Currently it
is set to play when you select a song. Enjoy.
Welcome to my blog!
This weblog is an online journal. If there
is a "mission" it is to generate interest in the local music scene. I attempt to do that by attending events and talking
about my experiences in occasional posts.. I do not intend to offer criticism .. I am not a musician. I do highlight
those artists that put on a bigger and/or better show and the artists that "move me" more but even those less polished are
offering something to Long Island patrons and I'd like to see more patrons out there enjoying the good local talent.
You will find a log of my few weekly experiences. My "angle"
may be different in some ways, hopefully. I sometimes see things differently. I hope my perceptions offer some
insight on occasion and some humor.
I expect that this conversation will reveal a life that appreciates
blues. I see "blues" as musical-artistic expressions of human conditions.
I also like to provide links to other things on the web that I
find interesting. I will be commenting on the places I go to hear music and the folks I meet. I will be commenting
on the things I see and hear on Long Island and elsewhere. As much as I hate politics I may find it hard to resist commenting
on that too.
This is a personal, creative endeavor so
if there are some mistakes, well, sorry... it's free entertainment. I consider myself something of an impressionist as
it pertains to style. I am human and sometimes speak /write before I think. I can get into
trouble with these extroverted tendencies but thats why this is...what it is... a journal. I hope you find
some useful information or something entertaining on occasion....thanks for being here!!!!
Keep scrolling down for more posts and the Calendar. There is a menu of other pages as well.
So in the past few weeks I have been enjoying some quality entertainment if not quantity. Life and
all it's charming tributaries have taken me in some other places but fortunately I did catch some good stuff.
Last weekend I stopped in on Kerry Kearney at Mr. Beery's 18th Anniversary party. KK had a good cast with
Mario Staino, Tony Campo, Clutch Reilly and guest Jeff Regan. Brother Dave stepped in for a bluesy cameo and Mr. Beery himself
performed a couple of decent vocals.
The mix of Jeff Regan (rock balladeer, vocals and guitar) with Kerry and his bluesy friends was interesting.
It was was all good and I liked the concoctions.
I have been lucky to get one show a weekend lately but weeknights have been even rarer. Luckily I got out
last Wednesday night and me a couple of friends headed to Pam Betti's Birthday bash at Blacksmith Tavern in Smithtown.
The show was the usual upbeat PB and I enjoyed her soulful Angel from Montgomery. I also enjoyed some John Haseth-
trippy guitar and the PB Band was tight. It was a good show but as often happens in Suffolk on a weeknight we were looking
for something else to do a little after 11 as the show had ended.
We consulted the Billfoolery calendar and decided to try for Painters for the Wed night jam.
We headed southeast and after what seemed like days of driving we passed Dunton Inn on So Country Rd. We
feared never finding Painters so we decided to try the jam at Dunton which had some cars outside.
We walked in to a tight jazz thing with Paul Brusger (upright bass) and friends. The players were good so
we ordered something spiritual to drink and settled in. On that note the show ended and there we were again... looking for
a show. We called it quits and trek'd home.
This past weekend (3/25, 26) I made one stop on Saturday night, late, at Blue Matter jam (Giacomo Jacks).
I enjoy the ole'boy camaraderie and there are always some good players. This time I caught John Judd for a few tunes as well
as a good cast including Papa G, Charlie Craig, Clem Allen, June Eysel and the Blue Matter boys.
Sunday I was able to sneak away for a a little while so I ran out to Danny Kean's cd release party at Bobbique's.
Danny had an excellent cast as usual. Don Celenza was on guitar, Phil Bloom on drums, Larry Ross on bass,
Ajax on trumpet, Gerald Rampersad on sax and Perrita Kitson shared vocals with Danny.
The place was jam packed and the music was some R&B, some funk and some blues and some original and
some cover. I picked up a cd (titled " danny kean") and I am enjoying it as I write. If it's cool with DK and Co. I will post
a tune or two here soon.
FYI... I am offering ad space here on the home page. It's affordable and it will help me spread the
news as I want to do some advertising of my own for this website and I could use some moolah.
Keep digging that live music people and thank you for sending me gig info.
So last week I only got one night to take in live music.
It was Saturday night
and I had my usual obstacles like driving detail for the vunder-teen and limited time and resources. I had an expiring
gas gauge, failing power steering and an early morning on Sunday.
I got the geen light around 10 (typical)
and checked out the calendar. I figured I'd try a new band at Coyles in Massapequa. Both new entities and as a back up
was Sweet Suzi and Sugafixx at Paradox Cafe in Farmingdale. Both were close enough.
I walked into
Coyles and didn't see a place at the bar nor a place to even get to the bar. I also didn't see a female singer as
advertised. She could have been waiting in the wings but with limited resources and time I made a quick decision to head to
spot number two.
Paradox Cafe is a down looking place both inside and out... good for blues. It's
a good room for music in general, big enough but good sound and sightlines. I saw and grabbed a spot at the bar.
I found my real estate for the night. There was a nice crowd of people and the barmaid was a cutie.
Sweet Suzi and Sugafixx are a new mutation/collaboration for Sweet Suzi, Ms. Blues Dynamo and the Curbdogs, the multi
faceted rock guys. The result is a rock sound with some blue roots but with some familiar ingredients they make a new concoction.
Kinda like a new tasting drink but made with things like bourbon, seven, vodka and maybe a touch of Comfort. Their ingredients
are Suzie with a bit more containment, John Puglisi also a bit staid but clever on axe, Joe Pagano on bass and he busts a
few seams and Ronnie Sciascia on drums who keeps a good tempo. The fare was interesting and had soul and I could have taken
more... always a good sign. I will be looking for more of that in fact.
You can check out Suzi and some of
those players and the place on Wednesday nights as there's jam going on at Paradox.
There's
lots of jams and other weeknight stuff this week as it is St. Patricks Day on Thursday. Amazing how holy everyone gets on
March 17. If that's not the most recognized saints day I don't know what is. So say a few prayers and go do something
spiritual this week... and report back to me. I'll post any good stories I hear.
2011 has had challenges for sure. The winter almost killed me as ice and shoveling injuries are still being
felt and the economy has been hard to figure. My domestic situation is new as well. It's sort of raw as I
am in a new house and trying to survive, create a new home and save for my kids future... all at the same time.
I happen to have friends in all situations from poor and struggling to wealthy and preoccupied. It's
amazing the difference in mindset.
As it pertains to music and the arts in general the more challenged friends have music as a necessity. Some
fellow blues and music folk have music for career and income. All have it for daily intake and sustenance. It's never
far from consciousness and conversation. It is in many ways religious in importance.
For the more conventionally tuned types music is a fond interest and it provides a bit of soul in an
otherwise busy and non-artful existence. I find their lives and consciousness are more filled with the facts and figures of
keeping up with the speed of commerce. There is more focus on the details of living in modern society as opposed to just dealing
with society and living in the morass of it.
People are all somewhere on the scale ... most are somewhere in between I suppose.
The point is I believe good music is heard and appreciated by all . It helps us all in some way. My
taste may not be common or interesting but this is a source of the array of live music in the area and hopefully helpful.
In the past week I caught a few new acts. I first stopped in on The Buzz Band at Eleanors in Bohenia. Buzz
has been around for a long time and the current four piece led by Dr. Sal Caravella (bass, lead vox) offer rock and classics
from the 60's to the present. Marty Cohen on guitar and Ed Gibney on keys and vocals all played some good lead roles with
Dom Murdolo on percussion. They put on a solid show with some good skills.
My other new act was Boomers Brew with Phil Grande on lead guitar. They offered a similar menu of songs
but Phil Grande is a special guitar player (with appearances with Joe Cocker on his resume) and with some solid female vocals
(I will provide more names when I find them) they put on a dynamite show at Blue Parrot in Massapequa. Look for them on the
calendar as well.
I will try to keep finding new acts in rock, blues and jazz so stay tuned and thanks again for chekcing
in.
After counting your votes, pondering my own choices and asking selected friends for some input I have come up with
the 2010 Choices.
I didn't get a ton of voting input but the votes did help answer some of the categories. The choices for bartenders
were all over the place so that was by personal inquiry among regular music-goers.
This is to express gratitude and reward for the efforts of our local blues and other musicians. It is not intended
as a critique of anyone's music. It's a way to support some local musicians every year. For 2011 I am going to include some
specific jazz voting. I started that too late for inclusion here.
So here are the favorites for the past year among BiLLfoOLeRy participants:
Band, blues; (Tie) Pamela Betti Band and Lex Grey & The Urban Pioneers
Male Performer; Danny Kean
Female Performer; Chrissie O'Dell
Band, other than blues; That 70's Band
New Band; Sweet Suzi & SugaFixx and F&Gw/ Edlene
Hart
Venue; Bobbique's
Blues jam; (Tie) John Judd @ McBrides and Jim Kolman @ Brickhouse Brewery
Bartenders; the staff @ Giacomo Jacks andJunior @ ET Quiggs
Awards will be sent as soon as they are finished.
Thank you to those who voted and answered my questions and to all the people who drag their s#*t all over the place
for not enough pay and perform every week at some really salty places and for some often unsavory people.
There is a lot going on in live music lately. First of all the Jazz on the Vine
series is in full swing. Every weekend until March 20 there are quality jazz events at the vineyards in Suffolk County. Check
the link for the schedule. The events are indoors and all in the beautiful settings of eastern Long Island wineries.
I recently got involved in some of the local jazz and I have been enjoying the music of Al Cardillo and
his crew and Frank Bellucci's jams have had some good players. There are almost as many jazz jams as there are blues and some
of the players mingle in both worlds. Perrita Kitson is a bluesy jazzy vocalist and she is one I have enjoyed in both genre's.
Another local local jazz artist that wet my appetite for the more abstract form is Bobby Sexton. I
caught Bobby's jazz guitar a few times at Bliss and he plays every weekend at suffolk county restaurants. His link and
many others are on the Artists and Bands Page here on Billfoolery.
I have been seeing discussions on facebook and other places about a lack of "market" here on Long Island
for blues; evidence being a lack of support currently felt for the Riverhead Blues Festival. There are too many "prior"
priorities among the organizers apparently. If blues is the priority it shouldn't be that hard. If Riverhead doesn't appreciate that
I can suggest a place like Bay Shore. That might be a more desireable destination for outsiders due to other attractions like
Fire Island Ferries and a diversity of restaurants and closer proximity to the rest of the world if not Long Islanders
... just something for discussion.
As for the local blues and music fare I had a few chances in recent weeks to take in some live performance.
Diane McArdle played with an acoustic ensemble at Molly Malones in Bay Shore. Diane and Adam Tese performed
some tasty little numbers that reverberated well in the cozy, acoustic setting. I enjoyed the set I caught especially
because it was so local (Bay Shore) and a comfortable setting and I got to hear the players individually.
My weekend nights have been limited but this weekend should be better. The calendar is packed with good
stuff and it will be hard to choose. Popa Chubby makes a rare appearance. Phil Grande also makes a rare appearance..
at Blue Parrot. Russell "Hitman" Alexander, another one not heard every weekend, is at The Homestead. The hard working
blues stars are also getting around as Pam Betti does Nassau again. What to choose??!!
So after a month or so of collecting votes and asking people (and picking my own vastly barren brain) I
have made picks for the life changing BlueFoolery Awards for 2010. I will post them this weekend so come back and check that
out.
Thanks for checking in this weekend and thanks to the artists and friends and other organizers
who send me their gig info and for the folks who check out the calendar. I am glad there are people who enjoy live music as
much as I do.
Forgive the lack of new posts lately. I have written and written and keep having posts get deleted after
hitting the "publish" button.
It's now the wee hours and I can't do it again tonight. I lost two posts tonight already
I have had a few chances to get out for music lately but I have also had numerous posts lost about
the IBC (the good and the bad), my BlueFoolery awards and Jazz on the Vine... but all that will have to wait until I
have time to find the problem here and to re-post.
I'll make changes to this site on a regular basis, sharing news, views, experiences, photos...whatever occurs to me.
Check back often!
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Join and support live music!
Click for 2011 Top 100 Blues cd's. Including Chrissie O'Dell and JP Blues
Click
the mini music player under the Playlist box for Giants Steps by Rich Thiel with Richie
Cannata, Danny Kean, Mario Staiano and Lawrence Worrrel. (raw recording) Enjoy!
Click the Pic.
Winter Jazz Fest. Begins Feb 11
Live
Music Calendar (Posted Mondays, edited all week. By Billfoolery.com ) Use
of this calendar in full or in part without specific permission or acknowledgement is prohibited. ______________________________________________________
Tuesday, Feb 21Fat Tuesday!
Gail Storm @ Grasso's Rest., Cold Spring Harbor 7
Fat Tuesday w/ Bob Barta & Friends and The Who Dat Loungers @ Vail Leavitt Music
Hall, Riverhead 7:30
King Cobras @ Big Daddy's, Massap 8
Jacks
Waterfall w/ Jack Licitra and members of Blue Roots @ Bobbique's, Patch 8
*Jazz w/ Ian
Petillo, Oliver Von Essen(piano) and Friends @ Walk St Tavern, 1218 Jerichp Tpke, N Hyde Park 8:30 Jam (Rob Jack & Co) @ Ziggy's, Massap. 8
Fat Tuesday,
Jazz w/ Al Cardillo @ Iavaronne Cafe, N Hyde Park 7 - 10
Long
Beach Jazz Jam @ LB Community Center, Magnolia & Pine. 7
*Jam w/ Geo Cintron, Rob DeMartino and guest Bobby Rondinelli @ Katies, Smithtown 9
Jam w/ John Capadonna (Almost Queen), Paul Gilmore and more @ Ollies Point, Amity 9
Jim Moran & Danny Kean on GothamRadio.com every night
at 10pm. New show every week. ___________________________________________
Wednesday, Feb 22
Cafe
Ali Radio on Radio 90.1, Wusb w/ Ahmad Ali 7 - 9 am
Skip Bement @ Porters on the Lane,
Bellport 6:30
LI Blues Warehouse w/ Mark Klein. Encore Presentation of Sunday
night show. LIBlues.com 7 - 9
Jim Treutlein @ RS Jones, Merrick
7
Lisa Gary (and Open Mic for last set- jazz) @ Simply Fondue, 24 Great Neck Rd.,
Gr Neck 7
New Open
Mic @ Fadeleys, Patch 8
Power Jazz Trio w/ Frank Bellucci @ The Homestead, Oyster
Bay 8
Jazz Jam w/ Al Cardillo, Sue Giordano and Lou Messana @ Metropolitan Bistro,
Sea Cliff 8
Jim
Moran jams every Wed. @ Neirs Tavern, Woodside 8
Sly Geralds Band @ Antonettes,
Bellmore 8
Live Art Fusion w/ Mike Ernst Band and 10 Artists @ 841
East Lounge, Hunt 8
Brian McGeough @ Press 195, RVC 8:30
Brendan O'Bryan hosts a jam @ Grizzly's Sports Den, Bay Shore 8:30ish
New Open Mic w/ Host Shaun Lally @ Hometowne Tavern, 2800 Pond Rd., Ronkonkoma 9
Jazz Jam w/ Andy Ahr & Friends @ Horace & Sylvia's, Babylon 9 to 12:30
Jam w/Don Celenza, Dave Patrick Jam @
Mickey Mo's Cafe & Lounge, 428 Sunrise Hwy, Lynbrook 9 - 12
Johnny
B Jam @ E Quoge Pub . Montauk Hwy., E Quoge 9
Jules
Radino Jam at Painters in Bayport 9:30
Open Mic
w/ Tom Meyers @ Velvet Lounge, E Setauket 9
JazzJam w/ Vincenzo & Co. @ The Dunton Inn, So. Country Rd., Patchogue 9
Jazz jam @ The Breakers,, Bayville w/ Matt
Manning. 8:30
jam @ 50 Yardline. W Babylon 8:30
Jam w/
Joe Vicino & Friends @ Sunset Grill, Seaford 9
Billfoolery.com
_________________________________________________
Thursday, Feb 23
Bay Burger Jazz Jam. Sag Harbor 7-9
Pep & The Soul Explosion (2 for 1 Dinner specials) @ Riverhouse Grill, Freeport 7
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