Music at the Martin

David Jacobs-Strain
2010-10-01 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
David Jacobs-Strain, a consummate finger-style and slide guitarist, plays in the blues tradition but isn’t from it. You’ll hear echoes of Skip James, Charlie Patton, Tommy Johnson, and a song or two by Fred McDowell or Robert Johnson in his solo performances. But as a modern roots singer-songwriter, “I come from the language of the country blues, but it’s important not to silence other influences,” he says.
His obsession with sound serves a deeper purpose than a mere desire to display technical wizardry. “For me, there’s something about rural blues that has a transcendent quality, a wide open sound. Think of the rhythm of a train. There’s a cross between spiritual and secular music in Fred McDowell. Compared to commercial electric blues, the Delta blues are more interesting modally and have a spiritual depth to them. You can also hear anger, humor, and empathy. I’m going after the texture, the tone and feel of that.”
“I’ve always been drawn to the trance-oriented, heavier, Delta blues—to the driving, passionate, raw, distraught sound of somebody like Son House,” he says. “When you’re in the flow of the music, there’s an ecstasy to it. Of course, when I was 12, I thought I knew what Robert Johnson’s ‘Come on into My Kitchen’ was all about.” The 24-year-old Jacobs-Strain has refined his youthful expression of raw energy, passion, and technique into powerful, nuanced performances.
He grew up in Eugene, Oregon, in a community that was centered on cultural change and environmentalism. He sees a distinct connection between the principles embodied in his upbringing and the democracy of the blues. “I’m really into hand-made culture—and real people making real music. The voice. One guitar. Even at their simplest, the blues have always been a vehicle for expressing your own situation, whether as an individual or a community. There’s such power in that.”
Jacobs-Strain is a veteran of the national club and festival circuit. He’s been billed with T-Bone Burnett and Bob Weir, and has opened for acts such as Los Lobos, Lucinda Williams, Taj Mahal, Etta James, Boz Scaggs, and the Blind Boys of Alabama. By the time he was 19, he had played at the Philadelphia Folk Festival and MerleFest. His other festival credits include the Strawberry Music Festival, the Newport Folk Festival, the Telluride Blues Fest, the Vancouver Folk Festival, the Montreal Jazz Festival, and the Lugano Blues to Bop Festival in Switzerland. He’s also served as faculty at guitar workshops, most notably at Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch. In 2008, he was chosen by Boz Scaggs to open his summer tour.
“How do you continue to find inspiration in sound? Why does a certain musical phrase grab you by the hair and heart and brain? How do you continue to make it new? How do you honor the people who poured themselves into the music in the first place?” Jacobs-Strain asks. Whenever he strives to answer these questions, you’ll want to be there to listen.

Mike Beck
2010-09-25 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Mike Beck is well-known for his memorable ballads that capture old California, and the cowboy way of life. He has performed in numerous foreign countries, and throughout the United States. Mike recently returned from doing some shows in Norway and Sweden.
Two of Mike Beck’s songs were listed in the “13 Best Cowboy Songs of All Time” in the April 2009 issue of Western Horseman Magazine (“In Old California” – a song about Jo Mora – and “Don’t Tell Me.”) His song, “Patrick” was listed as one of “The Top 15 Roadworthy Cowboy Songs” in the July 2008 issue of Cowboys & Indians Magazine. His song, “Amanda Come Home” was featured on NPR’s Weekend Edition, and is dedicated to all of the women who served in Iraq. In the Spring 2010 edition of The Cowboy Way, Bill Reynolds writes, “His love of the ways of the vaquero and the Pacific Slope region of the West comes through his songs in superb guitar work.”
Born and raised in Monterey County, California, at age 13, Mike Beck went to the Monterey Pop Festival and liked what he heard. He picked up a guitar and never looked back. Since that time, he has been composing and performing a wide array of folk, rock and Americana music. Mike’s songs reflect his life as a professional musician and a working cowboy in Montana and Carmel Valley near Big Sur.
According to Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, “Mike Beck plays the guitar like a Byrd. His strings do things that mine could never do. They obey the slightest finger-touch commands like a fine Reining Horse.”
Beck is riding high after being recognized by Western Horseman magazine in a recent article naming “The 13 Best Cowboy Songs of All Times” along with songs written by luminaries such as Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Allison Moorer, Lucinda Williams and Ian Tyson.
“I had two songs on that list, which was kind of cool,” said Beck. “to be alongside some of the other people on that list, like Tom Russell, Ian Tyson. I thought, that’s nice company. That was nice of them to say that.”
Visit Mike Beck online http://www.mikebeck.com
(I found this rather amazing video on YouTube, posted by pagenmaestro; with the notes here below the video. – bill)

I met Mike Beck right after this performance in Austin, Texas, in June of 2004, when he delivered among other originals a gripping solo performance of “Old Man,” a song about one of the resin jaws he met while cowboying in Montana. We stood outside in the humid night heat and, along with horseman Magne Hellesjo of Norway, talked music and horses, and shared some cold beers. A year or so later the three of us convened again at Magne’s farm in Norway where, between horse clinics, Mike joined me and other members of Poisoned Red Berries in the recording of my first produced studio album. Mike’s been working with his band, The Bohemian Saints, for a few years now, playing mainly in California with occasional tours. Mike Beck has also just released a beautiful solo album of songs, called “Free”. If you like the sound of “Old Man,” check out the new solo album. Mike’s songs offer a unique perspective on life, opening on a wisdom earned genuinely through a life of horse whispering, work with Ian Tyson and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, and Beck’s own take on the old ways of the cowboy life in America. Learn more about Mike and his music at http://www.mikebeck.com

Note: If anyone objects to this video presentation due to copyright infringement, please make contact and it will be promptly removed. DL

The Gillette Brothers
2010-08-07 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Guy and Pipp Gillette, from their home in Crockett Texas, are once again on their way to a series of appearances in California, and they will make a stop for a show in Winnemucca on August 7.
Guy and Pipp appeared at a sold out show in Winnemucca last December, and they were a huge hit. They perform a mix of traditional cowboy songs, and songs reflecting the Celtic roots, country blues, minstrel and medicine show songs that influenced cowboy music. For me it is always worth the price of admission just to watch and hear Guy play the rhythm bones, musical bones they make from cow ribs.
They have played at major events and venues around the country including: The 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC, The National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, NV, The Monterey Cowboy Poetry & Music Festival in Monterey, CA, The Santa Clarita Cowboy Poetry & Music Festival in Santa Clarita, CA, The Willow Tree Festival in Gordon, NE, The Arizona Cowboy Poets Gathering in Prescott, AZ; The Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, GA; The National Arboretum in Washington, DC, The Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, WY, and The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, OK, The Museum of South Texas in Edinburgh Texas.
In August 2005, the Gillette Brothers traveled to Japan representing the State of Texas at the World Expo – Aichi/Nagoya, performing their music at the US Pavilion. In October 2008, the Gillette Brothers toured Somerset, England for two weeks, performing in village halls and the Bridgewater Arts Center.
They have demonstrated chuckwagon cooking at the Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City; the Ranching Heritage Museum in Lubbock, Texas; The Museum of South Texas in Edinburgh Texas; Dalton Days in Longview, Texas; and the Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, Georgia.
Their cooking has been spotlighted in Persimmon Hill, the magazine of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum; The National Cowboy Hall of Fame Cookbook by B. Byron Price; A Taste of Texas Ranching by Tom Bryant and Joel Bernstein; and the Spirit of the West: Cooking for Ranch House & Range by Beverly Cox and Martin Jacobs.
The Gillette Brothers were recipients of the 2009 AMERICAN COWBOY CULTURE AWARD for western music from the NATIONAL COWBOY SYMPOSIUM & CELEBRATION. They were awarded the 2003 and the 1998 Will Rogers Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Advancement of Contemporary Cowboy Music Best Duo/Group by The Academy of Western Artists. They have also received the National Cowboy Symposium’s American Cowboy Culture Chuck Wagon Award.
The Gillette Brothers run The Camp St. Cafe & Store in Crockett, Texas a live music venue, much like the Martin Hotel, that has featured some of the top performers in the country.
They were also instrumental in getting a life-sized statue of Blues Legend Lightnin’ Hopkins erected in Crockett.

Ray Bonneville ~ Slow Burning Blues
2010-07-16 19:30 - 21:30 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
$15 TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW AT THE MARTIN HOTEL, NATURE’S CORNER, AND GLOBAL COFFEE.
Ray Bonneville is a roaming blues poet, inspired by the road and the many other places he has called home—New Orleans, Colorado, Arkansas, Alaska, Boston, Seattle and Paris, France. Born in Canada and raised in the United States, Bonneville has lived all over. No place, however, has been more influential than New Orleans.
In the streets and clubs of New Orleans, Bonneville soaked up the prevalent take-your-time attitude that ran through the music being played there. “There’s something about the heat and humidity that makes people slow down,” he says. “New Orleans is where I learned to take my time, to allow space between the notes so the songs could truly groove.” That groove is at the core of Bonneville’s sound. A one-man band, he backs up weathered, storytelling vocals with a highly percussive guitar style, dramatic harmonica lines and a foot that keeps the rock steady beat. The result is a big sound with an almost primitive quality. It’s visceral, raw music.
Like the great American writers of the south and his favorite authors Cormac McCarthy and Flannery O’Connor, Bonneville is inspired by the places he has been and the unusual people he has met throughout his travels. His songs are like short stories, evoking true-to-life characters that stumble their way through a rough and tumble world of violence, hope and despair. Heavily influenced by the natural world, Bonneville finds himself splitting his time these days between Montreal, Austin and Cotter, Arkansas, where he likes to write songs and fly-fish the White River.
Honing his craft for the last 30 years, Bonneville’s gritty storytelling and deep-grooving blues style has won him much critical attention. In 1999, Ray won the prestigious Juno Award (Canadian Grammy) for his third album Gust of Wind. His fourth release, Rough Luck, was also nominated for the coveted award. With his 2004 Red House debut Roll It Down, Ray made himself a name in blues and roots music circles, garnering rave reviews from DownBeat and No Depression. He has toured all over the world, sharing the bill with such blues legends as B.B. King, Muddy Waters, J.J. Cale and Robert Cray and in 2007 wowed the music industry with his bring-down-the-house performances at the South By Southwest and Folk Alliance conference. A world-class guitarist, harmonica player and hard-hitting songwriter, it is no wonder that Ray has received rave reviews from blues, jazz and roots critics alike and can count among his fans such artists as Chris Smither and Ray Wylie Hubbard. For more information about Ray Bonneville, please visit his website at www.raybonneville.com.

Roy Book Binder
2010-07-10 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Roy Book Binder at the Martin 2008
Blues Legend Plays The Martin Hotel
The great Roy Book Binder is set to play a concert at the Martin Hotel on Saturday, July 10th. Something of a national treasure, Book Binder plays blues in the Piedmont style, a very old East Coast tradition based on ragtime and multi-part gospel guitar techniques.
Besides being a musical giant with unexceeded technique, Book Binder is known as a crowd-pleasing entertainer with deft comic timing, an encyclopedic knowledge of American roots music history, and an inexhaustible supply of tales collected over a lifetime of traveling and performing with greats like Brownie McGhee, Sonny Terry, Rock Bottom, Fats Kaplin, Doc Watson, Bonnie Raitt, and Ray Charles.
Book Binder emerged alongside pal Dave van Ronk in the New York City coffeehouse scene of the mid-60s, the beginning of the so-called “folk revival.” And, his repertoire includes “Bookaroo” songs, played in a folk style reminiscent of Rambling Jack Elliot, the New York City surgeon’s son who was Woody Guthrie’s hand-picked protege.
Book Binder’s real bailiwick, though, is blues in the East Coast or “Piedmont” style, named for the plateau that stretches from Richmond, Virginia to Atlanta, Georgia. The style evolved in the 20s, 30s, and 40s, when ragtime, parlor, and gospel guitar players like Blind Blake, Blind Boy Fuller, and Reverend Gary Davis began applying polyphonic finger-picking technique to the blues. Book Binder perfected his Piedmont technique as Davis’s protégé, working as the blind virtuoso’s driver and side-man during the late 1960s.
Book Binder has recorded seven albums, most in a “hillbilly” blues style that includes plenty of colorful banter between the tracks. Often, the stories and jokes stretch back to Book Binder’s formative years on the road with the Reverend Davis. Though based on old-time techniques, his songs sound fresh and relevant, often featuring original lyrics re-spun to reflect contemporary themes.
Book Binder continues to perform solo shows around the world, with more than 30 shows left this year alone. He also teaches at MerleFest and the Fur Peace School, and keeps an entertaining travel “blog” on his website, RoyBookBinder.com.
So, if you’re in town over the weekend, don’t miss the chance to see one of the great bluesmen of all time, up close and personal, right here in Winnemucca. The show starts at 7 PM on Saturday, July 10th, at the Martin Hotel on Railroad Street.

Sweet Sunny South
2010-05-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
On Wednesday, May 26th the Colorado based old-time bluegrass string band Sweet Sunny South will appear at the Martin Hotel for their only Nevada date in 2010. The band will be featuring material from a new release that includes guest appearances by the Denver based jazz heavy, Ron Miles (Bill Frissell, Elvis Costello) on coronet and Phil Wade(The Wilders) on banjo and dobro. The CD entitled “Carried Off By A Twister” introduces a slew of new tunes and finds the band members stretching out in all sorts of new directions. “Twister” is the 5th CD released by SSS and the band is coming up on their 10th year performing together.
SSS kicks off summer 2010 with a trip to Yosemite, CA for this Memorial Day weekend’s Strawberry Festival (other acts there include Patty Loveless, Richard Thompson and Louden Wainwright III) and winds it up this year with another appearance at SW Colorado favorite Pagosa’s “Four Corners Folk Festival”. Sandwiched between are all kinds of great festival sets, theater shows and summer concert series all across Montana, Nevada, Wyoming, Colorado and more. Sign the email list at www.sweetsunnysouth.com for all the details and to find out about shows as they are added to the tour schedule. Come and get your copy of Sweet Sunny South’s new release hot off the presses “Carried Off By A Twister”!
Sweet Sunny South is a four piece string band hailing from Paonia, Colorado consisting of guitar(Rob Miller), upright bass(Shelley Gray), fiddle(Cory Obert), mandolin and banjo(Bill Powers). The band makes original music that blends elements of bluegrass, old-time, country, and swing to create a decidedly unique sound. Their specialty is creating a full entertainment experience through live performance, a journey if you will, taking the audience along for the ride across dusty landscapes of the American countryside. There’s high lonesome ballads, for the winsome and rocking old-time fiddle tunes for the dancers. All four members sing and play around a single microphone and while this approach brings to mind the glory days of the Grand Ol’ Opry, the band’s sound feels new, fresh and dynamic. Smiles warm the room while real, true music fills the air. Sweet Sunny South’s vibe is contagious and gives everyone permission to feel good.

Nevada Humanaties Event
2010-05-19 17:00 - 18:30 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Please join Nevada Humanities
Executive Director Christina Barr & Staff
for an informal gathering of friends
May 19, 2010
5:00 – 6:30 pm
The Martin Hotel
At Railroad & Melarkey Streets
Winnemucca
Visit with Nevada Humanities staff to learn more about
our programs and grants for Nevada’s nonprofit organizations,
libraries, and schools – please join us!
~ Light Basque fare will be served ~
~ Cash Bar ~
For more information please contact Mary Toleno
775-784-6587 or maryt@unr.edu

CeCe Gable and her Jazz Trio
2010-04-17 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
CeCe draws the listener into her captivating world of song with an incredible depth of emotion. She swings with rhythmic passion and also has the ability to caress a ballad with effortless interpretation. Influenced by many of the women and men of jazz, she offers her own voice on jazz standards and the American Songbook. She shines on any stage whether she is accompanied by a solo pianist, a trio or an entire orchestra… you’ll find you cannot get enough of this jazz experience.
Well known to audiences up and down the Pacific Coast and throughout the western states, CeCe Gable is rapidly becoming one of the premiere jazz singers in the region.
A native of Barberton, Ohio, and a graduate of Kent State University, CeCe lived in Winnemucca for a few years while she was working as an artist in residence in Winnemucca schools. While she was in Winnemucca she primarily taught dance and creative movement to budding young artist’s. CeCe now makes her home in the Reno/Tahoe area as a performing and recording artist.
A consummate jazz cabaret performer, she has sung in jazz clubs throughout the United States and Europe including New Orleans, Las Vegas, Palm Springs, Fiji, Munich, Athens and at New York City’s Iridium with Les Paul.
She has presented the works of George Gershwin, Thelonious Monk, Stephen Sondheim and Kurt Weill to rave reviews in a variety of venues. According to Metroland (Albany, NY), CeCe Gable is a performer who exudes warmth, sophistication, a generous stage presence and rare versatility. A unique, compelling performer with a style and sound all her own, CeCe has been compared to the song stylists of the ’50’s with a contemporary twist.
Admired as a “quiet surprise” by audiences nationwide, CeCe has become known for delivering an honest performance and has prompted more than one audience member to say “When you sing I see the music flow through you and I believe you.”
Richard Feldman, stage director and arts critic for The Record (Troy, NY) asserts that “CeCe Gable is one of those rare performers whose mellow vocals, stylistic sophistication, diversity of material and intimate delivery combine perfectly to convince us that she’s singing to each of us…personally.”

Sourdough Slim with Robert Armstrong
2010-03-06 19:00 - 2010-03-07 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
During the Winnemucca Ranch Hand Rodeo
A marvel of musical ingenuity, yodeling cowboy Sourdough Slim and string instrument wizard Robert Armstrong joyously rekindle the country blues, cowboy classics and string band repertoire of pre-WWII America. A fast-paced performance of music and comedy that showcases their seasoned gift for connecting with audiences.
Whether capturing the haunting refrain of a Jimmie Rodgers blue yodel or swinging out a hot novelty number, everyone gets caught up in the fun these two cut-ups have on stage. Long time fans will remember them as founding members of two of California’s favorite acoustic combo’s, “8th Avenue String Band” and “R. Crumb’s Cheap Suit Serenaders.” Between them they share a provocative array of period instruments including: flat-top guitar, national steel, baritone and soprano ukulele, musical saw, accordion, six-string banjo and harmonica.
Well traveled veterans of stages ranging from Carnegie Hall and The Lincoln Center to The National Cowboy Gathering, Strawberry Music Festival and Prairie Home Companion, these modern day vaudevillians capture a sound and moment in time that consistently delights fun loving music fans everywhere they perform.
“First rate entertainment. A delightfully splendid show. . . full of good time music and laughs galore.” – Diane Brinkman, Seattle Times
“You won’t find better authentic Country or Western music being played anywhere.” – David Barnes, British Archive of Country Music
“Much more invigorating than 9/10ths of the stuff you hear from the current cadre of Western revivalists.” – Ronald Lankford, Jr., Sing Out! magazine
“Good stuff!” – Dallas Dobro, Master of Ceremonies, Strawberry Music Festival

Ramblin’ Jack Elliott
2010-01-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
THE TUESDAY NIGHT LIVE SHOW IS SOLD OUT.
PLEASE JOIN US ON MONDAY NIGHT 01/25/10 AT 7:00 SHARP FOR A SPECIAL SCREENING OF THE DOCUMENTARY “THE BALLAD OF RAMBLIN’ JACK”.
FREE OF CHARGE!
One of the last true links to the great folk traditions of this country, with over 40 albums under his belt, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott is considered one of the country’s legendary foundations of folk music.
“Nobody I know—and I mean nobody—has covered more ground and made more friends and sung more songs than the fellow you’re about to meet right now. He’s got a song and a friend for every mile behind him. Say hello to my good buddy, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott.”
– Johnny Cash, The Johnny Cash Television Show, 1969.
Long before every kid in America wanted to play guitar — before Elvis, Dylan, the Beatles or Led Zeppelin — Ramblin’ Jack had picked it up and was passing it along. From Johnny Cash to Tom Waits, Beck to Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder to Bruce Springsteen, the Grateful Dead to The Rolling Stones, they all pay homage to Ramblin’ Jack Elliott.
In the tradition of roving troubadours Jack has carried the seeds and pollens of story and song for decades from one place to another, from one generation to the next. They are timeless songs that outlast whatever current musical fashion strikes today’s fancy.
“His tone of voice is sharp, focused and piercing. All that and he plays the guitar effortlessly in a fluid flat-picking perfected style. He was a brilliant entertainer…. Most folk musicians waited for you to come to them. Jack went out and grabbed you….. Jack was King of the Folksingers.” – Bob Dylan, Chronicles: Volume One
There are no degrees of separation between Jack and the real thing. He is the guy who ran away from his Brooklyn home at fourteen to join the rodeo and learned his guitar from a cowboy. In 1950, he met Woody Guthrie, moved in with the Guthrie family and traveled with Woody to California and Florida, from the redwood forests to the Gulf Stream waters. Jack became so enthralled with the life and composer of This Land Is Your Land, The Dust Bowl Ballads, and a wealth of children’s songs that he completely absorbed the inflections and mannerisms, leading Guthrie to remark, “Jack sounds more like me than I do.”
In 1954, along with folksinging pals Frank Robinson and Guy Carawan, Jack journeyed south through Appalachia, Nashville and to New Orleans to hear authentic American country music. He later made this the basis for his talking song, 912 Greens.
In 1955 Jack married and traveled to Europe, bringing his genuine American folk, cowboy and blues repertoire and his guitar virtuosity, inspiring a new generation of budding British rockers, from Mick Jagger to Eric Clapton.
When he returned to America in 1961, he met another young folksinger, Bob Dylan at Woody Guthrie’s bedside, and mentored Bob. Jack has continued as an inspiration for every roots-inspired performer since.
Along the way he learned the blues first-hand from Leadbelly, Mississippi John Hurt, the Reverend Gary Davis, Big Bill Broonzy, Brownie Mcghee and Sonny Terry, Jesse Fuller and Champion Jack Dupree.
He has recorded forty albums; wrote one of the first trucking songs, Cup of Coffee, recorded by Johnny Cash; championed the works of new singer-songwriters, from Bob Dylan and Kris Kristofferson to Tim Hardin; became a founding member of Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue; and continued the life of the traveling troubadour influencing Jerry Jeff Walker, Guy Clark, Tom Russell The Grateful Dead and countless others.
In 1995, Ramblin’ Jack received his first of four Grammy nominations and the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album, for South Coast (Red House Records).
In 1998, President Bill Clinton awarded Jack the National Medal of the Arts, proclaiming, “In giving new life to our most valuable musical traditions, Ramblin’ Jack has himself become an American treasure.”
In 2000, Jack’s daughter, filmmaker, Aiyana Elliott produced and directed The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack, her take on Jack’s life and their fragile relationship, winning a Special Jury Prize from the Sundance Film Festival.
Through it all—though agents, managers, wives and recording companies have tried—Jack resisted being molded into a commercial commodity. He played his shows without a written set list or including any songs that did not ring with his gut feeling of what mattered to him.
Ramblin’ Jack’s life of travels, performances and recordings is a testament to the America of lore, a giant land of struggle, hard luck and sometimes even of good fortune. Ramblin’ Jack takes us to places that spur us on to the romance and passion of life in the tunes and voices of real people.
At seventy-seven, Ramblin’ Jack is still on the road, still seeking those people, places, songs and stories that are hand-crafted, wreaking of wood and canvas, cowhide and forged metal. You’ll find him in the sleek lines of a long haul semi-truck, in the rigging of an old sailing ship, in the smell of a fine leather saddle.
Better yet, find him in at the Martin Hotel in Winnemucca on January 26.

The Gillette Brothers
2009-12-08 19:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Guy and Pipp Gillette are on their way to the Cowboy Poetry Festival in Monterey California, from their home in Crockett Texas, and they are going to make a stop for a show in Winnemucca on December 8.
The last time the Guy and Pipp Gillette were at the Martin they shared the stage with Don Edwards and Pop Warner, but this time they will have the place to themselves. They perform a mix of traditional cowboy songs, and songs reflecting the celtic roots, country blues, minstrel and medicine show songs that influenced cowboy music. For me it is always worth the price of admission just to watch and hear Guy play the rhythm bones, musical bones they make from cow ribs.
They have played at major events and venues around the country including: The 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC, The National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, NV, The Monterey Cowboy Poetry & Music Festival in Monterey, CA, The Santa Clarita Cowboy Poetry & Music Festival in Santa Clarita, CA, The Willow Tree Festival in Gordon, NE, The Arizona Cowboy Poets Gathering in Prescott, AZ; The Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, GA; The National Arboretum in Washington, DC, The Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, WY, and The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, OK, The Museum of South Texas in Edinburgh Texas.
In August 2005, the Gillette Brothers traveled to Japan representing the State of Texas at the World Expo – Aichi/Nagoya, performing their music at the US Pavilion. In October 2008, the Gillette Brothers toured Somerset, England for two weeks, performing in village halls and the Bridgewater Arts Center.
They have demonstrated chuckwagon cooking at the Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City; the Ranching Heritage Museum in Lubbock, Texas; The Museum of South Texas in Edinburgh Texas; Dalton Days in Longview, Texas; and the Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, Georgia.
Their cooking has been spotlighted in Persimmon Hill, the magazine of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum; The National Cowboy Hall of Fame Cookbook by B. Byron Price; A Taste of Texas Ranching by Tom Bryant and Joel Bernstein; and the Spirit of the West: Cooking for Ranch House & Range by Beverly Cox and Martin Jacobs.
The Gillette Brothers were recipients of the 2009 AMERICAN COWBOY CULTURE AWARD for western music from the NATIONAL COWBOY SYMPOSIUM & CELEBRATION. They were awarded the 2003 and the 1998 Will Rogers Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Advancement of Contemporary Cowboy Music Best Duo/Group by The Academy of Western Artists. They have also received the National Cowboy Symposium’s American Cowboy Culture Chuck Wagon Award.
The Gillette Brothers run The Camp St. Cafe & Store in Crockett, Texas a live music venue, much like the Martin Hotel, that has featured some of the top performers in the country.
They were also instrumental in getting a life-sized statue of Blues Legend Lightnin’ Hopkins erected in Crockett.

Saul Kaye
2009-11-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Our friend Saul Kaye, from over in the “Bay Area”, is coming back to Winnemucca. Saul is a guy we really admire. He is a very gifted musician, a great songwriter, has a wonderfully warm stage presence, and each time he has come to the Martin he’s brought a strong band and a wonderful groove. It is very easy to tell that Saul Kaye loves what he is doing.
Now, the interesting thing is, Saul is coming this time to play a solo show. He has been moved to create a whole new suitcase full of blues tunes around his Jewish Heritage, and he’s coming to Winnemucca to try them out on you.
We hope you will join us.
$10 Tickets are on sale now at The Martin Hotel, Nature’s Corner and Global Coffee.
Here is a post about Saul’s new music, written by an Actual Journalist:
From the Bohemian.Com:
Jews and the Abstract Truth
Saul Kaye funnels his communions into ‘Jewish Blues’
By Gabe Meline
At age two, Saul Kaye glued his head to the stereo speakers in his family living room, and one could make the argument that he’s never really unglued himself. In fact, as a teenager, his only weekly ritual was tuning into a radio show called The Blues Train , which played Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Son House and other greats from 8pm to 6am while Kaye played along.
Saul Kaye’s new album, Jewish Blues , is the product of two life-altering communions, the first being playing along every week to the radio. His second came at Jerusalem’s Western Wall, where after a period of falling away from his Jewish upbringing, Kaye says, “I went to Israel in my 20s and had a classic ‘wall’ experience. I was at the wall, with my family, and felt a strong reconnection.” <more>

Blame Sally
2009-11-04 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
San Francisco Band Finds Unconventional Success
“…the band has the songs, the chops and the pipes to back up their tough-talking, clear-minded folk rock.” Santa Cruz Sentinel
In these strange times of job layoffs and uncertain futures, the San Francisco band BLAME SALLY is characteristically bucking the trend. Pam Delgado, Jeri Jones, Renee Harcourt and Monica Pasqual hit their stride well after the first blush of youth, watching their audiences grow and their independently-released record sales balloon as they set their own career pace and direction. In the fall of 2008, the mid-life women of BLAME SALLY signed a one-of-a-kind, five-year, three -album recording contract in the mid-six figures with Bay Area Opus Music Ventures, backed up by generous creative and tour support that enabled them to finally become full-time musicians. The ink was barely dry on the contract before BLAME SALLY found themselves in a brand new, state-of-the-art recording studio and in the very capable hands of Grammy-nominated producer, Lee Townsend, (Bill Frisell, Louden Wainwright, Noe Venable, Crooked Still).
Give a Listen
The resulting album, Night of 1000 Stars, was released in May 2009. As they have always done, BLAME SALLY uses personal and topical issues to fuel their powerful songwriting and jubilant ensemble musicianship. Whether through the anguished voice of an Afghan war veteran, the cancer survivor finding some humor in new age bromides or the woman who’s passion comes on like a summer thunderstorm, each track on Night of 1000 Stars is rich with authenticity and emotion.
A unique collective of four distinct voices and musical backgrounds, BLAME SALLY has forged a compelling and original sound that has earned the band the well-deserved reputation as “Bay Area phenomenon”. The San Francisco Chronicle raved that BLAME SALLY’s music “…recall(s) the artful romanticism of Jane Siberry, the rich folk harmonies of the Indigo Girls, and the percolating soulfulness of Joy of Cooking.” Poised for greater national attention, they’ve performed for audiences across the US, sharing festival stages with the likes of Los Lobos, Ani DiFranco, Richard Thompson, Roseanne Cash and Greg Brown.
In 2007 BLAME SALLY launched a national radio campaign covering both AAA and Non-Com stations and reached an audience of millions through XM Satellite Radio’s Starbuck’s XM Café where the band’s previous album Severland charted at number one.
BLAME SALLY is already out on the road, touring non-stop, with US and European dates booked through the end of the year.

Shakespeare’s Troupe
2009-10-23 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
At one o’clock in the the morning, all kinds of strange things are going on. This army is about to enjoy some well deserved rations to celebrate their victory, and recover from their defeats earlier this evening, as they often met in pitched battle on stage in Winnemucca for their production of Macbeth. The director and the cast of the traveling Nevada Shakespeare Company stopped briefly for a photo during what seemed to be a re-creation of a scene from the play during their late night dinner at the Winnemucca Inn.
And yes, and the sword fights lived up to their billing, the witches were stunning, the whole performance ran like a watch, and they ALL delivered a terrific performance. They still have four shows on their schedule, and they truly deserve to play to a packed house each night.
Their next show is Friday, October 23 at Piper’s Opera House in Virginia City; and then three performances in Reno at the Laxalt Auditorium, October 29, 30, and 31. ADMISSION: All Reno shows are free. Admission to the Piper’s Opera House show is $15 general and $10 for students and seniors. Tickets will be available at the door. ON THE WEB: www.Nevada-Shakespeare.org
If you are member of the troupe, or were in the audience last night, we would love to hear from you. Leave a comment below, and share your thoughts.
From the Reno Gazette Journal’s Sunday edition, later today:
Shakespeare returns with a vengeance
Joe Atack as Macbeth
By Forrest Hartman • forrest@rgj.com • October 18, 2009
Since 2002, Nevada Shakespeare Company has been a scaled-down model of its former self, concentrating on educational outreach programs and small productions requiring only a handful of actors. That changed Friday when the company trotted out its first full-blown stage show in seven years, a touring production of William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” more….

“Something Wicked This Way Comes”
2009-10-17 19:00 - 21:00 | Lowry High, 5375 Kluncy Canyon Rd, Winnemucca, NV, 89445, United States
Great Basin Arts and Entertainment is bringing the Nevada Shakespeare Company’s new production of Macbeth to the Lowry High Theater on Saturday, October 17. Doors will open at 6:00 and the curtain will go up at 7:00 PM for a performance held as a benefit for the BackPack Kids program. All ticket proceeds are going to this worthwhile program of the Winnemucca Food Bank which discretely places weekend food supplies in the back packs of needy elementary school children each Friday.
In celebration of their 10th season, Nevada Shakespeare Company offers an edgy new production of Macbeth, Shakespeare’s popular tale of horror, drawn from Scottish history, with great warriors, witches and ghostly apparitions.
The production is directed by the talented David Weinberg.
“Having Dave as our director is a godsend,” says Cameron Crain, Nevada Shakes’ President and Managing Artistic Director, “his training, experience and insights into the play, as well as our company, make him the perfect fit for this production.”
Mr. Weinberg was born and raised in Reno, and has spent over a decade working and studying theatre in Los Angeles, New York and London. The play also boasts stage combat choreography by Mr. JR Beardsley, an international fight director, and includes several violent fights with a range of authentic-looking broad swords, shields and battle axes.
“This is one of Shakespeare’s bloodiest, spookiest plays, and it’s a perfect thing to present this time of year,” says Beardsley regarding the staging of Macbeth during the Halloween season, “My job is to help recreate the violence of the time period and make it look real and interesting.”
This bloody production promises to be a fresh, dynamic and entertaining event for the Halloween season: after all, Macbeth is filled with sword fights, witches, blood lust, betrayal and justice. Before there was Harry Potter there was Shakespeare! Macbeth will be touring throughout the month of October: 10.16 at the Dayton Valley Country Club, 10.17 at Lowry High School in Winnemucca, 10.23 at Piper’s Opera House, 10.24, 10.29, 10.30 and 10.31 at the Nelson Building in downtown Reno.
This bloody production promises to be a fresh, dynamic and entertaining event for the Halloween season: after all, Macbeth is filled with sword fights, witches, blood lust, betrayal and justice. Before there was Harry Potter there was Shakespeare!
Thanks to the Nevada Arts Council’s Stimulus Grant, the Nevada Humanities, the Carol Franc Buck Foundation and the City of Reno’s Arts and Culture program, we have a Reno-born and British-trained director: Dave Weinberg, a British-born Reno-resident playing the lead: Joe Atack, and an international stage and film combat artist conducting the choreography: JR Beardsley. The cast is compromised of local artists from Caron Valley, Carson, Lake Tahoe, Reno, including the amazing Stephanie Richardson as Lady Macbeth.
For details and information contact Cameron Crain, 775.232.4974, cameroncrain@gmail.com or visit www.nevada-shakespeare.org or www.gbae.org.
Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for others, and are available at Nature’s Corner, The Martin Hotel, and Global Coffee. Proceeds from all ticket sales will go to the local Backpack Kids program.
About the BackPack Program
There are children in our local communities that rely on resources such as free or reduced-priced school lunch, during the school year.
The BackPack Program is designed to meet the needs of these hungry children at times when other resources are not available, such as weekends and school vacations.
How the Backpack Program works

Backpacks filled with food that children take home on weekends
Food is child-friendly, nonperishable, easily consumed and vitamin fortified
Backpacks are discreetly distributed to children on the last day before the weekend or holiday vacation

Bluegrass Great James King
2009-10-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
The James King Bluegrass Band returns to Winnemucca for a show at the Martin Hotel, at 7:00 PM Tuesday, October 13. Tickets are on sale now at Nature’s Corner and the Martin Hotel.
From the moment you first hear his voice, you know you are hearing bluegrass the way it was meant to be sung. James King sings bluegrass as only a handful of others before him – Carter Stanley, Red Allen, Del McCoury – ever have. Bluegrass Unlimited has called him “the most impressive lead vocalist to emerge in traditional bluegrass this decade”.
Bluegrass lead singing is a delicate balance a singer must have the forcefulness and intensity to cut through the multiple instrumental layers of a bluegrass band, while still maintaining a tender enough lilt to convey emotion and mesh with the instruments and supportive vocalists. Even the most driving numbers require a certain finesse while, conversely, the most eloquent songs demand a firm push. When you consider his mastery of this balance, the high quality of the songs he sings, his top-notch backing band, and his sheer soulfulness, it becomes clear that James King is simply the best lead singer in bluegrass today.
Our old friend Mr. James King is on his way to Winnemucca for another fall visit. I dug my CD’s out this weekend, and once again, James and his band had me grinning and laughing, crying and sobbing, and sitting simply carried away with delight and wonder. If you are a fan of traditional bluegrass music, or a fan of great emotional singing, or a fan of watching a group of musicians locked-in together to take you on a journey, this is a show you won’t want to miss.

The Earl Brothers
2009-10-05 19:30 - 21:30 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
The Earl Brothers, a 4-piece, all-original string band from Northern California, stands at the cutting-edge of a movement so new, it has yet to be definitively named. Whether one chooses to describe them as “Honky-Tonk Bluegrass,” “Hillbilly Gothic,” or “Neo-Traditional,” there is one thing on which everyone seems to agree. There is something about this band’s “less is more” approach to songwriting, singing, and musicianship that makes you stop whatever you’re doing and take notice.
For those who remember the goose-bumps they felt the first time they heard the high-lonesome sound of Bill Monroe or the otherworldly harmonies of the Stanley Brothers, that same thrill of discovery is being created all over again by the Earl Brothers. Unlike other traditional bluegrass bands that seek to re-create the music of the original bluegrass masters, the Earl Brothers are blazing their own trail, extending the genre, while simultaneously staying solidly within the gritty tradition that started in the 1940s and 50s. Listeners are left with a mix of exhilaration and bewilderment upon their first exposure to this new-yet-old form of music. As one listener remarked, “There is something mysterious that happens when the Earl Brothers take the stage. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t have to. I just know that something important is going on.”
In the short time since the release of their second album, Troubles To Blame (the eagerly anticipated follow-up to Whiskey, Women & Death), The Earl Brothers have received an overwhelmingly enthusiastic response from music-lovers, festival promoters, radio DJs, and music journalists across the country and abroad. The album rose to the top spot on the WDVX play list in Knoxville, TN, just a few short weeks after its debut on that station. CD orders and radio requests have been tumbling in from such far-flung locales as Australia, Belgium, France, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and even New York City!
The band is built around the unique vocal and songwriting attributes of the creative duo of Bobby Earl Davis (banjo) and Danny Morris (guitar). There is an indescribable “something” that happens when these guys sing together that makes the listener feel as if he or she has taken a step outside of the current time and place and somehow ended up in a different dimension that is unmistakably old-time but is simultaneously avant-garde. The subject matter is mostly limited to “dreadful” subjects—death, drinking, chasing and losing women—and an occasional honky-tonk gospel to atone for all of these transgressions. Rounding out the sound is the tasteful fiddle playing of Tom Lucas and the driving bass of James Touzel.
Give them a listen on their MySpace page:

Spring Creek~Rural and Cosmic Bluegrass
2009-10-05 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Spring Creek from Lyons, Colorado, are quickly gaining a reputation as the hottest young band in the Rocky Mountains. The quartet play a mix of bluegrass standards and compelling originals, and all four musicians are also accomplished vocalists. Spring Creek is built on the fundamentals of bluegrass, yet they create their own classic contemporary style.
The young band, whose members met in music school in Texas, have studied and performed together for several years, creating a tight, polished sound. Counting such bands as Country Gazette and Hot Rize among their influences, Spring Creek’s members have a deep respect for tradition, as well as an innate sense of musical innovation.
“We choose songs that suit our style,” says guitarist Taylor Sims. “I enjoy the pilgrimage–learning songs the way they’ve been played for years and years, staying close to tradition. But a lot of different kinds of songs can fit into the traditional bluegrass style if they are done really well. We try hard to do each song justice, with real bluegrass-style harmonies and arrangements.”
Judges at two recent band competitions agree that Spring Creek have what it takes to deliver the high, lonesome sounds in the Appalachian tradition. The band won the Telluride Bluegrass Festival band contest in June 2007, and won their second Planet Bluegrass title later that summer at the 35th annual Rocky Mountain Bluegrass Festival (RockyGrass) held in Lyons.
“We won Telluride pretty exclusively based on the strength of our original material,” explains Alex Johnstone, who plays both mandolin and fiddle in Spring Creek. “People are learning our tunes now and that’s so exciting.”
Though they clearly appeal to traditional bluegrass fans, the Spring Creek musicians mix in a little something for everyone at their live shows. Expect to hear an Elton John or Gillian Welch cover squeezed in between a blazing fast Carter Stanley instrumental and a rip roarin’ Bill Monroe tune. Band mates agree that they want to have a hand in initiating younger audiences into the bluegrass fold.
“I’m into the idea of playing for general audiences where people might be exposed to traditional bluegrass for the first time,” says Chris Elliott, who in addition to his band’s win at RockyGrass, also celebrated earning top honors in the festival’s banjo instrument contest.
“When I first saw younger people playing bluegrass, I thought, ‘Wow, this could be really cool,’” says Elliott. “If more young people are exposed to bluegrass at the right time, they’ll like it too.”
“We really want all generations to appreciate bluegrass,” agrees bassist Jessica Smith. “Some kids think it’s just sleepy music for older people. We show them that we have real energy and passion; we show them that it’s something special.”
Following up on 2006’s Rural & Cosmic Bluegrass, Spring Creek released Lonesome Way to Go in March 2008 and their third disc,Way Up on a Mountain on Rebel Records in May 2009. This 12-track album of kickin’ Colorado bluegrass has charmed fans, critics, DJs and festival producers alike with its expert vocals, instrumental work and impressive writing.
“Spring Creek has redefined what can be accomplished on acoustic instruments,” says Chris Kelly of the Crested Butte Weekly. “They are an act not to be missed, as their constant live performances have allowed them to become a tight-knit musical ensemble.”
“On stage, the band has real chemistry,” says Kelly. “Through mutual stimulation and stage-fed adrenaline and energy, the band can thrust itself into an acoustic frenzy!”

Paul Geremia – Acclaimed Country Blues Fingerpicker
2009-10-05 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Blues Legend Springs Surprise Martin Show
by Henry Kingman
One of the world’s greatest living bluesmen will appear at The Martin Hotel this Saturday. Tickets for the 7 PM show, which was confirmed mere days ago, cost only $10, with all proceeds
going to the musician.
Paul Geremia has been a working musician for forty-three years. He plays finger-style country blues on 6- and 12-string guitars, accompanied at times by mouth harp and verse sung like he means it.
Something of a purist, Geremia plays with high fidelity to the masters – Robert Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Mississippi John Hurt, Howlin’ Wolf, Charlie Patton, and scores of others. In a life on the road, he has managed to dodge mainstream fame and fortune, while racking up more miles, friends, and musical accomplices than anyone but perhaps Ramblin’ Jack Elliot or Woodie Guthrie. Geremia is definitely in it for the music.
Besides playing the masters, Geremia writes original material, and has recorded about a dozen solo albums. His idiosyncratic style celebrates crooked beats, and musical quotes, asides, and humor. Some of the lyrics are pretty funny, too.
Between songs, Geremia likes to share his views on life, the times, and particularly the history of the blues. Things never get too dry or academic, though, because the stories are all so personal. Geremia has at some point played or recorded with every country blues picker from Piedmont to the Delta, it seems.
Geremia is himself a third-generation Italian American hailing from Providence, Rhode Island – the Providence Delta,” he likes to joke. Unusually for a “blues legend” of his stature, Geremia books his own shows, tours alone, and stays mostly with friends. He learned about the Martin from Roy Book Binder, who apparently described it as the best venue in the entire West.
We couldn’t agree more, and hope a good crowd will turn out, despite the last-minute notice, to appreciate one of the all-time greats in a rare West Coast appearance. The show is Saturday, May 30, 7 PM at the Martin Hotel on Railroad Street. Tickets are $10, and available now at the Martin, or at Nature’s Corner on Winnemucca Blvd.

Caleb Klauder and his All Star County Band
2009-09-26 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Caleb is coming back to Winnemucca, this time bringing his all-star band. One our our favorite people, a great musician, wonderful singer, and a song writer with an old beautiful soul, Caleb’s newest record “Dangerous Mes and Poisonous Yous” is spinkled with old standards, and mixed with his new songs, and it is impossible to know the difference. If you haven’t heard it, have a listen.
Caleb Klauder is bringing along a great band, made up of friends from Portland, and interestingly enough, nearly all of them have played the Martin before, but with other bands. Jesse Emerson of Amelia will be here on bass, Paul Brainard the great petal steel player that performs often with Richmond Fontaine, Sophie Vitells of the Crooked Jades will be on fiddle, Sammy Lind of Foghorn will be on guitar. The only stranger (to us) in the group is drummer Ned Folkerth who drums for Caleb as well as with the Lewi Longmire Band, Spigot, the Pinetop Seven, and few others.
Caleb Klauder’s warm sound, authentic and familiar, feels all at once contemporary and vintage, as though it’s coming from the porch next-door. Raised between Orcas Island, Washington and Little Cumberland, Georgia, Klauder took his first steps in Knoxville. If his music could invent a genre, it would be New-school Americana, infusing old standards with Northwestern attitude and spinning out modern classics made elegant with Southern charm.
Klauder writes his rough-hewn lyrics among the chickens scratching in his garden in Portland, Oregon, where he works as a musician and carpenter and is raising his 13-year-old son, Elijah. Winner of the Best Country Album of 2007 at the Portland Music Awards, Caleb Klauder has been on tour for the last fifteen years performing with Calobo, Pig Iron, The Caleb Klauder Band, The Foghorn Stringband, and with Dirk Powell. He’s opened for acts such as JJ Cale, Iris Dement, David Bromberg, and the Del McCoury Band and has shared the stage with Tim O’Brien, Kevin Burke, The Wilders, Uncle Earl, and Justin Townes Earle. Klauder regularly collaborates with Dirk Powell, Riley Baugus, Betse Ellis, Reyna Gellert, and Justin Townes Earle.
Klauder has toured extensively with both the Foghorn Stringband and the Caleb Klauder Country Band throughout the US, the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Malaysia playing a variety of stages including the Tonder Music Festival, the Newport Folk Festival, the Rainforest World Music Festival, the Chicago Folk and Roots Festival, Pick-a-thon Roots Music Festival, The Seattle Folk Life Festival, The Bristol Rhythm and Roots Festival, Bumbershoot and the ROMP Festival.

Victoria Matlock ~ Broadway in Winnemucca
2009-09-08 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
On her way from California to New York where she will appear in the new upcoming Broadway play “The First Wives Club,” Victoria Matlock has agreed to present a concert in Winnemucca. The concert is scheduled for 7pm on the evening of September 8th and will be at the Martin Hotel. Tickets are available at the Martin and Nature’s Corner at a cost of $10.
Some reviewers of The First Wives Club have had this to say:
TheatreMania — “an impressive Victoria Matlock”
Talkin’ Bway — “Matlock has a terrific voice”
The music in the Winnemucca concert will primarily come from The Marvelous ‘Wonderettes,’ Ms Matlock’s last play. Wonderettes features popular music songs from the fifties and sixties including such old favorites as: “Mr. Sandman,” “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover,” “Stupid Cupid,” “Lipstick on Your Collar.” Ms. Matlock was a member of the original cast of ‘Wonderettes’ and appears in the original cast recording (available from Amazon).

In her ten years as a professional actress Victoria Matlock has played in numerous other productions including:
Wicked (she played Elphaba, the lead in the national tour),
Evita (National Tour),
The Full Monty (National Tour),
Cats (Grizabella, who sings ‘Memories’),
Godspell,
The Sound of Music,
Baby Case, and more.
In 2007 she sang the National Anthem at a nationally televised game of the Boston Red Sox.
Ms Matlock is a graduate of the University of Northern Colorado where she majored in musical theater and computer science. Like other actresses she primarily lives ‘on the road,’ but she is officially a resident of Winnemucca where she owns a home. More information about her is available on her web site: www.victoriamatlock.com.
For this performance Ms. Matlock will be accompanied on the piano by long term Winnemucca resident Jeannette Jones.
There will be time between songs for the audience to ask questions. Here is an opportunity for young people (or the young at heart) interested in the stage to learn from a professional about the New York scene, auditioning, finding an agent, education, etc.
This concert is being presented under the joint sponsorship of Great Basin Arts and Entertainment and the White Sage Theater. The text of this press release was created by Victoria’s very proud father, John Matlock of Winnemucca. John is the primary producer of the plays staged and performed by the White Sage Theater.

Ray Abshire ~ Authentic Cajun Music
2009-08-29 19:30 - 21:30 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Ray Abshire is one of Cajun music’s purest accordionists and vocalists and a living link to it’s very roots. A member of one of Louisiana’s legendary musical families, Ray grew up surrounded by Cajun music’s pioneer artists. He has performed with most all of the old masters whose recordings now form the texts for students of today. In 1975, while at the pinnacle of Cajun music as accordionist with the legendary “Balfa Brothers Band” and helping to open windows for Cajun music in the nation’s musical consciousness, Ray left the bandstand. Abshire’s return to the stage has been hailed by both critics and fans alike. He is once again at the forefront and sharing his knowledge and skills with a new generation.
Recognized as a master musician and one of the resurgence leaders of Cajun music, Ray now enjoys conducting workshops, teaching at music camps and performing at major festivals both nationally and abroad. Ray’s music is unfiltered and has it’s own wholesome electricity. He plays it the way it was handed down to him and understands the importance of preserving one of this nation’s great “folk” musics. Each and every time you attend a Ray Abshire performance you are guaranteed the “real deal”!

Literary Nevada: Writings from the Silver State
2009-08-10 19:00 - 2009-10-05 21:00 | NV
Cheryll Glotfelty, CASE-Carnegie Professor of the Year for Nevada and Associate Professor of English, University of Nevada, Reno, will be holding a series of public humanities talks and conversations in Northern Nevada based on Literary Nevada: Writings from the Silver State. Literary Nevada is the first comprehensive anthology of Nevada literature. The events are co-sponsored by Nevada Humanities and the University of Nevada Press.
Talks will discuss Nevada through the lens of its literary heritage and include a conversation with the audience about Nevada’s stories. A focal point of the conversation will be about living in Nevada and its rural communities, and the stories that help us “re-see” our place.
Cheryll Glotfelty has published widely on western American literature in periodicals, essay collections, and reference works. Twelve years of literary sleuth-work went into the making of Literary Nevada: Writings from the Silver State, recently published by the University of Nevada Press.
“This book is a wonderful gift to Nevada’s people, to westerners in general, and to a confused nation seeking to understand its roots. It’s full of vivid, compelling storytelling that can lead readers to an imaginative understanding of Nevada and western life and literature as they have evolved. This is a very special defining book. We inhabit our own nation, and its literature is beginning to get due recognition. This book will be an important part of that movement.”
–William Kittredge, editor of The Last Best Place: A Montana Anthology

The Crooked Jades Familiar Old-Time Embraced by the Strange
2009-08-07 19:30 - 21:30 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
“Grounded in tradition, old-time string band music and mountain blues but with open horizons that take them, subtly, to other parts of the planet, they have a haunting spookiness, an organic pulse, and most importantly a clear vision…Instrumentally they’re truly inspiring, getting original textures out of conventional stringband instruments and mixing them with (in this context) oddities like bass ukulele, harmonium, mbira, cello and Vietnamese jaw harp and bau zither. Vocally, they have that lonesome white blues sound which has its ancestry in Dock Boggs and the Carters but again they take it somewhere else…a consistently startling and addictive album.”
– The Crooked Jades “Shining Darkness” Reviewed by Ian Anderson
in UK magazine f ROOTS
Performing driving dance tunes and haunting ballads with an amazing array of vintage and eclectic instruments, The Crooked Jades are modern innovators in the old-time Americana world, creating a cinematic sound based on Americana roots infused with the diverse musical influences of Europe and Africa.
On a mission to reinvent old world music, they bring their soulful performances (brilliantly suprising arrangements of obscure old tunes mixed with beautiful original compositions) to clubs, concert halls and festivals around the united States and Europe.
Based in San Francisco, founded by leader Jeff Kazor and nurtured by the vibrant West coast, California and Ba Area bluegrass and old-time music scenes, the Crooked Jades play with a thrilling and hyponotic energy which has inspired director Sean Penn to include a turn from World’s on Fire ih his most recent film Into the Wild, fans on their feet dancing and critics comparing them to everyone from the New Lost City Ramblers and The Pouges to Nick Cave, Tom Waits, and Gillian Welch.
Appealing as much to the pierced generation as to their great-grandparents, this is sepia tones, bent angles, unexpected accents, unanticipated sounds. It’s banjo ukeuleles, minstrel banjos, plucked fiddles, bowed basses, Hawaiian slide guitars, harmoniums and Vietnamese jaw harps together in fiery, artful, harmony.

Jackstraw ~ Bluegrass
2009-05-04 19:00 - 2009-05-16 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
When Jackstraw last performed to a sold out house at the Martin Hotel in December 2005, the audience, along with Jesse, Dave, Jon, and Darrin, were all left breathless, and grinning from ear to ear. We’ve had dozen’s of astonishing shows and hundreds of talented artists perform on our stage and these guys are right at the top. We can’t think of anything more joyous than spending another evening with Jackstraw.
A stand-up bass, mandolin, and two guitars, this is a bluegrass band with a unique approach to traditional bluegrass and traditional county music along with a suitcase full of great original tunes.
Intensity, dexterity, and pure joy
It’s what they call: High Energy Acoustic Bluegrass from the Pacific Northwest.
Give them a listen at Jackstraw’s MySpace page.
SEATS FOR THIS SHOW ARE BOUND TO SELL-OUT SO GET YOURS TODAY!
About Jackstraw
After ten years on the road and five albums, Jackstraw is a Northwest institution. This coal-fired Portland quartet plays the kind of music as deep and old as the silt washing out of a defunct Appalachian strip mine. Most of the time it’s bluegrass, but not always. As often as the boys rip through a Stanley Brothers chestnut, they tap into their own deep collection of originals, swerve into honky-tonk or barn-burn a rock ‘n roll classic.
Throughout the band’s history, critics have been quick to praise their energy and speed, often drawing comparisons to punk music. It’s true, Jackstraw does play fast. But the band never replaces musical depth and feeling with showmanship. Jackstraw is not afraid to explore new territory, but they won’t turn on their musical forbears and the hallmarks of bluegrass –great songs, great picking, and great singing. It is this steadfast adherence to their principles that has kept Jackstraw fans coming back for a decade and consistently wins the band new hearts.
A Jackstraw show is truly an inclusive, multi-generational experience. The band’s devoted following includes bluegrass purists, alt-country fans, kids who want to dance, and people who know a good tune when they hear one. Jackstraw was born when rhythm guitarist Darrin Craig and lead player Jon Neufeld met mandolin picker David Pugh and bassist Jesse Withers in 1997 at Artichoke Music, a Portland guitar store and acoustic music institution. Not long after their formation, Jackstraw recorded their first album and hit the road.
Five records later, the band has toured throughout the United States, playing roadhouses, listening rooms and clubs as well as festival stages. Along the way, they have shared bills with many bluegrass greats such as Del McCoury and Tim O’Brien and included legends like Danny Barnes (Bill Frissell, Robert Earl Keen, Bad Livers) and Tony Furtado (Earl Scruggs, Alison Krauss) as temporary band mates.

Colin Ross ~ Evolution of the Blues
2009-04-18 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
Evolution of the Blues is a presentation sponsored in part by the Nevada Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius
From its earliest roots to contemporary musical fusion, the Blues is the common thread in American music. Drawing from a vast repertoire of music played on a variety of traditional instruments, Colin Ross puts on an unforgettable show.
The show traces the history of the blues through an astonishing variety of styles. Whether it is energetic old time stride and boogie, the harmonic complexity of Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington, the gentle roll of Mississippi John Hurt, or the driving sting of Muddy Waters, the music is played with uncompromising technique, integrity, and soul.
Reno based composer and multi-instrumentalist Colin Ross plays a large and ever-shifting repertoire of original music, jazz standards and blues classics. Beginning with classical piano at the age of five, Colin has continued to study and grow throughout his career, playing a variety of instruments and styles. While maintaining a full time performance schedule, Colin has recorded and released five CDs on his own label, Oharaross Productions. Colin’s band features piano, electric, acoustic, 12-string and slide guitars, bass, drums, percussion, vocal harmonies, winds, and various folk and electronic instruments.
$10 Tickets are ON SALE NOW at The Martin Hotel and Nature’s Corner.
Here is a brief video of the “Evolution of the Blues Show” at the Brewery Arts Center in Carson City.

Chris Cain ~ Blues Guitar Master
2009-03-14 19:00 - 21:00 | Martin Hotel, 94 W Railroad St, Winnemucca, NV, 89445
$10 Tickets are ON SALE NOW
at Nature’s Corner and The Martin Hotel
Chris Cain’s jazz-tinged, blues soaked guitar and deep, warm vocals have the maturity and authenticity of bluesmen many years his senior. His expressive style is the result of a lifetime of study and the relentless pursuit of music mastery. His passion and intensity are a blend of his mother’s Greek ancestry and his father’s soulful black heritage.
Cain was raised on stories of his father’s childhood upbringing on Memphis’ Historic Beale Street and attended his first B.B. King concert at the tender age of three. Blues music played continuously on the home stereo and family outings were often trips to concerts. Cain recalls, “I remember when I was a kid, my Dad would be mowing the lawn with the stereo blasting Muddy Waters. When I look back, that was pretty cool! There was always music playing at our house, Ray Charles, B.B. King, Freddie King, Albert King, all the greats.”
At the age of eight, Cain taught himself to play guitar and began playing professionally before he was eighteen. Chris studied music at San Jose City College, and was soon teaching jazz improvisation on campus. Over the next twenty years, Cain would also master piano, bass guitar, clarinet, alto and tenor saxophone. The combination of his blues upbringing and his jazz studies melded to form the searing guitar style that sets Chris Cain apart and has moved him to the top ranks of the blues music scene.
Cain’s debut recording, Late Night City Blues (Blue Rock’it Records-1987) garnered four W.C. Handy Blues Award nominations, including “Guitarist of the Year”. Dan Forte of Guitar Player wrote, “An impressive debut album by a top notch guitarist.” Cain’s next two releases; “Cuttin Loose” (Blind Pig Records-1990) and “Can’t Buy a Break” (Blind Pig Records-1992) collected a long list of awards and accolades. In August of 1995 Blind Pig released “Somewhere Along the Way” his 4th compilation of his unique brand of original music sophisticated blues, funk, jazz and gospel.
In 2003 Patrick Ford produced Chris’s latest CD, “Hall Of Shame” (Blue Rock’it Records-2003). “…this is now the sixth Chris Cain solo release I have produced, not to mention his work with me on projects like the Ford Blues Bands’ “In Memory Of Michael Bloomfield” CD, and I continue to be in awe of his incredible talent. As a guitarist/singer, Chris has been praised by mentors like Albert King and peers like Robben Ford.”
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Larry Nager (syndicated Scripts-Howard music critic) writes, “Nowadays most young blues players are Strat-wielding Stevie Ray Vaughan-a-bes. Not Chris Cain. With a voice that recalls B.B. King and a thick toned Gibson guitar sound reminiscent of Albert King, Cain is forging a unique style. With his own highly personalized songwriting, “Hall Of Shame” is a giant step in the development of one of the most compelling young bluesmen on today’s scene.”
Through his guitar mastery and remarkable songwriting ability, Chris Cain has established himself as a musical force to be reckoned with. And as San Jose Mercury News music reviewer John Orr writes, “more than anyone else, anywhere, Chris Cain represents the future of the blues.”
