High Plains Jamboree is the group name for Brennen Leigh, her husband Noel McKay, fiddler Beth Chrisman, and a bassist I know only as Simon. Brennen's one of my faves. You might remember her from a show we did at the Hideout last year. She sang sweet country duets with both me and Noel, showed off her songwriting chops, and picked tasty bluegrass mandolin.
Read MoreMy old friend Michael Miles returns to duet with me.
Read MoreIt's a brand new year -- but I'm up to the same old tricks at the Hideout, as I continue the countdown to the end of my residency with a reboot of some old favorites.
Read MoreIt's time to play How Out Of It Am I? Animating event: tonight at DCA airport the place I sat down to eat at had ipads to order from. Yeah, asshole, I managed to put in my order, no problem there. But when it came time to swipe my card, I couldn't figure out where to do it. A black guy sitting next to me noticed me limply brushing my credit card against a black plastic rectangle jutting out from the bottom of the screen. "It's over there," he said, pointing to the familiar short vertical shelf sitting some nine inches to the right. "Thanks!" I said with sincere gratitude, adding explanatorily, "I was born a very long time ago." The black man was so gracious, he said, "No, it confused me at first, too."
Read MoreAs a reminder, I'll be doing what looks like the last of my garish DIY-scale Bollywood revues celebrating the year's high and low points at Fitzgeralds in Berwyn, on December 31 and January 2.
Read MoreI sing musical songs with Kelly Hogan, the only musician friend I have who can not only go toe to toe with me but often kick my butt on such questions as, What year was Fat City released? and What was Susan Tyrell's character's name in Big Top Pee-Wee?
Read MoreHow much do I have to do for you people? I've jumped into standing pools of water, knocked teeth out, broken noses with flying shoes, held high F# for 20 seconds, rapped freestyle, taken off my pants, fiddled, memorized dozens of pages of single-spaced text for a one-time-only performance, picked up and down as fast as possible, and turned my private affairs into jokes at the risk of permanently alienating everyone I love just to get a chuckle from you.
Read MoreNot himself in person but a bunch of people who love his music and anyhow who doesn't? I'll join Robin and Linda Williams, Rickie Simpkins, Cathy Fink, Marcy Marxer, Dave Chappell, and Mark Schatz, all legends, especially Dave, who's just about my favorite black comedian.
Read MoreThe good news, if you can call it that, is that once again this year's show will take place at Fitzgeralds in Berwyn and across two dates. December 31 and January 2 are the dates. As always, buying tix in advance is strongly encouraged, so that you'll be assured of getting in the room.
Read MoreI forgot to post last Monday's show details. I played with a segment of the punk rock group the Mekons, in support of our new release, Jura. It was the best attended Monday Hideout I've done (possibly excepting the Michael Shannon show, I think the numbers were about identical) so I guess not posting anything here is the key to success.
Read MoreHey, that was a killer Kinky Friedman show last night!
Read MoreI'm ending my Monday night residency, but not soon. I'll be reprising my favorite themes and revisiting my favorite guests, or at least those who live around here, as a sort of sentimental last hurrah, and it'll take about a year.
Read MoreWould anyone at the school -- faculty or students -- care to walk me and and my son around campus for an hour one day over the next couple months, in return for lunch and laffs? Contact me here.
If you live in Washington or Oregon, but not within about 50 miles of either Seattle or Portland, and you're interested in having me do a house concert for you on Sunday December 6, please write me here at the site.
Read MoreCongratulations to Danny Barnes on winning the coveted Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass. No one could more deserve the recognition and the money ($50,000). First I heard, over the weekend, I was at a bluegrass gig and a couple people were buzzing about it. I ran home and googled excitedly, then texted Danny my elation.
Read MoreMy friends T.J. Jagodowski and Dave Pasquesi, large-canvas improvisers of great renown and unbelievable chops, have asked me to warm up for them on October 3rd at New York's crappy hole-in-the-wall venue, Town Hall.
Read MoreThursday, Barley's Taproom in Knoxville. Friday, Station Inn in Nashville. Saturday, Barking Legs in Chattanooga. Sunday, Red Clay Theater in Duluth GA. Me, Don Stiernberg, Missy Raines, and Shad Cobb.
Here's the last Monday show until mid-October: a night of Merle Haggard music, played by Gerald Dowd, JJ Piet, Brian Wilkie, John Rice, and me, and more or less starring Redd Volkaert, who seems to know something about the subject.
This last week I...
...finished two good books, Richard Wright's Native Son (a long time catching up with that one!) and Etgar Keret's The Seven Good Years.
...attended a memorial service for my grandfather in the godforsaken middle of Pennsylvania.
...left Chicago out of one airport, parking my van in long-term, and returned absentmindedly to another.
Read MoreI play with Don Stiernberg.
