Osborne, Denson get Sticky Fingers

Anders Osborne, named the best guitarist in New Orleans by Offbeat magazine, will team up with Karl Denson's Tiny Universe to perform The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers album in its entirety on tour this fall. The New Orleans-based Osborne, whose Alligator debut CD American Patchwork has been hailed as the best of his career, will play guitar and share the Sticky Fingers vocals. Denson is a genre-bending saxophone player and singer who first came t o prominence playing in Lenny Kravitz's band. The performances on this tour -- a song by song interpretation of the classic Stones album -- promise to be a tour-de-force of masterful musicianship and mind-blowing showmanship.




The tour will begin in Los Angeles on October 13 and stretch through the beginning of November. In addition to playing with Denson's Tiny Universe, Osborne and his band will open many of the dates on the tour, performing songs from American Patchwork. The album, released in 2010, was celebrated by fans and critics alike. Paste said the CD was "mind-bogglingly great." Offbeat called it, "The living definition of great art."




Live, Osborne is a force to behold. His wildly energetic, physical live performances find him ripping notes out of his guitar, forcing out riveting steel-on-steel slide solos, pouring his entire soul into his vocals. His ability to ignite an audience is legendary. Past gigs include repeated appearances at The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, stops at Bonnaroo, The High Sierra Festival, The Telluride Blues & Brews Festival, The Hollowbaloo Music & Arts Festival in Honolulu, and even an appearance at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. He has toured North America and Europe extensively, and has performed with moe., Galactic, The Meters, Buddy Guy, Taj Mahal and Little Feat, among many others.




Osborne is revered for his jaw-dropping guitar playing. His piercing slide-work and fluid finger picking (oftentimes happening simultaneously) are simply unmatched. His use of Open D tuning (a rare choice for a guitar virtuoso) gives his fretwork a signature sound and feel. His influences range from Ry Cooder and Robert Johnson to the great horn players like Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Always an in-demand guitarist, Osborne has appeared on a host of recordings by Keb Mo, Tab Benoit, Mike Zito and others. Recently, Anders lent his guitar talents to Dark Water, Galactic's first single from their new Ya-Ka-May CD.




Since his recording debut in 1989, he has written virtually all of his own material and contributed memorable songs to a wide variety of artists. Two tunes co-written by Osborne appear on blues great Keb Mo's Grammy-winning 1999 release Slow Down. Country superstar Tim McGraw scored a #1 hit with Anders' song Watch The Wind Blow By. Osborne's compositions have been covered by artists as diverse as Brad Paisley, Tab Benoit, Edwin McCain, Jonny Lang and Kim Carnes. His song What's Going On Here appeared in the 1996 feature film Fled, and Osborne, along with Ivan Neville, wrote and recorded the title track for the Kate Hudson film Earthbound.




Leading the Tiny Universe, Denson brings new sounds and styles to everything he touches. NPR Music called him, "a drop-dead talent who can howl with the best jazzbos and even groove with the jam-band crowd. There's a spiritual center to it all that finds some surprising links to Bob Marley." While developing a following overseas, Denson joined Fred Wesley's band, touring and recording with him on multiple releases. This led to five straight-ahead jazz albums by Denson on Minor Music. In 1993, Denson joined DJ Greyboy in creating Greyboy Records and released the legendary acid jazz staple Freestylin'. Out of that collaboration, Denson formed The Greyboy Allstars. Denson next put more emphasis on vocals and added some funk, R&B and hip hop elements. It turned out to be a winning combination, which set his new group Karl Denson's Tiny Univers e on their current path.





TOUR DATES ARE AS FOLLOWS:

10/13 - House Of Blues - Los Angeles, CA

10/14 - Belly Up - Solana Beach, CA

10/19 - Humboldt Brews - Arcata, CA (Anders opening)

10/20 - Moe's Alley - Santa Cruz, CA (Anders opening)

10/21-22 - The Independent - San Francisco, CA (Anders opening)

10/23 - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. - Chico, CA (Anders opening)

10/28 - Boulder Theater - Boulder, CO (Anders opening)

10/29 - Town Park - Telluride, CO (Anders opening)

10/31 - Fillmore Auditorium - Denver, CO (Anders opening)

11/02 - Emerson Theatre - Bozeman, MT (Anders opening)

11/03 - Wilma Theatre - Missoula, MT (Anders opening)

11/04 - Neumos - Seattle, WA (Anders opening)

11/05 - Wonder Ballroom - Portland, OR (Anders opening)

11/09 - The Georgia Theatre - Athens, GA (Anders opening)

11/12 - The Orange Peel - Asheville, NC (Anders opening)

Beatles wouldn't play for Tea Party supporters

1965 Contract Disclosed That Beatles Refused to Play in Front of Segregated Audience
September 15, 2011 – LOS ANGELES, Calif. – A historic 1965 Beatles contract divulged that the Beatles were staunch civil rights supporters. The Beatles requested in the contract that they would not perform in front of a segregated audience at the Cow Theater in Daly City, California. The signed contract by Beatles manager Brian Epstein will be auctioned at Nate D. Sanders’ Tuesday September 20, 2011 auction.

In 1964, the Beatles made headlines when they initially refused to perform at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida because the concert was slated to be segregated. The Beatles performed only after city officials allowed the stadium to be integrated.

The contract between the Beatles management company Nems Enterprises, Inc. and legendary Bay Area concert promoter Paul Catalana was signed on March 24, 1965. It called for at least 150 uniformed police officers for protection and for “$40,000 guaranteed against 65% of the gross box office receipts over $77,000.” The August 31, 1965 concert at the Cow Theater was part of the Beatles’ third major United States tour.

Thank you, Wardell

When people ask me when I became interested in the music of New Orleans I always go back to my teenage years in Brooklyn when I listened to AM radio and bought the 45rpm singles that appealed to me the most as cutouts at a three for a dollar store on 42nd street in Times Square. The litany is familiar -- the Dixie Cups, Lee Dorsey, Chris Kenner; an irrisistible single called "Barefootin" by Robert Parker. I had no idea and didn't find out until years later that what all my favorite records had in common is that they were recorded in New Orleans. Oddly, it was only after I had written several articles about New Orleans arranger Wardell Quezergue that I realized all the songs that grabbed my teenage attention so forcefully were arranged by him. Sadly I never got a chance to thank Wardell for that influence on my life. But it's a big part of the reason I was at Corpus Christi-Epiphany Catholic church in New Orleans last Monday for Wardell's funeral mass and second line. The crowd outside the church was not especially large but it was made up almost completely of prominent figures in the New Orleans music industry -- musicians, writers, promoters, all people who marveled at Wardell's singular genius. The gathering was somber but joyous, a collection of people whose faith in each other was something like a family. I talked with some of the people there over the past week and wrote a story about the day which will appear in the next issue of OffBeat. There's no way I can fully express what it means to share such an experience. I only know I am profoundly grateful to all the people who were there for sharing the moment togther and making me feel included in it. Wardell's greatness was occluded during his life but hopefully will be accorded its rightful place in history.

Ogden reading with Helen Gillet

Last night's reading from New Atlantis accompanied by one of the book's stars, Helen Gillet, was a truly magic evening. Helen played music from her new recording, Running With the Bells, accompanied by saxophonist/flautist Tim Green and drummer Doug Garrison. The music was by turns earthy, ethereal, spiritually sustaining, challenging and peaceful. The audience at the Ogden Museum of Southern Art listened carefully, then remained silent in rapt attention as I read passages from the book about Helen while she sat next to me, commenting occasionally on the text. We finished with a quote about how her experiences working with the Silence Is Violence community group helped her as an improvisor, and I used that as a jumping off point to begin the interview portion of the program with her. After we completed the interview Helen's band returned for another set and I signed books and talked with some of the wonderful people in attendance at the event. Just another example of the grace we all experience in this glorious city of New Orleans as it rebuilds itself in an image not born of greedy developers and political chiselers but of artists and artisans, people who find meaning in their work and are always looking to help each other reach a better place. Helen and I will join up again September 19th at the Observatory at Proteus Gowanus in Brooklyn, New York, where she will perform, I'll read and talk with her and then I'll DJ a New Orleans dance party.

New Atlantis on SIRIUS Radio 10 AM Sunday

The program scheduled for last Sunday on Dave Marsh's SIRIUS radio show was cancelled due to hurricane Irene and moved to Sunday, September 4 at 10 AM. I'll be Dave's guest as we play music related to New Atlantis: Musicians Battle for the Survival of New Orleans and Dave and I talk about the city's aesthetic revival. That's on SIRIUS Channel 30, "The Loft" station; Dave's show is called "Kick Out the Jams with Dave Marsh."

SIRIUS Radio show postponed due to Hurricane Irene

Sorry to say I will not be on Dave Marsh's SIRIUS radio show tomorrow at 10 am due to the approaching hurricane.
I will be at Bluestockings Cafe (172 Allen St.) Monday night at 7pm for the first extended reading from New Atlantis: Musicians Batle for the Survival of New Orleans.
Thanks to the Voice of the Wetlands All-Stars for letting me introduce them with short readings from the book last Wednesday in Fairfield, Connecticut and Thursday in Manhattan. I met a lot of nice people who wanted signed copies of the book or just to chat and I hope those who received cards from me stay in touch. And what a band! All leaders of their own groups, these gentlemen play together as a unit with grace and purpose. A true All-Star aggregation indeed.

Philadelphia Folk Fest exceeds expectations

If someone had told me that all three days at the Philadelphia Folk Festival would feature violent, tornadic thunderstorms and incessant downpours I may well have given it a pass. But the 50th anniversary of this event was an extraordinary weekend of music and fellowship. After attending hundreds of outdoor festivals over the last 40 something years I had forgotten what it felt like to among such a large group of people who'd gathered not for hedonistic purposes but in hope for and service of a better world. The music was inspirational and democratic. Although I heard many demonstrations of instrumental excellence from the likes of Jorma Kaukonen, the Campbell Brothers, Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue, David Bromberg, the Battlefield Band and Levon Helm's group, I was just as pleased to hear the amateur musicians who brought goodwill and a healthy attitude to the music they played. Most of all I heard the work of some of America's greatest songwriters played with real purpose. One of the most emotional moments in the festival for me came when a crowd sitting in a driving rainstorm sat under their umbrellas and sang along to the only real National Anthem this country ever deserved, Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land," performed by a group of children whose parents were longtime festival goers. The moment repeated a theme that ran through the entire weekend. I kept seeing families who'd come to share this music together -- young people with their toddlers bouncing along beside them; older folks with their teenage kids, who usually were carrying some sort of acoustic instrument; and in a couple of instances three generations of family members who'd come together for the party. This was a case of people who'd been coming to this festival, some for many, many years, bringing their children and grandchildren along to carry on the tradition.
Trombone Shorty once again demonstrated his extraordinary ability to read a crowd and instictively understand what it wanted. The Folk Festers danced to Shorty's funk and applauded his and his band's instrumental prowess but their greatest response was to strong melody and excellent songwriting. For the first time in all the Trombone Shorty shows I've seen the showstopper here was "Show Me Something Beautiful." The crowd loved the song and stood on its collective feet to let Shorty know it. Then when the band kicked into the big finale, "Saints" was not the table setter but the main course. The chorus of voices from the audience singing along to the famous refrain gave me goosebumps. I know some people might regard this cynically, with the jaundiced eye of those who've dealt with too many Bourbon Street tourists looking for cliches, but this crowd response was a pure and heartfelt reaction to a song whose words had real meaning to them.
The festival also managed to shine a spotlight on what is a very strong local folk music scene in Pennsylvania. I was particularly impressed with two local groups, the Celtic-influenced quartet RUNA, which kicked off a spectacular Sunday afternoon set at the Camp Stage during one of the festival's few dry moments; and The Angel Band, which features the wonderful vocalist Alison Paige, who has a side band called AlyCat. Paige sounded like Tracy Nelson belting out a soulful blues during a jam sessions with David Bromberg backing her up. Bromberg, who accomplished the nearly impossible feat of following Trombone Shorty with his big band, was in classic form playing material from his great new album "Use Me" (see my review of this record in Stereophile magazine).
Tom Paxton held the crowd in the palm of his hand as he sang the best song about 9/11 I've heard from anyone and a song about the old days in Greenwich Village at the legendary Sheridan Square watering hole The Lion's Head. I always wanted to have one of my book covers framed on the wall of that venerable pub, where I drank with friends like Morthland, Tosches, Altman and Lester. New Atlantis would have been an appropriate candidate but sadly the Lion's Head is no more. I will, however, console myself with Paxton's observation about nostlagia: "It's OK to look back as long as you don't stare."
The star of the festival from my perspective was 80-year-old David Amram, who participated in a tribute to Phil Ochs, held a spellbinding workshop recalling his days playing with Jack Kerouac, led a lengthy World Music jam, performed his own jazz set which made me realize he influenced Mose Allison rather than the other way around, and finished off the festival by sitting with Levon Helm's outstanding band, which included Larry Campbell on guitar, Steve Bernstein on trumpet and Howard Johnson on tuba. Amram's double pennywhistle solo on "The Weight" at the close of the night was the perfect grace note for the festival.
Amram's best quote: "When they're telling you that the policemen and the firemen are the enemies, going after the Archie Bunkers, you know they've overplayed their hand."