By: Brendan
The 1937 Flood call themselves an eclectic string band. They recently released a gorgeous version of “The Rose” featuring friend of the band Kathy Castner. You can stream the song here, or subscribe to their podcast for a downloadable version. The band will perform a free outdoor concert on Friday May 24th at Pricketts Fort State Park.
By: Brendan
Listening to my ipod on shuffle, an unfamiliar track came on and I thought to myself: “Is this Norah Jones?” The singer was Marium Bria, a singer/songwriter based in Charleston, West Virginia. Marium Bria’s voice is like Norah Jones fused with Julie London – I yearn for her to record a jazz standards collection. Bria’s coruscating lyrics prove the profundity of simple love songs.
Some highlights from Marium Bria’s debut album, Billet Doux, include the appealingly Dylanesque “It’s Alright,” the bluesy “Die For Me,” and “In the Midnight,” which cries out for placement on the soundtrack to the upcoming Before Midnight. “You and me and the night makes three…“
You can stream selected tracks from the album here and purchase at the links below.
Put Your Loving Arms All Around Me is the latest release by Bare Bones, an acapella trio based in Charleston, WV. The songs range from traditional folk and gospel to blues and doo wop. The entire album is sung acapella by the three members of Bare Bones: Becky Kimmons, her husband Bill Kimmons and Mark Davis (formerly Crazy Jane‘s drummer and an occasional performer with the VooDoo Katz). It’s a refreshingly old-fashioned collection, free of artifice and featuring some truly dazzling harmonies.
I’d heard of local band Bare Bones for a while, but hadn’t actually heard them until a few weeks ago. The trio sang the traditional folk song “All I Want is You” on stage accompanied by dancers from The River City Youth Ballet as part of the RCYB’s recent “Music in Motion” performance. Bare Bones sounded so good, I kept forgetting to watch the dancers. I was disappointed the song isn’t included on their album, but there’s plenty of other great tracks to make up for it.
At times the three singers’ voices merrily dance with and around each other like a barbershop quartet, most notably in their cover of Smokey Robinson’s “You Really Got a Hold On Me.”
I’m not personally keen on the many old school gospel numbers they cover, with the exception of “Blind Bartimus,” but I’m sure they will appeal to a lot of folk and gospel fans. It’s just that a little of that goes a long way with me.
The standout tracks find lead singer, Becky Kimmons, singing solo – such as the haunting ballad “Old Virginia” and jaunty “I Loved a Roving Gambler.”
Bare Bones – You Really Got a Hold on Me (mp3 clip)*
*mp3 clip hosted by band
Muruch‘s Vic and Heather popped into Taylor Books on Friday night in search of chai and dessert. The cafe was packed with not a single seat to be found. The cause for the crowd seemed to be the scheduled musician for the night: The Disappearing Man (a.k.a. Brandon Mitchell). To be honest, we initially dismissed what appeared to be the standard local guy-with-guitar schtick and headed back toward the bookshelves instead. We eventually sat on the floor in the travel section, which was close enough to hear the music but private enough to chat.
A few minutes later we were pleasantly shocked when the formerly quiet, unassuming The Disappearing Man suddenly burst into a rousing rendition of Violent Femmes’ “Blister In The Sun
Later, as we browsed books, The Disappearing Man spun things in a completely different direction with an acoustic rendering of Outkast’s “Hey Ya!
As I first informed you back in May, local band Crazy Jane will reunite tomorrow, August 24th, at Charleston’s Live on the Levee concert series.
Until this week, the Muruch post was pretty much the only online presence Crazy Jane had since Muruch’s 2000-04 archives (which had several Crazy Jane posts) were accidentally deleted and the band broke up before the social networking age. But now that the concert is upon us, news about the band is starting to emerge elsewhere…
My Charleston Gazette colleague, Bill Lynch, wrote this article on the band, who gathered at Taylor Books for an interview.
And the best news of all is that Crazy Jane now has a Bandcamp page where you can listen to and purchase ALL of their previous releases as well as two new songs!
Live on the Levee with opening act Mother Nang (another reunited ’90s relic) begins at 6:30 p.m. Friday, August 24th at Haddad Riverfront Park. Headliners Crazy Jane will take the stage at 8:00 p.m. The outdoor concert is free and open to the public.
Live on The Levee Official Site
Will Manahan is ten years old and hails from the small town of Elkview, West Virginia. He is also a champion dulcimer player, as the video below clearly shows. You can read more about this impressively talented boy at The Charleston Daily Mail. A past award winner at Charleston’s annual Vandalia Gathering, Will is scheduled to perform and compete at the event this weekend. He’ll play his own concert Sunday at 1:30 p.m. before participating in the lap dulcimer contest that begins at 2 p.m. the same day. Will is currently recording his debut album.
Only my fellow West Virginians who were teenagers in the 1990s will truly understand the heart-fluttering excitement I felt when I read the following band name on the 2012 Live on the Levee lineup:
Crazy Jane.
Yes, the Crazy Jane. Break out your flannel shirts people, it’s time to party like it’s…1994.
Live on the Levee‘s Stage Manager, Adam Harris, verifies that original Crazy Jane singer Karan Allen, guitarist Andy Park and drummer Mark Davis will indeed reunite on stage for the August 24th concert at Charleston’s Haddad Riverfront Park. The concert, like every Live on the Levee show, will be free and open to the public.
I won’t bore you with the details of all my Crazy Jane-related memories, but the two most memorable were going to one of their outdoor concerts with my bestfriend in high school (during which we discussed our mutual love for My So-Called Life) and seeing what was one of the band’s last live performances at Taylor Books in February, 2000 (on a date with the boy I would eventually marry).
You can check out the rest of this summer’s Live on the Levee concert series lineup – which also includes The Sweetback Sisters, Shemekia Copeland and local singer Sasha Collette – at the link below.
Live on the Levee Official Site
A personal P.S.: I have Crazy Jane’s 1993 album Choice Oranges and their 2000 self-titled album, but I’m still looking for their 1996 album, Pilot.
West Virginian singer-songwriter Jeff Ellis has returned home from his second US Army tour of duty in Iraq. I’m happy to have the opportunity to give away 1 copy of his magnificent CD The Forgetting Place (click the album title to read my rave review). Jeff will also be performing live at several local venues. Tour dates and giveaway details are below…
The Prize:
1 copy of Jeff Ellis’ new CD The Forgetting Place
The Rules:
Comment to this entry with your email address and the name of your favorite local artist (or just your favorite artist if you don’t like anyone in your locality). All new comments are moderated to avoid spam (which is why you must include the required text in your comment), so it may take a day for your comment to appear if you haven’t commented on Muruch before.
Note: This contest is open to everyone, but all contestants must enter with a valid email address and the name of an artist in order to qualify. The winner of the contest will also be required to provide me with their full name, phone number and postal address for shipping purposes.
The Deadline:
The contest will end on Friday, August 27th. The winner will be chosen at random and contacted via email.
Go now go! And tell others.
Jeff Ellis Tour Dates:
Aug 6 – Harley Davidson Store – Huntington, WV
Aug 13 – Live On The Levee – Charleston, WV
Aug 14 – V Club – Huntington, WV
Aug 26 – Pullman Sq. Summer Series – Huntington, WV
Sept 4 – Chief Logan State Park Amphitheater – Logan, WV
Sept 15 – Borders Bookstore (850 Grand Central Mall) – Vienna, WV
Sept 16 – Jackie O’s – Athens, OH
Sept 17 – Borders Bookstore (120 Huntington Mall) – Barboursville, WV
Sept 18 – Fairplain Yacht Club – Ripley, WV
Sept 19 – Borders Bookstore (9459 Colerian Ave) – Cincinnati, OH
Sept 20 – Borders Bookstore (4530 Eastgate Blvd) – Cincinnati, OH
Sept 21 – Borders Bookstore (2700 Miamisburg Centerville Rd) – Dayton, OH
Sept 23 – Borders Bookstore (6670 Sawmill Rd) – Columbus, OH
Sept 24 – The Boulevard Tavern – Charleston, WV
Sept 25 – 123 Pleasant – Morgantown, WV
Oct 2 – Huntington Music & Arts Fest – Huntington, WV
Oct 14 – The Purple Fiddle – Thomas, WV
Oct 15 – Jabberwock – Elkins, WV
Oct 16 – Court Street Grill – Pomeroy, OH
Oct 29 – Empty Glass – Charleston, WV
Oct 30 – Shamrocks – Huntington, WV
