The August 30, 2010 Jam

Well, the first half of our "end of summer", back-to-back, Bluegrass & Beyonds went swimmingly last night - especially after Scotty arrived from his early evening aquatic awards gig!

He showed right at the beginning of the "after jam", in time to lead an amazing version of "Rocket Man". I know he's a virtual one man orchestra, but this was ridiculous - he was singing, playing and directing the B & B chorus throughout his solos. I got a couple of glances because I was "oohing", when I should have been "aahing" - but, luckily he got distracted by a couple of his famous augminished demented 8th chords - and let me off the hook.

Oh yeah... and later he led us in a minor version of "Bury Me Beneath The Willow". It sounded like the Carter Family doing a Russian Vodka ad!

"Professor" Pete (although the nickname thing is still undecided, because I still prefer "Pistol", seeing him on a horse in a 40's cowboy movie, with one of those big old wide brimmed cowboy hats...) sang us a version of a Johnny Bond tune "I Wonder Where You Are Tonight" with some of the weirdest chords this side of Scottie.

He also had a nice song about where have all the honky tonks gone - possibly from George Jones - I don't remember exactly (that's why he's the Professor and I'm not...).

Karen's summer engagements appear to have ended, as she came roaring back into town with a new version of "Folsom Prison Blues".

Craig led a kick-ass version of "Ragtime Annie" in the after jam, after stealing "Rosa Lee McFall" from Jonathan - who stole it from whom? 

Jon said that he was going to steal "A Three-Legged Man, With A Two-Legged Woman, Chased By A One-Legged Man" from Craig - but that he couldn't even say it - let alone sing it!

Sarah performed a sweet  version of Utah Phillips song "Rock Salt and Nails" for her visiting friends from Colorado and N.J. (after representing Bluegrass & Beyond in Ellsworth, Maine at an open mic during our recent vacation).

Steve went "Beyond" most of the evening with The Stones and The Dead - he may have done some Dead Stones In The Middle Of The Road, as well - things were a little hazy during that part of the evening.

Co-host A.J., enjoying a breather after last leading last jam solo, gave us "Dixie" - neither Bluegrass, nor Beyond - an ampersand number, as co-host Bill likes to say.

Jeanne and Scottie lead a ripping tempoed version of "Sweet Georgia Brown" (yeah, I made up that word...).

They also were instrumental, along with Pete, Gail and myself in the late night "Paddy's Waltz Time" show - featuring the waltzes of most states in the Union.

Co-hosts Bill and I barely had time to lead any ourselves, but highlights would include "Deep River Blues" and "Hallelujah, I'm Ready To Go" from Ralph Stanley.

See you in a short week,


Dave Comins
www.bluegrassandbeyondnyc.com
Facebook / Bluegrass & Beyond NYC

The August 16th, 2010 Jam

Hi there,

Well, co-hosts Bill and I left A J to his own devices to run the last Bluegrass & Beyond jam - and he obviously let it get out of hand.

I'm putting Scotty on probation for one jam - the offense being playing an old TV theme song without Bill being present (see the "TV Nostalgia Night" Jam blog entry).

I can't believe that you guys encouraged him by singing along... maybe everyone should be on probation.

"Family Ties"? Where did that come from? I might have to talk to Time Warner about having Scot's service suspended...

Otherwise, reports filtering back are that the jam went well - kudos to A J!

See you soon (at full strength),

Dave Comins

www.bluegrassandbeyondnyc.com

A New Bluegrass & Beyond Poster!

Unless you're just waking up and haven't quite reached for a coffee yet, you will have noticed the new addition to our blog and website...

Our Art Department here at Bluegrass & Beyond was up late last night creating a new official poster for our 3rd year in existence!

Thanks especially go out to Sarah Galloway (who had to ignore my back seat editing most of the night...).

We figure that with the NYC Health Dept. putting letter grades in all the restaurant windows - that bar patrons should have some form of quality assurance as well.

Look for our poster in the windows of the finest drinking establishments in NYC (say Paddy Reilly's Music Bar) - and rest assured that the music that accompanies your drinking experience will be the finest in quality!

The Come Aways and The 2nd Ave. Mountain Boys to play at LaGuardia Corner Gardens

The Come Aways at JUNTO Space, Bushwick, 2010

The Come Aways and The 2nd Ave. Mountain Boys are performing at one of our favorite venues - the LaGuardia Corner Gardens (right in the heart of Greenwich Village).

Bluegrass & Beyond NYC  at the LaGuardia Corner Gardens, 2010 (Bluegrass & Beyond NYC are AJ Bender, Dave Comins, Sarah Galloway and Bill Giles)

See, I told you it was beautiful... and free!

Mark the date and place - Saturday, July 31st, 2010, 5:00 - 7:30 pm at the LaGuardia Corner Gardens, 511 LaGuardia Place (between Bleecker and Houston - closer to Bleecker).

The show will start at 5:00 with an hour of duets from an eclectic variety of sources - by The Come Aways (Sarah Galloway and Dave Comins), performing a capella, as well as with banjo, harmonica, National guitar and guitar. Blind Willie Johnson to Nanci Griffith... and back.

The 2nd Ave. Mountain Boys at Paddy Reilly's Music Pub, 2010

Following The Come Aways, from 6:15-7:30 pm will be the strictly bluegrass sounds and wonderful four-part harmonies of the 2nd Ave. Mountain Boys  - featuring  Jon Buchalter on guitar, Bill Giles on banjo, mandolin and guitar, Leslie King on mandolin and "Banjo" Mike Mulhollan on vuvuzela (I hope I'm kidding about that).

Hope to see all of you there...

July 19, 2010 - The "Zen" Jam

Well, it's good to be back, jamsters:

According to co-hosts Bill and AJ, the July 5th jam went off without a hitch - but I haven't heard a thing about it.

It's kind of like a tree falling in the forest while one hand claps... you never really know what it sounded like. I'll go with the flow and assume it happened!

Maybe I'll just call it the "Zen" jam. I wonder if anyone sang any Leonard Koan?

Speaking of koans and other mysteries, can anyone explain to me what Craig was singing about - a guy steals another guy's wooden leg (plus his wife) and then spends the rest of the song as a three-legged man - with a two-legged wife - being chased by a one-legged man? You can't make this stuff up!

He also did a nice version of "The Fox" (which I did understand...)

Scottie, sporting some natty shorts and socks, gave us "Summer Breeze" - apparently feeling a little breezy himself. I loved his introduction to the song's introduction: "The simple C to A is a gateway into a gorgeous pop tune...". I thought I was in an episode of "Star Trek".

That was only the beginning for Scott. He also gave us a highlight of the evening - the Doobie Brothers' "Black Water" - I think that was the song that had a B11 - causing Steve to ask: "Isn't that a vitamin?" Scotty was aghast... (for other memorable Scotty chords - see the "Disco" jam blog entry).

I can honestly say that Scott's a treasure to have at any jam - and especially at ours!

Well, I guess Westchester was closed for the evening because half of the Westchester Bluegrass Club showed up for B & B...

I'll blame Mike, Bob and Karen for that.

Mike gave us "The Year That Clayton Delaney Died" by Tom T. Hall and Karen went Canadian on us, with Gordon Lightfoot's "For Lovin' Me".

Northern newbies Deborah ("I'll Fly Away") and Pete (I think, Jim Reeves "Blue Side Of Lonesome") both sang it with a Westchester accent - although both claim to hail from NYC - fancy that!

Liz spent most of the evening looking for banjo parts at the bar - I think she almost resorted to using a Guiness bottle as a bridge... we'll have to wait until next jam to hear her play.

Gail was back again from the South, leading "Another Night" and others.

Lynn's "Bartender's Blues" by James Taylor was fun.

Sarah kicked last night with a bar-bashing version of "Sweet Home Alabama", followed by "Hey Joe".

The co-hosts didn't take their job lightly either. AJ's "Dire Wolf" from the Dead and my own "The Old Crossroads" from the father of bluegrass, as well as "Give Me The Highway" from Vince Gill (the great-grandson of bluegrass?) rounded out a good evening.

See you in two weeks, and get on the mailing list if you're not on it already.

Dave Comins

www.bluegrassandbeyondnyc.com