Down On The Corner

By Paul Moffett

• Benefits for Jim Rosen. Jim Rosen, harmonica master with the Mudcat Blues Band, has been undergoing some extremely serious and very costly medical diagnostic and treatment procedures. He has no insurance. While MERF will help out as much as possible, the organization does not have sufficient reserves to provide all the help Jim needs. Therefore, friends are organizing benefits and two dates have been set so far: Sept. 28 at Stevie Ray's and Oct. 8 at Coyote's AND the Backstage.

Much more help is needed, so call Gary Deusner at 502-267-5466 or Mark Langley at 502-893-3730 and give it up.

• Light a Candle Dept. Yer loyal scribe hobbled out to Phoenix Hill on Aug. 6, camera in hand, to catch some of the 'nostalgia' acts at the Third Annual Reunion Jam to benefit St. Vincent De Paul Center. The event capped the Tavern's 19th Anniversary Celebration, and promised to be a great photo op. Alas, the photographs turned out too dark and so I have neither a picture norn a thousand words for our readers. Happy to report, though, that the evening was a big success, with more than 300 folk turning out for the cause.

• New Record Store Dept. Underground Sounds, at 2003 Highland Ave. 485-0174; fax 485-0975. Hours are T-Th 10 a.m. l0 p.m.; F-Sat 10 a.m. Midnight; Sun 12 8; Mon 10 I a.m. Craig Rich is owner.

• Jazz Fan Alert! For all those jazz fans who complain that there just isn't enough live jazz in the Louisville area, listen up. The Old Seelbach Bar is beefing up its jazz schedule. Vibraphonist Dick Sisto is the driving force behind this move. Sisto, Sonny Stephens on bass and Mike Ferraraccio, drums, will be the rhythm section for various guest artists. The first of these events will be Sept. 1, with Bo Hampton as the guest artist. Check the calendar for more listings or call the Old Seelbach Bar.

• Big Al and the Heavyweights have a CD out on Rollin' and Tumblin' Records, called "That Ain't Nice"

• Scott Mullins is back at home after a stretch in the hospital and back working on building up Rollin' & Tumbiin' Records. Scott said a trip to the recent NAIRD (National Association of Record Distributors and Manufacturers) convention opened his eyes to what he needed to be doing.

• Yeah, cuts! Tim Krekel has a tune, Co-written with Matraca Berg, cut by Martina McBride. Krekel, a Louisville native and resident, has also been on the road doing some dates with Coral Reefer meister Jimmy Buffett.

• Attention Allman Brothers & Sisters, your family reunion is set for Sept. 22-24 in Macon, Georgia. The annual reunion and Revival is staged by the Georgia Allman Brothers Band Association. The event costs $35 and if you want more information locally, call Rick Davis at 366-3847.

• The Thoroughbred Chorus, Louisville's seven-time winner of the International Gold Medal in Barbershop Quartet Singing, finished 6th in the July competition in Miami.

• Better Late than Never Division. Gary Ramblers, and his wife Lesia had their first child, a son, Gary, Jr., way back on Feb. 8. Congratulations.

The Kentucky Ramblers are also confirmed for an appearance on the upcoming Farm Aid show on Oct. 1.

• Ditto the Header. Folk-meister John Gage had a heart attack back in July. He's back in circulation after recovery and will be pickin' and saingin' at the Highlands Fall Festival. It's tofu, buckwheat groats and distilled water fer you, Bucky and remember this dietary rule: if it tastes good, it's bad for you and your heart.

• Speaking of Farm Aid and Willie Nelson. We were, weren't we? Rhino Records has released a three-CD/4-cassette box of Willie tunes, entitled Willie Nelson: A Classic & Released Collection. The 60-song set will set Willie fans back either $49.98 for the CDs or $39.98 for the cassettes. A sample of the kind of thing you'll find in this collection is Willie's very first single; also a bunch of Pamper Music demos and Willie singing Hank Sr. covers. Sounds like a must-have for serious Willie fans, which includes our esteemed editor and bigwig Willie fan Jean.

• Hypnotic Hammer and ZippeHead have joined the Triangle Talent College Band family. Country band Pure South has also inked with Triangle. Write when you get work.

• George Timmering and Joe Steier, owners of the Golden Nugget, have bought Bearno's Pizza on Taylorsville Road. This is not George's first venture into pizzerias and I hope it's more successful than the last one.

• "Coyote's Country," the country dance show taped at Coyote's on Thursdays and broadcast on Saturday nights at 7:00 p.m., has scored pretty well in the Neilson ratings, reaching some 37,000 homes. Hmmm, this reads like a commercial, doesn't it? It's okay, it's a local show.

• Speaking of Local TV Shows. Winston Hardy has a regular show on TKR cable called "Win's World." It has been moved to Thursdays at 9:30 p.m., on Channel 18. Rick Wagner, who runs the Flashback's "Rick Wagner & Friends Open Stage" on Tuesdays, called to say that the Open Stage will be taped and broadcast on TKR cable on the following Tuesday. Go play the show, be on TV. Of course, the scheduling undercuts the Open Stage (and vice versa), but then I never noticed any external rationality (not to mention consistency) in the scheduling of the public access channel. After all, the cable company could hardly want such shows to become popular, now could they?

• The Ted Nugent / Bad Company Show at the Kentucky State Fair will be recorded by Westwood One Entertainment for rebroadcast later in the fall.

• Speaking of the Fair Dept. The Monroe County Marching Band won Division A-1 at the Kentucky State Fair High School Festival Marching Band Competition on August 19. West Washington (IN) took top honors in A-2. Harrison County won class AA. In the Concert Band competition, the Division I winner was St. Mary's High School (Paducah). Harrison County's band picked up a second win in the Division II competition.

• Bugs Sings The Beatles. On August 29, Rhino Records released a CD of Warner Brothers characters "singing" Beatles tunes. An advance copy arrived in the LMN office and went directly into the player. Fun. Hey, Rhino, how about a video? Or is th-th-that all, folks?

• Timing is Everything Dept? Renfro Valley held its annual Talent Roundup on Aug. 19, just three days after the 18th anniversary of Elvis Presley's death. And the grand prize winner was ... Elvis impersonator James Long of Louisville. Long's win in the regional amateur competition earned him a future appearance on the Renfro Valley stage, which could prove to be a stepping-stone to a career in music. Congratulations!

• America Online Blues Diva Chats. Yep, Beverly Howell has managed to ratchet her AOL "Blues Chat" up to the point of being on AOL's CenterStage occasionally. MERF folks remember Bev for her several years of work with that charity. Will you still remember me when you have climbed to the heights, Bev?

• Opera Talk: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Verdi et al. The Kentucky Opera has set the dates and topics for its course, "The Lively Art of Opera," at the U of L School of Music The class will start on Sept. 17. For information, call 852-6907.

• The Faculty Show Their Stuff. The U 0f L School of Music faculty will open the 1995-96 concert season with a recital on Friday, Sept. 8, at 8:00 p.m., in the North Recital Hall at the music school. The newly formed Faculty Woodwind Quintet will play, as will the Faculty Jazz Combo and the Faculty Brass Quintet. For more information, call 852-6907.

Key Changes

• Reginald Brisbane, vocalist with the Jimmy Vaughan Band, died unexpectedly on July 15.