February 28 We had probably the best (most fun) karaoke night last night since we began. Some of the usual crowd was there, but many were not because of the weather (threat of severe storm and tornados), but some of our morning regulars showed up and showed out and we all had a blast. It was great. Thanks Connie, Sam, Kent, Mary Beth and even Mary for sharing your singing and comedianic talents with "I've Got Friends in Low Places". Some one said they didn't think a karaoke in a dry county could be so much fun. Many of us are looking forward to the the next time.
February 27 I would be remiss not to comment on the earthshaking events taking place in Washington and on the political scene. I saw Presidents Obama's speech the other night and have to say that it ranks up there with the best. The best political speakers of my lifetime were JFK, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and now Barack Obama. He is a Master Speaker. You automatically want to believe it all and hope it can all come to pass. So articulate, so sincere, so charming. I personally hope he can pull it off, but do not really see how he can without changing us in ways that we cannot even fathom now. There has probably not been another time like this since FDR and before him Abraham Lincoln and before him George Washington. I am not comparing Pres Obama to them, I am saying that the times are just as trying now and the stakes just as high. I don't doubt we need change, and mega change, however when change comes, it always brings doubt and risk and it takes strong souls not to shrink from it. I hear the Republican naysayers, but they had their chance and blew it and none of us are any better off because of the last 8 years. But still they harp on the same issues that sunk us and didn't and can't work and will not come up with new ideas or even work with the Democrats to modify some of their radical ideas to something less radical that may work. They therefore have marginalized themselves and somehow are waiting for America to "wake up" and return to their stale, inept and impotent ideas. Never happen. But the Democrats, who could do so much now, are pushing not only for needed change, but beyond that to pet socialistic, or at best paternalistic projects that could fundamentally change us as a country. Few of us really want that either. Working together in the spirit of compromise (anybody remember that word?)they could really re-energize and revitalize this country to rise to a new level of innovation, growth and influence in the world. I hope we don't blow it, but am afraid we will. Catering to the rich, influencial, and powerful class (they think of themselves as the elite, more intelligent and able to guide us to utopia) with mega billions of our money to stabilize the same old stale, self serving institutions that were the bullworks of a failed capitalism, and after all they have done to screw us financially because of their greed and selfishness, doesn't make sense. Give the money and power to those who can truly make the changes we need, those who have an abundance of good old Yankee ingenuity and work ethic, the American people. They are the only ones who can bring us out of this. Lets give them a chance.
February 20 Diane Gillaspy performed here last night. She is a really good singer and writes nice stuff. It was a great performance, country gospel, but the crowd was pathetic. Maybe 7 people, the worst concert crowd I have ever had. I don't think anything was going on last night to compete. Diane is from Arab and not known here, that may have had something to do with it, but I wonder if my regular crowd just doesn't do country gospel. It was a great show, eat your heart out Cullman you should have been here. She will be back and I will try to get more church interest when that happens.
Her music, as I said, was good, her voice excellent and her stage presence is great. She sings really scripturally grounded gospel with the focus on Jesus. That fits my personality as I am a Christian, but not religious. I feel Christianity should be Jesus based and not church or religion based, and it definitely should not be a business, devoted to making money, which so many churches and preachers are caught up in. My spiritual journey has been very chaotic and eclectic. I have been poured, sprinkled and dunked in the Catholic church (my birth church), the Methodist church (my ex was one of those), Pentacostal (I have played in Pentacostal bands), Fundementalist, cultic, I had Zen Buddist, agnostic, occultist and other leanings through the years until I finally really found Jesus in the Okeefenokee Swamp, even though it took me years to recognize Him. That's a whole 'nother story.
February 19 Last night Gerri and I went up to Huntsville to The Nook to hear Larry Woelhardt perform. The Nook is a little bar off Bob Wallace Road that's clean, not rowdy, and serves 140 different kinds of beer. The also have great music. Microwave Dave plays there as did Gregg Rowell, both of who have performed here. In fact Gregg and Donna will be performing here March 7th. It was a good time, the place was packed and Larry sounded great. I drank two beers (my limit) one a Guiness Extra Stout (not the one you buy in package stores) very black and smooth and a Rogue Brewery Chocolate Ale. Man that was good and it actually had a chocolate taste. I really like dark beer, although I seldom drink beer. My favorite is Black Toad from Chicago, but I have only been able to get it in California.
February 16 Another stellar open mike. Not as well attended as some, but the music was wonderful. Larry Woelhardt came down from Huntsville, newcomer Tom King from Decatur also showed up as did WP Smith and many of our regulars. It is always great to have Larry come and do his great Gordon Lightfoot and other great covers. Tom,a former Decatur DJ, performed several really great songs he wrote. He gave me a CD and I signed him up for a concert on March 20. James Taylor was really hot on the guitar and Tom, who had never heard him before, compared him to Duane Allman back in the 60's. Look forward to James' concert on March 28. David Brazeel, Carlo also performed.
February 16 Danny Haynes, 42, the leader, vocalist, guitar player, humorist for the really fun band Mid Life Crisis, died Monday of complications from surgery for a ruptured aorta. The band was scheduled to play at the Coffee House this Saturday and has played here to full houses twice before. He also played here, solo for the last time on January 31st when the scheduled band, The Sullivans, had to cancel due to illness. We threw together a few of our favorite local musicians in order to have a show that night, Danny included, and he closed the show with a memorable performance. It was a great night. He and his girlfriend Candy frequented our coffee house on many occasions. This news has shocked and saddened us all here at the Coffee House. Danny was a really nice person, a friend, and a very talented musician. He will be greatly missed.
February 14 Gerri and I went to southwest Georgia (south of Albany) to visit our son Kenny in prison. He had just been moved to this prison in Morgan GA. We had been going to Augusta for nearly 10 years, so this was a big change. But it is still a five hour trip. I had not been in this area for probably 30 plus years and was pleasantly surprised to see that not much has changed. Being a forester I was very impressed with the level of forestry going on there, primarily the prescribed burning. Very little prescribed burning happens in this part of Alabama any more due to liability from smoke. Smoke Management is a critical problem, and very hard to do nowadays with populations expanding. In the late 60's and 70's when I was working in south Georgia we would burn thousands of acres a year, the forests in the South need it, as the piney woods are fire climax ecologies. That's why the woods here seem so ragged now with privet invading and taking over, no fire to purge it. Fire actually creates more biodiversity as strange as that seems. The old longleaf wiregrass forests of the old south were some of the most biodiverse ecologies in the world, but needed fire to maintain it: fire from lightning. Before fire suppression and Smokey Bear probably as many as 200 million acres by some estimates, were in longleaf pine. The Smokey Bear legacy, put out fire at any cost, stopped it all and created the mess we have today. To practice good forestry we need laws that would protect foresters from some of the liabilities related to burning as long as certain protocals were met. In Georgia they are still burning the woods. Of course that part of Georgia is very rural and smoke isn't the problem that it is here. But it was very refreshing to see it and admire the beautiful forest that it helps create.
February 13 Another great Coffee and Colors, although not as well attended. Again the ladies (where are the he men artists?) really had a great time and got to go home with a nice Valentine painting of two lovers walking hand and hand down a park lane under a beautiful sunset. Laura Walker really does a great job inspiring the ladies, many of whom are not artists and haven't painted before, to perform well beyond what they thought was possible for them. We do this int he Coffee House every second Friday. Come join us!
February 12 Julie, our head barista, got married last night. It was a beautiful ceremony at Daystar Church in Good Hope. She married Danny Hall whom she met here at the coffee house about a year ago. That's two of my baristas who have married customers, my daughter Erin being the other, Best wishes to Julie and Danny.
February 7 Bimini Road!!! This was their best performance yet and they always bring down the house. They recorded a CD (it will be great!!) and so they were in top form. they played for three hours and they could have gone on all night. We had a full house, I had to turn people away. They spent three hours setting up, but did a magnificent job. The sound was perfect, the band was tight, the vocals great. Ruthie did her bluesy, but energetic solos on Me and Bobbi McGee, Ode To Billie Joe, Son of a Preacher Man. No Summertime though, my favorite Ruthie song. She sang great harmony with Chuck on the other songs. Shelly's mandolin just really sets this band apart. They are the best unknown band in the south, maybe farther. Richards rocking base (he rocks with it), Clarks drums, Jason's guitar add to it all. Of course Chuck is the key, his vocals and guitar work keep it all driving. Some other notable numbers include my favorites Old MacNeil, Bimini Road( Shelly on vocals), Live in the Desert, Caroline. There aren't any I don't like. The Train of Time medley/jam was great! Their musical creativity on Hopefully Paranoia is amazing. A great concert and hopefully a great CD and Video to keep the memories alive. Thanks Chuck for cutting your first CD here. Look forward to doing this again.
February 6 Clay Waldrep and a friend performed. Clay is a young punk rocker who does some acoustic singer songwriter stuff also. He had auditioned for me and I liked his stuff. But they had not practiced and the show was pretty rough. But you could tell that they could have done much better.
February 2 was open mike. It was a rainy, blustery night and so participation was down, but we had a great time. Roger Snow came early and got to do more of his wonderful songs than usual. Even I got to play which I don't if I have enough others. Diane Gillespy from Arab came for the first time. She sings country gospel and this was sort of an audition as she wants to perform a concert here. She does a great job and is scheduled to perform on Friday Feb 20th. Buddy and Sharon Camp, friends of Dennis Kahler, who perform in a band called The Camp Meeting Singers, did some humorous stuff such as Jackson. I hope they come back. The rest of the evening was rounded out by Dennis Kahler, James Taylor, David Brazeel, Carlo and myself
