Wigwam Village #2 in Cave City, KY.
On Saturday, August 3, Jackie and I are doing an event called Wigwam Music Festival in Cave City, Kentucky. This is a two-day event hosted by some of the Honky Tonk House Concert folks (some of my favorite folks) in an old fashion motor court with stand-alone units shaped like Wigwams. My policy is to just say yes when people invite me to play, I don’t ask a lot of questions. I’ve since read the description and am kind of horrified to see that this event includes softball and spelunking. You’d think that Cave City as a town name would be a giveaway on the spelunking thing, but it’s amazing how often I just don’t think things through. I’m not much of a spelunker. It’s all dark and wet and scary in those caves and you might have to cut your arm off to get out. I sort of wish I hadn’t seen that 127 Hours movie. And I definitely throw like a girl, you know, a girl who doesn’t know how to throw. I’m not talking about those amazing women and girls who can knock your hat off your head with a softball from forty feet if they’re in the mood, women and girls like the one in Andy Fleming’s song, Bonita, on The Flyover album by Brother Trucker. I may have to arrive late to Wigwam Fest to avoid all the stuff I’m scared of and/or not good at.
On Friday, August 9, Jackie and I play Concerts at the Historic Cooper’s House in Columbia, Maryland. Steve and Myra Gnadt host these concerts. They’re friends of mine from back in my North Carolina days. Not only do they host concerts in their home, they attend around two hundred music events a year. Amazing folks! And this show includes a barbecue, I hear.
I’m playing a songwriters-in-the-round show in August in Columbus at Natalie’s. Natalie’s is a relatively new venue that’s presenting music in a listening environment six nights a week. Boy, ya don’t see much of that anymore and I appreciate anybody who tries to do it. I don’t know the date of that show. I should find out, shouldn’t I? Yeah, I will, I’ll find out. It’s a Thursday. That narrows it down, right? I’ll list it on my website as soon as I know.
I’m very proud to have been invited back to the Maximum Ames Music Festival. Andy Fleming and I will share a show at Stomping Grounds, my mainstay gig when I lived in Ames, on Thursday, September 26 for the Max Ames Fest. Man, am I ever looking forward to that. Going home! Yeah! Nate Logsdon, Chris Lyng and other Max Ames folks have worked together to create a thriving music scene in Ames. Here’s to ya, guys. Maybe Andy will do that song at Stomping Grounds about that girl who can throw and it’ll change that phrase “throws like a girl” to mean something entirely different.
Julia Egli presided as BeJae and Jackie officially married -- between sets --at the Ritual Cafe, Des Moines, IA, May 28, 2009.
I’m working on booking another show that same weekend with Andy at the Ritual Café. Jackie and I got legally married at the Ritual Café on Andy Fleming’s birthday in between sets of live music. It was about a month before we moved to Ohio back in 2009. Just think, if Jackie and I still lived in Iowa, we could get the federal benefits that the rest of the married folks get. But, we now live in a state that doesn’t recognize same-sex marriage and that’s a real shame. But, things are changing, they are. My next door neighbor owns a public relations firm. He’s a Republican and his firm does a lot of political work for Republican causes. He told me the other day that he’s working hard to create bipartisan support for the legalization of same-sex marriage in Ohio. I am so deeply grateful for our Republican allies, especially those who put time and effort into moving us along the path to equal rights. We really are all in this together, whether or not we agree on everything.
Well, of course, I gotta stay the week in central Iowa, since the week after Max Ames is First Wednesday at el Bait. A wonderful community of friends has grown around these regular Brother Trucker shows the first Wednesday of each month at el Bait Shoppe in Des Moines. If you don’t live in Des Moines, you should plan a visit for a First Wednesday show. Maybe Andy Fleming will do that song about that girl who can throw.
Gayla Drake and I are looking for a show in eastern Iowa for the first weekend in October. Lemme know if you have suggestions for that.
Okay, that’s what I’m up to. What’s going on with you?
Thanks for listening,
B