The nausea I feel after being berated by the presidential party conventions has been soothed a bit by my discovery of the following movie on YouTube. John Duffy is one of my musical heroes and if he were alive today, I’d like to have seen him run for president. This country could use a chain smoking, shop teacher with bad pants and a butch cut in charge. In a post-911 world, now more than ever, we need Duffy around. He’s the kind of guy you could (and I did) have a beer with (or 12).

Mr. Duffy… you are sorely missed.

Attendees at this year’s Sugar Maple Festival were treated to a Bluegrass Boy Reunion show featuring Mike Compton on mandolin. Bluegrass Boys Bob Black, Tom Ewing, Mark Hembree were joined by Mike Compton on mandolin, Paul Kienitz on fiddle and Seth Forester on guitar/vocals. Their show was the highlight of the festival and was a fantastic performance by the boys. The tent was rockin’!

I recently bought a Canon VIXIA HV30 HD camera and schlepped it along to our TITSH show this past weekeind. Long story short, the difference in quality compared to my last camera is HUGE. The differences can’t be as easily detected after YouTube butchers them but the QuickTime files tell the tale…

This past Saturday, (This is the) Squirrel Hunters played our second show at the 4th Annual Brooklyn Bluegrass Festival. The 3rd incarnation of the fest had seen heavy rain on Friday night… and so, not to be outdone, the weather this year decided to take it up a notch and include Tornado conditions. The tornado alarm went off during our opening tune! I myself, having been feeling rather funky all week, and apparently not wanting to be outdone by a little silly weather, decided to have a panic attack during the second song of the set, and nearly provide the audience with a face plant from stage.

But the show must go on… or as Sean would say… “What would Duffy do?”. I managed to remain vertical, hit the tenor parts and with hands shaking, bang out a few solos. Actually, it sounds far better than it had seemed from stage… yeesh.

You can find more TITSH clips on YouTube.

Okay, I have been slacking… but only in regards to updating my blog (and buying a dresser for the lump of cloths on by bedroom floor). I’ve actually been quite busy with my new band (This is the) Squirrel Hunters.

For some time I have known that in order to get my playing to the next level, I need more reps and to be forced into sweating every detail. In other words, I need a band. As luck would have it, I have some good friends who’s playing I enjoy and who all have similar interest in improvement. Thus was born (This is the) Squirrel Hunters.

We recently had our debut… our maiden voyage… our, if you will, debutant ball (oh, and I will)…. The event took place at one of my favorite bars, the Roxbury Tavern. Tom, the owner/proprietor of the Roxbury, showed his TITSH colors by cooking up a fantastic squirrel stew in honor of the occasion!

It was a fine time to be sure. There’s work ‘o plenty still to do but it was a fine beginning. You’re welcome to see for yourself. There are a few videos up on YouTube, as well as a photo sideshow on the band site. Our next show is this weekend at the Brooklyn Bluegrass Festival in Brooklyn, WI.

Even if you’re not that into Bluegrass, I would think you’d find the Flatt & Scruggs TV Show DVD pretty cool. If you are even remotely into Bluegrass, then this DVD series is absolutely essential! I don’t think I can hype these DVDs too much… just go buy one and see for yourself. In addition to the many, many great tunes, they also included some of the original Martha White commercials… which are priceless!

I had the pleasure of filling in for the missing Bruce King at a recent New Pioneers show. Here's some footage from the show... and even more footage if you're crazy like that... or on YouTube if that's your thing.

The show turned out to be a bit of a Bluegrass-smack-upside-the-head. It reminded me that I've been spending a lot of time in the Old-Time world and neglecting the 'Grass. Message received.

Click image to play

QuickTime 7 required.

And please note, because Internet Explorer totally sucks, I can't embed quicktime safely any more. Please stop using Microsoft products where possible. I'd appreciate it.

Being relatively new to Wisconsin, I am continually discovering new (to me anyway) Bluegrass resources. the Northland Jamboree is another fine example. The show is no longer being recorded but is available online to download or as a podcast (see below). It features both national and local Wisconsin artists and… well… is just plain good! Give it a listen!

The Northland Jamboree was recorded live from the stage of the Northland Ballroom, in the heart of Wisconsin’s dairyland. Each week the program’s host, Art and Stephanie Stevenson, welcomed a special guest for a jam-packed quarter-hour of music. This live radio show was recorded and is offered as a podcast and features some of the best bluegrass and acoustic music in the Northland.

You can find a listing of shows that are available to download and listen to by searching kyouradio.com. You can also subscribe to the Northland Jamboree podcast via iTunes or get the RSS feed

The eldest of the Brothers Ray has just recently turned 40. In addition to the obligatory ribbing for being old and at least relatively feeble, the whole family got together to celebrate the milestone in grand fashion. All the usual characters were there and in especially rare form.

As a special surprise, some friends from days long (really, really long) past were in attendance with their respective families in tow. It was quite interesting to watch the 15+ year absence almost immediately dissipate and vanish. Granny Ray, the clan elder at a spry 94 (and at least an inch shorter than last time), made an appearance and was seen eating an impressive amount of food, though she mentioned multiple times that she was full and couldn't eat a thing. This would be the first time in many many years that the whole family was together under a single roof. Quite remarkable really... and an extremely fine time was had by all.

During the festivities, Sean and I picked a few songs for the crowd... another first in many many years. This was partially caught on tape by the infamous Milwaukee Mike (aka Mikey "Tie, hold the die").

I've been playing lately with a band called Rosebud Blue. It's been quite fun and they've been nice enough to put up with my shenanigans... Here's some video from a show we played a few weeks back in lovely Morgan Hill, CA.