9/25/13

The first of a Trypich of planned recordings for 2013.


I've got 3 recording projects that I plan to have released this year. Ok, ok, call it making up for lost time. I had planned on directing my creative efforts on more Atomic Duo releases and touring, but when I was let go from that project, I kinda dropped all the balls I had up in the air, personally and professionally. It was time for a deep breath as it turned out, and through the process of recovery and reassessment, I was happily introduced to a community of musicians and players who have been very inspiring, encouraging and actively supportive. Everything happens for a reason I guess, so I'm very happy to have gone through the BS if this is what it can look like on the other side.

Sean Orr & Texas Gold @ Ginny's
In an effort to honor old friendship and long standing mutual appreciation, my first release is a no-frills, nuthin' fancy picking session with one of my oldest musical companions, fiddler Sean Orr. No foolin', Sean and I have been passing ships in the night since the days when we played in different combos that would find themselves gigging at the Samurai Sake House in OKC, OK. Ran into him again when I was playing with Killbilly in Dallas and he was with Cowboys & Indians. Then I ran into him the first week I moved to Austin to find that he was now in Bastrop. Since then, together we've played the stages of the Calgary and Winnipeg Folk Festivals and even a date at the Kennedy Center. We've played Arabic music together, and we've played Polish dances. Can't say there's another cat outside of Danny Barnes that I've played a wider mess of music with, and I've got plenty of recordings of us, but very little with Sean.
2000-2008

Sean and I did put out a traditionalist Texas Swing EP many years ago which was for whatever reason pretty much entirely ignored, but evidently spawned other local groups who seem to be doing pretty well with it at the hipster clubs on the Eastside of Austin where brown people used to live.

When we released "DANCE" back in 2006, we worked hard to get onto the "Western Swing" Festivals, but were uniformly turned down, sometimes quite bitterly, being told that the music of Milton Brown and Cliff Brunner was in fact NOT "Western Swing," but if we added a drummer and wore matching outfits, it would still be "Jazz." That experience lead up to proposed and as of yet unrealized recording project in conjunction with Cornell Hurd (of the "we liked your band but you need to keep your shirts tucked in" Cornell Hurd Band) working title "A Tribute to Rayond Seifert and Asleep at the Wheel: Popular Wheel tunes played in a Texas Swing Style OR 30 Years in and Those Poor Yankees Still Can't Get the Beat Right, Bless Their Dear Hearts." But alas, time moves on and there are in fact much, much better things to do.

original artwork by Howard Rains
Which leads us to this release: "Sean Orr & Mark Rubin present Texas Fiddle - Okie Guitar" for which we have started a modest Kickstarter campaign. Please take a moment and visit this link and consider helping us get this made.



The second proposed release is with songwriter-harmonica player Sean Tracey, and will consist of mostly original material that our former band mates didn't like, rescue our tunes from releases we don't own and cover about a half dozen Bad Livers numbers that I've worked out on claw-hammer banjo and fiddle, currently scheduled for November. Soon after, I plan on releasing the very first "Mark Rubin" release, which is currently in production, working title "The Triumph of Assimilation." Details to follow as they become realized.

Note to my musico pals: Barnes is right, MAKE and don't second guess yourself.

Bless you all for even reading this.

Forward!


9/24/13

Notes for Tuesday, September 24 2013

a) I want to you consider me a Breaking Bad Free Zone. I'm not up to speed so let a dude catch up!








b) I witnessed the reaction to a bad call at football game widely advance similar sense of outrage at the success of Fascism in our country. Let's hear from Br. Carlin (z"l:)



c) Today is HAAM day in Austin. I have two shows with the Hot Nut Riveters, one 5:30-630 at Whole Foods downtown and Midnight at the Saxon Pub! Help keep Austin musicians healthy and support HAAM day! Between sets I will sit in on uBass at the Driskill Hotel Bar with the Blue Ribbon Healers!

9/23/13

Notes for Monday, September 23, 2013

a) Is it just me, but doesn't "American Exceptionalism" sound like broader translation of "Manifest Destiny?"

b) Happy to welcome Brother Guy Forstyh back to the QB spot in the Hot Nut Riveters offense game. Tight end Matt Smith and myself at center gave a truly heroic effort in his absence, but suffice to say the music loving public are making a great collective sigh of reliefCellist and full-time-nice-fellow Micheal Shay will be joining the fun at the Strange Brew Lounge Side Monday evening 7-8:30pm. I hear a rumor that the Blue Ribbon Healers are in town and might make an appearance as well.

c) What's with Homeland Security buying up so many .40 caliber rounds anyway? Do they really need tanks and flame throwers? Anything to do with the Pentagon's latest risk assessments cite internal disorder due to the fabric of civilized society after being ravaged by the effects of Global Warming? You think?  ;-)


d) Here's a video by some pals of mine from Russia called Dobranotch. One of the greatest nights of my life started with them, right after the Pavarotti impersonator, before our set and a live altering set by the former national Moldovan Folk Orchestra set at the mafia operated music festival held in a former Zepplin hanger in Riga Latvia. (Yes, Aaron Alexander. THAT night.) The tune is called "Pope and Sultan" and they own it. I found an old German song with American English from 1822. Not sure if its the same one, but at any rate I'm adding one or the other to my repertoire soon:
As I post it it has 144 views, which is criminal. Pass it around.

9/14/13

Don Walser would have been 79 today..




.. had he survived his Type 2 diabetes. Which I'm ashamed to say I was recently diagnosed with as well. I'm not so bad off that I require insulin and the doctors say I can beat it with diet and exercise, which I have taken seriously.

Here is the obituary I wrote for Don for the Austin Chronicle. As if I need another reminder to follow my doctors advice. In case you may have missed it, here is the last recording I made with Don, "Me and My Old Guitar." Here's the review from No Depression.