Jonathan Ramsey

Don’t forget to catch the Irish Xiles, who have shows the rest of this month in the area.

• 11/16 Castletown Geoghegan in Belleville 9pm
• 11/17 Castletown Geoghegan in Belleville 9pm
• 11/23 Scottish Arms on Sarah 9.30pm
• 11/24 RT Weilers in St. Charles 9pm

Here’s a little clip for you:

Tonight and tomorrow night, 9 November and 10 November 2007, my good friends from Kansas City, The Elders, are playing at The Dubliner Saint Louis.

The Elders are known for their infectious original songs, and lively shows.

The Elders are:

• Ian Byrne - Vocals and Percussion
• Norm Dahlor - Bass, Banjo, Guitar and Vocals
• Brent Hoad - Violin, Mandolin, Keyboards and Vocals
• Joe Miquelon - Keyboards and Saxophone
• Steve Phillips - Guitar, Mandolin, Vocals
• Tommy Sutherland - Drums and Percussion

The Dubliner is at 1025 Washington St, St Louis, MO. That’s on the northwest side of downtown Saint Louis.

Check them out! I may make it there, Saturday night.

Wahhh! For the second year in a row, this They Might Be Giants fan of twenty-two years might have to miss the show. As an avid fan, and a musician who would love my daughters to appreciate intelligent music, that isn’t mere aural spoon-feeding, I make sure they hear artists that I appreciate. Both my daughters are big TMBG fans, not because of “Here Come the ABCs!” or “No!”. They knew the ABCs and that “No is always No!”, long before those recordings came out. They love them because of “Don’t Let’s Start”, and “Ana Ng”, “Dr. Worm”, and, of course, “Birdhouse in Your Soul”.

For over ten years, I’ve been able to take either, or both, of them to every They Might Be Giants show that presented locally. We’ve even happened into a couple that weren’t so local, thanks to circumstances in Chicago and Cleveland. They hate to miss them.

Last year, that ended. Last year, we were informed by the staff at The Pageant, in Saint Louis, that we could buy tickets, but that the band insisted that no one under 16 be permitted into the venue. I was rather outraged. I planned to letter-bomb TMBG’s management, Disney, and anyone else I thought might be involved in uninviting me and my family to the show. Buying a house, fixing a couple sinks, and the like, stole much of my thunder, though. I quietly let it pass. The pit in my stomach remains.

Now, I’m not ignorant. I know that, very likely, a few thousand adults purchased “Here Come the ABCs!” on CD and DVD. Then, they took their three-year-olds to the Egg, or First Avenue, thinking they were going to see something akin to The Wiggles or The Doodlebops. They wrote some letters. They demanded some money back for their tickets. They complained to The Johns, The Disney, and The Malcolm in the Middle. Someone overreacted to this parental overreaction, and banned children from the non-childrens shows.

I appreciate that they want to keep the unknowing from showing up with Tiffany and Bobby, and a bag of diapers and wipes. This, however, is unfair to those of us who’ve known for two decades what happens at a They Might Be Giants show. Sometimes, Flans lets a little saucy talk fly –just one word, once. It’s no worse than what the kids hear at Walmart or on the telly.

So, please, John and John, let us come to your show. We can’t hire a sitter and tell our daughter that we’re going to hear her favorite songs live without her. It goes against taste and principle for us.  Either that, or we’ll just have to wait for Rufus Wainwright to come, or for Leonard Cohen to come out of retirement for a show or two. I’m certain they will let us in.

Thanks to nialler9, I now know what his roommates sound like. If you like good, indie hip-hop, electronica, or rock, you really should check out these lads from Dublin. They mix it up quite a bit.

Of course, their official site is at http://www.superextrabonusparty.com/

Tags: irish+music electronica hip-hop dublin+bands rock

Count me among Eddie Delahunt’s biggest fans. I’ve known Eddie for most of two decades, now, and have enjoyed watching him perform, performing with him, and just hanging out with the man. Occasionally, I even perform a song or two that I must admit I learned, not from my granddad nor from a musty chunk of vinyl, but from Eddie.

Now, after years in Kansas City, our ballad-rendering friend has been garnering a good sum of well-deserved press. As I mentioned in an article a few months ago, our man, and one of Dublin’s Top Expatriots in Kansas City, Eddie opened a coffeehouse in the West Plaza neighborhood last year. The business has been building, and Eddie has two baristas on staff. In addition, some of my other friends, and many other musicians, have been popping in to perform in the courtyard. Artists have included Eddie and his band, Kelly, Roger Landes and Chipper Thompson, and many other local and regional bands.

So, next time you want a bit of cráic, a scone, and a nice cup of java, check out Eddie Delahunt’s Cafe & at 1811 W. 45th St, Kansas City, MO. Also, check out Eddie at http://www.eddiedelahunt.com.

Cheers!

Tags: eddie+delahunt coffee coffeehouse cafe irish+music kansas+city+entertainment kansas+city+irish+music

Here’s a cool video sweeping the Irish blogosphere. It’s a chronical of the life and work of Cork musical genius Giordaí ua Laoghaire. Giordaí is a very fascinating subject, and I highly recommend watching this 42 minute look at the man.

Tags: giordaí+ua+laoghaire irish+music cork ireland post-punk 1980s documentary biography irish+blogs

This is a great story, even if a little sad. Gene Weingarten, of the Washington Post, performed an experiment. With the aid of Josh Bell, one of the world’s greatest living violinists, and Amanda Kearney of JBG, the property manager for L’Enfant Plaza.

Josh Bell performed during rush hour at the L’Enfant Plaza Arcade, at the very top of the Metro station escalator. For his effort, 27 people tossed a total of $32.17 into his case. That’s a rough morning for a busker. Check out this story at The Washington Post.

Something similar happened with Bruce Springsteen –video.

Tags:
josh+bell washington+dc busking
street+performer metro subway

We made it down to Natural Fact (www.naturalfact.com), this evening, to catch our first show there. This is a nice place. We arrived after 10PM, so the kitchen was closed, and the room had a nice, dark ambiance to it already. It was still family-friendly, and a great place for Webster University students to hang out.

We only caught Brian Muench -such is life with little ones, sometimes- but he had a great sound. At times, he reminded me of Badly Drawn Boy, so I highly recommend his live show. He also has tasty acoustic tracks at http://www.brianmuench.com.

If you haven’t had sweet potato chips, you must try them. You must try Natural Fact’s Sweet Potato Chips. They are awesome!

Check out the performers from tonight’s show at Natural Fact in Webster Groves, MO:

http://www.brianmuench.com
http://www.myspace.com/rachelbrandt
http://www.myspace.com/bradandian The Nancy Boys

Tags: webster+groves missouri natural+fact night+life webster+university st+louis saint+louis bands rachel+brandt nancy+boys brian+muench acoustic+music live+music

Lately, I’ve been seeing flyers for music at Natural Fact in Webster Groves. A quick call to insider informant, Michelle, at this healthy choices deli confirmed that they are indeed trying out the local music venue format. For their first show, they are featuring artists Brian Muench, the Nancy Boys, and Rachel Brandt, Saturday 14 April, at 9 PM.

Come show your support for local music and a tasty new venue. It’s in old Webster Groves, not far from Webster University, for all my friends attending there. If Natural Fact decides this is a worthwhile venture, that would be a good thing for an area starved for good, live music in an all ages setting. It might even be a great new place to hear your favorite, crazed Irish singer.

I may even buy a few sodas and a deli platter for my friends that come out early.

P.S. You can check out the menu at http://www.naturalfact.com

Tags: music webster+groves+mo webster+groves+missouri st+louis+mo saint+louis+mo webster+university

I saw my dear friend Eddie Delahunt, a couple weeks ago at The Dubliner, here in St Louis. Some friends came to my early show at The Hartford, and told me they were going there afterwards, so I dropped in to say, “Hello.” I usually get to see Eddie once per year, so seeing him this early in 2007 was an unusual treat.

If you’re in Kansas City, you can see Eddie yourself. Kansas City’s favorite singing Dubliner plays several shows per week in the area, so you have no good excuse. Check out his website for more info at http://www.eddiedelahunt.com. You can also go to his new coffeehouse, at the Kansas City antique district of 45th and State Line Rd.

Tell him Jonathan Ramsey sent you.

Tags: Eddie+Delahunt irish+music Kansas+City Dubliner coffeehouse antique+district