Best of 2011 Compilations – Sneak Peek!

Yeah, Stu Reid’s still the king of graphic design (and just about everything else we try to do), but I gotta say, I’m pretty damn pleased with the artwork for this year’s Best of compilations. I struggled with coming up with something for a long time, and then it appeared to me almost instantly – K-Tell Records presents.

Without further adieu, here’s the covers for the 3 discs in the package. Now, I just have to finish actually putting those together!

Please leave a comment or drop us a line if you have thoughts or suggestions.

Episode #423 Sunday, December 18, 2011

It’s our last show before Santa slides down the chimney, so it’s time for our annual run-through of classic carols and oddball favourites. Merry Christmas to all!

Artist – Song title – Album Title – CDN=Canadian – WPG=Winnipeg artist

2:00pm – 2:30pm

Jesse DeNatale – Deck the Halls – demo
Oliver Schroer – Beneath the Ice, They Heard Bells – Stuck on a Cold Steel Pole – CDN
Skydiggers – Good King Wenceslas – Still Restless: The Lost Tapes – CDN
Glen Campbell – O Holy Night – Home for the Holidays
T. Nile – Christmas Light – single – CDN
Matthew Ryan and The Christmas Toddies – It’s Christmas Time – single

2:30 – 3:00 pm

Mary Gauthier – Christmas In Paradise – Season of Mercy
Gretchen Peters – December Child – Northern Lights
Oh Susanna – It Came Upon a Midnight Clear – CMT Christmas – CDN
Robert Earl Keen – Happy Holidays Y’all – Walking Distance
The Pogues & Kirsty MacColl – Fairytale of New York – The Very Best of the Pogues
Diamond Rugs – Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant – single

3:00 – 3:30 pm

Swank – Santa Claus Is Out on Bail – Christmas Is Fun! – CDN
Ox – XMas in the Jailhouse – Silent Night and other Cowboy Songs – CDN
Drive-By Truckers – Hope Santa’s Out of Rehab for Christmas – Stu & Kathy Present a Ding Dong Dandy Christmas (2004)
The Arrogant Worms – Santa’s Gonna Kick Your Ass – Hindsight 20/20 – CDN
Weird Al Yankovic – The Night Santa Went Crazy – The Essential
Loretta Lynn – To Heck With Ole Santa Claus – A Truer Xmas 2
Buck Owens & Susan Raye – Santa Looked A Lot Like Daddy – A Truer Christmas
Erin McKeown – Santa is an Asshole – F*ck That! Erin McKeown’s Anti-Holiday Album

3:30 – 4:00 PM

Harper Blynn – Christmas Ain’t No Good Without You – single
Paul Kelly – How to Make Gravy – Words and Music
Paul Kelly – Christmas Must Be Tonight – Won’t You Come Around EP
The Kelele Brothers – Father Christmas – Zunior Holiday Collection 2004 – CDN
Kasey Chambers, Poppa Bill And The Little Hillbillies – Christmas Time – Little Kasey Chambers and The Lost Music

2011 Interesting Albums

I’m starting the long, painful process of making those “top 10” lists that us nerds are expected to make.

Here’s a list of SOME Of the albums that I’ve returned to over the year, or have pegged to listen to again, before making that ever-insignificant list. They’re certainly not in any ranking order yet (just the order they appear in iTunes or in the pile on my desk)

The Belle Brigade – The Belle Brigade
Steven Bowers – Beothuk Words
Gurf Morlix – Blaze Foley’s 113th Wet Dream
Lucinda Williams – Blessed
Matt Andersen – Coal Mining Blues
Elliott BROOD – Days Into Years
John Hiatt – Dirty Jeans and Mudslide Hymns
Deer Tick – Divine Providence
Fish & Bird – Every Whisper Is A Shout Across The Void
Drive-By Truckers – Go Go Boots
Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – Here We Rest
Matthew Ryan – I Recall Standing As Though Nothing Could Fall
Steve Earle – I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive
The Decemberists – The King Is Dead
Blackie & The Rodeo Kings – Kings and Queens
David Francey – The Late Edition
The Warped 45s – Matador Sunset
Middle Brother – Middle Brother
Scott Nolan – Montgomery Eldorado
The Damnwells – No One Listens to the Band Anymore
Dawes – Nothing Is Wrong
Oh Susanna – Soon The Birds
Kasey Chambers – Storybook
Ron Hawkins – Straitjacket Love
Sunparlour Players – Us Little Devils
Christina Martin & Dale Murray – A House Concert
Romi Mayes – Lucky Tonight
Brock Zeman – Me Then You
Catherine MacLellan – Silhouette
Bobby Long – A Winter Tale
Glen Campbell – Ghost on the canvas

Live Shows 2011

It’s always a bit stressful trying to whittle down the list of shows I saw in a year to the 10 best. Every single show I’ve been to has been inspiring in its own way, and all have given me a break from the real world for a while. I’m eternally grateful for all of the people on the list for all of the joy they brought to me this year.

As always, I love hearing what you saw this year that really moved you, so if you have any favourites, recommendations, comments, stories, etc., please post a comment or drop me a line!

Here’s the full list (up to now):

Live Shows 2011

January 15 – James McMurtry & Del BarberOld Town School of Folk Music, Chicago (early and late shows)
January 22 – Del BarberTimes Change(d)
February 16 – Twang Trust FunDrive Spectacular (Hatcher-Briggs, Scott Nolan, Keri Latimer, etc.) – Lo Pub
March 5 – Jim Bryson & The WeakerthansWest End Cultural Centre
March 6 – Jim Bryson & The WeakerthansFalcon Trails Resort
April 1 – James McMurtry & The Bottle Rockets400 Bar, Minneapolis
April 3 – Catherine Maclellan house concert
April 9 – Del Barber & Jenn GrantPark Theatre
April 16 – The Damnwells & Harper BlynnThe Hub, Cedar Falls, Iowa
April 17 – The Damnwells & Harper Blynn7th St. Entry, Minneapolis
May 13 – Kate Maki & Fred SquireStuDome
May 13 – Chris Carmichael Band w/ Andrina Turenne & Damon MitchellTimes Change(d)
May 20 – Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings w/ Black Joe Lewis & The HoneybearsThe Garrick
May 28 – Hayes CarllFolk Fest in-store
May 29 – U2 & The FrayStadium
June 2 – Bands vs. Filmmakers with John K Samson, Nathan, The Jaxon 3, The Shallow EndWest End Cultural Centre
June 9 – Del Barber & Meaghan SmithWest End Cultural Centre
June 17 – Jack Marks Times Change(d)
June 18 – Chris CarmichaelSunset Saloon
June 24 – Woody Holler & His OrchestraTimes Change(d) (Jazz Fest, early and late shows)
June 25 – Colin LindenTimes Change(d) (Jazz Fest, early and late shows)
July 1 & 2 – The Warped 45s, Ayla Brook, The Heartbroken, Joshua Cockerill, Joe ElyDauphin Countryfest
July 3 – Warped 45s & Joshua CockerillStuDome
July 6-10 – Winnipeg Folk Festival
July 11 – Chuck ProphetStuDome
July 20 – Gillian WelchFitzgerald Theatre, St. Paul, Minn.
July 22 – Steve Earle w/ The Dukes & The DuchessesBig Top Chataqua, Bayfield, WI
August 4-7 – Edmonton Folk Festival
August 9 – Lyle Lovett & His Large BandWalker Theatre
August 11 – NQ Arbuckle & Carolyn MarkTimes Change(d)
August 12-14 – Trout Forest Music Festival
August 14 – Chris IsaakConcert Hall
August 16 – Brandi CarlileFargo Theatre
August 20 – NathanRiver Barge Festival
August 28 – Fish & BirdThe Cyrk
September 16 – Romi Mayes CD/Vinyl Release & Documentary Viewing – Park Theatre
September 21 – Matt Andersen & Del BarberWest End Cultural Centre
October 1 – James McMurtryPark Theatre
October 12 – David FranceyPark Theatre
October 21 – Jory NashSunset Saloon
October 29 – Elliott BROOD w/ 100 DollarsWest End Cultural Centre
November 9 – Tom Wilson w/ Carleton StoneWest End Cultural Centre
November 21 – Brock Zeman house concert
November 26 – Hatcher-Briggs, Wendy Bird & Friends – The Pyramid
December 13 – Scott Nolan live recording (with Matt Budaloski of Leaderhouse) – Park Theatre

Upcoming plans:
December 23 – The New MeaniesPyramid
December 31 – Motel 75 ReunionBella Vista

TTBTGH/SBR Interview guests, 2011

Looking back at the year, we had some pretty amazing guests, as usual. All of them are available as downloadable podcasts on the Downloads Page, or at the iTunes feed. Check out the ones you missed or revisit some favourites!

Let us know which was your favourite? Which was a bomb? Who should we try to get next year?

Here’s the rough list (so far):

Jan 13 – Steel Belted – Romi Mayes & Jason Nowicki
Feb 3 – Steel Belted – Tom Wilson (phoner)
Feb 24 – Steel Belted – Trevor Strong (Arrogant Worms) (phoner)
March 3 – Steel Belted – Mae Moore (phoner)
March 20 – Martyn Joseph (phoner)
March 27 – Del Barber (phoner)
April 3 – Catherine MacLellan (w/Del Barber)
April 10 – Taylor Ashton (Fish & Bird)
April 28 – Steel Belted – Geoff Berner (phoner)
May 22 – Paul MacLeod (phoner)
May 29 – Oh Susanna (phoner)
June 5 – Del Barber, Ron from Lockport (UMFM Open House)
June 30 – Steel Belted – The Warped 45s
Aug. 11 – Steel Belted – NQ Arbuckle & Carolyn Mark
Aug. 14 – Edmonton Folk Fest (Deer Tick, Lissie, Secret Sisters)
Aug. 28 – Fish & Bird
Sept. 15 – Romi Mayes
Sept. 22 – Steel Belted – Lindy
Sept. 25 – James McMurtry
Sept. 29 – Steel Belted – Jesse Dee & Jacquie B., Bull Kelp
Oct. 2 – Ramblin’ Dan Frechette
Oct. 9 – David Francey (phoner)
Nov. 24 – Steel Belted – Jeffrey Hatcher
Dec. 8 – Steel Belted – JD Edwards
Dec. 11 – Scott Nolan & Joanna Miller

Proud to be among the .5% (Support LIVE MUSIC!)

Two big events tonight, and I’m sure they were both amazing, but I can only speak to one.

Our Winnipeg Jets took on the best team in the league, and won. That’s something, and I’m sure it was an exciting game to watch. Truth be told, I would have loved to be there, I’m sure. Tim Shorten should get some kind of medal for giving up rink-side seats. I bet nobody missed Tim at the game, but I sure was happy to see him (and his lovely wife Erin) at the Park Theatre, instead. There’s never any doubt that all 15,000 seats will be full at every single Jets game for the next 3-5 years (at least.) And folks will pay anywhere from $75-250 PER SEAT to go.

But how come it is that in this great city, we can’t find 100 people willing to pay $10 to see Scott Nolan & Joanna Miller record a live album (not to mention the rare solo, piano performance by Scott’s Leaderhouse bandmate Matthew Budaloski)?

I’m not a math teacher (thank God, although the way things have been going for me at school, you never know what’s next), but I can do the math on this one. Less than 1% of the folks dishing out to see the Jets went to that show. Hell, it was closer to .5%, and there was a big guest list (I’m actually quite pleased that I wasn’t on it.)

How much does the shittiest, most bench-warming player on the Jets make? I know the stars make millions, but I gotta bet that the guy who carries the hockey bags makes more than Scott Nolan. I’m absolutely certain that he makes more than Joanna Miller. But for my money, Scott and Jo are worth so much more. Sure, the Jets do dazzle and there’s nothing like being in that rabid crowd at a game, but there’s nothing like great live music, either.

Scott and Jo are out there working their asses off night after night for less than the Jets office staff make. Think Mark Chipman ever camped his RV van in a Wal-Mart parking lot, and was happy about it? Nope. Scott and Jo do, and with pride.

I don’t really even know the point of the rant anymore, except that it ain’t fair that a couple of folks who have brought so much joy into my ears and heart over the years don’t even register on the radar of the vast majority of those 15,000 some folks at the arena tonight. None of the Jets would ever take the time to honestly thank you for your support. Sure, they do the public appearances (when contractually obligated), but “thank you” is just a line they’ve learned to dish out. Are any of them really grateful for your support?

I know musicians are. Why? Because they’re real people too. They know what it’s like to work for a living and what it’s like to have to decide between buying groceries and a night of entertainment. It’s actually quite funny to me when musicians thank me (directly or as part of a crowd) for the support. I can’t even begin to explain how much these songs and these talented people have brought to my life. How many times I’ve escaped or dreamed or been inspired by a song. How much it means to me when someone with amazing talent knows my name or takes the time to chat with me. You want to thank me for that? Nah. THANK YOU.

I wish that there were more people who appreciated real, down-to-earth, talented, inspiring musicians. I’m not perfect; I get lazy sometimes and don’t go to shows or don’t show my support when I could. But I get it. I’m grateful. And I’ll keep doing what I can so that great people can continue to make great music. Since you took the time to read this, I bet you will too.

Hope to see you at a show some time.

Episode #422 Sunday, December 11, 2011

Today we’re big on gifts & guests, as we get in the holiday spirit by giving away CDs & tickets aplenty, and we welcome Scott Nolan & Joanna Miller, who are set to record a new live album on Tuesday, and who released one of this year’s best local albums, Montgomery Eldorado.

The Wooden Sky – Christmas All Over Again – Ho Ho Ho Canada III – CDN
The Wooden Sky – Take Me Out – City of Light EP – CDN
Gretchen Peters w/ Rodney Crowell – Dark Angel – Hello Cruel World
Jeffrey Foucault – Everybody’s Famous – Horse Latitudes
Jeffrey Foucault – Real Love – single
Nikki Lane – Hard Livin’ – Walk of Shame

2:30 – 3:00 pm

Kate Reid – Captain Cupcake & The Cambie Hotel – Doing It for the Chicks – CDN
The Burning Hell – My Name Is Mathias – Flux Capacitor – CDN
The Magnificent 7s – Needle in the Hay – All Kinds of Mean – CDN – WPG
The Magnificent 7s – Blue and Feelin’ – All Kinds of Mean – CDN – WPG
The JD Edwards Band – Roads and Roads – Roads and Roads – CDN – WPG
Fish & Bird – Winnipeg – Every Whisper Is a Shout Across the Void – CDN
Romi Mayes – Ball & Chain – Lucky Tonight – CDN – WPG
Del Barber – Believe Me Believe Me – Live at the Old Town School of Folk Music Chicago 2011 – CDN – WPG

3:00 – 3:30 pm

Hayes Carll – Grateful for Christmas – 45 RPM single
John Prine – Christmas in Prison – A John Prine Christmas
Mary Gauthier – Christmas in Paradise – Live On The Air 1998 – 2004
Merle Haggard – If We Make It Through December – Live At Billy Bob’s Texas: Motorcycle Cowboy
Scott Nolan – Drive Day – Montgomery Eldorado – CDN – WPG

3:30 – 4:00 pm

Scott Nolan – Ain’t that Just What You Get – live performance – CDN – WPG
Scott Nolan – Curls and Curves – live performance – CDN – WPG
Scott Nolan – Halloween in NYC – live performance – CDN – WPG
Scott Nolan – Montgomery Eldorado – Montgomery Eldorado – CDN – WPG

December 11 on TTBTGH

Greetings, friends!

It’s been a while since I dropped you a line, so I thought I’d say hi and tell you what’s going on in the world behind the scenes at Tell the Band to Go Home. Since we kicked off last week’s show with How to Make Gravy, it’s officially the holiday season, so we’ll be pulling out some non-crappy, oddball holiday favourites in the next few weeks. If you’re looking for the coolest, most oddball music of the year, you never need to look any further than our old pal Stu’s annual Christmas compilation: http://twangtrust.ca/pages/xmas11.html

And speaking of compilations, I’m thinking about the 10th annual best-of-the-year compilation. There were plenty of great albums and songs released this year, and it seems stupid to quit spreading the good word now, so we’ll be putting something together soon (I hope.) There was some thought about not doing it this year, we’ve got no time, no money, no printer, no cover-art ideas, blah blah, but it’s fun, so I’ll figure something out. If you have any favourites from the year, help me to whittle down the list and let me know what I should be considering. Oh, and if you happen to want to help design a cover or something, there’s no money in it for you, and very little glory, but the job is available… I’m hoping to have something available, at least digitally, in the next couple of weeks, with physical copies hopefully ready over the holidays. Stay tuned.

The one compilation that’s never hard to put together is the Live on UMFM collection, which is looking pretty great this year, because we’ve had some pretty swell in-studio guests. Today on the show, we’ll add one more stellar artist, as our old buddy Scott Nolan is hoping to drop by and play us some songs and encourage you to go to the Park Theatre on Tuesday, where he’ll be recording a new live album! Scott’s always great, but this sounds like an extra special night, including a super rare solo appearance by his old Leaderhouse band mate (and the guy who sat beside me in High School Science class,) Matt Budaloski. That should be super great.

And, I do believe that Scott’s going to give away some tickets, so get your dialing fingers ready. As if that weren’t enough, we have some more tickets to give away to the CD release for the fine new record by The JD Edwards Band! That show goes down Saturday night at the West End, and I know I’m really looking forward to it, so I’d encourage you to call in and win tickets to that, or get your own (they’re only $10!) I’ll try to dig up some more CDs to give away, or whatever else is cluttering up my extra-cluttered basement. All we ask in return is that you give a donation to Winnipeg Harvest when you pick up your prize. We’ve got a donation bin at the station which, between you and me, could use a little help, so drop by some time, or, for an extra generous donation (or some tasty treats for me…), I’ll be glad to drop a prize off to you. I still remember long ago driving for what seemed like days, trying to find Zenon & Melissa’s house waaaaaayyy out in Transcona for the first time. That worked out great, so if you want the convenience of home delivery, we can arrange that for you.

That’s all the news that’s fit to email, so we’ll sign off. Hope things are going well for you & yours. Hopefully we’ll meet up for some festive fun one of these days.

All the best,

JR

Join me for:
Tell the Band to Go Home
Sundays, 2-4 pm central
www.tellthebandtogohome.com
Steel Belted Radio
Thursdays, 6:30 – 8 pm central
www.steelbeltedradio.com

CJUM 101.5 UMFM
Winnipeg, Manitoba
www.umfm.com

Even though it’s the holidays and we’re trying to be positive, we have to remind you of the FJE clause, which states that if an artist decides that I’m the nastiest guy he’s ever met, he may decide to stiff me on an interview from time to time. I don’t think that’s the case with this week’s guest, but he did get mad at me once for saying bad stuff about Neil Young, so you never know.

Steel Belted Radio, December 8, 2011

It’s been a great year for Winnipeg music, but there’s another great disc yet to come, with the release of Roads and Roads by The JD Edwards Band. JD drops by to chat about the new disc and the upcoming CD release show. We’ve got plenty of other great local music, including previews of upcoming exciting shows by The Magnificent 7s, Scott Nolan, and The New Meanies. And, we drop a couple of new holiday classics.

playlist
[download id=”79″] (JD Edwards)
[download id=”80″]

December 4, 2011

Lots to celebrate today, including some great new music, some exciting upcoming shows, the Canadian Folk Music Awards, and the official start of the holiday favourites.

playlist
[download id=”77″]
[download id=”78″]