Friday, January 27, 2006

I got a radio show!

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Friday, January 20, 2006

Wilson Pickett dead at 64

Dear Friends,
Just as I was about to send this out, I got word that Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Wilson Pickett passed away. We have him to thank for great old songs like "In The Midnight Hour", "Mustang Sally", "Land Of 1000 Dances" and many more. Just consider how many calories have been burned to his music, how many dollars (or yen, or pounds) have changed hands for his undying hits - not just in record sales, but every musician who's ever been paid or tipped to play them. It's safe to say he's bought me dinner many times. No performer can take his place, but I sure wish someone would come close. He'll be missed.
News: http://tinyurl.com/92epp
Profile: http://tinyurl.com/awabc
Discography: http://tinyurl.com/dyasn
ArtistDirect: http://tinyurl.com/7fqah

The Tuesday jam nights at Nik's Place have been drawing fine talent, too much to list, on average 20 participating players per night. I highly recommend you come out for this, there's always something interesting to see & hear. The magic of music being created from scratch, on the spot, by artists who may never have met... I lack the eloquence. Ya just gotta be there. Here's a few photos: http://musicians.meetup.com/266/photos/
Come on out, and bring friends.

I continue to be impressed by the Tavern On The Bridge gig in general. Andrew Black & The Believers consist of Andrew, Jon Schwenke, Ricky Fargo and myself. The level of musicianship & harmony, the venue itself, and the pro sound management by Tweak make this gig a treat. Last night at TOTB, we were visited by singer Doug Easterly, who sat in for a couple songs and did a great job. Doug is half of the duo Cover To Cover, who I highly recommend. Barry Richman and Kelly Thomas stopped in too, always nice. But here's the discovery: Richard Porter and Ellen Hamby came by and shot video of the last set. Ellen has been taking videos of various musicians around town for quite some time, and has posted about 150 of them online on a new service I didn't know about, Video Google. This is something I've always wanted to do, to archive some of the brilliant talent we have in this area before it either gets too big for us (like John Mayer) or gets away entirely (like Tim "Kokomo" Gunther). I wish more people would do it. You can see Ellen's works here: http://tinyurl.com/9mgp3

I've been getting more calls from Heaven Davis, a great entertainer I heartily recommend. Did a fine show with her at Chip's recently. There was some early, preliminary, vague possibility of overseas gigs. I've done my homework (having seen both "European Vacation" and "Eurotrip"), and I'm ready to go. I can say "where's the bathroom?" in 5 languages. And just this evening I got word that I've also been recommended to Mitch Ryder (yes, the famous one) for a slot in his band too; there again, nothing but the vaguest preliminary possibility at this point but cool to imagine anyway. (back in my computer days, this is what we called "vaporware")

The North Atlanta Musicians Meetup group is up to 60 members now. 80 will make us one of the five largest in the world. I invite you to come by the website, check us out, and if it looks like fun join up. No dues, no hassles, nothing but fun and maybe some profitable connections. We're using the Tuesday jams at Nik's Place as our weekly meetup and jam. http://musicians.meetup.com/266

My shows for this weekend are:

Friday, Jan. 20, 10PM-2AM
The George Price Band
Nik's Place Restaurant and Bar (aka The Back Porch)
645 Whitlock Ave. (aka Hwy GA-120)
Marietta, GA 30064 770-792-6666
about 1 mile west of Marietta Square
across the street from Waffle House
Free Wi-Fi, GREAT food!
web: http://www.niksplace.com
map: http://tinyurl.com/dhdek

Sunday, Jan. 22, 7PM-??
The George Price Band OPEN JAM
Woodstock Live (formerly The Fire House)
12195 Hwy 92
Woodstock, GA 30188 770-924-5594
In the Publix Shopping Center at Hwy 92 and Trickum Rd.
web: http://www.firehouselive.com/sunday.htm
map: http://tinyurl.com/ann4f

Regular shows:

Tuesdays:
George Price Band open jam & Meetup
Nik's Place
645 Whitlock Av. (aka Hwy GA-120)
about 1 mile west of Marietta Square
Marietta GA 30064 770-792-6666
web: http://www.niksplace.com/
map: http://tinyurl.com/b3gql

Wednesdays:
Andrew Black & The Believers
Tavern On The Bridge
9775 Medlock Bridge Rd., Suite A.
Duluth, 30097 770-232-1210
Nice room, big floor & stage, pro sound, good food.
Southeast corner of State Bridge Rd. and Medlock Bridge (Hwy 141)
One door south of Stony River.
web: http://www.tavernonthebridge.com
map: http://tinyurl.com/8lp8g