Blog
June 23, 2017. Here are a few of the hardy folks who didn't let flash flooding or severe thunderstorm warnings -- effects of Tropical Storm Cindy -- keep them from going out on a Friday night. We had a roof over us on the outdoor stage in SouthSide Works Town Square but they were fully exposed to the elements. We were especially impressed by the ones who preempted the rain by soaking themselves in the fountain. (Photos by Shelagh Collins and Becky Billock)
Photo by Becky Billock
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Photo by Shelagh Collins
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June 17, 2017. We had an easy commute to and from our gig tonight. The Squirrel Hill Night Market took place just a few blocks "downstreet," so we walked, using a shopping cart and dolly to transport our instruments and gear. While the event was open to the public, many of the folks who came were locals, like us. In addition to neighbors, we recognized faces from the supermarket, post office, bus shelter, library, etc. It was nice to see so many people congregating peacefully, enjoying the food trucks, activities, shopping and live music.
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June 10, 2017. We lucked out with beautiful weather and a fabulous crowd for our performance at the Three Rivers Arts Festival today. Our hour-long set featured a number of originals written right here in the 'Burgh, including "Jitney." While the song shares both title and locale with a highly acclaimed play by August Wilson, the characters and story line are different. (Sound by Larry Acklin)
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June 1, 2017. We kicked off the Thirs-Tea Thursday Happy Hour at Arnold's Tea on Pitttsburgh's North Side today. We set up near the impressive display of loose tea, a few feet from the kitchen, and we could see Ashante -- pictured here, with her co-worker India -- dancing while she prepared hot and cold beverages, sandwiches and pastries for customers. Their boss, Ms Arnold, was not in direct view but she was listening. We know because when we finished she told us which were her favorite songs from our set.
May 25, 2017. Rich Dieter, founder and president of The Bridge Music Hall, joined us for a song at Wallace's TapRoom in Pittsburgh tonight. He chose Pete Seeger's "Rainbow Race" -- which he sang almost 30 years ago alongside the folk legend himself -- and he invited the audience to join on the refrains. According to the principle of transitivity, that means that we've all sung with Seeger now, right? What a thrill!
Photo by Vivien Wolsk
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May 13, 2017. We were part of a beautiful wedding ceremony yesterday for our close friends, Susan and Graham. Their incredible story is told in "Chancers: Addiction, Prison, Recovery, Love," their memoir published by Random House-Ballantine Books.
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April 20, 2017. Pulling into a restricted parking lot marked "authorized vehicles only" at Pittsburgh International Airport today was pretty cool, especially since, as featured performers for the weekly performance series underwritten by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, we didn't have to make up a story or anything. Then later, during a break between sets, a uniformed police officer approached us. Uh oh, were we in trouble? Nah, all good. She just wanted to let us know she was enjoying our music : )
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April 9, 2017. We do our own booking which involves researching venues, drafting emails and following up with presenters. It can be quite time consuming and we're always grateful for assistance, like when a dear cousin offered to reach out to the Ruth Keeler Memorial Library in North Salem, NY, to see if there might be an opportunity for us to perform. She had attended other special events presented by the Friends of the Library, with support from M&T Bank, and thought we would be a good fit. As it turned out, they had an opening for us that coincided with a family reunion. This meant that quite a few relatives were able to attend, along with dedicated library patrons. Two family members joined us for a couple of songs which made the show extra special.
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Photo by Edris Scherer
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Photo by Edris Scherer
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Photo by Cindy Zagraff
April 1, 2017. From the pre-show publicity (with great coverage in the Florida Weekly and the Ft Myers News-Press) to the exceptionally warm welcome from the listening room crowd, to the tremendous hospitality from our host, Andy, our experience with the Americana Community Music Association was fabulous. We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to be part of such a wonderful series. Special shout out to Klaus who, in addition to running sound, joined us for a song.
March 31, 2017. Our concert at the Winter Park Public Library in Florida, near Orlando, drew an unusually friendly grew of folks today, among them:
- A man who said he recognized one of our older covers, having heard it before, "about 70 years ago."
- A couple of love birds who met in middle school, when he was her teacher. (It's ok, read om) While she admits she had a crush on him even back then, they didn't start dating until two decades later.
- Two young girls holding blankets which became props while they danced, with great enthusiasm, to our music.
- A uke player who headed over to see us after her own gig, at a nursing home.
- A vinyl collector who owns boxes of albums from Jerry's Records in Squirrel Hill, a store we mentioned in our closing song.
- A man who said he recognized one of our older covers, having heard it before, "about 70 years ago."
- A couple of love birds who met in middle school, when he was her teacher. (It's ok, read om) While she admits she had a crush on him even back then, they didn't start dating until two decades later.
- Two young girls holding blankets which became props while they danced, with great enthusiasm, to our music.
- A uke player who headed over to see us after her own gig, at a nursing home.
- A vinyl collector who owns boxes of albums from Jerry's Records in Squirrel Hill, a store we mentioned in our closing song.
March 30, 2017. A man was sitting at a table in front of Tre Amici @ The Bunker, a cafe in the historic Ybor City neighborhood in Tampa, when we arrived tonight. He saw our instruments and asked if we would be playing. We said yes, along with two other artists as part of a singer songwriter series. As it turned out, we were last in the lineup, but lucky for us, the man stuck around. Here are a few things we found out about him:
- He is Swedish.
- He came to Tampa for a work conference.
- He has tickets to see Bob Dylan next week, back in Sweden.
Safe travels, home, new friend! We're glad our paths crossed.
- He is Swedish.
- He came to Tampa for a work conference.
- He has tickets to see Bob Dylan next week, back in Sweden.
Safe travels, home, new friend! We're glad our paths crossed.
March 21, 2017. As we were setting up for today's concert at Community LIFE McKeesport, a day program for older adults, an employee approached us. "I remember you from last time," Kevin said. "You did a song about meatballs." Indeed, we did! And after serving up more of the 160-year old "One Meatball" today, we realized the irony of singing about a stingy waiter to a room full of people who have just finished a meal served by an extraordinarily caring, dedicated staff.
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March 18-19, 2017. We returned to Gateway Lodge in Cook Forest, PA to perform for dinner guests last night and this morning Gary led a meditation workshop as part of the lodge's annual "Retreat to Wellness" weekend. The setting was quite different from the Allegheny County Jail where he meditates regularly with inmates as a volunteer chaplain. But the breathing was the same. #innerpeace4allbeings
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March 5, 2017. We had a great turnout for tonight's show at Weinberg Terrace, an independent living residence in Squirrel Hill. In fact, by the time the last guest arrived, every seat was already taken! We were just about to go fetch one for her but it turned out her walker converts to a chair so she was all set. Later in the show, we held a special drawing and she won. Not on account of the walker trick but because her birthday was the next one on the calendar.
February 26, 2017. We performed this afternoon for residents at Country Meadows, a retirement community about 20 miles southwest of Pittsburgh. After our "Cowboy Song," which references "a drunken brawl," a woman in the audience said she once witnessed a bar fight. She laughed as she recalled the experience so it must not have ended as tragically as the one in our song. Poor cowboy...
January 1, 2017. We rang in 2014, 2015 and 2016 in a cabin in the woods, working on songs and our log burning skills. This year, we were ready for something entirely different so we traded our denim and flannel for a gown and tux and headed to a ball benefiting the Pittsburgh Opera. #evensquirrelshavefairygodmothers
November 10, 2016. Still processing the results of the presidential election, we headed off to a gig tonight at Weinberg Terrace, an assisted living facility in Squirrel Hill where, coincidentally, our audience included at least two individuals who were born before women won the right to vote.
October 16, 2016. Salt of the Earth, a popular farm-to-table restaurant in Fennville, MI, hosts a dinner theater every Sunday evening. Tonight, we were the featured act and we were thrilled with the quality of the sound, engineered by Forrest Dodson, and the number of folks who turned out for the show, including a table of 10 organized by Richard and Ellen, friends of our friends, Dave and Louise. Richard and Ellen also put us up for the night in their beautiful lakeside home. It was a lovely way to wrap up the second of two fall Midwest mini tours.
October 15, 2016. Meet Tonks, the cutest puppy on earth. He and his family -- 2-legged parents James and Sara, and 4-legged siblings Raider and Gimli -- hosted us for a house concert in Traverse City, MI tonight. They invited some really nice folks and put out a tasty spread, including a local IPA on tap. Plus, James, a music director and programmer at WNMC, arranged for us to do a live in-studio interview before the show. We're really glad we finally made the trip upstate.
October 14, 2016. Over the past six years, Pete and Lori Toarmina have transformed a formerly vacant building in downtown Saline, MI, near Ann Arbor, into a beautiful space. Their family's restaurant, Mangiamo Italian Grill, serves food and drinks to customers on the ground floor as well as in a listening room on the 2nd floor (where Jim Cain hosts Acoustic Routes Concerts), and alongside bocce lanes on the 3rd floor. Pete showed us how to play after our show tonight. He was very encouraging but we were glad no one else was in the room because this was not our best performance.
September 30, 2016. We returned to Wigle Whiskey Barrelhouse and Whiskey Garden tonight, this time to entertain guests at “Sip for the Stream,” a fundraiser benefiting the Nine Mile Run Watershed Association. And our mascot did a set, too, perched on the bar, amidst hand labeled bottles of whiskey made from local organic grain milled onsite and distilled in small batches in a traditional copper pot. That squirrel has decent chops and great taste.
September 18, 2016. We performed two concerts at the West Bloomfield Township Public Library in Michigan this afternoon, with support from the Friends of the Library. Several folks stayed after each show to talk to us, including a woman who said she could tell we were having a lot of fun. It's true: we *do* enjoy playing music together and sharing our music with others. And we're grateful for every opportunity to do that.
September 17, 2016. The Flint Folk Music Society's logo features a lizard holding a guitar in one hand and a steaming mug of coffee in the other. This image pays homage to Flint folk enthusiasts who endured harassment in the 60s and 70s, with police raids of local music venues frequented by "no good, long-haired, guitar-playing, coffee-sipping lizards." The Society hosted us tonight, kicking off another season of folk music, and we felt right at home, grateful for the warmth, passion and support in this community. Reckon that makes us a couple of lizard-loving squirrels.
September 16, 2017. When Bill Keith, concert coordinator for Trinity House Theatre in Livonia, MI, invited us to be part of a "Songwriters in the Round" showcase, we didn't hesitate. Even though we had never met the other artists -- Buffalo-based Davey O and Nashville-based Meg Braun -- we had had postive experiences with the unique song swapping concert format, both as artists and audience members. And this gig turned out to be even better than we expected. The chemistry was so nice that we all went out together after the show, along with the emcee (Kathy) and a couple members of the audience (music enthusiasts Bob and Susie Keat), for a late night meal and conversation. It was a wonderful start to the first of two fall Michigan mini tours. (Photos by Judy Pinneo Wernette)
September 10, 2016. A park full of nature lovers turned out for the public celebration of the new Frick Environmental Center today, touring the grounds, watching demonstrations, making eco crafts, and listening to live music in the amphitheater. From the stage, we enjoyed watching folks explore the beautiful sandstone watershed landscape designed by artist Stacy Levy (pictured here) to carry runoff from the center's vast roof to the nearby wetlands. We were grateful for the clear skies, especially since the sound system was powered by the sun, but we're looking forward to returning when it's pouring so we can get the full experience.
August 28, 2016. We give 4 stars to Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens' 14th annual garlic and tomato festival today. We especially enjoyed the sweet smiles on the faces of hundreds of passersby, and the tasty parking spot adjacent to our tent. A stronger breeze would have been nice but we felt cool as cucumbers compared to the zesty greeter in the tomato costume. She must have been roasting in there!
August 20, 2016. We performed at the Sixth Presbyterian Church of Pittsburgh tonight during the Squirrel Hill Night Market, a big summer party in our neighborhood. We recognized a lot of faces but not all and a mid concert poll revealed that a surprisingly large percentage had lived here even longer than we had. In fact, many had been residents for 40+ years and quite a few had spent almost their entire lives here. There's something special about Squirrel Hill. If you've never been, you're long overdue for a visit!
August 18, 2016. We’re accustomed to performing in intimate venues for folks who are attentive and friendly, and that’s what we experienced at tonight’s house concert, presented by FoundSound Music. But there was one thing that was noticeably different from any of our other gigs: the room was full of Millennials. We shared the bill with Max Somerville of Wreckloose and Andre Costello of André Costello and the Cool Minors who, along with host Kyle Henson, helped draw a younger crowd. It was a very cool evening and we feel lucky to have been a part of it.
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August 11, 2016. In addition to being full of creative, interesting, friendly folks, Lewisburg, WV is home to a dog with a deep appreciation for live music and some very impressive dance moves. What a cool town! @Carnegie Hall, WV
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Photo: Jim Synder
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Photo: Larry Davis
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July 30, 2016. While artists play only for tips at some live music venues, the Moon Shadow Cafe in Accident, MD, pays musicians and feeds them well, too, from a menu featuring fresh, locally sourced ingredients and vegetarian options. We had a great time performing there tonight and really appreciate being treated like part of a team working together to create a unique dining experience.
Photo: Shelagh Collins
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July 27, 2016. "Cinema in the Park" projected a comedy tonight but the backdrop during our pre-movie concert on Flagstaff Hill was dramatic, especially after the jumbo screen collapsed. Fortunately no one was hurt, but our mic stand took a bit of a beating. It’s amazing how far steel can bend without breaking!
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July 24, 2016. Heavy rains arrived just as sustainability tours were supposed to begin at Chatham University's Eden Hall Campus in Richland, PA today. Folks poured into the barn, giving us a captive audience, and to show our appreciation we offered up songs about vegetables, trees, composting, and solar panels. By the time we finished, the skies had cleared and folks headed out to learn about the extensive storm water management infrastructure and other earth friendly innovations.
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July 19, 2016. How's this for a hard act to follow? Right before our concert at the Lucas Branch of the Mansfield Richland County Public Library in Ohio today, Jungle Terry did a live animal show-and-tell with a giant tortoise, a skunk, a chicken, and "Banana Montana," an albino Burmese python. The standing room only crowd was mesmerized! Fortunately for us, by the time he had packed up his critters and we had set up our sound system, the room had turned over. The folks we played for were very appreciative, unaware of what they'd missed. Our only regret was that no one asked to pet our instruments.
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July 9, 2016. We performed at The Westmoreland Museum of American Art in Greensburg, PA tonight for the opening of a new exhibition on folk art. Kevin Kutz, a contributing artist for another exhibition at the museum, joined us for a few tunes, playing "The ScratchAvarious," a fiddle he crafted from three pieces of pine. It looked really cool and sounded awesome!
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July 3, 2016. A guest artist performed with us at a 4th of July party in Carmel, NY today. She was a big hit. #MamaSquirrel
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Photo: Susan Stellin
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June 21, 2016. Opening for the Bumper Jacksons at Club Cafe on Pittsburgh's South Side was so much fun! A highlight for us was when Jess, who fronts the DC-based band, joined us for “Bittersweet,” one of our originals. A virtuoso clarinet player, Jess skillfully wove her sultry riffs into our arrangement, playing off of our vocals and guitar. It was like a musical conversation and we agreed with everything she said!
Photo: Uncover Squirrel Hill
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June 18, 2016. We saw a lot of familiar faces in the crowd at the Squirrel Hill Night Market. We also spotted a few fireflies who flashed us as we were wrapping up our set. We hope that means that they liked the music.
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June 18, 2016. Downtown Pittsburgh has a really cool new mural and it's painted on the street, so you can walk on it. According to an article on NextPittsburgh, the artist, Deanna Mance, extracted design elements and patterns from the local architecture and environment, including the "curving hills and flowing rivers." We share her appreciation for Pittsburgh''s topography. In fact, we sang sbout the same hills and rivers that inspired her when we performed today at the downtown branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, just a few feet from her mural.
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June 12, 2016. We provided music for a memorial celebration at a lovely tea house on Pittsburgh’s Northside this afternoon. It was a joyous event which, we were told, would have pleased the woman who was being remembered. Her sister requested “When I’m gone,” our sung last will and testament. The line about sipping tea was particularly fitting, given that everyone was enjoying freshly brewed cups.
Photo: John Blough
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June 4, 2016. To date, we've written two songs featuring insects -- one about stinkbugs and the other about a firefly -- and both were requested during our performance at the Three Rivers Arts Festival today. Coincidence? Probably not. Tis the season for critters, including songworthy varieties.
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May 29, 2016. We ended our second UK tour the same way we ended our first, at a pub in central London. "Come Down and Meet the Folks" has been hosting music events for 20 years and has developed a nice following. Alan Tyler, the organizer, opened the evening with a few songs then turned over the mic to Baby Taylor, a spunky young musician from Glasgow with a lovely voice. The next floor spot was filled by a great duo called Heartland, with Ben on guitar and Chance on fiddle. He's from London and she's from Toronto and their voices blended perfectly. We did a 30-minute set before the featured act, a popular Chicago and Delta Blues band fronted by Little George. Up until he started, folks had been silent, listening attentively to every word. But no one could resist his driving groove and by the time we headed out, the venue was as lively as a dance club.
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May 27, 2016. Today was a day of musical thrills. First, we did a live in-studio interview with radio host Billy Butler on BBC Radio Merseyside. Later, we headlined at Liverpool Acoustic Live at View Two Gallery on Matthew Street, just a few doors down from the Cavern where the Beatles used to play. It was a great show, with performances by James J Turner, whose powerful vocals and guitar playing blew us away, and the Grateful Fred Ukulele Trio (Colin, Pete, and Vince), a talented, fun and charming threesome of pickers and strummers.
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May 26, 2016. What a treat to be part of the lineup at the Uxbridge Folk Club in West London! We saw a lot of smiling faces during our 45-minute set. Headliners Sally Ironmonger and Brian Carter were hugely entertaining, with their clever songs about life in the English countryside and beyond. Three floor spots were confidently filled by our host, Dave Artus; Jasmine Beth, who was visiting from Australia; and a longtime club member who sang Big Rock Candy Mountain. And, to top it all off, a kind woman brought us a pint of IPA at the break. The club is doing a great job of giving people the chance to commune through music.
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May 25, 2016. We got a very warm welcome at the Edinburgh Folk Club tonight. The sound was fabulous (thanks, David!) and Allan took beautiful still photos as well some videos. After the show, club organizer Paddy Bort invited us to the Sandy Bell's, a local pub well known for traditional Scottish and Irish music. When we arrived, a lively session was underway, with fiddle, guitar, concertina, and tin whistle. Many folk legends have played at the club and the pub over the years and both have a great vibe of authenticity.
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Photo: Allan McMillan
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May 24, 2016. The Star Folk Club is a performance oriented club, presenting professional acts and invited guests every week, rather than hosting singarounds or floor spots periodically like many of the other clubs. We performed there back in 2014 and returned tonight to open for Dan McKinnon, a talented troubadour from Canada who spends a month touring the UK every year. The audience was attentive and apreciative, smiling at us during our set and approaching us afterwards to talk. Meeting Dan was an added bonus.
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May 23, 2016. We had a day off so we stopped in York to walk along England's longest medieval wall before continuing on to Edinburgh to explore the castle. In both cities, we encountered buskers, a time honored tradition here in the UK. We especially enjoyed the man playing accordion in front of the Scottish National Gallery.
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May 22, 2016. Equipped with smart phones, UK SIM cards, and a fabulous train schedule app, we successfully navigated the trip to Grays in Essex yesterday arriving with enough time to grab lunch and stroll along the Thames River before heading to the FaBclub for our sound check. Going off the grid is great for songwriting retreats but on tour, we really appreciate technology.
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May 21, 2016. Alton, England, about 50 miles south of London, is full of musicians and music lovers and Lewis Jones, D3W3 organizer, knows many of them. For our concert at the Swan Hotel tonight, he arranged an opening set by Jack Bancroft, a young man who wowed everyone with his beautiful original instrumental compositions on ukulele. Sound was very capably provided by Dave Tigg, who has honed his skills doing live mixes for a local ska reggae rock band featuring three saxophones along with guitar, bass and drums. Other musicians in the audience included Iain Cooper who tried out Gary's Vagabond travel guitar after the show.
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May 20, 2916. Our Valley Folk Club hosts took very good care of us, fetching us from the train station in Neath, South Wales, and serving us tea and Welshcakes before our concert at the Ivy Bush in nearby Pontardawe. They also put us up for the night and made sure we didn't go to bed hungry or leave this morning with empty bellies. Thank you, Huw and Heather! You made us feel very welcome : )
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May 19, 2016. "Yinz* are good to go," said the airline agent after scanning our boarding passes and passports this morning. It was the perfect Pittsburgh send off for our 10-day UK tour. In addition to our instruments, BritRail passes, and working papers, we brought CDs full of songs written in our adopted hometown. No Pittsburghese in our recordings to date but we have worked in references to several local landmarks and a popular sports team.
* Yinz: Pittsburghese for "you," singular and plural. |
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April 9, 2016. Some venues flicker the lights to let folks know the show is about to start. At The Hill Chapel House Concerts in New Market, MD tonight, the chapel bell was rung. That kicked off a lovely evening in a beautiful space, with stained glass windows and hardwood floors, followed by a meal with our generous hosts, Paul and Kelly, who live in the parsonage next door. In addition to presenting concerts, they make the chapel available for weddings, recitals, and other special events, all of which begin or end with the ringing of the bell.
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April 3, 2016. Transporting equipment from the garage to the second floor of the Mansfield Richland County Public Library this afternoon was a piece of cake, thanks to a loaner book cart and assistance from friends from out of town who arrived at just the right time. This was our second performance presented by the Friends of the Library and we recognized a patron from our visit in 2013. We also made a few new friends, including a cat lover, two guitar players, a contra dance band member, a singer-songwriter, a painter, and a boy with a beautiful smile. We enjoyed watching him dance and press his face against the glass separating the children's room from where we were playing.
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April 2, 2016. Tonight's "Rock the Palace" event to support The Palace Theatre's summer music series was super fun! In addition to the fine musicianship, we appreciated the genuine collegiality among members of the bands that performed, and also the special treatment from the staff. The personalized dressing rooms were a particularly classy touch.
March 13, 2016. At the end of our concert this afternoon at the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's Main Branch, we held a surprise drawing. There was no auditor present but we followed all the rules anyway, even the one about family members not being eligible. There were winners and prizes, the whole nine yards. We're not going to say any more about it because then it won't be a surprise next time, right? And there will be a next time, we promise.
January 14, 2016. Dinner was still underway at Weinberg Terrace, a personal care facility in Squirrel Hill, when we arrived for our performance this evening, but one resident headed over to the parlor to keep us company while we set up. Born in Columbus, he moved to Pittsburgh 75 years ago... at the age of 25! He told us about the the job he held for 35 years and the condo he lived in for 45 years. We asked if he's the oldest resident and he said no, he's in 3rd place. Three centenarians under one roof. Awesome.
January 2, 2016. We met some fine-looking folks this afternoon at Red Bandana Winery in Leeper, PA, including this group wearing wigs and other accessories provided by the winery. We took their picture during our break between sets. The guy in the dog costume was especially convincing.
