Down On The Corner

By Paul Moffett

Blues, Blues, Blues. The blues scene in Louisville continues to evolve and change. Some tidbits:

• Out in the far-flung East End, Red Hot & Blue, 2051 S. Hurstbourne, a restaurant serving Memphis-style barbeque, will be booking blues bands on Friday and Saturday during February. Show time is 8:30 p.m., which should be of interest to those folks who complain that bands start so late. Go and support them or it won't continue.

• Stevie Ray's on Main Street is ripping and tearing, packing 'em in and they haven't even done a lot of advertising.

• Mike Ryan, owner of the Brewery, and Bill Barriger of Spotlight Productions, will be bringing the blues to the Thunderdome, beginning with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown on February 4 and Buddy Guy on March 15.

• Out on the Information Highway, Beverly Howell is hosting a Wednesday night Blues Chat on America Online, starting at 10:00 p.m. Beverly has been rounding up such guests as Larry McCray, the Kentucky HeadHunters, Little Feat and Chris Duarte.

Directions to the Chat: Go to "People Connection," click on "List Rooms," click on "Private" and type in "Blues Chat." If you have problems, send an instant message to "HippieLady" and she'll come get you, electronically speaking.

• Not the Blues But Still a Change Dept. Jim Tino, owner of (formerly) the Red Bird Inn on Preston just past the Outer Loop, has completed the change over of the Red Bird to J. T.'s Variety Club. The club will now feature a greater variety of music on Fridays and Saturdays. The rest of the week, all you karaoke lovers should get out there and sing to your heart's content. Tell Jim you read it in LMN.

• Not the Blues Either But With Some of the Same Letters. Plans are underway for the Otter Creek Park Bluegrass Festival scheduled for May 26-28. The lineup is absolutely, truly killer. Tentatively scheduled to play are: Bill Monroe, Ralph Stanley, John Hartford, the Reno Brothers, the Lynn Morris Band, 3rd Tyme Out, Charley Sizemore, Carl Story, Laurie Lewis, Lonesome River Band, Drybranch Fire Squad, Northern Lights, Gary Brewer and the Kentucky Ramblers, New Horizon, Eastbound and more to be named.

So why am I mentioning this so early? Simple – advance tickets are only $20 for the three-day event, until March 15, after which advance tickets will be $30. The weekend of the event, the price will be $35. I am a unabashed supporter and promoter of Otter Creek Park and the musical events that the staff puts together. Call 502-583-3577 TODAY and buy your tickets now.

• Baby, Baby. Tim and Angela Krekel have a new baby daughter, Anna Bridget, born Dec. 6, 1994. The Krekels have another daughter, Katy, age 7.

• • Speaking of Krekel, he'll be playing two showcases with Matraca Berg at the Rudyard on February 10 & 11. Krekel and Berg, who wrote "XXX's and OOO's (An American Girl)" cut by Trisha Yearwood, have been doing some co-writing.

• Heaven in the Real World, Indeed. Kentuckian Steven Curtis Chapman picked up a nomination for Best Pop / Contemporary Gospel Album for Heaven in the Real World. The Grammy Awards will be presented on Wednesday, March 1.

• Board Changes This time of year, local music associations elect new officers. Details on two of them:

MERF, Musicians Emergency Relief Fund, has new officers. The new President is Londa Crenshaw. Mark Langley and Shannon Lawson are co-Vice-Presidents; Linda Morgan is the Secretary and Paul Dell Aquila and Grace Delligatti will share Treasurer's duties. Other Board members are Jim Rosen, John Timmons, Stuart Helm, Dave Marasco and Hugh E. Bir Jr.

LASC, Louisville Area Songwriters' Cooperative, also has new officers. The new President is Paul Dell Aquila, Mike Boehnlein is the new Vice-President. Bryan Hurst will take over as Secretary and Paul Moffett remains as Tresurer. Other Board members are Grace Delligatti, Sheila Price, Carl Slesser, Jean Metcalfe, and Jack Roberts.

• MERF will benefit from the Bud Ice Band Search, which will be going on at the Butchertown Pub during the end of February and first part of March. Getcher CD/cassette and promo picture over to QMF TOO by February 6 if you wanna play. (See the MERF ad on the back page for more details or call QMF TOO.)

• Today, LaGrange, Tomorrow International Corporation Status. Bill Edwards is opening a new store at 105 Washington St. in La Grange, to be called Banner Music. The name of the main store, now called Bill Edwards Music, will be changed later in the year.

• The More Things Change Dept. Rick Wagner is moving his Thursday night Open Stage from the defunct Blue Bird Cafe to Wednesdays at the Cherokee (?). For those who don't know, Michael Kessler's original Artist Night was held on Wednesday at Tweligans. Let's see, that was after the open stage at the Flying Whale Cafe and before the Monday Night Open Stage at the Rudyard.

• Sweet Valentine, My Valentine. Candy is dandy but liquor is quicker. So sayeth Ogden Nash. But the Pride of Kentucky Sweet Adelines have a better suggestion for the special person in your life: Tell them you love them with a song!

For a mere 25, members of the ladies barbershop chorus will personally deliver a singing telegram to Kentuckiana businesses, homes, hospitals, etc. (they'll be in the Paoli area on Feb. 13), and they'l1 throw in a flower and a card to boot. Interested? Call 502-368-SONG to reserve your singing Valentine.

Key Changes

John Earl Bartlett, 36, passd away on January 12 in Austin, Tx. Bartlett was the brother of Louisville musicians Rick and Robbie Bartlett.

• Samuel O. Barrell, 83, passed away on January 11. Barrell was a member of the Louisville Musicians Union.

• Louis Gaste, 88, who wrote the song from which "Feelings" was plagarized, died in Paris, France on January 8, 1995. Gaste and his co-writer wife, Line Renaud, sued Morris Albert over "Feelings" and was awarded $500,000 in 1987.

• William S. Pickett, 74, a nationally renowned baritone opera singer, died in Dallas, Tx, on Jan. 16. Pickett was a longtime singing staff member of WHAS radio.

• Amos Lee Stinson, Sr., 58, died on January 4. Stinson was president and own of WTMT radio.