Otis Taylor & Chris Thomas King - Update

Posted in Music, Iowa on February 13th, 2007 by wapsi |

Last week I wrote about the anticipation of welcoming Otis Taylor and Chris Thomas King to Iowa for the KUNI Blues Blowout in Waterloo. Here is the update after seeing the show in Waterloo, then the Otis and Nick show in Des Moines on Sunday at Blues on Grand.

I arrived in Waterloo around 6pm. The venue was the Electric Park Ballroom. Imagine a big old ballroom/dancehall-roadhouse from the 40s and you are getting pretty close.

Electric Park Ballroom, Waterloo, Ia

When I got there I was greeted by a friendly KUNI person and they let me in early with no problem when I told them my friend was in the Otis Taylor Band. There weren’t too many people there yet so I grabbed a cold Blue Moon and sat down to chat with Nick for a little bit before the show started. I was introduced to Otis almost immediately and later met his Daughter and bass player, Cassie (19). When I arrived she was doing homework on one of the reserved tables with books and papers spread out all over. People started arriving and soon the lights were dimmed and out came Chris Thomas King.

I didn’t really know what to expect from King. I enjoyed him in Oh Brother but hadn’t really heard much else from him. I’m going to go ahead right now and give King the benefit of the doubt and assume he was having a bad day. He seemed confused, disoriented, and seemed to have trouble playing his songs and remembering his lyrics. I thought King’s performance was extremely unrehearsed and very rough, to say the least. Everyone has off nights, and he seemed like a nice enough guy - I guess I just expected a higher caliber performance from an artist who has starred in two block buster movies (Ray and Oh Brother) and played all over the world for enormous crowds with the Down From the Mountain tour. But really, it seemed more like an average open mic performance than a professional who has recorded over 140 tracks in his career.

King left the stage and the Otis Taylor band followed. Otis came out with the unexpected clawhammerish banjo. His Daughter Cassie Taylor on his right and Nick Amodeo on his left. They really brought the house down. This was my first Otis experience and I have to admit, musically - I’m a believer. Otis’ style is a one chord thing. Over and over - repeating phrases lyrically and musically. He drives a riff into the ground and just when you think you’re getting bored, you hear another subtle change that keeps the music interesting. Cassie can sing her ever loving ass off and has a great stage dynamic. With a spunky fresh out of boulder attitude, a gorgeous voice and unmistakable chemistry with her Father. (more…)

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Wapsipiniblog **Exclusive**

Posted in politics on February 10th, 2007 by ptigan |

In what can only be understood as a total lack of diligence by the editors of a major Denver media outlet, Wapsipiniblog has uncovered an exclusive, shattering opinion not slated to be released until next Tuesday. We won’t bore you with the details of our investigation, except to say that it included an open laptop, an elaborate set of decoys, and a thumb drive. Eat our dust, Drudge. Or, more appropriately, drink our river water.

From The Free Press (really, this won’t be available anywhere else till Tuesday, February 13th.)

FREE MARKETS, FREE BORDERS
by Paul Tigan

There are two topics one can’t get around knowing something about as an American: the economy and immigration. I admit, I’m not much an economist. Macro is big, micro is small, and Alan Greenspan is an inflationary demigod, despite a few political miscalculations. Is that pretty close? Immigration, on the other hand, is a bit more complicated. People generally migrate from place to place throughout their existence without problems, though it matters a great deal what imaginary lines you cross. Again, pretty close?

(more…)

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Apple says no to Ipod Monday at The Lift - Diggers Digg.

Posted in Music, Iowa on February 10th, 2007 by wapsi |

What an honor. Des Moines content on the front page of Digg. Too bad it’s sort of a negative story. I think the Apple lawyers need to pick on someone their own size.

A bar owner in Des Moines, runs a weekly event called iPod Monday in which he lets those who bring their iPods share their music collections with others. Once a year they hand out a free ipod too. Does anyone even go to ipod mondays at the Lift?

Digg Article and comment listing
Original Des Moines Register article

It’s a little ironic to me that this trade marking/branding story comes on the heels of Steve Jobs’ very own open letter denouncing DRM. (digital rights managment -AKA - Doesn’t Really Matter)

At any rate, making the front page of digg should be a proud moment for anyone.

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Otis Taylor & Chris Thomas King

Posted in Music, Iowa on February 10th, 2007 by wapsi |

When you have the blues, you hit the road. That’s precisely why I am driving all over god’s green earth this weekend to catch the doubly depressing bill in Waterloo this evening of Otis Taylor and Chris Thomas King. King played the Robert Johnson character in Oh Brother Where Art Thou?. I have to admit I haven’t heard a lot of his other stuff, but from what I gather is more electric and less delta than the character he portrays in the movie.

I do have ulterior motives here though. My friend, Nick Amodeo, a Rockygrass Mandolin Champion, is Otis’ hired electric mandolin slinger so I am looking forward to plenty of backstage action and VIP treatment. Yep, Iowa is mighty proud of Nick. There was a great write-up about him in the Des Moines Register’s Datebook this week. Check out the article

Nick and Buddy Guy (AKA Mr. Guy)at Guy’s Legends club in Chicago.
Nice framed photo of SRV in the background, Nick. Accident? I’m thinking not.

Even more of an honor, in my opinion, is that the article made the front page headline section for mandolincafe.com 
Mandolin Cafe is THE mandolin enthusiast destination on the web. Everything from lessons, tips & tricks, articles, interviews, and mando classified section. Congratulations, Nick!

Tomorrow, Otis and Nick headline Blues on Grand in Des Moines. If you like Blues, and haven’t heard much from Otis Taylor, I recommend giving it a listen. He’s dubbed it Trance Blues and the music really lives up to it’s genre title. Pretty damn good for a former antiques salesman. The show starts at 7pm and is $10 at the door. Should be a real blues blowout. Hope to see you there.

Stay Tuned.

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