"A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit, and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy." -Albert Einstein I spent a recent morning in a violin maker’s shop, being given a tour by its luthier, John Young. John picks up a future violin, a pair of wooden boards, and we look at the flaming of the grain. He shows me a scattering of violin pieces, ribs, … [Read more...]
Twilite Lounge Nights: Music that Fits the Mood
Every Wednesday and Sunday night starting at 9pm, Twilite Lounge is home to live music hosted by David Payne of The Red Bennies. Wednesday typically features musicians playing traditional instruments such as guitar, keys and bass. Sundays is geared toward creative electronica and DJs Lord British, Falchion B and Twin Bee. During these respective nights, Payne hosts through his … [Read more...]
To The Bat Kave: Tunes in Toquerville
Southern Utah is not synonymous with live music. However, near the blood red cliffs of Zion, in the little town of Toquerville, Dave Durrant is cranking away at the Bat Kave studio. Like many musicians, Durrant was interested in capturing his own material and started recording his music on a Tascam cassette recorder. Looking back on those days he says, "it was kind of cool … [Read more...]
Salt Lake Rockabilly Presents: Paul “Woody” Woodmansey
Once a month, Piper Down echoes with rock n’ roll music that defined the 1950’s and early 1960's. The event behind the music is called Salt Lake Rockabilly Presents. It is a themed club night with live bands and both digital and vinyl DJ’s spinning original Rockabilly, Doo Wop, R&B, Hillbilly, Western Swing and more. It is hosted by Paul “Woody” Woodmansey and Jon Grippe. … [Read more...]
Respect the Real: the Need for Authentic Voices in American Music
I was sitting at a table in one of my favorite Salt Lake bars listening to Rooster, a traveling country singer. His song was about something he experiences on any given night of the week. It was a song about sleeping in his truck in some middle-of-nowhere Wyoming town after a gig. Throughout the song, a drunk lady leaned against the stage yelling repeatedly, "play Johnny … [Read more...]
Road Trip Adventure: Diary of a Wanderer
I’ve driven the highways of 43 states, sang in endless dive bars, and slept in more WalMart parking lots than I care to remember. I left Utah in 2013, in a van with a bunch of blues musicians, and we worked our way, playing shows all the way to the Georgia coast and back. I haven’t left the road since. I was singing at the Urban Lounge in Salt Lake City, when Richard Markosian, … [Read more...]
Reverend Beat-Man and Nicole Izobel Garcia perform in Salt Lake City
On April 22nd, Switzerland’s infamous Reverend Beat-Man will be playing the Garage on Beck with Nicole Izobel Garcia. They are touring the United States to support their new album Baile Bruja Muerto, released on Beat-Man’s label Voodoo Rhythm Records. The two will take their stage dressed as a reverend (Beat-Man) and a nun (Garcia). Not a reverend in the traditional sense, … [Read more...]
Tony Holiday and The Velvetones: Living and Breathing Blues
The blues began on the plantations of the South, but it didn't stay there long. It is said that the blues is an amalgamation of Mexican guitars, Native American singing and African singing. It is often performed in a call and response manner, as it was first used to keep rhythm and bring a little joy to the lives of those picking cotton on the sprawling plantations of the Old … [Read more...]
George Charles Nelson III Sings Millennial Love Songs
I've known George Charles Nelson III for about four years now. He's an old school East-Coast kind of guy, a trained fighter actually, but he's also a soft hearted poetic type. He's been vegan pretty much for forever. From his little house in Salt Lake City he grows tomatoes, and has two chihuahuas—one is over 20 years old and the other is close to it. By day he works in a … [Read more...]