An Upstaging...

Before forging ahead to mention a few upcoming opportunities, I want to acknowledge a couple of memorable evenings I've spent over the past week or so. I'll start with what served as a powerful reminder of what a singer/songwriter ought to be...someone who can conjure up the right words to put you in a compelling place, who can speak those same words musically giving them added weight and then set the whole aural motion picture to music. Darrell Scott did all that, all by himself, at The National last Friday night as the opener for an impressive but far less soulful guitarist/vocalist Monte Montgomery. The prologue produced the most engaged audience by far as Mr. Scott's casual pajama bottoms betrayed the conviction and focus he gave to his songs. There are few in this broad genre of acoustic folk who can write, play and sing at the level of Darrell Scott. A true triple threat. His crowd offered up a range of requests that made clear a long-time familiarity with his hits and his deep tracks as well. Music in its purest form...songs brought to life by the guy who made them up...with an intensity that only he can bring. We renewed our respect for this prolific artist who now comes with a solid new collection of covers entitled Modern Hymns. Classics including Paul Simon's "An American Tune," Joni Mitchell's "Urge For Going," and even a great take on Pat Metheny's instrumental, "James." He's leaves it all on the stage. Consider his ban on fans recording live shows:

NOTE TO TAPERS
i have no higher gift to offer than to leave my home & family & friends & kitchen & cats
and bring the music to the people
that is why the music i play live is not the property of a taper or even the property of the promoter who brought me
or the sound company whose mixing board & mics i am playing through the audience pays money to see & hear music & they get music the promoter pays to have musicians come to a venue & gets an audience for it & we play the musician plays & gets paid for it; the sound crew, the caterer...
the ones who are “missing” in this agreement are my kids at home -and having been in a quandary about "whose music is it, anyways" after mucho consideration, i now know that in the above scenario it is my kids’music
THAT IS WHY I DO NOT ALLOW TAPING OF MY MUSIC IN SHOWS it ain’t yours to tape- ‘tis my kids’ (from the Darrell Scott Website) Makes perfect sense to me....

• Sunday night was Grammy night and was I the only one who found the last-hour replacement act for alleged abuser Chris Brown...Al Green with Justin Timberlake and Keith Urban doing everGreen "Let's Stay Together" the best live performance of the whole night? The Robert Plant/Alison Krauss medley from the night's big winner Raising Sand, producers apparently saving the best for last, saw Alison put her trophy count even further out of reach of any mortal woman...now at 26. And best of all it was a career-validating triumph for Ken Irwin and his fellow visionaries from Massachusetts who started independent Rounder Records up in Cambridge almost 40 years ago. They've never sold out, they've underwritten the careers of countless artists we consider essential to this music, and now they hold the one most coveted award in the industry, the Grammy for Album of the Year. This is a very good sign.

This is a little out of the box for this blog but I'm moved to offer up three or more cheers for a warm and wonderful musical D and I saw last night at Stage I.

26-year-old Chase Kniffen started this impressively professional theater company up near Atlee Road on Rt. 301 at the end of last year to be a vehicle for contemporary plays. Five remarkably poised and capable young actors (think second through eighth grade) sang, danced and delivered zingers for two delightful acts of Children's Letters to God. Witnessing a local production with such a thought-provoking script, creative lighting and artistic staging, held together by director Kniffen and his quintet of kids was an unexpected pleasure. The show runs one more week, and they've offered a free pair of tickets to the first respondent who can tell me who wrote the 1966 best-seller on which the play was based. Answers to: mail@timtimberlake.com. If you're looking for something uplifting in challenging times, Letters could be comfortingly warm and fuzzy. Hearing kids this young sing (and I mean sing parts) this well together is a rare treat. And prepare to fall in love with 8-year-old Cooper Timberline, who steals scenes and hearts as the adorable Kicker Brown. (thanks to Beth Sinnenberg for the photos)

After a sweet Saturday we hope spent in romantic pursuit, our favorite swamp-denizen Page Wilson hosts a major musical happening this Sunday at the Canal Club...another Out O' The Blue Stage Revue with a full roster of Richmond's favorite players doing what they do best. It's a way for all these good folks to offer up their formidable talents for a host of good causes. Here's the lineup:

2:30 - Page Wilson with Reckless Abandon (Billy Lux, Charles Arthur, Jim Skelding, Jay Gillespie)

3:20 - Kip Williams Quartet featuring James "Saxsmo" Gates & Anthony Dowd

4:10 - Susan Greenbaum

5:00 - Terry Garland with Bruce Courson

5:50 - Janet Martin Band

6:40 - Brad Spivey & the Honky Tonk Experience

7:30 - Gary Gerloff Band

8:20 - L'il Ronnie & the Grand Dukes

9:05 - Bruce Olsen & the Offenders
Something for everybody plus some great grub and a serious silent auction. Positively THE place to be, especially since Monday's a holiday.

Friday, February 20th finds us at In Your Ear's Studio A for yet another sold out JAMinc concert, this time featuring Kennedy Center Jazz Ambassadors Neighborliness aka/The John Winntet. John, Daniel Clarke, Curtis Fye and Robby Sinclair are preparing for their third big trip to Russia where they're almost rock stars. If you have your tickets, you're entitled to smile smugly...it's gonna be a stone cold gas. Look for a cool cover story in the Times-Dispatch Weekend section this coming Thursday about JAMinc's studio concert series. And thanks to our media sponsors, 88.9 WCVE-FM.

Saturday, thanks to generously good friends, we head to the Landmark for Motown legend Smokey Robinson's appearance at the Richmond Forum. Berry Gordy and his inspired creation were at the center of my musical tastes through most of my high-school and college years and I'm really jacked about gaining some insight into his considerable contributions to pop and r&b. Maybe I'll even get to shake his hand. In prep for Saturday, I'm planning to re-watch the heart-rending DVD Standing In The Shadows Of Motown, a documentary tribute to the nearly forgotten sidemen who supported all the Motown hits for all those wonderful years collectively known as The Funk Brothers. If you've never seen it, and you love the Detroit sound, trust me, Netflix can provide you with one warm winter night.

Then the weekend trifecta resolves with the incomparable Tommy Emmanuel with his return to The National Sunday night, the 22nd. Here's one case where hyperbole must fall short. Tommy leaves his audiences breathless with dazzling technique, sublime musicality and a dynamic stage presence. This Australian powerhouse is as good as it gets. If you've never seen him live, don't miss him this time. You can thank me later. Oh, and there are only a few more days to win two free tickets to the show. I'm drawing Monday from all correct answers to the following: In what American city is "Timberlake Road" for which the tune is named on Tommy's CD Only? Even if you don't know, come on, take a guess.

After the Neighborliness show, our next JAMinc/In Your Ear Studio A Concert features banjo/slide guitar virtuoso Tony Furtado on March 5th. If memory serves, our last five shows have sold out. If you want to join us for a magical night with maestro Furtado, don't think you can let it slide...I'm just sayin'.

And a "save the date": Friday, May 8th at the West End Assembly of God...JAMinc proudly presents The Isaacs!

We'll let you know when tickets are available.

We're also planning a special night along the Crooked Road this fall with Wayne Henderson, Helen White and the Dixie Beeliners. Rugby comes to Richmond. Details coming later.

• Have a loving Valentine's Day...TT