Thursday 31 March 2011

GIG #89 - Accordionist Rides Storm in NOLA back to the Streets


GIG #89 @ Frenchmen and Decatur Streets, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
I'll Fly Away - Brumley
Down by the Riverside - Trad. Gospel
La Vie en Rose - Piaf/Gugliemi

Wednesday 30 March 2011

GIG #88 - Hump the Sky


GIG #88 @ New Orleans City Park/1225 Decatur Street, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Strange Roots Improvisations
Take Five - Desmond
Prelude II , Book I, WTC - Bach
Strange Cajun/Zydeco Improvisations

New Orleans City Park: Performance in a live oak, courtesy of arborist Rob Crawford of Gulf Coast Urban Forestry.

The Park is home to the largest collection of mature live oaks in the world, some several hundred years old. There are several traits that make the live oak unique among oaks. It is evergreen, or almost so, because the old leaves drop about the same time as the new leaves appear in the spring. Thus, the name "live" oak. It has a distinctive low spread and form, almost sculptural. It is common to see mature trees with lateral limbs that reach the ground. Many old trees have a branch spread which is twice the height of the tree.

Tuesday 29 March 2011

GIG #87 - Let's Fly Down


GIG #87 @ Corner of Frenchmen and Chartres Streets, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
When the Saints Go Marching In - Trad. American Folk/Gospel/Spiritual
Cluck Old Hen - Trad. Appalachian American
Sassy Mae - Memphis Slim



Monday 28 March 2011

GIG #86 - Whisky River


GIG #86 @ Boudin Shop and Country Store, Breaux Bridge, LA. Select repertoire:
Wa Habibi - Trad. Lebanese
Hey Good Lookin' - Williams
Strange Zydeco/Cajun Improvisations

Sunday 27 March 2011

GIG #85 - Put Away Your Umbrella

GIG #85 corner of Royal and Frenchmen Streets, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Go to the Mardi Gras - Longhair
Flambee Montalbanaise - Viseur
Strange Zydeco Improvisations

Saturday 26 March 2011

GIG #84 - Session on Royal


GIG #84 @ corner of Conti and Royal Street, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Dan Tucker - Trad. American Folk
Down by the Riverside - Trad. Gospel
Strange Zydeco/Cajun Improvisations


Friday 25 March 2011

GIG #83 - Dressed in Red Shoes


GIG #83 @ Corner of Dumaine and Dauphine Streets, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Los Suenos - Piazzolla
I'll Fly Away - Brumley
Jeanette - Viseur
Libertango - Piazzolla


Thursday 24 March 2011

GIG #82 - The Happening Part of Bourbon


GIG #82 @ Bourbon & St Philip Street, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
I'll Fly Away - Brumley
When the Saints Go Marching In - Trad. Gospel
Prelude II Book I, WTC - Bach
Go to the Mardi Gras - Longhair

Wednesday 23 March 2011

GIG #81 - Playing for Peanuts


GIG #81 @ A & M Peanut Shop, Mobile, AL. Select repertoire:
Sweet Georgia Brown - Bernie/Pinkard/Casey
Chamame Parisien - Barboza
St. James Infirmary - Trad.

Tuesday 22 March 2011

GIG #80 - To Light A New Fire


GIG #80 @ Tacachale, Gainesville, FL. Select repertoire:
Strange Groove Improvisations

Monday 21 March 2011

Jovano, Jovanke


Traditional Macedonian Folk Song Jovano, Jovanke performed at University Auditorium, University of Florida, Gainesville, March 20, 2011. GIG 365 GIG #79.
Vocal arrangement by Yulene Velasquez.
Vocalists (r to l):
Hali Hutchison
Analisse Reyes
Austin Smithson
Shara Lunon
Shanelle Woods
Yulene Velasquez

GIG #79 - Connections


GIG #79 @ University Auditorium, University of Florida, Gainesville w/vocal ensemble from the school of music. Select repertoire:
Jovano Jovanke - Traditional folk song from Macedonia region
Lulina - Ward-Bergeman

Sunday 20 March 2011

GIG #78 - Earthman


GIG #78 @ Cinema Verde Environmental Film and Arts Festival, Gainesville, FL w/vocalist Yulene Velasquez. Select repertoire:
Summertime - Gershwin
Dan Tucker - Trad.
Y Tu Que Has Hecho - Delfin

Saturday 19 March 2011

GIG #77 - "Music is Irrelevant"


GIG #77 @ The Fat Tuscan Cafe, Gainesville, FL w/ vocalist Yulene Velasquez. Select repertoire:
When You're Smiling - Shay/Fisher/Goodwin
M-O-T-H-E-R - Morse/Johnson
You Made Me Love You - Monaco/McCarthy
Trenzinho do Caipira - Villa Lobos

Friday 18 March 2011

GIG #76 - No Bones


GIG #76 @ Raymond's Barber Shop, Grand Bay, Alabama. Select repertoire:
Cotton Fields Back Home - Leadbelly
Last Call - Ward-Bergeman
Wham Bam- Ward-Bergeman/Seznec

Thursday 17 March 2011

GIG #75 - Haven for Lost Musicians


GIG #75 @ Jeff's Haven for Lost Musicians, Breaux Bridge, LA. Select repertoire:
Feira de Mangaio - Sivuca
Must Be Time - Ward-Bergeman
Zydeco Improvisations

Wednesday 16 March 2011

GIG #74 - Yay for Beignet!


GIG #74 @ Lake Fausse Pointe State Park, Saint Martinville, LA. Select repertoire:
Last Call - Ward-Bergeman
St. James Infirmary - Traditional
Strange Loop Improvisations

Tuesday 15 March 2011

GIG #73 - It All Comes to Rest Here


GIG #73 @ Old Amys Henderson Express, Henderson, LA. Select repertoire:
Flambee Montalbanaise - Viseur
Chamame Parisien - Barboza
Strange Groove Improvisations

Monday 14 March 2011

GIG #72 - Do You Know What It Means?


GIG #72 @ Lake Fausse Pointe State Park, Saint Martinville, LA. Select repertoire:
Strange Breath Improvisations

Sunday 13 March 2011

GIG #71 - You're A Bad Man With That Thing!


GIG #71 @ corner of Royal and Dumaine Street, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Federal - Ward-Bergeman
Mississippi Mishap - Brown/Ward-Bergeman
Prelude II, Book I, WTC - Bach
Strange Groove Improvisations

Saturday 12 March 2011

GIG #70 - The Southernmost Point


GIG #70 @ corner of Decatur and Barracks Street, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
Summertime - Gershwin
Chamame Parisien - Barboza
Strange Groove Improvisations

Friday 11 March 2011

GIG #69 - Nothing's For Free


GIG #69 @ Katrina House/The Moonwalk, New Orleans, LA. Select repertoire:
St. James Infirmary - Trad.
Libertango - Piazzolla
Mississippi Improvisation
From Sheldon H. Laskin's New Orleans: Lament for a Royal City

David Fountain has an infectious laugh. When he smiles, the wrinkles on his 65-year-old face smile with him. A retired dock worker, he lives off a pension.
I stop to take pictures of the gaudily decorated display in Mr. Fountain’s front yard. Musical instruments, mannequins, a boat -- named, of course, Katrina -- gaily painted and decked out with beads fill the yard. Mr. Fountain is inside the house, entertaining two friends with generous helpings of whiskey. He invites me in.
The water line in Mr. Fountain’s house is at 5 feet, 5 inches. After Katrina, Mr. Fountain returned to a house reeking with mold. He slept on the roof while he gutted the house. The four modest rooms are now surprisingly clean, although, with the exception of the front room, the house has the look and feel of an unfinished basement.
But that front room. It is outfitted with Mr. Fountain’s computer, scanner and fax machine. That, plus his wireless connection and cell phone, keep him connected to the outside world. And Mr. Fountain needs to be connected now, because of the museum.
After he returned, Mr. Fountain started to comb through debris piles, looking for musical instruments, sheet music, posters of local musical celebrities and other paraphernalia of the musical legacy of his neighborhood. Over the past sixteen months, he has accumulated a roomful of exhibits; a trombone, a clarinet and a piano are the mainstays of his little museum. Mr. Fountain politely declines my offer of a contribution, although he proudly shows off the blowup of the $300 check he received from a donor who was wise enough not to offer cash.
I ask to take Mr. Fountain’s picture. He asks to have his wife included. I am puzzled. Wife? I went through the entire house; there’s no one else here. “Oh, yes.” Mr. Fountain insists. “She’s on the roof. I’ll get her.”
So I snap a few pictures outside, waiting for Mr. and Mrs. Fountain. I copy the names off the door lintel -- David and Katrina Fountain -- so I can mail them the photographs.
Mr. Fountain calls from the roof. There he is, in full Mardi Gras regalia, his arm around a gaudily attired female mannequin -- the lifelong bachelor’s wife, Katrina. Mr. Fountain laughs long and loud over what I come to learn from an article in the Harvard Crimson he proudly hands me, is a running joke he’s pulled, yet again, on an innocent rube from the North.

Harvard Crimson Article:
Meet My Wife, Katrina

Thursday 10 March 2011

GIG #68 - Get Under a Work Bench


GIG #68 @ Jackson Square, New Orleans, LA with fiddle player Joseph McGinty. Select repertoire:
Dan Tucker - American Folk Trad.
Mardi Gras Song - Cajun Trad.
Little Buds (Mugur, Mugurel) - Roma Gypsy Trad.


Wednesday 9 March 2011

GIG #67 - Firehouse


GIG #67 @ South Walton Fire District Station #2, Seagrove, FL w/ vocalist Yulene Velasquez. Select repertoire:
Wham Bam - Ward-Bergeman/Seznec
Onde Estao os Tamborins - Caetano
Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee - McGhee

Tuesday 8 March 2011

GIG #66 - Squeaky Wheels


GIG #66 @ The Fat Tuscan Cafe, Gainesville, FL w/ vocalist Yulene Velasquez. Select repertoire:
Y Tu Que Has Hecho - Delfin
No Buts, No Maybes - Longhair
Carreta Gui - Barboza

Monday 7 March 2011

GIG #65 - Crossing by the Backdoor


GIG #65 @ Backdoor Cafe, Micro, North Carolina. Select repertoire:
New York State of Mind - Joel
Train Take My Pain Away - Ward-Bergeman
St. James Infirmary - Trad.


Sunday 6 March 2011

GIG #64 - The Crickets are Loud


GIG #64 @ Books Cafe, St. Luke's Chapel, Queenstown, MD. Select repertoire:
Sonatina in C, 1st Movement - Clementi
Prelude II, Book I, WTC - Bach
Precious Lord - Dorsey/Allen

Friday 4 March 2011

GIG #63 - Dropping Off


GIG #63 @ Borders, Fairfield, CT. Select repertoire:
Libertango - Piazzolla
Flambee Montalbanaise - Viseur
Cotton Fields Back Home - Leadbelly

Thursday 3 March 2011

GIG #62 - Bringing the House Down


GIG #62 @ Concertzalen, Copenhagen, Denmark w/Alisa Weilerstein. Select repertoire:
Azul - Golijov
Trenzinho do Caipira - Villa Lobos


Wednesday 2 March 2011

GIG #61 - Studenterhuset


GIG #61 @ Studenterhuset, Copenhagen, Denmark w/ Cyro Baptista and Jamey Haddad. Select repertoire:
Ama/Terezinha de Jesus - Villa Lobos/Baptista
Strange Groove Improvisations

Tuesday 1 March 2011

GIG #60 - Mmmalbec


GIG #60 @ Malbeck, Copenhagen, Denmark w/ Jamey Haddad. Select repertoire:
Cherogape - Barboza
Lena - Ward-Bergeman
Feira de Mangaio - Sivuca