Sunday, December 28, 2008

Ain't No Hole in the Washtub!



holiday blooper reel from the best christmas movie ever made. i remember being 5 years old living in my grandparents attic while our house was being built and watching this while drinking a juicy juice juicebox and eating spaghettios. best times.

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Bruuuuuuce!



Yep, thats me in the background singing and playing the bells. What an awesome night!

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Merry Christmas Baby!

I just want to wish everyone a merry christmas, happy holiday, and a very awesome new year in 09. This year has been the most surreal thing that I've ever known. Just did the Hope Benefit at the Count Basie theatre with jon bon jovi and bruce springsteen. whoaaaaaaaaaaaa! the place was insane. it was just so awesome to see a few generations of jersey artists and see how much affect they have on people. i really can't even explain it. me and brian from the gaslight anthem were kinda just standing on the side like dude, this is insane. i'm really glad they included me and i think that it is so great that people like bruce and jon bon are beyond huge and busy and still make some time to give back to the local community and jam with their old friends.
then last night i did a benefit for the mercy center in asbury park over at the downtown in red bank. it was one of my little acoustic shows that we usually do over there and sikamor rooney, the black jesuses and rick barry joined me. these shows usually have like 30 or 40 people there mostly friends but last night it was so packed i couldnt even believe it. what a great time and we raised $600 from the basket pass for the mercy center! thank you guys so much for being so generous! Mercy Center is a great organization on main street in Asbury Park that helps families with job assistance, healthcare, parenting classes, substance abuse counseling, help for local homeless, and also has a program for teenage girls to help keep them on the path. Please help spread the word on all the great work they do for our town and visit them at www.mercycenternj.org
BLESS YA'LL!!!!!!!

Sunday, December 14, 2008

ticket info for the downtown gig 12/23

hey there-

tickets for the downtown show are a first come first serve at the door basis. so be sure to get there around 8:30 so you dont get stuck out in the cold. its a great lineup all night. very laid back and fun. featuring rick barry, jeff and brad of sikamor rooney, dave and sam of the parlor mob with their side project the black jesuses, and yours truly. good times. the downtown is in red bank on west front street. holla!

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Sweet Home New Orleans

Just got back from a three day artist activism retreat in New Orleans. It was one of the most eye opening and inspiring times of my life. I can't believe that it has been so long since Hurricane Katrina and there is still so much destruction down there. So many lives and homes ruined and so many people still displaced. We met with alot of truly amazing musicians down there. People whose stories will stay with me forever. They have seen their communities, homes and careers ripped apart and still they have so much spirit. They aren't people who just sit on their hands complaining about the cards that life dealt and complaining about how their government has failed them. They make the best of it and put their hearts and souls into perserving their traditions and helping eachother get back on their feet and back to their homes. There is a great organization called Sweet Home New Orleans that raises money to try to help displaced musicians, Mardi Gras Indians and Social and Pleasure Club members. The traditions of music in New Orleans shaped alot of the sounds that make up American music and it breaks my heart to see people who have done so much for us as a culture have to go through such hardship. You can visit their site at www.sweethomeneworleans.org and find out ways you can help out.
At the end of the retreat we did a benefit show at Tipitina's and played with New Orleans own Bonerama backing everyone up. Sickest band I've ever played with! Four trombones! It was such an magic night, show, everything. A handful of strangers brought together to see this mess close up and help us to figure out how we can help this and even things in our own communities. I saw alot of parallels to Asbury Park down there and I walked away from this knowing that it is possible for us musicians to be able to help our towns and others that really need it in the right way.
More stories and pictures from this trip on the way........

Monday, December 1, 2008

Musicians Bringing Musician Home - New Orleans Benefit Dec 4th

Musicians Bringing Musician Home - New Orleans Benefit Dec 4th

Will Oldham (Bonnie "Prince" Billy), Nicole Atkins, Hank Shocklee (Bomb Squad, Future Frequency), Alec Ounsworth (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah), Jonny 5 and Brer Rabbit (Flobots) and Waterflow (of Senegalese hip-hop band Wageble) join together for "Musicians Bringing Musicians Home IV" – a special evening of music at Tipitina's Uptown (501 Napoleon Ave.) on Thursday, December 4, 2008 at 9pm. This show is a benefit for Sweet Home New Orleans, a coalition of non-profit organizations that helps find affordable housing and provides rental assistance for Katrina displaced musicians, Mardi Gras performers and other traditional New Orleans artists.

The "Musicians Bringing Musicians Home IV" concert is the celebratory and fundraising finale of the fourth three-day activist retreat hosted by Air Traffic Control and the Future of Music Coalition since the Gulf Coast storms of 2005. This retreat brings artists from around the country to New Orleans to tour affected neighborhoods, visit with some of the city's notable musicians and community leaders and participate in strategy sessions about how to integrate activism and philanthropy into their work as musicians.

TICKETS:
Tickets for "Musicians Bringing Musicians Home IV" are onsale now at www.tipitinas.com and in person at the Tipitina's box office. Admission is $12 with all proceeds going to benefit the important work of Sweet Home New Orleans.

WEBCAST:
If you are not able to attend the concert, we encourage you to tune into the free streaming webcast of the show at www.tipitinas.com and make a donation to Sweet Home New Orleans.