A 16
Island Moon
April 17, 2014
Three Chords and the Truth By Ronnie Narmour ronnienarmour@gmail.com
SandFest revisited… My ears are bleeding. In the last five days, I’ve seen 18 musical acts. Some were fair, some were good and a few were great. I managed the stage at SandFest this year and saw ten acts there over the three day weekend. SandFest was off the chain this year. The new regime did an excellent job of organizing and operating the festival without as much as a hiccup. I’m told it was a record year financially. We haven’t seen the attendance numbers from TXDOT yet, but by my account, it was huge. I’ve been involved as a volunteer for the last five years, mainly helping Janet Planet in the music tent, and I never saw crowds like we got this weekend.
Passing Strangers played to a full house at SandFest last Saturday The line-up was pretty much local with a few regional acts from Austin and San Antonio, but the quality of music was exceptional. One of our local faves, Triggerfish, made a rare appearance early Saturday afternoon and set the tone for the rest of the day. They still have an enormous number of fans from when they were the hottest band on the island a few years back. They were followed by the highly energetic blues blasters, Mike Milligan and the Altar Boys (Austin, TX) who got the crowd up and dancing on the first song and then one of San Antonio’s hottest retro bands, Passing Strangers, polished off the day with some smoking 80’s dance tunes… it was a perfect segue. By the end of the day, you couldn’t get anymore people in that tent and the crowds had swelled twenty deep on the perimeter. It was one rowdy party. On Sunday morning Ken Yarbrough and Mike Jones did an excellent gospel set to get the ball rolling, followed by another trop-rocker, The Sand Band, and then a real surprise, Kara and the Dam Band (San Antonio, TX). Kara was a cross between Joan Jett and Pat Benitar. She was a firecracker, jumping off the stage and working the crowd
like a seasoned pro. I thought the material might be a little heavy for the environment but not so… it may have been hard rock but the mostly middle-aged crowd seemed to love it. Melissa Brooke played the festival twice, once on Friday and again on Sunday, closing out the festival. The first time I ever saw Melissa was at SandFest 2012 and I must say, this young lady has come a long way in the last two years. She’s poised and confident and her show rocks, plus she’s got a really tight band.
It was a jumping weekend in Port A… Even better…the shows last weekend at all of the bars in Port A were top notch. On Friday, the king of the Cosmic Cowboys, Gary P. Nunn played the Back Porch, Lyrical Bynge played Giggity’s, and the amazing blues belter, Shelley King (Austin,TX) played Shorty’s, all to wall to wall crowds. On Saturday the crowds swelled even larger at the bars. Larry Joe Taylor played the Porch, Passing Strangers roared at Stingrays, Stevie Start and Matt Hole and the Hot Rod Gang played the 68th birthday throwdown at Shorty’s and Mike Milligan played Giggity’s. It was challenging to try and see all these shows, especially after a long day at SandFest, but would you expect anything less of me? Actually, I had a blast.
Patrice Pike knocks it out of the park…
Open 11am to 5pm Sunday Noon-3 Closed Monday
Bottom Boys are back on the air. The SBB’s are an old timey gospel string band that only gets together once a year for the ecumenical Easter Sunrise Service in the pavilion at Roberts Point Park in Port A. The band consists of locals Steve Goldstein on mandolin, Crawford Brown on stand-up bass, Tim Burdick on banjo, Father James Derkits, Tiffany Duckworth, Barney Farley and me on acoustic guitars, and we all sing. This year we’ll be performing Turn Your Radio On, Amazing Grace, Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Alleluia Alleluia, Drifting Too Far From the Shore, Are You Washed in the Blood and The River of Jordan. The service and music start at 7:00 in the A.M. so set your alarms and get down there early to get a good seat because it’s always a full house. Trust me, this is the coolest deal around and what better way to start you Easter than with some good old gospel music.
Coming next week…
Coming this week… Patrice Pike played the Gaff last Saturday night But the show to catch last weekend was Patrice Pike (Austin,TX) at the Gaff. It was epic. This show was by far the most marvelous performance I’ve seen in many moons. I’ve been trying to think of an equivalent show to compare this one to, but I’m not coming up with any. I hadn’t seen Patrice play in probably 1314 years since the days when I used to book her band, Sister 7, at The Lab in S.A. and I’d forgotten just how good she is and how great her songs are. This lady is 100% rock and roll spirit and when she found her zone on Saturday night, it was nothing short of magical. I literally had chicken skin the whole time. This was a show that James Derkits (Trinity By The Sea) put together and now I know why he was so motivated. Patrice Pike is the real deal and I will make every effort to bring her back here. I was sorry I had to miss her performance at Trinity the next morning when she played a song for the congregation. I’m told it was breathtaking.
This Sunday is Easter and that only means one thing (actually two if you factor in the resurrection of Jesus Christ)… the Sandy
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James Derkits will lead the Sandy Bottom Boys on Easter Sunday.
with her. Last week Carol Elliott graced us with a couple of tunes. On Friday, the identical Rankin Twins (Austin, TX) will play the Back Porch. Originally from Portland, these girls have sisterly harmonies as sweet and tight as the Morales girls. They are in the same vein as the Dixie Chicks and have made quite a name for themselves in South Texas. On Saturday, Max Stalling (Dallas, TX) will play the Third Coast Theater in Port A. Stalling is an unassuming gentleman and one of the nicest guys in Texas music. He has a smooth as silk baritone and an easy way about him that just makes you feel right at home. His shows are always well attended. Also on Saturday Melissa Brooke will return to Giggity’s and the phenomenon known as Ruben V (San Antonio, TX) will return to the Porch. Ruben Vela is certainly a special artist. He is a master guitarist, a soulful singer and a talented songwriter. His read of a Marvin Gaye song is guaranteed to light up the dance floor. I’ve know V for over 20 years and have seen him perform dozens of times and will attest his shows are always passionate and captivating. I think he’s absolutely one of the best.
DO NOT MISS LIST
Easter Sunday with the Sandy Bottom Boys… Kara and the Dam Band played SandFest on Sunday
Carter Sampson and Joe Mack will play Shorty’s on April 25-26
Free Beer Band (7-10) Three Way Street (9-1) Melissa Brooke Band (9-1) Antone & the All Stars (8-12) OPEN JAM (8-12) Tiffany Tuesday (8-12) Uel Jackson (8-12)
April 17 April 18 April 19 April 20 April 21 April 22 April 23
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There are a few shows coming up this week that I highly recommend. On Tuesday, the adorable Tiffany Duckworth will host another installment of her weekly show, Tiffany Tuesday, at Giggity’s. Tiffany is the happiest person on the planet (next to Al Barlow) and there’s no telling who might show up to play a few
Max Stalling will play the Third Coast Theater on Saturday.
On the weekend of April 2526, the Happy Mad Scientist, Joe Mack and the Queen of Oklahoma herself, Carter Sampson will play Shorty’s. This is clearly a DO NOT MISS show. I’ve been waiting for this team to come back for a long time. Also that weekend, look for shows by J.T. Coldfire, Lisa Morales, Passing Strangers and Will Owen Gage. And on the near horizon, several hot shows jump out at me including Hold Fast Fables (Galveston, TX), Austin Heat (Austin, TX) and Thomas Michael Riley. ♫ ♪ And that’s the truth! ♪ ♫
Live Music Tonight
Thursday, April 17 Free Beer Band @ Giggity’s Roger Creager, Bri Bagwell @ Brewster Street Double R Nothing @ Katz 21 Inner Circle, Ashes of Babylon, Flatbroke @ House of Rock Robert Brown @ Scuttlebutt’s Starlite & the Moonbeams @ Dr. Rockits Uel Jackson @ Black Marlin Bar and Grill Friday, April 18 Three Way Street @ Giggity’s Jim Dugan @ Shorty’s Rankin Twins @ Back Porch Swagger @ Brewster Street Dave’s Duo @ Katz 21 ECHO, March Divide, Leonard @ House of Rock Ray T & the City Crew @ Flats Lounge Chris Saenz @ Scuttlebutt’s Starlite & the Moonbeams @ Dr. Rockits Saturday, April 19 Melissa Brooke @ Giggity’s Ruben Limas @ Shorty’s Ruben V @ Back Porch Max Stalling @ Third Coast Theater Metal Shop @ Brewster Street Danica Bird @ Stingrays Trisum @ Katz 21 Friends & Lovers Art Show @ House of Rock Kevin Hill @ Scuttlebutt’s Neil Edwards Band @ Dr. Rockits
Easter Sunday , April 20 Sandy Bottom Boys (7:00 AM) @ Roberts Point Park Antone & the All Stars @ Giggity’s John Eric @ Scuttlebutt’s Uel Jackson (4-7) @ Back Porch Monday, April 21 Open Jam w/ Stevie Start @ Giggity’s Open Jam w/ Ray Summy @ Executive Surf Club
Rankin Twins
April 18
Ruben V
April 19
Scarecrow People
April 25
Lisa Morales
April 26
Austin Heat
May 2
Thomas Michael Riley
May 3
132 W. Cotter St. Port A On the Waterfront
Jim Dugan
April 18
Ruben Limas April 19 Joe Mack & Carter Sampson April 25-26 Hold Fast Fables Uel Jackson John Cortez Band
May 2 May 3 May 9
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Monday, April 21 continued Open Jam w/ Antone Perez @ Dr. Rockits Brian Permenter @ Scuttlebutt’s Tuesday, April 22 Tiffany Tuesday @ Giggity’s Open Mic @ House of Rock John Eric @ Scuttlebutt’s Run Down Legend @ Dr. Rockits Wednesday, April 23 Uel Jackson @ Giggity’s Wolfjaw @ Flats Lounge Brian Permenter @ Scuttlebutt’s Ty Dietz @ Dr. Rockits Thursday, April 24 Free Beer Band @ Giggity’s Double R Nothing @ Katz 21 Bullfest w/ JR Castillo @ Brewster Street Marc Rizzo, Numb to the Blow, Switchblade Jesus @ House of Rock Kevin Hill @ Scuttlebutt’s Starlite & the Moonbeams @ Dr. Rockits Friday, April 25 J.T. Coldfire @ Giggity’s Joe Mack & Carter Sampson @ Shorty’s Scarecrow People @ Back Porch Will Owen Gage @ Katz 21 Five Card Draw @ Brewster Street The Shakedown @ House of Rock Ray T & the City Crew @ Flats Lounge Robert Brown @ Scuttlebutt’s John Cortez @ Dr. Rockits Saturday, April 26 Todd Dorn & the Sea Drifters @ Giggity’s Joe Mack & Carter Sampson @ Shorty’s Lisa Morales @ Back Porch Passing Strangers @ Brewster Street Double R Nothing @ Katz 21 Pinata Protest, Avenue Rockers @ House of Rock Fabian Rivera @ Scuttlebutt’s Catherine Denise @ Dr. Rockits