Yay! The long-awaited summer appears to have started. It's been a long spring but at last we've had a couple of days sitting on the deck after work with a G&T. Life is good!
A Weekend in New Orleans
We have become complacent about travel. Your humble correspondent was in N'awlins for a weekend in May to attend the 9th Annual Zone Music Reporter Awards as a Nominee. Sadly, Wires Rosewood & Roots did not win the Best Album Instrumental Acoustic award but it was still a great honour to have been nominated. Thanks to everyone who voted for me and to all the radio stations who play the CD.
The weekend was a blast (aside from the travel there which was a fog-delayed pain in the butt.) The Friday night Meet & Greet was a great time and I met a bunch of people in real life who were hitherto just e-mail and Facebook contacts. The Awards Show itself was obviously the reason for the weekend - think of the Grammys with the focus on instrumental music - and it was also a blast to head off to the French Quarter after it and have a burger and a beer at the Hard Rock Cafe. About 15 of us outlasted the rock 'n rollers and closed the place! New Age Rules, OK!
Gigs in Toronto
So now it's on to planning for the fall but before that, we have a quick trip to Ontario coming up. I am excited to have been invited by Alan and Joanna Mills to play an O'Hara House Concert. Joanna and I have been working on the date since last year's OCFF conference and it's now set for June 22. If you're in the city, it would be great to see you at the show. Contact and ticketing information can be found here. There's a backyard barbecue planned and the concert will be al fresco (weather permitting).
If you can't make that date, you'll have another opportunity on June 27th. My friend Shawna Caspi and I are doing a double bill at the renowned Free Times Cafe (College St just west of Spadina). No cover, pay what you can to the donation jar. Kick-off is 9:30pm. Shawna is a great musician, insightful lyrics, wonderful voice and fine finger-style guitar playing. I'll be doing my best to keep up.
And on the Friday night before all this (June 21st), I'm very pleased to be appearing live in the studio on Acoustic Planet, hosted by Steve Clarke, on Mix 88.1FM, Erin's Community Radio station. You can listen on-line or over the air the old-fashioned way if you're within range. I'll be playing live on-air showcasing some of the my new tunes and spinning some favourites from the musical world.
Nova Scotia New Age Blues
As I mentioned in the May blog,we've been shooting more videos in conjunction with Analog Songs. We shot two videos one day in April both of new pieces of music. The first of these videos was filmed in the Old Blacksmith's Shop in Lunenburg (which is now the headquarters of the Ironworks Distillery). The song is called Nova Scotia New Age Blues and is scheduled for release on June 10th. Watch this space for the official announcement and details on where you can watch it.
In the next issue...
More about the upcoming fall tour. Several dates are confirmed in New York, Pennsylvania and New England with negotiations underway to add more.
