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The rites of spring -- The spring season does not officially arrive until tomorrow, but it sure feels like it is already here high atop Almost Daily News headquarters in downtown San Francisco. While the mass media is telling you that it is time to start your cliched “spring cleaning,” what you really need to do is to start making your bluegrass check list for the upcoming music season. Like, for example, buying your tickets to the 35th Annual CBA Father’s Day Festival in June. Or getting the car/van/motorhome ready for the CBA Spring Campout in Turlock on April 13th-18th. How about breaking out the tent, sleeping bag and cooler to make sure they are all in usable order for another year? Heck, what about changing the strings on your instrument? Spring is about to be sprung, so get ready to have some fun! Situational bluegrass -- A five-day event called the LA Bluegrass Situation began yesterday on the 18th and runs through the 22nd at the Largo at the Coronet Theatre in Los Angeles, featuring Steve Martin, The Steep Canyon Rangers, The Infamous Stringdusters, and more. Go to the site for complete info. Nell’s night out -- East Bay bluegrass singer (via Loango, Alabama) Nell Robinson is having a CD release show on the 19th at the Noe Valley Ministry in San Francisco for her wonderful new recording titled Nell Robinson in Loango. She will be backed by the fabulous John Reischman & The Jaybirds. Read about Nell in the SF Chronicle. Fiddling in Oroville -- Resin up that bow and head on out to the Oroville Old-Time Fiddlers Contest on the 19th and 20th. Sublime Spring Singout in SF -- Jeanie and Chuck Poling will be hosting the Sublime Spring Singout at the Velo Rouge Café in San Francisco on the 19th starting at 7 p.m. No cover, and all ages welcome. It is a showcase of the best local Americana talent, featuring Matt Lax and Toshio Hirano, along with performances by Jeanie & Chuck, Misisipi Mike Wolf, special guest Smelley Kelley, and more. Altan on tour -- The Celtic band Altan has a series of shows these next few nights. They will be at the Zellerbach Auditorium at UC Berkeley on the 19th, the Laxson Auditorium at Cal State in Chico on the 20th, and the Sebastopol Community Centre on the 21st. The Stringdusters are here -- You have many chances to enjoy The Infamous Stringdusters. See them at The Center for the Arts in Grass Valley on the 19th, at Don Quixote's in Felton on the 20th, at the Freight & Salvage in Berkeley on the 21st, and at Largo at the Coronet in Los Angeles on the 22nd. Bill and Meghan down south -- Bill Evans & Megan Lynch are down in SoCal these next two days, and they will be playing at Acoustic Music in San Diego on the 19th and at Boulevard Music in Culver City on the 20th. Jug roots in Alameda -- At McGrath’s Pub in Alameda at 8 p.m. on the 19th the Skiffle Symphony jug band returns with a style all its own. And on the 20th The Smiley Mountain Band from Yosemite will be cranking out traditional roots and bluegrass at 8 p.m. Chilean benefit in Davis -- Poetic Justis will play at the Rominger West Winery in Davis on the 19th at a benefit for Chilean earthquake relief from 7-10 p.m. The multi-talented Kathy Barwick will be on dobro and mandolin. There is no cover charge, but there will be opportunities to make a donation to the American Red Cross. Appetizers will be provided. Coyote Hill in Sonora -- On the 19th the band Coyote Hill can be seen playing folk, jazz, and bluegrass at the Stage 3 Theater in Sonora. The band is Richard Sholer, Dick Todd, Rick Barlow and Clinton Day. Square dance in SF -- Kick up your heals on the 19th starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center with music by the Knuckle Knockers and calling by Susan Peńa. Gibson Brothers in Morgan Hill -- The CBA presents The Gibson Brothers and The Tuttles with AJ Lee at The Morgan Hill Grange on the 20th. Don't miss this show! Lost Weekend in Sonoma -- The Western swing band Lost Weekend will have you dancing at Little Switzerland in Sonoma on the 20th starting at 8 p.m. featuring special guest vocalist Chris O’Connell. Snap to it! -- Snap Jackson & The Knock On Wood Players will be playing live at The Blackwater in Stockton on the 20th at 8:30 p.m. Free show, and all ages are welcome. Oak Grove in Walnut Creek -- The Schwartz family band known as Oak Grove (featuring some members of OMGG) will be pickin’ bluegrass at the Shadelands Farmers' Market in Walnut Creek, on North Wiget just north of Ygnacio Valley Road, from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on the 20th. Buy some veggies and listen to bluegrass. Jammin’ in Paso Robles -- "Matt's Jam" takes place every Saturday from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at Matt's Music, 617 12th Street, in downtown Paso Robles. For more information call (805) 237-0054. Turn your radio on -- Tune into Peter Thompson’s Bluegrass Signal radio show on KALW (91.7 FM) in SF on the 20th from 6:30-8 p.m. The show this week is titled Vernal Equinox, with songs of the season by the Vern Williams Band, Reno & Smiley, Cooke Duet, Carter Family, Cliff Perry & Laurel Bliss, Kathy Kallick Band, Kenny & Amanda Smith, High Country, John Reischman & Jaybirds, and Gillian Welch, plus seasonally appropriate tunes by Casey Henry, Chris Thile, Pete Wernick, Slavik Hanzlik, and the Country Gentlemen. You can listen online on the KALW web site, and the first hour of the show is also broadcast five times each week on BluegrassCountry.org. Quadruple bill in SF -- On the 20th at Slim’s in SF Shelby Ash Presents a night of backwoods mountain music with the Pine Box Boys, The Earl Brothers, The Last Men on Earth, and Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit. The Earls will be releasing copious copies of their new CD titled The Earl Brothers. Jammin’ in Sebastopol -- The place for bluegrass pickin' on Saturdays is the Coffee Catz, 6761 Sebastopol Ave, from 2-5 p.m. Boys down the coast -- The Montara Mountain Boys will be playing bluegrass at the San Gregorio General Store south of Half Moon Bay on the 20th from 11 a.m.-1 p.m., and on the 21st it will be bluegrass with The Circle R Boys from 2-5 p.m. No cover, you can have a beer and also get you shopping done while you are there. The Bluegrass Mix -- The site called The Bluegrass Mix streams bluegrass online 24/7. Sky Powers has a show called Pacifically Bluegrass, and it airs every Saturday evening from 4-8 p.m. out here in CA. He plays a fine mix of bluegrass, both old and new, with an emphasis on new releases and he also devotes a portion of his show to playing and promoting the bluegrass bands of the Pacific West and Rockies. Sky also welcomes requests, so email him at sky@bluegrassmix.com. Jammin’ in Modesto -- There is a jam in Modesto taking place at Ingram and Braun’s Musik Shoppe on Saturdays from 3-5 p.m. at their location at 503 Bangs Avenue. Go on by to join the fun! Alive dudes -- The Grateful Dudes will be playing bluegrass on the 20th at Vincenzo’s Pizza in Newhall from 7:30-10:30 p.m. Band members Bill Bryson, Dennis Fetchet, Scott Micale and Rodger Phillips have been playing at Vincenzo’s for over 20 years now. Dusty Shoes in Grover Beach -- Every Saturday from 5-7 p.m. the Dusty Shoes Gospel Band plays bluegrass at the Station Grill, 170 W. Grand Avenue, in Grover Beach. This is a free event. ’bout Time in Campbell -- ‘bout Time! will be celebrating the new changing of the seasons on the 21st at the Campbell Farmer’s Market (Campbell Ave. at Central) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.? Sunday morning fun -- The Fruit Jar Pickers play every Sunday from 10-noon at the Rough and Ready Opry Palace (near Grass Valley). This is an acoustical event somewhere between a jam, a concert, and sing-along. Jammin’ in Pleasant Hill -- East Bay pickers on the third Sunday of the month go to Smokin' Okies in Pleasant Hill, a nice little BBQ restaurant that has agreed to host a monthly bluegrass jam from 5:30-8 p.m. This is a very family-friendly neighborhood restaurant that serves good barbeque (and it serves beer & wine) and has occasional acoustic entertainment on the weekends. Jammin’ in Arroyo Grande -- Bring your voice, friends, banjo, guitar, mandolin, dobro, fiddle or bass on the third Sunday of every month to the jam at the SLO Down Pub, 1200 E. Grand Avenue in Arroyo Grande from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Qualifications for attendance are that you must love bluegrass, old-time, country, folk and whatever, and you can either pick or just listen. No electric or percussion instruments, please. For info email Roger at siminoff@siminoff.net. Life’s railway to heaven -- Singer and guitarist Alex Chilton, who at age 16 had a hit song with The Boxtops in 1967 titled “The Letter” while also gaining some notoriety years later with the band Big Star, died in New Orleans on the 17th of an apparent heart attack. He was 59. B. Judd, Bluegrass Philosopher -- “I plan on living forever. So far, so good...” The Almost Daily News is updated almost daily. If you have news that you would like to share with our bluegrass community, let me know and I’ll spread the word. E-mail me here. |
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For the BOCD'ers in our group (you know who you are) here's more…. CBA Regional Newsletters Cybergrass, The Internet's Bluegrass Magazine Bluegrass World Bluegrass Music Profiles-Bluegrass News The Bluegrass Blog The Bluegrass Works And for our mandolin playing friends, we recommend you check out what's going on over at Mandolin Cafe. 
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Parkfield Bluegrass Festival 2010--Seven Secrets Revealed Today's guest column from Wendy Stockton Saturday, March 20, 2010 Festival fans are calling. They want answers. They’re crazy excited about NEXT MONTH’S Parkfield Bluegrass Festival. (Specifically, May 6-9, 2010 in Parkfield, California.) First off, they want to know how to go. The answer is: act now! Until April 10, you can still buy Parkfield Bluegrass Festival discount tickets. Go to www.parkfieldbluegrass.com and click on the printable order form. Write a check and send it in today. Second, fans want facts about the 2010 stage acts. So here they are! Don Rigsby and Midnight Call will headline. They’ll deliver traditional, hard-driving bluegrass with a bonus: the chance to buy Don’s new gospel album. You can also hear the Rarely Herd, masters of high-lonesome 3-part harmony. Talented songwriters The Brombies will return to the Parkfield stage (and they’ve agreed to do a songwriting workshop too). For those who like their bluegrass hot, popular outlaw-themed ruffians Belle Monroe and her Brewglass Boys will tear up the stage. For the stylish, mod festivalgoer, we offer |
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