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[Click on any image to enlarge] Time to catch up on some old news...sorry it takes so damned long to get these pictures developed, but what can you do? Feel free to donate a digital camera.  We're here in Roanoke, near the end of a successful two-week run at the Mill Mountain Theatre. We close on Sunday the 16th. Roanoke is a pretty hip little town...we're in the center square section of the downtown area, staying at the MMT's "Atelier" (however the hell you pronounce that), which is their residence hall for visiting actors, as well as the players company. The Equity actors are all up on the 3rd floor in large "theme" rooms with couches, kitchenettes & their own showers, the rest of us are on the 2nd floor in slightly less plush conditions...for one the bed is too short for me, so my feet hang over the edge.Not that I'm complaining, mind you. We share a huge, very modern kitchen with the MMT players company (who like to have wild, late night parties), & the showers are down the hall. Unfortunately there never seems to be enough hot water to go around, as we're on the same water heater as the laundry room, so we've had to grit our way through some lukewarm or actual cold showers. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. The cold showers might come in handy...the other night after the show we all went to the Green Dolphin Grill, a local bar & grill around the corner...the owner had been to the show & said she'd stake us all to free drinks, she loved the show so much. They had a live blues jam going on there...I didn't perform but saw some really good pickers. Blues jams are a mixed bag, you can find the worst of the worst at those things — bad Stevie Ray clones, nervous white guys who don't know what to do with themselves during the solos, clueless yuppies with no rhythm — but a few of the guest musicians were great, including a most blues-wailing sax player who tore it up, the drummer & the organ player in the house band were particularly good as well. I was standing next to our booth, & I look to my left in between the slats of this partition separating the booths from the rest of the bar, & I see this gal staring at me, one of those tall, willowy blonde types, so I nodded pleasantly & went back to watching the music. Next thing I know I see these arms flopping around over the top of the partition, she's trying to climb over the damn thing to get to me, then loses her grip & falls on her ass. I thought Nick's face was going to split in half, he was laughing so hard...then she gets up again & actually does climb over the thing & comes after me...the bartender & the owner run over, help her down, & usher her out...but not before she GOOSES me on her way past! I have this effect on women, as I tried to explain to my fellow cast members...they can sense an aura of money, power & sex about me. It's a difficult cross to bear, but I try to do so with as much dignity as I can. Serously...she was drunk off her noggin, probably saw me signing autographs & mistook me for someone famous, but you know you get your little cheap thrills when & where you can. Not that I'm complaining, mind you... Tuesday night the MMT did a fun little promotion, they advertised a live bluegrass jam in the lobby before the show: bring your instrument & jam, & you can get in for free. I knew nobody else from the cast was going, so I went early to jam, mostly old timers who are always a hoot to play with, especially down here. One old boy had the most beautiful tenor voice, doing swoops & half-step bends like Jim McReynolds. The local news station came down & taped it, & apparently I was on the 11 o'clock news, probably right about the time that little gal was grabbing herself a big ol' heaping handful of Buddy butt-meat. I'd like to mention that Anna McLaughlin, who is our point person at MMT, is one great lady. Getting back to Roanoke, there's some good restaurants, including Indian & Thai (alas no sushi), a great coffee shop, & the best part is 6 days a week they have a farmer's market on permenently installed tables on the sidewalks. Thursday was the first day the sun came out, it's been over-cast & rainy the whole time, I was beginning to wonder if we were doing this show on Pluto or something. It's also been really humid as a result, & combined with the huge, drafty backstage area, the air coming from the dressing rooms, the wings, the hallway, & the onstage area are meeting & causing a weather front...none of us can seem to keep our instruments in tune for longer than a couple minutes at a time. I've experimented with a few different types of "coated" strings from the local music store hoping to find something to stand up to the temperature flux & humidity, including Martin SP+ , D'Addario EXP's, & Black Diamondteflon-coated strings (which are solid black, & make for a weird look). I'll let you know how it goes. Wanted to share some photos with you of our Hurricane Relief show at the Barter a couple weeks ago...here's the ensemble:  Derek Davidson, director of the mini-production, sitting in on mando:  Eugene Wolf, our vocal coach (also played A.P. in the Carter Family show):  ...and one of the 5 of us:  I'll put up more in another blog. I hear we raised nearly $1000.00! Let's hope the Red Cross doesn't use it on something stupid. My pal Sam Morrow came to the benefit show:  ...Sam is a hell of a banjo man himself, & has the Stanley style down pat, we played a couple gigs together back when he lived in The Big Crapple. Hope to do some more pickin' with him in the future! When we got here, Rick Rose restaged the play to accomodate a large theatre:  ...with a proscenium, which involved some script & blocking changes:  ...including a wheelchair for Carter's death scene:  They were originally talking about adding "Riding On That Midnight Train," which I would've sung, but in the end it made more sense to put "Clinch Mountain Backstep" back in. The scene is about Ralph getting back up on stage after Carter dies, & what better song than his signature instrumental? It really wouldn't make sense to have me sing lead, as much fun as that might be. After opening night, Rick threw a little party for us in the Green Room:  ...with a few mason jars of 'shine, which was pretty potent stuff:  Looks like most of the "shine" is on my face, but that's probably from the hair grease...Rick looks a little worried I might leave an oil slick on his fancy vest:  The theatre is so big in comparison to Barter Stage II...  ...it was hard at first to know if you're getting across to the audience, but the crowds have been growing & they're starting to get pretty wild. I play a couple other characters in the show, including the preacher (I think he needs a string tie, don't you?):  ...& the WCYB station manager (great vest & hat, wish I could keep 'em!):  I have to do my costume changes on stage, over in my corner on stage left:  For some reason, whenever I pick up the Bible for the preacher, it always falls open to Leviticus...odd. I'd like to share one of my favorite passages: "Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mothers milk." What moral quality is a Gentile going to perceive in abstaining from Goat Stroganoff? I'm not entirely sure, but rest assured our in-house team of religious scholars are on the case. Last night (Thursday) Mike Seeger saw the show, & came backstage to talk to us afterwards. The whole cast was pretty thrilled to meet him. In case you didn't know, aside from being a founding member of the New Lost City Ramblers, Mike used to follow the Stanley Brothers around & tape them at various concerts during the 50's & 60's, he booked them at colleges & folk clubs, & even played bass with them a few times when Chick Stripling was too drunk to go on. He also produced the Ralph Stanley banjo instructional video, so we had a lot to talk about. Unfortunately after about 10 mintues Connie, our stage manager, who's about as tactful as a flying sledgehammer, stuck her head in the dressing room  ...& abruptly announced, "you guys want to wrap it up so we can go home?" Well we were all fairly speechless & embarassed, as Mike made his excuses & left, leaving many questions unanswered. Sometimes you just want to grab someone by the neck & shake their head 'till their brains rattle around like a maraca. It might not change the person's personality, but boy would it feel good!Picked up Blue Highway's new CD, "Marbletown." It was produced by Scott "GrooveGrass" Rouse, & there's some excellent material on there (as usual)...Buddy sez check it out! | |||
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