Brewski Salmineo – Bruce Salmon, Michelle Alany and Amanda Kitchens put on one of the best shows I’ve ever witnessed at the Starlight Theatre last night.
No shit.
Bouncing effortlessly from Hungarian to French to intricate instrumentals in odd time changes to songs from Bruce’s new CD, they left the audience – including pretty much every musician in town – slack jawed and stunned.
And that is not hyperbole. Frank Myer, Trevor Reichman, Chase Peeler, Jeff Haislip and I kept looking at each other and laughing- not really believing what we’d just seen and heard.
Hearing musicians of this calibre perform and laugh and joke while performing reminded me of why I picked up the guitar in the first place.
Yesterday, we hung out on the porch before dinner…
Chase Peeler, Jeffro Greasewood, Hillie Bills, Mark Lewis, Hank Woji, and a few others were playing… I was enjoying a cigar and the scenery and the scene.
Over the course of about an hour I snapped a few pics. What struck me when I looked back on them was how the band morphed and changed over that hour. People switch instruments, go on beer runs, see someone they want to talk to…
Local musicians hold a hootenanny at Marfa Public Radio for Pete Seeger.
It was a last-minute call that went out through Jalapeño Schwartz’s Facebook page – local musicians gather at Marfa Public Radio station tonight at 6:30 for an on-air tribute to Pete Seeger. J.P. “Jalapeño” Schwartz, also known as “Doc Cactus,” (although, really, shouldn’t it be Dr. Pepper?) hosts the blues show, play harmonica and keyboards in local bands, and is a country doctor.
Trevor Reichmann was there, virtually. He recorded “We Shall Overcome” in his home/dome studio and sent it through the inter-webs to the radio station.
Only a few musicians braved the sub-freezing temperature – Maria Moss, Doc, Beth, and me. J.P. printed out the lyrics for a few Pete Seeger songs and we quickly rehearsed in the lobby.
It was a ragged, soulful sing-along… I do hope the people listening at home joined in.
There is an alarming quantity of very high quality live music going on in the Big Bend this xmas season. I’m personally delighted to see Slim Richey will be in town. Butch Hancock will join a very talented group of performers for the Townes Van Zant Memorial concert. There’s something cool going on pretty much every night – get out and support live Terlingua Music!
Check out the listings below –
Starlight Theatre
Monday – Dec 23 – Burger Night with Dr. Fun
Tuesday – Dec 24 – Uh Clem
Wednesday – Dec 25 – Christmas with The Whitmores
Thursday – Dec 26 – Trevor Reichman & Emilie Clepper
Friday – Dec 27 – Paper Moon Shiners
Saturday – Dec 28 – Hogan & Moss
Sunday – Dec 29 – Trevor Reichman 5pm-8pm
Ghosts Along the Brazos 8:30pm
Monday – Dec 30 – Slim Richey & The Jitterbug Vipers
Tuesday – Dec 31 – Uh Clem 6pm-8pm
New Years Eve with Radio La Chuzma 9pm
Wednesday – Jan 1 – Townes Van Zandt Memorial
Thursday – Jan 2 – The Desert Blossom Pearls 9pm
Tim Beck & Friends 10pm
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This Week @ THE HIGH SIERRA / ELDORADO HOTEL
FRI~TREVOR REICHMAN 7pm
SAT~RACHEL LAVEN STRING BAND 3pm-6pm
SAT~JASON BLUM 6pm-till?
Sunday is the Hangover Jam, everyone welcome to come play
NEW YEARS EVE PARTY TUES STARTS AT 9 pm.
La Kiva
Wednesday – Open Mic (are we really doing open mic on xmas night?)
12/28/13 The Lavens!
New Year’s Eve – The Fabulous Vortexans – Texas Blues
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Live music in the Thirsty Goat Saloon
December 23rd – Trevor Hickle
December 24th & 25th – Jason Blum
December 26th – The Whitmores
December 27th & 28th – Slim Richey and the Jitterbug Vipers
December 29th – Jon Hogan and Maria Moss
December 30th – Jason Blum
December 31st – Slim Richey and the Jitterbug Vipers
January 1st – Jason Blum
There are several levels of community in Terlingua.
The most visible is the restaurant/bar scene. That and the mountains are what most visitors see, and it’s an essential part of living in the Big Bend. Sitting on the porch, strumming guitar and watching the sun set in the East is a Terlingua tradition.
As the sun sets behind the mountains to the West, the mountains of Big Bend National Park reflect the colors- purple, gold, red, pink – in a changing kaleidoscope that’s different every evening and always amazing. Then, the mountains fade and lose their colors as the light shifts to the clouds above, and it looks like the mountains have a technicolor aura… then that fades, the stars come out, the moon illuminates the desert…
There’s the river community- many Terlingua residents are current or former river guides. It’s a close-knit community. A friend who is a long-time guide explained to me that most of the guides are single because they chose the river over relationships, and, in her case, she doesn’t regret that choice at all.
These guides are the kind of people who can take a backpack, a bedroll, and a boat and spend weeks alone or with a group camping under the stars in the canyons carved out by the Rio Grande River.
And then there’s the people who are raising families here and are concerned with the infrastructure of the community. They’re focused on the school and community service. You don’t see them much in the bars, but when Christmas rolls around, they’re very visible.
The community choir, led by local Uber-musician, studio owner, and high-school band director, Ted Arbogast, bring their Christmas music show to various venues in the Big Bend.
Here are some pics from the show at the Starlight Theatre. The choir sang songs of the season. As they were singing, “Here Comes Santa Claus,” Santa himself walked through the Starlight Theatre. The choir left the stage and Santa took a seat as the local children lined up to make their xmas requests.
Texas Americana/Rock band Buster Jiggs Rocked Lajitas with a FREE outdoor show!
The Pavilion at the Lajitas Golf Resort may be my favorite music venue in the Big Bend.
Last night, Buster Jiggs, a rockin’ Texas band from Hondo, Texas, played there. It was a free show, the brisket tacos were cheap and good, and there was plenty of beer…
It was refreshing to see and hear a rock and roll show out here – we’ve got plenty of talented singer/songwriters, but occasionally I do like to hear a loud guitar, meaty drums, and passionate vocals.
Buster Jiggs’ songs are melodic. They would work with just an acoustic guitar. However, with a tight band rockin’ them, it made for an interesting experience.
This was the first of this season’s free concerts at Lajitas – Alejandro Escovedo is coming soon.
Although Terlingua tends to be a haven for singer/songwriters in the Texas Americana tradition, it’s not surprising that there’s a strong Grateful Dead influence here, too.
Last night we celebrated Jerry Garcia’s birthday at the starlight with music, dancing, good food and beer. And maybe some other stuff…
Uh Clem gathered the initial band- Laird Considine on bass, me on guitar. Mark Lewis heard the music from the porch and joined us on mandolin.
Later on, Butch and Rory Hancock came in for dinner. Soon, Butch was singing and playing Uh’s guitar, Rory had my strat, Mike and Moses were playing drums, and I was on bass.
The band- Rory, Mark, Butch, me and Mike.
In New York, LA or Austin this would have been a sold-out show with high-dollar tickets. Butch is an amazing singer/songwriter and the band was top-notch.
Viva Big Bend Music Festival 2013 – Lost Horse Saloon – Marfa, Texas.
Lost Horse Saloon, Marfa
The Big Bend of Texas is the last outpost for singer-songwriters. Totally uninfluenced by outside trends, it’s a world unto itself. On any night, and pretty much all day long, there is music playing here.
The local bars support the local musicians with money, food and beer. There’s always a jam going on the porch in the Ghost Town – fiddles, mandolins, guitars, and voices raised in harmony.
Friday night, Pat Smith and band were booked to play the High Sierra. Pat made it but his band didn’t. The previous blog post describes how a team of talented locals filled in and the show went on. (The Show Goats on!)
Pat seemed a little disappointed that his band hadn’t made the gig.
Saturday night, Pat, Maggie Montgomery, and a crowd of locals formed a pickin’ circle at La Kiva. I had planned to go, but a rainstorm came through the ranch and the roads were flooded. By the next morning, the roads were passable, but I missed that show.
It’s all part of living with nature.
When I walked into the High Sierra Sunday afternoon, the “Hangover Jam” was over. George Goss, Nick Cooper, Jim and Anna Keaveny, and Pat Smith were hanging out, drinking beer, and talking about how good the jam was.
When musicians from Austin, Luckenbach, and Terlingua, Texas get together to jam on the border, you get real Texas music.
Last night at the High Sierra Saloon in Terlingua, Pat Smith and Maggie Montgomery pulled in after driving all day across Texas. No time to change or shower… it was show time.
The original plan was for Pat’s band to accompany him, but they were kidnapped by of viscous crew of nude marauding female pirates in a 57 Corvette – or maybe they had car trouble – it was unclear. So, word went out on the Terlingua grapevine and a band of top local hands joined Pat on stage. Chris Baker brought her flaut. Nick Cooper played his dog-house bass, Mark played mandolin and fiddle…
