It’s hard to believe it’s been since July that I last wrote you about my adventures and exploits in music. I’ve been SO BUSY—it’s truly been a whirlwind time, with so much to tell that there’s no way I could begin to fit it all into this newsletter. So I’ll take a few minutes this Sunday afternoon to highlight some of the most memorable moments of the past couple of months or so, and I hope that you will read as much as you have time for today, and then read some more . . .
Let’s see . . . I didn’t win the Houston Press award for “Best Folk” at the end of July, but I surely did enjoy the process this year and especially the awards ceremony, where Jay Lee from the Flying Fish Sailors accepted the “Best Folk” award on stage before hundreds of attendees and surprised me by addressing the audience with these words: “This award should have gone to Glenna Bell.” Wow. To me, that was even better than winning. The Flying Fish Sailors have been Houston favorites for many, many years now, and it was something else to be recognized in this way by such an established act. Oh, and it was also quite cool to be sitting on the front row at the Warehouse Live in downtown Houston, only a couple of miles from my house and the Minute Maid stadium, and to see none other than internationally-acclaimed rapper, Scarface from the Geto Boys, take the stage on lead guitar with the Flaming Hellcats, who’ve been named “Best Punk/Best Roots Rock/Best Rockabilly” many times during their long tenure in Houston. It was also neat to see myself and the rest of the Houston music scene showcased on Channel 39 here in Houston on Sunday afternoon, September 7, in an hour-long Houston Press Music Awards “rockumentary.” The show is posted at
http://www.youtube.com/user/39Online for anybody who’d like to check it out. The best thing about Houston music is its diversity, and that really came through loud and clear on the t.v. show, which spanned genres from blues to country to folk to rap to Spanish rock, zydeco, experimental, hip hop, ska, and more.
In August, I spent a couple of weeks on the East Coast, continuing my recording project with producer, Big Kev Ploghoft, at WXLV radio studios in Pennsylvania. The album is really coming along now with seven tracks down and at least a couple more to go. The tentative title is “Perfectly Legal: Songs of Sex, Love, and Murder.” The songs range from a stripped down a capella version of Sam Cooke’s “Lost and Looking” to a first-person cover of “Frankie and Johnny” with just me and my guitar to a full-band version of my new song, “Hurricane,” a metaphorical love song that I wrote after Hurricane Ike hit Houston last September, plus my new romp, “The Cougar Anthem” with subtitle, “He’s Nineteen Years Old and Hot.” Very timely right now if I do say so myself! There’s also a murder ballad that I wrote in January as an “assignment” from my radio promoter, Fred Boenig, who’s always on the cusp of all things Americana. Fred said that these murder ballads are really popular these days, and sure enough, a friend in Austin told me that there are songwriter nights out there that are devoted exclusively to murder ballads! Go figure. Now don’t worry—I’m not having murderous impulses these days, but I thought it sounded like something to try. Funny how easily it slipped out, wrote the whole thing in about forty-five minutes. The premise is “What could make a good woman kill the man she used to love?” Of course, the answer is in the song, so stay tuned and I’ll keep you posted on the release date, which is scheduled for early 2010.
In August, I also appeared in an intriguing art project called “Cleaning,” contracted by Buffet DVD. When this was proposed to me at a coffee house here in Houston last summer, I knew immediately that it was something I’d want to do because the concept is right up my alley—it was shot right here in the kitchen of my hundred year old white wood frame house in the Second Ward Barrio of Houston’s East End. I LOVE minimalism, and the idea that I would be washing dishes and singing my song, “The Texas Aggies Win Again,” really appealed to me, as well as the caliber of visual artists who are featured on the DVD: John Runnels, Charlie Sartwelle, Tim Glover, Paul Kittelson, Jackie Harris, Carter Ernst, The Art Guys, Kevin Jefferies, Noah Edmunson, and Kate Petley. Houston’s visual arts scene is, in fact, quite well-respected across the nation, and these artists are amongst the movers and shakers of that scene, some of whom I’ve known personally for years now, which is another reason I’m glad that I participated in the project. I’ll keep you posted on the release date for this hip work of art, too.
In September, I also did another interesting video shoot in Nashville at the Americana Music Association conference. This was for a new e-zine that you should definitely check out. It’s called The Alternate Root, and it’s at
http://www.thealternateroot.com . Now that No Depression is gone and the traditional print media is quickly being outmoded, The Alternate Root is the best place to go to keep up with the burgeoning Americana music scene. It beats the old-fashioned music magazines by a mile ‘cause, besides the articles and music reviews, it also features audio and video of the top Americana acts from coast to coast. In the AMA series that I taped in Nashville, there was also Todd Snider, Raul Malo, my personal favorite—Chris Scruggs (Earl Scruggs’ grandson)—Daddy (Will Kimbrough and Tommy Womack), the Tejas Brothers, Hot Club of Cowtown, Chuck Mead (BR549), James Intveld, and a bunch more. It was great to get to see and hear many of them perform for the camera in such an intimate setting, and an extra bonus was sharing my set with my good friend and fellow Houstonian, the talented Texas Troubadour, Jimmy Pizzitola, who sang two duets with me, as well as a song from his forthcoming release, due out at the beginning of next year.
There’s so much more that I could say about my time in Nashville. Big Kev took me to a private party for industry insiders, and I got to see Roseanne Cash perform a set of songs from her upcoming release called “The List.” Great title, for as she explained, it came about when she was in her twenties and asked her dad (the AMAZING Johnny Cash) if he’d ever heard a song that she was learning at the time. He was surprised that she’d just discovered this tune, which was a mainstay of country music, and decided to make her a list of 100 country songs that every musician should know how to play. I must say that her performance was nothing short of brilliant, with minimal backing. Very old-school, very cutting edge, and sure to be a huge success when it hits the record stores in the near future. It was also quite an experience to get to meet, talk with, and have my picture made with Roseanne. The pic will go well with the photo of me and Carlene Carter, whom Big Kev introduced me to back in January in New York.
It was also quite an experience to attend my first show at the Ryman Auditorium, the original home of the Grand Ol’ Opry. I’ll tell you what—I knew it would be an unforgettable moment in my musical journey, but I was completely taken aback by the intense feeling that crept over me as I walked up the sidewalk that evening and entered that old church where so many of my heroes sang and played their hearts out. It really did feel like the kind of religious experience that I’ve heard people describe after visiting the Holy Land. I am determined to be on that stage, and I won’t stop ‘til I’m there where I belong. In the meantime, I was so inspired by Justin Townes Earle (Steve Earle’s son) who performed one of his original songs, just him and his guitar, and received the honor of “Best Emerging Artist” of 2009. Mesmerizing.
Other Nashville highlights were seeing John Fogerty play a terrific, high-energy show with his band in a small, but very packed, venue—the Mercy Lounge—and getting to hear Buddy Miller and Patty Griffin sing together from my cozy position on a comfy couch backstage, just beyond the railroad tracks that run behind the venue. I also thoroughly enjoyed having a delicious Southern, family-style dinner of fried chicken, barbequed pork, and fried catfish with all the fixin’s at Monell’s, hosted by Compass Records, Six Shooter Records, Songlines, and others. (Reminded me of my mama’s cooking, but of course Mama’s is always the best.) And speaking of Songlines, they hosted a great panel where I got to hear some unreleased music by “The Killer” (Jerry Lee Lewis), the Texas Tornadoes, Hank Williams, Jr., Bruce Robison featuring Rodney Crowell, Roseanne Cash, and others.
I flew into Nashville from Newark with Big Kev on one of those little puddle jumpers, which was cramped even for somebody of my stature, so I can only imagine how somebody 6 foot, 9 inches tall must feel on one of those things. We were certainly glad to be picked up at the airport by Bob Mitchell of the Smith Group and taken out to lunch at Ted’s Montana Grill (Ted Turner’s place) where I tasted my first buffalo and where we were joined by Al Moss of Al Moss Promotions. On the way, we visited Katy K’s Western Wear store, which is just full of the most unique vintage clothes that I had to pass up for my pocket book’s sake, but that’s okay. It was fun to look.
Before leaving for Nashville, Big Kev and I made a trip to the wilds of Pennsylvania, where I did a photo shoot with a very talented photographer, Theo Anderson, whose work has found its rightful place in various forums nationwide. I was flattered that Theo wanted to work with me as a subject. He is also a music aficionado, a radio personality by his own right, and an all-around Renaissance man, AND he really “gets me” as an artist. When we discussed the concept through email last summer, I told him that I’d seen a picture of a woman in the Dust Bowl, and that’s how I see myself: somebody who’s really been through something. He said, “a real woman living a real life.” And I said, “Yes. That’s it!” And the photos just came naturally. All black and white. All very real. I can hardly wait for you to see them, and will keep you posted as always. Check out Theo’s photography at
http://www.theoanderson.com when you have time. It is quite worth it!
Well, I know that this was a really long email, but I hope you enjoyed the read if you made it this far. THANK YOU for sharing this magical time in my life with me. And don’t be a stranger, now. I want to hear from you, my dear friend in music. Life is good! Y’all come!