Many of the artists on “Holiday Wishes 2,” the benefit album for Make-A-Wish Foundation, are veterans when it comes to recording. However, Ashley Rose Norris, who sings “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas,” is new to the business.

“I’m really excited to be a part of [“Holiday Wishes 2”] and I can’t think of a better way to support a great cause,” Norris said.

Ashley Rose Norris

The two-disc set features 44 tracks by local artists and is available for $15 at local Panera Bread stores and select shops at Levis Commons. All proceeds go to Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana to help grant wishes for Northwest Ohio children with life-threatening medical conditions.

Norris serves as the Monday night bartender at Manhattan’s (in addition to being jack of all trades at the restaurant). During open-mic nights, she often sings with the bands. A friend noticed her skills and recommended that she lend her voice to “Holiday Wishes 2.”

Jeff Williams, an “amazing blues artist,” helped arrange the track for Norris, she said. The result is a slow, bluesy version of the popular track.

“We just kind of played it and went for it,” Norris said. “We just jibed really well together.”

“Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” was first sung by Judy Garland in the film “Meet Me in St. Louis.”

Norris said she chose the tune because, “It’s a classic Christmas song. It’s one of my favorites and I have always remembered that I enjoyed singing along to it.”

She moved to Toledo from Indiana at age 10. She grew up singing in church and with family.

“My dad and his family, they’re all singers and it was kind of me and my dad’s thing that we always did together,” she said.

Norris said she enjoyed meeting other musicians and exchanging business cards at the Make-A-Wish benefit concert earlier this month.

“This entire experience is completely new for me,” she said. “I had a great time getting to meet different people.”

Still, Norris said she has no concrete plans for her career — yet.

“I enjoy taking it a day at a time. I’m excited about what we’ve accomplished this far. I’m hoping that it does open up some more opportunities.

I would love to be able to make a career out of singing and music, but right now it’s at the beginning,” she said.

Tags: Ashley Rose Norris, Holiday Wishes 2, Make-A-Wish, Manhattan's

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 18th, 2012 at 10:44 am and is filed under Holidays, Music, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

When they take the stage May 12 as Birds of Chicago, JT Lindsay and Allison Russell will give Toledo what Lindsay promised will be an experience filled with “a lot of heartbreak, sex, loneliness, hope — with killer harmonies.”

The music is what Lindsay called 21st century roots music, a pressure cooker of a lot of traditions that mean a lot to them — blues, rock, soul and folk. Birds of Chicago is the 2011 evolution of Lindsay’s other band, JT and the Clouds, with the addition of Russell as a solo artist who Lindsay calls “our main jewel, a bedazzling thing.”

Russell has been singing with Lindsay for years. Her original band, Po’ Girl, and JT and the Clouds were brother/sister bands for a long time, touring together and playing on each other’s records.

“Anyone who hasn’t seen my partner — Alli Russell — needs to,” Lindsay said. “She’s honestly as good as it gets. It’ll cure what ails. This show will be a chance to see us in a really relaxed, intimate venue, which I think really adds to our songs.”

Birds of Chicago: JT Lindsay and Allison Russell.

As full-time musicians, Lindsay and Russell think of themselves as troubadours, traveling from town to town, singing their songs, packing it up, hitting the road, going down the highway and doing it again in the next town, Lindsay describing it as “kind of a Woody Guthrie thing.”

The May 12 show will feature the music of the duo’s scheduled September-release album, titled “Birds of Chicago.” The album is currently in final mixes, and Russell said a digital copy will be available at the group’s website, www.birdsofchicago.com, in mid-May.

Russell also promised a dynamic show in which she said the audience will be encouraged to get involved.

“It’s kind of our church, in the sense of sharing our common human experience,” Russell said. “[My music is] my thoughts, and I hope it will speak to someone else’s life. We are very much present to the audience. That’s the mixture/alchemy of live shows that I’m addicted to.”

As songwriters, Lindsay and Russell are not linear storytellers. They use phrases that create an image, and listeners are encouraged to jump from one image to the next, allowing themselves to fill in and personalize each piece of music.

Lindsay, a native Toledoan and 1989 graduate of St. Francis de Sales High School, said he is eagerly anticipating the May 12 performance and “seeing a lot of folks I love and haven’t seen in a while. I miss Toledo. I wouldn’t trade my early years there for nothin’. ”

Lindsay said he enjoys Toledo performances because they give him a chance to return to his early years as a struggling musician.

“There will always be a comfort level in Toledo,” he said. “It’s in me. It’s part of who I am. That will never change. There’s also an extra little charge of adrenaline. You always wanna show your hometown folks that you are doing some good.”

Lindsay said his Toledo upbringing is a significant influence on the person, musician and performing artist he is today.

“This is a broad brush, of course, and trades in the kind of stereotypes of Midwesterners my dad hates, but overall, people are good in Toledo,” he said. “There is a lack of bullshit in communication and manners that feels more real to me as I travel the world. I use the worst, most polluted word of all — people are real around here … it’s true. It’s how it is, and I’m thankful for it.”

The two-hour May 12 show will begin at 8:30 p.m. at Manhattan’s, 1516 Adams St. The doors open at 7 p.m., and music begins at 7:30 p.m. when Old State Line, a local band performing Americana music, opens for the Chicago-based duo. There will be limited concert-style seating in the Union Square Lounge at Manhattan’s. Tickets cost $12 in advance (available at Manhattan’s) and $15 at the door.

Tags: Allison Russell, Birds of Chicago, JT Lindsay, Manhattan's

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 8th, 2012 at 9:48 am and is filed under In Concert, Music, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Blarney to host two-day  St. Patrick’s tent event

The Blarney Irish Pub is the spot to be for the most happening St. Patrick’s Day party in town, pub employees say.

“We have the best food, the best music and the best location. We have the biggest party. We have the most fun,” said bartender Beth Golday.

The two-day Blarney Madness party expands on the restaurant’s usual pub space and adjacent BullPen to include a large tent on Huron Street.

The fun starts at 6 p.m. March 16 and runs until 2 a.m. March 18. The pop-rock band The Bridges headlines at 8 p.m. March 16. Dragon Wagon plays at 1 p.m. March 17, followed by Bangers & Thrash at 6 p.m. and Skoobie Snaks at 8:30 p.m. DJ Kyle Rickner will play between sets both days.

Bonnie Cosey and Fred Belintkos with Lauren at The Blarney.

The weekend includes other highlights like an ice luge for shots, bagpipers at 7 a.m. March 17 and firefighters in kilts.

The party benefits Toledo and Sylvania local firefighters charities. The Blarney frequently works with firefighters, Golday said.

“They’re always helping others and risking their lives for other people,” she said.

A portion of the proceeds also benefits the Ancient Order of Hibernians, an Irish-American Catholic organization.

A $15 shirt will be on sale at The Blarney. By wearing the shirt, customers can get free entry March 17 and 10 percent off their bills during March.

A Jiggs Dinner with corned beef, potatoes, carrots and celery will be on sale for $9 in the BullPen in addition to a corned beef sandwich and chips for $7, bangers and chips for $6 and a half pound of Blarney Stones (chicken chunks) for $6.

A breakfast of eggs, Irish bacon, potato pancakes and soda bread is available in the pub starting at 7 a.m. March 17 for $7. And, of course, several Irish beers will be available, including Guinness, Killian’s and Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale.

Entry is $5. The Blarney is open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. March 16 and from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. March 17. The tent is open from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. March 16 and noon to 1 a.m. March 17.

The Blarney is located at 601 Monroe St., Downtown Toledo. Toledo Free Press is a media sponsor of this event. Visit theblarneyirishpub.com for more information.

— Brigitta Burks

Claddagh’s Got Talent contest kicks off March 15

Claddagh Irish Pub will kick off a 10-week Claddagh’s Got Talent singing contest at 9 p.m. March 15.

Each week for nine weeks, 10 local singers or bands will perform at the Irish eatery at Westfield Franklin Park, 5001 Monroe St., before three judges. On the 10th week — May 31 — the nine winners will compete in a final round to determine the winner of the $5,000 grand prize.

Judges will include Claddagh general manager JaNeil Mesteller and Chris Hunt, who regularly MCs Claddagh pub trivia contests and other events. The third judge will rotate weekly among local celebrities.

Claddagh Irish Pub bartenders Kevin Powers, left, and Jake Bell with Jocelyn.

“Audience involvement is part of the judging, so the more people you bring with you to root you on, the better your chances to get through,” Mesteller said.

Entry is free and first come, first serve. Entrants can be solo singers or bands of up to three people. Participants must be 21 or older and must provide a photo ID, fill out an entry form and sign a copy of the rules to be eligible. Performances must be in good taste, and music must be submitted for approval before competing. The first week is full, Mesteller said.

“We want this to be a fun, true festival, where people are enjoying themselves,” Mesteller said. “We’ve never done anything like this with such a big purse at the end. It’s a pretty significant amount and it could really help out a person with recording or equipment. Toledo in general has so much talent it’s ridiculous. For such a small town, we really have a great market to pull from. It’s nice to have local people get a piece of the pie.”

For more information or to sign up to participate, call Claddagh at (419) 472-1414.

— Sarah Ottney

Companies offer safe rides home

Remember to stay safe this St. Patrick’s Day. Area driving and cab services are available to make sure it’s easy for you and your friends to get home after going out to celebrate.

Granger’s Automotive, 329 1st St., in Toledo will take you and your vehicle home for $20 on March 16 and March 17 before 3:30 a.m. Call (419) 691-2962 for more information.

Locally owned Black & White Transportation offers a free application that can calculate your blood alcohol content and book you a cab ride home 24 hours a day. The app, B4UDRIVE, is exclusive to iPhone, BlackBerry and Droid, but the company’s mobile online reservation system is accessible by any Web-enabled phone.

You can also text the word “RIDE” to (419) 322-6772 or call the company at (419) 536-TAXI (8294). Cabs are first come, first serve, so there may be a wait. Rates are $2 to get in and $2.30 per mile.

If you know you will need a ride for St. Patrick’s Day, you can also book a sedan. The car service costs $60 per hour for a minimum of five hours.

For more information, visit www.blackwhitecab.com.

Another company, BeMyDD, offers a professionally dressed designated driver at an hourly rate. The driver will act as a personal chaufer, driving you and your friends where you want to go and then driving you home. The personal driver service costs $12.50 per hour in the Toledo area, according to BeMyDD’s website.

You can also call after you are already out and BeMyDD will send two drivers to drive you and your vehicle home. In the Toledo area, pickup service costs $25 plus mileage, which is $2.95 per mile for the first 10 miles and $1.50 per mile for each additional mile.

The service is available 24 hours a day, but reservations must be placed by 11 p.m. by calling 877-823-6933 (877-U-BEMYDD). For St. Patrick’s Day, advanced reservations are strongly suggested. For more information, visit www.bemydd.com.

— Sarah Ottney

Irish eyes turn to local festivities

Dressed in our greenest finery, Toledo Free Press Star fashion columnist Lauren O’Neill, Face of FOX Toledo Jocelyn Cruz and I hit the town for a pre-St. Patrick’s Day pub crawl to find out what Toledo has to offer for the upcoming holiday.

Along the way, we met with fellow Toledoans as well as some visiting out-of-towners, including a Marine on leave from Camp Lejeune and a Cleveland-area bowling team in town for a tournament, all enjoying food, drinks and live music at local bars. We also hung out with members of The Steve Mullan Band, Kentucky Chrome and Toast & Jam.

With a name like O’Neill, you know Lauren is Irish, but you might be surprised to learn Cruz, of Puerto Rican heritage, is 10 percent Irish. Not that it matters —

everyone is Irish on March 17!

Below is a list of area St. Patrick’s Day parties, music, food and drink specials to point you to the location that best draws out your inner Irish. Slàinte!

— Sarah Ottney

Arnie’s

3332 W. Central Ave., (419) 517-6037

Open: 6 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: Kegs and Eggs

Drinks: Ice luges, dollar power hour, 50-cent power hour

Music: Live bands and DJs

Leprechaun and magician

Dennis Kreuz, left, and Tommy Hutt cut loose with Jocelyn at The Bunker.

Bar 145

5305 Monroe St., (419) 593-0073

Open: 7 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: Irish breakfast (until 11 a.m.), Jiggs Dinner

Drinks: Irish car bomb specials, Guinness, Killian’s, Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale

Music: 2-6 p.m.: Mike “Mad Dog” Adams; 10 p.m.: Fibbion Handful

Cover: $5 for in and out all day (starting 1 p.m.), 21 and older

BigZ Bar and Grill / 32 Degrees

2600 W. Sylvania Ave., (419) 720-9090

Open: 11 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: $7.99 Jiggs Dinner

Drinks: $4 Irish car bombs, $3 Baby Guinness shots, $3 Killian’s Draft (you keep glass), $2 16-ounce Budweiser, $2 lemon drops

Joint party with new bar 32 Degrees (5122 Heath- erdowns Blvd.), featuring shuttle between locations, live DJs and covered patios at both locations and broadcast live on 100.7 The Vibe.

The Blarney Irish Pub

601 Monroe St., (419) 418-2339

Open: Two-day Blarney Madness: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. March 16; 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. March 17

Food: $7 breakfast (eggs, Irish bacon, potato pancakes, soda bread), $9 Jiggs Dinner, $7 corned beef sandwich and chips, $6 bangers and chips, $6 half pound Blarney Stones (chicken chunks)

Drinks: Ice luge for shots plus 19 beers on tap, including Guinness, Killian’s, Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale, Harp, Smithwick’s.

Music: March 16: 8 p.m.: The Bridges. March 17: 7 a.m.: bagpipers; 1-4 p.m.: Dragon Wagon; 6-8 p.m. Bangers & Thrash; 8:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.: Skoobie Snaks. DJ Kyle Rickner will play between sets.

Cost: $5 cover to benefit Toledo/Sylvania Firefighters Local Charities and  Ancient Order of Hibernians

Heated tent on Huron Street (starting 6 p.m. March 16 and noon March 17)

Firefighters in kilts

Bobby V’s American Grill

Lauren with Doc Watson’s employees Joy Billmaier, center, and Carey Parker.

8165 Airport Hwy., (419) 491-1795

Open: 7 a.m.-10 p.m.

Food: Kegs and eggs until 11:30 a.m., then Jiggs Dinner

Drinks: $1 green beer and Killian’s until 9:30 a.m., then $2 rest of the day. Also Guinness, Jameson.

Entertainment: Leprechaun

Caper’s Restaurant and Bar

2038 S. Byrne Road, (419) 389-9900

Open: 11 a.m.-midnight

Food: Jiggs Dinner, $9.99

Drinks: Irish car bombs, Guinness, Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale, $3 16-ounce aluminum Bud Light and Miller Lite

Prizes and gift card for craziest outfit

Chucks on Monroe

4477 Monroe St., (419) 720-3370

Open: 8 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $6.95 eggs and hash breakfast (until 11 a.m.), $8.95 Jiggs Dinner (11 a.m.-12:30 a.m.)

Drinks: Green beer, Guinness, $3.50 Irish car bomb station, $1.50 green Coors Light draft, $2 cherry/grape bombs (until 9 p.m., $3 after 9 p.m.),

happy hour until 9 p.m. ($1 off drinks)

Music: 6 p.m.: DJ Todd Delicious

Claddagh Irish Pub

5001 Monroe St., (419) 472-1414

Open: 7 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: Irish menu (until midnight)

Drinks: Guinness, Killian’s, bomb specials, draft specials, jello shots, aluminum bottle specials Music: Two stages: Noon: DJ, 2 p.m.: The Steve Mullan Band, 5 p.m.: Road Kilt, 9 p.m.: The Bridges.

Plus, 3,000-square-foot heated tent (starting 10 a.m.),  Irish dancers, bagpipers, promo girls and giveaways

Cover: $10 (starting at 3 p.m.), or $20 VIP passes (no lines, T-shirt, beads, coupons, $5 off Claddagh’s Irish Carvery Sunday Brunch on March 18). 21 and older only after 3 p.m.

Doc Watson’s

1515 S. Byrne Road, (419) 389-6003

Open: 5:30 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: Breakfast (green eggs and ham); Jiggs Dinner with authentic Irish soda bread

Drinks: Green beer, Irish drink specials, green jello shots, Killian’s (beer of month), Guinness, Smithwick’s, Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale, Harpoon Celtic Ale, Magners Irish Cider

Music: 12:30-2:30 p.m.: Jeff Stewart; 3:30-5:30 p.m.: Meaghan Roberts; 6:30-8:30 p.m.: DJ Chris; 9:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m.: DFR

Giveaways all day (hats, shirts, necklaces)

Megan O’Hearn, left, and Julia Bonk with Lauren at Doc Watson’s.

Cover: $1-3 (starts at 12:30 p.m.)

Four Horsemen

4452 Lewis Ave., (419) 476-3900

Open: 9 a.m.-2:30 a.m. (Specials also apply March 14 and 16.)

Food: $8.75 Jiggs Dinner, $7.50 corned beef sandwiches (dine in or carry-out).

Drinks: $1 Green Demon shot, Irish car bombs, Guinness, Killian’s, beer specials

Delaney’s Lounge

309 W. Alexis Road, (419) 476-2883

Open: 9 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: Corned beef sandwiches

Drinks: Jello shots, green beer, Guinness, Killian’s, kamikaze tooters

Music: DJs all day including Mark Sheppard.

Raffles, giveaways, “I survived St. Patrick’s Day” T-shirts ($12-$15)

Manhattan’s

1516 Adams St., (419) 243-6675

Open: 11 a.m.-1 a.m.

Food: Jiggs Dinner, fish and chips, Irish stew

ODrinks: $5 Irish car bombs, $4 Jameson, $3 Feckin’ Irish whiskey, green beer, Guinness, Killian’s, Harp

Music: 9 p.m.: Raq the Casba

Mickey Finn’s Pub

602 Lagrange St., (419) 246-3466

Open: 11 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $10 Jiggs Dinner, $5 corned beef sandwich and chips

Drinks: Irish car bombs, Guinness, Killian’s, Harp, all Irish whiskeys

Jocelyn Cruz

Music: 4:30-6:30 p.m.: Paddy Murphy, Don Binkley, Bobby May; 7-9 p.m.: Minglewood Labor Camp; 9:30-11 p.m.: The Swamp People; 11:30 p.m.-close: Decent Folk. Plus bagpipers.

M.T. Loonies

6648 Lewis Ave., Temperance, (734) 847-7222

Open: 9 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: $12 Jiggs Dinner (8 ounces unsliced corned beef, potatoes, carrots, cabbage), $8 corned beef sandwiches (to-go orders taken until 8 p.m.)

Drinks: Green beer, Irish shots, Irish margaritas, 20-ounce Guinness, Killian’s, Irish car bombs

Music: Irish drinking music played all day. 7:30 p.m.: DJ Smoot.

Free beads, Irish dancers (4:30 p.m.)

Mulvaney’s Bunker Irish Pub

4945 Dorr St., 419-534-9830

Open: 9 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $7.95 breakfast brunch buffet, Jiggs Dinner, various Irish food and appetizers

Drinks: Green beer, green shots, $4 Bloody Mary bar, homemade pudding shots, Guinness, Smithwick’s, Great Lakes Conway Irish Ale, 26 beers on tap

Music: Noon-4 p.m.: Kyle White; 5-9 p.m.: Breaking Ground; 9 p.m.-2 a.m.: DJ Exel (with light show and video).

Tent in patio. Three bars. Promo girls throughout day. Cash prizes for best-dressed Mr. and Mrs. St. Patty’s Day (7 p.m.)

Cover: $5 starting at noon

Pat & Dandy’s Sports Bar and Grill

3340 W. Laskey Road. (419) 474-1189

Open: 10 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $8.95 Jiggs Dinner, $6.95 corned beef on rye with swiss, $6.75 leprechaun stew (chicken stew) in sourdough bread bowl

Drinks: $1 10-ounce green beer, Guinness, Killian’s, Irish car bombs, Jameson shots

Music: 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m.: Streetwize

Quimby’s At The Park

25 S. Huron St., (419) 244-7222

Open: Noon-2:30 a.m.

Food: Rueben special

Drinks: Guinness, Killian’s, Irish car bombs

Music: 9 p.m.: Man Down and DJ E.

Official Glass City Rollers afterparty

Shawn’s Irish Tavern

Grand Opening of new location on St. Patrick’s Day: 7436 Bancroft St. (at King Road), Sylvania, (419) 724-7981; plus, 4400 Heatherdowns Blvd., Toledo, 419-381-1281; and 105 S. Third St., Waterville, (419) 441-1081

Open: 10 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: $8 Jiggs Dinner, $6.75 hot shredded beef sandwiches, $6.75 corned beef sandwiches

Drinks: Beer specials all day, green beer, Irish car bombs, Guinness, Killian’s

Music: 9 p.m.: The Villains (Waterville), 9 p.m.: Johnny Rodriguez (Toledo)

Swig

219 Louisiana Ave., Perrysburg, (419) 873-6224

Open: 6 a.m.-2 a.m.

Food: Irish breakfast, Jiggs Dinner, Guinness-braised lamb shanks, bangers and mash

Drinks: Irish whiskeys and Irish craft beers, including Three Flloyds, Great Lakes and Dark Horse

Music: Noon-3 p.m.: Old State Line; 4-7 p.m.: Jeff Stewart; 8-midnight: Local Delivery.

Heated tent on patio

Trotters Tavern

5131 Heatherdowns Blvd., 419-381-2079

Open: 11 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $10.99 Jiggs Dinner, $10.99 bangers and mash, $7.99 corned beef sandwich, $10.99 combo plate

Drinks: Green beer, Guinness ice cream float, mini Guinie, Irish car bombs, Irish shots, Irish whiskeys including Feckin Irish Whiskey, Tullamore Dew, Michael Collins, Powers, Celtic Crossing, Bushmills Irish Honey

Music: 4:30-7:30 p.m.: Chris Brown and Candice Coleman; 9 p.m.-1 a.m.: Nine Lives

Village Inn

4984 N. Holland-Sylvania Road,

(419) 882-0338

Open: 7 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: $7.99 Jiggs Dinner

Drinks: Green beer, Guinness, Killian’s, Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale, Dundee Irish Red Lager, Great Black Swamp Mosquito Red Ale, mini-Guinie shots. Happy Hour (7-11 a.m., 4-7 p.m.): $1.75 Bud Light/Miller Lite/Labatt/Yuengling Light

Music: 7-11 p.m.: Watson Street Loft

Yeeha’s Buckin’ Bar and Grill

3150 Navarre Ave., Oregon, 419-691-8880

Open: 9 a.m.-2:30 a.m.

Food: Kegs and Eggs, Jiggs Dinner (starting at noon)

Drinks: Green beer, $3 Irish car bombs

Music: 3 p.m.: Big Ticket; 9 pm.: Brave Youngster

Tags: Ancient Order of Hibernians, Arnie's, Bar 145, BeMyDD, BigZ Bar and Grill, Blarney Bullpen, Blarney Irish Pub, Bobby V’s American Grill, Caper’s Restaurant and Bar, Chucks on Monroe, Claddagh Irish Pub, Delaney's Lounge, Doc Watson's, Face of FOX Toledo, Four Horsemen, Glass City Rollers, Granger’s Automotive, Guinness, Jiggs Dinner, Jocelyn Cruz, Lauren O’Neill, M.T. Loonies, Manhattan's, Mickey Finn's Pub, Mulvaney’s Bunker Irish Pub, Pat & Dandy’s Sports Bar and Grill, Quimby’s At The Park, Shawn’s Irish Tavern, St. Patrick's Day, Swig, Trotters Tavern, Village Inn, Yeeha’s Buckin’ Bar and Grill

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 13th, 2012 at 12:51 pm and is filed under Featured, St. Patrick's Day, Star, Uncategorized.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

I think it was in May of this year when I met local singer/songwriter Meaghan Roberts. I was playing music on an art bench on South St. Clair Street in the Warehouse District and she was on her way to have some pizza at Home Slice with a mutual friend. They approached, and our friend introduced us by saying, “You’re both chick singers, so you probably can’t like each other.”

We each smiled and assured him there was no need for competition; there is room enough for us both on the Toledo music scene.  Since then, we have shared a stage at the Old West End Festival,  we’ve tried a couple of duets, and she even handed me her enormous shoes to fill as the co-host of Manhattan’s Monday night Open Mic Night with Jason Quick while she goes back to school for the fall.

This weekly open mic night, incidentally, has been going strong for five years and attracts some really quality players with hearts the size of the whole room. Meaghan has been training me for the past couple of weeks and I have been watching her very closely.

I am so impressed and inspired by her skill and professionalism as a musician, but even more by how easily she supports other musicians. The atmosphere she and Jason and the staff of Manhattan’s provide for those coming in to try out their stage legs makes my heart warm and I instantly felt like I was in a room full of respect and nurturing.

This brings me to a slight point of frustration I’ve encountered enough times lately to remark on. Little worms of sabotage and discouragement have made their way into my awareness and it’s getting on my nerves. I know that I am unreasonably optimistic most of the time. I know the look that people get when they talk to me, right before they start shaking their heads slightly at my audacity in thinking that everything is always just fine. Perfect, in fact.  So, I’m probably extra sensitive to negativity because I feel like it’s my responsibility to squash it.

The reason for this is because the balance we’ve achieved in Toledo at this moment in time hovers so delicately between risk-taking, creativity and being entrepreneurial that any wind that threatens to blow us over

must be diligently withstood if we are going to continue building something solid.  Not only are many of us trying our dreams on for size to make this a lively, vibrant, magical place to live, but most of us understand that we are all on the same team in these efforts.

Having that basic comfort provides us with very sure footing that helps us continue.  So, the people who participate in the culture, but who also play a bit of Jenga by poking holes in other artists’ participation should consider focusing on their own skills and contributions rather than diluting their energies by undercutting the work of their fellow culture creators.

This is not to say that constructive criticism and respectful critique should be outlawed. But the underlying support and acceptance from the community must always be evident. We must never wish failure on each other.

We should only build each other’s confidence and loudly exclaim to one another that we can achieve better and more, as individuals and as a city. Self-loathing is only funny some of the time. And when it manifests in undermining the talents of your neighbors, it can do real damage.  Toledo has nearly talked itself all the way out of its historically crippling inferiority complex. The signs are becoming more and more clear that the city is starting to feel pretty damn good about itself. This, of course, means that the best is yet to come. It’s not too late for the crabby apples to jump onboard. We’ll still have you. But if you can’t encourage the success of your fellow artists, we’ll be forced to leave you behind.

Rachel Richardson is a musician, activist and product of Toledo.

Tags: ACT, Jason Quick, Manhattan's, Meaghan Roberts, Old West End Festival, Rachel Richardson

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 24th, 2011 at 12:50 pm and is filed under ACT, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Not all venues are created equal.  Toledo offers a variety from the good, the bad and the ugly.  Local musical settings range from art galleries to coffee shops, beer galleries to amphitheaters. However, if you are in a local band, you can cross off playing the latter,  unless you win The Blade’s Battle of the Bands (who are those people?),  leaving the rest of us with the smaller, local places.

For original bands, I recommend seeking out a room with a stage and a sound system. A show is much enhanced by these technological advancements, yet these simple improvements seem to elude many of the venues on the local circuit.

The Village Idiot and The Ottawa Tavern are bars that have recently updated their spaces. Unlike many bar venues, they have taken steps toward being legit clubs, providing a sound system, stage and lighting. These bars benefit from having good locations and large crowds (that seem to live there). Performing bands are sure to get recognition and applause for playing new and original material. The main challenges to the audience and musicians — both spaces get loud and crowded after midnight and because of this bands are expected to play, umm, loud.

A stage is more than a symbol — it’s a working tool that helps a performer more efficiently rock.  Without one, people are less likely to treat the evening like a show, and more likely to write off a band as “background music” (my least favorite term ever to be deemed a genre.)

Manhattan’s, which offers live music seven days a week, does not have a stage or any sound system. For a venue that has such good taste in music, and treats its performers quite well in terms of pay and respect, it is really time to take the next step by installing some hanging speakers and a small raised stage. My real vision for Manhattan’s would be to move select shows to the party room. It would be the perfect space  to have a show based on listening and respect.  Believe me, there are so many people who would love to come out for music but stay in because of the lack of etiquette in the bar scene. I get chills at the thought of playing to a captive room full of attentive patrons.

Ahh, the elusive captive audience; a dream to most, a reality to few. Once, in a far away land called Lansing, I went to a show where

100 people sat in rows of folding chairs facing a small stage surrounded by artwork. They paid a small cover and sat to listen to the stories set to music. It was all very Zen; the crowd only wanted to be part of the experience. There were bars to the left and the right and anyone was free to leave at anytime. It was like being at a play. Robinwood Concert House is a newer venue that takes listening very seriously. It should be commended and visited by many. Specializing in avante garde and touring groups, it remains one of the most unique performance spaces in the are. Bozarts Fine Art and Music Gallery also features a welcoming creative space where acts local or otherwise perform in front of local hanging artwork. No pressure to be a cover band here, either. The sacrifice is neither spot can offer the cold hard cash a bar can. It’s Catch 22 of 222 for musicians in Toledo. Quality/Quantity = Sacrifice.

What happened to paying a cover? Toledo has taken the recession hard and now makes a funny face at the mention of paying a cover for music.  Because of this, it has become  harder for local bands to get people to come to venues like Mickey Finn’s or Frankie’s. Both provide excellent sound systems and great stages — not to mention real sound men, a breed of men that has migrated north. Maybe for those who come to shows for the social aspect it doesn’t matter, but those there specifically for the music struggle to hear and participate.

So what can we do to better the music scene?  Venues, help your bands and provide a stage or sound system that works with your room. It will help with quality and constancy. Bands, keep playing new music so people stop treating us like a call and request radio show. Most importantly, if we as a people had a bit more self-control when out in public and paid a bit more respect to the performers, we could see a change in quality almost immediately. A few days ago, I heard a guitarist named Tim Oehlers shout, “Please be quiet so we can hear the music!” while struggling to hear The Staving Chain and its acoustic instrumentation. I shook his hand. Well played, sir.

P.S. It was just reported that “Wooly Bully” was heard being played at the Toledo Art Museum … now that’s high art!

Sarah Cohen is a Toledo native and an original musician of The Antivillains who manages Happy Badger Cafe in Bowling Green. Email her at star@toledofreepress.com.

Tags: Bozarts, Manhattan's, Sarah Cohen, Sound Judgment, The Ottawa Tavern, The Staving Chain, The Village Idiot, Tim Oehlers, Toledo Mudeum of Art

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011 at 6:02 pm and is filed under Sound Judgment, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

The Arts Commission of Greater Toledo (ACGT) is highlighting the local music scene July 22 with Downtown SoundTrek, an event featuring more than 30 bands at 13 venues in Downtown Toledo.

SoundTrek is a new take on the former Toledo Jazz Festival. The cost of admission provides access to all 13 locations and bus rides between venues. The shows are split between the Warehouse District and the Uptown District.

“We were looking for ideas and ways to expand our services to the performing arts community,” said Ryan Bunch, performing and literary arts coordinator at the ACGT. “We wanted to present Toledo’s music scene in a new way. Instead of reinventing the wheel, we took the model we had from the Jazz loop. We made it a tighter bus loop and more multigenre. It’s representative of what’s going on in venues Downtown.”

According to Bunch, the main goal of SoundTrek is to showcase musicians in Toledo. There are only three bands performing from outside the Toledo area.

“These are Toledo musicians in venues that are working to present live music in the community,” Bunch said. “It’s about elevating and highlighting that. It’s getting people to come down and see the wealth of venues, how close they are, how walkable they are and what a diverse range of music there is. It gives the community a chance to get a broad sampling of everything going on in one night.”

Ryan Bunch

One of the artists the community can see is Kyle White as the acoustic rocker kicks things off at PizzaPapalis at 519 Monroe St. White is releasing her second CD “On With the Show” on July 24.

“Toledo is full of extremely talented people,” White said. “The music scene in Toledo would rival any big city. I was in a suburb of Chicago in April, and on a Tuesday night there wasn’t anything going on anywhere. In Toledo, you can go out any night of the week to numerous places and find live music.”

Old State Line guitarist Thomas Barden is excited  about the promotion SoundTrek provides for local venues. His band is opening at the Glass City Cafe.

“It gets more people out in the neighborhood going to things,” Barden said. “Glass City Cafe is great, but it’s hard because people don’t know about it. It’s a great place. The management is wonderful. After Friday night, a lot more people will know about it.”

While Bunch is excited about the music around Toledo today, he’s also proud of the city’s musical past.

“Toledo has a remarkably long and rich history in music,” he said. “It’s the birthplace of Art Tatum and John Hendricks. You have the kind of garage blues renaissance that started here and worked its way up to Detroit. There’s a wide-reaching, broad range of music that’s happened here. It’s always been here. We haven’t quite gotten our dues as the next hip explosion, but it’s really rich. There’s a lot of talent here. I’m constantly astounded by how many people are not just talented at what they do but can work across genres. The music community is really well connected and supportive.”

With such a diverse history, Bunch wanted SoundTrek to represent as many genres as possible.

“If we were going to do this, it needed to be representative of the broad range of styles happening in the area,” he said. “As time goes on and digital music becomes more prevalent, the idea of genres is melting away anyway. If you took a sampling from most peoples’ iPods, there’s a broad range of stuff on there.”

Because of the wide array of musicians and venues in Toledo, the ACGT formed a committee to select the artists and where they would play.

“We were feeling our way through the dark to figure out how it was going to look and work,” Bunch said. “The committee put their heads together and tried to come up with something that is broad in scope. Since we’re working with a lot of established venues that present music, we wanted to make sure they were comfortable with the music they would be presenting. It was a collaboration between the committee and the venue owners to figure out how we could stretch the borders but not go too far with it. It’s been really fun getting to know a handful of venues and working with them. They’ve all really picked up the ball and been excited about it.”

One venue Bunch is particularly excited for is Bozarts Fine Art and Music Gallery.

“[Owner] Jerry Gray put together a killer lineup,” Bunch said. “He was already putting together a show when we contacted him, so it worked out. He has The Staving Chain, which is kind of a traditional Delta blues group. They have Dooley Wilson, who for my money is the best guitar player in the tri-state area. He’s a killer guitar player. Danny Kroha is playing with them, and he’s kind of a Detroit music legend. That should be an awesome lineup.”

The lineup also includes Boom Chick, a rock ‘n’ roll duo from Brooklyn with Moselle Spiller on drums and Frank Hoier on guitar and vocals.

“I’m super excited about the lineup we have,” Gray said. “It’s going to be mostly blues-oriented rock. Boom Chick contacted me online, and the date worked out. It’s their first time in Toledo. They are excellent.”

Bunch said the ACGT plans to use SoundTrek as an annual fundraising event. Proceeds will fund programs such as Artomatic 419!, the art walks and the gallery loops, all of which are presented free to the community. The event also serves as part of an effort to integrate the performing arts into the ACGT.

“The arts commission has always typically been visual arts heavy,” Bunch said. “There used to be a specific performing arts council in Toledo until about 10 years ago. Since then, the slack has not been picked up. It’s been interesting to go through and see what a really broad and diverse array of individuals and organizations there are that are working and haven’t been brought together yet.”

SoundTrek partnered with the first annual Toledo Music Expo, which is July 23 at the Erie Street Market. The event features live performances and provides networking opportunities for artists, venues and vendors.

“That was kind of a serendipitous aspect of the event,” Bunch said. “When we were brainstorming, we thought it would be cool to have a little expo of people who weren’t going to be on this loop. There are so many music related businesses and companies, so we thought we could have people come down and promote their business and show there is a wide network that reaches across the state. It seemed too daunting to take on for the first time. We just wanted to get the bus loop part right.”

“No sooner did we scrap that idea, and put it on the back burner for future years, than we were contacted. They pitched us an idea similar to what we were thinking. It made a lot of sense to cross promote each other’s events and show that over this one weekend there is a broad range of getting a sampling of the music scene. They very generously agreed to donate a portion of their proceeds back to the arts commission. We are incredibly grateful for it.”

The Toledo Music Expo is donating a portion of profits to ACGT and is offering a $5 discount to those who attend SoundTrek.

SoundTrek runs from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Wristbands for the event are $15 in advance and $20 on July 22, and admission to individual venues is available for $5. Visit www.ACGT.org for more information.

“If you’re a music fan at all, I think it’s a pretty easy sell,” Bunch said. “If you have any interest in getting to know your city or getting to know like-minded people, it’s all right here. You get to ride around on a bus Downtown and go bar hopping, which is not something you get to do every day.”

Sound Trek Spotlight: Kyle White reaches for the stars

Kyle White put her autobiography to music with her second album “On With the Show,” which she is debuting at a CD release party July 24.

The album is heavily influenced by White’s family. It features a variety of instruments such as violin, trumpet, dobro and mandolin. White’s father Don plays the banjo on three songs.

“He’s been a huge influence on me musically,” she said. “I’ve been surrounded by live music my entire life. My dad’s friends are all musicians. My grandfather [Robert White] is on the wall at the SeaGate Centre for the Lake Erie West Hall of Fame. My dad is an exceptional banjo player and a great bass player, guitar player and singer. It was great to have him on the CD. It’s something I’ll always have.”

The album was also heavily influenced by White’s sister Tamara. White wrote the song “Forever Friend” for her sister when she was sick.

Kyle White

“The album would have been done a lot sooner, but all of 2009 my sister was really sick,” White said. “We didn’t know exactly what was going to happen. I was sad and just wanted to write a tribute to her. She had to have a bone marrow transplant. There’s only a 20 percent chance a sibling will be a match, but luckily I was, so I was her donor. Out of the entire bone marrow floor at the Cleveland Clinic, only her and one other person made it. All of that was going on when I was planning on recording. I was driving to Cleveland every few days.”

Tamara made a full recovery.

“You would never even know anything was wrong with her now,” White said. “They said they’ve never seen anybody’s stem cells graft as fast as mine. I blamed it on all the Guinness I drink because it’s full of iron.”

The title track, “On With the Show,” was written as a not-so-subtle hint to her fiancé before they got engaged.

“We didn’t get engaged until we were together for five years,” White said. “I wrote that about a year and a half ago. It was kind of a message to him. It worked.”

Every song on the album comes from experiences in White’s life.

“I wrote a song about the river and sitting on my boat,” she said. “There’s a song called ‘August in Ohio’ about just hanging out on the front porch. I only write about my personal experiences. I’ve been writing for the past couple of years. I write sporadically. When a song comes to me, I just write it.”

Writing is still a relatively new experience for White. Her first album “Blue Holes in a Gray Sky” was released in 2009.

“I played covers for eight years before I ever wrote a song,” White said. “Singing so many different kinds of music hones you in to what’s going to come out of you.”

White might have never started a career in music if she hadn’t participated in a karaoke contest years ago.

“When I was 19, I worked at Primetime and they had karaoke on Sundays,” White said. “I used to sing ‘Me and Bobby McGee’ and win the contest. The prize was $50 to the bar, so I would get pizza and pop for my friends. When the cover band Tito Slack was starting out, my friend said, ‘My boyfriend has a band. Why don’t you come sing with them in the basement?’ I sang a couple of songs and I was in the band.”

After joining the band, White decided to take up an instrument.

“I didn’t just want to be a singer, so I started teaching myself guitar,” she said. “I played for a couple years before I played guitar at a show.”

White graduated from the University of Toledo with a degree in psychology. If she hadn’t participated in the karaoke contest, she might have been a school psychologist today.

“I was going to go back and get my masters in school psychology,” White said. “I decided to play music for a couple years and see how it goes. It never slowed down. I’m playing more and more. I’m lucky to be able to do something I love for a living.”

Along with her solo career, White also plays in a cover band called Johnny Rocker and the Hitmen. The band’s biggest claim to fame is playing at a John McCain rally.

“It’s a complete 180 from my solo gigs,” White said. “It’s so much fun. We play ’60s, ’70s and ’80s and we do costume changes for each era. Sometimes people don’t even know it’s me because I’m in a big blonde afro and a disco costume. They are really fun to play with.”

She also plays covers in her solo act and is happy to take requests. She learns two or three covers every week and has built a catalog of between 200 and 300 songs.

“I’ve always had the kind of memory where if I took notes in school, I never had to look at them again,” White said. “I just kind of remember things. I have a really good memory, especially for music.”

White has been playing in Toledo for 14 years and plans on sticking around, but she does love to travel. She has been to all but four of the 50 states and has traveled across Europe several times. The last time she went to Europe, she caught a surprise performance.

“We were jamming with these people at a bar in Amsterdam and Sublime showed up,” White said. “We didn’t know it, but they were playing at a place right next door to our hotel. They showed up to this open jam with only about 30 or 40 people and played a half hour set. I was jamming with the house band right before Sublime took the stage, so that was pretty cool.”

White’s CD release party starts at 7 p.m. July 24 at Mulvaney’s Bunker located at 4945 Dorr St. There is no cover, and the show features 17-year-old Claire Cooper as the opening act.

“I like giving younger people experience playing in front of people,” White said. “She’s a natural. It’s crazy. She is never the least bit nervous.”

White is also the opening act at PizzaPapalis on July 22 as part of Downtown SoundTrek. The event features more than 30 bands at 13 venues downtown from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Wristbands for SoundTrek are $15 in advance and $20 on July 22, and admission to individual venues is available for $5. Visit www.ACGT.org for more information.

Sound Trek Spotlight: Veteran pilots band to new heights

Mild-mannered college dean by day, guitar hero by night, Thomas Barden plays with Old State Line alongside his wife and a few of their friends.

Barden, dean of the Honors College at the University of Toledo, has performed for more than 40 years after starting in music at 16 in Virginia.

“It was the folk revival,” Barden said. “Everyone was playing. Peter, Paul & Mary and Bob Dylan were big. Their songs were simple. I got an old cheap guitar to start with and had a group in high school. When I got to college, there was an old-time music scene with fiddlers and all those old guys. It was great. I hung out in a coffeehouse instead of a fraternity. It was just the time it was.”

He stuck with the guitar for years, but Barden’s folk background eventually led him to pick up a mandolin.

“I avoided anything but guitar until I was around 50, thinking it might confuse me,” he said. “One of the old guys at a jam in Toledo told me, ‘it doesn’t confuse you, it just helps you get better. The chords are upside down and backwards.’ As soon as he told me that, I got one from Durdel’s Music and just started trying it. He was right. It makes your guitar playing better.”

Old State Line

Barden figured out the mandolin then took up another instrument called a dobro.

“The dobro was a Christmas gift from my wife and kids,” Barden said. “They said, ‘Okay, you’re so smart, figure this one out.’ That one is open tuned with a slide. It is tough. I only do a few tunes with it, only three or four, but it’s such a great country sound.”

After years of watching her husband play, Rayna Zacharias said she decided to learn to play bass guitar.

“She was looking for a way to relax,” Barden said. “She’s been around the band for as long as we’ve been married. She figures it’s easier to be in it than to be a roadie. She’s really good, that’s the thing. We weren’t sure. That was going to be a little tense in the family if she was crappy. We won’t have to have that conversation.”

Zacharias has brought new ideas to the band from her lessons at Durdel’s Music.

“We’re partners in everything else, and being music partners is great, too,” Barden said. “She has such a great teacher now in Jason Gahler. She brings home stuff that’s a real stretch, and I get to practice with her before we take it to the band.”

Old State Line also features Cindy Lipman on fiddle and vocals, Larry Meyer on drums and Ramsey Abu-Absi on guitar, mandolin and vocals.

“I’m married to the bass player and I’ve been playing with the fiddler for decades,” Barden said. “Everybody knew everybody anyhow. It was just an occasion for this jam to go public. Me, Cindy and my wife just did jams on Sunday afternoons. We talked to Larry about trying to drum, then Ramsey came in. He’s an incredible guitar player and a really good mandolin player, too. We just would do afternoon jams in our house, and it got so good we had to take it out.”

Before forming Old State Line, Barden and Lipman played together in other groups, such as Midnight on the Water and Ten Mile Creek.

“She started playing because she found her grandfather’s fiddle,” Barden said. “I was a guitar player so I backed her up while she got started with it. We’ve been in band after band for 20 years. Ten Mile Creek was more blue-grassy than we are now, because there was no drummer. What’s nice about Old State Line is we have Larry Meyer who is a drummer. It takes us into more of a rockabilly and Johnny Cash area than we were with Ten Mile Creek. It’s really fun.”

Old State Line is without Lipman for the summer while she vacations in Maine, so Abu-Absi’s co-worker Ted Whalen is sitting in with the band.

“He’s a really good fiddler, but he also plays the harmonica,” Barden said. “We’ll probably move more into the Bob Dylan direction since we have a harmonica player. We added more Dylan to the set list because we can hear Ted play that harmonica. It’s such a Bob sound.”

The band plays mostly old fiddle tunes and folk songs, and Barden described their sound as Americana.

“Our style can be really wide-ranging,” Barden said. “Kansas City is a style my wife’s bass instructor taught her. She came home playing the licks to ‘Sunshine of Your Love,’ so we threw that in, too. Right now it’s anything we can do that sounds decent.”

Old State Line is the opening act at Glass City Café or July 22 as part of Downtown SoundTrek. The event features more than 30 bands at 13 venues Downtown from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Wristbands for SoundTrek are $15 in advance and $20 on July 22, and admission to individual venues is available for $5. Visit www.ACGT.org for more information.

July 22 Sound Trek schedule:

UPTOWN ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT

1. Bretz Bar 2012 Adams St.

(419) 243-1900 www.myspace.com/bretzthebar

DJs and Drag Show featuring:

11 p.m.: Charlie Slick (electro-pop/dance from Ann Arbor)

12 a.m.: Feleciana Thuderpussy (drag show)

All night: DJ Rob Sample (DJ/dance)

2. Ottawa Tavern 1817 Adams St.

(419) 725-5483 www.otavern.com

7 p.m.: Balloon Messenger (indie)

8 p.m.: Microdot (shoegaze)

9 p.m.: Great Uncle (rock/pop)

10 p.m.: Great Lakes Crew (hip-hop)

11 p.m.: GoLab (electro-pop/rock)

12 a.m.: Matt Truman Ego Trip (glam rock)

1 a.m.: Frank & Jesse (rock n’ roll)

3. Truth Art Gallery 1811 Adams St.

(419) 460-1343 www.thetruthtoledo.com/gallery

8 – 11 p.m.: 4 Deep (jazz/blues/soul)

4. The Attic on Adams 1701 Adams St.

(419) 243-5350 www.theatticonadams.com

7:30 p.m. & 9:30 p.m.: Leyla & Raq the Casbah

10 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.: Big Blues Bob (Chicago-style blues)

Plus live magic and more!

5. Manhattan’s 1516 Adams St.

(419) 243-6675 www.manhattanstoledo.com

7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. :DFR (funk/R&B)

10 p.m. – 1 a.m.: Tom Turner & Slow Burn (blues/rock)

6. Toledo School for the Arts 333 14th St.

(419) 246-8732 www.ts4arts.com

Enter on 15th St., across from Manhattan’s

7 – 9 p.m.: Glass City Steel (steel drum ensemble)

9 – 11 p.m.: Benny and the Bricks (rock)

11 p.m. – 1 a.m.: The Groove Associates (groovy)

7. Wesley’s Bar 1201 Adams St.

(419) 255-3333 www.wesleysbar.com

7:30 p.m.: Lance Hulsey (of Kentucky Chrome) (rockabilly)

8:30 – 10 p.m. – Mighthaveben (The Band) (jazz/folk/funk)

10:30 p.m. – 2:30 a.m.: Old School Fridays featuring DJs Todd Perrine, N.Matimoe and Folk (DJs/old school funk, soul, & hip-hop)

8. Toledo City Paper Offices 1120 Adams St.

(419) 244-9859 www.toledocitypaper.com

7 p.m.: Raine Wilder (hip-hop)

7:55 p.m.: Ben Barefoot and the Handshakes (indie rock)

8:50 p.m.: Decent Folk (folk/indie)

9:45 p.m.: Stonehouse (jam rock)

10:40 p.m.: Shit Dang Monstertrucks! (alt-country)

11:30 p.m.: Thirty Three & 1/3 (blues/indie rock)

12:20 a.m.: Gold (funk/rock)

9. Glass City Café 1107 Jackson St.

(419) 241-4519 www.glasscitycafe.com

7:30 – 10 p.m.: Old State Line (Americana)

10 p.m. – 12 a.m. Black Swamp String Band (bluegrass)

STADIUM/ARENA DISTRICT

10. The Blarney Bullpen/Toledo Free Press Star 601 Monroe St.

(419) 418-2339 www.theblarneyirishpub.com

Enter on Huron Street.

7:30 p.m. – 12 a.m.: Hepcat Revival  (swing/jazz)

11. Table Forty4 610 Monroe St.

(419) 725-0044 www.tableforty4.com

7 – 9:30 p.m.: Bobby May & John Barile (rock/blues)

10 p.m. – 1 a.m.: The Chris Shutters Band (rock/blues)

12. PizzaPapalis 519 Monroe St.

(419) 244-7722 www.pizzapapalis.com

7:15 p.m.: Kyle White (acoustic/folk)

8:15 p.m.: The Faux Paus (indie rock)

9:45 p.m.: Chavar Dontae (electronic/soul/rock)

11:30 p.m.: The Quickness (rock/blues/jazz)

13. Bozarts Fine Art & Music Gallery

151 N. St. Clair St. (419) 464-5785

7:30 p.m.: The ‘Leles (ukulele/folk)

8:30 p.m.: Thirty Three & 1/3 (blues rock/indie)

9:30 p.m.: Danny Kroha (formerly of The Gories) (acoustic blues from Detroit)

10:30 p.m.: The Staving Chain (featuring

Dooley Wilson) (traditional Delta-style slide blues)

12 a.m. – Boom Chick (blues-surf-rock from Brooklyn)

Partner Event: The First Toledo Music Expo!

The following day, Saturday, July 23, J&L Entertainment Services will host Toledo’s first Toledo Music Expo. A portion of proceeds from the event will benefit the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo. Save $5 at the door with your SoundTrek wristband. The First Toledo Music Expo will take place at the Erie Street Market in Downtown Toledo. This event is for local musicians, singers, songwriters, engineers, recording studios, videographers, and more. For more information visit them on the web at ToledoMusicExpo.com.

Tags: 4 Deep, Arts Commission of Greater Toledo, Balloon Messenger, Ben Barefoot and the Handshakes, Benny and the Bricks, Black Swamp String Band, Blarney Bullpen, Blues Bob, Bobby May & John Barile, Boom Chick, Bozarts Fine Art & Music Gallery, Bretz Bar, Charlie Slick, Chavar Dontae, Danny Kroha, Decent Folk, DFR, DJ Rob Sample, Downtown Toledo, Erie Street Market, Feleciana Thuderpussy, Folk, Frank & Jesse, Glass City Cafe, Glass City Steel, GoLab, Gold, Great Lakes Crew, Great Uncle, Hepcat Revival, Kyle White, Lance Hulsey, Leyla & Raq the Casbah, Manhattan's, Matt Truman Ego Trip, Microdot, Mighthaveben, N.Matimoe, Old School Fridays, Old State Line, Ottawa Tavern, PizzaPapalis, Quickness, Raine Wilder, Ryan Bunch, Shit Dang Monstertrucks!, Sound Trek, Stonehouse, Table Forty4, The Attic on Adams, The Chris Shutters Band, The Faux Paus, The Gories, The Groove Associates, The Staving Chain, The ‘Leles, Thirty Three &1/3, Todd Perrine, Toledo Free Press, Toledo Music Expo, Toledo School for the Arts, Tom Turner & Slowburn, Truth Art Gallery, Wesley's Bar

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 19th, 2011 at 11:48 am and is filed under Arts Commission of Greater Toledo, Featured, In Concert, Music, Uncategorized.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Having been firmly rooted in the blues for nearly two decades, Northwest Ohio native Dooley Wilson is a little timid about admitting where his initial inspiration came from.

“I think it really began before I picked up a guitar,” Wilson said in a phone interview with Toledo Free Press Star. “I have to admit, when I was 15, “Sweet Child o’ Mine” came out, and the solo from that song is the reason that I play guitar. Like I saw Slash doing that and — I feel a bit sheepish admitting this to the Toledo Free Press — but when I saw Slash doing that it changed my life. I was like, ‘I wanna do that! I can’t help it. I gotta do it.’ So, for better or for worse, that’s the road I took in life.”

While he never learned Slash’s note-by-note solo in “Sweet Child o’ Mine,” it marked the beginning of a long musical journey for Wilson, whose interest in Led Zeppelin as a teenager got him into Robert Johnson and led him to pursue the blues.

Dooley Wilson and The Staving Chain will play Manhattan’s on July 8. Photo by Erica Vance Hartmann

“By the time I was 19, I was just exclusively kind of militant about pursuing this style of southern, traditional blues,” Wilson said.

Since the early ’90s, Wilson has explored various forms of blues in groups such as Henry & June, Boogaloosa Prayer and the Soledad Brothers. After a jam session at the old Purple Gang house in Luna Pier last year, Wilson got inspired to start his latest venture. He is the vocalist and plays slide on the resophonic guitar for The Staving Chain, an authentic Delta blues outfit rounded out by John Roundcity (harmonica, mandolin, washboard), Todd Albright (acoustic guitar) and newest member Kassie Morrin (washboard).

On June 21, The Staving Chain released its self-titled, debut album on Danger Limited Sound Recording Company and will be playing at Manhattan’s on July 8 as part of a string of dates supporting the record. Staying true to the origins of Delta blues, The Staving Chain is exclusively acoustic. Albright plays a 1928 Stella, a guitar commonly used in old Delta blues.

“Culturally it’s very compelling, and it’s also humbling when you’re like a white guy from the suburbs because my life experience is so completely removed from the hardships that gave birth to that music and that culture,” Wilson said.

Don’t let Wilson fool you. The white kid from the suburbs has earned his stripes and become well-respected in the blues community over the years. In the fall of 2001, Wilson went down to New Orleans and worked on his chops for up to five hours a day as a street musician, alongside some of the best in the genre. In 2004 and 2005, Wilson traveled to Europe as a supporting act with the Soledad Brothers, whose connections with The White Stripes led to the Detroit rockers famously covering Henry & June’s “Goin’ Back to Memphis.”

“It’s a wonderful thing for me because it looks great on my résumé that The White Stripes cover my song,” Wilson said. “I had just come back home and was trying to get back on my feet again when I saw him cover that song on ‘Late Night [with] Conan O’Brien.’ I didn’t know whether to s–t or go blind. I felt so great.”

For a guy who has been honing his craft  and fascinated by the blues since his late teens, the decision for Wilson to pursue the Delta blues with The Staving Chain was a natural progression, one that has him just as excited about music now as when he first heard “Sweet Child o’ Mine.”

“There’s just nothing like it,” Wilson said. “It grabs me by the nuts and lifts me above the shite.”

The Staving Chain will be at Manhattan’s, 1516 Adams St.,  on July 8 with Sarah Cohen & Friends. For more information, visit www.manhattanstoledo.com or call (419) 243-6675. To check out more on The Staving Chain, visit its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pages/The-Staving-Chain/160765533961342 or

dangerlimitedsound.com.

Tags: Dooley Wilson, Guns n Roses, Led Zeppelin, Manhattan's, The Staving Chain

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 6th, 2011 at 6:30 am and is filed under In Concert, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.