moe. will head out on the road for Memorial Day 2021, with performances slated for North Carolina and Virginia. They’ve also announced their first Drive-In shows for mid-June in Maryland.
On May 27, moe. will perform in North Carolina at Maggie Valley Festival Grounds, roughly 40 minutes west of Asheville. For moe.morial Day, they’ll head north to Martinsville, VA for “A Rooster Walk Family Gathering” at Pop’s Farm, the site of Rooster Walk.
Normally the date of the Rooster Walk Music & Arts Festival, social distancing guidelines have Pop’s Farm improvising with moe. and a few bands on hand for the Memorial Day weekend.
In addition to two nights of moe., the weekend at Pop’s Farm will see performances by Cris Jacobs Band and Isaac Hadden Project on May 28, and on May 29 will feature Kendall Street Company, Neal Francis, South Hill Banks and Disco Risque’.
moe.morial Day Weekend will have on-site camping, drink and food vendors, with no outside alcohol allowed. While not a POD show, there will be social distancing and mask wearing required for all in attendance. For a complete rundown of the COVID-19 Safety Plan, click here.
All ages are welcome, but all are required to have a ticket to attend the shows, so kids will not get in for free.
Finally, moe. will perform at Showtime at the Drive-In in Frederick, MD. Tickets for all shows are on sale Friday, April 9 at 10AM at moe.org. Memorial Day weekend tickets are also available here.
moe. Summer Tour 2021 dates
May 27 – Maggie Valley Festival Grounds – Maggie Valley, NC May 28 & 29 – moe.morial Day: A Rooster Walk Family Gathering – Pop’s Farm – Martinsville, VA June 18 & 19 – Showtime at the Drive-In – Frederick, MD
This is the first article in the series “Made in New York,” a historical examination of the music history of each of New York’s 62 counties. First up – Orange County.
Welcome to Orange County, New York! This stretch of land is the first county in the United States to be named Orange and it shares this name with seven others throughout the country. Located between the Hudson and Delaware Rivers, this area which was first named in 1683 is full of natural and historical wonders.
The county’s highest elevation is located at Schunemunk Mountain and its lowest point is at the mighty Hudson River. The Wallkill River National Refuge is home to the smallest turtle in New York and this is just up the road from the Black Dirt Region in Southern Orange County, which accounts for half of the onions grown in New York State. Additionally, the black dirt here has an uncanny ability to preserve the past and more mastodon bones have been uncovered in this area than anywhere else on Earth.
Some of the history in this area is well-known by all, but this county has a surprising amount of it, some of which many people may not be aware. West Point Military Academy, which opened in 1802, is the oldest such school in the U.S. and the first section of the Appalachian Trail was created at Bear Mountain and opened in 1923. But interestingly, Orange County is home to the oldest tree and the oldest carbon-dated human settlement in America.
Orange County has its share of “firsts” as well. It has been home to the first cattle ranch and the first butter factory in America and also the world’s first homeopathic mental hospital. And who can forget America’s first liquid propelled airmail rocket flight which occurred at Greenwood Lake in 1936.
This county has a few more facts that just need to be shared. Stewart International Airport has a runway long enough to designate it as an emergency landing site for the now-defunct space shuttle. Brotherhood Winery is the oldest continuously operating winery in the country and Storm King Art Center is the largest sculpture park in the country. And finally, cream cheese was first mass-produced in Chester, NY and despite being made in New York, they named their product ‘Philadelphia Cream Cheese’ and through clever marketing, got its name because the Pennsylvania city was known for quality dairy farming.
But you didn’t come to NYS Music to learn about cheese and turtles; you’re here to learn about what Orange County has to offer to the music community.
The Ritz Theater in Newburgh is one of the most famous musical venues in the county and has been graced by performances from Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Prima and a then unknown singer named Frank Sinatra. It also, famously, is the venue where Lucille Ball made her on-stage debut and it was also the first time she performed with Desi Arnaz. On the other side of the county, Port Jarvis used to be the home of the State Theater. In its last year of operation, the venue featured both Anthrax and Metallica.
SONY DSC
In between these two cities, Middletown is home to the Paramount Theater which was added to the State & National Register of Historic Places in 2002. This venue has seen Johnny Cash, Joan Jett, Jefferson Starship and Blue Oyster Cult play for sold out audiences. And while we can’t touch on every venue in the county, one final notable haunt is the BSP Lounge in Kingston. This place was a featured location during King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard’s second U.S. Tour in 2014.
There are plenty of musicians who have called Orange County their home. Let’s take a look at the many bands and artists from the area.
Willie “The Lion” Smith
17th February 1939: American jazz musician Willie ‘The Lion’ Smith playing the piano and singing at a ‘Friday Club’ jam session, organized by Eddie Condon and ad-men P. Smith and E. Anderson, at the Park Lane Hotel, New York City. (Photo by Charles Peterson/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Jazz music wouldn’t be the same if it weren’t for one particular resident of Orange County. Willie “The Lion” Smith was born in Goshen, NY in 1893. In his younger years, he discovered his mothers broken down organ in the basement and she taught him all of the melodies she knew, despite the instrument missing most of its keys. He started playing music at local clubs as he got older and one day he discovered a newspaper advertisement for Marshall & Wendell’s piano store in Albany with a contest to guess how many dots were printed in their ad. After winning the contest, an upright piano was delivered to his house and he continued to play various rags that he learned in those clubs.
In his late teens, he was finally playing in NYC and Atlantic City before serving in World War 1 where his reported bravery as a gunner earned him the nickname “The Lion.” He was back playing clubs in NYC by 1919 and not only made his first record a year later but helped develop a new piano style that is now known as “stride.” That record in 1920, called Crazy Blues, recorded with a singer named Mamie Smith, is generally regarded as the first recording of the blues.
During this time, Smith became a mentor for many up-and-coming musicians, most notably Duke Ellington. Duke was once quoted saying, “Willie The Lion was the greatest influence of all the great jazz piano players who have come along. He has a beat that stays in the mind.”
Orange County celebrates Willie “The Lion” Smith Day on September 18.
The Kalin Twins
Hal and Herbie Kalin were born in Port Jervis on February 16, 1934. Although they wouldn’t become stars until their late 20’s, their first “performance” together was at the town’s Christmas party when they were both five years old. At the age of 18, Hal was drafted into the U.S. Army and he and his brother kept in contact during his service, sharing songs they had written and writing about future plans to make it big in the music industry.
The twins were signed to the Decca Records label after Hal’s return and although their first songs failed to chart, they did appear on the Milt Grant Show and performed live. It wasn’t until searching through a bunch of demo tapes from writers that they discovered the song “When,” which they thought would be a hit. Released as a B-side on their single “Three O’Clock Thrill,” “When” eventually peaked at #5 on the Hot 100 charts and made it to #1 on the UK Singles chart and also #1 on the US R&B chart. They weren’t one-hit-wonders though as they had a number of other charting tracks including “Forget Me Not,” which reached #12 on the Hot 100.
Pardison Fontaine
Jorden Thorpe, better known as Pardison Fontaine, was born in Newburgh, NY in 1989. At an early age, he started rapping on his Talkboy and decided during his college years to drop out and commit fully to his hip-hop aspirations. He first gained acclaim with his 2013 song, “Oyyy” from his debut mixtape titled ‘Not Supposed to Be Here’ and filmed the music video for the track in his hometown. This song caught the attention of Cardi B and Pardison has since contributed as a songwriter to her for numerous songs, most famously her single “Bodak Yellow.”
Cardi was also featured on Pardison’s breakout hit “Backin It Up,” which hit #40 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and has garnered over 166 million views on YouTube. Pardi has co-wrote with Kanye West on more than half of the songs on Kanye’s 2018 album, Ye, including “Violent Crimes” and “Ghost Town.” In addition to these, Pardison co-wrote the track “South of the Border” on Ed Sheeran’s No.6 Collaborations Project.
Pardison still represents his roots in Newburgh and loves giving back to the community. He has donated jerseys to the local Newburgh Steelers football team, participated in a turkey drive and also a bookbag giveaway to help local school children. His new album, Under8ed, was released in November of 2019 which he has described as “the story of my city.”
pErFect ThYroID
Throughout the 90s, one band in particular made waves throughout the Hudson Valley with its new brand of musical fusion, fun live shows and of course, it’s infamous Skunk logo. Hailing from Orange and Ulster County, Perfect Thyroid was formed in 1991 and while its lineup changed throughout the years, the band originally consisted of brothers Chris and Bill Hanson, Chris Snykus, Jaf Farkas, Shawn Rice and Jen Polcari. Combining the ska, funk and punk, reggae and jazz genres into their musical stylings, Thyroid became well known for calling this new sound “Skunk”.
PT toured full-time for over 20 years and put out 5 albums during that time, including “Musical Barnacles,” which Alternative Press selected as a “Ska-Punk Essential Album.” They were also featured on the soundtrack for the 1998 Disney movie, Meet The Deedles. Throughout the tenure over the last 2 decades, they’ve had a plethora of incredible musicians join them in studio and on stage, including Dean Jones, Joe Cuchelo, Jason Foster, Mike Bove, Jon Stern, Sam Lapidus, Sean McLaughlin, Ben Acrish and Goshen’s own Shane Kirsch.
While the band has still played occasional shows throughout the last decade, most of the current lineup can also been seen in another area band called The Big Shoe. The members of Perfect Thyroid continue to call the Hudson Valley their home and will always be a shining example of what bands from New York State bring to live music scene.
William Fullerton Jr
William was born in Newburgh in 1854 and was the only son of William Fullerton, a famous New York lawyer. At age 17, he published‘Silver Strains’ which is now located in the Library of Congress. He left for Europe to study music in Germany and ended up living in London where he published a number of popular compositions that were dedicated to members of the Royal family. During his time in London, he lived with a famous painter and stage designer named Percy Anderson and these two would go on to have success with the opera named ‘Lady of the Locket.’ Following this, he set to work with Anderson on another light opera titled ‘Waldemar: Robber of the Rhine’ before succumbing to tuberculosis in 1888. While many of his works have been lost to history, ‘Spanish Serenade’ still exists online and can be heard below.
Dubois Alsdorf
Newburgh has a rich history of music and dance over the last century and a half, and that is thanks to the Alsdorf Dance Academy. Dubois Alsdorf was born in Wallkill, NY in 1827 to parents George and Catherine. At an early age, he showed a talent for music which he received from his father George and his parents sent him to New York City to begin an apprenticeship. Studying under famed orchestra leader and composer William Alpo, Dubois learned from Alpo’s musical experiences playing with Francis Johnson. Johnson was the first American musician to tour Europe and introduced the U.S. to the idea of open-air concerts, which had a lasting impression on Dubois. After his apprenticeship, Dubois formed one of the first regional brass bands, the Alsdorf Band, which according to the Historical Society of Newburgh Bay and the Highlands, made their debut on the Courthouse steps of Newburgh in 1849.
Alsdorf also began his own orchestra which played in prominent vacation spots like Lake George and Saratoga Springs and locally for dance classes, which gave him the opportunity to learn dance instruction. This set the stage for him to open the Alsdorf Dance Academy, whose first location was in Newburgh’s own United States Hotel. The school was soon teaching dance to the people of Newburgh and Orange County alike and this history of dance education continued as his three sons followed in his footsteps. Charles, Simon and Ulysses Alsdorf taught at the Dance Academy at 93 Liberty Street in Newburgh, which featured a grand ballroom and rooftop garden for public performances. The first soiree at the Alsdorf Academy took place in 1849, but the Dubois family continued this tradition for nearly a century, teaching Newburghers dance and music for generations.
The Heavy Pets
The Heavy Pets are considered a Florida-based band through and through, but their roots run deep in Orange County. Guitarists Jeff Lloyd and Mike Garulli as well as Bassist Joe Dupell became friends while going to high school in Goshen, NY and formed a band named Anthem before starting the first iteration of The Heavy Pets. College sadly got in the way of music, but once that was done, Dupell invited Lloyd down to visit him in Florida. Shortly after his arrival, Garulli came down as well, setting the stage for The Heavy Pets to reform.
Their first show in South Florida occurred in 2005 and the next few years were nothing short of exceptional for the band. In a 2006 contest to select a local band to play the Langerado Music Festival in Florida, The Heavy Pets beat out 350 other bands and were on the same lineup as The Flaming Lips, The Disco Biscuits and Robert Randolph. Two months later they were selected as the “Unsigned Band of the Week” by High Times Magazine. The following year, they put out their first album, Whale, and have released seven additional albums since then.
While the band’s lineup has changed slightly over the years, their love for playing live shows and especially music festivals has not. The Heavy Pets have played more than a dozen different festivals and over 1,000 live shows since 2005 and have even held their own fest, Pet Zoo, three times in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
Corey Glover
Corey Glover, best known for his work with Living Colour and also for touring with Galactic wasn’t born in Orange County, but he re-located there in the last decade. While you may recognize his face from the movie Platoon, Glover’s voice is known the world over from Living Colour’s hit 1988 song “Cult of Personality.” Glover has also been in such bands as SKAndalous All-Stars and Vice and has even toured as a vocalist with the “A Bowie Celebration” Alumni Tour.
During the beginning of the last decade, Glover started playing with a number of jam bands. He sang with Robert Randolph as well as Soulive for a number of shows and also toured as a vocalist with Galactic from 2011-2014 after seeing them at Irving Plaza in NYC and joining them on stage at that show. He is still touring with Living Colour and most recently started two new bands. He started Ultraphonix with Dokken guitarist George Lynch and a metal project called Disciples of Verity with former members from Negative Sky and God Forbid.
So there you have it. Orange County has, without a doubt, a rich heritage of musicians and venues and an impressive amount of history surrounding it. From rock to hip-hop, the Hudson River to the Delaware River and the Philadelphia Cream Cheese company to the country’s first rocket-propelled airmail test. The contributions from the residents in this county can’t be glossed over and it’ll be a standard that you’ll find throughout our series on the Counties within New York State. Next up, CortlandCounty!
Two words succinctly sum up the driving force behind the first ever Phish show at Nassau Coliseum: Island Tour. It’s the impromptu run of shows that are now viewed as essential elements of Phish lore. As the legend goes, the band was preparing to record their new album and wanted to test run some of the new songs. The previous year saw them at the height of their powers to date so a last minute tour announcement was sure to have few issues. And, somehow, Phish had never played Nassau Coliseum before. This all changed with the Island Tour and an opening show that saw new songs debuted and older ones stretched out in the new, infectiously funky sound the band had begun to hone.
There’s no time wasted this evening, as Phish thoroughly rips a “Tube” opener to the delight of the Nassau Coliseum crowd. Page McConnell on keys drives the jam in its early stages with heavy clavichord work. After that, it’s not long before the band is in full funk mode with a digital delay loop in full effect, picking right up where 1997 left off. This “Tube” is a great sign of things to come. The band seems locked in from the get-go as they stretch this one to nearly eight minutes.
After a quick conference, “My Mind’s Got A Mind Of Its Own” is the selection, filling the customary bluegrass spot that was more prevalent at this point in time. Bassist Mike Gordon nails the lyrics before this quick one ends with a flourish on piano from McConnell. “Sloth” emerges next to the delight of the crowd as Phish takes a quick trip to Gamehendge. Despite some lyric fumbling from Trey, they’re able to make it out of this one fairly unscathed. “NICU” follows this which sees drummer Jon Fishman in fine fashion keeping the time on this older Phish tune. Afterwards, Trey makes his now famous comment about the band “being bored at home” and “wanting to do some shows.”
Then, the first song with some real exploration since “Tube” comes next in a complex “Stash”. It features some early dissonant playing from Anastasio on guitar that the band uses as fuel for this particular jam. Before long, Phish has filled Nassau with a dark, foreboding jam that’s accentuated by a menacing light show. The digital delay loop then makes another appearance as the jam then shifts into a near ambient space. It stays in this mode for a while, with the band patiently crafting this one. It’s a truly exploratory section that yields little payout, however. Instead of bringing it back around to the finish, the jam slowly trickles out and the opening chords of “Horn” ring out.
Trey shows a little rust on the guitar solo, but overall it’s a harmless effort that wraps up quickly. “Waste” comes up next, a popular track from Billy Breathes, their most recent studio album. Trey nails his part on this one, as it finishes with an inspirational flourish. Then, as if to make up for the last two “slower” songs, an absolutely incendiary “Chalkdust Torture” wraps up the first set. Immediately, Anastasio is in rapid-fire mode on guitar for this “Torture” which seems like it’s intentionally sped up. The rest of the band is up to the challenge though. Gordon on bass goes tit-for-tat with Trey while Page pounds away on the baby grand on this simply (and literally) electric Phish classic that sends the Nassau crowd into set break.
But you don’t have to take my word for it. Check out the nice fan-shot video footage of the first set below or here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gehEr7EOLn0
The second set picks right back up with a return trip to Gamehendge courtesy of “Punch You In The Eye.” Once again, Phish exhibits impeccable patience and craftmanship as they deftly stretch out the intro to this one, much to the delight of the Nassau crowd. The rest of the calypso-style rocker is played to perfection, with Gordon shining on bass throughout.
“Simple” fills the two-spot for the second set, and after a standard composed section, eventually yields a spiritual instrumental jam spearheaded by Anastasio. Majestic, soaring guitar lines help create an incredible soundscape on one of the better extended pieces of improvisation this evening. As the jam winds down to a standstill, the choice is then made to drop the debut of a brand new song. The first ever “Birds Of A Feather” then leaves the nest, soon to be featured on the band’s upcoming Story Of The Ghost album they would record the following week. Instantly, everyone can tell this song has a bright future as another digital delay loop and some intense wah-wah from Trey warmly welcome this one to the live Phish catalog.
After some more banter from Trey about the new tune and upcoming album, the familiar opening chords of “Wolfman’s Brother” ring out. Gordon’s bass seems to has a little extra “pop” on this one and helps power yet another funk-fueled excursion. Eventually, McConnell reintroduces some more heavy clav sound and Phish ever so subtly slides right into their cover of Robert Palmer’s “Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley.”
But there would be no customary vocal jam accompanying this “Sally” – the funk is too deep. Instead, the jazz-shuffle jam that had developed wanders for a bit before taking a turn to the dark side and into the debut of “Frankie Says.” This harrowingly beautiful number, with McConnell on lead vocals here, would also wind up featured on Story Of The Ghost. Although it hasn’t been played live in nearly six years now.
The final major improv of the evening then follows in the form of “Twist.” Once the opening vocals are out of the way, this one takes off with a another frenetic jam with McConnell emitting a myriad of tones and styles on keys with Fishman playing in metronome-like fashion on drums. An inspired Trey on guitar helps give this jam yet another ethereal feel that soon devolves into outright ambience with a drumbeat.
Phish then wraps up the second set of their first ever show at Nassau Coliseum with a couple of crowd favorite sing-a-longs. “Sleeping Monkey” takes it on down to the shore and a blisteringly fast “Rocky Top” puts a cap on a memorable set of music. For an encore, Phish goes dark one last time with “Guyute,” giving the Nassau crowd one last taste of what to expect on the forthcoming album.
Phish Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum – Uniondale, NY 4/2/98
Set 1: Tube, My Mind’s Got A Mind Of Its Own, The Sloth, NICU, Stash > Horn > Waste > Chalkdust Torture
Set 2: Punch You In The Eye > Simple > Birds Of A Feather, Wolfman’s Brother->Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley->Frankie Says->Twist > Sleeping Monkey > Rocky Top
On March 28, the music world, and the Hudson Valley’s close knit community of music makers, lost another great one, Malcolm Cecil. The much-traveled musician, producer and Grammy-winning engineer passed away after a long illness in Malden-on-Hudson, where he had lived and continued his work for the past two decades.
Though Cecil was a man of many hats he is perhaps best known as the co-creator of TONTO, the world’s largest analog synthesizer. This room-sized amalgamation of a variety of synths and sound processors would become the musical bedrock for the dozens of albums he helped produce. Most notable are Stevie Wonder’s revered quartet of classics from the 70s, Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions and Fulfillingness’ First Finale.
credit: Sebastian Buzzalino/National Music Centre
Born 84 years ago in London, Cecil seemed predestined for a career in music. According to a 2007 profile by Peter Aaron in Chronogram, Cecil’s American grandfather was a movie organist in Times Square theaters, while his mother played violin, piano and accordion in a gypsy band that his father managed. After an aborted attempt at piano, Cecil switched over to bass and ultimately became a much in-demand player.
Cecil would go on to stints in the BBC Orchestra and the house band at Ronnie Scott’s, London’s leading jazz club, where he performed behind luminaries like Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Stan Getz and Herbie Mann. Cecil also co-founded Blues Incorporated with Alexis Korner, the ensemble where the young Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and other rock stars-to-be got their first taste of stage experience.
A ham radio enthusiast in his youth, Malcolm’s acumen in electronics grew when he served as a radio technician in the Royal Airforce. While stationed in Newcastle, he got together with The Animals and Hendrix’s manager-to-be, Michael Jeffries, and opened a jazz club called The Downbeat, which he wisely outfitted with recording gear. Seeking to get a contract for The Animals, Jeffries asked Cecil if he could demo a rehearsal by the rockers in the club’s off-hours, which he did on his trusty Revox according to TapeOp. This demo contained the proto-version of “House of the Rising Sun” which earned them their record deal, a #1 hit and global fame.
After a detour to South Africa, Cecil ended up in the U.S. in the late 60s. The bassist toured with several jazz artists before taking a job maintaining equipment at Mediasound, a busy Manhattan recording studio where he would meet his partner in technology and music production, Bob Margouleff.
Margouleff had bought one of the early Moog series IIIc synthesizers and teamed up with the more technically adept Cecil to expand upon it, combining a variety synths from Moog and ARP with an array of custom modules, processors and controllers from a Russian composer and Jimi Hendrix’s guitar tech.
In the end, it was a six-foot tall, 300-square foot sound-making monster, one which the duo used to conjure a galaxy of spacey and downright funky sonics. They cheekily dubbed it TONTO, for The Original New Timbral Orchestra. And after a chance meeting with his old acquaintance Herbie Mann, Cecil scored a record deal with the flautist’s Embryo label. In 1971, they released their hugely influential debut album, Zero Time, as the equally cheekily named Tonto’s Expanding Headband.
Zero Time was a revelation to music makers, and none more so than Stevie Wonder. One day Wonder turned up at Mediasound (in a pistachio colored jumpsuit) with a copy of the album under his arm seeking a demonstration. After a quick tour of TONTO, he immediately booked a session with the duo. Over the course of a single weekend, they produced a remarkable 17 songs. Wonder then had TONTO moved to Jimi Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studios and the trio would collaborate there over the next four years on soulful innovations that would remake the sound of popular music. Together, they co-produced the classic quartet of Wonder’s best loved albums, containing songs like “Superstition,” “Higher Ground,” “Living for the City,” “You and I” and many more. Cecil not only helped Wonder dial up the sounds heard in his imagination, but often performed them on the discs.
In 1975, Malcolm Cecil and Margouleff would split, with Cecil purchasing TONTO outright and continuing its expansion, as both an instrument and a sonic spice dusted onto rock, R&B, jazz and experimental idioms.
Cecil would go on to produce and provide his engineering expertise to a stunning number of acts in the following three decades. These included The Isley Brothers, Steven Stills, Weather Report, Minnie Riperton, Randy Newman, James Taylor, Jeff Beck, The Jackson Five, Little Feat, Steve Hillage, Dave Mason, The Doobie Brothers, Mandrill, Quincy Jones, Bobby Womack, Joan Baez and more.
One of Cecil’s longest lasting collaborations was with soul poet/proto-rapper Gil Scott-Heron. Cecil produced several of Scott-Heron’s acclaimed albums beginning with 1980 in its title year, which featured Gil and his musical partner Brian Jackson in the studio with TONTO on its front and back covers, through to 1994’s Spirits.
TONTO came with Cecil when he moved to the Hudson Valley, with a couple of notable detours. These included a stay at Devo founder Mark Mothersbaugh’s Mutato Studios, where he used TONTO to create the music for the Rugrats animated series in the mid-1990s. Aaron’s article includes an interesting description of TONTO’s humble home in Cecil’s backyard shed in quiet Malden. In order to preserve this one of a kind piece of musical history, Cecil sold TONTO to The National Music Centre in Calgary, Canada in 2013. The museum completed a full restoration in 2018 and today offers it for music production services.
With his move to the Hudson Valley, Cecil continued his recording work with TONTO, creating the lush New Age-y sounds on his album Radiance, and in other partnerships, including one with Russian violinist Valeri Glava as Superstrings. Cecil also returned to his first musical love, acoustic bass, playing regular jazz gigs at cozy Hudson Valley clubs like the Colony Woodstock.
I first met Malcolm Cecil at such a gig. This was in October 2019, when we were both playing our respective sets on the sidewalk as a part of the outdoor ShoutOut Saugerties Music Day. The woman who organized this community attraction was Cecil’s neighbor, Isabel Soffer. She is an internationally known curator and live event producer, co-founder and director of globalFEST, the pre-eminent annual showcase for World Music in the U.S. She had been working for the past two years with Malcolm on various projects.
As is all too often the case in the music business, Cecil did not acquire or continue to receive great wealth from his tireless creative efforts. According to several sources, Cecil was not a participant in royalties from some of his best known works.
In mid-November 2020, Soffer called me to see if I might volunteer my day job skills, as a publicist, to help her and Malcolm get some new projects off the ground. Naturally, I jumped at the chance to meet and talk with a musician I had revered since I was 13 years of age, when I first heard Zero Time on WNEW-FM in NYC.
As with TONTO, part of his desire was to preserve and have others benefit from his legacy. Malcolm Cecil maintained a huge archive of recordings, correspondence, photographs, videos, recording equipment, session notes and other artifacts from his six decades in music, ones that are important artifacts from some of the most vital chapters of 20th Century music. As he got on in years, he was hoping to find a proper home for this massive archive.
Also on his mind was a possible 50th Anniversary release of a Zero Time/Tonto’s Expanding Headband boxed set, with unreleased tracks and other goodies. There was also discussion of tribute album featuring notable musicians and helmed by a star producer.
Malcolm was also taking steps to prepare a biography, a unique one to be told in the voice of TONTO. It would be machine telling of his adventures in sound and in-studio with many of the most talented names in music. Another neighbor, a Vanity Fair writer, was urging Malcolm to tell his tales in the form of a podcast they would co-produce.
Cecil was also well on the way to finalizing a series of projects around two giants, Muhammed Ali and Gil Scott-Heron, ones that might still come to fruition with the proper support. He was planning to combine the music from his Radiance album with spoken word from a lecture by Ali for an album to be released in June 3, 2021, the 15th Anniversary of the champion’s death. With Gil, there were three discreet projects in the works, a re-release of The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron, a piece he wrote on the day John Lennon died called “Third Person,” and a music/poetry project with Scott-Heron’s daughter Gia.
As 2022 would be the 50th Anniversary of the release of the first of his Stevie Wonder collaboration, Music of My Mind, Malcolm Cecil was looking forward to celebrating the landmark with his own new music inspired by the event.
Two short weeks after I spent a few hours with Malcolm hearing his plans and remarkable stories, I heard he was hospitalized. Our work stopped for the moment, in hopes that Malcolm might rally and continue his work.
But even with his passing, Soffer is encouraged. She is hoping the many who loved and admired Malcolm Cecil and his work will come together to bring some of these final projects to life.
Memorial Day Weekend 2021 in Central New York will be much more music filled than last year. Creative Concerts has announced four nights of Twiddle, May 27-30, at the new Apple Valley Park in Lafayette, just 10 minutes south of Syracuse. And they’ll be bringing some Frends with them.
Dopapod will join Twiddle on May 27 and 28, while Buffalo’s Aqueous arrive for the shows on May 29 and 30. The four nights of Twiddle and Frends kick off a season of outdoor live music from Creative Concerts, providing a safe and enjoyable concert experience for music fans both local and beyond.
All events at Apple Valley Park will be socially distanced, with roped-off PODS (Personal Outdoor Dance Space) available for parties of 2, 4 or 6. A thorough site plan has been developed allowing for temperature screenings and surveys to be conducted upon entering the event grounds. PODS are spaced a minimum of six feet apart, and fans will have a variety of food and beverage options available for purchase. Site map and FAQ for Apple Valley Park venue can be found here.
Apple Valley Park is located in beautiful LaFayette, NY. With its rural atmosphere, rolling hills, and expansive fall foliage, it has proven to be a wonderful home to the annual LaFayette Apple Festival since 1973. More recently it has expanded to host other live entertainment events, including a few successful drive-in concerts in the fall of 2020.
Tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, April 2 at 10 AM on the Apple Valley Park website.
Jerry Garcia, Artist, a new documentary project from Jerry Garcia Music Arts and Malcolm Leo Productions, has just been announced. The film centers around a 1987 interview with Garcia, and also includes “never-before-seen footage of the private thoughts and reflections of Jerry Garcia,” according to a statement.
The documentary captures the Grateful Dead frontman at a peak moment, where he eloquently reflects on the life he lived and the music he loved to make. Garcia goes so far as to offer “nothing off limits” in the interview, providing a journey into Garcia’s private world. Included in the documentary are his personal musings, drawings and insights, as well as unpublished diary entries, rare family photos, home movies and newly discovered performances.
The 1987 interview was directed by Leo and filmed by Oscar-winning cinematographer Russell Carpenter at Front Street Studios in San Rafael, CA
Garcia’s family serves as co-producing for the documentary and contributed visual art and music to the project. The documentary includes a charitable component that will benefit the Jerry Garcia Foundation as well as a charity of the co-producer’s choice.
We envision an uplifting, immersive experience focused on my father’s art and music. The story is authentic. My father narrates the film in his own words, directly to the audience.
Keelin Garcia, Jerry Garcia’s daughter, coproducer, and president of Jerry Garcia Music Arts
Malcolm Leo, a producer, director, and writer has overseen a wide range of projects from “This is Elvis,” “Heroes of Rock n Roll,” “Beach Boys: an American Band,” as well as the Emmy-nominated “LIFE Goes to the Movies.”
This project is a labor of love for all involved and it is the fulfillment of a promise I made to Jerry long ago to do something special with the footage. The film will honor one of the country’s most beloved musical heroes and cultural icons.
Malcolm Leo
There is no date set for the release of Jerry Garcia, Artist. For more information on the film, click here.
On Wednesday March 27, 2019 – 50 years to the day of the formation of The Allman Brothers Band, The Allman Betts Band made their debut at Brooklyn Bowl in New York City and they certainly did not disappoint.
Allman Betts Band consists of Devon Allman, Duane Betts and Berry Oakley Jr., (you can probably figure out who their Father’s are), guitarist Johnny Stachela, drummers Jon Lum and R. Scott Bryan and keyboardist John Ginty. Devon and Duane have been playing together for over 30 years and both have solo albums, and the other members of the band are definitely top notch musicians. Any Allman Brothers super fan like myself will certainly enjoy this group.
The setlist was a mix of new music from the band’s debut album Down To The River, solo cuts from both Devon and Duan’s solo albums. Of course there were also a few Allman Brothers classics like Elizabeth Reed, Blue Sky and Dreams. There was even a cover of Prince’s Purple Rain featuring country singer and Brooklyn born Jessica Lynn. You can see the full setlist below.
On April 9, 2021 the group will finally hit the road again and start their Spring tour at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, Az continuing through the midwest for 15 dates. After that they will continue for 12 more show in May and June mostly in the south. You can see all of the upcoming tour dates here. They also have a follow up album to Down To The River called Bless Your Heart which was released last summer. Due to Covid19 the band was unable to tour last year but now many states are easing restrictions and it appears that live music is finally making a come back.
Setlist: All Night, Melodies Are Memories, Blue Sky (Allman Brothers cover), Left My Heart In Memphis (Royal Southern Brotherhood cover), Taking Time (Duane Betts cover), In Memory of Elizabeth Reed (Allman Brothers cover), Multi-Colored Lady (Greg Allman cover), Seven Turns (Allman Brothers cover), Mahalo (Devon Allman’s Honeytribe cover), Purple Rain (Prince cover with Jessica Lynn), Dreams (Allman Brothers cover), Good Ol Days, Shakedown Street (Grateful Dead cover)
Throughout the past year, we’ve all had more time on our hands. Some of us made sourdough and/or banana bread, we’ve worked on our houses, worked out, and made the best of the circumstances. One art teacher from Long Island, Brian Baker, came across LEGOs that a friend was looking to get rid of, combined his love for moe. and new found skills in stop-motion animation. The result is “moe.rons on parade,” capturing the spirit of a moe. show in LEGO form.
Having taught art in K-12 in the Three Village School District in Stony Brook, NY, Baker, like every other art teacher across the country, was put in a tough position last spring – how to teach art online. With such a tactile and hands-on subject needing virtual or least socially distanced lessons, improvisation was needed. In the past year, Baker learned the art form of stop-motion animation, one that he will be bringing to his students after learning the basics at home.
A 2003 graduate of Hartwick College where he majored in Fine Arts and played lacrosse, he’s been coaching junior high football and JV lacrosse at various schools on Long Island since he graduated college, recently and at various other schools for nearly 20 years.
Baker first saw moe. at the Oneonta Fieldhouse on April 28, 2001, possibly the only time they’ve played the town. He had heard them a few years before and had a few albums. And having only seen a lot of Phish prior, it was time to diversify.
“moe.rons on parade” features “Four” and “32 Things” with Baker telling a short story of a young couple’s first experience at a moe. show through LEGO characters. The video shows quite the effort and love for the band on his part, one that will not only satisfy veteran moe. fans, but newcomers as well.
Pete Mason: What’s your teaching background and how did you start in on this moe. LEGO project?
Brain Baker: This is my 14th and by far craziest year of teaching, and I think that helped generate this project. I am currently teaching 7th-9th grade and have anywhere between 15-20 kids in class and 1-10 kids remote on a Google meet at the same time. Trying to make things equitable has been a challenge. We have to make sure everyone has the same materials. On a normal year, I would have kids, be making clay boxes, cutting stencils for acid etching, creating stained glass mosaics, cutting glass bottles, weaving baskets, making jewelry and other hands on stuff. A lot of these things aren’t practical or safe for kids to use unsupervised at home. So we have had to get creative with what we can do.
Last March when schools started closing and throughout the summer, I really challenged myself to learn some new skills so when we came back to school I had some fresh and fun projects for kids to do. They deserve it. Their whole universe got totally upended last spring and they need some fun social things to get it back to normal. Also, I am not allowed to collect artwork from kids, just photos. So how do we show off their work? I learned a lot about the iMovie program and other animation software by putting together some short clips of student work.
I learned a lot about the imovie program this year. They say kids are really resilient which is true, they adapt to things very well. It was a real challenge figuring out all the technical things (lighting, camera angles, focus, computer skills) and I had quite a few mishaps along the way. But it was an awesome way to spend some time and I am looking forward to seeing people’s reactions. I am having a few friends over for an outdoor viewing on the projector Saturday night. I am also looking forward to showing my students the edited version. I shared all the different steps and clips with them along the way and they want to see the end result.
PM: So it seems you’ve had some time on your hands. When did you start this project and what kickstarted the concept for you?
BB: Well, as a dad of a 2 year old girl (Althea) and a 4 year old boy (Frederick), time is something in short supply these days. They are “full speed ahead” kids. Even though Covid cancelled my coaching gigs for a while, it has still been a busy year for my wife Liz and I trying to keep them active and engaged. Last March when everything started shutting down, I kept my sanity by getting us outside and building stuff. We started with a small kids train made from my old deck wood. Then we built a 9-hole mini golf course in the backyard. My son helped me through the whole thing. And I did several other backyard recycling projects. But this project really was the perfect storm. I started teaching an animation class this year, and my friend’s kid really wanted a puppy. So his compromise was the play room was going to be the puppy room. The LEGOs have to go.
So I got a huge supply of LEGOs to play with. My son loves building things and mechanics, so he was instantly in love. And with the animation class we have already done a ton of drawing, so this will be a nice “mix it up” project for the fourth quarter. I mostly worked on this project at night after they were in bed or sometimes I would have them come down and play LEGOs with me during the day. With stop-motion, you generally use a remote shutter, so I was also able to include my 4 year old in some of the photo taking process. He helped build a few of the smaller pieces as well. I started putting the stage together in the beginning of February and then began shooting photos later in the month. Once it got rolling I pretty much worked on it everyday until I was done for anywhere between 15 minutes and 7 hours. After I saw the band post the pics on their page I practically lived in the basement that weekend.
PM: How many hours did it take to complete the construction, prior to filming?
BB: Building the stage and all the sets and characters took maybe 5 or 6 hours over the course of a week. The photos took a month and a half of many, many hours. I took somewhere around 30,000 photos.
PM: Is this your first foray into stop-motion animation?
BB: I did a short stop-motion a few years ago on powerpoint and my son and I made a police station getting smashed by the Incredible Hulk earlier in the winter, but this was my first real serious stop motion project. It was a huge learning experience.
PM: Any fun Easter Eggs or tips of the hat that you worked in?
BB: Yes. You’ll have to look. Lets just say there are some band references and funny characters.
PM: What is your favorite moe. song and moe. experience?
BB: Favorite song? That’s like picking a favorite kid! Let’s just say there are no moe. songs I don’t like. There are a few Grateful Dead ones I don’t enjoy, quite a few Phish songs I can’t stand, but I love moe. They play music exactly how I like music to be played. The diverse influences and song writing styles are awesome. The first time I listened to them was NYE ’99. A buddy put on “Rebubula” and I said to myself “Yes….this is what I’m looking for in my life.” I think we listened to the No Doy album three or four times that night. I went and picked up a few more albums and some shows on tape. The rest is history. I’ve only seen 60+ shows, but I listen to them more than anything else. I try to catch every live webcast or the old Facebook Live streams (remember those?). Big ups to the moe.stream team for setting up quality live show audio streams.
moe. fans are an awesome group of people. I have had some great conversations through the years, connected with cool people and shared tons of fun experiences. This is my 16 minute and 30 second thank you to them and the band.
March – it comes in like a lion and out like it’s been trampled by lambs and pecked by the dove. For Phish’s next installment of Dinner and a Movie, they’ll feature a show from the band’s famed April 1998 “Island Tour,” specifically April 4, 1998.
The show at Providence Civic Center is a perfect sample of how the cow funk from Fall 1997 continued four months later in a fan favorite run of shows. Reportedly the hardest ticket of the run, this show features must hear versions of “2001,” “Brother,” and “Ghost,” not to mention the “Tweezer” show opener.
For the dinner portion of the evening, Chef Sara Bradley, the chef and proprietor at Louisville, KY’s The Freight House, has prepared a menu for the evening. She has recently received runner-up honors on Season 16 of Top Chef, and is also a Phish fan. Sara offers up recipes for Melty Grilled Cheese with Piquillo Pepper and Tomato Soup, and Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies for dessert. Find full recipes here.
While the webcast is free, fans are encouraged to make donations through Phish’s The Waterwheel Foundation. The evening’s beneficiary will be Northeast Organic Farming Association, with donations being split between the New York and Rhode Island chapters. The Northeast Organic Farming Association an organization of farmers, consumers, gardeners and environmentalists working together to promote organic farming and organic land care practices resulting in a sustainable regional food system that’s ecologically sound, economically viable and socially just. For more information visit NOFA.org.
Dinner and a Movie will air on Tuesday, March 30 at 8:30pm ET at webcast.livephish.com.
Island Tour Setlist courtesy of Phish.net
April 4, 1998, Providence Civic Center, Providence, RI
Soundcheck: Jam, Shafty, Roggae
Set 1: Tweezer > Taste, Bouncing Around the Room, Funky Bitch, Ginseng Sullivan, Limb By Limb, Lawn Boy, Character Zero
Set 2: Birds of a Feather > Also Sprach Zarathustra[1] > Brother[2], Ghost -> The Lizards, David Bowie
Encore: Harry Hood
[1] Unfinished. [2] With short instrumental reprise.
2001 contained a Long Train Runnin’ tease from Trey and was unfinished. Brother included a brief Dave’s Energy Guide tease and was followed by a short instrumental reprise, which was announced as the “radio-friendly version.” Trey contrasted this with the normal version, which was deemed un-radio-friendly due to its length. Ghost, which Trey jokingly remarked was also not radio-friendly because it is long and slow, included an I Can’t Turn You Loose tease. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.
Syracuse’s Vaporeyes has released the video for “Donye Wump,” off their recently released album Cantrips. Having premiered on Friday, March 19th, the video was shot in the Salt City, as well as in and around band practice spaces.
With a goal of creating a video that their fans and others used to their shenanigans wouldn’t expect, band member Jonas Reddy-Nicholson, shared insight on the video:
We had an idea of a conflict happening in this video. The lyrics I wrote very much came from a place of inner conflict, wanting change, and “killing the past,” so Shannon (bass) wanted to play with the conflict idea as much as possible. But we kept the fight between ourselves and our “other” selves, or inner demons in the video so people didn’t think it was some statement or something. It’s not. We just had fun with it. The name of the song actually has nothing to do with anything. Sometimes we just really try to blur the line between goofy and serious/heartfelt.
Jonas Reddy-Nicholson
“Donye Wump” was directed by Thomas Calandra of Synthesis Films (also a member of metal band Bleak), with Director of Photography Mark Kelley, both of whom entertained the band’s wacky ideas and kept Vaporeyes on track to finish the shoot in four days.
When we came to them with the idea of a fight scene VS ourselves for the end of the song, we thought they would turn it down. But not only were they into it and knew how to make it work, they had some ideas of their own. Thomas asked how we felt about drawing inspiration from the goofy gang fight in Stanley Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange.”
We were into it, so we all sat on the couch and watched the fight together the day before the fight scene shoot. We are so glad they were into the fight, and they really did a great job. That’s even Thomas getting the glass broken on his head in the beginning, per his insistence. (Movie prop bottle, don’t worry).
Jonas Reddy-Nicholson
Vaporeyes recently made it to the Elite 8 of NYS Music’s March Madness. Check out more on them here and watch the video for “Donye Wump” below.
