Nightflying: The Entertainment Guide

    I heard from ones of fans after my comment of who cares? It is so nice to know that one is appreciated, even if it is only by one or two other people. I even got bumped up to page nine! Wow! I feel like I was on the Colbert Report or something.
    I have no idea what page I am on today. Ever feel like that? Sure you have … please, tell me you have. It gets scary out here alone. And please forgive me for not going gaga over Lady Gaga.
    I shall now pay tribute to a living artist. I just read that Cassandra Wilson, who has been reviewed in these pages, has had a marker placed on the blues trail, at a middle school in Jackson, Mississippi. She said she chose that site because it is where she got her start in music, though she also credited her dad, bassist Herman Fowlkes, Jr. If you have ever heard her, you know why I admire her and if you are yet to hear her, well, what are you waiting for?
    And next I shall take another detour from my usual litany of passing musicians by mentioning the passing of David Gerber. He had no relation to music but he was a television producer of shows that had theme songs. Okay, that may be weak, but what was far from weak was his character. He was a gunner on a bomber shot down in Germany during WWII, survived the rigors of a POW camp, came home, got an education, and carved out a lucrative career in TV. One thing that stands out about him is that he always had time to stop and chat with anyone, from fellow executives all the way up to the janitors.
    Now I shall revert to my default mode and mention the passing of Earl Gaines, who sang blues with Louis Brooks and Bill Doggett, and had a solo career as well. Gaines was 75.
    Also passing from the scene was Willie Mitchell, who played trumpet and was a producer, engineer, and talent scout for Hi Records. His best find was Al Green. Mitchell was 81. And Memphis punk rocker Jay Reatard has packed it in at 29.
    Here is a name you probably have never heard: Felix Wurman. He founded the Church of Beethoven, a performance series held on Sundays in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and was the cellist son of composer Hans Wurman, an Austrian Jew who had escaped Nazi persecution. Felix was 51.
    Miep Gies was not a musician, but she played a vital role in the history of the world. She provided security and succor to Anne Frank and her family during the Nazi occupation of The Netherlands. She also saved the diary Anne had passed to her and its publication was certainly a truly pivotal point in history. Miep Gies lived to be 100.
    A couple of issues ago I paid homage to a guy who gave Teddy Pendergrass his first exposure and now Teddy himself has passed. He was only 59 and had had a stellar singing career that he did not let a crippling auto accident end.
    Down here by the bayou, we sadly pay our last respects to Bobby Charles. His songs were recorded by such disparate artists as Bill Haley, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Frogman Henry, Etta James, Junior Wells, Muddy Waters, Lou Rawls, Dr John, Marcia Ball, Tom Jones, Gatemouth Brown, Joe Cocker, Kris Kristofferson, Bo Diddley, and Cajun band Beausoliel. Bobby Charles was 71.
    As 2010 begins, I think back to the highlights of last year, one of which was a road trip to Chicago with Eddie “Jack Stone” Eifling, during which I got to spend an evening with Mudcat and reminisce about the old days. He showed me his new guitar, which was so beautiful I was afraid to touch it (not that he would have let me). There is something about old friends. You feel comfortable with them and you can take up a conversation like you had just left it off a few minutes before, despite the fact that you have not seen them for years. Friends are my treasure on earth.
    Speaking of friends, I recently read a novel by David Reich, whom I met in Fayetteville. He is from New Jersey, went to Tufts, and then on to the MFA program at the U of A in writing. He has taught English and he has written for or edited magazines and has authored a slew of short stories and at least one novel before this one.
    David was unsuccessful in getting his novel The Path of Bowling, a comic masterpiece, into publication. But he has birthed a new one: The Antiracism Trainings, not as broad as Bowling, but still a hoot. His dead-on description of a church group and its foibles is such a send-up of that milieu that it cannot help but resonate with anyone who has experienced it.
    We discussed the possibility of doing movie reviews way back when, but decided not to. We never discussed book reviews, because we make no pretense at being a literary magazine, but this is a book you might not hear about otherwise and the author is, as I said, an old friend of mine, so I feel comfortable about giving you a heads up on a really well-written and thought-provoking read. And did I mention that it is funny?
    And still speaking of friends, Mike Dollins has much music for sale at bluesguitarnews.com/records – check it out.

BRIGHT RED ROAD
Ellsworth
Indie
    This is just a wonderful album. It is one great song after another. Ellsworth does doo-wop and rock and country and folk, all with the élan of the true artist. His lyrics are masterful and his melodies moving. The album was recorded at RockGarden Studio in Brooklyn, New York. Ellsworth, who sings and plays guitar, piano, and bass, is joined by a phalanx of musicians on an incredible variety of instruments, including harp, accordion, fiddle, sax, cello, and sousaphone (not something you hear every day). It is a most entertaining piece of work. Go to ellsworthsongs.com for info on how to order.

SHINE
Nancy Apple
R-I-N-G-O
    This is the second Nancy Apple album I have heard and is another excellent example of the music of Memphis. Keith Sykes co-produced along with Ms Apple and contributed some sterling guitar work as well. I had made contact with Nancy Apple after I heard her the first time, as I was going to be visiting Memphis and wanted to know if she was going to be appearing anywhere while I was there. She let me know when and where she would be and graciously invited me to attend, but as it turned out I did not get to, much to my regret. Her voice has a rather low timbre and is as comfortable as a front porch swing on a cool spring night. She also wrote most of the songs in this collection and she has a deft hand at that too. I highly recommend her music. Go to ringorecords.net or nancyapple.com for further info. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that this was recorded at the legendary Sun Studio.

TAKE A PICTURE OF ME
(TO SHOW I WAS HERE)
Nancy McCallion
Mama Mama
    Just when you are thinking this is pure-dee country, she throws a ballad into the mix. Hey, cool. Nancy McCallion is a fine wordsmith in addition to being such a good singer, and she plays guitar and harmonica on top of that. Recorded at A Writer’s Room Studio in Tucson, Arizona, the album is a snapshot of several influences on American music and a nod to the Bread and Roses Cultural Project, which gives cameras to the poor and working classes so that they can record their presence and their view of life. One dollar for every copy of this CD sold goes to The Primavera Foundation, which also works to lift people out of poverty. See more at primavera.org.

SO FAR
Bryan Gorsira
Indie
    This guy sounds a great deal like Cat Stevens (and since Cat had to go and embrace violence and change his name to Yusuf Islam, I suppose we need a replacement). Bryan Gorsira sings gentle songs and in these times gentle may be something more people should aspire to.

DON’T LOOK DOWN
John Morrison
Blue Cloud
    This came from Scotland, but sounds more like it was done in the Arkansas hills. Maybe this is proof positive of where our country and folk music came from. I dunno. I do know that this is a really good album, full of simple, heartfelt songs, all composed and arranged by John Morrison himself. While not quite as raw as, say, Bob Dylan, his voice is solid, but like a chunk of wood that has interesting grain, but has yet to be sanded and polished. In fact, now that I think on it and listen to a song sung over banjo, he reminds me of Pete Seeger.

NOT FOR SALE TO MINORS
Gary Alt
Indie
    Rats! I was looking forward to listening to this and got through the first song when it quit playing. Nothing I did enabled me to listen to the rest of the album, but I just know it is good. The first song is a cover of an old Gerry and The Pacemakers hit from the British invasion days, quite a competent cover at that. Oh well, this happens…or as our erstwhile publisher likes to put it, Excrementum Occurrum…

BRAND NEW REASON
The Salty Dogs
Max
    Salty is right, but not over salted. These guys play honky-tonk music and even slip into some old time rock (they whip out a slick rendition of the Chuck Berry lovelorn song to his errant sweetie, Nadine). One of the Salty Dogs, Brad Williams, wrote all the other songs. The greatest compliment I can think of to pay them is that they play it just like Buck Owens would. And looky here, one of the Dogs is a bloke named Nick Devlin, so you know why there is such great guitar playing going on. Other members of the assembly are Bart Angel and Brent LaBeau (also Stephen Winter throws in some keyboard work). Only problem with this album is there are only eight songs on it. I want more…

TIME AND MONEY
Scott Becker
Dogslobber
     Good stuff, dog slobber. Several years ago I had burned a couple of fingers to the point that I had big blisters on them. My son AJ had a pit bull bitch named Chica, who licked and nibbled my wounds for a couple days and I healed in record time. Oh, wait, we are supposed to be talking about music. OK, there is a lot of really sweet guitar playing here and Becker writes good songs. Nice and jazzy at times. A whole host of folk contributed to the album, too many to list, but I must mention Yoggie Musgrove for his tasteful bass and the background vocals of Lisa Tingle, just because I love her name. Becker has a high voice, reminding me a bit of Michael Franks.

MAKING SKY
Underclaire
indie
    I would not know how to classify this, maybe alt-rock? These fellows play well, up-tempo, but not hard and fast, sans screaming. One can understand the lyrics (and I assume they are original; I got no information on the band, no bio, nothing but the disc). At any rate, it sounds pretty good, like they put some thought into it and even some practice. We know they are not middle school students or they would never have named themselves something that rhymes with underwear. But what is that critter up in that tree?

COTTON
Sam Baker
Blue Lime Stone
    This is not so much a set of songs as poetry set to music, but unless I am seriously losing it, I did a review of this album already. I still like it.

STAYING’S NOT AN OPTION
The GLG Band
Smallboy
    In case you were wondering, GLG stands for George L. Goodfellow. The music is simply plain old country, but was recorded in Scotland, at least partly, so we survived the British invasion only to get the Scottish invasion? Well, maybe they will bring some of their good whisky with them. I like the music too. Goodfellow writes good songs, easy tunes and down-to-earth lyrics.

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