she’s got the blues

The blues came calling, and Miss Marcy answered. The big bad mama of Miss Marcy and Her Texas Sugar Daddies is Marcy Rodsky, a Lakewood resident who gave up her fulltimeteaching gig to sing the blues for a living. She hustles to get her name on as many marquis, handbills and music listings as possible. “In December of 2008, I left my job and started booking gigs like a mad woman,” she says. “I canvassed the area. There isn’t a club from here to Oklahoma that hasn’t heard from my band. I’m shameless.” She already had a regular Monday night gig during Pearl at Commerce’s 6:30-8 p.m. happy hour, which she has held down for two years now. She regularly books two or three other shows a week, and she often sits in withthe band at the Balcony Club on Sunday nights. Her self-titled debut CD is almost finished, and Pearl at Commerce is hostingher release party June 11. The band has a “classy, sexy” sound that she describes as “the devil’s music. It’s not Texas blues, not classic blues,” but like an updated version of the Big Mama Thornton and Bessie Smith sounds. So how about those Texas Sugar Daddies anyway?

“There’s nothing sexier than a man with a paycheck,” Rodsky quips. She often plays without a drummer because, she says, lots of all-male blues bands skip hiring vocalists. That way, each guy in the trio gets more money at the end of the night. Miss Marcy’s not going to cut herself, honey. So she learned to play without a drummer; otherwise she tries to negotiate a higher rate. Rodsky still teaches ESL classes at two community colleges to supplementher income. But once her CD comes out, she’ll keep hustling to deliver it to as many ears as possible — honkytonks, casinos, festival circuits, Europeantours, TV shows, movie soundtracks. Whoever calls, Miss Marcy’s going to answer.

—RACHEL STONE

Ron’s

THIS HOMETOUR.

WHAT GIVES? Small ways that you can make a big difference for neighborhood nonprofits

THIS MONTH, ATTEND AN EVENT ... ... supporting students at Stonewall Jackson Elementary. The Shake, Rattle & Roll concert, dinner and auction on Saturday, May 1 at 6 p.m. takes place at Life in Deep Ellum, 2803 Taylor. Parents involved in the neighborhood school have for years held a small silent auction, promoting it mainly within the Stonewall community. But more recent Dallas ISD district-wide budget cuts left them at a loss, and motivated them to do more for Stonewall students and staff. Parents say that the cuts meant the school’s budget was chopped in half with, for example, only $49 annually provided to the school nurse, an amount that doesn’t even cover bandages. “And we lost our computer program, which isn’t that ridiculous because isn’t that the future?” Stonewall parent Helene Honeybone says. The PTA set an optimistic goal of $75,000 a high number, parents realize, but who better to sell tickets than local rockabilly band Reverend Horton Heat, the headliner for the evening’s concert? (The band’s bass player, Jimbo Wallace, happens to be a Stonewall dad.) Neighborhood resident Marc Solomon, known to many as the guy behind Zounds Sounds School of Rock, will also be performing with his band, Charming Gardeners. A $50 ticket buys entrance to the concert, silent and live auctions, plus a Mexican buffet catered by Primo’s. VIP tables with 10 seats are being sold for $1,000; the added bonus when purchasing a table is a VIP reception where attendees can meet the band, and a touch-screen bidding computer for the duration of the auction. Find more information or purchase tickets at shakerattleandrollauction.org.

KNOW OF WAYS that neighbors can spend time, attend an event, or purchase or donate something to benefit a neighborhood nonprofit? Email your suggestion to launch@advocatemag.com.

Born and raised in Lakewood, Lauren graduated from University of Texas in 2007 and has recently received an MBA from University of Dallas. With a passion for historical homes and an eye for restoration and design, Lauren looks forward to forging ahead in her new real estate career in the neighborhood she knows and loves. A lifelong parishioner of St. Thomas Aquinas, Lauren stays involved in the community through her church, Lakewood Area Women in Business, the East Dallas YMCA, Pi Beta Phi Alumnae, and her high school alma mater, Ursuline Academy. Lauren resides in Lakewood with her new husband, Davey, and her parents live just corner.