Down On The Corner
• Our drywalling, guitar-picking friend Rick Wagner has resurfaced after a period of absence from the scene. He is hosting an open stage at the Lighthouse on Frankfort at Pope Street on Wednesday nights, starting August 2.
• Mary Jean Zena, she of Zena's, gets the full-bore interview treatment in the July issue of the Kentuckiana Blues Society's Blues News newsletter. Swipe a copy from a friend who's a member if you're too cheap to join.
• In case you lunch or work downtown, WFPK will kick off a new live weekly Friday broadcast, Live Lunch, which will feature a Louisville act, beginning with Heidi Howe on August 4. Admission is free and a pre-ordered lunch is available from Luckett's/Bristol catering (you can also brown bag it.) but seating is limited, so call 814-6500 for reservations. The Live Lunch Hotline is 814-6536.
• The Kentucky Opera has announced a new program for young artists, to be called the Rudd Program, after Mason Rudd, the donor of the funds necessary to make the program happen. Four singers and pianist, chosen through nation-wide auditions, will spend fifteen-weeks in Louisville, learning, performing and assisting in staging "Rigoletto," one of the KO's main stage productions.
• The KO has also snagged a tidy $92,600 from the Kentucky Arts Council in the form of a Challenge grant. The grant, which must be matched with other funds and in-kind contributions, is to fund a program to develop and maintain broad-base, ongoing support.
• Despite claims to the contrary, corporate radio allows a sliver of Louisville music on the radio, generally in the form of very late-night Sunday programs that are used to dump their required Public Service Announcements. Now the WTFX the Fox has announced that they will have a new show, unhappily titled "The Local Music Show,: to be run on Sunday nights (of course) but at 7 p.m. Zowie! Grab those goodies, wow and woof!
Okay, so I'm a cynic. Sue me. Now if we can just get them to change the name to "Louisville Music" something or the other, we'll be making some progress.
• Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corporation' Band to Band 2000 program has launched its unsigned talent contest in fifteen markets nationwide. There are lots of prizes, generally money. Louisville, however, is not one of the fifteen markets from whence the bands will be selected. So much for the home court advantage. If you are still interested, contact Fresh Tracks at 2240 North Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614, attn: Brett Heekin.
• This year's CMJ Music Marathon, MusicFest & Filmfest 2000, set for October 19-22 in New York might be a little more interesting this year, as many panels have titles like "It's the Internet, Stupid: The Future of the Music Industry" and "...And Then There Were Three: Major Labels in the 21st Century." Get the drift? To register online, go to www.cmj.com/Marathon. For more information, contact CMJ 2000 at 1-877-FESTIVAL.
• Woman musicians might be interested in attending the ROCKRGRL Music Conference 2000, set for November 2-4 in Seattle. The stated goal is "to promote, encourage and celebrate women's achievements in the music industry." Keynote speakers include Ronnie Spector (the Ronettes) and Amy Ray (Indigo Girls). For more information, contact ROCKRGRL Music Conference 2000, 7683 SE 27th St. #317, Mercer Island, WA 98040 or call 206-275-4623 or email conference@rockrgrl.com or log on to www.rockrgrl.com.
• Still looking for just the right music conference? How about the IMX (Interactive Music) Music XPO, scheduled for October 3 & 4 in Los Angeles? This one focuses on emerging technologies in the music industry and it hurts my head to think about that. The general admission isn't too bad, but the All-Access Pass will set you back $795. For more information, contact Lauren Sullivan at 203-256-0561 or go onto www.imusicxpo.com.
• Louisville musicians, take note. Louisville Music.com has kicked off the Louisville Gig Notification Service, which translates to this: send your public dates to LM.com and they will be sent to all other Louisville-focused media which might print them (C-J, LEO, News4U, LMN, LMN webcalendar, NA Tribune, the Voice, Louisville Defender, WFPK, etc.) The fee for this service is mere $5 a month, payable three months in advance. For more information, call 893-9933.
• Aubrey Conway, 81, died Thursday, July 27. Conway was the father of LMN writer Jim Conway.
• Otis "Bob" Kidd, 77, died in Louisville on July 13. He was a retired musician who played with the old Chicago-based WLS Trio.
• Charles J. "Joe" Niehoff, 87, died on July 20 in Louisville. He was a musician and former leader of the Joe Niehoff Band.
• Quintis E. "Tuck" Raisor, 67, died on Saturday, July 10 in Louisville. Raisor was the founder and President of the Kentucky Thumbpickers Club.