AMP: Artists' Meeting Place and Resource Collective

As much time as i spend on-line, and as much as i enjoy writing, you'd think i would have started blogging long ago. But no...this is my first foray into the world of the blog.

I guess my hesitance stems from a lack of desire to talk about myself, which makes it a real chore to promote myself!! How do people do it? How do you toot your own horn with enough verve to attract bookings, without becoming big-headed? Any answers out there??

is there a short line to why we art?
i have a short feud, never thought, but easily seen coming. spread a six foot 44 inch black face puppet, with two, three foot by 20 inch brightly colored puppets with microphones and arms that move, in front of a candy store. inviting the joining of voices in your favorite childhood song and singing dixie with the nannies. sheep in the cornfield after reaping, i was rakin it in. the mam's loved me the politicoes were cursing my sell out so there were times of cell phone to godd, cia listenig in and the christian right doing the transcriptions of each and every word. to pass along in the morning to dick chaney. blunderbus of

The Irish cuts I promised are now up on our website, mydadstruck.com, go to “band info” and there is a link “Irish Sounds”. Thank You Susan. I’ve also included a mp3 sample in this blog.

Will they ever shut up!

A few weeks ago I went to my friends show at a local coffee house, the typical unsupervised, no cover, set up your gear and play for your friends, fans, and who ever walks in the door. It was her first local show, after being gone for a few years, and all her old friends came. The next day she came by my house and I said, “nice gig, but it seems the worst thing a performer can do is invite old friends to a show, all they want to do is yak! yak! yak!.” She said “Oh well they haven’t seen each other for years. What are you going to do?”

Well someone in the audience finally stood up and said something like “If you have to talk at least keep it down”, maybe not quite so nice. A few weeks before we had the same thing happen to us. Last Sat. we had the yak! yak!, but nobody said, will you ever shut up! And they never did.

As the performer it’s bad form to attack the audience, but as a listener please step in when appropriate. Don’t drag them out into the parking lot, but you could remind them there are people that want to listen. Thank You!

I am a girl bass player in some blues bands here in Phoenix, Arizona. One of the favorite bands I play with is now called Chico Chism's Flamekeepers. Has anyone out there heard of Chico? He's pretty famous in that he was Howlin' Wolf's last drummer and toured around the world with him. Chico's pretty old now, but while he was still actively playing, I was his last bass player. Now we have the band and Chico gets up and plays and sings a couple songs each set. it's a blast.

Back before the DWI laws wiped out our fan base I had a country rock-a-billy band, The Rangers, and I had sound equipment, lighting …a van full, just to much stuff. Now I’m in an acoustic band with one mic for everyone and I still have to much stuff; Four guitars a banjo, ukulele, violin, mandolin, and the guitarrone, and lets not forget the stands for them all. Maybe I’m secure with clutter, not sure, can’t sort through the debris in my mind to figure it out. But I do know I want to add a 12-string guitar real bad, and let us not forget the stand.

Molten Java is a music venue coffee house in Bethel Connecticut and is the creation of my friend Wendy Cahill. We the band, My Dad’s Truck, started playing there when they first opened, helping Wendy get started, it being a pass the hat night we figured a few gigs and then move on. Well a few shows in and we realized we could do three long set and break in all our new material, free is free, and there always seemed to be great folks listening.
Two years later here is what helping a friend has become. Molten Java is the heart of our fan base, they know this is the gig where they will hear the new stuff and they come. Wendy is getting a rep for a fantastic music venue throughout the tri state area. And we are appreciative of a monthly show where the gallery is waiting for a good truck wreck, kinda’ like at the Indy 500.

I just went to the site and the Irish tunes aren’t up there yet. Sorry! However if you go to the web site and click on band info there is a link to Hail the Barrista. There are two Irish tunes in that collection. I’ll post again when they are up on the site. Again sorry for the confusion.

My Dad’s Truck will be playing a show the night before, Thursday, March 16, at Maggie McFly’s in Middlebury, and on St. Pats day at Maggie McFly’s in Southbury. Both shows are 6 to 10pm. For more info call 203-792-4825. To hear tunes from last year go to www.mydadstruck.com

Right here.