In addition to the Every Sunday Square Dances, there have been a lot of family dances going on around town. It's great fun to see the the little ones, who are quite possibly our next generation of dancers, fiddlers, and banjo players, out there having a blast. Flat Rock recently did two dances with Professor Banjo (also known as Square Dance Paul, aka Paul Silveria) when he was in town a week or so ago. And last Sunday we played the family dance with Steph Noll at the Village Ballroom, which happens right before the ESSD every third Sunday. Most old-time square dances around Portland are open to anyone (regardless of age) willing to dance and have a fun time, but if you're interested in learning more about dances that are specifically kid-friendly, keep an eye on the old-time music calendar on bubbaguitar.
In addition to the Every Sunday Square Dances, there have been a lot of family dances going on around town. It's great fun to see the the little ones, who are quite possibly our next generation of dancers, fiddlers, and banjo players, out there having a blast. Flat Rock recently did two dances with Professor Banjo (also known as Square Dance Paul, aka Paul Silveria) when he was in town a week or so ago. And last Sunday we played the family dance with Steph Noll at the Village Ballroom, which happens right before the ESSD every third Sunday. Most old-time square dances around Portland are open to anyone (regardless of age) willing to dance and have a fun time, but if you're interested in learning more about dances that are specifically kid-friendly, keep an eye on the old-time music calendar on bubbaguitar. This Wednesday (Feb 15th) our friends Chris, Bobby, and Bill will be holding our place at the Palace of Industry for us while we're off attending to some very important and top secret business. These guys are some of the finest old-time players in Portland. You won't want to miss it. Please drop by to check them out! We'll be back on Wednesday the 22nd- see you then!
First Square Dance of the gathering: 7-10 pm Thursday, January 10th Polish Hall (PLBA) 3832 N. Interstate Avenue Next Wednesday is the kick-off of the 13th Portland Old-Time Gathering, and you can already feel that awesome rumble of fiddles and banjos as the time draws near. As always, there's a fantastic line-up of events scheduled for the gathering, and more square dancing than any 5th grader's worst nightmare. Flat Rock Stringband will be playing the Thursday night square dance with Uncle Wiggly and callers Zach Hudson and Amy Hofer. The dance on Thursday will be located at the historic Polish Hall, a new location for the Thursday dance. There's an Indie GoGo funding campaign for the Every Sunday Square Dance that features a nice video of the first of the new dances that are happening at the Village Ballroom. The video features Charmaine Slaven calling, and Dave Mount, Charlie Beck, Patrick Lind and "The Becktones" as the dance band. The Flat Rock Stringband played in the bar that night, and a sound montage of us playing can be heard throughout the footage. Although the band doesn't actually appear in the video, my foot makes a cameo performance. I dressed it in my best Redwing boot in case such an opportunity would present itself. -EB Making Old-Time a threat again Since the last time we mentioned it (see below) we've been playing tunes at the Palace of Industry on Wednesday nights, and intend to do so until our Occupy Cool Vintage store gig gets broken up by cops and tear gas. Palace of Industry is located at: 5426 N Gay Avenue Portland, OR, 97217 (just off Killingsworth) .
When I was introduced to the Palace of Industry, the first thing I found was a beer, and while enjoying that, I wandered around and found the next treasure, a fine copy of Henry T. Brown's 1868 compendium of mechanical movements. I immediately purchased that, and then discovered a nice old Pendleton, all for under 20 bucks! Palace of Industry is a part watering hole and part vintage treasure trove. You can have a beer or coffee and a sandwich while you check out all the cool stuff there: music, books, art, furniture, vintage and new consignment clothing and lovely ephemera. Brooks and I have been there also to check out Larry Yes, some great DJs and psych music, too, and now we're psyched to bring our own brand of trance music there- Mountain Trance! (uhem? otherwise known as old-time stringband music). Flat Rock Stringband at Palace of Industry on Wednesday November 9th, from 7:30-9:30. Palace of Industry is located at: 5426 N Gay Avenue Portland, OR, 97217 (just off Killingsworth) EB A square dance at the Village Ballroom in 2009 Sunday November 6th will be the first of the "Every Sunday Square Dance" dances at the Village Ballroom. Charlie Beck and The Becktones will provide the dance tunes, Charmaine Slaven will call, and The Flat Rock Stringband will play the bar band slot. 7:00 to 9:00 November 6th Long, long, ago, like say, 2009 or so, caller Steph Noll worked with the lease holders at the time of the Village Ballroom to organize a monthly square dance that raised funds to benefit various community organizations around the Portland area. That was a heck of a lot of fun the year or so that it lasted, but those of us who regularly attended the dances witnessed the bizarre transformation of the anchor business of the building change gradually from breakfast cafe to erotic who-knows-what club to Oregon's (and perhaps even America's) first cannabis cafe. Eventually the lease was terminated and the beautiful historic dance hall upstairs would not see square dancing again until now. Fortunately, thanks to the fine work of Bubbaville volunteers and also the new lease holders of the Village Ballroom building, there's now a new WEEKLY dance at the Village Ballroom!! This is one of our favorite dance halls in the city, and now that we're facing the dark days of winter, what great timing to kick off square dance season! EB Tom locking up shop On our way back from Clifftop we stopped in Galax to catch the beginning of the 76th Old Fiddler's Convention. We arrived just after the campground opened and after a lot of businesses in the town had closed for Sunday. We wanted to check out the famous Barr's Fiddle shop, so decided to walk over there and look in the windows. We were surprised when Tom Barr himself emerged from the back of the closed store, unlocked the door, warmly greeted us and invited us in. He then spent a good half hour or so showing us around, pointing out photos and sharing with us some of the history of the shop, the fiddle convention, and stories of the musicians of the area. Brooks admiring Tom Barr's banjo at the Blue Ridge Music Center The Barrs have been making handmade fiddles, banjos, and mandolins for close to 30 years, and the shop has been a gathering place for old-time and bluegrass musicians almost as long. Earlier we had admired one of Tom's banjos on display at the Blue Ridge Music Center and now were excited to meet the maker in person. Tom builds most of his open back banjos in the style of his friend and neighbor, the late Kyle Creed. Brooks and Tom exchanged banjo making anecdotes, and we checked out the old barber shop space within the fiddle shop that now functions as a museum honoring the music and musicians of the Galax area. As luck would have it, Tom's son Stevie was playing with his band Houston Drive at the Blue Ridge Music Center amphitheater that night, so we ran and got some excellent BBQ for dinner and headed out to the concert to enjoy some kick-ass bluegrass music in that beautiful outdoor setting of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Tom Barr taking a look at a Brooks Banjo Those Barrs sure are nice fellows and our brief but inspiring visit with them and the shop really made our visit to Galax. Maybe next time we'll be able to stay longer than just overnight so we can catch some more tunes at the convention, too. We're excited to play for the 11th annual float for Paddle Oregon on the Willamette River! Five days and 105 miles on the beautiful Willamette River, this year is sure to bring more adventure on Oregon's true "blue" highway. Wonderful camps in amazing settings next to the Willamette, plenty of fresh food, wine, and beer produced from the surrounding valley, music and good company, all the while supporting Willamette Riverkeeper's work to protect, preserve, and restore the amazing waterway that is the Willamette River. Check out Paddle Oregon for more information and to register for the trip. Don't tell anyone, but I bet Brooks five bucks that Robin's bass could float the two of us down the river, so he and I are going to give it a try when she's not looking. If that works out okay, we'll be playing in camp on Tuesday, August 16th, the second night of the trip, at Chatoe Rogue Farmstead Nano Brewery. Fiddle tunes on the the deck of Rogue's tasting room, right next to the hopyard, farm, and the Willamette River on a summer evening in Oregon. Sounds like a perfect evening to me. -EB Robin in North Stickerville For us old-time players in the Northwest, the word "Weiser" (more specifically, The National Old Time Fiddle Contest and Festival held in Weiser, Idaho) has near magical implications. It's the gateway to summer, a place where those of us who live west of the Cascade Range see sky for the first time of the year, where trance-like jams seem to last for days or at least until the sun rises, where the sun cruelly toys with you as if you're an ant under a magnifying glass and the occasional windstorm launches porta potties and tents into the air, a place where the only measure of time is the number of times you've heard "Late for the Dance" or "Lost Indian." Stickerville produces hundreds of legends and holds our imaginations captive for the rest of the year that we're not there. This year we rented our friend's work van, a Sprinter, and piled in. It was Robin's first Weiser, and we were all excited to get out there. As it's been the last few years, work schedules allow just an extended weekend, but those three days haven't yet failed to deliver the full experience of big sky, clear air full of fiddle tunes, good company, and good whiskey. We saw the owls this year but as far as I know, no one got stuck by a goathead sticker from the puncture vines. It's beginning to look nice and green out at Stickerville, not so many stickers anymore. Should we change the name of the old time camp spot to "golf green meadow?" |
The Flat Rock Stringband
"Old-Time music is so 2006" Archives
April 2019
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