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My Garth Brooks story and photos post to Elmore magazine

20 Mar

After delivering a SXSW keynote at Austin’s convention center downtown, March 17 mega country artist Garth Brooks hinted about delivering a secret show in town. Then just a bit after 10 p.m. Brooks tweeted a photo of a wagon wheel with one broken spoke with the message “let’s get started.”
Brooks showed up at the 52-year-old honky-tonk about 11 p.m. with body guards greeted by Broken Spoke proprietor James White. Afterwards the mega country star performed a whole set of greatest hits beginning with “Friends in Low Places,” along with George Jones’ “He Stopped Lovin’ Her Today,” George Strait’s “Amarillo By Morning,” and Merle Haggard’s “Fightin’ Side of Me.” Audience participation reached a fever pitch when Brooks sang Joe Nichols’ “Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off,” as more than 500 people sang the lyrics from the Broken Spoke’s dance floor, with their smart phones raised above their heads.
Between songs, Brooks told his audience, “If I had known there were honky-tonks like this back when I started out, I never would have left.” He also said “You all have fun like this every day,” and “I haven’t done anything like this in a hundred years.” At the end of his set, Brooks told the audience “It’s never good to end the night with a down song, except this one,” and he sang “The Dance.” The crowd demanded an encore, and afterwards Brooks handed over his acoustic Takamine guitar to White as a parting gift. “I didn’t know he was gonna give me a gift too,” White said afterwards. “I will always remember the day Garth Brooks played on stage at the Broken Spoke. He was right on every song. It was so crowded I could not leave the stage, but I really did not want to. It was exciting. Completely unexpected. That’s the way he rolls!”
More than 50,000 fans are expected to attend Brooks’ outdoor concert tonight on Auditorium Shores.

Please see my story posted on Elmore magazine’s website at: http://www.elmoremagazine.com/2017/03/reviews/shows/garth-brooks-at-the-broken-spoke

To see 2 of my videos of Garth Brooks performing at the Broken Spoke please go to the KVUE local ABC affiliate website at:

http://www.kvue.com/features/sxsw/garth-brooks-surprises-austin-with-broken-spoke-show/423666224

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My review of the 2017 Ameripolitan Awards posts to Elmore

22 Feb

Lance Lipinsky, nearly stole the show before accepting the Rockabilly Male Award at the fourth annual Ameripolitan Awards, held February 15th at Austin’s Paramount Theater. Lipinsky had costarred in the Tony Award-winning musical, Million Dollar Quartet, and at the Grand Ole Opry. His band, The Lovers, released their debut album, Roll, last summer.

Jerry Lee Lewis’ prerecorded message from Nesbit, Mississippi appeared overhead on screen as Silvia and Brett Neal accepted the Master Award on his behalf. The Neals and singer/songwriter Dale Watson cofounded the Ameripolitan Awards in 2014 to honor artists who represent four roots branches of country music: western swing, honky-tonk, rockabilly and outlaw styles. Between set changes, Watson and Asleep at the Wheel’s front man, Ray Benson, served as the night’s emcees, providing impromptu commercials for two of the show sponsors, Lone Star Beer and Tito’s Vodka. Presenters Rosie Flores and James Intveld also provided an outstanding duet performance. Other music awards went to Leona Williams, Jake Penrod, Gary P. Nunn and the Bunkhouse Band, Lara Hope, The Silver Shakers, Kristyn Harris, Pokey LaFarge, The Western Flyers, Darci Carlson, Hank3, the Dallas Moore Band, Chris Casello and James Riley.

American original singer/songwriter and musician Junior Brown received the Keeper of the Key Award. Brown’s unique song lyrics and hook phrases, such as “My Wife Thinks You’re Dead,” previously earned him a 1996 Country Music Association Award. Brown performed while playing his “guit-steel,” a double-necked invention that melds both guitar and steel guitar attributes. Lil’ Red’s Longhorn Saloon in Fort Worth received the Venue Award and the Festival Award went to Nashville Boogie. Absent from the night’s proceedings due to the flu was presenter James White, proprietor of the Broken Spoke. The house band included: Chris Crepps, bass; Mike Bernal, drums; Don Pawlak, pedal steel guitar; Jason Roberts, fiddle; Redd Volkaert, guitar; Joey Colarusso, saxophone; Rick White, trumpet; Ken Mills, trombone; and Danny Levin, piano. For more information about the awards and a full list of winners, head to the Ameripolitan Music Awards’ website at: http://www.ameripolitan.com/2017-winners.html

Please also see my article as it appears with my photos on Elmore magazine’s website at: http://www.elmoremagazine.com/2017/02/reviews/shows/2017-ameripolitan-music-awards

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My review of ’50 Years with Peter, Paul, and Mary’ posts to Elmore

16 Jan

50 Years with Peter, Paul and Mary, DVD – Elmore MagazineFor more than half a century, the musical entity known as Peter, Paul and Mary, beginning in the early 1960s, turned the world upside down with their activism against war, nuclear energy, and inequality. The recently re-released 2014 DVD, 50 Years with Peter, Paul and Mary, traces their extraordinary journey far beyond “Five Hundred Miles” from where it began in Greenwich Village, NY in 1961 to a 2009 memorial for their female member in 78 minutes.

Producer/director Jim Brown juxtaposes intimate interviews with Peter Yarrow, Noel Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers, family members and friends between live action concert recordings of their most beloved songs. Brown also adds vintage film footage from historic events. Most memorable scenes include those from the 1965 Montgomery Civil Rights March in Selma, AL led by the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., the 1969 March on Washington with Pete Seeger to protest the Vietnam War Draft, and the 1978 “Survival Sunday,” held at the Hollywood Bowl.

Delivering a potent mix of intelligence, sexual edginess and social consciousness, the trio emotes sorrowfully: “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” “Early Mornin’ Rain,” “If I Had a Hammer,” “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “The Times They Are a Changin’” “Give Peace a Chance,” “There But For Fortune, (Go You or Go I,)” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” “Puff The Magic Dragon” and more. Audiences of all ages participate in rare sing-alongs and testify to their enduring legacy.

These authentic and empathetic human beings sang songs and lived lives that made a real difference in American history, and, still today, they extend an invitation to join their social causes.

Please see this post on Elmore magazine’s website at:

http://www.elmoremagazine.com/2017/01/reviews/albums/50-years-with-peter-paul-and-mary-dvd

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