Mitchell Ramsey, owner of Jay St. Pub in Schenectady, is partnering with building owner Noah Smith to create the city’s newest live music venue, “The Station.”
This is not Ramsey’s first foray into live entertainment as Jay St. Pub currently hosts a number of bands and solo acts. Comedians are also welcome, as the pub looks to turn Thursday nights into “nights of music and laughter.”
Inside Jay St. Pub
Now, Ramsey is eyeing a building across from Schenectady’s City Hall to help his plans come to fruition. After being in the works for three years, he and the building’s owner, Noah Smith, are ready to publicize their efforts. According to their Times Union feature, the venue will have two parts: the performance area itself and a special rooftop deck.
The performance area will be called “The Station” and the rooftop will be called “The Platform,” taking inspiration from the city’s railroad background. Both sections will have different types of performers. The new venue will also have the capacity to hold larger audiences, compared to Jay St. Pub which can only handle small crowds.
In addition, performers can expect to have access to high quality sound and recording equipment which they can use to produce demos for record labels. Ramsey hopes that this new music venue will help downtown Schenectady live up to its fullest potential.
The Pine Boys are an electric combination of alternative rock, funk and hip-hop from Albany releasing their new album Vacationland today, February 18th.
These artists provide such a unique musical interpretation with a blend of character-driven storytelling and memorable guitar riffs. The group was founded by multi-instrumentalists, Brett Maney and Andrew Cerone, in 2016. When they started playing live in 2019, they added their longtime friend Sam Lasky on the instrument, the keytar, since they have been together, they have released 6 albums and played all over Upstate NY, anywhere from basements to bars.
The Pine Boys Live
Many of their songs are part of an interconnected universe set in the fictional town of “Vacationland,” this is the groups hometown and place of origin. This is also the mindset that you need to have when you see them live. Seeing a live Pine show should serve as a time to take a vacation from your normal reality and temporarily venture into their world.
The Pine Boys “Vacationland”
Their top song on Spotify, “Electric Minnow,” provide a mixture of funky guitar riffs along with a catchy rhythm throughout the song. By blending a hip hop style of lyrics with indie sounds, the band creates a unique blend of music.
Other songs like “Fat Al” are melancholy but have a funny twist. Throughout listening to the song, the guitar has a shadowy feeling yet satisfying because of how beautiful it is played. “If Walls Could Talk,” “Enter the Sauce,” and “Duneman” have made their top 5 despite being all on different albums. Each provides different genre mash which they include throughout their peruana of “Vacationland.”
In mid-March 1992, Greg Bell and Dale Metzger set up the first of many shows at Victory Café in downtown Albany with a band that would soon name themselves MotherJudge and the Urban Holiness Society. No one remembers the exact date of that show, but a few weeks later Bell and Metzger, calling themselves “Two Fools Present,“ put on another show at the Masons Hall on lower Madison Ave. on April 2, 1992.
Greg Bell
The bands that performed that night were The Sharks, Hard Times, MotherJudge, and Brian Kenny and Friends. Those two shows kicked off a career in music promotion that has now entered its 30th year. In 1993, Bell joined forces with Jeff Guthrie and formed Guthrie/Bell Productions. Guthrie left the business after a few years but Bell continues to use the name today. As of January 2022, Bell took on Kim Neaton as his partner.
Three shows announced this week feature a range of acts that have been important to both Greg Bell and the local music scene over the last three decades.
Eastbound Jesus
March 25th
Three bands that encapsulate the greater Albany jam sound features ‘Northern Rock‘ group Eastbound Jesus, rising jam band Glass Pony, and jam rock band Wreckloose – The Cohoes Music Hall – Doors at 7pm, Music at 7:30pm
April 9th
For the first time in 33 years, The Sharks will reunite with 6 of the 7 original members (Tom D’Ambrose passed away in 2019) and the first time in 21 years since the remaining 5 members played together for a show. Johnny Rabb and The Jailhouse Rockers with special guests will open the show.
The Sharks w/ Johnny Rabb and the Jailhouse Rockers – The Hollow – Doors at 7pm, Music at 8pm .
Vinnie Amico, Rob Derhak, Al Schnier
April 23rd
On this night fans will be treated to a show they might have stumbled across at Valentine’s in the early-mid 90s. DAS Trio (featuring Rob Derhak, Vinnie Amico, and Al Schnier), The Seapods, Conehead Buddha, Dr. Jah and the Love Prophets – Empire Live – Doors at 6:30pm, Music at 7pm
June 25th and 26th will be two days of the 45th Annual Freihofer’s Jazz Festival at SPAC in Saratoga Springs. The weekend event will feature a plethora of legendary and Grammy award-winning musicians.
Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival has been one of North America’s largest jazz festivals over the past 45 years. This year’s festival will mark the 25th anniversary of its partnership with Freihofer’s. The bakery committed a multi-year sponsorship to the festival. The Festival will have a weekend of entertaining music, and other amenities to enjoy as well. This includes an arts and crafts fair, artist CD signings, and food vendors.
My mentor and the festival founder, George Wein, always focused on producing events for everyone and that’s exactly what we’ve done for our big return. Our 45th festival features award-winning musical legends, unique all-star collaborations, cutting-edge bands and many popular rising stars.
Danny Melnick, festival producer and President of Absolutely Live Entertainment
Saratoga Performing Arts Center will allow families to bring their own food, blankets, tents, and lawn umbrellas. A $20 student and child amphitheater pass will be offered for children ages 12 and under and students with school-issued ID at the time of entrance. Also, parking will be free.
The line-up is headlined by Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, returning to the festival for the first time since 1998; soul music legend Booker T. Presents: A Stax Revue; powerhouse vocalist Ledisi for her festival debut; jazz/hip-hop crossover great Robert Glasper; and New Orleans funk and jazz collective Galactic featuring Anjelika Jelly Joseph for its festival debut.
Saturday, June 25
Amphitheater :
Booker T. Presents: A Stax Revue*
Robert Glasper
Galacticfeaturing Anjelika Jelly Joseph*
Con Tumbao* featuring Issac Delgado, Robby Ameen, Oscar Hernandez, Conrad Herwig, Pedrito Martinez, Juan Munguia, Alain Pérez, Mike Rodriguez, Tony Succar & Miguel Zenon
Ozmosys Band featuring Omar Hakim & Rachel Z
Amina Figarova Sextet plus Strings*
Hot Club of Saratoga
Charles R. Wood “Jazz Discovery” Stage:
Red Baraat*
Matt Wilson’s Honey & Salt with Dawn Thomson, Nadje Noordhuis, Jeff Lederer & Martin Wind
Craig Handy & 2nd Line Smith*
Connie Han Trio*
Emmaline*
Dan Wilson Trio*
Sunday, June 26
Amphitheater:
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Ledisi*
SuperBlue: Kurt Elling featuring Charlie Hunter
Eliane Elias
Matthew Whitaker*
Garland Nelson’s Joyful Noise
Charles R. Wood “Jazz Discovery” Stage:
Cha Wa
Tiempo Libre*
Carolyn Wonderland*
Ryan Keberle & Catharsis*
Skidmore Jazz Institute Faculty All-Stars celebrate George Wein* featuring Mike Rodriguez, Steve Davis, Jimmy Greene, Bill Cunliffe, Dave Stryker, Todd Coolman & Dennis Mackrel
For more information on the Freihofer’s Jazz Festival, visit spac.org.
It wasn’t quite Valentine’s Day, but on the evening of February 11th at The Hollow in Albany, it felt like a holiday nonetheless. For night one of their two-night run, The Seapods made their long-awaited and triumphant return with a rare treat — a reunion show for the hungry masses.
Night One of the Seapods
From beginning to end The Seapods absolutely brought the heat and it was impossible to tell they have only played together a few times over the past two decades. They knew we were hungry too, so this band packaged and delivered three whole sets of delicious and filling music. Each set was a slightly different tone from the last. It was a veritable feast and everybody left feeling full and very satisfied.
Set one started out with Max Verna (guitar, vocals) solo. He was later joined by Tom Pirozzi (bass), Brian Mangini (keyboards), and Ted Marotta (drums) with a special sit-in during set two by guitarist Todd Pasternack.
This was my first time seeing The Seapods perform and I was enchanted immediately by the fact that every single band member up there looked like they were having the time of their lives. These dudes absolutely love what they do from the bottom of their hearts and it’s contagious. Everyone in the crowd had a blast too.
Friday, February 11 Setlist
Set 1 (Acoustic): Stephen O’Rourke She Makes The Journey Millworkers’ Lament Long Black Veil (Lefty Frizzell) Something Like Olivia (John Mayer) It Takes A Lot to Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry (Bob Dylan) Matchmaker Guardian Angels Sunrise Branch’s House Switchblade (Marv Albert) Set 2 (Electric Set 1): Theme For Another Enlightened Rogue > Keep In Mmind Token Time > The Guide To Roadside Ecology Here To Remind You Money To Burn The Pull From Adirondack Blue > Till Then Reelin’ In The Years (Steely Dan) Set 3 (Electric Set 2): Waiting 4 Da Bomb To Drop > Schizophrenic Rain Josephine’s Grand Motion > Jet Smooth Ride John Henry’s Hammer Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley (Allen Toussaint) Blackberry Brandy Encore: Get Out Of My Life Woman (Allen Toussaint) Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’ (The Rolling Stones)
Night One Photo Gallery
Night Two of the Seapods
On Saturday, February 12, the Seapods came back for night two of their two-night run at The Hollow in Albany. I wouldn’t have thought it possible to impress me more than they did on night one, however, this shockingly talented group of musicians blew me away yet again on night two.
Bluegrass, Rock, and Everything in Between
Set one on night two was a lovely warm-up of our souls with some bluegrass to get us all in the groove. It wasn’t just any old set of bluegrass, though. We had electric banjos and several sit-ins as well. Sam “Zucchini” Brewton sat in on drums; Crick Diefendorf on banjo and guitar; and Josh Himmelsbach on mandolin.
Set two was pretty stacked with some rocking tunes. The high-energy set left everyone wondering where The Seapods could possibly go for set three. Well, set three was absolutely the cherry on the sundae. It was all about the long jam and it could not have been a more perfect ending for a delightful two nights of music.
Saturday, February 12 setlist
Set 1 (Acoustic): John Henry’s Hammer (Max solo banjo) Shady Grove (traditional) Pig In A Pen (traditional) Dire Wolf (Grateful Dead) Galway Girl (Steve Earle) Rocky Top (Osborne Brothers) Oberon And Titania Ruby Red Josephine’s Grand Motion The Pull From Adirondack Blue Set 2 (Electric Set 1): Michael Murphy Rusted Michael Murphy 3 Until I Break That’s How They Got Along Stephen O’Rourke > La Fiesta! If I Had A Smile Cary Suite Anything Is Possible Set 3 (Electric Set 2): Animal > What’s The Buzz? (Jesus Christ Superstar) > Passengers en Route > Gunshot Static > Somedays Leaving The Monopole Jump For Joy (Kingfish) Encore: Ship
This summer The Sembrich in Bolton Landing, NY, will be hosting a unique Reimagining the Classics, from the classics to the rhapsodies.
Artistic Director Richard Wargo spoke about how delighted he is to present the festival.
Reimagining the Classics will explore all manner of reinvention and present a variety of refreshing new takes on classical favorites. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to reimagine many aspects of life, including the way we present and experience music. This summer’s festival will incorporate the best of those bold reinventions, including the introduction of our new outdoor Promenade Series.
The festival will explore reinvention, from arrangements and transcriptions of classics to rhapsodies and variations of popular composers. There are many highlights of the festival.
Reimagining The Classics: Breaking Operatic Traditions – Michael Capasso, New York City Opera General Director, shares his insights on favorite works by Verdi and Puccini, and explores many productions and performance practices from the past 150 years.
Promenade Series – New in 2022 – This is a new outdoor series, modeled after the famous proms of London, and features a lot of musical styles, like classical and jazz. Comedians will also be featured here as well.
The Sembrich Film Series – This year’s films focus on reinvention and adaptations of the popular musicals Dear Evan Hansen (2021), West Side Story (2021), and In the Heights (2021). Several films, including Dracula (1931) will have live musical scores.
Masterwork Series – Performances for this series will be held in The Sembrich studio, with evening performances of monumental classical works.
These, and more, will be happening at The Sembrich this summer, and tickets can be found here.
From Broadway to Proctors Theatre, musicals Waitress and Aladdin are set to launch in February and October of 2022, respectively.
Aladdin
Based on the Academy Award winning film, Aladdin is a well known musical that first appeared on Broadway back in March 20, 2014. This North American tour will begin this upcoming October in Schenectady at Proctors Theatre, marking the first time Aladdin will be shown outside of New York City in almost two years.
Aladdin‘s crew will consist of 75 professionals with an additional 40 locals in each city visited during the tour. These cities include Austin, Kansas City, and San Antonio.
Certainly we are thrilled to have Disney return to create a new national tour, but I have to say, Aladdin has been asked for by the people of the Capital Region of New York ever since it first opened on Broadway eight years ago! We are ecstatic to have it here.
Proctors Collaborative CEO Philip Morris
The full itinerary will drop at a later date, along with casting and ticket information. However, it has been confirmed for the tour to play in 36 cities. To be updated about future information regarding the tour visit Aladdin The Musical.
Waitress
Waitress is a musical that was developed by an all female creative team. It will play at Proctors Theatre from February 25-27. In addition to using original music, others lyrics were made by Sara Bareilles who is a six time Grammy nominee, author Jessie Nelson, choreography by Lorin Latarro and direction by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus.
Waitress the musical, which is inspired by an Adrienne Shelly film, is about a waitress and an expert pie maker. The main character, Jenna wishes for a better life out of her small hometown and distraught marriage. Fortunately for her, a baking contest nearby and the town’s new doctor may be able to grant her wish for happiness and a fresh start.
It’s an empowering musical of the highest order!
Chicago Tribune
Ticket information is available through the Box Office at Proctors in person or through their website Proctors.
The Prom, is a musical where everyone can feel celebrated and now the producers and co-presidents of the Prom Committee are bringing the show to Proctors Theatre, from Friday, March 1 to Sunday, March 6. This show features a book by Tony Award winner Bob Martin and Tony Award nominee Chad Beguelin.
Not only has The Prom, won the 2019 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical, but Ryan Murphy (Tony, Emmy, Golden Globe and Peabody Award Winner), transformed The Prom into a film for the popular streaming platform, Netflix. This movie event stars Meryl Streep, James Corden, Nicole Kidman and a variety of other notable actors.
Smart and big-hearted. Genuine joy rolls off the stage in this musical full of witty delights, irrepressibly energetic tunes, winking lyrics and a cheeky book. I seldom stopped laughing. It’s a damn good time! Did I shed several tears in The Prom’s final scene? Maybe I did.”
New York Magazine
The musical has a different cast compared to the film by Ryan Murphy. In fact these stars are: Kaden Kearney (they/them) as “Emma, High School Student, Banned from the Prom,” Kalyn West as “Alyssa Greene, Head of Student Council with a Secret,” Courtney Balan as “Tony Award Winner Dee Dee Allen,” Patrick Wetzel as “Drama Desk Award Winner Barry Glickman,” Emily Borromeo as “Angie Dickinson, Broadway Chorine,” Bud Weber as “Trent Oliver, Esteemed Julliard Graduate/Cater Waiter,” Sinclair Mitchell as “Mr. Hawkins, High School Principal,” Ashanti J’Aria as “Mrs. Greene, President of the PTA” and Shavey Brown as “Sheldon Saperstein, Broadway’s Press Agent with a Plan.”
To learn more information about the musical or to buy tickets visit Proctors.org or the Box Office at Proctors Theatre.
This past Friday, February 11, Plush headlined their first show in the Northeast for a sold out Empire Live crowd. The band, led by Capital District native, Moriah Formica, were marking the release of their debut self-titled album. Plush’s lineup also includes Brooke Colucci on drums, Bella Perron on guitar, and Ashley Suppa on bass. The young rock band’s set included 12/13 songs from the album and a fantastic cover of Heart’s Barracuda.
Empire Live’s Underground space was packed from wall to wall, and there were fans of every generation present, from old metal heads all the way down to kids who could have been at their very first shows. Plush’s songs resonate with all types of listeners; their lyrics often touch on the struggles of heartbreak while being driven by heavy instrumentals and powerful harmonies. For their entire set, Plush was cheered on by a high energy crowd that recognized the talent they were witnessing. This talent included a a solo drum intro by Brooke that you can see below.
Plush released their first single ‘Hate’ back in February of 2021, and the song went on to reach as high as number 24 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Chart. You can listen and watch the music video on YouTube. Since releasing ‘Hate,’ Plush has been on the road opening for acts like Evanescence, Halestorm, and SevenDust. For this show though, the band had Vendetta Rose and Alborn opening in front of Moriah’s hometown crowd.
In the coming weeks, Plush will be hitting the road with rock and guitar legend Slash. Their tour currently has Northeastern stops set for New York, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. You can find Plush’s upcoming tour dates on their website.
Setlist: Athena, Champion, Found A Way, Sober, Sorry, Bring Me Down, Walk Away, Don’t Say That, Better Off Alone, Will Not Win, I Don’t Care, Hate
Albany band Sly Fox And The Hustlers today release their newest single, “Find Someone,” perfectly timed for Valentine’s Day. The new single is the lead off their upcoming album which drops in May. “Find Someone” is a groovy rock tune that will get you moving on your feet, the basis of the which goes into Sly’s story on how to get over your past failed relationships in search for your true soul mate.
Sly Fox And The Hustlers are a very multidimensional rock band as they bring different variations of the genre to the table. Their prior songs such as “Forever Young,” “Home by Mornin’,” and “Heart and Soul” exemplify all different tempos within the rock genre while blending some country, funk, and blues influence. These three songs will definitely build your anticipation for their new upcoming single.
“Find Someone” was mixed by Tim Lynch from The Recording Company and mastered by Brian Lucey from Magic Garden Mastering, and will be available on all streaming platforms. You can catch Sly Fox and the Hustlers this May in Philadelphia at The Fire, and on May 21 at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC. For more info, visit Sly Fox and the Hustler’s website.
What is it about Upstate New York winters that makes musicians bring their multi-colored California concepts here to heat things up? 41 years ago, Jerry Garcia Band came to be an act for the Lake Ontario sound at Laker Hall on the SUNY Oswego campus February 17, 1980. And next week, February 17, 2022, John Mayer opens his Sob Rock Tour at Albany’s MVP Arena.
This marks the fourth time he’s shedded on the Hudson River for a tour opener. Mayer played his first Dead and Company show on Pearl Street in 2015. Matthew Romano spoke with Mayer on an episode of Tales From The Golden Road (Easter 2016) about the journey.
John Mayer Archival Tales From The Golden Road Radio Transcript Sunday March 27th 2016 (8:35 minutes long from Easter 2016 before Dead and Company Summer Tour 2016). The original audio includes Bob Weir calling in to the show “as Biff from Cabo” that’s also featured on the broadcast.
MR: With your notorious blues background are you excited to tackle songs like “Wang Dang Doodle,” “New Speedway Boogie” and “Viola Lee Blues?” To bring your own texture and vibe to them?
John Mayer: Not completely. It’s a great question. So it’s the same blues shape on the guitar neck… but your intentionality is completely different. That was the R&D of it for me. It’s more meditative. It’s a little Hendrixy.
MR: Very fitting that the first notes you and Oteil Burbridge channeled with Dead and Company in Albany was “Playing In The Band.” What a composition you guys continue to improvise the moment with still.
John Mayer: Yea I wrote this very cinematic intro to playing in the band that night. One of the things I’ve realized is so instrumental, no pun intended, in people vibing with the music is the fact that it’s very sequential in the way it moves up and down. So it’s like a flow. You know? It’s very ascending and descending. That’s what allows people to get on it and ride it.
MR: Ride the wave.
John Mayer: Yea. The music got really tense and then just opened up, it was the only time we ever did it but I like how it was the birth of the band.
John Mayer: I was speaking with Eddie Kramer who was famous for engineering the Jimi Hendrix records and still oversees the live records and stuff. I told him that Garcia and Hendrix were similar. They were both able to divorce themselves from consciousness while playing. A song like “Viola Lee Blues” I can really pull the Hendrix thing into it. It’s not that different. It’s a mixolydian thing that’s a different cut of the saw. Straight blues kind of wilts.
Tales From The Golden Road: It’s the blues but it’s also a Grateful Dead song.
John Mayer: It’s blues that’s been put in a different shape by a blacksmith. It’s like a pounded chicken. What do they call that?
Tales From the Golden Road: Spatchcock!
John Mayer: It’s Blues that’s been tenderized.
MR: It still has that grease to it though.
John Mayer: Yea that’s right.
John Mayer: The good part of the first Albany show was kind of spent with arms kind of crossed. Then at some point they came down and it was like ok he’s got it. Now that we have that relationship with the crowd we can just go in from the down beat and get to know each other.
Tales from the Golden Road: It’s like that great line Bobby has about the Grateful Dead Music, “We state a theme and take it for a walk in the woods.” Then while you’re taking a walk in the woods, is this going somewhere?
John Mayer: The quotable Bob Weir. I’ll tell ya, I’ve learned so much from these songs and guitar playing from Jerry and this music.
Tales From The Golden Road: You’re going to school all the time while you’re playing this music.
John Mayer: “Here Comes Sunshine “off the first Dick’s Picks is maybe the greatest guitar playing I have ever heard in my life. There’s two solos and they are the most sustained, genius. They are just up on the wave. It never broke.
The Jerry Garcia Band once held class for Oswego State University on February 17, 1980. The two J’s sounds are a nice hybrid. Mayer’s “Dear Marie” is Garcia’s “Althea.” John Mayer, Pino Palladino, Steve Jordan, and Chick Corea once clocked in “After Midnight.”
Expect some funk with guitarist Isaiah Sharkey of D’Angelo at the Sob Rock tour debut as well. John Mayer and Bob Weir funked out Jerry Band’s music with Lettuce as well. Like Oteil Burbridge told NYS Music in Miami Beach.
Well I mean there’s so much funk in The Grateful Dead’s music. The Jerry Band’s music. It’s just like there for the picking so I just lean in to it
Oteil Burbridge
The Jerry Garcia Band visited Oswego, NY on February 17, 1980 before a Grateful Dead tour. A then 37-year old Garcia had his second touring band outside the Grateful Dead since collaborating with Howard Wales on Hooteroll? His tiger quartet set up on the bandstand was inside a toasty Laker Hall. The comfortable corridor of Route 104 runs alongside it overlooking Lake Ontario. Three hours of music played to around 1,420 heads in a general admission hockey rink. Wild Blue on a bed of grey.
The landscape helped paint the setlist with classics like “Catfish John” & “Positively 4th Street.” Outside the wooden room cast musical snow angels on the lake’s banks. This heater includes one of Senor Garcia’s sweetest improvisational moments when the “After Midnight” launches into Eleanor Rigby. Only one year of tape has that jam.
In a 1981 TV interview Garcia was asked, “What are the virtues playing with your own band compared to the Grateful Dead?” Jerry responded, “It’s a real resonant consonance experience, it’s harmonious, everybody’s musical taste is similar to my own, ya know? And our concept of what music should be. We have an accord, so my band is playing the kind of music that I think of the way music is constructed, in terms of the roles and the instruments. The Grateful Dead is interesting because everyone has a different concept of what music is about which creates a lot of friction and tension to it.”
Jerry Garcia interview with David Gans & Blair Jackson in A Record 1982 print publication:
Jerry Garcia: When we started working on “The Eleven” back in the late 60’s we’d spend hours playing groups of eleven, to get used to that phrase and musical patterns. Then play them over and over again.
Record Magazine: In an almost academic way?
Jerry Garcia: Oh yea, in a real academic way.
We had to do it. You can’t play confidently and fluidly in those times with really knowing what you’re doing.
Jerry Garcia
Jerry Garcia Band Set List, Laker Hall, Oswego, NY February 17 1980
Set 1: I’ll Take A Melody, Friend Of The Devil, How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) Catfish John, Deal, Positively 4th Street, That’s All Right, Mama
Set 2: Money Honey, Sitting Here In Limbo, Let It Rock, After Midnight > Eleanor Rigby Jam > After Midnight, It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry, The Harder They Come
