Hairy Larry Rocks
971 shaares
260 results
tagged
fromthearchive
This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Ella, Sarah, Duke, Chet, Barry, Hank, and more. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.
Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM Central, at kasu.org.
Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM Central, at kasu.org.
Thanks Marty. Today we’re going to hear my favorite song recorded at my favorite place, HairyLarryLand.
In the fall of 2024 I saw Eliecer Tamez at Gamer’s Haven when I was there for my Thursday Night D&D campaign. Eliecer played with me in the Jazz Recital Band at ASU and he expressed an interest in getting together and playing agian.
Then at Blues Fest I saw Danielle Russell. She’s been the singer in many rock and blues bands in Northeast Arkansas and she sang with The Flying Hungarians every year at Blues Fest. I asked if she would be interested in singing jazz and she started in on all of her favorite jazz composers.
In the fall of 2024 I saw Eliecer Tamez at Gamer’s Haven when I was there for my Thursday Night D&D campaign. Eliecer played with me in the Jazz Recital Band at ASU and he expressed an interest in getting together and playing agian.
Then at Blues Fest I saw Danielle Russell. She’s been the singer in many rock and blues bands in Northeast Arkansas and she sang with The Flying Hungarians every year at Blues Fest. I asked if she would be interested in singing jazz and she started in on all of her favorite jazz composers.
This is Hairy Larry inviting you to enjoy Something Blue every Saturday night at ten. This week we’re featuring Jerry Joseph, ADHD, and NJHB. For more about the show visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.
Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM Central, at kasu.org.
Don’t miss Something Blue, Saturday night at 10:00 PM Central, at kasu.org.
Thanks Marty, today we’ll hear the premier recording of a new song I wrote recorded at KASU New Jazz In Jonesboro.
NJHB recorded their first album at HairyLarryLand on December 29, 2012. In 2013 we released 8 1/2 albums counting “Bop Soup” as half an album. We were back in 2018 and 2019, recording an album at every show. After the pandemic we recorded an album outside of the Round Room on November 5, 2023, and then, last week, we recorded “The Hop Skip Jump”.
We are a different kind of jazz band featuring group improvisation. On November 30, 2019, when we recorded our “Checking For Traps” album, I said, “Then we’re gonna do like NJHB does, we’re gonna not just improvise the solos, we’re gonna improvise the arrangement, we’ll go outside, do whatever we want, have a good time.”
So to explain some of this I’m going to do an analysis of the excerpt of “The Hop Skip Jump” we’re about to hear. I will post a link to the whole album at sbblues.com.
NJHB recorded their first album at HairyLarryLand on December 29, 2012. In 2013 we released 8 1/2 albums counting “Bop Soup” as half an album. We were back in 2018 and 2019, recording an album at every show. After the pandemic we recorded an album outside of the Round Room on November 5, 2023, and then, last week, we recorded “The Hop Skip Jump”.
We are a different kind of jazz band featuring group improvisation. On November 30, 2019, when we recorded our “Checking For Traps” album, I said, “Then we’re gonna do like NJHB does, we’re gonna not just improvise the solos, we’re gonna improvise the arrangement, we’ll go outside, do whatever we want, have a good time.”
So to explain some of this I’m going to do an analysis of the excerpt of “The Hop Skip Jump” we’re about to hear. I will post a link to the whole album at sbblues.com.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a jazz standard recorded at KASU New Jazz In Jonesboro.
New Jazz In Jonesboro started in 2013 at TheArts@311 on Church Street in downtown Jonesboro. Then in 2018 and 2019 we had two more seasons at the Jonesboro Public Library Round Room featuring some of the same musicians and many performers new to the New Jazz concerts. These shows were sponsored by KASU.
Now, in 2025, we’re back, once again sponsored by KASU.
We’ve had music in the Brookland United Methodist Youth Building before, sometimes because of the rain forcing us indoors. It’s a great small room with comfortable seating and good acoustics.
So that’s why New Jazz In Jonesboro is in Brookland!
We’ve had three shows so far this year, headlining Jazz Buskers, Bebop Beatniks, and The Delta Blues Aces.
New Jazz In Jonesboro started in 2013 at TheArts@311 on Church Street in downtown Jonesboro. Then in 2018 and 2019 we had two more seasons at the Jonesboro Public Library Round Room featuring some of the same musicians and many performers new to the New Jazz concerts. These shows were sponsored by KASU.
Now, in 2025, we’re back, once again sponsored by KASU.
We’ve had music in the Brookland United Methodist Youth Building before, sometimes because of the rain forcing us indoors. It’s a great small room with comfortable seating and good acoustics.
So that’s why New Jazz In Jonesboro is in Brookland!
We’ve had three shows so far this year, headlining Jazz Buskers, Bebop Beatniks, and The Delta Blues Aces.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a song I wrote this year and recorded at HairyLarryLand.
Paul Lessard is one of the finest jazz saxophonists I have ever worked with. When he joined the faculty at ASU I went to meet him to talk about music composition because, the truth is, there’s just not that many people into the nuts and bolts of music theory and composition. When I found out that he played jazz saxophone I knew I wanted to play with him.
Paul Lessard is one of the finest jazz saxophonists I have ever worked with. When he joined the faculty at ASU I went to meet him to talk about music composition because, the truth is, there’s just not that many people into the nuts and bolts of music theory and composition. When I found out that he played jazz saxophone I knew I wanted to play with him.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to bring the funk as played by a band that was popular here in Jonesboro before the pandemic.
Of course I’m talking about The Funk Donors. I never did get to hear them play live but I knew them by their reputation and I wanted to go see them since some of my friends were in the band. Fortunately they recorded a great album, “Flatland” and if you love live music like I do you can watch their videos on Youtube.
This all started when I went to see luvtrst. play at Stage Too. I was talking to Brian Nobles when he mentioned that he used to play in a band with Cody Ballard, the saxophonist in luvtrst. Well, my inquiring ears want to hear so I found out about the band and their album, “Flatland”.
Of course I’m talking about The Funk Donors. I never did get to hear them play live but I knew them by their reputation and I wanted to go see them since some of my friends were in the band. Fortunately they recorded a great album, “Flatland” and if you love live music like I do you can watch their videos on Youtube.
This all started when I went to see luvtrst. play at Stage Too. I was talking to Brian Nobles when he mentioned that he used to play in a band with Cody Ballard, the saxophonist in luvtrst. Well, my inquiring ears want to hear so I found out about the band and their album, “Flatland”.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear an original song recorded at the Arkansas Roots Festival.
I first met Sky City at Blues Fest. They volunteered so I booked them. They have always delivered wonderful performances.
Since then they played again at Blues Fest, Sunday In The Park and Bebopalooza. Nathan Crouch even joined us for an evening of Grateful Dead songs at TheArts@311. It is also through Sky City that I met Tonja McKay, an entomologist, and a fine violinist or fiddler, as we say in Arkansas. She helped me record “Three songs from Astral Weeks” at TheArts@311.
In fact all the musicians in the band are outstanding. Playing at the Arkansas Roots Festival on April 8, 2017 were Nathan Crouch – acoustic guitar and vocals, Grant Camp – bass and vocals, Tanja McKay – violin, Matt Pierce – electric guitar and vocals, and Jason Hatcher – drums, all long time Jonesboro residents.
I will leave many links at the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.
I first met Sky City at Blues Fest. They volunteered so I booked them. They have always delivered wonderful performances.
Since then they played again at Blues Fest, Sunday In The Park and Bebopalooza. Nathan Crouch even joined us for an evening of Grateful Dead songs at TheArts@311. It is also through Sky City that I met Tonja McKay, an entomologist, and a fine violinist or fiddler, as we say in Arkansas. She helped me record “Three songs from Astral Weeks” at TheArts@311.
In fact all the musicians in the band are outstanding. Playing at the Arkansas Roots Festival on April 8, 2017 were Nathan Crouch – acoustic guitar and vocals, Grant Camp – bass and vocals, Tanja McKay – violin, Matt Pierce – electric guitar and vocals, and Jason Hatcher – drums, all long time Jonesboro residents.
I will leave many links at the Something Blue website at sbblues.com.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a musician I played with 30 years ago who sent me some songs recently recorded.
Back in the nineties a guitarist called Duke was jamming with Hairy Larry and The Flying Hungarians. He even played at Blues Fest. A great guy and a great musician.
Now, 30 years later, I get an email from John Good. Duke is his stagename. John Good is his name. I probably knew that back at the time but I only remembered Duke.
And he sent me two CDs recorded by John Good and Friends. Excellent work played by excellent musicians from Little Rock, Arkansas.
Back in the nineties a guitarist called Duke was jamming with Hairy Larry and The Flying Hungarians. He even played at Blues Fest. A great guy and a great musician.
Now, 30 years later, I get an email from John Good. Duke is his stagename. John Good is his name. I probably knew that back at the time but I only remembered Duke.
And he sent me two CDs recorded by John Good and Friends. Excellent work played by excellent musicians from Little Rock, Arkansas.
It all started one year at Blues Fest. John Shepherd played the first part of his set without a band and Vivian loved it. Well, I did too, so I got in touch with John about recording a solo album and although it was a little bit outside of his comfort zone he was game.
Now I’m going to have to try to find that Blues Fest performance. It was probably in 2008 because …
I recorded John Shepherd at HairyLarryLand on February 21, 2009 and March 21, 2009. All tracks are John Shepherd, guitar and vocals, with no overdubs.
So it’s essentially a live album.
And he wrote all the songs.
We called the album “So Low” and it’s just killing all the way through. I picked the song “I Want To Be The One” to play today because of it’s deep lyric and exceptional blues guitar.
He showed up to play with just a guitar case. He said, “Don’t worry, there’s an amp in there too”. And sure enough when he opened his case there was a Pignose amp. I had John set up to sing in one room and I put the amp in another room with a close mic for sound isolation. So I was able to get John’s vocals right on top something that can be difficult to do when he’s singing with a loud band.
Now I’m going to have to try to find that Blues Fest performance. It was probably in 2008 because …
I recorded John Shepherd at HairyLarryLand on February 21, 2009 and March 21, 2009. All tracks are John Shepherd, guitar and vocals, with no overdubs.
So it’s essentially a live album.
And he wrote all the songs.
We called the album “So Low” and it’s just killing all the way through. I picked the song “I Want To Be The One” to play today because of it’s deep lyric and exceptional blues guitar.
He showed up to play with just a guitar case. He said, “Don’t worry, there’s an amp in there too”. And sure enough when he opened his case there was a Pignose amp. I had John set up to sing in one room and I put the amp in another room with a close mic for sound isolation. So I was able to get John’s vocals right on top something that can be difficult to do when he’s singing with a loud band.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a great Arkansas jazz pianist play everybody’s favorite song.
I can remember, back in the day, when I used to watch the Art Porter Trio play jazz on AETN. Older listeners will remember a time when all the world’s music wasn’t at your fingertips and it wasn’t that often that you got to hear a piano trio on television.
Art Porter led a full life with church, family, music education, and performance, often intertwined. That is he started playing at church and later he played at church with his own family, who he taught to play. He also taught in Little Rock, Arkansas, at Horace Mann High School, Parkview High School, and Philander Smith College while performing nights with a jazz trio that sometimes included his son, Art Porter Jr., and sometimes a guest, Pharoah Sanders.
My friend, Suzanne Michell, loved his music and she sang with him as a guest. He even played with his long time friend, Bill Clinton, and Art Porter and his son performed “Amazing Grace” at Bill Clinton’s first inauguration in 1993.
When I’m about to play this song I say, “Ok now, here’s everybody’s favorite song, “Summertime”.
So now, here’s Art Porter, a great man and a genius on jazz piano playing everybody’s favorite song, “Summertime”.
I can remember, back in the day, when I used to watch the Art Porter Trio play jazz on AETN. Older listeners will remember a time when all the world’s music wasn’t at your fingertips and it wasn’t that often that you got to hear a piano trio on television.
Art Porter led a full life with church, family, music education, and performance, often intertwined. That is he started playing at church and later he played at church with his own family, who he taught to play. He also taught in Little Rock, Arkansas, at Horace Mann High School, Parkview High School, and Philander Smith College while performing nights with a jazz trio that sometimes included his son, Art Porter Jr., and sometimes a guest, Pharoah Sanders.
My friend, Suzanne Michell, loved his music and she sang with him as a guest. He even played with his long time friend, Bill Clinton, and Art Porter and his son performed “Amazing Grace” at Bill Clinton’s first inauguration in 1993.
When I’m about to play this song I say, “Ok now, here’s everybody’s favorite song, “Summertime”.
So now, here’s Art Porter, a great man and a genius on jazz piano playing everybody’s favorite song, “Summertime”.
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Common Time Playing Autumn Leaves
From the Archives Of Something Blue 2025-03-09
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear ASU students play my favorite song.
Common Time was a working jazz combo, playing every week. I was in school with them and they all helped me, playing at my composition recitals. Of course I invited them to play at the bandshell.
Playing in Common Time On June 3, 2017 were
Josh Carter – sax
Alex Ditto – guitar
Spencer Rawlins – bass
and
Chris Isom – drums
Although they were still in college in 2017, these are all top rank musicians, still playing today.
I can’t tell you what a joy it is to hear young musicians deliver the goods playing jazz standards. But I’ll try. Their set was tight with exciting solos and ensemble work. And they were playing some of my favorite songs. There’s something about live jazz that gets the message across. The audience loved them.
So now, recorded on June 3, 2017, at the Craighead Forest Bandshell here’s Common Time playing “Autumn Leaves”.
From the Archives Of Something Blue 2025-03-09
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear ASU students play my favorite song.
Common Time was a working jazz combo, playing every week. I was in school with them and they all helped me, playing at my composition recitals. Of course I invited them to play at the bandshell.
Playing in Common Time On June 3, 2017 were
Josh Carter – sax
Alex Ditto – guitar
Spencer Rawlins – bass
and
Chris Isom – drums
Although they were still in college in 2017, these are all top rank musicians, still playing today.
I can’t tell you what a joy it is to hear young musicians deliver the goods playing jazz standards. But I’ll try. Their set was tight with exciting solos and ensemble work. And they were playing some of my favorite songs. There’s something about live jazz that gets the message across. The audience loved them.
So now, recorded on June 3, 2017, at the Craighead Forest Bandshell here’s Common Time playing “Autumn Leaves”.
Thanks Marty, today we’ll hear a band of students play the title track from their first album.
When I came up with the idea of doing the New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at TheArts@311 I was a jazz student at ASU. So it stood to reason that I would recruit the New Jazz House Band, known as NJHB, from my fellow students.
We had our first session at the HairyLarryLand studio in Jonesboro at the very end of 2012. We recorded four songs, all original compositions. I was the only one who had played any of them before so it was kind of like jumping off into the deep end. No rehearsals, just put the music up on the stand, talk for a minute, and record it.
I took what we recorded and released our first album, “Circular Logic”.
When I came up with the idea of doing the New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at TheArts@311 I was a jazz student at ASU. So it stood to reason that I would recruit the New Jazz House Band, known as NJHB, from my fellow students.
We had our first session at the HairyLarryLand studio in Jonesboro at the very end of 2012. We recorded four songs, all original compositions. I was the only one who had played any of them before so it was kind of like jumping off into the deep end. No rehearsals, just put the music up on the stand, talk for a minute, and record it.
I took what we recorded and released our first album, “Circular Logic”.
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Hairy Larry Playing Noumenology
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2025-01-12
Thanks Marty, today I’m going to improvise jazz piano on a song inspired by Immanuel Kant.
Now Immanuel Kant was an influential philosopher back in the 18th century and he remains influential today. Kant created a dichotomy between phenomenon and noumena where phenomenon applies to things we can perceive with the senses and noumena are things that cannot be perceived. So I wrote this song called “Noumenolgy” about the study of things that cannot be perceived.
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2025-01-12
Thanks Marty, today I’m going to improvise jazz piano on a song inspired by Immanuel Kant.
Now Immanuel Kant was an influential philosopher back in the 18th century and he remains influential today. Kant created a dichotomy between phenomenon and noumena where phenomenon applies to things we can perceive with the senses and noumena are things that cannot be perceived. So I wrote this song called “Noumenolgy” about the study of things that cannot be perceived.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear an Arkansas musician play all the instruments over a drum track on his arrangement of “Something”.
And not just anything either. I’m talking about the George Harrison song “Something”, one of the most famous and most popular of the Beatles’ songs.
To say Jerry Bone is a fixture in Arkansas music is an understatement. He played bass with Mark Sallings and The Famous Unknowns when they were the house band at B.B. King’s Club on Beale Street. He also played with Tony Spinner.
He has a bit of history with KASU too playing with David Lynn Jones, Gerry Moss, and The Lockhouse Orchestra.
Besides playing bass for other musicians Jerry Bone also plays exceptional guitar and has released his own albums. His album, “Yankin’ The Covers” is very well produced, which shouldn’t be surprising since he runs his own recording studio in Hardy, Arkansas.
I even played songs he recorded for Corte’ on Something Blue recorded by Jerry Bone at Bare Bones Recording.
On the song we’re going to hear today Jerry is playing everything except the drum track. The song is part of his “Scattered And Smothered” collection.
So here’s Jerry Bone now playing the Beatles song, “Something”.
And not just anything either. I’m talking about the George Harrison song “Something”, one of the most famous and most popular of the Beatles’ songs.
To say Jerry Bone is a fixture in Arkansas music is an understatement. He played bass with Mark Sallings and The Famous Unknowns when they were the house band at B.B. King’s Club on Beale Street. He also played with Tony Spinner.
He has a bit of history with KASU too playing with David Lynn Jones, Gerry Moss, and The Lockhouse Orchestra.
Besides playing bass for other musicians Jerry Bone also plays exceptional guitar and has released his own albums. His album, “Yankin’ The Covers” is very well produced, which shouldn’t be surprising since he runs his own recording studio in Hardy, Arkansas.
I even played songs he recorded for Corte’ on Something Blue recorded by Jerry Bone at Bare Bones Recording.
On the song we’re going to hear today Jerry is playing everything except the drum track. The song is part of his “Scattered And Smothered” collection.
So here’s Jerry Bone now playing the Beatles song, “Something”.
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to celebrate the days of Auld Lang Syne.
Ok, I strive for variety in my From The Archives Of Something Blue podcasts. Fortunately I have a huge backlog of recordings in many styles of music.
This is the first time I’ve ever played the exact same band playing at the exact same concert one week apart.
But when I found “What Child Is This” on a KASU Jazz For The Holidays concert I noticed that they ended the show with “Auld Lang Syne”. And you know, New Years follows Christmas every year so.
The song is based on Scottish folk songs. I quote.
Robert Burns sent a copy of the original song to the Scots Musical Museum in 1788 with the remark, “The following song, an old song, of the olden times, and which has never been in print, nor even in manuscript until I took it down from an old man.”*
Much of the lyric was actually written by Robert Burns.
The first recording of the song was made on wax cylinder in 1898.*
Playing that night were.
Lisa Ahia – vocals
Gary Gazaway – trumpet
Joy Sanford – piano
Tim Crouch – violin
Robert Bowlin – guitar
David Eckert – bass
and
John Long – drums
Ok, I strive for variety in my From The Archives Of Something Blue podcasts. Fortunately I have a huge backlog of recordings in many styles of music.
This is the first time I’ve ever played the exact same band playing at the exact same concert one week apart.
But when I found “What Child Is This” on a KASU Jazz For The Holidays concert I noticed that they ended the show with “Auld Lang Syne”. And you know, New Years follows Christmas every year so.
The song is based on Scottish folk songs. I quote.
Robert Burns sent a copy of the original song to the Scots Musical Museum in 1788 with the remark, “The following song, an old song, of the olden times, and which has never been in print, nor even in manuscript until I took it down from an old man.”*
Much of the lyric was actually written by Robert Burns.
The first recording of the song was made on wax cylinder in 1898.*
Playing that night were.
Lisa Ahia – vocals
Gary Gazaway – trumpet
Joy Sanford – piano
Tim Crouch – violin
Robert Bowlin – guitar
David Eckert – bass
and
John Long – drums
Thanks Marty. Today we’re going to hear jazz, in space!
When I was writing for NJHB back in 2018 I wrote some titles based on physics, “Cold Fusion”, “Quantum Blues”, and “Entanglement”, followed by some titles based on space flight, “Stratospheric”, “Artificial Gravity”, and “Low Earth Orbit”.
“Low Earth Orbit” was the most accessible and the most fun to play and I have kept it in my repertoire ever since I wrote it, live streaming it through the pandemic and then playing it with Bebop Beatniks and Jazz Buskers.
The song is loosely based on “I’ve Got Rhythm” except even easier and played in a slow shuffle beat. I call it Honky Tonk jazz. Great for slow dancing.
Bebop Beatniks played it this year at Beatles At The Ridge and then again at Blues Fest. Like last year, our Blues Fest performance was exceptional, and I am releasing an album recorded at the bandshell on September 29, 2024, called “The Blue Crane”.
Check the Something Blue website at sbblues.com for links. Also the Bebop Beatniks website is at bebopbeatniks.com.
The rhythm section at Blues Fest was Jeremy Jackson, bass; Alex Washam, drums; and I’m on piano. We all live in Northeast Arkansas. We featured a new saxophonist, Dr. Paul Lessard, who is on the faculty in the music department.
Ok now, recorded September 29, 2024, at Blues Fest, here’s Bebop Beatniks playing “Low Earth Orbit”.
Bebop Beatniks Live at Craighead Forest Bandshell on 2024-09-29
Something Blue Archives
archive.org/details/hl2024-09-29
Something Blue Archives – List Of Concerts
archive.org/details/somethingbluearchives?sort=-publicdate
Bebop Beatniks Live At Blues Fest album
archive.org/details/hl2023-09-24.album
Bebop Beatniks Video Live at Craighead Forest Bandshell on 2023-09-24
archive.org/details/hl2023-09-24
NJHB Live at HairyLarryLand on 2018-07-28
archive.org/details/hl2018-07-28
NJHB Live at Jonesboro Public Library Round Room on 2018-10-13
archive.org/details/hl2018-10-13
NJHB Live at Jonesboro Public Library Round Room on 2018-11-10
archive.org/details/hl2018-11-10
When I was writing for NJHB back in 2018 I wrote some titles based on physics, “Cold Fusion”, “Quantum Blues”, and “Entanglement”, followed by some titles based on space flight, “Stratospheric”, “Artificial Gravity”, and “Low Earth Orbit”.
“Low Earth Orbit” was the most accessible and the most fun to play and I have kept it in my repertoire ever since I wrote it, live streaming it through the pandemic and then playing it with Bebop Beatniks and Jazz Buskers.
The song is loosely based on “I’ve Got Rhythm” except even easier and played in a slow shuffle beat. I call it Honky Tonk jazz. Great for slow dancing.
Bebop Beatniks played it this year at Beatles At The Ridge and then again at Blues Fest. Like last year, our Blues Fest performance was exceptional, and I am releasing an album recorded at the bandshell on September 29, 2024, called “The Blue Crane”.
Check the Something Blue website at sbblues.com for links. Also the Bebop Beatniks website is at bebopbeatniks.com.
The rhythm section at Blues Fest was Jeremy Jackson, bass; Alex Washam, drums; and I’m on piano. We all live in Northeast Arkansas. We featured a new saxophonist, Dr. Paul Lessard, who is on the faculty in the music department.
Ok now, recorded September 29, 2024, at Blues Fest, here’s Bebop Beatniks playing “Low Earth Orbit”.
Bebop Beatniks Live at Craighead Forest Bandshell on 2024-09-29
Something Blue Archives
archive.org/details/hl2024-09-29
Something Blue Archives – List Of Concerts
archive.org/details/somethingbluearchives?sort=-publicdate
Bebop Beatniks Live At Blues Fest album
archive.org/details/hl2023-09-24.album
Bebop Beatniks Video Live at Craighead Forest Bandshell on 2023-09-24
archive.org/details/hl2023-09-24
NJHB Live at HairyLarryLand on 2018-07-28
archive.org/details/hl2018-07-28
NJHB Live at Jonesboro Public Library Round Room on 2018-10-13
archive.org/details/hl2018-10-13
NJHB Live at Jonesboro Public Library Round Room on 2018-11-10
archive.org/details/hl2018-11-10
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Big Creek Band Playing Sing Me Back Home
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2021-12-01
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear Big Creek Band play some real country music at Blues Fest.
I always say we play all kinds of music at Blues Fest because when you get right down to it, it’s all blues.
Dennis Mathes was the bandleader of Big Creek Band with Sonny Ackerman on guitar and George Hinds on bass. They all played at Blues Fest every year and Dennis and Sonny were out at the park every week helping me build the bandshell.
Also playing on September 16, 2001, were David Pearce, vocals and guitar; Dave Pearson, vocals and guitar; and Mark Hill, drums.
The song we’re playing today features Dave Pearson singing a Merle Haggard song. And it don’t get more country than that.
Now for the interesting part of the story. I was rummaging around in the archives also known as a box of old CDs when I found a DVD labeled Big Creek Band. I looked at that and I thought, this is gold.
The video looks like it was shot on a VHS camcorder and it’s kind of rough with some skips and stops here and there. Fortunately the music was with us and one of the best songs recorded start to finish with no audio issues.
I copied the DVD to my hard drive digitizing it with Handbrake. And I uploaded it to the Something Blue Archives, one of my collections on the Internet Archive.
I used VLC to convert the video to an audio file and then I got the song I wanted from that. There is also a Dennis Mathes original on the video and I’m hoping to find an audio version of that song without the skips and stops. I recorded every show at every Blues Fest so I should have it around here somewhere.
Ok, that was all very exciting but not quite as exciting as this moment, right now, when I get to share this music with you.
Recorded at Blues Fest, on September 16, 2001, Here’s Big Creek Band with Dave Pearson singing the Merle Haggard song “Sing Me Back Home”.
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Big Creek Band Playing Sing Me Back Home
Something Blue Archives
archive.org/details/from-the-archives-of-something-blue-2021-12-01
Something Blue Archives – List Of Concerts
archive.org/details/somethingbluearchives?sort=-publicdate
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2021-12-01
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear Big Creek Band play some real country music at Blues Fest.
I always say we play all kinds of music at Blues Fest because when you get right down to it, it’s all blues.
Dennis Mathes was the bandleader of Big Creek Band with Sonny Ackerman on guitar and George Hinds on bass. They all played at Blues Fest every year and Dennis and Sonny were out at the park every week helping me build the bandshell.
Also playing on September 16, 2001, were David Pearce, vocals and guitar; Dave Pearson, vocals and guitar; and Mark Hill, drums.
The song we’re playing today features Dave Pearson singing a Merle Haggard song. And it don’t get more country than that.
Now for the interesting part of the story. I was rummaging around in the archives also known as a box of old CDs when I found a DVD labeled Big Creek Band. I looked at that and I thought, this is gold.
The video looks like it was shot on a VHS camcorder and it’s kind of rough with some skips and stops here and there. Fortunately the music was with us and one of the best songs recorded start to finish with no audio issues.
I copied the DVD to my hard drive digitizing it with Handbrake. And I uploaded it to the Something Blue Archives, one of my collections on the Internet Archive.
I used VLC to convert the video to an audio file and then I got the song I wanted from that. There is also a Dennis Mathes original on the video and I’m hoping to find an audio version of that song without the skips and stops. I recorded every show at every Blues Fest so I should have it around here somewhere.
Ok, that was all very exciting but not quite as exciting as this moment, right now, when I get to share this music with you.
Recorded at Blues Fest, on September 16, 2001, Here’s Big Creek Band with Dave Pearson singing the Merle Haggard song “Sing Me Back Home”.
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Big Creek Band Playing Sing Me Back Home
Something Blue Archives
archive.org/details/from-the-archives-of-something-blue-2021-12-01
Something Blue Archives – List Of Concerts
archive.org/details/somethingbluearchives?sort=-publicdate
Thanks Marty. Today we’re going to hear jazz from NJHB recorded at the very beginning.
I was planning on starting the New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at TheArts@311 in 2013. It was Christmas break so I scheduled a session on December 29, 2012, with the founding members on NJHB.
I was rolling tape but I wasn’t really expecting to record an album. Turns out we played pretty good and we did. We recorded live in the studio, with just two mics recording the room, and we did it the NJHB way. We improvised the arrangements. We recorded four songs. I think I was the only musician there who had ever played them before. As I usually do with NJHB songs I made a radio mix for Arkansas Roots.
In our favor we had a room full of outstanding musicians.
Mike Lovell – guitar
Garrett Tyler – drums
Matt Jackson – bass
Hairy Larry – Fender Rhodes
Cody Ballard – tenor sax
and
Joseph Curtis – trumpet and flugelhorn
I was planning on starting the New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at TheArts@311 in 2013. It was Christmas break so I scheduled a session on December 29, 2012, with the founding members on NJHB.
I was rolling tape but I wasn’t really expecting to record an album. Turns out we played pretty good and we did. We recorded live in the studio, with just two mics recording the room, and we did it the NJHB way. We improvised the arrangements. We recorded four songs. I think I was the only musician there who had ever played them before. As I usually do with NJHB songs I made a radio mix for Arkansas Roots.
In our favor we had a room full of outstanding musicians.
Mike Lovell – guitar
Garrett Tyler – drums
Matt Jackson – bass
Hairy Larry – Fender Rhodes
Cody Ballard – tenor sax
and
Joseph Curtis – trumpet and flugelhorn
DJ Hairy Larry Presents Jazz Writers Big Band Playing “Elegy”
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2024-08-25
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a Big Band play a composition written by an Arkansas jazz educator.
I went to school at ASU with Joseph Curtis. After he graduated he was band director at Hoxie and Trumann. He’s now in Law School in Little Rock.
I think the first time I recorded Joseph was when he was playing in an ASU small group called “Jazztette”. Ron Horton wanted me to take some video of him teaching jazz improvisation and I also recorded their concert. I interviewed Dr. Horton and four of the students and produced a documentary, “Jazztette – Teaching Jazz Improvisation”. They played an original jazz composition by Joseph Curtis called “Baile de Trece”.
I also recorded his band, Bluebeck, at KASU Jazz Thursday and Bebopalooza. I got to sit in with Bluebeck on guitar at the Jazz Thursday show. Gary Gazaway was the headliner at the Bebopalooza show and he invited Joseph Curtis and Ron Horton up to play on their closing songs.
Joseph was in NJHB and he played at our first session on December 29, 2012 as well as on many NJHB shows and albums in 2013 including my senior recital.
Joseph has played with my band Bebop Beatniks frequently and he is featured on the album “Church”. He would livestream with Bebop Beatniks from the Twitch Porch.
He participated in the KASU New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at the public library. I got to play bass once with his band. He also played at New Jazz In Jonesboro with Ken Carroll and NJHB.
He contributed many of his songs to the Jazz Writers Big Band. I recorded most of their shows and the “Jazz Writers Big Band” album.
His brother Clinton Curtis plays amazing alto sax and I have also recorded him many times but that will have to be for another podcast.
Visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com for links.
From The Archives Of Something Blue 2024-08-25
Thanks Marty, today we’re going to hear a Big Band play a composition written by an Arkansas jazz educator.
I went to school at ASU with Joseph Curtis. After he graduated he was band director at Hoxie and Trumann. He’s now in Law School in Little Rock.
I think the first time I recorded Joseph was when he was playing in an ASU small group called “Jazztette”. Ron Horton wanted me to take some video of him teaching jazz improvisation and I also recorded their concert. I interviewed Dr. Horton and four of the students and produced a documentary, “Jazztette – Teaching Jazz Improvisation”. They played an original jazz composition by Joseph Curtis called “Baile de Trece”.
I also recorded his band, Bluebeck, at KASU Jazz Thursday and Bebopalooza. I got to sit in with Bluebeck on guitar at the Jazz Thursday show. Gary Gazaway was the headliner at the Bebopalooza show and he invited Joseph Curtis and Ron Horton up to play on their closing songs.
Joseph was in NJHB and he played at our first session on December 29, 2012 as well as on many NJHB shows and albums in 2013 including my senior recital.
Joseph has played with my band Bebop Beatniks frequently and he is featured on the album “Church”. He would livestream with Bebop Beatniks from the Twitch Porch.
He participated in the KASU New Jazz In Jonesboro concerts at the public library. I got to play bass once with his band. He also played at New Jazz In Jonesboro with Ken Carroll and NJHB.
He contributed many of his songs to the Jazz Writers Big Band. I recorded most of their shows and the “Jazz Writers Big Band” album.
His brother Clinton Curtis plays amazing alto sax and I have also recorded him many times but that will have to be for another podcast.
Visit the Something Blue website at sbblues.com for links.