced to all the world that her mind wasn’t at its sharpest due to long drives while on tour. (If it makes her feel any better, I drove about a mile to get the show, and I don’t think my mind was any sharper. Plus she played a great set.)

I also had a chance to catch up with the talented and witty Shawn Abnoxious.  Shawn I know from some wonderful poetry readings where he and I both shared our work, and I liked his writing and the way he read it. He gave me a copy of his chapbook, Can I Borrow the Company Glider?, which I’ll be coming back to in another blog entry.

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Anticipation is high for the 1^st annual Northside Record Fair on Saturday, December 1. Taking place from 11 am to 6 pm at 4120 Hamilton Avenue, the fair will include live music, DJs and countless records along with every other kind of musical media.

The event also offers an opportunity to do some much-needed purging AND donate to a worthy cause. Rosie’s CDs will be holding a CD drive at the Northside Record Fair–and because Rosie will set up in front of the entrance to the fair, you can donate CDs even if you’re not attending the show. Already downloaded all your music and wondering what to do with your old CDs? Now you can clear out those shelves of CDs and help local animals at the same time. Any and all CDs are accepted.

Proceeds will be donated to OAR, the Ohio Alleycat Resource & Spay/Neuter Clinic. OAR is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization which provides low-cost, high-quality spay/neuter services for feral cats, strays and pets; offers TNR (trap-neuter-return) and other outreach programs; and runs a small, no-kill adoption center dedicated to finding loving homes.

Can’t make the Record Fair?  OAR will also be accepting used CDs/DVDs at their  Holiday Open House  December 2 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at their Madisonville location (5619 Orlando Place).

Questions about how to donate your CDs? Rosie’s CDs can be reached at rosiescds@gmail.com.

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My theme this week is records, which are coming back with a vengeance, as the 1st Annual Northside Record Fair indicates.  In 2007 sales of new LPs dipped to below a million, but by 2009 sales jumped to 2.5 million, and the number climbed to 3.9 million in 2011—and that’s just for LPs that have bar codes, which is probably less than half of the total records released. (And I’ve yet to hear a count for 7-inches; I don’t think anyone has figured out how to count them yet.)

So who, you might ask, is making all that vinyl – and the partial answer is, a lot of records are being pressed in the northern part of the state. That’s a recent thing, as Gotta Groove, a record pressing plant in downtown Cleveland, didn’t exist until 2009; it now runs two full-time shifts in order to press up to 15,000 records a week. Artists planning to release their music on vinyl sh0uld contact Gotta Groove, who include some straightforward guidelines on their website. One of their customers is Shake-It Records, who’ve used the Cleveland pressing plant for  releases by Wussy, Eddie Hinton, the Seedy Seeds and the new blues compilation.

I also recommend checking Gotta Groove’s website to see their postings about recent projects.  If you do, you’ll continue to see fresh evidence that the vinyl world is getting more interesting. An example: when Branford Marsalis Four MFs Playing Tunes (which was pressed by Gotta Groove) was issued for the most recent Record Store Day, that indicated that the jazz world is starting to recover from vinyl amnesia. Four recent projects by Gotta Groove seem particularly noteworthy:

• Members of the Cleveland Orchestra are recording a live album December 4 and 5 at the Happy Dog, a corner bar in Cleveland.
• The Big Cats is a rock band whose 25 song, 80-minute release entitled The Ancient Art of Leaving has come out as a limited edition 3 LP/45 RPM record. Somehow the terms “heartland rock” and “British invasion” both come to mind for this  great-sounding record which features rock-solid songcraft and tasteful guitar work (I should note that that a guitarist from Green Day, Jason White, is a band member).
• Shake-It Records has released a great new double LP that’s an anthology of music recorded by Cincinnati blues artists, Play It Like You Did Back to George St: An Anthology of Cincinnati Blues 1924-1936.
• Gotta Groove has launched its own record label (Private Label) with the first-ever vinyl pressing of Luna’s second album, Bewitched. This reissue of a classic  Luna record includes the album cover Dean Wareham originally intended it to have.

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Cincinnati has long had a reputation for notoriously bad record shows—yet Columbus, which is only an hour and half away, has long had a good national reputation.

So I was pleased to see, on Facebook, people chatting about the 1^st annual Northside Record Fair starting at 11 am on Sunday, December 1 at Hoffner Masonic Lodge at 4120 Hamilton Ave. Because I know some of the people who have signed up for tables, I can guarantee that this record show will be a mind-blowing breath of fresh air.

If you’re interested in selling records, be aware that the record fair only has about 15 tables left for sellers. It costs $20 to reserve a table; half tables are $10. If, like me, you’re going there as a buyer, you’ll pay a $5 entry, although the $10 Early Bird Special will get you in an hour earlier. Also, the event will include live music and DJs. You can find more information if you visit the website for the event. (Also, for more information on the event, contact Jon at domepresents@gmail.com.)

The rest of this week will be devoted to the record fair as well as records in general, with a brief detour into the world of CDs. I’ll close with a reminder to folks that you can subscribe to my blog on the right side of this webpage, and I encourage you to do so in order to keep up with things going on around Cincinnati.

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Call me old-fashioned, but when I make travel plans my first choice would be meeting with a travel agent in person.

That may sound pie-in-the-sky in this era when so much is done digitally, but as it turns out there’s a travel office located in the heart of the gaslight district, on Ormond Avenue between the library and the post office. That location has served experienced travel agent Suzanne Sanchez well, and even though I suspect the majority of her work is done over the phone (you can call her at 513.731.3369) or via email (Suzanne@BrownsToursandTravel.com), because of her centralized location she meets lots of customers face to face.

And as soon as they visit the Brown’s Tours and Travel office at 3410 Ormond Ave. they can tell that she loves her work.

“This is a dream job,” she told me when I recently dropped by her office. “For most people, their goal in life is to have a vacation. I go in every day and play vacation maker. Who wouldn’t be happy to do that all day long?”

I asked her what new trends involved in the world of travel planning, and she mentioned two things:

Destination weddings. “The trend that intrigues me the most is destination weddings,” she said, “and I’ve been doing a lot of those.” As one might imagine, destination weddings are a huge business, and engaged couples definitely seek out agents who have experience in this area.

All-inclusive charter packages. “I’ve been doing a lot of those as well.”

While visiting with Suzanne I learned that travel agents can be helpful that I never would have imagined. Sometimes, she explained, people contact her who are eager to visit a destination that (unknown to them) is either dangerous or substandard, and she does them a huge favor by dissuading them from going there.

Another example: the phone rang during our conversation, and when Suzanne answered it she told a customer that the price for a trip had just dropped drastically. Three months before the couple was eager to blow their entire budget on the travel package, which meant they would have been broke throughout the trip, but Suzanne urged them to be patient.

That wasn’t what they wanted to hear, but after the price went way down the couple was ecstatic.

Suzanne is in her office from 8 to 5 Monday through Friday. Feel free to call her, email her or visit her. You may have noticed that the weather’s getting cold here in Cincinnati – and there are alternatives that Suzanne would be happy to tell you about.

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The Concert

Flautist and soprano saxophonist Jane Bunnett had a smile on her face through much of Thursday night’s performance at Thompson House, and for good reasons.

Being accompanied by superb musicians has to feel good, and on both sides of her were masters: Hilario Duran on piano, and the legendary Candido on congas. Plus it was clear though her playing and her between-song comments that she loved playing Afro-Cuban jazz.

There was also the intangible factor of “the Sanctuary,” i.e. the intimate upstairs room of the Thompson House. As Bunnett stated more than once during the performance, the room had a great vibe, and it didn’t hurt that it was close to filled through both sets.

She also expressed gratitude to soundman Shawn Marsh for a clean, perfectly-balanced mix.

The music consisted primarily of Cuban jazz dating back as far as the early twentieth century. Hearing it in such a stripped-down setting helped clarify what was so special about the Cuban musical tradition. Pianist Hilario Duran had technique to burn, but he used a light touch, so that every nuance came through, and there were many. Bunnett’s playing on flute and soprano grew more fiery as the evening went on, and this was definitely one of those jazz concerts where during the second set the band kicked things up a notch.

The rock star of the evening kept a low profile until it came time to perform “Conga Jam,” at which point Candido charmed the socks off the audience, pretending to end the song almost as soon as it began, interspersing in bits and pieces a mini-Candido history, throwing some crowd participation into the mix, and engaging in technical devilry just long enough to let you know that for him pyrotechnics weren’t nothing.

I videotaped one full song from the concert as well as a fragment that, when Candido launched into a chant without warning, had me grabbing my camera and filming what I could. Candido’s performance sparked memories of the one time I was able to see the percussionist Armando Peraza in an intimate setting (a 1983 Santana show that took place at Bogart’s). Throughout that show—and particularly during his bongo solo on “Gypsy Queen” and a solo conga performance where, like Candido, he playfully wooed the crowd—you felt a spirit that travels back centuries. Here’s Candido’s chant:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkZcebxvxlk&feature=plcp

The Album Cover

Before the show I asked Candido to sign a Sonny Rollins record that features Candido on a couple cuts, including a tremendous trio piece with Sonny on tenor and Bob Cranshaw on bass. Candido remembered the session clearly, and our conversation caught Jane Bunnett’s interest, for she had yet to hear this  1962 collaboration. Between sets she gave me her card so that I could send her a link to the song. Hopefully we’ll stay in touch, because as a music writer I’m sometimes in a position to highlight deserving musicians, and not only is Jane a fine player, she’s also carved out her own territory.

Here’s Jane’s website: http://www.janebunnett.com/

And here’s a picture of the album cover Candido signed:

And as long as we’re looking at Sonny Rollins album covers, I figured I’d snap a photo of this record that the world’s baddest tenor player signed during the previous millennium:

And here’s “Jungoso,” the song Candido performed with Sonny back in 1962:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa3z5SBY1qU

Please, if you haven’t done so yet, subscribe to my blog (to do so, go to the right side of this page).

Finally, here’s one other cut from Thursday’s performance (talk about sweet):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxbsu6r3_os&feature=plcp

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This weekend the Esquire Theatre will host  the Cincinnati premier of Redlegs, a locally-shot film by a Cincinnati native, Brandon Harris. Showtimes are 1:15, 3:00, 5:00, 7:10, 9:10, and tickets can be purchased either online or at the door. It’s running for at least a week,  but here are 5 reasons to see it this weekend:

• You can meet the director. According to a Facebook post by the director Brandon Harris, “I’ll be on hand for Q&As after Friday and Saturday’s 7:10 shows and Sunday’s 3:00. Hope to see you all there!”
• Redlegs has lots of locally-shot scenes with iconic settings. Per a City Beat blurb, the film includes “vanilla shakes from UDF; the Ohio River; an argument in Northside Tavern’s restroom; fisticuffs with a West Side redneck; a trip to Great American Ball Park; the WEBN fireworks.”
• This is exactly the kind of independent art film that helps keep the movie world interesting.  When Brandon Harris returned to Ohio in 2010 to make a movie, “There was no script, no money, no cast or crew. Happy to report that thirty months after that seeemingly absurd idea, after making its way around the country and world, you, my fellow Cincinnatians, will finally have the chance to see Redlegs on the big screen.”
• It’s a loose adaptation of a John Casavetes movie. Cassavetes was directing art films on shoestring budgets long before there was an Internet to help spread the word, but he had a huge impact with such films as Husbands, the film Redlegs is loosely based upon. So, this new film definitely has good pedigree.
• You can have an impact on the future of this film.According to Brandon Harris, “The first weekend of our run is critical for the movie, as the theater may keep the film for a longer period of time if it performs well. So I ask that you bring your age appropriate friends and family (the film is non-rated, but not really appropriate for children) and come check it out.”

I want to encourage who have read this blog entry to subscribe to my blog. Doing that is simple enough: just look to the right of this blog entry. On the right is  you’ll also see my  ”statement of purpose,” which is also simple enough: shed some light on good things going on in the heart of the city.

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The Art House Jamboree celebrating the 101^st anniversary of The Esquire Theatre was a perfect evening. Although the underlying focus was serious–the role community plays in people’s lives– people laughed through the whole event.

You couldn’t have picked a better host than Jerry Springer, who was a name locally before he moved away, and then, due to the TV show he created after he moved away, became a name nationally.  As a host last Saturday, Jerry Springer found as many opportunities to poke fun at himself as he did to praise Cincinnati.

The event also featured Jim Tarbell, who talked about his tenure as the owner of The Ludlow Garage, a rock club where Olive’s is now located.

Also on hand were John Morrison and Dorothy Meunier, pivotal figures in saving the Esquire. Having recently become a friend of John, I found it interesting that he never mentioned his acting prowess, something that was more than evident during the humorous half-hour ‘Mystery Movie,’ which was made to commemorate the re-opening of the Esquire in 1990. The film was shown Saturday night and (why didn’t he tell me before?) starred John; quite humble of him not to mention his hidden talent. Also milling around that evening was Jonathan Valin, who along with writing the screenplay for ‘Mystery Movie’ is a highly esteemed mystery writer and the executive editor of the audiophile magazine The Absolute Sound.

Add to that the talents of the Cincinnati Dancing Pigs and you have what turned out to be a perfect evening.

Finally, I should note that the painting at the top of this blog entry was done by Tom Lohre, a Clifton artist known for, among other things, his Cincinnati scenes as well as his portraits. Check out his website to see some of his other work.

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Sometimes I struggle to find a song that, by itself, makes it clear that someone is an amazing talent, but with Candido that was not a problem. Three musicians perform on this youtube clip: Sonny Rollins on tenor saxophone; bassist Bob Cranshaw, who has been Sonny’s right-hand man for decades; and Candido. The whole song is great, and toward the end Sonny and Candido engage in a musical face-off that prompts me to ask the following question: is this not the hippest music you’ve ever heard?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa3z5SBY1qU

The talent pool for the evening does not end with Candido, by the way; in fact, he’s the special guest for an ensemble that’s co-led Jane Bunnett, a highly respected soprano saxophonist. As Kenny G has oft proven, listening to soprano sax can be a saccharine experience, but Bunnett has a much edgier style when she wants to (and can play quite lyrically as well). Again I wonder if she has ever stepped foot in (greater) Cincinnati before. This is a rare experience to see some heavyweights carrying on the Afro-Cuban jazz tradition that Candido helped forged many decades before. God bless Doc B for bringing music of this quality to town.

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Kevin Zepf, aka Morris

I remember vividly the nights spent at a table with two other men as we attempted to transform a short story I had written into a screenplay. Although it was evening, we drank coffee the way some people drink whiskey—liberally, and in a most macho manner. Truly this was not a situation where you wanted to say, as the next cup was being poured, “No thanks, I’m starting to feel a bit jittery.”

That almost sounds like the setting for serious alcohol consumption, but as it turns out the person whose apartment we frequented happened to be under house arrest, and The Man checked him for every kind of stimulant on (I think) a daily basis. He was wearing an ankle cuff and was only allowed to leave the house for specific duties. What crime he committed was never discussed, and to me it didn’t matter. The story I had penned was all about crime and punishment, and my assumption was that, whatever he had done, this aspiring actor was ready to portray that world with the authenticity it demanded.

As you might imagine, there’s a lot more to this story, but for now I’ll simply say that our writing group eventually folded. A year or two later the third man called to tell me to attend an event taking place at the Madison Theater, and that evening I saw my short story transformed into a 23-minute film. So much about Becoming Morris (their title, and I liked it) worked: the actors were super good, the editing rocked and so did the soundtrack, etc. I felt the big letdown came from me: I never figured out how to develop the story beyond the scene where the main character handcuffs an innocent person, drags him a block or two and then lets him go. In my story that character reflects on the incident briefly and then ends the story in flat, oh-well kind of way, and that was kind of the point of the story. I had a hard time thinking beyond that.

Then one day I imagined adding one scene to the story, and that’s when it exploded. Two months later, even though I was working full-time, I had a rough draft for a novel that begins much as this movie does. I tore that draft apart and put it back together intermittently, as writers tend to do, and then came a two-week period where I wrote 12 to 14 hours a day (and up to 5,000 words a day), after which I could safely say that the novel I vaguely imagined appeared before my eyes. Since then, along with the occasional polishing, I mail it out to agents and publishers.

Since Becoming Morris was released in 2004, the resumes of several actors— Kevin Zepf, Don Volpenhein, and Lonel Childred among them—have expanded considerably. One night at a party I ran into Don, and knew that I had seen him before, but I couldn’t remember where. After he and I went through a list of projects that he might have been in, none of which I had seen, it finally dawned on me that—Shazam!—I was talking to one of my characters.

Here’s a link to the movie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLdUfI_REn8

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Cincinnati is ridiculously spoiled when it comes to classical music, and that’s even more true if you happen to live in Clifton. Within walking distance is both the College Conservatory of Music (which would be sweet enough by itself) and also Hebrew Union College, home to lots of chamber music performances as of late. This Sunday, November 11 at 4 pm the Amernet String Quartet will perform music of the Jewish Diaspora for string quartet, featuring compositions by Jewish composers Pavel Haas, Aleksandr Zhitomirskii, Jacob Weinberg, Viktor Kohn, David Grunfeld and Dmitri Skosta. The concert is free and open to the public, and at the Scheuer Chapel on the Cincinnati campus, 3101 Clifton Avenue in Clifton.  One assumes the performance will draw audience members eager to leave behind all the noise of the last couple weeks and simply focus on music. Ensemble-in-Residence at Florida International University since 2004, the Amernet String Quartet was formed in 1991 while its founding members were attending Juilliard. Here the quartet performs a movement from a string quartet by one of the masters of the medium, the man who never knew for sure if or when Stalin’s henchmen might knock upon his door, Dimitri Shostakovich:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzNIhIQY_H8

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What were you doing in 1911? Not much, you say? Yeah, me too. But I know something about what other people were doing, and that happened to be the year the Esquire Theatre on Ludlow Avenue in Clifton opened its doors. To celebrate the fact that The Esquire not only survived 101 years but expanded, the folks at the Esquire are hosting The Art House Jamboree Saturday, November 10 at 8 pm. The evening will feature none other than Jerry Springer, who’ll show some love by hosting what has been billed as a “whimsical evening of time travel, stories & celebration.” Proceeds from the event will benefit the Clifton Cultural Arts Center.

Other highlights of the evening include:

• A screening of “Mystery Movie,” the Esquire’s whimsical 30-minute  film that starred Jerry Springer and Cincinnati celebs (was shown in 1990 for the theater’s Re-Grand Opening.)
• A tip of the hat to Clifton residents who saved the theater from becoming a Wendy’s fast food restaurant; like the early movie-makers, they took a financial risk to keep the theater afloat;
• Jim Tarbell will rock the house with a few tales about the famous Ludlow Garage that was just down the street.

Things will start off with a reception from 8 – 9 pm (coffee/desserts/cash bar.) The program begins at 9 pm, concluding with live music by the Cincinnati Dancing Pigs Jug Band. Tickets are $25 general admission and $60 at the patron level. (Patron level attendees receive a limited edition print by Jim Borgman, specially created for this occasion!) Seating is limited! Tickets available NOW at the Esquire box office, or can be purchased online by clicking here.

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And remember, if you can’t make it to the Northside Farmers Market this week, it’s there every Wednesday from 4 to 7 pm.

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The Wolverton Brothers are playing at MOTRPub in Over-the-Rhine this Friday, October 26. You seldom get a chance to see the Wolvertons these days—one or two gigs a year, I’m thinking—but their live performances are still as absorbing as when they were regulars at the now-deceased Sudsy Malone’s or The Metro. In fact, their music has only grown more interesting with time. At first their sound combined garage rock with an unorthodox country twang, and even as early as their first album there’s clear evidence of a band that knew how to write memorable songs with lyrics that could be both witty and provocative. Eventually their records included some spacey instrumentals that mixed sampling with their huge guitar sound, a step that made perfect sense to those fans who had witnessed the wide-open improvs during the middle of “Big West” from their eponymous first album.

The Wolverton Brothers don’t play out as much as they used to, and I would assume they spend less time practicing, and they don’t always pack a club like did when short Vine was thriving. Perhaps there’s no explaining, then, why their most recent album was their best to date. Available on cdbaby.com, Crooked was released to little fanfare, but it’s a damn good record. The length is modest (it’s about as long as LPs used to be), and that’s a plus, as Crooked is one of the few CDs I’ve heard that unfolds in such a way that you’d want to hear the whole thing from beginning to finish. More experimental songs bookend the release (tracks 1, 6 & 7), and between that you get four great rock and roll tunes that develop in unpredictable ways, with lots of sinuous guitar lines and lyrics that make just enough to spark your imagination. It seems to me The Wolvertons have always done a stellar job of capturing the madness that washes over us in this post-industrial neck of the woods, but they do so without being pretentious or overbearing. If you’re in need of music to make you drink too much so that you wake up the next morning and wonder why the hell did I do that, trust me, you cannot do better than the Wolverton Brothers. Here, from their Sub-Pop single, is “Max Gomez Love:”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8sKGg5OY4Q

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Recently the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER) compiled a list of data in order to determine the top college destinations in the US. The criteria involved academic environment, quality of life, and professional opportunity. The University of Cincinnati ranked 17th on the College Destination Index, which is impressive, and  here are a couple quick reasons UC will rank even higher the next time they compare universities:

The unemployment rate is falling. Also, the Horseshoe Casino is about to open and The Banks has already kicked into gear. Factor in those events, plus the residual economic activity that comes up with it, and you’ll see that lots of jobs are opening up in the core of the city for both college students and college graduates. The fact that so much is going on in the core of the city is crucial: it makes Cincinnati a hipper and livelier city, and it means increased tax dollars.

A crucial element in making the college experience a good one is finding the right place to live. Gaslight Property has a huge and varied selection of apartments available for rent close to the University of Cincinnati, and if you’re interesting in looking at some apartments, call Gaslight Property 513.861.6000. Here are some of the reasons that Gaslight Property will make your experience at the University of Cincinnati even better:

• Classic Spaces: Like most cities, Cincinnati has its share of prefab apartment complexes, but Gaslight Property rents apartments with history and character.
• Experience: Gaslight Property is a family-owned business that’s been part of Clifton for decades.
• Accessibility: While some landlords seem in absentia, Gaslight Property’s  office is in the heart of Clifton’s Gaslight District, within walking distance (or a very short drive) for many of their tenants.
• Location: Most of Gaslight Property’s rentals are located in or near “The Uptown Area,” known for world-class education and healthcare. Within minutes you’ll find University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Cincinnati State, Hebrew Union College, University Hospital, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Good Samaritan Hospital. You’ll find many of of Gaslight Property’s places are pet-friendly, within walking distance of unique shops, locally-owned cafes, an independent theater, and scenic parks. Most also have close access to public transportation.

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Last night at the Loft Society serious music happened, courtesy of William Hooker (drums) and Ed Ricart (guitar). After the second set ended someone said to Hooker en route to another room, “Play one more?”

“Are you kidding?” he laughed and said. “Do you want me to have a heart attack?”

Those words will make sense to you if you watch the video I shot last night of a few minutes of the improvisation between two musicians who were far apart in age but close together in purpose. William Hooker is an extremely physical player who digs deep tones out of the drums. At one point the proprietor of the Loft tried to hand a towel to the percussionist in true James Brown fashion but was refused at first, for the song was not yet over.

Here’s the link:

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I feel sorry for every other band on the planet, because Hogscraper has decided to perform a Halloween show, and let’s face it, when it comes to the full-scale Halloween vibe no one can compete with these guys. Banjo, drums and washtub bass sound like the recipe for some good old-fashioned Americana, but this is the stuff of nightmares. The performance will take place Saturday, October 27 at the Southgate House Revival at 111 E. 6^th Street in Newport, Kentucky.  It’s good to see the Southgate House Revival up and running, and I’m glad to see that one of their first shows is going to be this reunion show by this trio, who play their own brand of satanic bluegrass. I used to catch Hogscraper while I was doing laundry at Sudsy Malone’s, and while I heard some loud music in that particular venue, this was scary loud even back among the washers and dryers. So bring ear plugs and a costume, and feel the dark forces raining down on you. Here’s some footage of Hogscraper performing at what was once a much-loved Laundromat on short Vine:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FfwwPNJGyU

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It has reached the point where we can see almost any movie we want in the comfort of our own home. At the same time, because we have the history of cinema at our fingertips opportunities to watch classic films on the big screen are increasingly rare—and you’d be hard-pressed to find a film more worthy of such a viewing than Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 masterpiece, Vertigo, which will be showing at the Esquire Theatre this Friday, October 19, at 10:30 p.m. Among the reasons Vertigo belongs on the big screen:

• Because fate has it in for him the character James Stewart plays, John “Scottie” Ferguson, who suffers from vertigo, ends up facing not one but two situations where his fear of heights gets tested. The use of the dolly zoom in order to convey the disorientation Scottie experiences needs to be seen on the full screen to be fully appreciated.
• Bernard Herrmann’s soundtrack to the film is legendary, and it will sound great on the Esquire’s sound system.
• The opening sequence, featuring Herrmmann’s score, the most memorable eyeball shot since Un Chien Andalou, and colorful graphics is more intense on the big screen.
• Vertigo is a classic film in a classic theatre that’s been around 100 years, showing many Hitchcock movies during their first go-round.

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When I started this blog eight months, along with writing about big events I hoped to shed some light on some of the well-kept secrets in Cincinnati, and today’s blog entry is an opportunity to do just that. This Saturday, October 20 at 8:00 pm the drummer William Hooker will perform duets with Ed Ricart on guitar at the Loft Society at 119 Calhoun Street in Corryville. Expect music that’s avant-garde and edgy. And while the music the duet performs may be labeled jazz, I have a hunch that this would be of interest to people who like experimental music—be it rock, classical or completely unclassifiable—period.

Although the performance space called the Loft Society been around for over 20 years, many people don’t know about it, including jazz lovers who, when you tell them about a past performance, their reaction is, “You’re kidding! I missed that?” As performance spaces go, it couldn’t be more informal: the shows take place in a large and very colorful room in an apartment, but that room is steeped in history. Barry Altschul, Billy Band, John Hicks, Gebhard Uhlmann, Gary Bartz, Nicole Mitchell, William Parker and Hamid Drake are just a few of the names that have appeared there. These are internationally-known artists from around the world who, the week before, may have played to crowds of thousands in Europe (or Chicago or New York), and then suddenly find themselves in a space where folks may have squeezed more than fifty audience members into that room—but believe me, it was tight. Yet repeatedly when you talk to the musicians who inevitably end up mingling with the crowd,  you find out they love it, in part because it carries with it a strong sense of nostalgia.

“I was one of those kids in the 1970s who grew up on the New York loft scene,” trombonist Steve Swell told me. “When I was first aware of Cincinnati’s own version of that legendary scene, I was a bit apprehensive, but glad there was someone presenting our kind of music.”

“That’s probably my favorite place to play anywhere,” trumpeter Rob Mazurek said. Rob is one of many musicians from Chicago who have played the Loft Society, including many who have recorded for the Delmark label and are members of AACM.

Basically, then, the Loft Society provides great music in an intimate setting, with an atmosphere which, regardless of whether you’ve caught music at a New York City loft, will make it easy to imagine. “I can’t believe I’m in Cincinnati,” is a comment you hear a lot as people experience a concert at the Loft Society. A donation is requested at the door in order to help fund the event, which includes great home-cooked food between sets. Call 513.559.9220 with questions.

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In my previous blog entry I discussed some matters leading up to my conversation with Bill Frisell, but there’s a little more to it. At I began walking toward the front of the stage one of the Emery Theatre ushers asked if she could help me, at which point I said if possible I would like to talk to Bill Frisell for a second. At that point Frisell was on the stage, and the crowd mingling about near the foot of the stage led me to believe that in the next couple minutes he’d be chatting with us. The usher ended up walking up to the stage and telling Frisell my request, and shortly thereafter he walked down to where everyone was standing.

Although it was nice of the usher to do that, there was ultimately more protocol involved than I had originally envisioned, especially because I was going to just casually say hi. After the guitarist  signed my program, we chatted briefly about the Naked City show where I first saw him perform. After that there was only one other thing I could think of: I asked about a song that had less of an Americana feel than most of the others, and beyond that the way I described it was like this:  ”It sounded like it was going to become Music To Watch Girls By, but it didn’t. Do you have any idea what that was?”

“I don’t know that song,” was his reply – and seconds later he was chatting with the next fan.

Here’s why I said that everything went swimmingly that evening except that conversation with Bill Frisell. Anyone else would have referenced  Takemitsu or Shostakovich or Carla Bley or some other heavyweight in the music world. Me, I mentioned an EZ-listening song from the 1960s that although it was played a million times in airports and doctor’s and dentist’s offices was so inconsequential that it failed to lodge itself in Bill Frisell’s long-term memory (or anyone else’s that I talked to that evening). The strange thing, I actually like the song. When he mentioned it to a friend the next day, he said he’d like to hear Frisell play it, because it’s as staccato as a song can be while Frisell is the most legato player out there – so what the heck would happen if he took it on? There are both instrumental and vocal versions of “Music to Watch Girls By,” and I decided to post here what may be the most famous one, by the late Andy Williams:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5-GD8YeObE

Also, a couple quick reminders of events this weekend:

• Mothers of Invention – The Music of Frank Zappa.  Sunday, October 14 at 7 PM at the Patricia Corbett Theater at College- Conservatory of Music the Jazz Lab Band will devote the entire evening to the music of Frank Zappa. Tickets t are $12 for general admission, $6 for non-UC students and FREE for UC students with valid ID. Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online at ccm.uc.edu/boxoffice.
• The 6th Annual Annunciation Oktoberfest begins at 7:00 pm and will continue through Sunday. Don’t miss the Soul Pocket Band tonight; they take the stage at 8 pm and play until midnight. Here’s a link to the webpage for the event: http://www.annunciationbvmparish.org/Oktoberfest2010Main.html
• Don’t forget to vote for Gaslight Property as the best rental company in  the News Record. To vote, visit The News Record’s website –newsrecord.org – and then scroll down to the bottom, where near the bottom of the page you’ll find, on the left side, an Online Poll for the Best Rental Company.

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Last night was one of those kismet nights where things fall into place at the last minute. Everything went right, except for that point in the evening that mattered most, which was a brief conversation I had with one of the best guitarists in the world.

Oh well.

I was downtown on business yesterday afternoon/early evening, and after that ended I was simultaneously overdressed and underdressed, which is to say I was wearing spiffy clothes but not enough clothes because, well, it was cold. That really wouldn’t have mattered if I had driven home right away, which was the original plan, but as I headed to my car I remembered that Bill Frisell was performing at the Emery Theatre as part of The Requiem Project. If I can get in for half-price, I told myself, then I was meant to see this show, and if not I’ll go home. When I told the ticket sellers that I saw the note on soapboxmedia.com about reduced-price tickets, they said sure, no problem, and suddenly I was going to the show. While standing out front with Ron Esposito, whose third singing bowls release, We Are One, came out recently, he said this to me:

“We’re going to talk to him after the show, right?”

“Do you think we can?”

“Sure we can.”

That planted a seed that played into future events.

I had seen Frisell a few times in the past. The first time was with John Zorn’s Naked City during the Torture Garden tour, an event at which (this came as no surprise to Zorn) about a third of the audience walked out during the first half hour. You know that’s a great concert, but even though no one walked out of The Emery last night, it too was a great concert. Blending an electric guitar with acoustic string instruments is not, I assume, an easy thing, but the interplay between the musicians during a concert that primarily focused on the Disfarmer Project was remarkable, and I loved how Frisell was able to weave Americana into his jazz-based style. During the encore he ended with some wild rhythm guitar work that reminded me of the sped-up guitar tracks on some old Les Paul albums, except that involved studio trickery and Frisell was doing it live. I have to think that was a tip of the hat from guitar master to another, and I should have asked him about that, but I didn’t, because, well, I forgot.

After the show many of the Who’s Whos of Cincinnati were milling about near the stage—the photographer Michael Wilson, for example, whose work has appeared on album covers (among  many others) by Bill Frisell, and who also has an edition of special fine art portraits devoted to Frisell; and Linford Etweiler and Karin Bergquist from the group Over the Rhine; and (again) Ron Esposito, who told me that if I wanted to talk to Bill Frisell all I had to do was walk up to the stage. Which I did—but let me rush through the rest of the night first.

As often happens when last-minute improvisation plays into your day, I hadn’t eaten since morning, and hunger had taken hold of me. After talking to Bill Frisell I chatted with Julie Fay and William Messer in the Emery lobby. (For starters, Julie is the proprietor of Urban Eden and Iris Book Cafe and Gallery; to quote a insightful source, “Julie Fay has been investing time, money, labor and love into Over-the Rhine since 1991;” along with many other artistic endeavors, Bill curates photography shows at Iris Book Café and Gallery.) It turned out that Julie had an extra ticket to the Disfarmer- connected post-concert soiree at Japp’s, where I ate the best food I have ever had while people watching. Julie made great company at this event, because she shares my knack for forgetting people’s names, which meant both of us could practice the fine art of allowing people you know to introduce themselves to the person you’re sitting next to. While we were sitting there someone from ispycinci.com came by and took our picture, which was indeed a rare event; you could chop off several fingers and still be able to count all the events Jeff Wilson has attended where people drop by just to take pictures and post them on a cool website take place.

But the night was not yet over, a friend and I walked to MOTRPub, which was packed, yet somehow we found seats at the bar and were able to order drinks right as Zammuto, a spinoff of The Books, began their set. I thought they were great, and I probably would have stayed for the whole set except (A) I was parked probably ten blocks away on a cold night, (B) my friend offered to drive me there.

This blog has already broken all previous word-count records, so I’ll have to come back to my conversation with Bill Frisell, who was extremely nice; I hope to chat with him again someday.

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Sunday, October 14 at 7 PM at the Patricia Corbett Theater at College- Conservatory of Music the Jazz Lab Band will devote the entire evening to the music of Frank Zappa. For part of the show, Apostrophe – possibly Zappa’s most famous album – will be played in its entirely by an octet, with arrangements by Dominic Marino. Other selections will include “Peaches en Regalia,” “Night School,” “King Kong” and more. Because Zappa used radically different instrumentation than CCM will employ for most of this material, it will be intriguing to hear how this music translates – and what fun it must be to re-arrange and perform such a bizarre batch of tunes. Tickets to “Mothers of Invention – The Music of Frank Zappa” are $12 for general admission, $6 for non-UC students and FREE for UC students with valid ID. Tickets can be purchased in person at the CCM Box Office, over the telephone at 513-556-4183 or online at ccm.uc.edu/boxoffice.

It’s worth pointing out that Frank Zappa had some history and connections not only in Cincinnati but at UC, where this concert will take place. He played the University of Cincinnati repeatedly, and one of his first drummers, Art Tripp, was actually a CCM student who ended up working with avant-garde composer John Cage when he became composer composer in residence at CCM. Here’s some footage of Zappa & the Mothers of Invention w/Art Tripp on drums playing music like it’s meant to be played:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49lGUNN0DNs

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It’s time to vote, folks – not for that other race people have been talking about, but something much closer to home. The News Record (the University of Cincinnati’s newspaper) is asking people to vote for the best apartment rental company in the UC area, and clearly Gaslight Property deserves to win. To vote, visit The News Record’s website – newsrecord.org – and then scroll down to the bottom, where near the bottom of the page you’ll find, on the left side, an Online Poll for the Best Rental Company. The reasons Gaslight Property is the best rental company include the following:

• Classic Spaces: Like most cities, Cincinnati has its share of prefab apartment complexes, but Gaslight Property rents apartments with history and character.
• Experience: Gaslight Property is a family-owned business that’s been part of Clifton for decades.
• Accessibility: While some landlords seem in absentia, Gaslight Property’s  office is in the heart of Clifton’s Gaslight District, within walking distance (or a very short drive) for many of their tenants.
• Location: Most of Gaslight Property’s rentals are located in or near “The Uptown Area,” known for world-class education and healthcare. Within minutes you’ll find University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Cincinnati State, Hebrew Union College, University Hospital, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Good Samaritan Hospital. You’ll find many of of Gaslight Property’s places are pet-friendly, within walking distance of unique shops, locally-owned cafes, an independent theater, and scenic parks. Most also have close access to public transportation.

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The 6^th Annual Annunciation Oktoberfest begins Friday, October 12 at 7:00 p.m. and will continue through the weekend. The Annunciation Oktoberfest,  of which Gaslight Property is a co-sponsor, has been a hit from the beginning, and although the focus is on having fun, it’s also helped Annunciation School stay in the black financially, which is no small feat these days for a small private school. That’s good to hear, as Annunciation has been a part of Clifton for 100 years. It also has an unusually diverse student body, with 18 different nationalities represented. When I spoke to Alice Derrick, co-chair of this important Clifton event since the first year, I asked her why Annunciation Oktoberfest is so popular.

“It’s a chance to bring the community together,” she said, “all the different churches, and welcoming the community to Annunciation, which was at one time considered a hidden secret.”

“It brings back the alumni,” she added, “and the people who have graduated bring their children—it’s like a reunion.”

When I asked what was new this year, Alice mentioned a petting zoo and pony buggy rides, which are among the many fun activities for kids. She also informed me that children do more than just attend the festival. “We give our students the opportunity to have their own booth,” she said. “Each classroom has its own booth; it’s exciting for them to participate in something that makes money for the school.”

“We also invite other schools to participate,” she added. “Xavier brought its marching band one year.”

Alice also pointed out the music that will be part of the festival all three days. The Soul Pocket Band plays 8 to midnight Friday, October 12; The Rusty Griswolds are on from 7 pm to 11 pm Saturday; and Retro Vibes will perform 1:30 pm to 5:30 pm Sunday.

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Cincinnati has long had a classical music scene that’s disproportionate to its size, and the recent addition of the Constella Festival only adds more depth and variety to what is already an embarrassment of riches. At 2 pm Sunday, October 7 the Constella Trio will perform works by the American composers Philip Lasser, Samuel Barber and Aaron Copeland. The trio of Tatiana Berman, Yael Senamaud and Ilya Finkelshteyn will feature Julie Spangler on piano, and the performance will take place at the Scheurer Chapel at Hebrew Union College.  The concert is free, and the opportunity to hear Twentieth Century chamber music on a Sunday afternoon sounds sweet. It’s also an opportunity to find out more about the Constella Festival, whose website can fill you in on some of their other upcoming events:

http://www.constellafestival.org/

Here’s the program for Sunday’s “Chamber Music by American Composers”

Phillip Lasser: the unwanted blues for violin and piano

Samuel Barber; cello sonata Op. 6:
1. Allegro ma non troppo
2. Adagio
3. Adagio appassionata

Aaron Copland: Piano quartet
1. Adgio serio
2. Allegro giusto
3. Non troppo lento

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At the Clifton Plaza today (September 29), the Four-Bit Fancy Band will be playing Americana with bluegrass influences from 11 am to 1 pm as part of Cliftonfest. Banjo, dobro, upright bass, mandolin and twelve-string guitar are among the instruments this all-acoustic unit uses in performance. Along with playing music together for a long time, two of the band members – guitarist Rob Taylor and bassist Pete Brown – are veteran Gaslight Property employees.  Unless you’ve been hiding in some dark hollow, they’ll do songs y0u’ll remember from the Great Americana Songbook. Here’s a video of the Four-Bit Fancy Band performing the classics “I Know You Rider” and “Sitting on Top of The World:”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EagPNdIoMA

And here’s a lineup for the music for the rest of the weekend:

Saturday September 29

Clifton Plaza: The Four-Bit Fancy Band 11am-1pm
Middelton Stage: Robin Lacy & DeZydeco 2pm-4pm
Clifton Plaza: Hinkley Technologies 4pm-6pm

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A Weekend in Clifton (of which Gaslight Property is a proud co-sponsor) kicks off this Friday, September 28, and by all indications this will be the biggest and best celebration of Clifton in a long time. One hint that folks are upping the ante: a few blocks in the heart of the Gaslight District (Ludlow Avenue between Middleton Avenue and Clifton Avenue, Telford Avenue between Shiloh Street and Ludlow Avenue, and Ormond Avenue between Ludlow Avenue and Howell Avenue) will be closed from 6 pm Friday, September 28 to 5 am Monday, October 1.  That will encourage more of a street party atmosphere where people can roam around drinking beer, dancing, etc., etc.

The timing of this event couldn’t be better, as good news has arrived in connection with the new Goessling’s Markets, which now has all the pieces in order to begin the renovation of a store that we have dearly missed. Mark Goessling, the owner of the soon-to-be-renovated grocery store, will be celebrating this awesome turn of events by grilling out Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Clifton–so come say to him.

There will be music all weekend. I wrote about the opening act in a previous blog entry; the other Friday night band, MJ’s Blues, will be delivering a heap of soul, R&B, funk and blues music at the Middleton Stage Friday night from 9pm-11pm. The band’s influences include Muddy Waters, BB King, Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Al Green, Sam Cooke, and Marvin Gaye. I’ve seen these guys before at Arlin’s, and along with knowing how to play their instrument they have an entertaining stage show – basically a great way to rev up the crowd Friday night.

Here’s a music schedule for the rest of the weekend – and remember, along with the music there will be visual art via StreetScapes, Art Cars and Art Carpets, and if you go to the facebook page for A Weekend in Clifton you’ll see evidence of all kinds of special sales from the small business that make the Gaslight District such a special place.

Cliftonfest LIVE MUSIC: Two Stages,

Friday Evening September 28

Clifton Plaza: A Side of Taylors 7pm-9pm
Middleton Stage: The MJ’s Blues 9pm-11pm

Saturday September 29

Clifton Plaza: The Four-Bit Fancy Band 11am-1pm
Middelton Stage: Robin Lacy & DeZydeco 2pm-4pm
Clifton Plaza: Hinkley Technologies 4pm-6pm

Middleton Stage: Destiny-N-August (Yoga Bliss, Mandala Art) 6-8pm

Middleton Stage: Jon Evans Collective 9pm-11pm

Sunday September 30

Clifton Plaza: TBA 11am-1pm
Middleton Stage: Tracy Walker 1pm-3pm
Clifton Plaza:Mandorla 4pm-5:30pm

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At 11 pm this Thursday, Sept. 27 Laeititia Sadier, the once lead vocalist/keyboardist/guitarist for Stereolab, will be performing at the Contemporary Arts Center. Stereolab had a distinct and seductive sound that combined a rhythmic groove with a loungy feel that was a throwback to the 1960s, when lush, colorful and dreamy sounds filled the air via soundtracks, bossa nova, and easy listening music . With a huge, airy soundscape, Stereolab was the ultimate headphone music. Laetitia’s new release, Silencio, finds her mining a similar sound. Having missed Stereolab’s performance at the Southgate House many moons ago, I’ll definitely come to this (please don’t sell out). Here’s a video of her single “Find Me The Pulse of The Universe”  from Silencio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dUqjE1prBM

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Due to some strange aligning of the stars, this week is shaping up to be an unusually exciting week of music in Cincinnati. For starters, tonight and tomorrow (Monday, September 24 and Tuesday, September 25) pianist Fred Hersch will be bringing a trio to the Blue Wisp. I believe it’s this week that Fred’s new 2-CD live set Alive At the Vanguard is being released on Palmetto Records. Alive consists of live performances at the Village Vanguard during a week-long stay with the same trio that’s coming to the Blue Wisp, and it’s one of those rare recordings that deserves “instant classic” status. Among the compositions included is “Doxy,” which was penned by Sonny Rollins; the first recording of it appeared on the Miles Davis album Bag’s Groove in 1954. It’s a nice, sleazy, boozy, bluesy number that I heard saxophonist Jimmy McGary perform one night at Cory’s. A few months later I requested the song before his show began, and he assured me that he wasn’t going to play it – and then, at the end of the last set, he broke it out. Fred Hersch, who grew up in Cincinnati and attended Walnut Hills High School, used to perform with Jimmy McGary, and I’m curious if they ever played the song together; maybe I’ll find out this week. Here’s a video of Fred Hersch playing “Doxy:”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGeqW9ahI34

In my next blog entry I’ll write about some of the must-see shows coming to the Midpoint Music Festival.

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A Warhol-Inspired Art Car From the 2011Cliftonfest

During Weekend in Clifton taking place September 28 to 30 local artists will be painting cars the way they should be painted: as works of art. The artists doing the work are all connected with ArtWorks, whose murals you’ve seen around town; in all, ArtWorks has created more than 300 public works of art in Greater Cincinnati. ArtWorks has long been part of at Weekend in Clifton; they started with painting the streets and four years ago added art cars to the mix.

The art-car painting will take in the parking lot behind IGA from 10 to 6 on Saturday and Sunday. In all, five cars will be transformed. Three of the cars belong to residents of Clifton; two are mini-vans and three are mid-sized. We know, already, four of the artists to be emulated, and as you gaze upon the works by these Twentieth Century icons, try imagining how paintings like these might look on a car:

Rene Magritte

Picasso

Georgia O’Keefe

Walter Kandinsky

I’m especially curious what the Kandinsky will end up looking like after it’s finished – and after that I’d love to see the look on the eyes of early morning drivers who, still half-awake, see a two-ton form of abstract-expressionism coming their way.

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The Sao Paulo Underground concert that took place at the Contemporary Arts Center last Friday was well attended: most of the seats were filled, plus many people chose to stand. The sound was good and the space intimate, and I think people appreciated the music from different angles: jazz fans who showed up to Rob Mazurek’s role were treated to some fine trumpet playing, lovers of South American music heard a post-modern take on Braziliana, and people who are tuned into new electronic were courtesy experienced a rich mix of both lo- and hi-fi keyboard sounds courtesy of Guilherme Granado.

That differing schools could appreciate the band was underscored after the show. When Guilherme Granado mentioned touring with the electronica ensemble Prefuse 73, it turned out a friend of mine was a fan, whereas I had never heard of them before. I, on the other hand, had seen trumpeter Rob Mazurek with the jazz ensemble Starlicker a couple times at The Loft Society. Since those performances I have written about Mazurek and two of the labels he records for (Delmark and Cuneiform), partly because I like his music and also because both of those labels are starting to put music out on vinyl again. Mazurek and I talked about that, and we also discussed his experiences playing the Loft Society, the great underground music performance in Cincinnati. “That’s probably my favorite place to play anywhere,” Mazurek said, which is amazing considering that he’s performed all over the world. And he’s not the only person who loved playing there: the late Billy Bang and Barry Altschul are among the artists I’ve chatted with who were effusive in their praise of the venue, which is swinging back into action with a performance by William Hooker on Saturday, October 20.

Here’s the closing melody from last Friday’s performance by the Sao Paulo Underground:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lId77lDG9UQ

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There will be two stages for music during the Weekend in Clifton taking place Friday, September 28 to Sunday, September 30 on Ludlow Avenue in Clifton. One of the stages will be located at Clifton Plaza next door to Aquarius Star, and the other stage will be at Middleton Avenue. In this blog I’ll be talking about some of the talent that will be appearing on those stages, and I’ll start with the first band to play on the first night.

From 7 pm to 9 pm Friday, September 28 a group that bills itself as “a bluegrass/folk/americana singin’ family” will be performing at Clifton Plaza next door to Aquarius Star and across the street from Graeter’s. Their name is A Side of Taylors, and basically mom, dad and the four kids all sing and play Americana songs with a purity and warmth that’s almost unheard of in mainstream music. Recently they were sent to America’s Got Talent because of the following video, and hopefully we’ll see them on national TV soon – but first catch them live and in person at A Weekend in Clifton:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYZGAFBjp_s

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4XijbNSqh0

And a free download from the new release on Cuneiform Records is available here:

http://www.cuneiformrecords.com/bandshtml/saopaulo.html

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It’s turning out to be a highly competitive week for this year’s Cincinnati Film Festival when it comes to bragging rights for neighboring cities. Sure, Cincinnati can boast about its beer history in The Cincinnati Beer Story, which played at the Emery Thursday night, but the folks living right across the river in Newport, Kentucky weren’t goody two shoeing their way through life, if  the sneak preview of Newport: Gambling, Gangsters and Girls (showing at the Esquire Monday, September 10 at 9 pm) is to be believed.

And who, I ask you, is really going to dispute that image when Jerry Springer‘s checkbook provided recent-enough smoking gun evidence of the fading embers of Newport’s golden days? If Cincinnati was the beer mecca of this region, Newport was the mecca of…well, every other vice. Maybe the beer  they served in the gambling joints and strip clubs wasn’t local or even in-state, but if the brewer was two miles away, wasn’t that close enough? And besides, do you really think the craps player really gave a hoot where the beer he slurped down between throws came from? I doubt that at the blackjack tables anyone was turning down a cold one because it wasn’t a craft beer brewed by his favorite micro-brewery. If I’m wrong, though, I’m sure Newport: Gambling, Gangsters and Girls will set me straight.

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Orchard Street performance area: 

Noon – Doxologies Dance & Theatre Company
1pm – Pones Inc.
3pm – My Nose Turns Red Youth Circus
4pm – KRE8V – Elementz

14th Street performance area: 

Noon – Cincinnati Contra Dancers
1:30 – Rhythm & Motion – Cincinnati Ballet
2pm – Troupe Shuruq / Bauhdi Movement Theatre Collective
3pm – Dances for Main Street, with choreography by Diane Germain, Demetrius Klein, Ian Timothy Forsgren
4pm – Keshvar Project

as well as Hoopinatti, the hula hoop squad, at 4pm (interactive and not at either of the performance areas)

Since its founding in 2008, Pones Inc. has performed in over 30 Greater Cincinnati locations, and one of their favorite spots has been Over the Rhine. This Sunday’s 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. event will continue their tradition of dance that involves (in their words) “participatory performance with a focus on creating community.” The line between performer and audience will be blurred as the crowd on hand for Second Sunday on Main will have a chance to move and dance to music provided by local bands and DJs.

In the spirit of participatory performance, Pones Inc. has, via their Facebook page, sent this message out to the community:

CALLING ALL MUSICIANS and DJS!
Wanna play with Pones Inc. at Second Sunday on Main from 1-3:00 on Orchard in OTR?

We will be dancing on a car … probably just like this
LET US KNOW! (We also will have recorded instructions on the headphones for how participants of Pones In Public could interact and ‘dance’ with the car as well!)

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The Cincinnati Beer Story focuses on the history of beer-making (and, come to think of it, beer drinking) in Cincinnati. With micro-breweries popping up everywhere and Moerlein Lager House opening its doors, the timing seems perfect for this film. It will show at 7:30 pm at the Emery Theatre, but a walking tour will precede it; here’s a link to the actual event:

http://www.cincinnatifilmfestival.com/2012-schedule/opening-night/

The Cincinnati Film Festival has posted a schedule for all the nights along with descriptions of the films on www.cincinnatifilmfestival.com. As you check out the schedules, pay attention to which venue is showing that film that night, as there are several different locations.

That said, most of the movies will be appearing at the Esquire Theatre, which will have  one room devoted exclusively to the festival from Friday through Monday. To bring things full circle, the Esquire now serves alcohol, including White Russians, as many Big Lebowski fans discovered during the recent midnight showings of the film. Beer, popcorn and a movie – now there’s a combination.

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The Cincinnati Film Festival is returning to Cincinnati on September 6-14. Today I had a chance to talk to Executive Director of the festival, Katharine Steele, about the event. For this, the third year, the primary (but not the sole) location will be the Esquire Theatre in Clifton, and as I talked to Katharine it became clear that along with bringing in movies from all over, the festival is as much about people, and Cincinnati, as it is about movies.  “We have more filmmakers coming in this year than in any of the three years, from NYC to LA and everywhere in between,” she explained. “It’s all about welcoming them here, showcasing their films to a new audience, and introducing the filmmakers to our city. If they like Cincinnati, maybe they’ll want to make a movie here.”

For more information on the festival, go to the festival’s website, cincinnatifilmfestival.com.

How do you choose the movies you choose?

The majority of the films are submissions through Without a Box, an online submission tool. This year we had submissions open from April 1 to July 1. Then our all-volunteer screening committee and staff reviews and puts down feedback for our submitted films. Submitted films that are accepted become part of our Official Selections, eligible for juried awards. Invited films, which usually already have distribution, are not.

Are these films that have already been released?

No, submitted films do not, however we have had 2 or 3 in the past that have had distribution arrangements prior to submitting.

It seems to me that part of the appeal of a festival like this is the opportunity to see a film that you wouldn’t be able to see otherwise.

Absolutely. I love finding a hidden gem. It’s a wonderful feeling. And distribution is really tricky to get: you can have the best film ever and it won’t show anywhere if you don’t have the funds or know-how to properly market and distribute your film. I like to think that film festivals can provide an alternate distribution method, that is, with over 5000 film festivals worldwide, it makes it easier (and cheaper) for a filmmaker to have a multi-city screening. Most of these filmmakers have spent all of their funds (a lot of times coming personally out of pocket) on their projects but haven’t saved enough for distribution and marketing. These filmmakers are many times doing triple duty or even quadruple duty — producing, directing, writing, acting – to produce  their passion piece. It’s part of our duty to help get them to a regional audience that normally wouldn’t have the chancto see their film.

Although it’s not the only venue, the main venue for this year is the Esquire Theatre. So let me get this straight: will all six screens be showing film festival movies all the time, or…

At the Esquire, we have one house, a 115-seat theater. That’s for the week-long run from Friday the 7th through Thursday September 13th, with 45 screening blocks, starting at 1 on most days, and Saturday and Sunday starting at 10 AM. We have a couple extra houses just for Saturday and Sunday mornings, and our midnight screenings Friday and Saturday. We have additional screenings at other locations to make sure we gave every film two screenings this year.

I love documentaries, and I love watching them on the big screen, and I noticed you have a lot of interesting-sounding documentaries.

We have 43 narrative shorts, 7 narrative features, 10 documentary features, and 14 documentary shorts. I love documentaries, especially when they’re tackling important issues, and that’s why we’re really lucky this year to be partnering with Community Cinema. It’s a program through ITVS which does programming for PBS too. We’re going to be able to do nine free screenings that extend beyond the festival.

What’s the funniest movie in the festival this year?

I’m kind of partial to this FDR: American Badass! It’s the midnight Saturday screening. It’s one of things that you kind of just gotta watch. It’s got all of these cult icons in the film playing historically recognizable characters.

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It’s not that simple, and a lot aren’t simple for people who have just moved to America. Because of that, a webpage has been created that you should know about that could make the transition easier. Basically it’s a down-to-earth, nuts and bolts webpage with lots of information about getting started. It tells what you should expect to pay for certain things; it tells you about social security cards and other work-related matters; public transportation and the social scene are among the other matters that are addressed.

The webpage also addresses housing. Even if they plan to stay in America, most people start out renting, so the webpage is also useful in that regard. Because Gaslight Propery has so many rental units available in so many areas, calling them at 513.861.6000 could save you a lot of running around. Gaslight Property has apartments in Clifton, Northside, College Hill, Price Hill, and Northern Kentucky; one phone call to them would be the equivalent of a dozen phone calls to other rental companies. Plus Gaslight Property has nice units and a proven track record of taking care of their tenants.

Here’s the webpage that can help your move to America and Cincinnati:

http://www.orgs.muohio.edu/muaiesec/cincy_cultural_orientation.htm

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When I first saw jazz bassist Chris Dahlgren perform both of us were living in Cincinnati. He was clearly quite versatile, working in numerous settings and in different genres, although I always thought of him as a jazz musician first and foremost.  I saw Chris perform several times back then and heard about many of the projects mentioned in this interview, but until he listed some of them in his email responses to these questions it never really struck me how much of an impact he had on the music and overall artistic scene while he lived in Cincinnati.

Not surprisingly, he moved on, first to NYC and now Berlin. Since Chris left I’d occasionally hear about projects that he was involved with; for example, I knew he was working with Gebhard Ullmann and Anthony Braxton. When I ran across the CD Mystic Maze by Chris Dahlgren & Lexicon in a record store, however, I had no idea what it would sound like—and now that I’ve heard this strikingly original work, I’m not sure that knowing his entire oeuvre prior to that release would have prepared me for Mystic Maze. With a quintet that includes saxophonist and bass clarinetist Gebhard Ullmann, Dahlgren (while playing the bass) recites some highly vitriolic criticism directed at Bela Bartok when he was considered by many people as the enfant terrible of classical music. Spoken word recitations + jazz can be a dry affair, but Mystic Maze is actually quite entertaining; it’s odd how funny it is at the same that it helps prove what dummies critics can be. After hearing Mystic Maze, which is available on the German label jazzwerkstatt, I tracked Chris down and asked him if he’d be interested in answering some questions—and here are his responses.

What brought you to Cincinnati, and what did you do while you were here?

I came to Cinti in 1978 with my family when my father, Carl Dahlgren, was given a professorship at the Cinti. College-Concervatory of Music in Arts Administration. From 1979 -1986 I got my Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies, there. During the day I was a student exploring a protracted musical and liberal arts education, but at night my best education was when I played countless gigs with many of the best jazz players in town such as: John von Ohlen, Steve Schmidt, Jimmy McGary, Eugene Goss, Art Gore, Phil deGreg, Cal Collins, to name a few. I was lucky to be given the opportunity of being the in-house bassist at the ‘Blue Wisp’ jazz club for a couple of years which gave me the chance to play w. Steve & John as backing trio for some of the legendary musicians who would pass through town and play there.

The next big step in my musical evolution was in 1985 with pianist/composer Billy Larkin (with whom I had played earlier in the group ‘Ictus’ w. Paul Patterson and Chris Philpotts) when we started the duo ‘Ekimi’ and teamed up with producer Jeff Krys to form the label ‘Krysdahlark Records’. The music was a unique cross-over between jazz, songs, extended improvisation and ambient ‘new-age’ music that was both creatively fresh and interesting to us, but accessible to many people, at the same time. Ekimi also expanded to include more musicians over time and musicians on the label. Billy and I, during this time, also had a very meaningful collaboration with dancer/choreographer/performers Cheryl Wallace and Colleen Clark called ‘Movement, Music, and…’ which produced a lot of edgy, multi-media performance art. Towards the end of my Cinti tenure I also began to play with the very fine rock-pop band ‘Over the Rhine’ and worked with the woodcut maker, sculptor, singer-songwriter, multi-media artist Jay Bolotin on projects of his.)

In what ways do you think you advanced musically while you were here?

I advanced tremendously in Cincy, basically coming from being just a young, aspiring musician to developing my fundamental skills and then to begin to find (I’m still finding it…;-) my own voice.

Are there any Cincinnati musicians who particularly impressed you?

I think those that I’ve listed have all impressed me in one way or another. Of course, there were others, too. But by 1992 I felt I had hit ‘the ceiling’- the limit of what I could achieve for myself in Cincy and it was time to move on.

Where are you living now, and what made you decide to move there?

I’m living in Berlin, Germany since 2004. After leaving Cinti in 1992, I moved to NYC (the city of my birth). This twelve years is a whole other big chapter of my musical and personal life- to sum it up: it pushed me to evolve my playing and musical ideas to the next level and gave me the chance to interact with many fantastic musicians who were developing their own music in the way that I wanted to, as well. Then, after ten years I felt I needed another change, so from 2001-2003 I decided to go back to school and get my masters in Composition/Experimental music from Wesleyan University.

In America, jazz seems so far under the radar that it makes the 1980s seem like a golden era; for example (although it often involved some short road trips), back then I could see my favorite jazz artists on a regular basis. Ironically Europe has long been a sanctuary for jazz artists for quite some time; is the jazz scene still alive and well there?

Having lived here for nine years now, I would say ‘yes’. The arts (and artists) are still much better supported over here, although it’s getting harder here, too. Earlier, the European scene was more focused on American artists and trends, but over the past 10-15 years European jazz has become much more self-aware and self-focused. I think this is due to a variety of factors, such as the natural creative evolution of the music into regionally-specific cultures and traditions, as well as political and economic factors.

After I brought Mystic Maze home, I threw it in without reading the liner notes and had no idea what the story behind it was; I was going in and out of the room where it was playing and only heard snatches of it. In my ignorance I thought to myself, that’s some whacked-out poetry Chris Dahlgren’s written there. Then I learned that you were reciting some critics who, when Bartok was the new thing, were very annoyed by him, and resorted to some over-the-top hyper-inflated language that is entertainment unto itself. That causes me to wonder: did you have a Eureka moment as you were reading this criticism where you thought, damn, this needs to be set to music?

Yes, at first I wanted to hit back at those old critics (and all critics) to make the statement that by my turning their own words into music I could prove, conclusively, that art is the master of, and beyond, anything that can ever be said about. But, later, in getting to know these critiques intimately by working with them, I started becoming aware of some nostalgia in me that longed for the days that people felt music so strongly that they could even commit themselves to writing such things- wrong as they were. I mean they really hated it! Today, critics and most intellectuals (not to mention almost everyone else) have ruled-out their emotions in dealing with parsing-out the art which presents itself to them and I think this is completely deadening to the actual experience of art. The critics of today say nothing that speaks to the heart because they are afraid to stake their intellectual reputation on their own feelings. Because they (want us to think) they know everything, they say nothing.

I have a smattering of musical theory, but not enough to analyze what you’re doing here. It seems to me every syllable is falling on the beat but the beat is in very strange places. Can you explain what’s going on rhythmically to a layman?

Yes, sometimes the text is recited concurrently with the its analog in the notes. Statistical elements of the letters in the texts determine rhythmic values- frequency of occurrence is in inverse proportion to duration.

People who have written about Mystic Maze focus on the hostility to musical innovation, but it also seems whimsical. Does it bring a smile to your face to hear it?

Of course, I think it’s incredibly funny stuff- the WW I analogies to the Piano Concerto- wow! To me, music that has no humor can never be truly profound- it’s like the human body missing one or more of its limbs.

It must be a beotch to sing and play this music at the same time. Did that part take a little extra rehearsal time?

For sure.

At one point Anthony Braxton struck me as pedantic, but in the interviews I’ve seen with him I’ve come to realize that he comes across quite differently, with a bizarre sense of humor. What’s it like working with him as a musician?

It’s been wonderful, although at present I have not worked w. him in almost 2 years- I guess he’s moved on and so have I. Anyhow, Braxton has always amazed and inspired me with his imagination and sense of creative wonder.

What musical project or projects are you involved in now that we should know about?

In addition to continuing with ‘Lexicon’ and the Berlin co-op trio ‘Johnny La Marama‘ (w. Kalle Kalima and Eric Schaefer) I have several projects in the works that I’m excited about including my singer/song-writer project and playing viola da gamba and guitar and working-up some new bands w. present and past students of mine from the Jazz Institute, in Berlin.

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Blues music is tricky. We’ve all been to shows where blues artists tear through a set like nobody’s business, yet when you get home and listen to their albums their recordings don’t do them justice. Somehow the energy that comes through when a fired-up audience is on hand up just doesn’t translate to the studio.

That problem does not apply, however, to the new Blues Merchants album, Tattoed with the Blues. A five-piece Cincinnati band. the Blues Merchants formed in 2006. Tattoed is their second full-length release, and it’s clear that the excitement of their live shows also comes through on their studio recordings. The band is tight but not slick, and although the sound is polished, it still has a live-in-the-studio feel. For this we have to give some credit to Ron Esposito, who produced the record and who also, along with Bill Gwynne, helped mix it.

Something else that stands out on the record is the songwriting, which is primarily split between guitarist Chris Kepes and keyboardist Bob Nave. You may have heard Bob on the radio (WNOP and WVXU, among others), and you may have heard him in other local bands, including the Lemon Pipers, whose “Green Tambourine” was a #1 single in 1968; they also performed at Ludlow Garage. Bob slips in some nice keyboard licks on the record, and Chris Kepes is a versatile guitarist whose slide work bears special mention.

What gives Tattoed something extra is the lead vocalist Amy McFarland, who can be gutsy, sweet and sassy all in the same song. Some tunes contain a sly sense of humor that Amy conveys without sounding contrived. When things get a little funkier, as on “Just About to Creep Me Out” and her self-penned “One Swimmin’, One Drowned,” she sounds as authoritative as she does on the slow, grinding “Rolling Thunder Blues.”

The just-for-fun album closer, which happens to be (ready for this?) “Green Tambourine,” is actually pretty cool: it’s funkier than the original, and Amy McFarland manages to give the song a sultry air, which had me double-checking the lyrics for double-entrendres that I missed when I first heard it back in grade school. Now that I know how to contact members of the band, I can finally call someone up and ask how the heck they got that weird effect on the vocal, which Amy duplicates; I’m talking about the part that goes, “Listen while I play play play play/My green tambourine.” Just exactly how they done that has haunted me for decades.

CDs of Tattoed with the Blues are available at Shake-It Records and Everybody’s Records and can also be ordered through the band’s website, thebluesmerchants.com. The site also gives upcoming dates, the next one being September 8 at 8:30 pm at Taqueria Mercado in downtown Cincinnati.

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When I was growing up my mother always told me if you can plug two things in a blog entry that’s better than one, and three’s even better, and today I get a chance to do that. The dream pop duo Purity Ring is coming to Mayday at 4227 Spring Grove Avenue in Northside this Saturday, August 25. Purity Ring is on the 4AD label, whose recording artists also include The National, St. Vincent and Bon Iver. Tickets for Purity Ring are $10 in advance and $12 the day of the show. Mayday hosts some interesting shows that come and go very quietly, so I encourage you to keep checking their website, www.maydaynorthside.com.

As a lark, I decided to check and see if my friend David Hintz, whose DC Rock Live website is not only a good site for reading about concerts in Washington, DC (hint: they get a lot) but a place to keep up with new music in general, and I’ll be damned if the man with encyclopedic knowledge of the current music scene hadn’t seen and reviewed a live show by them. Even though I’m still smarting from the fact that Dave got to see the Zombies yet again (while I haven’t had a chance to do so even once), I’ll put my professional jealousies aside and give him another plug. (The next time you’re hanging backstage with the Zombies though, Dave, would you tell them there’s a city called Cincinnati that’s west of DC; tell them we have good chili or something). Here’s the link to Dave’s review of the show:

http://dcrocklive.blogspot.com/search?q=purity+ring

Also, here’s live footage of Purity Ring:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8js64ZVZcg&feature=related

Recently the folks at Gaslight Property put together a video highlighting their Spyglass Apartments in Northside. If you’d like to look at one of these apartments, call 513.861.6000. Here’s the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lTt8NhCYY4

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There are other stores in Cincinnati that sell vinyl, and lots of it sometimes, but I doubt that the ratio of vinyl vs. everything else in the store is anything like it is here. The owner, Michael Markiewicz – you may remember him from Kaldi’s – estimates that there are about 20,000 LPs between the first floor and the basement; there’e also a few thousand 45s.  So while there are DVDs for sale and rental, and books and magazines and CDs, the reason  people’s jaws drop when they enter the store is the staggering amount of vinyl. It’s a little out of control – and some days more than a little – but vinyl lovers like things a little messy.

So what kind of music does Another Part of the Forest sell? As far as rock is concerned, there’s everything from the staples to obscure no-hit wonders;  dance music and old-school soul music; thousands of jazz titles; classical, including “traditional”  Twentieth-century; twelve-inch singles; an extensive international collection; 78s and 45s; folk, blues country, spoken word,  totally unclassifiable strange stuff – and there’s even a rumor afloat that a bin for lounge music is in the offing…that could be major.

It’s remarkable how much vinyl has bounced back in popularity in the last five years. I know, because I have a chart of LP sales down through the years saved as the background for my computer, and it got to the point where its obituary notices were half-written. People roaming around the store have fun; it’s like an archaeological dig; and records serves to counteract what seemed like an inevitable march toward a generic lifeless Wal Mart world.  Store hours are noon to ten pm Wednesday though Sunday.

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I dropped by to see my friend Lou Lausche the other day. Along with being a bass player who’s been involved in countless jazz sessions in Cincinnati and elsewhere, Lou also, it turns out, has a recording studio on Winton Road. It’s interesting just how much much memorable music has been recorded there, yet none of the Cincinnati musicians I’ve talked to so far even know it exists.

Partly that’s because the recording studio is a labor of love that’s more an offshoot of his musical interests than a full-blown commercial enterprise. That said, Lou is open for business, so here’s a couple facts: the address is 9326 Winton Road, and his phone number is 513.521.0015.

While I was at the studio I took some photos of things that jumped out at me as being special about this studio. Those things included a Steinway B:

And a Hammond B-3 organ:

Also, has a two-inch tape machine, which is another way of saying you can record analog:

Lou Lausche has been recording in that space since 1979; before that he had a studio in his basement. There’s a lot of history in those rooms, including the day that pianist Charlie Wilson dropped by, knocked on the door, and said I heard you have a piano here and I’d like to record myself on it. Lou, who had no idea who Charlie was, invited him in and turned on the tape recorder.  His response, after Charlie began to play:

“I almost fainted.”

A recording from that visit has been preserved, and it came out on this CD:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/driving-music-a-great-concert/id7240927

Charlie ended up playing in a quintet with Lou on bass and Paul Plummer on saxophone; live recordings by that band ended up constituting the rest of the music on volumes 1 and 2 of Driving Music.

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It used to be that I would hit the occasional yard sale and buy the occasional record,  which is why a couple of my walls consist of nothing buy vinyl. Recently, though, this new thing came along called the mp3 that’s invisible yet still makes sound, and I kind of see myself transitioning over to that side of things here in the near future. And the thing is, you can’t buy an mp3 at a yard sale. So when the biggest yard sale in the whole wide world came to my attention this year, I figured, why bother? I have one of those ipod thingies (actually I don’t, but I could borrow one, probably), and rather than listen to Electric Ladyland on a real stereo I could check it out on like some two-inch speakers, so as to get with the times and find out just how bad great music can sound if you allow it to.

Then the phone rang, and the person calling was Julia Wilkinson, who is a guru in the world of yard sale and esales and all points in between. As the editor of Auction Bytes Blog, she emailed me, “I write about selling on auction and fixed-price sites such as eBay, Amazon, Bonanza, etc..and also I write about Antiques and Collectibles.”

“Yardsalers.net is my own baby,” she added, “for yard sale addicts who like to go to sales, and esp. look for things to resell. ”

Julia also has some published some books. In her words again, “I have two paperback books published w/ actual publishing houses: “The eBay Price Guide” (No Starch Press) – a ginormous price guide to eBay categories. , and

Didn’t make it to The World’s Longest Yard Sale on Highway 127 this year? Fear not. AuctionBytes Blog contributor and record specialist Jeff Wilson hit up the sales and has lived to tell the tales, and share his finds with you…as well as strategies to keep in mind for next year. Have you ever been? Share your experiences as a comment on the blog! Although I’ve done the world’s longest yard sale before, several years had passed since I hopped in the car and headed south (I live in Cincinnati) and joined the throngs of people buying and selling on Highway 127, but this week I sprung back into action. Looking back on it a day later, it seems that in almost every respect I got lucky, and in one respect that was true for everyone: it wasn’t a blistering hot day, and although it was cloudy, the only rain we got came late in the afternoon, and it was light.Recent brutally bad weather in southwestern Ohio was one of the reasons I debated whether to make the trip this year. Also, we went out on a Friday, and already we had heard stories about people doing business as early as Monday, so we wondering if anything was left.And there was one other concern: although I buy other things and look at everything, I mostly buy records, which are a good barometer for a sale overall. If there are interesting records, there tend to be interesting old things in general, but the inflated sense of values has thrown a wrench into things.I took a photo at an intersection that essentially began our journey, as Cincinnati folk have to dance around a little bit to reconnect with Highway 127 when they go into Kentucky. If you’re heading south from Ohio, Google 3500 Dixie Highway (it’s in Erlanger, Kentucky), and you’ll see a good place to connect with the sale. Highway 127 and Dixie Highway overlap, and from there all you have to do is keep turning when you see a sign for 127 South. There were already sales galore right after we reached that intersection, although the couple we hit seemed more like the handiwork of people who have sales once a week because their home or business is right on a main drag. The farther south we got into Kentucky, the more interesting and collectible stuff we saw, some of it valuable, some of it not; some of it at reasonable prices and some of it not. Visually what jumped out at me first were the yard balancers. The gentleman who makes and sells them, Tom Bechler, said they’re a popular item, and the kind you see in the picture is his biggest seller. By that point my friend and I were seeing, as we drove down Highway 127, group sales where dozens of dealers were open for business and buyers had pulled their cars over to the side of the road. The farther south we went, it seemed, the more interesting things became. Pulling off to a farmhouse, we met a woman who raises miniature donkeys on her farm. Aseere Farm is located in or near Verona, Kentucky; its email address is asseerefarm@yahoo.com, and its phone number is 859.485.1166. The woman I spoke to says she gets about $400 to $700 for her donkeys. She sells about four a year, and usually during the longest yard sale she sells two. Once she sells the two I photographed, she informed me, potential customers will have to wait 11 months, for reasons that have to do with — well, I think my readers can guess.   One of the things I learned this year is the places you will traditionally expect to find interesting things aren’t always the ones you’d expect. For example, hit the second-hand stores, many of which double or triple as other businesses. In Cincinnati, Ohio, I can’t even remember the last time I hit a thrift store; for reasons that my readers already know, they ain’t what they used to be. But the second hand stores that I visited during the 127 yard sale were consistently interesting. At Glencoe Trading Post, which also had a tanning booth between the front and the back of the store, I found some quadraphonic eight-track tapes, which can be valuable, and are the kind of thing you wouldn’t see in a thrift store in Cincinnati. That brought out the digger in me, and in a plastic tote with tapes on top I had a Eureka moment when I discovered about a hundred 45s buried in the bottom. And there were lots of interesting singles, including some by artists I’d never heard of on Cincinnati labels like Fraternity and King. Nice folks working there too, and I got a good photo of both current and future employees before I left. How about the Mohawk on the young’un?   At another group sale I found a bunch of interesting stuff unrelated to records. There were some books from before 1900, and the one I purchased was published in 1871. On AbeBooks.com the purported first editions I saw all appeared later in the decade, so I can’t tell you what my copy of A Compendium of Methodism is worth, but I know it has some old-school mojo. That’s also where I saw a board game called “India” that I photographed because I’d never seen one or heard of it before and it looked interesting. After a quick eBay check on its value (I came up with nothing) I’ll simply leave that one to the expert (i.e., Julia). That’s the kind of stuff I love to see, that you’ve never seen before and is colorful.   I also got a kick out of the baby chicks I saw and photographed in someone’s front yard. DK & J Hatchery in Warsaw Kentucky (their phone number is 859.609.9553) sells chickens, ducks and turkeys two days old and up, and the World’s Longest Yard Sale offers some free advertising. Farther south I met a gentleman named Ken Black who goes around and buys stoneware at yard sales when they’re in season and then takes them to the Longest Yard Sale. A friendly guy who was nice enough to take a photo with him holding an old wine cellar jug from Amana, Iowa, where I have been a few times. Further south I ran into a lap steel from a gentleman who wanted $400 for that; some nice-looking craftsmanship for that. During the day I asked several people what their best purchases were thus far. One couple that had driven south from Detroit — this was their first year — said they were quite impressed with the clockface gas pump they purchased for $300. They also said they bought long stained-glass windows that they plan to use as a headboard. Like this couple, there were definitely as many or more people buying stuff to own it as opposed to reselling it later at a higher price. Another example: the Murray riding lawnmower that you see being loaded onto the back of a truck; the gentleman said he paid $75 for it.   Another gentleman I talked to said he bought several guns that week, and the best was a 20 gauge shotgun single barrel that he purchased for $100. He also bought the old-school ice cube tray that I photographed. My favorite purchase took place at someone’s house out in the country. Caroline Smith was reluctant to sell any of her albums, but she did show me some 45s that she purchased when she was living one door over several decades ago. While I pawed through a couple hundred well-preserved early rock, soul, country and rockabilly 45s, she explained to me where she used to buy records, and none of them were close except Western Auto, which, she remembered, sold singles for 99 cents. To think that, at one point in history, auto parts stores sold 45s on the side—now how cool is that? And finally, another second hand store (this in Owenton, Kentucky) that had the wild card factor; in other words, it had interesting stuff that wasn’t completely picked over. There I pawed through lots of 45s and albums and realized that the effort I’d put into the trip had been worth it. I met lots of interesting folks, found some rare records, and did something besides peck away at a computer. I’m glad I went. Have you been to the World’s Longest Yard Sale? What was it like for you? Do you plan to go in the future? Post a comment here! About the Author: Jeff Wilson is a regular contributor to the audiophile magazine The Absolute Sound and has also appeared in Crawdaddy, The Cincinnati Magazine, Perfect Sound Forever, and City Beat. He has published fiction and poetry in various journals along with editing the lit-zine Evil Dog. At one point he was a grumpy guy bemoaning what looked to be the disappearance of vinyl, which made its sudden and unexpected revival all the more pleasing.

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This Friday, August 10 a jazz heavyweight is bringing a quartet–excuse, me Fo’Tet–excuse me again, Fo’Tet with a special guest artist–to the Thompson House (i.e., what used to be called the Southgate House). The show’s from 8 pm to 11 pm, and the heavyweight of whom I speak is Ralph Peterson, a drummer who by the time he put out his first record as a leader had already collaborated with some of the baddest dudes around, Walter Davis, David Murray and Branford Marsalis among them. Tickets are twenty bucks at the door.

The Fo’Tet boasts a interesting lineup: drums, bass, vibes, and clarinet/bass clarinet. That makes for an open and colorful sound that’s unique but quite palatable. The “guest artist” of whom I speak is Edwin Bayard, a tenor player from Columbus who I happened to catch with a band led by King Reeves and Charlie Wilson. At one point in the show I filmed the drummer in the quintet, but the sax player was Edwin (or “Eddie,” as folks often call him), and here they are performing an excerpt from John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTZRyZurP_M&feature=plcp

This is yet another show brought to you by Doc B Productions. That’s right, Doc B is still at it, promoting jazz and, might I add, having success at it. That has something to do with the fact that he’s stuck with it for as long as he has; it might also have also have something to do with the quality of music that he books; but I’ve also come to learn that Doc B has evolved into quite the social media communicator power house as of late, and his approach is working.

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Cincy Blues Fest returns this week with music Friday, August 10 from 5 pm to midnight and Saturday and Saturday 4 pm to midnight. The Blues Fest takes place at Sawyer Point Park, near Yeatman’s Cove and the I-471 bridge, with parking in nearby lots. The stages will include a Local Stage, the Main Stage, a Showcase Stage for up-and-coming talent, and the Boogie Woogie Hall of Fame Piano Stage; that’s the place where, at 11:50 pm, the grand finale jam will take place. It you get there about fifty minutes before that you will have an extremely rare opportunity to see a French pianist by the name of Fabrice Eulry, who is one of the few artists out there who has collaborated with saxophonist Big Jay MacNeely and this dude from an old Detroit band named the Stooges:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxiBNBP5SH8

Heres a taste of Fabrice on his own:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeYpSWKdU1o

The headliner on the main stage Friday night is Webb Wilder, who you may know for his music, or who you may know for his acting roles, which include (Peter Bogdonavich’s “The Thing Called Love,” Paramount); Webb plays from 10:15 to 11:45.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BYBzLCrjO8

The Main Stage headliner on Saturday is Duke Robillard, whose resume includes a 2006 tour with Tom Waits; he’s also playing from 10:15 to 11:45. Here’s Duke in a 2012 live performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhcvRnZKjcw

For more information on the event, go to the Cincy Blues Fest website:

http://www.cincybluesfest.org/

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At 9 pm tonight (Monday, August 6) cellist, vocalist and songwriter Ian Cooke will be performing what has been billed as cello prog pop at Sitwell’s Coffeehouse on Ludlow Avenue. Based in Denver, Ian is gigging around the country, and here we have yet another itinerant musician who somehow discovered that because it’s centrally located and supports interesting music Sitwell’s is a great venue to approach for a gig while you’re roaming the country. Ian has a few full-length releases under his belt, and here’s hoping he brings the vinyl for his most recent effort, Fortitude, which is both a nice-looking and nice-sounding  new release.

Here’s his very ambitious cover of Joanna Newsome’s very ambitious Monkey & Bear.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81f0bMRDpLk

Also, a reminder that Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band will be doing an in-house at Shake-It Records at 7 pm tonight, August 6. Plus at 7 pm on Tuesday, August 7 Buffalo Killers were perform a Shake-It in-house of their own in support of their new album Dig, Sow, Love, Grow. Here’s a cut off that, “Hey Girl:”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37yE9g8zv04

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Although Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band has released several albums, they seem to be getting more attention lately. I’ve been hearing them on WNKU, and they recently performed at Cincinnati’s first-ever Bunbury Festival.  This Monday, August 6, they’ll be performing an in-store at Shake-It Records in Northside at 7 pm.  This “big damn band” is actually a small band with a big sound, and it’ll be cool to hear how it fills up Shake-It Records on Monday. To proclaim this band unpretentious is to put it lightly; they like to let their hair down, and their crowds do too. They’ll be appearing in support of their new album, Between the Ditches. Here’s a clip from a live performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhKgEYzRqRA 

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On 7 pm Saturday, August 11 Cincinnati Shakespeare will present a free performance of Shakespeare’s play The Tempest outdoors at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center at 3711 Clifton Avenue. Not that it needs more publicity, but the Shakespeare play is about to get more publicity, for Bob Dylan recently chose to name his new release  Tempest. When asked if a nod to Shakespeare was involved, Dylan insisted that was not the case, for after all his title lacked the word “The.” Methinks that won’t be the end of the discussion, however–and among other things if you attend this event you’ll have a refresher course on Shakespeare so you can barrel ahead into whether or not you think the new Dylan title owes something to the bard.

More motivation: free ice cream will served that was provided by UDF. The event is in celebration of Community Arts Centers Day, and this is a great opportunity to catch up on what Clifton Cultural Arts Center is up to.

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At seven pm tonight (July 30) at Shake-It Records in Northside a Georgia-based band called Ponderosa will be performing an in-house. Interestingly, Ponderosa isn’t playing in Cincinnati later that same night; they’re simply excited about their new album, Pool Party, and they’re eager to spread the word about it.

To these ears, Pool Party contains lots of rich melodies with a huge, wide-open sound that befits the connotations you might get from the band’s name. I was surprised – in a good way – to learn that they record for New West, as Ponderosa has a poppier and more heavily-produced sound than most artists on that label, whose roster includes Steve Earle, John Hiatt and Buddy Miller.  Another thing I like about New West is that they’re very vinyl-friendly. If you’re not familiar with New West, you can check out their website here. And here’s a cut off Pool Party:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyaWtsbE3A0

*   *   *

A quick word on the Carmon DeLeone New Studio Big Band show that took place at the Blue Wisp yesterday. The place was packed; I got there when the opening number was being played, and the only seat I could find was to the side of a piano, and visually my site was mostly limited to a big black piece of wood and several pairs of feet tapping all at the same time. I ended up getting up and walking over to the entrance, where I could see better but I was constantly moved this or that way as people entered or exited.

And that, my friends, is all good. With jazz you never know what kind of crowd you’re gonna get, but the New Studio Big Band got a damn good one, and that’s proof that jazz still has some life left in it. Between sets I had a chance to meet Carmon, who I thanked for helping a great deal with an article I’m writing about his friend David Matthews.   It was David who arranged the following song for the big band, “Someday My Prince Will Come.”  (By the way, people have asked me how I achieve the dark, noirish quality in my videos, and my first hint is, buy a cheap camera.)

http://www.youtube.com/my_videos_edit?ns=1&video_id=t-JYjP-0d5U

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It’ll be a busy day today at the Blue Wisp, with Carmon DeLeone’s New Studio Big Band performing at 3 pm and Andrea Cefalo at 7:30. I’m a fan of both, and I interviewed both. Recently I embarked upon an article focusing on a musician named David Matthews, who lived in Cincinnati for about ten years, starting in 1960. He was roommates with Carmon DeLeone during college and gigged with him, and they led an ensemble that toured Europe in the summers. While writing the article I ended up contacting Carmon DeLeone, who was tremendously helpful, and when I found out he was going to be going to the Wisp I decided to email him some questions in case he had time to answer them. His answers were very thoughtful, and I ended up submitting the interview to the Cincinnati Enquirer. Here’s a link to it:

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20120729/ENT03/307290019/DeLeone-keeps-beat-alive?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|s

Cincinnati is blessed with some fine female jazz vocalists, and Andrea Cefalo is one of them; I also love hearing her sing Leonard Cohen. Here’s a link to her interview:

http://www.gaslightproperty.com/interview-with-andrea-cefalo-shes-at-the-blue-wisp-sunday-evening/

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At the last minute yesterday I ended up with a ticket to Maria de Buenas Aires, a tango opera by Argentinian composer Astor Piazolla. I had pretty much written that one off; the two performances were in the Music Hall ballroom, with only 400 seats per show, and by the time I caught wind of the event tickets had long been sold out.

But somebody knew somebody, and suddenly I was driving through Over the Rhine searching for a parking space right about the time the clouds above decided to unload. I arrived in Music Hall good and wet, found a seat and watched my first tango opera, which was in the middle of the ballroom, so there was no “stage” per se, which meant the sultry Maria was free to dance around and run her hands across some of the men in the audience and flip their ties in the air. This is Wikipedia’s version of the plot:

“The ill-omened María, born “one day when God was drunk” in a poor suburb of Buenos Aires, heads to the center of Buenos Aires, where she is seduced by the music of the tango and becomes a streetwalker. Thieves and brothel keepers gathered at a black mass resolve her death. After her death, she is condemned to a hell which is the city itself: her shadow now walks the city. She has returned to virginity, is impregnated by the word of the goblin poet, and—witnessed by three Construction Worker Magi and The Women Who Knead Pasta—gives birth to a Child María, who may be herself. “

In other words, my kind of opera, especially because the passionate music of Astor Piazolla would have been reason enough to come in the door. This event took place on the heels of the extremely (and in many people’s eyes, surprisingly) successful Choir Games that brought musicians from all the globe to Cincinnati, and while I the opera was taking place I remembered the uKandDanZ concert at MOTR Pub, a few blocks away, earlier in the week, a show that featured musicians from France and Ethiopia. Not bad for a supposedly provincial Midwestern city.

After the performance I walked around and took pictures of some of the props for the opera (including the photo above) and then walked outside with some friends, and that’s where we ran into the Director of Artistic Operations for the Cincinnati Opera, Evans Mirageas, who seemed elated by the performance that evening, as well as the response by the crowd. The demanding physical nature was mentioned by someone in our group, and someone asked Evans, “Do you dance like that?”

Crossing one of his legs over the other in some approximation of a Tango move, Evans said, “I move like that when I go to the doctor.” That got a few laughs, and then he added, “Actually, when I move like that I go to the doctor.”

With a gleam in his eyes Evans looked across the street.

“And they get to walk outside and see this,” he sighed.

This was the newly vibrant Washington Park across the street. At a few minutes after nine it was packed with people checking out a live concert. Rumor had it that the headliner that evening was The Deele. I would like to say that as soon as rumor was voiced the ensemble burst into a slamming version of “Body Talk,” but that didn’t happen. (On the other, we got plenty of body talk during Maria de Buenas Aires.) One person in our group wanted to check out The Deele across the street, another wanted to see the Pinstripes down at the Night Owl Market, and someone else wanted to hit MOTR Pub. When asked what he wanted to do, Evans gave a succinct answer before turning to leave.

“The night is young,” he said playfully, “and I am old.”

As we roamed around afterwards it was clear that there were plenty of people in Over the Rhine that evening who were ready to make up for his absence.

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Recently I wrote, for a magazine, a lengthy feature article on female jazz vocalists from around the world, not so much the famous ones but good ones, many of them up and coming. Writing the article entailed, in part, contacting record companies in America and abroad and encouraging them to send me all the CDs they had by jazz singers. I ended up with piles of them. There were plenty of rejects, but the ones I liked best I ended up recommending.

It strikes me that it would make sense to do something similar in Cincinnati—and if I do it, my A-list will include Andrea Cefalo, who I’ve seen several times at different venues around town. It’s been a while, though, and it was nice to catch up during a phone conversation today. Andrea will be performing at the Blue Wisp this Sunday, July 29, from 7:30 pm to 11:30 pm, as part of a quartet that includes Brian Cashwell on piano, Don Aren (who you may know from the Faux Frenchmen), and Napoleon Maddox (from IsWhat?!) on beatbox and vocals.

I’ve seen you a bunch of times, but I think at least a couple years have passed since the last time I saw you perform. So fill me in: have you been playing out as much, or have I been staying in more?

I have been gigging as much as I used to. I played a lot at the Meritage Restaurant in Glendale. And recently I had a couple dates at the Blue Wisp; the Wisp really is special for me.

What kind of music are playing these days?

For the most part a lot of jazz standards and Brazilian standards—and then, depending on whom I’m working with, as many originals as possible. When I work with Billy Larkin I tend to do a lot of originals. One of my favorite Brazilian tunes to do is “Agua de Beber,” that and “Once I Loved.” Plus I do Leonard Cohen tunes like “Here it Is;” I do a bossa nova version of that. “Dance Me to the End of Love” is another one.

Any other examples of songs that you put your own spin on?

Billy Larkin and I do a version of Hank Williams “Cold Cold Heart” that’s kind of like a tango/hip hop version. I do try to make a song my own. Working with creative and talented musicians makes it easier.

You have a talent for surrounding yourself with great musicians.

That is my big secret, actually.

Napoleon Maddox brings something unusual to the lineup, but he blends in perfectly, and in fact it’s like he adds a special ingredient to the recipe. But how did you ever think to try him in the lineup?

Napoleon is one of my favorite people in the whole world and we’ve known each since the late nineties. We’re almost exactly the same age; we’re a week apart. If he’s around I will always try to use him. He can do much, and he’s so fluid. And he’s a sweet spirit for sure.

In interviews I always ask people to talk about their favorite concert ever, but sometimes it’s hard to pull it up just like that. Anything come to mind?

I can tell you, and I’ve seen many incredible shows. The most recent one that was incredible was Esperanza Spaulding in Ann Arbor. The best ever for me so far was New York City Town Hall. It was Ali Farka Toure, and it was my birthday and it was wonderful. He’s a very bluesy African player; Ry Cooder did some stuff with him. I flew there for the show. It was a small enough venue, and I remember being able to feel his energy. It was a spiritual experience and someone I admired so much.

Anything I left out that you’d like to add?

This will be the first time that this particular group of musicians worked together. I don’t know that the musicians have worked with each other much, and I’m looking forward to the synergy of that.

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From there I visited Another Part of the Forest, a fabulous record store located at 1333 Main Street, which means it’s just a few doors down from MOTR Pub, where uKanDanZ performed. uKanDanZ consists of four instrumentalists (drums, guitar, sax, and a keyboardist who plays bass lines with his left hand) from France and a singer, Asnake Guebreyes, from Ethiopa. They played some of the mostjagged, knotty, dissonant and danceable music I’ve ever heard. The sound mix was great, the performance was fantastic, and the vibe was as well. Here’s a song I videotaped of the event:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKjt0GRTE8o&feature=youtu.be

During uKanDanz’s encore I happened to be down in the basement watching Aroldis Chapman throw his final pitch of the night, an event culminating in the seventh victory in a row for the Cincinnati Reds. That string of success confirms one thing I’ve long suspected: Joey Votto is the Achilles heel of the team. I mean I know he’s got some talent, but the fact that they’re doing so much better without him leads me to suspect that maybe he needs to go back to the minors for a while and refine his skills. Couldn’t he like hit .500 or something? Our big mistake was trading Jonny Gomes, who was just starting to dial in what pitches to swing at when we let him go.

After the uKanDanZ show I chatted with some of the band members, including the drummer, Guilhem Meier. I actually videotaped our conversation, but I’m not yet convinced that it is youtbueworthy due to the fact that I quickly got in over my head (that’s another way of saying I sounded dumb). Walking over to him, I demanded that he list every single that he used that night; I told him I didn’t want him to leave any of them out. (A confession: I’ve never had much of a talent for doing the math of complex rhythms; I probably did a better job of it when, as a sixth grader, I played violin for the Perkins Elementary School Orchestra in Des Moines, Iowa; I wonder if they’s still in existence.) But it wasn’t simply a matter of listing off rhythms, I came to learn. It was rhythms within rhythms and against rhythms and so forth and so on. Two minutes into our conversation he was starting to explain the cross-patterns at the beginning of the second song. I felt like I was in calculus class. In any case, a great drummer.

Another confession: there are so many beers out there right now that their names seldom make that transition into long-term memory. So, I did something different last night: I took a picture of the beer tap so I could know what it was that I drank last night. I sampled a couple, and this was my choice: Black Diamond Jagged IPA. Great stuff, but I’ll warn you that if you continue to drink it through the night you may begin to feel inebriated; I came upon this knowledge scientifically. (Alcohol content: 7.30)

A reminder that a concert is taking place on Friday, July 27, with Lisa Biales, Ricky Nye, and others; it starts at eight. I also want to tell people about Carmon DeLeone’s New Studio Big Band show taking place at the Blue Wisp Sunday afternoon at three (that’s July 29).   Although I haven’t met Carmon in person yet (I will on Sunday), he helped me immeasurably with a very in-depth article that I wrote recently (in fact I just submitted it a few days ago) about David Matthews, a brilliant and highly successful pianist, arranger, writer, etc., who started attending CCM in 1960, played with Jimmy McGary in the late 1960s, and collaborated with James Brown for five years; that’s about 1% of Matthews’ musical bio. I emailed Carmon with some questions a few days ago, and that interview will appear in the Sunday edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer.

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This Friday, June 27, at Seasongood Pavilion in Eden Park, a free concert will take place as part of the Edensong series. The artists performing that night will be Lisa Biales, Neil Jacobs, Noah Wotherspoon & Jessi Bair, The Tillers and Ricky Nye. The show starts at 8 pm and ends at 10 pm—and make sure you get there in time, because Lisa Biales will be opening the show with a solo performance. Lisa recently released her seventh CD, Just Like Honey, and recently I had a chance to chat with her about her new CD, touring, and her recent appearance in a Francis Ford Coppola film.

I’m making sure to tell everyone to show up on time for the concert, because you’re kicking it off.

I’m kicking it off, and I’m asking Ricky Nye, who’s closing the show, to sit in with me.

Tell me about your new album Just Like Honey. Is it in any way a departure from your previous work?

It is. It’s a blues album, and it’s the first time I’ve ever had a producer.

And that is…

E.G. Kight from Georgia.

How did you end up choosing her?

We chose each other. We met in September of last year, and we instantly loved each other’s music. She asked me about a song, and she said, do you have that one recorded, and I didn’t, and she told me I should record it. Well, I had recorded six albums and it’s such an arduous task. She said have a producer, that way you don’t have such a hard time.

So is it a less arduous task when you have a producer?

It was for me. She helped me decide the songs. She said, don’t worry about playing, although I play guitar on the record. I didn’t have to make any phone calls. I just showed up and started singing.

Did you know who the other musicians would before you showed up?

I had no idea.

Does the record sound different to you?

It sounds more polished, more professional, a really universal sound. The players did a fantastic job. We were able to explore the different colors of the blues.

How do people buy it?

Go to cdbaby.com or go to my website, lisabiales.com

A song off your first album, Playing With Angels, went to #1 in 2008 on the Australian Indie Radio Charts. How does something like that happen?

I have no idea. I’ve been sending my albums to radio for years, and it was kind of one of those things; it ended up on the charts for an entire month.

You recently acted in Francis Ford Coppola’s Twixt Now And Sunrise; I’m curious about how that happened as well…

I was in the right place at the right time. I met Francis Ford Coppola in Carolina. I was staying at Duke University for a fitness and health retreat, and he happened to be there while I was there. I played my guitar, and about eight or nine months later I got a call from his assistant, would I take this call from Francis Ford Coppola. He said I have this movie going on, would you be interested…

What kind of role did you play in the film? Were you a killer, or were you killed?

No, nothing terrible happens to me.

Have you seen the movie yet?

I have; we went to Toronto and saw it.

Were you scared?

No, because I knew what was going on.

Any other acting plans in the near future?

No plans, but my dream is to sing in an animated film.

How did you end up using cello? It sounds so natural with your music, but on the other hand it’s rare in this kind of setting…

Michael Ronstadt is the cellist. He opened up a show, and like many times I’ll invite other musicians to do a couple songs with me. It worked out so well, he was able to play the rest of the evening with me. We ended up recording that entire trio album, Closet Hippie.

I ask everyone I interview for the website what their favorite concert ever was. What was yours?

I would have to say it was Guy Davis, a blues guitar man. He was mesmerizing, and I met him, and he’s wonderful.

Where did the concert take place?

We do concerts at my house. We had seen him on the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise, and I liked what I did, so I contacted him on Facebook and we booked the show and I told him how inspiring it was being able to see him up close and personal with seventy people.

The post Lisa Biales Interview; She’s Playing Seasongood Pavilion This Friday appeared first on .

Last Saturday the urge hit me to revisit The Incline Lounge at the Celestial in Mt Adams, and I’m glad I did. You would be hard pressed to find a place in town more suitable for a cocktail, and true to form cocktail glasses were in abundance that evening. The Lou Lausche Trio (consisting of piano, bass, drums) was playing, and when we walked in they were performing a song I’m not sure I’ve ever heard in Cincinnati, or for that matter anywhere: “Nardis,” an early Miles Davis composition that Miles never actually recorded and which came to be associated much more with Bill Evans, who revisited the composition many times during his career. The trio also delivered a nice rendition of “Doxy,” which is a great sleazy, bluesy, boozy, seldom-played Sonny Rollins song that Jimmy McGary used to like to play and that I mentioned to Lou the day before the show. What a nice and thoughtful surprise it was to hear it, and the trio sounded great, and the Celestial has managed to retain the charm that’s been there since it opened many moons ago. Although I don’t remember her name, the vocalist who joined the trio for the second half of the first set was very tasteful, and hearing the music plus seeing the fireworks after the Reds hit a homer and won the game made for a great experience at the Incline Lounge.

(And lest I forget, the Manhattan they served me was stellar.)

From there we ended up seeing a female vocalist who was radically different but good in her own right. At The Avenue, located at 411 Madison in Covington, our intention was to see the Ready Stance, but they were wrapping up their last song when we entered the door. However, we stuck around and heard A Juliet Bender, who along with having a mysterious name delivered some gritty and lowdown mix of blues and just plain grungy rock; that plus a convincing frontwoman made it all work, as my expert footage reveals (and keeps your eyes peeled for the stripper pole and disco ball):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxrBmThv6hs

Last night when I had Facebook on one of my seventeen open windows I saw one of those little bloopy things down at the bottom of the screen announcing that someone dared to interrupt my train of thought. Turns out if was Napoleon Solo Vox, who I hadn’t heard from in eons. Said he was in Washington DC, but even though he was way far away he was concerned that I must miss the uKanDanZ concert at MOTR Pub this Wednesday, July 25—and he was right to worry about that, because I’d never heard of them. (Which he kinda ribbed me about, but hey.) So here’s the scoop: the instrumentalists are from France, the lead singer is from Ethiopia, and this music is so richly layered and danceable and infectious that I now owe Napoleon a beer or a Turkish coffee or whatever his drink of choice might be—and if you don’t believe me, watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-be4NwMPbMM

There’s more music news coming later this week, including an interview with Lisa Biales, who will be performing at Seasongood Pavilion Friday night (the show’s from eight to ten, and she’s the opener, so get there on time), as well as some information about a special concert taking place at 3 pm on Sunday, July 29 at the Blue Wisp. First, though, there’s Wednesday’s show at MOTR Pub.

The post Music at The Incline, The Avenue, and MOTR Pub appeared first on .

Often when you rent an apartment the landlord is a remote figure, appearing long enough to hand you a set of keys before wandering back to a far-off neighborhood or even another city; someone was telling me the other day that her landlord lives in Florida. With Gaslight Property the renting experience is much more personal, with a brick and mortar office in the heart of the Gaslight District that tenants and prospective tenants can feel free to visit.

The location of the office is also convenient—311 Howell Avenue, in the heart of the Gaslight District, one of the best neighborhoods in Cincinnati and an area where Gaslight Property has a wide choice of apartments available. (They also have apartments all over greater Cincinnati, as our website makes clear.) Deciding where you’re going to rent is an important decision, and many people feel more comfortable meeting face to face in an actual office when they commit to a new apartment.

Gaslight Property is a family-owned business that’s been part of Clifton for decades. Their motto is “classic living, classic places,” and they’d love to show you what that means. Recently I was lucky enough to gather together everyone and snap a photo in front of the office. Although each person in that picture performs a different role, in one way or another every one of them is there to make sure that the experience of renting goes as smoothly as possible. Call 513.861.6000 today to make an appointment to discuss your next apartment.

The post Looking for an Apartment? Talk to These Folks appeared first on .

We turn this week to the theme of food, including some long-awaited news of our much-missed grocery store. Right now, though, a reminder of a great opportunity to buy fresh produce at a convenient location. Located in Hoffner Park in Northside, Northside Farmers Market is a weekly event that, along with food, offers latin music this week, plus this month there will be a photography contest that will mean a gift certificate for the winner. Here’s the details:

Introducing the first annual NFM Photograph Contest: Here is your chance to become a known photographer! We are looking for a few great photos all through the month of July… bring your camera to the market, take photos, choose the best three, email them to northsidefarmersmarket@gmail.com and you could win a $20 Northside Farmers Market gift certificate. Awards will be announced August 1^st and you need not be present to win. Winning photographs will be highlighted in a major email blast and on the northside farmers market facebook page.

The post Northside Farmers Market Wednesdays from 4 to 7 appeared first on .

Returning once again to the theme of favorite concerts, we have here a piece penned by David Hintz, who used to live in the area (Dayton and Oxford) who is now writing a blog in the DC area, DC Rock Live. Here Dave writes about seeing the Ramones at Bogart’s in 1978, when Bogart’s and punk were both new:

I had just turned 19 and was starting my sophomore year at Miami University. It was legal to drink in those days, thanks to development of 3.2 (% alcohol) beer. Ergo, nightclubs were calling. But there was another more important calling that I had discovered one year earlier: punk rock. Most music fans understand the importance of the punk movement, but it is hard to believe how dangerous and daring it was back at its outset. From the streets of London to CBGBs, punk band members and fans were stabbed, beaten up and constantly hassled for looking different from both the norm and the ‘normal outcast’.

I had gotten into punk about a year earlier and had bought a few records as I searched for faster and better hard rock records, along with something more interesting in the lyrics. The Sex Pistols, Damned, Stranglers, Jam, and many others were filling that bill. And there was this little bootleg tape my brother and I made from ‘Don Kirshner’s Rock Concert’ which was our first showcase into the world of the Ramones. The brutally short and fast (for the time) stripped down rock music was just the jolt we needed in our mostly safe and secure lives.

Finally, the opportunity to take in a Ramones show at Bogarts arrived. I alone left from Oxford, as I did not discover anyone at Miami University into punk until a couple years later. I got in early, which gave me a chance to visit Moles Records and find some imported punk rock. While thumbing through the Imports, a couple of guys with safety pin jackets walked in and had an animated discussion with the clerk (now as unusual a scene as seeing someone in a telephone booth). They were playing cuts from the forthcoming Great Rock’n'Roll Swindle which were pretty cool at the time. These were some serious punk rockers here, so I kept my distance.

Then I got in line for the show and got to chatting with a guy named Jeff from Dayton. I came from the Dayton suburbs so we had lots to talk about and he was a super friendly guy. He introduced me to the serious punk rockers who were old high school buddies of his. They were both named Greg and were quite cool. Finally, there were people who shared the extraordinary passion that punk rock was capable of creating in real music lovers with a desire for the heavy or the unusual.

So I had some new friends to stand with close to the stage. By the time the Ramones hit, the atmosphere was charged and the crowd was ready. If you have seen the Ramones once, it was not that much different than that time and I really do not need to describe it in any real detail. But this was revolutionary in the early days of punk rock and we all felt it. Dancing was crazed pogoing without a lot of real danger, just crazed enthusiasm. Four guys from New York just blasted away their simple songs with the great hooks. They only knew how to play one way, but they had the magic that shook the world and had us gasping that night. I was now a punk rocker in my heart.

The other major change that hit me like a sledgehammer was how much more intense a live rock experience is when in a club. Prior to this, I had mostly hit arena shows. The only bands I saw in clubs were cover bands or solo folk artists. To this day, I would still rather share communion with a few dozen people in a club, seeing 3-4 unknown bands for $8-$10 rather than see a famous major band (even if they are great) in an arena for $80-$100.

The punk rocker still lives in me. I am still friends with Jeff and one of the Gregs was a great friend as he became bass player for Toxic Reasons, who I worked with. He also roadied for the Ramones for a few years and I was able to chat with Dee Dee and Johnny on a few occasions. Listening to punk rock records was stunning and wonderful. Seeing a real punk rock band live in the flesh, was a rite of passage and a commitment to involving myself with a diverse mix of people I still commune with to this day.

The post Favorite Bogart’s Concert: Ramones, 1978 appeared first on .

By itself attending two hundred concerts a year is a lot, and reviewing all those shows, opening acts included, takes us well beyond the realm of casual listener. During the second part of my interview with Dave Hintz, who lives in Washington DC and whose website DC Rock Live is devoted to the concerts he attends in that city of politics and great live music, we talked about what it was like reviewing so many shows, where the threat is there of becoming blasé or grumpy.

“My friends say why aren’t there more negative reviews?” Dave said. “For one thing, I’m picking the shows I’m going to.”

He also tries to be sensitive to the musicians. “These guys are banging it out and piling equipment on to play 20 to 40 minutes. It’s three bands for eight dollars. How can I say that this is a bad time?”

In February of this year Dave upped the ante for himself, seeing and reviewing a concert every night that month, which began to have an impact on his ratings: “One thing I’ve found is I did get a few more negative reviews that way.

Dave mixes things up in his reviews, catching everything from obscure new bands to long-established groups to bands that have been around forever but still, to mainstream listeners, fly well below the radar. There’s plenty of hard-edged rock and roll, but when the spaceiest of European artists descend on DC—Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream and Van Der Graff Generator—for example—he catches those shows as well. His blog gives a clear indication of what a strong city DC is musically for both international and local artists.

It’s clear, too, that locally there’s a lot of talent.

“The third best band in DC isn’t that much better than the 97^th best band,” Dave said. “There are so many really, really good solid bands, and there’s only a handful that don’t have day jobs.”

His favorite local band? “Presto Bando; they’re a three piece. They’re very eclectic and fun and energetic. The guitarist has a bizarre singing style. They remind me a lot of Pere Ubu. It’s as if Jonathan Richman had discovered thrash.”

As you might expect, since this has been a running issue in this blog, the question arose of what his favorite concert of all time was, and our next blog will be devoted to his description of that show. So what show was it? Here’s a hint: the band he saw looked kind of like the one at the top of the screen.

The post DC Rock Live: A Unique Music Blog (Part 2) appeared first on .

College is supposed to be place where, when you go there, you’re exposed to interesting ideas and cultural events and all kinds of mind-blowing music, and for that reason I was shocked to learn during my freshman year at Miami University that the standard musical diet was so middle-of-the-road blah that I threatened to sue the university.

What made matters worse, everybody bought the same damn records—or almost everybody anyway. To this day, whenever I overhear “More than a Feeling” I start twitching and sweating….Whatever the opposite of nostalgia is is what I feel when I hear that song and many others that blasted from Infinity speakers all across the campus….

Still, that was a period of discovery for me, with all kinds of musical surprises. I was among the few people in attendance when Gil-Scott Heron came to Miami; I also saw Roger and the Human Body; my road trips included a Muddy Waters show and my first Dead concert, where the encore was “Werewolves of London.”

And there were students who turned me onto some music I never would have heard otherwise, or at least not for years to come. Among those people was Dave Hintz, whose enthusiasm for punk and interesting new music in general must have been contagious, as he drew quite animated crowd at parties where the weary, stale, flat and much-too-profitable mainstream rock was given a much needed rest, if not sent to its grave.

Along with catching countless to-die-for concerts and amassing an amazing record collection, Dave got involved in promoting and documenting the music. A few decades later Dave’s enthusiasm for music remains intact, and in fact his immersion in it is remarkable. He now writes two to three hundred reviews a year for Folk World and, in his blog, DC Rock Live, he reviews over two hundred concerts a year. Ultimately my blog will turn its attention to his blog, but first I thought readers from Ohio and nearby would enjoy hearing about his involvement in a musical scene during a period when a lot of exciting stuff was happening. After all, that experience informs his current writing—and it would make for interesting reading even if it didn’t.

Dave’s mania for concert-going began while he attended Miami University, which meant hitting the road for great concerts that were often, to put it lightly, lightly attended. Before there was the Jockey Club there was Bogart’s and Dayton.

“Jim Carter is still a dj at WYSO,” Dave said. “He managed bands and he promoted shows at private places. And then Walnut Hills near the University of Dayton got some shows started. That’s where Toxic Reasons made their debut. The Ramones played The She.

“And I saw Richard Hell and the Voidoids at Gilly’s,” Dave added. “Jerry Gillotti [the owner of the club] went nuts.”

Among the memorable Bogart’s shows was a John Cale concert plus his first Ramones show, which will be an installment in my now-famous series, Favorite Concert Ever, plus X. “When X played their first tour,” Dave remembers, they played two sets of repeated songs.”

After the Jockey Club opened in Newport, Kentucky, Dave quickly became a regular.

“My first Jockey Club show was very interesting,” Dave said. “A year earlier Husker Du played Dayton. There were only eight paying people at that show. After the show I met Bob Mould, and we talked about pro wrestling. About a year later, all of a sudden I heard Husker Du was playing the Jockey Club. I walked in early; I was about thirty feet away from the stage. They were up there sound checking, and Bob yelled, how are you doing? He remembered me from wrestling. We became friends for a really long time. This was still before Zen Arcade. I saw them there three or four times at least.”

I remember from that period that Dave put together a punk rock + pro wrestling fanzine that included writing by Bob Mould and that Dave and Bob would meet at pro wrestling tournaments around the country. I also remember walking into the Jockey Club and seeing Dave behind a videotape camera on a tripod. He filmed a lot of shows there, and I asked him about that.

“The first show was Black Flag, and the sound came out great. I kept my promise—I never copied the film for anyone; I wouldn’t even copy it for friends. Henry Rollins, Kira Roessler, Husker Du, Toxic Reasons, DOA, Agnostic…Flipper, they were giving me wincing looks. I had to give them the original and they would mail me the copy and of course I never got the copy.”

Dave preserved all the footage that technically was worth preserving and converted it to digital. As you might imagine, this footage was of great interest to some folks.

“What happened is the Squirrel Bait show they opened for Husker Du,” Dave said. “Eventually got to meet Dave Grubbs; I made sure he got a tape. All of a sudden I got an email out of the blue from a guy who was doing a documentary for the band asking, are you the David Hintz who filmed Squirrel Bait at the Jockey Club?

Dave also played a role in promoting Toxic Reasons early on, and by doing so earned himself some karma points: the originally struggling Dayton hardcore punk band went on to have a long and storied and (eventually) successful career, particularly in Europe.

“I was their first manager,” Dave said. “I booked the shows, and they recorded a record. I tried selling them. One of the biggest highlights was selling 25 for 25 dollars. I was begging people to pay two dollars for them. Now they’re worth 500 dollars.”

While we were chatting on the phone Dave noted how, even though it’s a modest-sized city, Dayton had an impressive music history. He mentioned how, in a recent documentary, Bob Pollard from Guided by Voices talked about the Dayton scene, praising Toxic Reasons and Dementia Praecox. “Pollard probably came to some of the shows I promoted or managed,” Dave said.

In my next blog entry we’ll shift our focus to the blog Dave Hintz writes called DC Rock Live, where he reviews concerts by countless bands that come to Washington, DC, which, because I keep up with his blog, I have to learn gets amazing concerts on a regular basis.

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I can explain to you why Clifton is a magic place inspiring a deep sense of awe, but in order for you to get the full picture we need to go back several years and travel to the basement of the house where my aunt and uncle live in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

One week I slept in that basement while visiting the state where I grew up and where massive tribes of my relatives still live (they’re Catholic, okay?).  One night before I went to sleep I drank beer and shot one-man pool on a lopsided table worn down from years of late-night “tournaments” where subtlety and accuracy were prized less than brute force.

Later that night I discovered a black case that, when I opened it, revealed a dusty old saxophone.  The brand name—Wulitzer—conjured up images of brightly lit organs played by women with beehive hairdos in rooms with shag carpet and wood-paneling.  So was the instrument an alto or a tenor?  Neither, actually.  What I unearthed was a C melody saxophone, an instrument whose heyday, I came to learn, was between 1918 and 1930.  Being in the key of C made it easier to play than other saxophones—it required none of that transposing business that made things tricky for beginners enrolled in Music for Dummies courses—but after production plummeted during the Depression manufacturers forgot that it existed.

That instrument ended up in my possession.  When I took it to the repair shop the clerk said it wasn’t worth fixing, but I pumped three hundred bucks into it anyway.  I was glad I did, not because I had any illusion of setting the jazz world on fire but because Uncle Jack, before he gave it to me, told me the story behind an instrument that sat in basements in Cedar Rapids for seventy years.

It was purchased by his father, who died when Jack was six months old.  Along with being a painter, his father played in a big band that toured the Midwest in the 1920s, which meant this instrument had mojo, so I was determined to learn how to play it. Sax novices often struggle with embouchure, but I quickly produced a tone that was slightly more pleasing than the honking of a goose.  And since the fingering was designed to make playing a C scale a snap, I already had the luxury of knowing one key existed in which I could “improvise” at length without playing a wrong note.

There was one problem, however.  In my apartment building in the gaslight district of Clifton there were people who would rather sleep on a Sunday night than listen to a novice who was suddenly seized by the impulse to find out what it would sound like if he blew into a saxophone as hard as he could.  Where could I go?  I didn’t want anyone to hear me, which made nearby Burnet Woods my only hope.  Although it closed after ten, I figured I’d rather risk a ticket than an evacuation notice.

I walked through the park until it was just me and the tall trees that, when I looked up, reminded me of the vaulted arches of a gothic church.  Then I played, over and over, the eight notes of a C scale.  Hoping to shake out the cobwebs of an instrument that had crammed in closets for seventy years, I blew until I was breathless, stopped, and then blew some more.  Often I held notes for as long as I could, the whole time assuming that, at some point, I would hear a sound clean and pure and powerful.  It never came, but I sure could hear it in my head, and I pursued it so intensely I forgot about all the police that were roaming the park just hoping to ticket a vagabond like me—until I heard what sounded like a wild drum beat from somewhere in the words.

It scared me.  After all, I asked myself, what lunatic was walking through Burnet Woods on a Sunday night playing an instrument—and congas, no less!  Although I was nervous, I was also intrigued, so I kept playing until I saw, walking toward me, a tall man with stringy hair and a crazed smile.  He never stopped playing, and until the concert ended he never spoke a word, but the smile that kept returning to his face as we played said it all.  Musically our performance was probably so poor the newly woken animals must have cringed—but on the inspiration meter it ranked up there with Woodstock.

When I ran into the percussionist a month later he nonchalantly shrugged off our experience, which to me was interesting.   Maybe for him things like that happen all the time.  They don’t for me—and even if they did I’m still positive that neighborhoods where something like that can happen are extremely rare.

And that’s why I love Clifton.  Stuff like that never happens in the burbs, and if it did they’d lock you up.

But that’s okay—I’m happy where I am.

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That tells you what I know – on July 4 I entered the Esquire Theatre thinking that when I sat in a dark room to watch Safety Not Guaranteed I’d pretty much have the place to myself, being as July 4 is all about picnics and parades…or so I thought. Apparently the large matinee crowd was thinking what I was thinking: escape the brutal heat and sit in a cool, dark room while watching a  large screen where people try to tell you a story.

In this case the story was a good one. For a movie to work, it doesn’t need a lot of elements; in fact, sometimes all it takes is the interaction between two characters whose life is somehow changed by meeting each other.

In Safety Not Guaranteed those two people are Aubrey Plaza and Mark Duplass.  Aubrey plays a character we all know: someone who seems naturally droll and pouty. I’m not sure what people call them nowadays, but she represents, I suppose, the latest manifestation of disaffected youth (I lost track after Generation X), although she does it in a way that makes you laugh.

All it takes to shake her character up is to meet someone who has been working the disaffected angle for longer than she’s been alive. What throws a wrench into things is the fact that the disaffected adult also believes passionately in one thing, which happens to be time traveling.

So is this dude a kook? And is she a kook for taking him seriously? And even if the science is flawed, aren’t their lives richer because of their quest?

That you’ll have to decide on your own (movie times are at 1:30, 3:30, 5:30, 7:30, and 9:55). Note, though, that regardless of what your opinions are about the theories that Mark Duplass espouses about time traveling during the film, you’re doing some time traveling simply by entering the Esquire Theatre, which opened in 1911.

How early in film history is that, you ask? Charlie Chaplin had not yet made a movie, not even a short, although he was busy in vaudeville by then. The same is true with Buster Keaton. The film career of W.C. Fields didn’t start until 1915, which is the same year that D.W. Griffith’s epic The Birth of a Nation was released.

In other words, the Esquire was built just as silent film movie magic was about to break loose. Did anyone imagine, in 1911, that a hundred years later this theater would not only exist, but still be thriving? I’ll begin to answer that by saying that, as recently as the 1980s, its future seemed to hang in the balance–but more on that later….

The post Time Traveling at the Esquire Theatre: Safety Not Guaranteed appeared first on .

If you’re searching for an apartment to rent, a phone call to this number – 513.861.600 – can lead to an appointment to view apartments all around greater Cincinnati. And because Gaslight Property has apartments all over Clifton, that’s particularly useful knowledge to students getting ready to go back to college.

If you decide to look call Gaslight Property, right away you’ll meet one of the two people in the above picture. Mike and Steph are the property managers for Gaslight Property, which means they’re involved in every stage of the rental process. From there you’ll take a tour of all the apartments requested, and then one of them will walk you through the application process. They’ll go over the lease with you and answer any questions you might have.

Basically, anything that has to do with the property Mike and Steph handle.

The post Searching for an Apartment? Talk to These Guys appeared first on .

That said, I know a marching band when I see one; I seen this one early on, and they had a kicking rhythm section.

And I know a cookie store masquerading as an ice cream truck. (FYI, the real live Queen City Cookies is located at 4354 Hamilton Avenue, and their phone number is 513.591.0022.)

What you’re about to see threw me for a loop. Cincinnati Malt Infusers was established in 1994 – in other words, in the previous millennium - and nobody told me about it, including them. I’ve got a brother down in Texas who’ll be as disappointed to hear about this disturbing news as I am, especially because both of us are this close to running out of beer.

Next up is Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune. Rumor has it that Mike Brown was going to march along side him except that at the last minute one of his accountants called him with a fresh new opportunity to tax the citizens of Hamilton County even though he’s making a bazillion dollars a day.

Although I seldom received compliments for my photography, I think I did a pretty good job with this pig (and now I’m thinking, maybe Mike Brown did make an appearance after all):

I’m not sure what this was about, but I liked the rock star:

The winner of this year’s Parade Participant of the Year Award is none other than Kerry Bogner, the red-haired lady in the next two photos. She wins because of the simple fact that she’s a friend of mine. Some readers may call me corrupt for judging so impartially, but I don’t care; I’m in charge of this blog and I can run it however I want. Kerry and her friend marched in support of Ohio Alley Cat Resource & Spay/Neuter Clinic. When I took the first picture I was so concerned with getting the composition absolutely perfect that I overlooked the message, and now that I’m taking it all in I’m thinking that Kerry and her friend should also win the award for the best signs:

Finally, a reminder that Gaslight Property has apartments in Northside. The Spyglass Apartments are located off of  Glen Parker on Thompson Heights. We call the Spyglass Apartments our little oasis in the heart of Northside. There are apartments available now, and if you’d like to set up an appointment to see them, call 513.861.6000. Click this link to see a map of where the Skyglass Apartments are located:

http://www.yelp.com/map/spyglass-apartments-cincinnati

The post Highlights of the Northside Parade appeared first on .

The Northside Rock ‘N Roll Carnival started at 2:30 pm today at Hoffner Park, but worry not if you missed the opening act, because the final band won’t take the stage until after midnight. Due to July 4^th falling in the middle of the week, the music only lasts one day this year, which means fewer groups overall, but the folks running the show went out of their way to pack the event with a strong lineup that includes The Big Sleep (from NYC) at 11:00 and Pujol (from Nashville) at 12:20. I have a hunch that the crowds will grow as the temperature drops for this event, and nothing’s going to stop people from attending the July 4^th parade taking place at noon. There’s also an all you can eat pancake breakfast at 9 in the morning on July 4^th at North Presbyterian Church, located at 4222 Hamilton Avenue.

This is the second year in a row that Gaslight Property is a proud sponsor of the Northside Rock ‘n Roll Carnival. Look for our banner, and while you’re in Northside, visit the Spyglass Apartments off of  Glen Parker on Thompson Heights. We call the Spyglass Apartments our little oasis in the heart of Northside. There are apartments available now, and if you’d like to set up an appointment to see them, call 513.861.6000. Click this link to see a map of where the Skyglass Apartments are located:

http://www.yelp.com/map/spyglass-apartments-cincinnati

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Some nice apartments just opened up in Clifton, and lots of them: currently there are 11 units available at 550 Lowell Avenue, which is within walking distance of the University of Cincinnati.

The reason so many apartments became available at once is that the entire 12-unit building was recently remodeled. Because of that, this a rare opportunity to rent fresh new apartments at a low price. These units, which can work as  two-bedroom apartments or as one bedrooms with an office, are just $795 a month with free heat and water.

The amenities include the following: dishwasher; built-in microwave; ceiling fans; large European showers; all new wood flooring; new kitchen cabinets, new windows and new lighting fixtures. And don’t forget: the location is great: you’ll be within walking distance of the University of Cincinnati and Ludlow Avenue, where the best movie theater in the city is centrally located.

Call 513.861.6000 to set up an appointment to see these apartments or any of the myriad of other apartments Gaslight Property has available in the greater Cincinnati area.

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Even Rahsaan Roland Kirk fans who live in Cincinnati are often unaware of his connection he had with this city. During a recent talk at MotrPub, Jim Tarbell mentioned that he used to see a blues band downtown that had in its horn section Roland Kirk. Local jazz artists Ron Enyard and Charlie Wilson have both performed with him. And for a short period the jazz wunderkind lived in Cincinnati.

It’s hard sometimes to envision iconic figures doing everyday things on your stomping grounds, especially ones who even flat-out look iconic; here I remember someone telling me that one day she saw Moondog in full regalia walking across the campus of the University of Cincinnati. (Going to visit some of his fraternity brothers? I guess not, but hey, what do I know…) One day Bob Nave was working at a record store called Mayor’s in downtown Dayton when a gentleman walked in who Bob didn’t recognize. The blind black man bought some records and invited Bob to a workshop that was taking place in Dayton later that day.

“This bar was a plain Jane bar,” Bob said. “They had a little bandstand. The place was packed with kids and high school music teachers.”

What Bob and the rest of the crowd saw amazed them. It’s one thing to be a multi-instrumentalist, but it’s another thing to be a multi-instrumentalist all at once—and once in a blue moon (or maybe just once ever) someone can take it to another level.

“When I went I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and seeing,“ Bob explained over the phone the other day. “It just blew me away. The way he could join the sax, manzello, stritch….The first thing he did was play the saxophone section to Mood Indigo.” (Mood Indigo is a haunting Duke Ellington composition; here’s a rendition by Joe Jackson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ert9spSHnbI

Attending that workshop engendered in Bob Nave a fascination with the music of Rahsaan Roland Kirk that continues to this day, and Nave is going to present a one-hour tribute to the jazz legend on Sunday, July 1 at 10 on WMKV 89.3. (The program will repeat Monday June 2 at 9:00 pm.) WMKV is a Cincinnati station, but if you have any trouble pulling it in, listen to it on their website, wmkv.org. The program will include some story-telling at the beginning, but the focus will primarily be on the music of a jazz artist who in one of Bob Nave’s favorites. (The other is Charles Mingus.)

To give you a taste of Roland Kirk, this is him playing the jazz standard “Misty”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Liy6TQ8FLR4

And by the way– if the name Bob Nave sounds familiar, it’s because he’s been part of the Cincinnati music scene since the 1960s. Only recently did I meet him, but I kind of felt like I knew him already because his voice was so familiar. I used to hear him all the time on the late, great WNOP, and he has a perfect DJ voice. His resume includes other gigs as a radio announcer and jazz host—and as a musician. In the 1960s he played with the Lemon Pipers, and many bands later he finds himself a member of the Blues Merchants, who play a lot around Cincinnati. Check out their website at thebluesmerchants.com, and also check out this video of a live performance by the Blues Merchants:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLJg_RZPdyM

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Part of the process of becoming a jazz musician is learning the technical side of a genre that’s extremely demanding.

There’s something else, though, something inside you, something intangible but real—and whatever that is, Charlie Wilson has it, and so does his partner in crime, King Reeves. The two of them will be performing duets together Friday, June 29 at 9:00 PM at the Thompson House, which is what used to be called the Southgate House. Vibraphonist King Reeves and pianist Charlie Wilson have performed together for a couple decades, and they were friends before that. When they perform together you can feel the chemistry of two cats who love each other and love jazz.

On the eve of their next performance, I asked Charlie why he chose piano as his instrument.

“First of all, my mother always played piano and she had a piano in the house,” he said. “She played in the church, and she played in the club where she met Art Tatum.”

If you don’t know him, Art Tatum was a great jazz pianist with dazzling technique. Truly one of the titans of the piano, along with Bud Powell and Bill Evans and a handful of others.

“She used to open for Art Tatum,” Charlie said. “She played for churches, and she was was still playing spiritual music. Art Tatum said to her why don’t you play jazz, so she started playing jazz.”

Having a musical mother and a piano around the house influenced not only Charlie but his brother, Alexander Nelson Wilson, who played baritone saxophone. “He played with Ray Charles, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, Jackie Kelso and Johnny Otis,” Charlie said. “The job with Jackie Kelso was five nights a week for years.”

Charlie grew up in Cincinnati but as a young man moved to L.A. When I asked what took him out west, he said, “My brother was out there, and some of my musician friends from Cincinnati were out west. I lived out there five or six years.”

One of the Cincinnati transplants Charlie met up with out there was Frank Foster, a major Basie sideman as well as an esteemed solo artist.

“Frank Foster lived across the street from me in Cincinnati,” Charlie said. “My brother played with him. Roger Spotts played with him, he was also from Cincinnati.”

Los Angeles was also where Charlie Wilson met, and played music with, Don Cherry and Charlie Haden.

The set list Friday includes some material by Thelonious Monk, whose compositions are unusually intricate and demanding, even for the best jazz artists. “My favorite composer, arranger, and musicians of all time is Thelonious Monk,” Charlie said.

Interestingly, in his early days Monk fronted a quartet that was drums, bass, piano and vibes, and the interplay between the vibes and piano was especially intriguing with the knotty, gnarly work of Monk. This should be a great show, and what I’ve been telling friends is if you go to the show and pay ten bucks and it turns our that you don’t like it, I’ll give you ten bucks out of my wallet. That’s how strongly I feel about the music these guys play. They’re the real deal, and they seldom play out. Walter Broadnax of Doc B Productions is hosting the event as part of his new jazz series at the Thompson House, and yes, Charlie will be using a real piano, a brand new one, and a nice one…just that and some vibes. I’ll leave you with some footage I shot one day of King and Charlie playing music at King’s swank little house:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvUXlozwJAE

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A few days ago I received a call from a friend who had lost my number but who ran into another friend who did have my number, which came as a great relief to Friend #1 because he wanted desperately for me to make it over to the place where a number of old jazz records were being sold.

I was happy about it myself.

This wasn’t the first time that I bought records from a storage unit, but it was the first time that I bought records from an art gallery that was located where you would normally house a storage unit.

And what an art gallery it was: large canvases filled with bright colors and bold brushstrokes. That much they had in common, but stylistically these painting were all over the map. What impressed me and surprised me was the fact that the vast majority of these paintings were done by the same artist.

That artist is Carmen Bowen Bush. After buying some records I snapped pictures of Carmen and her work and talked to her about painting. It turns out she never thought about becoming an artist until she took a trip to Europe while she was an adult.

That surprised me as well, because art seemed to come so naturally to her that I wouldn’t have been surprised if she had been painting since childhood.

Carmen has plans to move to California, but before she does that she wants to sell some of the thousands of things she has accumulated (she has long had a talent for finding interesting things), and she is doing so from her art studio in a storage unit Northside. She has tools, books, framed prints, books, furniture, musical instruments, records, CDs, and all kinds of other stuff. If you’re interested in shopping for cool old things, I highly recommend contacting her. You can call her at 513.205.8673 to set up an appointment.

I also recommend visiting Carmen’s website - http://carmenarts.com/ - to learn more about her and see more of her work.  Her work appears quite often in art shows around Cincinnati, and in fact that’s the reason my friend ran into her: they both participated in the Northside Arts in the Park show. While I visited with her, Carmen told me about her friendship with the late Fr. James W Hasse, SJ, a close friend of hers who was also an artist.

Carmen showed some of his paintings and told me about his life and their friendship.If you visit her, I recommend asking to see some of his work, as it’s unique and powerful. I will leave you with a link to his paintings:

http://www.claverjesuit.org/prayergallery.html

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I’m sure there are people who drive or walk through Short Vine who have no idea how vital it was in the not-too-distant past.

There were great restaurants, a killer record store, funky shops like The Cupboard (which is still there), bars that were packed and a Laundromat where you could drink beer and watch great bands like The Wolverton Brothers. There was a diverse mix of people were walking up and down the street at all hours, and small businesses were thriving.

Much has changed since then, but one key element is still there: Bogart’s, which along with making improvements to the nightclub is focusing on the entire neighborhood.

“I’ve started a safe and clean neighborhood committee,” general manager Karen Foley told me recently. “We have between 15 and 20 people in it. Now we have owners sweeping and cleaning. Also, we’re starting a graffiti free zone.

“We’ve got so many things coming, and we’re all taking care of our areas. That got lost, and people are trying to make it a better experience for people here.”

Talking with Karen, you get the sense that being on Short Vine seven days a week makes one more aware of its potential,

“There are a lot of great people in this neighborhood,” she said. “Community council has acknowledged it. We have a long way to go, but to see people sweeping in front of the businesses….”

And participation isn’t limited to the chosen few.

“If someone wants to join the (safe and clean neighborhood) committee, they can tell me,” she said. (Her email address is karenfoley@livenation.com.) “We do it every other Monday night at 5 o’clock.” (The next meeting is July 2.)

Speaking of safe and (especially) clean neighborhoods, when Karen gave me a tour of Bogart’s a couple months ago I took some photos of the bathrooms, which have radically improved. I could never really figure out how to incorporate the theme of bathrooms into any of my blog entries, so I think I’ll just let these pictures speak for themselves.

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In a recent blog entry the general manager of Bogart’s, Karen Foley, told me some of the changes she made shortly after taking that role, and later in that same interview I asked her what she had in store in the future.

It turns out a lot is changing soon.

“In the next couple weeks we’re going to build out of the back of the building a smoking patio,” she said, “and with any luck we’ll have drinks out there. Also, we are building VIP platforms above our bars on the floor.”

Then she mentioned something that gas to sound appealing to that small minority of us who on a rare occasion like to consume a little alcohol.

“We’re going to redo the bars so we can serve people faster,” she said. “If you spent good money you shouldn’t spend time waiting.”

Those words were spoken the day before I attended the Santigold show, and while I was at the show the long beer lines made me wonder if perhaps the people who consume alcohol aren’t such a small minority after all.

Nothing brings a buzz to a music venue better than a killer concert, and the announcement by Bogart’s this week that the Afghan Whigs would be performing there on October 25 was a surefire attention getter. Along with changing the nightclub, Karen and the rest of the Bogart’s crew are making improvements to the neighborhood, and therein lies my next blog entry.

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Just as I was finally getting ready to return to the interview I conducted with the general manage of Bogart’s, Karen Foley, news comes to me that pre-sale tickets are on sale starting at noon today for the Afghan Whigs, who haven’t played a concert anywhere in over ten years, and are returning to Bogart’s, the last place they played. The show is October 25; presale tickest are available to Afghan Whigs fans starting at noon at THIS LINK

The password for pre-sales is:     uptownagain

Another option: tickets go on sale to the general public this Friday at 10 a.m.

My favorite Afghan Whigs concert took place at Shorty’s On Vine, a small, short-lived venue that had some great acts, including the Smashing Pumpkins. During their encore, the Afghan Whigs played back to back – although I don’t remember in what order – “Rain” by the Beatles and “Africa” by Toto.

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I have lots more to say about new things going on at Bogart’s and on Short Vine in general, and I’ll get to that this week – but today I wanted to wrap up (maybe) the theme of favorite concert ever. Guitarist extraordinaire and music teacher extraordinaire Jeff King had this to say about a series of Michael Hedges concerts that took place at Bogart’s:

The crowds at some of those Bogart’s shows were simply amazing. There would be thunderous applause and standing ovations in the middle of songs and then it would be so quiet you could hear a pin drop during the ballads. Hedges really fed off that energy. I’ll never forget him doing the bluesy, vocal riff on “Gimme Shelter.”

Once again Walter Broadnax is hosting both local and national jazz acts in greater Cincinnati – this time at the Thompson House in Newport, Kentucky – and you can read all about it as his website, jazzincincy.com.  Here was his favorite concert:

My favorite concert every was one I produced. It was called the four tenors; they were Billy Harper, Benny Maupin, Ed Bayard and Bruce Menefeld, with two drummers, a percussionist, and a bass player. I told the drummers I did not want them to keep time; I wanted the bass to keep time. Billy Harper had used two drummers before, so he knew what to do. It was three and a half hours of the most phenomenal music I’ve ever heard. 

Perfect Jewish Couple veteran Shari Lauter was blown away by a concert at the Loft Society:

The music of Gary Bartz‘ horn transported me from a small loft party/gig in Clifton to the outer reaches of the atmosphere…solar system…universe…
For three hours I transcended the 3D solids around me, to enter a realm of pure fluid, floating somewhere, I don’t know where, but I wasn’t anywhere near my body. I looked over, see myself entranced, seated lotus-style on the floor, my upper body swaying to the beat, hands creating the shapes of the sounds in the air in front, above, around me, eyes closed. Next to me artist Donna Talerico sketched Gary blowin’ full out. My connection to reality was at large for several days after this show.
Years later I visited Donna at a Pendleton Final Friday event, was looking through her bin of works for sale, and came across the sketch she made that night. Looking at it, I still hear–no, feel–the music that sent me aloft that night.

One of the best musicians in Cincinnati, vibraphonist King Reeves has fond memories of a jazz concert with a lineup that will cause envy in many readers:

My very favorite one was John Coltrane and Miles Davis. It was different. I had never hear nobody play like Trane. I thought he had his saxophone souped up he was playing so fast. It was over at the Newport nightclub in Kentucky. The other musicians were Jimmy Cobb, Wynton Kelly and Paul Chambers.

Reeves not only hung out with Miles during one of his many visits to town; he gave him a sight-seeing tour as well.

I met Miles before, when he was coming in and playing with local rhythm sections. I drove him around I was kind of his chauffeur he was playing out at Lincoln Heights. I kind of taxied him around. I met him again in New York; he acted like he didn’t know me.

Imagine that, Miles Davis displaying some attitude. Nonetheless, I read somewhere that he was pretty decent trumpet player.  ;  )

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Last night was very nostalgic for me and my friends. Several of us had arranged to meet at Bogart’s for the Santigold concert, but no one had nailed what time they planned to arrive, so when I showed up a few minutes before Santigold was supposed to take the stage (I had missed the opening act completely), I wondered if I got there too late.

As it turned, out though, everyone—and this was three different groups of friends—showed up right around that time, not because they wanted to blow off the opening act but because, like me, they were running around and doing all that stuff you gotta do before you can go out and have fun.

Which was okay, because once we got in there we all had a great time, and so did everyone else. Bogart’s was packed with a young and energetic crowd that danced and sang along and sweated as much as Santigold, who by  the second or third song had already grabbed a towel to wipe off her sweat. The sound was as good I have heard at a live concert—clean, with clear highs and lows, and the volume was kept in check. Toward the end of the concert the music took a strong club turn, which meant, of course, we heard some of that fuzzy bass that’s so low it makes the fillings in your teeth rattle, but even there the people mixing the sound knew exactly what they were doing. According to my friends, the sound at the recent Psychedelic Furs show was equally impressive.

And all that bodes well. Bogart’s has a long history in Cincinnati, with lots of great shows, and it can return to what it used to be, only better. It felt good after the show ended to see the crowd mingling on the sidewalk and debating where to go next. We ended up across the street at the Dive Bar, which is where the Sub Galley used to be. I’d never been there before, and I was happy to learn that A) they had a good beer selection, and B) they had a deck out back. It had been a long time since there was a place to go for a drink after a Bogart’s show (remember Dollar Bills, or the Sub Galley before it went from being a cool bohemian haunt to a pit?), and I recommend Dive Bar. All in all, it turned out to be a great night, and I feel optimistic about Short Vine’s future.

To return to a minute to the music I saw last night: Santigold is a natural entertainer with a great sense of humor. On top of that, she has something that few artists have: a stack of solid, well-arranged songs, even though she’s only two albums into her career. Toward the end of the show songcraft gave way to raw rhythms, and by the time she got to the encore she had no interest in singing the next great pop masterpiece. By then I think all she wanted to do was have fun, which is how the audience was feeling too. Here are a couple of the songs I posted on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYqNWh1IbFk&feature=plcp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUWhg6Kbhco&feature=plcp

After I posted these and other videos on my youtube page (which is called CincinnatiShines, by the way), someone left comments that helped fill me in on some of the details on the concert – including a setlist; thanks to AstroSharkz (youtube moniker) for helping me out. Here’s the setlist for the night:

1. Go! 2. L.E.S. Artistes 3. Lights Out 4. Say Aha 5. God From the Machine 6. Get It Up 7. Hold the Line 8. Disparate Youth 9. Anne 10. This Isn’t Our Parade 11. The Keepers 12. Creator 13. Freak Like Me 14. Starstruck 15 .Brooklyn (We Go Hard) 16. Shove It 17. Look At These Hoes 18. Fame 19 Big Mouth and the encore was 20. You’ll Find A Way 21. B.O.O.T.A.Y.

Finally, to explain the picture at the top of this blog entry. As a roving reporter, I was of course required to elect the most well-dressed person at the event, and the woman in the photograph won top honors hands down with her heart-shaped sunglasses, peace sign and sunny smile.

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The response to the contest where people were supposed to write about their best concert ever was so overwhelming that I’ll have to break it down into separate blog entries. The first two top-prize winning entries happen to have been written by women, which leads to me to wonder if men don’t trail behind the fair sex a bit when it comes to appreciating a good live concert…Maybe not, but I just wanted to throw it out there. The idea for this contest came via Karen Foley, the general manager of Bogart’s, who offered tickets  to tonight’s Santigold concert for the two most entertaining concert stories concerning an all-time favorite concert. (There are still tickets left for tonight’s show, by the way.) And here, at last, is first prize, courtesy of Claudia Cartolano Taylor:

I am a veteran concert goer. I am in my 40′s and have been to many, many concerts since I was a kid. In fact, my first concert was Iggy Pop at the Taft. I was not even out of grade school. My parents were out and some neighborhood kids, a hair older than I, had an extra ticket for Iggy Pop at the Taft. I hopped in the car and  got to not only see Iggy, but David Bowie came out and played with Iggy on a couple of songs. I was almost a teenager, overwhelmed, in awe, and hooked on music. GOOD Music! Plus, my high school neighbors got me home and tucked in before my parents ever knew. Could’ve been a scene out of the film, ALMOST FAMOUS.

I have had many a good time and saw many a great show at Bogart’s over the past 3 decades too. Everything from 10,000 Maniacs to crazy freak show Gwar. Most recently, The Psychedelic Furs this past March. I ran into many ‘blasts from the past’ and The Furs were excellent. Looking forward to many more shows at Bogart’s and running into more “blasts” from the past, present, & future.

Running a close second was this entry by Shari Lauter:

My favorite concert was Anjelique Kidjoe at Royal Albert Hall. She had Bright blonde hair, and an 11-piece band with African drummers; rockin!!! Incredibly well balanced acoustics in a gorgeous hall very much more oriented to an opera or symphony performance. The well turned out patrons obediently filled the seats throughout the hall while the neo-modern 70s crystal chandeliers twinkled above.
Me, though, within the first 8 bars I can’t sit still, I’m in the aisle dancing madly while the concertgoers up in balconies 1, 2, 3 and 4, all peer down wondering “who is that mad woman dancing by herself in the aisle of Royal Albert Hall”? While on my part, I’m looking at all these people in their seats sitting still, thinking “Who are all these mad people, glued to their seats–how come they’re not dancing in the aisles?

When I talked to Karen Foley about Bogart’s the other night, I asked her what her favorite concert ever was, and she quickly said, ”My favorite was Rob Zombie at Comerica Theatre in Phoenix. It was a benefit show, and he dressed up in a Santa Claus outfit. It was really cool to see him in that way.”

After telling me that, Karen took the conversation in a different direction: she told me, in much more detail than her favorite concert, her least favorite concert. With that in mind, I encourage any of my readers to email me at disdat@hotmail.com with the concert they disliked the most; I’ll include those along with Karen’s response.

Tonight I’ll be at Santigold, and tomorrow I’ll write about the show. If you subscribe to this blog, you’ll automatically receive in an email some info and pictures about the Santigold show, more information about what’s going on at Bogart’s, more favorite concerts as well as some least favorite concerts – and that takes us through the beginning of next weeks. So subscribe, subscribe, and tell your friends to subscribe as well!

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Karen Foley, General Manager of Bogart's

Sometimes it takes a person who lives thousands of miles away to make it clear how special something is that’s right in your hometown—and that’s true even if it some of the luster was temporarily lost. When I talked tonight to Karen Foley, the new general manager of Bogart’s (she assumed the position in September of last year), she made it clear right away that she had great respect for the club on short Vine in Corryville.

“I came from Arizona and I had done my research, and I knew that Bogart’s was an iconic venue,” she said. “Everybody knew about it. Unfortunately when I got here the building the neighborhood was less than desirable. There was graffiti on the front door to welcome me. And the bathrooms, I wouldn’t even use them.”

So where did she start?

“The first order of business to remove the graffiti,” Karen stated, “that and remove the smell, which was a combination of cigarettes and alcohol. I left and after 15 minutes ran up to Kroger and bought the cleaning supplies and I was on my hands and knees and cleaning.”

Visually the inside was also in need of a change.

“The club was very dark,” she said. “The walls were dark, and it had this gloomy atmosphere over it. Right away I made a mental note of what we needed painted. I went back to Arizona for a week, and I left them a list of things to do: paint the front of building, clean the sidewalks, get the graffiti off the walls and the bathrooms. I reached in my wallet and gave them a couple hundred bucks and said, here’s some money. No excuses, make it happen.”

“When I got back we remodeled,” she said, “and the bathrooms were repainted.”

Karen expressed enthusiasm for her staff, who received a pep talk right off the bat. “You got to love to work here,” I told them. I mean, we’re lucky. There are only a handful of people who get to work in the music business.”

Just how much enthusiasm Karen has for Bogart’s became clear to me when I ran into her on the street one day and—even though I was a total stranger—she gave me a tour of the building while pointing out some of the changes she had made. Her enthusiasm also extends beyond the walls of Bogart’s to the neighborhood of Corryville, as I’ll make clear in upcoming blog entries over the next few days on good things happening at Bogart’s and in the surrounding neighborhood.

The post What’s New at Bogart’s appeared first on .

In a recent blog I discussed how I sought out music that challenged me, and apparently I feel same way about drama, because I was quite fond of The Sweet, Burning Yonder by John Ray. Yes, he had given me a synopsis of the play, and yes, I read the program before the performance, but knowing what a play is “about” doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re ever totally grounded…and I don’t think you’re supposed to be when you watch a play by John Ray. The Sweet, Burning Yonder played to sold-out crowds all five nights at the Fringe Festival this year, and to me it embodies the spirit of that festival; it’s experimental, bizarre, funny and strange at the same time that  sheds some light on dark themes.

I wasn’t aware until I saw him perform that Don Volpenhein was going to be in the play, and seeing him brought back a distant memory. One night at a party I told someone that I knew had seen him in a play or in a film somewhere. From there I listed play after play and local film after local film, and I was beginning to question my memory when I realized what it was: Don appeared in a short film that was based on a short story I wrote and that Paul Grundy directed. The acting and the editing rocked, but I wished I had provided everyone with a stronger story. Eventually that five-page novel became a novel that makes me want to re-collect the entire cast of characters.

I want to encourage anyone who has read this article thus far to subscribe to this blog; I can keep you abreast of things on in the city, and you can feel free to notify me via email (disdat@hotmail.com) or phone (513.281.3266) about any events that you think fellow Cincinnatians ought to know about.

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MEDITATION #2: RADIOHEAD IS A BAND

Radiohead is a band. I mention that because quite often bands break down into separate islands that never quite connect. Sometimes this happens when a newly-formed “supergroup” fails to focus its energies, and sometimes it happens when a band that has been together a long time starts to splinter; when they play, you can feel the tug of war going on during a performance, either that or the apathy after they lay down their arms. With Radiohead the extended instrumental sections could threaten to make lead singer Thom Worke seem like an accessory, but that never happened. At one point—I can’t remember if he was singing part of the time or not—he was playing maracas, and while sometimes it seems like singers play incidental percussion in order to have something to do, what he played was well miced and really added something to the song. The light show was great; although it was dazzling, it never took over; but the best visuals of the night occurred when Thom raised his arm and then brought it down quickly and then made some other movements that the band synched with perfectly; powerful stuff.

Inevitably by the time a band releases a second album the talk begins of “the golden are” versus the decline, and some Radiohead fans prefer the pre-electronic phase of the band. Quite frankly, I’m not well enough versed with their music to have strong feelings either way – and, quite frankly, I didn’t pick up a strong techno vibe from their performance. Maybe if I knew more that would be more of an issue. What I will say is that I like where they are right now. What I hear are heavily syncopated rhythms that seem compatible with their sonic explorations – and I’m damn glad I saw that with two drummers, which is a new thing. It just adds more layers to the layers to the layers that are already there. At Riverbend I didn’t hear computers. I heard humans.

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       MEDITATION #1: KEEP IT COMPLEX AND ATONAL, GENIUS

“All things are a-flowing/Sage Heraclitus said,” but rock musicians and rock journalists keep pounding home the same theme: rock and roll should be raw and basic, and whatever you do don’t clutter it up with your fine little subtleties. When Jack White waxed rhapsodic about performing with a drummer who had no experience behind a drum set you would have thought that he had gone where no one had previously traveled, but actually the notion that people who don’t know how to play should go ahead and play anyway had been around for some time, and in the end (actually, in the beginning) the White Stripes were just one more band that kept things brutally simple. And beautiful music has been made that way. Certainly Bukka White made beautiful music while banging an acoustic guitar with so much force that you wonder not only how it stayed in tune if it did stay in tune but also how it was that the guitar avoided being shattered to pieces.

Basic and simple are good sometimes but sometimes I want to be challenged. (Here I wonder if I used the wrong example, because Bukka White can be challenging in his own way. I mean he in no way invited calm, passive listening). I want to be challenged sometimes, and I want to be taken out of my comfort zone. The other night while listening to saxophonist Jackie McLean on a mid-1960s Blue Note date it struck me just how harsh the “harmonies” were; there was a deliberate dissonance (& maybe some atonality) that (although the music had changed in other respects) harkened back to the early days of bebop, when jazz musicians in New York got fed up with the touristy audiences and tried to create something to send them packing. And it worked. Thomas Merton wrote about how loud the music was. It had shock value. This is music that came at you. Jazz harmonies can be sweet (Tadd Dameron, for example), or it can sound like every notes is meant to clash with every other note, and the rhythms are jagged and the phrasing is too, and suddenly you find that the easy chair where you previously you were sitting has been pulled out from under you. And that is where I was sitting when Radiohead played Riverbend Tuesday night, and for that I am grateful.

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Tonight: Videos

Tomorrow: A Review

These are some songs I videotaped from the Radiohead show last night:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2Wy-VQsV_M&list=UUR7H-xlvgr8ZNV4nNjuE-mg&index=7&feature=plcp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHwYhYO__1Y&list=UUR7H-xlvgr8ZNV4nNjuE-mg&index=3&feature=plcp

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjTZavXJDBg&list=UUR7H-xlvgr8ZNV4nNjuE-mg&index=1&feature=plcp

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TOMORROW: VIDEOS

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When I dropped by the College Hill Coffee Company on Saturday morning it was already hopping, with many tables occupied and people in line for carry-out. I have a theory why the coffee house is so popular, and it’s a simple theory. Sure, the coffee is good and the service is nice and it’s a comfortable space with a neighborhood feel, but there’s one other thing the coffee house gets just right, and I can sum it up in three words:

Location, location, location.

At the corner of Hamilton and North Bend in College Hill, the coffee house is as centrally located as it can be. It’s smack dab in the middle of the city, and it’s close to everything—which is worth mentioning because there are apartments above the coffee house that are available for rental through Gaslight Property.

These are four-room apartments with hardwood floors and off-street parking, plus they’re on the bus line: here’s a link (w/photos) to one of the apartments:

http://www.gaslightproperty.com/units/6128-hamilton/

One other plus: the apartments are right about a coffee house. When I visited on Saturday I asked a server the question that’s been haunting me ever since the weather got hot: what do you recommend for a really refreshing drink? Her answer was a frozen chocolate frappe with white chocolate, espresso and carmel. She said this personal favorite was “sort of on the menu,” which implies a certain amount of experimentation in the search for the perfect drink, so feel free when you visit to tweak your orders when you visit.

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All that has changed, not because Sitwell’s decided to put more emphasis on live performance but because musicians around the country are calling the coffee house from out of the blue in hopes of setting up a gig. The owner of Sitwell’s, Lisa Storie, has no idea how they dialed her in, but the fact is they did, and along with presenting an interesting array of artists the staff at Sitwell’s have become pros at presenting music.

Tonight at 9 pm the Nashville duo Channing & Quinn will be performing at Sitwell’s. Their music has been referred to as indie folk; solid songwriting and  musicianship as well as the impressive vocals of Channing – plus witty lyrics – are among the traits that distinguish this band. Also – as you’ll see if you check this out this video – Channing & Quinn have, among their arsenal of instruments, a xylophone. In this video you only get to see the xylophone, but if you come to Sitwell’s tonight you’ll be able to hear it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azIhwBtpTOo&feature=relmfu

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“So what kind of entertainment are you going to have?” I asked the owner,  Mike Anagnostou, who showed me the poster announcing  wine and beer tastings and drawings for door prizes.

“I asked for dancing girls,” he said, looking dejected.

“You know what you should get?” asked another customer. “An accordion player.”

Earlier in the day someone told me about Resin beer, which I wanted to try, and it turns out they had it. By the end of the day probably a half dozen people, myself included, tried Resin for the first time, and everyone agreed that they had never tasted anything before that tasted quite like that. It has a distinct taste and a distinct shall we say bouquet.

By the way, I wouldn’t write off the possibility of dancing girls for the grand opening.   I have the feeling that, as the day progresses, there will be plenty of surprises.

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One of the servers, Nicole, recommended the new mint chocolate chip cappuccino shake, which isn’t on the menu, but it’s already a hit.

Nicole also said that her staple for the hot months is iced coffee, which seems to taste better the more the temperature and humidity ascend.

The owner of Sitwell’s, Lisa Storie, says her favorite hot weather drink is a black raspberry grape yogurt smoothie. Those aren’t on the menu either, but Sitwell’s has been making them a long time, and it might be just what you need as you come in from the tropical weather.

While you’re in Sitwell’s you should also check out an exhibit of art by local cartoonists, the “Lost Cats: An Inter-Generational Cartoon Art Show” that’s on the walls.

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For those of you who weren’t able to attend, there’s some footage here of part one of the series “Jim Tarbell Talks Music” that began last Sunday, May 20, and will continue the following two Sundays, May 27 and June 3, at 2 pm at Motr Pub. This is one of the three parts that an audience member filmed, and the other two parts are on the same webpage. After the talk I asked the couple that was filming if they could send along footage, and they were nice enough to do that – so thanks to Dave and Julie Gallenstein for uploading it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmwgWvPI4KI

These talks are taking place at a time while I’m  writing an article about music that took place in Cincinnati during a period of time that Jim Tarbell started hosting concerts. In fact, members of The Sound Museum (one of the groups I wrote about) performed at the Ludlow Garage. After Tarbell spoke I asked him some questions about The Sound Museum, and he told me that Jeffrey Siereveld had a recording of The Sound Museum live at the Ludlow Garage. The music is amazing, and we’ll get back to it at a later date – right now I want to relate than when I called Jeffrey Siereveld he mentioned the fund-raiser for another important Cincinnati musician, Larry Goshorn, that’s taking place this Saturday, May 26th, at the Redmoor in Mt. Lookout. This is a great opportunity to support someone who’s definitely part of Cincinnati’s musical history – among others, he played with Sacred Mushroom and Pure Prairie League – and also a chance to hear some great music. Here is the information on the Redmoor website.

Saturday, May. 26, 2012

5:00pm-11pm

On Saturday, May 26th, The Chuck Land Show will be filming some Cincinnati Legends in front of a live studio audience. The footage would be for upcoming Episodes in Season 3. This will also be a benefit for the wonderful musician and friend Larry Goshorn, which recently broke two major bones and tore tendons in his ankle, needing major surgery. Just like many musicians, he is uninsured and can use our help. A non-profit organization that we strongly support called Play It Forward will also be helping run the event, handling various tasks. 100% of the profits our this concert will go to Play It Forward to help pay various medical bills for Mr. Goshorn. “Larry is an amazing person and is a Cincinnati Icon, performing in bands such as The Sacred Mushroom, Mushroom Jones, Pure Prairie League, and currently The Goshorn Brothers”, says Land. “Him and his other talented brother Tim are always playing benefits for others, now it’s the music community’s turn to take care of him”. If you can’t attend the event but want to help, you can make a contribution online by going to www.pifcincy.org Dinner menu available throughout the event 4:30 Door open 5:00-5:30 The Bluebirds Band performs 5:35-6:00 The Heaters “Fathers & Sons” Band Performs (featuring a talented 12 year old pianist Ben Levin, and 11 year old drummer Joe Nasser, along with their dads and Grandpa Nasser on Sax) 6:05-6:35 Tickled Pink performs 6:40-7:10 Balderdash Peforms 7:20-8:00 Premier Showing of The Goshorn Brothers Documentary (A limited number of autographed DVDS will be produced specifically for the raffle) 8:10-8:40 Willy D and Jeff Walkup & Friends 8:40-9:00 Leroy Ellington & His Pink Flamingos 9:10-9:40 The New Lime 9:45-10:15 Leo Clark & Will Edger as a duo 10:20-11pm Super Jam Session At 11pm we’ll show the Goshorn Brothers Documentary again for the folks that couldn’t attend earlier. Tickets will be 10 dollars.

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“The response was phenomenal,” the CCAC’s press release states; “in excess of 200 pieces were submitted for consideration.”

Ultimately 20 works were chosen. So what was the theme that drew such a strong response?

“ReRoot was inspired by the Old Clifton School’s (now the Clifton Cultural Arts Center) multiple identities as the community’s needs have evolved,” the press release added. “Holding over 100 years of civic use, school memories, and Cincinnati history, CCAC is simultaneously a reinvented place and an affirmation of its past. In recognition of the Center’s own ‘rerooting,’ the curatorial team invited artists to explore theirs.”

The hours for the exhibit will be as follows: Mondays, noon – 5pm; Thursdays, noon – 7pm; and Saturdays, 9am – noon. Also, the opening (which takes place on Friday, June 1, from 6:00 to 8:30 pm) promises to be quite colorful:

“The opening (on Friday, from 6 :00 – 8:30 pm) will feature an exclusive sneak-peak showing of Cincy Story Mural, a citywide public art project revealing the narrative of Cincinnati through the photos and handwritten memories of its residents. The University of Cincinnati’s Racial Awareness Program (RAPP) is debuting a series of pieces depicting members’ personal battles with race and identity as experienced through their communities and participation in RAPP, visually rendered by local artist/activist Marjorie Bledsoe. Justin West, an emerging composer and community arts educator, is debuting his sound installation: Dancing, an immersive choral experience that invites the participant to travel through concentric sublime rings of human voice. 24 unique singers are composed into a holistic composite as the center of the installation is approached.”

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And it’s neat to think that they had come out simply to hear someone talk about Cincinnati’s musical legacy. You could tell, by the questions people asked and the cheers they gave when certain musicians were mentioned, that these were real music lovers.

And Cincinnati lovers, or so I would assume. When it came to music, Jim Tarbell’s talk was at times a little short on specifics, but as soon as he turned a corner to Cincinnati history he was as in-depth and detailed as a historian, which makes sense: he is one.

He talked about a period in time when Cincinnati had more nightspots per capita than any other city in the country and when we also drank more beer than any other town. A lot of this drinking and per capita-izing took place on Vine Street, a street that is just now springing back to life. While Tarbell welcomes the development, he was quick to point out something that is missing now but used to be there in spades.

“It’s interesting to point out,” he said, “that there ‘s no music there.”

At that point he treated us to his interpretation of what electronic percussion sounds like when it’s being piped in through the speakers, and that was one of the few times in my experience that the facsimile sounded better than the real thing.

Although the period of time he was talking about (fifties and early sixties) was a long time ago, this was all very timely for me, as I recently embarked on an article about a musician named David Matthews, who upon arriving in Cincinnati in 1960 visited the same clubs Jim Tarbell attended at the same time.

After Tarbell’s talk I quizzed him a little about the jazz scene back then, and like David Matthews he mentioned a club in tune that I had never heard before I spoke to these guys. I thought the name of the club was Dave Baker’s, but eventually I came to discover that it was called Babe Baker’s. This is the club where David Matthews, who collaborated with James Brown on many historic sessions, saw John Coltrane, and experience that left a lasting impression on Matthews.

While talking about the jazz scene back then Tarbell mentioned a local group called the Modern Jazz Disciples, who I had forgotten about even though they were a fabulous band on a fabulous label (New Jazz, a subsidiary of Prestige).  Like I said in an earlier blog, I’ve gotten rid of a lot of records, but I still have a few left, and when I got home I pulled out the two albums the Modern Jazz Disciples recorded. Looking at the songwriting credits, I noticed the name Babe Baker for the last song on the first side I was going to play, at which point two words popped into my head: holy moley!

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For me this year is especially of interest because it will feature a world premier by John Ray, a writer whose work I know from the days when I was a regular both as an audience member and performer at the Performance Times Arts Series. I remember a play that had partially to do with (if memory serves) the real and (moreso) imagined events of Martha Stewart, a play that included the very talented actress and writer Elizabeth Logan Harris. One of the things that impresses me about John is his ability to write plays that are damn funny at the same time that they address, unflinchingly, some dark issues. His new play is called The Sweet, Burning Yonder, and there will be five performances, all at 1317 Main Street in Over the Rhine.

When I asked John what the play was about, he said, “The sweet burning yonder is a reimagining of Lewis and Clark’s journey through Louisiana Territory but it’s kind of hijacked in time to the post-Katrina world. A pair of EPA technicians testing the poisonous flood waters discover a Katrina survivor who is able to taste the water and tell you the poisons and toxins in it and also tell you where they came from. She leads them up the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers in her quest to find not only the toxins but a mysterious sweet burning in the waters. It turns out that Katrina has dislocated everything in time, as well and they kind of telescope American history on their journey. They run into Indians and settlers, all the people who’ve lived there in the past. So it’s kind of a dreamscape.”

Another way of looking at it: “a comedy of disaster and discovery, with dolphins.”

The director of the play is Michael Burnham, and the cast includes Omope Carter Daboiku, Dan Britt, Sarah Fischer, Jared Taylor Wilson, Don Volpenhein, Sarah Wolf, Wendy Braun, and Paul Morris. Performance times for The Sweet, Burning Yonder are:

Wednesday May 30 at 8:45 pm

Friday June 1 at 9:15 pm

Sunday June 3 at 4:15 pm

Wednesday June 6 at 8:30 pm

Friday June 8 at 7:00 pm

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In spite of the fact that when I walk in there Motr Pub is often packed, I still run into people who have no idea that it exists, so let’s start at the beginning: Motr Pub is a new bar (it opened in September 2010) located at 1345 Main Street in Over the Rhine, and it’s a great place to hear local, regional and national bands. The cover is zero dollars, but I suspect they make a buck or two with their great (and changing) selection of draft and bottle beers, other liquids as well as a menu that includes their much-loved Motr Burgers.  The artists I’ve seen perform there include Akron/Family and Richard Buckner, and I feel fortunate to be able to drive just a couple miles to see artists of that stature.

Beginning this Sunday, something slightly different is going to take place at Motr Pub. From 2 pm to 3:30 pm on three consecutive Sundays (May 20, May 27, and June 3) Jim Tarbell, also known as Mr. Cincinnati, will be talking about a slice of Cincinnati musical history and its impact on Cincinnati. According to the MotrPub website, “Jim will discuss and answer questions about the uptown music scene including The Ludlow Garage, The Black Dome and more during the 1960s and 70s and the impact the scene made on him and the neighborhood.  Host David Rhodes Brown will facilitate the event then play a set with his band Brown Grass after. This is a Q&A event and  it will be recorded.”

For me, the timing couldn’t be better. Recently I embarked on an article discussing the period when the paths of James Brown and David Matthews crossed. Their connection ultimately involved many other musicians who became names in Cincinnati and around the world. David Matthews performed at the Ludlow Garage, and I’ll bet Jim Tarbell saw him perform with the Sound Museum before that,  so I have some questions to ask. If you don’t know who David Matthews is, here’s a cut off his Grodeck Whipperjenny album, which James Brown produced:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WklioyKHNvQ

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The Faux Frenchmen consist of four musicians with diverse musical backgrounds who all share an affinity for the gypsy jazz Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club of France played in Parisian cafes in the 1930s.

Each performance feels like an informal workshop witnessed by a loyal audience. Sometimes a game of music chairs occurs, with guest artists joining the group or the core lineup getting juggled around, and the set list always changes. Along with some originals and classics from the first half of the Twentieth Century, the quartet has also applied their gypsy jazz sound to compositions by such unlikely artists as the Beach Boys, the Beatles, Astor Piazzola and Raymond Scott.

The Gaslight District is lucky to have music like this in the middle of the week. The music The Faux Frenchmen play requires virtuosity on the part of guitarists Brian Lovely and George Cunningham, bassist Don Aren, and violinist Paul Patterson, but their performance feels like a gathering of friends. Perhaps that’s one of their CDs, Swing Shift, consists of a Sitwell’s performance.

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 Those are some heavy hitters, and Charlie was every bit their equal. And he still plays the piano and performs now. I caught him and King Reeves a few times at the Greenwich, and I’ve always wanted to document their performances, but unfortunately all I have to do that with is a cheap Kodak. That’s the reason the screen is almost completely dark in the video that I posted on youtube and included as a link to this blog. Even with the lights out, though, you can feel the connection between Charlie and the audience – and you can also sense his talent for improvising compositions where “the main theme” that the human mind has been trained to seek out gets hinted at but never fully revealed. Here’s the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTP-I1WCr70

I’m going to try to arrange to have Charlie Wilson and King Reeves perform as a duet at the Blue Wisp in the near future – I’ll let you know more about that as soon as those plans materialize. Might I add, before I end this blog, that Charlie and King are two of the coolest, sweetest and nicest people I’ve ever met – and funny. And they’re jazz musicians to the core.

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That seems to be a non-issue, however, at the Listing Loon, a new craft beer and more store on the main drag (4124 Hamilton Ave.) in Northside.

When I dropped in the first time to ask how business was, our conversation kept getting interrupted by people buying beer—which was impressive considering that the Listing Loon had been open less than a week.

Some of the more popular beers already needed to reordered, and when I returned a couple weeks later the same “dilemma” occurred, which is not to say that me and my parvenu drinking buddies walked out empty-handed either time.

All this underscores the fact that Cincinnati is overdue for places like the Listing Loon. The recent beer fest was wildly successful, and during beer week it was all you could to show up at a bar before the kegs ran out of special beers. Evidently people in Cincinnati are ready to move beyond Bud Light, and why shouldn’t they be?

“This is a city steeped in beer history,” said Dave Mikkelsen, the co-owner of the Listing Loon along with Beth Harris. Apparently he felt the force of history since opening, as people have been quick to dial in a place where beers like Bells, Brew Kettle (from Ohio), Belgian ales, Saison, sour ales, Old English Ales, IPA’s and Fuller’s were available.

As soon as possible, The Listing Loon wants to sell wine and serve both beer and wine on the premises.

“Tastings are a big part of what we want to do,” Mikkelsen said. “We want to become a venue.”

The Listing Loon’s hours are Monday to Thursday, noon to 10 PM; Friday and Saturday, noon to 11 PM; and Sunday, noon to 6 PM. Their phone number is 513.542.5666

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Strangely, I may have enjoyed the early part of the movie the most. The first 45 minutes or an hour focused on Bob Marley before he broke (Catch a Fire in 1973 was the LP that made the world notice), which means there was none of the excitement of the stage shows that electrified audiences seeing him for the first time (although there was plenty of that in the film, and I enjoyed it as well).

Through much of the period Marley was dirt poor. Although the movie makes clear his struggles, it keeps the emphasis on his music – as did he.

It was interesting watching the people who grew up with him talk about those early days. Some of them were musicians, and some of them were not. Some of them of when on to fame, others did not. Regardless of how their lives turned out, all of them came across as deep, soulful, righteous people.

You can judge a man by the company he keeps, the saying goes, and if that’s true, Marley was blessed.

After he became rich and famous, he continued to live in Jamaica (until the attempt to assassinate him, that is), and while he was there people lined up to ask him for money and other favors, and he was very generous to the people in his community.

That humanity shines through in the film – not just in Marley, but in his friends as well.

And the whole time great music was being played.

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A few months ago I attended a Jimmy Webb concert that took place in Cincinnati. This was a very rare opportunity to see a unique and extremely talented artist, and although some time has passed since the event, I’m assuming there are some music lovers floating through cyberspace who might find this of interest. 

Because the Internet can tell us anything we sometimes have a concert memorized before the band takes the stage. We’ve studied the setlist, know every possible encore, we’ve watched youtube from earlier in the tour, and the only potential for surprise would be a power shortage. Personally, I try to avoid overpreparing for concerts, but sometimes it’s difficult to achieve a state of total ignorance before sitting down at a concert. Before I attended the Jimmy Webb concert that took place at St. Xavier High School in Finneytown I pictured, because it was a high school, a gymnasium where someone placed hundreds of folding chair on the floor and called it a concert venue. Already I could smell the cafeteria food from lunch hour and the sweat from gym class.

Still, though, I wanted to go because—well, because Jimmy Webb wrote “Galveston,” “Wichita Lineman,” “By The Time I Get to Phoenix” and all kinds of other songs that I thought I was too cool to like when I was a kid growing up in Des Moines. To me it was mom and dad music, the kind of thing that mothers would have playing at a low volume in the kitchen or a record fathers would spin on their stereo console. (Us young folks knew that portable record players were the only way to go). I thought I was too cool to like music like that, but I liked it anyway, just like I liked the theme from Midnight Cowboy and “Love is Blue” and all that other schmaltzy stuff that seemed to stem from a distant land.

In other words, I was down with more easy listening than I thought I was, and let me throw in one other song that by time I was ten years old was already haunting my imagination: “McArthur’s Park,” a lengthy Jimmy Webb composition on which the singer, Richard Harris, laments the fact that he left a cake out in the rain. That song stuck out because it was so damn dramatic, even for the late 1960s, which is saying something. And here’s the rather extraordinary thing about that and every other Jimmy Webb song I heard: even though by a young age I became quickly dubious when singers laid it on heavy, whenever I heard a Jimmy Webb song I always believed that the emotions behind it were genuine.

That, in turn, led me to believe that Jimmy Webb must be a super-serious kind of guy, and perhaps there’s been some truth to that. However, that impression led to mistaken assumption #2 of the concert: I expected the performer to be arch-serious, brooding, painfully introspective. In the one Jimmy Webb concert review I had ever read—and I skimmed at warp speed—the writer went on about the fact that while other singers had changed some of the lyrics to “McArthur Park” in order to tone down the wayward metaphors, Jimmy Webb hadn’t, and that was all I needed to read to expect an artiste to appear on stage that evening. A Keith Jarrett type, maybe, a tortured artist who took himself quite seriously.

Mistaken prediction #1 hit me upon entering the room where Jimmy Webb was going to perform. What I saw instead of folding chairs in a gym was a beautiful room with comfortable seats, great sightlines, an intimate feel, and a grand piano sitting on the stage. It was so nice that I wondered how many great concerts I had missed in that venue. Information about upcoming St Xavier shows appear as part of the Greater Cincinnati Performing Arts Society website and can be found at this link:

http://www.gcparts.org/Schedule.php#next-up

Before and after the opening act an emcee or two or three went on about what a great thing the music series was and all the discounts you could receive if you did this, that and the other. To their credit, the crowd managed to stay awake through all this, but I feared that, when it came time to introduce Jimmy Webb a speech would be given that would induce severe narcolepsy on the entire crowd. Something strange happened, though—about the time the speech was set to launch a lackey appeared from the behind the stage and told the emcee to hold on, and shortly thereafter the lackey reappeared to say, “He’s ready.” The emcee had about two seconds to speak before the lights dimmed and Jimmy Webb was standing behind the piano.

I think that happened by design—Jimmy Webb’s design. I think he found a way to make an abrupt entrance in order to kill the overkill that was bound to occur if the emcee had his way. That’s just conjecture, but there you have it.

Jimmy was dressed quite well that evening, in a dark suit, his long hair parted stylishly in the middle. He looked damn dapper for a man about retirement age. His first notes seemed tentative, like he wasn’t sure he wasn’t sure what he was going to play—either that or was testing out the piano. “This is my soundcheck,” he said a ways in (he still hadn’t sung anything yet). “Every piano has a distinct personality,” he added, and the way he said it made me wonder if this one had a personality that didn’t agree with him.

I don’t think Jimmy Webb hasn’t toured very much, and I suspect that very few people in that room had seen him before or knew what to expect. I don’t think many people had any idea that he was going to turn out to be such a character. It turns out he was quite the raconteur, with enough crazy life experiences that, were he to write an autobiography, would require several volumes. A tortured artist? Not nearly, at least not while on stage. Although the music he played was, for the most part, ultra-serious (the clearest exception was “Up, Up and Away” by the Fifth Dimension), he was a hoot and a howl. His Leonard Cohen imitation was hilarious, as were his drinking stories with, among others, Richard Harris (“Jimmy Webb, I want you to sleep in the bed where I was conceived,” Harris told him on one of their drinking nights).

He may have spent as much time telling stories as he did performing, and I welcomed that. I learned a lot about Jimmy Webb that night. I learned he was from Oklahoma, which surprised me at first, but the more I listened the more I suspected that the epic sweep that characterizes his music stems from the wide-open terrain of his home state. And for the first time I think it struck me just how out of key he was with the rest of the music world during the 1960s and early 1970s. It wasn’t just that he was a songwriter when the focus shifted to singer-songwriters; it was also his sound, and the lyrics that he wrote. Actually, if the 1960s hadn’t happened, I’m still not sure Jimmy Webb would have fit in. There’s something singular about the way he slings metaphors around and constructs his songs that I’m not sure that he ever would have reminded us of anybody else.

His performances that night could have been more polished, and I think it was a better concert because of that. It was as if the songs were under a microscope; you could tell how various parts were stitched together, and the intricacy of his compositions was more apparent with just piano and voice than with full orchestras, as on some recorded versions. Vocally Jimmy Webb is limited, but he has a nice voice and knows how to use it. When he sang “Galveston” and “Wichita Lineman,” I heard a master at work: a superb songwriter, a fine accompanist, and a singer who was able to put across the emotions with authority.

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Unfortunately, I never had a chance to see Bob Marley, but I definitely would have made the road trip because it was clear that he was a brilliant musician. I still play the Marley records I bought when I was in college, and I’ve watched a lot of footage – but the closest I’m going to come to experiencing what my friend experienced when he saw Marley in concert will take place when I watch the documentary Marley that is opening this Friday, May 4 at the Esquire Theatre in Clifton.

The movie goes back to the beginning, and along with interviews it has lots of concert footage. In other words, this is one documentary you need to see on the big screen and hear on the big speakers. Reggae music has a laid back and sensual quality, but live Bob Marley was a force of nature. I can feel that even when I watch him on a laptop and listen through mini-speakers; now it’s time to up the ante.

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Don’t be distressed if you walked over to the old place and saw an empty storefront. Now located at 343 Ludlow Avenue, Ludlow Wines only moved a couple doors down. It’s officially open for business, although the grand opening will take place on Saturday, June 2.   (Don’t worry, we’ll remind you.) In the interim you’ll have more than 150 beers to choose from as well as a huge selection of wines.

Ludlow Wines is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 8 pm. Starting in June, wine tasting will take place every Friday and Saturday from 5 pm to 8 pm, and on Saturdays beer tasting will take place during the same hours. The phone number for Ludlow Wines is 513.751.3727. When I dropped in early this evening, in spite of the fact that there were boxes all over the floor of unopened inventory familiar faces were milling around and drinking wine just like in the not-so-old days; it almost felt like a family reunion.

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Are you sold out yet?

There are some tickets still available. They are fifty dollars per person. It includes a gourmet meal, open bar, a jazz quartet from CCM and a DJ after dark for dance music. You can contact me for information and tickets at 706.3149.

And it’s actually at the school?

It’s at the school, 3545 Clifton Avenue; parking is off Resor.

What can I bid on at the auction?

We have a lot of sports experience, meaning interactive sports things with the Bearcats. We have some summer camps, one of them is a Roger Bacon basketball camp, another is the Clifton children performance theater, a summer camp there. We have opera, Playhouse in the Park, Ensemble Theater, Shakespeare Theater tickets. We have Rod Stewart and Stevie Nicks tickets, and we have several gift baskets that are all price ranges that appeal to all types of people. There are gift certificates to local restaurants and businesses. We also have original artwork by Andrew Van Sickle and Tom Lohre, plus a lot of vintage jewelry and sports memorabilia and collectibles.

What do you like best about the event?

What I enjoy most is it’s kind of like the end of spring, a kickoff event to really get people in the spirit in Clifton to mingle and get ready for summertime. You see people you haven’t seen since the fall….People have been inside. You see some familiar faces you don’t get to see all year around. It’s more of a Clifton even than it is for the school, because it really is an event that is so Clifton.

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Why should people attend the Annunciation Gaslight Gala?

It’s a fabulous event. The food is delicious and the music is great. Most importantly it’s an opportunity to see people in the community. It’s not just the Clifton community; it’s the community at large. It’s such a small world; people run into someone they haven’t seen in years and renew old friendships. 

What do people seem to enjoy the most?

People every year say, ‘When is this going to be next year’ because they enjoy it so much. They have a fair number of alumni. People who don’t get together any other time of year, they get together here.

Tell us a little about the school…

We are as unique as the Clifton community in which we’re located. We have the most diverse student body of any school I know in this area. We have students representing 18 different countries in this school. We celebrate the diversity of our student body with  the annual international festival..

What do enjoy most about the event?

What warms my heart the most is that so many people who have no personal connection with Annunciation come out to support it.

Late this week I’ll share some Q & A’s with Claudia Taylor, who has been an enthusiastic  supporter of the event since the beginning. In the meantime here’s a link with more information about the event:

http://www.annunciationbvmparish.org/GaslightGalaMain.html

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“I don’t see many fish,” I said.

“That’s because I ain’t caught any,” he replied. “But they’re in there somewhere. I’m about to dive in after ‘em.”

For weeks I’ve been planning to contact the new manager of Bogart’s, who in an interview made it clear that she had every intention of rescuing it from the dead. For some reason for some time there’s been disconnect between Bogart’ s  and the community that’s had nothing to do with the community, and I was eager to talk to the person heading up the efforts to change that. And when I was walking down Vine Street something told me that, even though I’d never seen a picture of her, the woman standing in front of Bogart’s and talking on a cell phone just might be the manager. After she got off the phone I asked if I could interview her sometime, and she (Karen Foley) said absolutely – and when I asked for a card, we went inside to get it. Once we were inside she gushed about all the changes taking place there (I’m saving that for another blog) while I snapped photos (those will be in the other blog as well). We must have spent twenty minutes wandering around while Karen described all the improvements. She was so enthused about Bogart’s (me too) that when we got outside we realized that she had forgotten to give me her card.

But she went back in to get it, and more (much more) on that later. When she came back outside and I was still in snap-photo mode, Karen urged me to take a picture of the flowers that had been planted, I asked her if she would pose with the flowers, and ta-da:

I’ll be writing a lot more about Bogart’s, but right here right now we have a more immediate concern that Karen mentioned several times during our conversation. This Saturday morning (April 21) Cleanup Corryville will be taking place.  I’ll let this link fill in the details:

http://www.uptowncincinnati.com/things-to-do/cleanup-corryville-part-great-american-cleanup

After Karen went back inside I stood in front of Bogart’s and looked around. I saw one side mostly vacated and one side filled with businesses that have mostly been around for a long time, and I thought hey, ya gotta start somewhere – and the cleanup is a step in the right direction. (The flowers, too.)

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“Free concerts every Thursday in April from 6 – 8:30pm!” reads the website for the Cincinnati Zoo, and on Thursday, April 19 the concert will feature The Tillers  as headliners with Shiny and the Spoon opening. Although The Tillers are an impressive Americana act, you should definitely also check out Shiny and the Spoon, who combine solid songwriting, sweet harmonies, and a recently expanded lineup that includes Pete Brown, an upright bass player who also happens to be the maintenance supervisor for Gaslight Property.

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So where to go? For starters, Shake-It Records in Northside is opening early that day (9:00 AM). Expect a line and a crowd…but you can get up early one Saturday a year and fight the crowd, can’t ya? Everybody’s Records in Pleasant Ridge is also celebrating the event; their day includes live music performances from 1 pm to 6 pm. I actually don’t know it Mole’s Record Exchange is planning to do anything – I’ll have to check with them.

I could go on for hours about how happy I am that vinyl is making a comeback, but I’ll try to limit my thoughts because once I really get going on this subject I notice that people nod off…First of all, I’ll say that I think the comeback is real; it’s got legs. I was there when the CD began its meteoric rise…and I’m witnessing its crash. I don’t have anything against the format, but I do have something against the corporate mindset that, for artificial reasons, eliminated a medium that was so much a part of our culture that it seemed absurd to just snuff it. I responded by becoming a vinyl patriot more than I had ever been before. In ten years I bought about two CDs and ten thousand records. Now most of those are gone, but I still have a few things to listen to. People have asked me, what album that you own is closest to your heart? That answer changes regularly, but lately here there’s been that particularly intrigues me. Take a look:

Obviously this record is a masterpiece. Even simply conceiving it is an act of genius. It may well be my favorite record, and I say that even though I have never actually played it. Let me explain: it’s not that I’m afraid the record would disappoint me in any way; I’m sure it wouldn’t. But I’m afraid that once I heard it I’d feel so disdainful toward all my other records that I’d simply say the heck with it and get rid all of all of them. If you click this image, it will expand, and you’ll be able to see that, for this particular record label – it’s called Fax – the number is 1001. To think that, by the time they released their first record, they had already created a timeless wonder. Perhaps they stopped there, or perhaps they went on to create…I can only imagine…

You can see why I love records.

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“What’s special about the Northside market is that it’s a pure community driven market,” Sara answered. “The vendors and the exhibitors have a strong connection with Northside. It’s a community taking care of a community. The farmers that aren’t from Northside have been there for many years, and Northside is the only one they do. Also, it’s the only year-around farmers market besides Findlays market.”

“Right now it’s inside at the North Presbyterian Church at 4222 Hamilton Avenue,” Sarah answered. “On May 16 we’ll move outside to Hoffner Park. We’ll have children’s activities, food trucks, live entertainment and music and local Northside artists selling paintings, jewelry and pottery as well as about twenty five local farmers selling produce.”

That kind of took me aback; I ran out of mean, tough-guy questions.

Remember, then: Wednesdays 4 pm to 7 pm. Northside is a hop, skip and a jump away from Clifton, and I have to think that simply knowing that the market exists would be enough to send lots of UC students over the viaduct.  And visit them on facebook too:

http://www.facebook.com/CinciNorthsideFarmersMarket

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Also keep in mind Mayday in Northside. Located at 4227 Spring Grove Avenue, Mayday was called the Gypsy Hut in a recent incarnation. You never know who will play Mayday – I recently saw a great set there by The War on Drugs, and now Sharon Van Etten is slated to perform there on April 27. If you don’t know who Van Etten is, I recommend checking out a couple videos before she hits town, because otherwise you could end up kicking yourself later for missing one of those special concerts at an intimate venue.  A nice voice, well-crafted songs, and a unique sound that will appeal especially to those who prefer their songs on the dark side.

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(Update) This loft-style apartment is currently occupied, but Gaslight Property wants apartment seekers to know that it has apartments for rent in several buildings in the Gaslight District in Clifton. Those buildings include the Jonathan at 451 Ludlow; Tudor Court Apartments, also on Ludlow Avenue; Whitfield Gardens, at 3242 Whitfield; Lafayette Hills, at 880 Lafayette Ave.; and buildings at 319 Terrace Ave., 525 Lowell, and 3257 Bishop.  Call Stephanie Taylor at 513.861.6000 if you’re interested in seeing any of these apartments, and she’ll show you them in person!

A unique apartment just became available on Ludlow Avenue in the heart of the gaslight district, and she’s a beauty. With approximately 1,360 square feet, this apartment offers a rare opportunity for a loft-style apartment in Clifton. Instead of several rooms partitioned off with walls, this second-floor space at 343 Ludlow Avenue combines a living room, updated kitchen and dining room into one big open space, plus there’s a bedroom in the back, and a bathroom. As you can tell from the photos, the walls have a cool color scheme that you may to keep for yourself. With hardwood floors, a tiled fireplace and a stained glass window, the apartment has lots of charm, with plenty of natural light and a great view. The location couldn’t be better: you’re above the Proud Rooster restaurant and within walking distance of Ambar India, Sitwell’s, Olive’s, The Esquire Theatre, and dozens of other shops, restaurants, bars and . Call Stephanie Taylor at 513.861.6000 if you’re interested, and she’ll show it to you in person!

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“We’ll be here on a regular basis,” he said. Reluctant to pigeonhole their music as solely jazz at the same time that he was wearing a t-shirt with images of jazz icons, Kenneth said, “We’re creative artists. We do creative music, mostly spontaneous, real spontaneous. We try to create according to the environment.”

“We’re all visual artists,” he added. “Our approach to the arts is basically in the same spirit.”

Sitting down, I watched people mosey into the café and start smoking from giant hookahs, an image that always puts me in mind of a great Marx Brothers poster that I used to see on the walls of headshops. The place was starting to fill up when The Last Boppers began their set. At first two guys were playing keyboards with preset rhythms while Kenneth blew the trumpet. The sound reminded me of the kinda funky early 1970s sound of say Les McCann or Bob James—something along those lines….Then Kenneth played some keys while someone else played sax….While listening to the music and looking around the room Leslie’s comment about creating according to the environment came back to me. This was definitely music for chilling out and smoking hookahs; even just drinking a vitamin water, I knew I had come to the right place. I got the feeling that I was watching three old friends who loved playing music together and hanging together; there was nothing but good vibes in that room. The door was open, and at times people peeked in off the street with “what the hell” faces—we call that free advertising in the business.

Using a cheap little Kodak digital camera, I have yet to win any photography awards, but I must say that on that evening I outdid myself. Check out this photo of the artists at work. I have no idea how those bubbles ended up in the photo, but it certainly underscores the far-out vibe that was in the air:

And last, but not least, for the first but not the last time in this blog, the overheard Quote of the Night: a woman walked in and sat down with a man who had been hookah smoking by himself for a good twenty minutes and said right off the bat, “Why do you look fancy when you don’t have to anymore?”

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Already people are starting to sniff it out. I know, because I pop in and out of the Bohemian Hookah Café so often that, as customers have started to filter in, I’m beginning to feel like I’m watching time-lapse photography of a budding business. For me the burning issue right off the bat was the fact that the folks had an acoustic piano left over from the Golden Lions that at least to these ears sounded pretty much in tune—close enough, anyway. I’ve actually been huntin’ ‘round for a place to play chords while I sing the songs in my folder labeled “My Songs.” When I broached the subject the man running the ship said cool, no problem.

What I could tell right away as I looked around the room was that I had found a perfect place to chill. As you can tell from the picture, the owners painted the place some cool colors and threw in some comfy couches and chairs, so that even non-smokers like me will want to hang there. (The front door has always been open when I’ve dropped by, so you don’t get smoked out.) Along with all the sweet-tasting tobacco there’s lots to drink, including espresso, cardamom ginger chai, loose mint tea and the drink that intrigues me the most, Turkish coffee. At one point I had a roommate from Turkey who made me a cup of Turkish coffee, and by the time that wore off I’d written the first half of a novel, filled out my tax forms, cleaned the bathroom and changed the muffler on my car—I can’t wait to try it again. I should also note that the first time I visited the café they were playing Thelonious Monk, which left a good first impression.

Recently when I popped into the café the proprietor told me some jazz musicians would be performing there that evening and that I might want to sit in with them. At that point I sat down at the piano and said, “You don’t understand. Now listen closely.” At that point I began to tickle the ivories—except that’s not the right expression. When I play the piano I sound a bit like a robot would if you told it to play a simple sequence of chords; someone once compared my internal rhythms to those of a Russian marching band. After a short audition the proprietor agreed that perhaps for this event I might wish to be an audience member.

Which is what I did—& you’ll hear all about it in Bohemian Hookah Café Part 2.

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I’m sure that most people reading this blog feel as if they’re living in a utopia, but something happened recently that will make our world even better. For what seems like years (maybe it was just the anticipation) rumors have been circulating about a change at The Esquire Theatre on Ludlow Avenue that will add a whole new dimension to movie-going, and it finally happened. That’s right, folks: our very own movie theater now has a bar! 

The ramifications of this transformation are huge. I mean, imagine how different the movie-going experience will be with a beer or, better yet, a cocktail in your hand. Those esoteric art films that eluded you in the past will suddenly make perfect sense, and if they don’t, well, keep drinking and it won’t really matter! And imagine watching one of those countless films where the protagonist gets liquored up and matching the poor guy or gal drink for drink – surely that would enhance your appreciation of the film.

This whole notion of cinema & alcohol is intriguing; an argument could be made, perhaps, that every genre of film demands its own drink. Take westerns, for example. There may have been one western made where someone entered the salon and didn’t order a whiskey, but I’ll guarantee you he didn’t live long. The wine The Esquire serves seems appropriate for more highbrow films, beer for the rowdiers ones, and - well, you tell me….

P.S., etc., update, new news: The night after I wrote this blog I returned to the Esquire and learned through one of the staff members that The Drink Matches The Movie Equation that I imagined is already in full swing, as evidenced by the fact that, for the sold-out Big Lebowski midnight movie, not one, not two, but sixty-plus White Russians were consumed. That gives me goose bumps….

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After putting if off forever, the other day I finally starting counting up my coins and slipping them into the paper coin wrappers I grabbed at my friendly neighborhood bank. Counting the coins took some time, but no problem: in my mind it was like free money. When I arrived at the friendly neighborhood bank I walked up to a teller and showed her my vast array of coin rolls, and she looked at them and said:

“You know we have a machine for that now.”

“No kidding?”

“And it doesn’t charge you or anything.”

“Sounds like a bargain.”

“Do you mind putting them in there instead?”

“I’d be happy to.”

Another bank customer might have been miffed to learn that he/she spent so much time preparing coin currency to be transmogrified into paper currency, but I’m too upbeat to let something like that drag me down. Gleefully I walked over to a machine that was about the size of R2D2 in Star Wars and, come to think of it, looked kind of like R2D2 in Star Wars. After pressing a couple buttons I opened the lid, cracked open a roll of dimes, closed the lid, pressed another button and then watched as the machine counted my money.

“The wonders of technology,” I said out loud to myself.

I decided to crack open my coin rolls and dump them in descending monetary order: dimes, nickels and then pennies. As it turns out, I had way more pennies than anything. I can’t tell you exactly how many though, because, well, things didn’t go so well with the pennies. Somewhere in the middle of my penny count R2D2 broke down, which was frustrating because I could barely stand the suspense of finding out just how many pennies I had. After walking over an employee opened the machine with a key, only to find that coins that were supposed to end up in plastic bags were strewn everywhere.

“Damn it,” the employee said.

“The wonders of technology,” I said.

After ten minutes of bag surgery the employee closed the machine and pressed some buttons. As it turns out the pennies that had entered the machine but had not yet been counted we will never be able to be account for because when the machine turned back on it forget about all my other pennies and basically was waiting for fresh new coins to be deposited.

“Sorry about that,” the employee said.

I returned to the teller with the receipts that I signed for the currency that the machine was able to count.

“We’ll call you up if we find an imbalance,” she said.

“The wonders of technology,” I said.

Somewhere, on a private island, the person who invented that machine is drinking piña   coladas with the bank exec who invented the money-counting machine. Their lives will not be changed because the machine doesn’t work, and no one else in the bank will suffer, because ultimately its faults increase their profit margin. As for the rest of us, all I can say is that with time I think we too will begin to appreciate the wonders of technology.

I thought that was the end of my story, but it turns out it is not, for the other day I received a check which in turn sent me back to my friendly neighborhood bank. Although I was simply there to deposit the check, curiosity got the better of me: I found myself glancing over at R2D2, which now had a sign on it that, after the transaction was completed, I walked over and read. And here is what it said: Out of Order.

Staring at that sign, I felt impressed that it was my pennies that caused the machine to malfunction. In a way it gave me a feeling of power; in fact, I felt like a magician. What happened the day R2D2 malfunctioned proved that I had the ability to make money disappear (I suppose that’s been proven many times before, but still). By the same token, I have to give some credit to the bank, for not everyone can miscount your hard-earned money, shrug their shoulders, say “Sorry, Charlie,” and get away with it.

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Rarely in this blog do we announce events more than a month in advance, but there’s one event that readers need to mark on their calendars now. Located in the heart of the Gaslight District, Annunciation Church has been a centerpiece in Clifton since it was built in 1910. Right next to the church, at 3545 Clifton Avenue, is the Annunciation School, which is nearing its 100-year anniversary (it opened in 1914). All the proceeds from the 5^thAnnual Annunciation Gaslight Gala benefits this preschool and K-8 school. The Gala gets bigger every year, and although I rarely make predictions, I’m just going to come out and say that this one will break all previous records. You’ll be hearing more about this event, but for right now here’s some information so you can mark your calendar:

5TH ANNUAL ANNUNCIATION GASLIGHT GALA: A Clifton Celebration
Saturday April 28, 2012
6 p.m. – Midnight Father Klug Center, 221-1230
Clifton Attire: “T-shirts to Tails”
$50.00/person or $350.00/table of 8
Includes gourmet dinner, open bar, & music
Large Silent Auction that includes tickets, art, & more
For Ticket Sales call 706-3149 or 221-1230
ALL proceeds benefit Annunciation School

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Here’s the when and where for Tom Lohre’s show: 

Clifton Performance Theater, 404 Ludlow Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45220, across the street from CVS

Monday, April 2 to Monday, April 9

Reception Friday April 6, 6 – 9 p.m.

Hours: Mon – Fri, Noon to 3:30, 7-8 p.m.; Sat & Sun, Noon – 8 p.m.

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Nelson Slater Pays a Visit

I had a nice visit today with Nelson Slater, who dropped by to trade two LPs of particular interest to me for a box of 45s of particular interest to him. If you don’t know Nelson, he’s a fellow Cliftonite who has done contract work for Gaslight Property. Nelson attended Syracuse University in the early 1960s, where he befriended and played music with a guy named Lou Reed, who ended up forming a band that was pretty good and then went on to have a solo career as well. Nelson also penned a couple great song in the soul vein that have become what I will refer to as obscure classics: “Get Out” by Tommy Sears and “Symphony” by Andy & the Marglows. Here are youtube links to hear those songs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rClPJOfCeDc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-CyeyZB064

In 1976 Nelson released an album called Wild Angel on RCA; Lou Reed produced the record and performed on it. He continues to perform all over the country and release new music. While Nelson was here I had a chance to catch up with what was going on musically and otherwise.   

What have you been up to lately?

Becoming number one in the world.

You were recently in New York City. Did you have any fun there?

We went to see Data Rock Friday night, and got to talk to them about doing some music with me, and then we played a concert that night on the roof of 197 E 4^th street on a wonderful roof with a steam plant in the background and us playing our music for the steam age.

Tell us about your recent vinyl release.

Our current EP, Steam-Age Time Giant, consists of live recordings from our 2011 tour, featuring four songs spontaneously combusted at events at clubs and venues in New York, Columbus, Cincinnati and New Jersey.

How can people buy a copy of the EP?

See me on facebook and we’ll take it from there.

If someone runs into you on the street, can you buy one that way?

If you catch me on the street the price is 11 dollars and 11 cents, or you can buy it at independent record stores including Kim’s records in New York, A1 records in New York, Rebel Rebel in New York, Academy Records, Used Kids in Columbus, Mole’s and Everybody’s in Cincinnati.

What’s coming up in the near future?

We’re headlining Record Store Day at Used Kids in Columbus April 21. And we’ll have the second run of copies of Steam Age Time Giant and test CDs of the new albums.

And the new album is called…

Curse of Writing is the name of the album on Are and Be records under our new affiliation to be announced.

I see “steam-age” language a lot in your band names and in conversation. Can you explain the significance of steam age?

It’s science concepts from the 1880s with Tesla, Jules Verne, Doctor Helena Blavatsky, with the secret to unlimited power for mankind. As often happens, swindlers like Alex Bell and Tom Edison saw the opportunity to monetize man’s birth right. Thus, we have little wires strung all over the world charged by the criminal act of burning life and producing toxic garbage. The steam age is the geothermal age and it is the ion generation of power as demonstrated in the great pyramids in Eqypt, the Mayan structures and the Tesla tower of power. If there is a future, it will begin with a reversal of the retro grade motion of science and industry in our recent history.

What’s your favorite song ever?

I thought of that the other day and I thought I’ll never remember it again…My favorite song ever? Jeez. Oh man. Let’s see. I guess it would have to be “Ghost Riders in the Sky” by Vaughan Monroe.

What do you like about that song?

It’s an apocalyptic sci-fi cowboy epic vision that tripped me out when I was five years old.

Have you been to the new hookah bar where the Golden Lion used to be?

Not in. My eyeballs looked in but that was as far as I could go.

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