Sterling Stage ended the 2016 festival season with Last Daze of Summer, a weekend of laughter, love, and creative expression. If you weren’t able to make it, make sure you check out next years festivals at Sterling Stage Kampitheater, located in Sterling, NY.
Stanley “Buckwheat” Dural, Jr., the performer who brought the unique sounds of Louisiana zyedco music to the world, passed away early Saturday morning in Lafayette, LA at the age of 68. Dural had been battling lung cancer since 2013. His long time manager Ted Fox confirmed the death in a Facebook post today.
Dural, given the nickname “Buckwheat” in his youth due to his hair resembling that of the Little Rascals character, became synonymous with the regional music that he championed. He performed at the closing ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics as well as both of President Bill Clinton’s inaugurations.
Buckwheat Zydeco performed at the 2015 Syracuse Jazz Fest and provided one of the most entertaining and rollicking sets of the weekend. He had been scheduled to perform at the Earlville Opera House on Sept. 16 but was forced to cancel due to a recurrence of his lung cancer. In announcing the cancellation, Dural stated:
I hope everyone knows I truly believe ‘the show must go on’ and I’ve always tried to make that happen. But, I’ll need to fight this off first. So I’m sorry to say we will need to cancel or postpone some shows. But, you can’t beat the Wheat! I will be back. Soon. And, you can take that to your best bank.
Dural was born in Lafayette, LA in 1947. His father, Stanley Dural, Sr., was a farmer and Cajun accordionist. The younger Dural resisted his father’s music at first, gravitating towards playing the organ in the funk band he formed in 1971.
While performing with famed zydeco bandleader Clifton Chenier in the late ’70s, Dural took up his father’s instrument, eventually venturing out on his own to form Buckwheat Zydeco.
Dural and his band were the first zydeco band signed to a major label, signing with Island Records in 1987 for the Grammy nominated On a Night Like This. Throughout his career, he performed with Eric Clapton, U2, Ry Cooder, Keith Richards and Robert Plant.
Dural is survived by his wife, Bernite Dural; two sons, Sir Reginald M. Dural and Stanley Paul Dural III and three daughters, April Germain Dural, Stacie Durham and Tomorrow Lynn Dural.
Traveling down a country road that didn’t veer from it’s straight path infinitely in either direction, the kind GPS voice eventually called for a turn down a perpendicular gravelly dirt path. It wound through a vast vineyard before arriving at a wooden barn. Visible inside through the large barn window, a stage was being set: drums, amps, guitars, all illuminated by a simple set of LEDs. As the crowd gathered, sampling the wine and meats being served up at the Ravines Wine Cellar, they oohed and aahed and tried to capture images of September’s beautiful full moon, aka the Harvest Moon, rising through the late summer sky. The crescent moon logo of the Smith Club Series, however, served as a reminder of the impending concert with Aoife O’Donovan.
Opener Brooke Annibale, comes from Pittsburgh via Nashville via Pittsburgh and back again. Her sound reflected her disjointed travels. Her beautiful voice sometimes reaching a more emotional gravelly strain, melodic strumming interrupted by dashes of brilliant fingerpicking, and simple rhythms shifting in surprising jolts. One of her songs took a cyclical path as well. “Alright,” off of her 2015 LP The Simple Fear (as most of the set was), was written while she was employed at Starbucks. After finally recording it a few years later, Starbucks bought the tune to play in their stores nationwide.
Headliner Aoife O’Donovan took the stage in front of the sell out crowd after a short break. Her band, Anthony Da Costa on guitar and Steve Nistor on drums, have been touring with her since January, in support of her early 2016 release, In the Magic Hour. “Lay My Burden Down” off of her 2013 debut Fossils was followed by “Magic Hour” off her latest, and the set continued with a healthy mix of both releases, sprinkling in some covers for good measure.
O’Donovan’s voice provided the melodies, her guitar the rhythms. Her song craft was like the perfect grapes, but as any vintner or artisan knows, that is just the base. She added Da Costa’s guitar and Nistors’s drums to fill the bottle with subtle and not-so subtle hints and flavors. Free from major rhythmic lifting, Nistor danced outside the edges with flourishes and broad swaths. Da Costa’s guitar added body and color, bringing out the best in every moment, constantly moving in fleeting moments of brilliance, rarely soloing but shining brightly when given the opportunity. O’Donovan had crafted this band perfectly. The timeless quality of her music mellowed warmly within the barns wooden walls, much like the wine aging in casks nearby.
During a two-song solo break, she veered from her planned set to grant a fan’s request of the rare “Diamond” from her former band Sometymes Why. She pulled off the unexpected change incredibly well and followed with a stunning rendition of the traditional Creole love ballad, “The Lakes of Pontchartrain.”
Throughout the evening O’Donovan chronicled the band’s travels that day through upstate New York. They started with coffee in a “beautifully tiled” cafe in Buffalo. A little while later they were stranded for two hours at the Pembroke Thruway rest stop when they mistakenly locked the keys in the rental car. They made it to the gig though, with time enough to sample Ravines’ wines, grab some dinner and rehearse for a “special silent movie soundtrack” set they were performing at Freshgrass. After the show they would head to their hotel in the foothills of the Adirondacks, in Utica. “We’re in the Finger Lakes now, how far are the Adirondacks?” she wondered aloud.
The evening ended as it had begun, with the room mesmerized by the Harvest Moon. In tribute of the full celestial moon, the band played a cover of the Neil Young tune that shared it’s name. A fitting finish to a perfect evening amongst the grapevines.
Setlists
Brooke Annibale: Like the Dream of It, Under Streetlights, Middle of the Mess, Alright, All Over Again, The Good Hurt, Patience, Remind Me
Aoife O’Donovan: Lay My Burden Down, Magic Hour, Stanley Park, Hornets, Magpie, Glowing Heart, Red & White & Blue & Gold, Beekeeper, Anyhow I Love You (Guy Clark), Diamond*, The Lakes of Pontchartrain* (Traditional), Donal Og (Traditional) > Porch Light, King of All Birds, Detour Sign, Oh Mama
Encore: Harvest Moon (Neil Young)
* O’Donovan solo
Donna the Buffalo will be performing at the Cohoes Music Hall Grand Reopening Weekend on Sept. 29th, in Cohoes, joined by special guests, the Nellies.
DtB has done over 25 years of extensive touring, attracting a herd of fans that is devoted to following its tribe. Their music is feel-good, accessible, and groove-heavy while elements of cajun/zydeco, rock, folk and country make their sound distinct and memorable, especially when coupled with their beautiful songwriting.
The quintet includes Jeb Puryer (vocals, electronic guitar), Tara Nevins (vocals, guitar, fiddle, accordion, scrubboard), David Nevins (Hammond organ, Honer clavinet, piano), Kyle Spark (bass) and Mark Raudabaugh (drums).
In a press release, Puryer talks of his inspiration:
Rolling off all the great protest songs and the socially conscious music like Bob Marley and the Beatles and Bob Dylan – all of that stuff. So that, to me, is sort of like a tradition to write from; that angle as a way of reflecting on what you feel about the world and how you feel it could be better and getting to a different place as a society. There’s also the strength that comes from music and gives you the feeling like you can change those things and make some progress, and then express some of the particulars about what you’d like to change.
The Cohoes Music Hall is a historic venue that dates back to 1874. It has been closed for over a year after receiving more than $30,000 in city-funded renovations for things like new seating, curtains, a projection system, refinished floors, new lighting, and sound systems, Albany.com reports.
Albany’s Palace Theater announced back in March that it has signed a three-year contract to help Cohoes Music Hall bring its business back. Officials report that they expect up to 60 performances in the first year following the renovation, and they expect that to double annually during the three-year period.
Tickets for the show can be found on Cohoe’s Music Hall website. For more Donna the Buffalo information and tour dates, please visit the band’s website.
We are all products of the things we’ve seen and the places we’ve been. For singer/songwriter, Stephen Douglas Wolfe, the journey to find a place to live and hone creativity has been an interesting one. From his origin in Lawrence, Kansas, to the fast-paced New York City, to finally settling upstate in Syracuse, New York, Wolfe and his music have grown along with every mile traveled.
Lawrence, Kansas is described by Wolfe as an, “… open minded town in a closed minded state,” although despite the feeling of safety within his hometown, he left Lawrence to avoid the temptation to fall into a slump of complacency. Like many other musicians, Wolfe then moved to New York City with hopes of finding more inspiration for his music, however opposite those who preceded him, Wolfe simply could not create. He found himself working in retail management and having very little time to even think about putting pencil on paper. The bustling concrete jungle yet again seemed to swallow another talented musician, although Wolfe’s destiny had other plans. He then met his wife and moved upstate to Syracuse where the writer’s block finally broke and he was met with an explosion of creativity, pent up from the time in the Big Apple.
Two of Wolfe’s most recent releases, “Thoughts and Prayers” and “Believe Me,” comment on the absurdity of the societal and political status of the United States. “I’ve never really taken a stance musically before,” Wolfe says, “When I was younger it was natural to write songs about heartbreak… Now I feel like I have an obligation to speak my mind.”
“Thoughts and Prayers” is a track written in wake of the fatal shooting of Baton Rouge native, Alton Sterling, and later that month the shooting of six police officers, also in Baton Rouge, three of which were killed in the incident, the other three injured. The song is intimate and soft, only including elements of a single guitar and one voice. It calls on people to take action instead of just leaving the sentiment of thoughts and prayers with those in rough times because as Wolfe states, in these times, “Thoughts and prayers aren’t enough.”
“Believe Me” is a song with many layers and from different viewpoints. Part of its anthem refrain, “I will not run, I’ll pay for the mistakes that I’ve done and not done,” is written as hypothetical but truly hopeful words coming from the mouth of presidential candidate, Donald J. Trump with hopes that he will not continue in the run for President of the United States. Using the same refrain lyrics, Wolfe states, “I’m not going to run from my duty to speak out.”
As a part of the Smith Opera House’s Club Series, Dan Smalls Presents brings Aoife O’Donovan to Ravines Wine Cellars this Friday night. O’Donovan is touring behind her sophomore solo effort “In the Magic Hour” released early this year, of which the New York Times wrote: “Sweetness and sadness find a tenuous balance in [her] voice — and in the songs on her second album…evokes the reverberant chamber pop observations of Grizzly Bear…[and] the lush austerity of Alison Krauss.” This week she also released a live album, “Man in a Neon Coat: Live from Cambridge,” which was recorded on one night this April at The Sinclair.
Singer/songwriter Aoife O’Donovan is best known for her work in the Boston progressive folk band Crooked Still. She has also been featured with Yo Yo Ma’s The Goat Rodeo Sessions and has made multiple appearances on Prairie Home Companion. At the top of picturesque Seneca Lake, at a beautifully sloping vineyard, amongst award-winning wines, there might not be a better setting to hear O’Donovan‘s sweet as honey vocals and airy harmonies.
Pittsburgh’s Brooke Annibale will open the evening showcasing her own evocative and timeless song craft. The music will get going around 8pm. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the Smith Opera House’s web site. Ravines Wine Cellars is located at 400 Barracks Road in Geneva.
It was only appropriate that a group named Holy Ghost Tent Revival, from Asheville, North Carolina, played at a converted church, and converted listeners into new fans. Named after a roadside advertisement in their home state, they kicked off the fall schedule at the Kirkland Art Center on September 8th. The six-piece band showed tremendous versatility, with four different members playing keyboards at various times during their two-set performance.
Stephen Murray handled most of the lead vocals and rhythm guitar, but also played trumpet, and switched to the bass guitar when Kevin Williams played piano. Murray sat at the keys himself to close the first set with a stunning cover of George Harrison’s “Isn’t It a Pity,” performed with remarkable grace. Ross Montsinger on drums and Kevin Williams on bass handled the bottom end, with Williams lending backup vocals on most songs. Williams’ lead vocals and song styles while playing keys had an early Elton John feel to them. The majority of the band’s selections were in the roots rock/Americana realm accented by the wonderful punch of Charlie Humphrey on trumpet and the trombone of Hank Widmer, who both also played keyboards.
Widmer added clarinet on some of the evening’s quieter pieces. Rounding out the sextet was Matt Martin leading the way on guitar, sales pitch chants (“Pay what you want. Pay what you can.”) entertaining gesticulations, and fashion sense. How many ascots have you ever seen on stage?
The intimate venue may have had a bit of a reduced crowd on a Thursday night, but those in attendance were very appreciative of the energetic appeal of this group, and glad to have the opportunity to support live music. Holy Ghost Tent Revival’s most recent release, the EP Summer Jelly, is available on a pay what you want, pay what you can basis. The remainder of KAC’s fall performance schedule, and other events, may be found at Kirkland Art Center’s website.
Partial setlist: Who Knew, Long Road, Right State of Mind, Sun/Shadow, Walking Over My Grave, Isn’t It a Pity?, Trouble with the Truth, Smoke Myself to Death, Long Night, Broken Spirit, The End to, Thought About
Dave Alvin and his brother Phil have been checking things out ever since they snuck into legendary clubs and theaters as under-aged teenagers to see and hear the artists that provided them with a musical education. In doing so, it is evident that they formed an appreciation for those artists and edifices that have stood the test of time. So it was no surprise to see Dave strolling down the sidewalk of Earlville, checking out the storefronts and old buildings prior to Friday night’s performance of Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin with the Guilty Ones at the Earlville Opera House on September 2.
Their appreciation for those venerable artists was also evident in the choice of songs performed that evening. Bill Broonzy and Big Joe Turner, featured songwriters on their two most recent releases, Common Ground and Lost Time from Yep Roc Records, were highlighted in multiple selections. Even one of Dave Alvin’s own songs honored a singer whose star shone brightly but briefly for only twenty-five years, and whose gunshot death by his own hand has been the subject of rumors and wild conjecture that only grew as decades passed. Those elements provided the basis for “Johnny Ace is Dead,” one of several stand out numbers in a rambunctious two hour performance. This song showcased Dave Alvin‘s songwriting, story telling, singing, and guitar.
Dave’s brother Phil Alvin, now back recording and performing after serious health issues in recent years, is a tremendous vocalist. Phil’s singing on Turner’s “Cherry Red Blues” displayed both the power and nuance for which he is known. He also added his skills on harmonica and acoustic guitar to various songs.
The not-so-secret weapon in the Guilty Ones, the Alvins’ backing band, is the incredible Lisa Pankratz behind the drums. I’ve heard it said that for drummers, songs are like children. Some you can trust on their own, and just remain in the background keeping an eye on things. Others need to be nudged along to find their way forward. Still others might require a kick in the ass. Pankratz performs those tasks as well as any I’ve ever seen. Rounding out the Guilty Ones are Brad Fordham on bass and vocals, and Chris Miller on guitar.
The Alvins also drew upon their days as founding members of prominent Los Angeles band The Blasters with crowd favorites “Border Radio” and “American Music” as well as two of their encores, “King of California” and “Marie, Marie.” For a toe-tapping, hip-shaking good time, go see Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin with The Guilty Ones.
Special guest performer Sarah Borges opened the show with a solo acoustic set of primarily songs off her recent CD, Good and Dirty. Included was an exceptional cover of “Stop and Think It Over” (No, not the Perry Como song.) She had an easy rapport with the audience, and told hilarious stories of life on the road playing music. The Boston based musician is a name you should remember to check out, as Dave and Phil Alvin did.
All photos were taken at the historic Earlville Opera House, now celebrating its 45th anniversary season.
Setlist: All by Myself, I Feel So Good, World’s in a Bad Condition, Mister Kicks, Cherry Red Blues, Hide and Seek, Southern Flood Blues, Border Radio, Johnny Ace is Dead, Truckin’ Little Woman, What’s Up with Your Brother?, Dry River, American Music
Encore: King of California, Marie, Marie, Turn on Your Love Light
Pete Pidgeon and Arcoda’s latest album All the Little Things, recorded at Applehead Studios in Woodstock, NY, is one of the most diverse albums to hit the record stores in some time. Covering styles ranging from ‘80s rock, to bluegrass, to jazz, to Broadway musical, to Bing Crosby/Frank Sinatra era music, listening to this album is a bit like listening to a playlist on shuffle. Able to switch effectively from its dreamy start with “I Stayed Home,” to the big band brass sounds on “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You,” to the traditional folk style of “But It Don’t Worry Me,” the band showcases its brilliant versatility.
Made up of a core group of extremely talented and hard-working Colorado-based musicians, including Pete Pidgeon himself on lead vocals and guitar, Glenn Patcha on a variety of keyboards and the accordion, Justin Guip on drums, Catherine Popper on upright and electric bass, these musicians are brilliant enough to have been able to attract and collaborate with some pretty impressive guests on their latest effort. In fact, on the album’s third track “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You,” none other than Levon Helm is featured during one of his last studio performances! (You have to be darn good to be able to put that on your resumé!) On the tracks featuring guest musicians, the band really allowed the influences from their guests’ respective bands to come through, with “Tonight I’ll Be Staying With You” sounding particularly reminiscent of The Band, “The Ways We Change” featuring a more twangy sound most likely influenced by Chris Pandolfi of The Infamous Stringdusters, and the funkier style present on “The Wind and the Lover” in great part due to the help of Ryan Zoidis from Lettuce.
Pete Pidgeon has an amazing vocal range, both in terms of notes he can hit and styles he covers. His voice sounds like a cross between Ryan Adams, Jackie Greene, and Toy Caldwell, lead singer of Marshall Tucker Band, if you can imagine that. Joined by his bandmates’ singing on several of the tunes, as well as guest female vocalist Sarah Perrotta (who hails from right here in the Hudson Valley), the harmonies are uncomplicated yet gorgeous. Glenn Patcha deserves a round of applause for the incredible range of sounds and styles that come out of his keyboards, taking the listener on a musical journey effectively changing the mood from song to song during its constant changes of style, providing a solid foundation for the rest of the band to build upon. To top it all off, Pete Pidgeon and Arcoda were joined by the incredible brass sounds of The Two Dolla Crack Horns.
On Pete Pidgeon and Arcoda’s latest album All the Little Things, no two songs sounded at all the same, yet they all seemed to fit together extremely well. It will appeal to people from across the musical spectrum, and give listeners the chance to effortlessly give other genres a chance. And you wouldn’t want to miss out on the opportunity to hear Levon Helm during one of his last studio performances now, would you?!
Key Tracks: Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You, But It Don’t Worry Me, Wasted Child
Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin are well known as founders of the prominent Los Angeles band the Blasters, which existed where blues, punk, country, and rockabilly found a way to intertwine and helped spark the resurgence of what has come to be known as roots rock or Americana music. In the late 1980’s, the brothers went their separate ways with solo acts and side projects, until rejoining forces for 2014’s Grammy nominated Common Ground, a tribute to Big Bill Broonzy. Dave Alvin’s driving guitar work, along with Phil Alvin’s powerful howling vocals, and backed by the Guilty Ones, make for an irresistible sound on last year’s release, Lost Time, also available from Yep Roc Records. That recording saw Dave and Phil continue to pay homage to their influences, and includes four songs written by Big Joe Turner, who they had met when still teenagers. Turner had been a friend and mentor to the Alvins until his passing in 1985.
As for the enduring appeal of the music they play and cover, Dave Alvin has said, “In some ways, this type of music doesn’t die. It goes through bleak periods or droughts, but I think there’s always going to be a type of kids like us, who are looking for something else. We may not be in the majority, but there will always be a sizable minority of oddballs that find purpose in old music, find meaning in the older music, and then take it wherever they’re going to take it from there.”
On Friday, September 2, the Earlville Opera House will present Dave Alvin and Phil Alvin with The Guilty Ones, along with special guest opening performer Sarah Borges, beginning at 8:00 p.m.
The Earlville Opera House is an intimate, historic building originally constructed in 1892. A limited number of tickets remain available for the show, and may be purchased through the Earlville Opera House.