Down On The Corner
Sometimes being on the corner means stretching it out a bit, so a trip to Southern Indiana was in order recently. Stopped in to see Rob Pickett, owner of Modern Music Outlet in Jeffersonville and had a nice chat. Seems he's playing with the Mudcats, who have undergone a bit of rearrangement of personnel. The current lineup is Jimmy Rosen, harmonica; Susan O'Neil, vocals; Paul Bennett, bass; Gene Wickliffe, drums; and Rob on guitar. Rob confirmed the story that Mighty Water Kings guitarist Tony Bowles has signed on with the Henry Lee Summer Band. Fans will have a chance to see him at the Derby Jam, along with Eddie Money.
Noted Southern Indiana fiddler and mandolinist extraordinaire Jeff Guernsey has saddled up his horse and ridden away with country singer Steve Wariner. Guernsey did manage to finish his duties on D. Tuggle's new album before hitting the trail. Best of luck, Jeff.
Singer/songwriter Tom Flood popped into the Rudyard one recent Monday night. Says he's plugging away down in Nashville -- plug, plug, plug (See Tom's article elsewhere). Tom's former NoZmo King fiddlin' partner, Rusty May, has married and is now Sandra Henderson, and living in Canada. We'll watch for her occasional trips home.
All you Jean Ritchie fans take note -- Jean will be at the Kentucky Center for the Arts, Bomhard Theater, May 25 and 26, in a show put together by Martha Connerton of the dance group Sphere, Inc.
For those of you who, like me, missed the last concert put on by Tiny Lights at Uncle Pleasant's, take heart. This New Jersey-based New Something Age band, fronted by a cello and violin, with a rock and roll rhythm section, will be back at Uncle P's on Derby Eve. Owner Mark Smalley was chortling over the fact that he got them to return only a month after their last gig. Said it took him a year the last time. I told him getting a gig, any gig, in Louisville on Derby Eve might have been a slight incentive. Tiny Lights will have Tuba Blooz and Core of Resistance for an opening act.
Jane His Wife opened a special show at Tewligans for Shaking Family last month. This Nashville group was heavily plugged by Vince Emmett, SF guitarist. Unfortunately, I only caught the last couple of measures of their last song, so I'll have to wait to hear them again. Darn it, Vince, you were supposed to introduce me to all those Elektra/Asylum execs who were gonna be there....
David Barhorst, one of the owners of the new Tewligans, was kind of busy that night. Seems his wife was in labor...with the first kid.
Other Tewligans notes: early Thursday evenings will feature single acoustic performers in the front room. If you haven't wandered into Tewligans lately, it's just not the same. However, I find it hard to get too teary-eyed about the painting of the giant dead cockroach that used to be on one wall, and I certainly don't miss the blob, er, old carpet.
Stopped in to see Trudy Walters at the Do Drop Inn on Story Avenue. Trudy and her partner Felix have owned the country-music bar since August and have since bought Doc Holiday's on Seventh Street Road. She says they're planning to have Holiday's open by Derby.
Wayne Young, V-P 0f MERF and veteran performer, revealed the news about the upcoming "rock school" to be run through Mom's Music. It seems that Mom's owner Marvin Maxwell finagled the deal from Yamaha, with Mom's to be one of the three places in the country to operate a pilot version of the program. Yamaha designed the school to increase the number of young people taking up music. Details about this program will be forthcoming.