Harvest 2017 - Wednesday Evening:
The first day of my 2017 Harvest is a wrap. Lots of fun . . . lots of music. Great to see all of the faces. I started the day early with SG & The Tone Kings outside of Kings Place at noon. An accomplished group of local veteran musicians. Sheldon Gordon is a qualified front man.
To the Blues Tent at 8:30 for a Muddy Magnolias / Matt Anderson double header. First show in Canada for the Magnolias, and from the crowd response, it won't be the last. The female lead singer has incredible range . . . and "big" sound . . . and lots of soul. They did a likable and different arrangement of The Weight. I'm guessing we will see them again sometime.
Matt
Anderson closed. What more can be said about Matt and his seemingly
never ending series of packed houses? He can pretty much gig anywhere in
the world that he chooses, and he does. Chris Colepaugh is a nice
addition to Matt's band, Bona Fide. I don't know if it is a permanent
thang or not, but it works.
Had a minor wardrobe malfunction of sorts. I picked up a pair of Alpine MusicSafePro hearing protectors from Tony's . . . because the doctor said I should. They come with three sets of interchangeable inserts that pass different levels of sound. Wellll . . . apparently I had selected the set that blocks the most sound. The band sounded great, but I couldn't conversate . . . which may not have been a bad thing. Anyway, I will experiment with a lighter set of inserts tomorrow. The neat thang is that they don't muffle the sound from the stage like the little foam rolls do.
Looking forward to the rest of harvest.
Harvest 2017 - Thursday Evening:
Thursday Harvest is in the bag. Man, what a beautiful night! The John Palmer’s* took a beating on the walk-way between the Blues and the Mojo tents tonight. People are out and the street is roaring and the weekend is yet to befall us. Nice touch to close Queen on Thursday this year. Go Harvest!
The much anticipated Marcus King Band at the Blues tent . . . well . . . it didn’t quite do it for me. Don’t get me wrong, they have good cred or they wouldn’t make the bill at Harvest, and I’m sure they flew high with most of the crowd, but the sound was terrible and the arrangements were “busy”. It flowed like mush through the PA, and I can’t blame my new ear thingies. (BTW, they work great! Thanks for asking.) These guys are young, and they have a big future, and they’ll figure it out.
Had a minor wardrobe malfunction of sorts. I picked up a pair of Alpine MusicSafePro hearing protectors from Tony's . . . because the doctor said I should. They come with three sets of interchangeable inserts that pass different levels of sound. Wellll . . . apparently I had selected the set that blocks the most sound. The band sounded great, but I couldn't conversate . . . which may not have been a bad thing. Anyway, I will experiment with a lighter set of inserts tomorrow. The neat thang is that they don't muffle the sound from the stage like the little foam rolls do.
Looking forward to the rest of harvest.
Harvest 2017 - Thursday Evening:
Thursday Harvest is in the bag. Man, what a beautiful night! The John Palmer’s* took a beating on the walk-way between the Blues and the Mojo tents tonight. People are out and the street is roaring and the weekend is yet to befall us. Nice touch to close Queen on Thursday this year. Go Harvest!
The much anticipated Marcus King Band at the Blues tent . . . well . . . it didn’t quite do it for me. Don’t get me wrong, they have good cred or they wouldn’t make the bill at Harvest, and I’m sure they flew high with most of the crowd, but the sound was terrible and the arrangements were “busy”. It flowed like mush through the PA, and I can’t blame my new ear thingies. (BTW, they work great! Thanks for asking.) These guys are young, and they have a big future, and they’ll figure it out.
After a half hour of the MKB, it was down to the Mojo for the last
third of The Atlas Road Crew. A youngish R&R band, full of life with
lots of future. Glad they’re here. Next at the Mojo was Amasa Hines
with kind of mellow pop rock. I never quite know how to describe bands
like this. Interesting band with nice sounds.
Then back towards the Blues tent for the Revivalists. Well . . . that didn’t happen, and I suppose the Revivalists managed through their set without me. I’ve heard them before, and I liked them, so it will all equal out in the end. Anyway, this ship drifted off course as it passed the Blues Court. When you hear the music you like, instinct steers the feet. Christine Campbell was half way through her set, and it didn’t take too long to decide I was going to stay for the other half. A very solid five piece R&R band led by the incredibly powerful vocals of Ms. Campbell. She closed with a couple of Heart tunes that were spot-on. I needed this boost to the evening. Like!
Next it was the much anticipated debut of Sloan at the Mojo. WOW! They exceeded my every expectation! They played a string of their hits and the crowd responded. I will be the first to admit that Sloan has never been in the center of my wheel-house, and I can’t really explain why. I really like them . . . just never got to know them . . . but I know their songs. Anyway, they OWNED the Mojo tonight, and good on’em. The sound was great (and maybe could be a learning opportunity for the sound guy for the MKB). Both Christine Campbell and her band, and Sloan are knock-out five piece, no frills, no distraction, plain-old-fashioned rock & roll bands and they made my night, so I guess that pretty much says where I am on the spectrum.
Back up to the Blues for a Lettuce closer. This band has a great stage presentation. They have done the late night TV circuit this year, and they are at the top of their game . . . and now they’ve been here.
A fun night . . . time for bed.
*John Palmer – ICYDK, a reference to the product of the long gone Palmer McLellan boot factory on Argyle ie. old Fredericton vernacular.
Harvest 2017 - Friday Evening:
Friday evening at Harvest 2017 . . . Busy, Busy, Busy. I know I’ve said it a time or two before, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen more people out on a Friday night for Harvest. Gotta be a record breaker for sure.
Steven Page at the Mojo at 6pm to a packed house. This guy is a crowd pleaser and he did a super set. You know . . . I’ve listened to the Ladies for years, but the full range and clarity of Page’s voice never clicked for me. Man he can sing, and of course, he writes great songs! Happy we went.
Then back towards the Blues tent for the Revivalists. Well . . . that didn’t happen, and I suppose the Revivalists managed through their set without me. I’ve heard them before, and I liked them, so it will all equal out in the end. Anyway, this ship drifted off course as it passed the Blues Court. When you hear the music you like, instinct steers the feet. Christine Campbell was half way through her set, and it didn’t take too long to decide I was going to stay for the other half. A very solid five piece R&R band led by the incredibly powerful vocals of Ms. Campbell. She closed with a couple of Heart tunes that were spot-on. I needed this boost to the evening. Like!
Next it was the much anticipated debut of Sloan at the Mojo. WOW! They exceeded my every expectation! They played a string of their hits and the crowd responded. I will be the first to admit that Sloan has never been in the center of my wheel-house, and I can’t really explain why. I really like them . . . just never got to know them . . . but I know their songs. Anyway, they OWNED the Mojo tonight, and good on’em. The sound was great (and maybe could be a learning opportunity for the sound guy for the MKB). Both Christine Campbell and her band, and Sloan are knock-out five piece, no frills, no distraction, plain-old-fashioned rock & roll bands and they made my night, so I guess that pretty much says where I am on the spectrum.
Back up to the Blues for a Lettuce closer. This band has a great stage presentation. They have done the late night TV circuit this year, and they are at the top of their game . . . and now they’ve been here.
A fun night . . . time for bed.
*John Palmer – ICYDK, a reference to the product of the long gone Palmer McLellan boot factory on Argyle ie. old Fredericton vernacular.
Harvest 2017 - Friday Evening:
Friday evening at Harvest 2017 . . . Busy, Busy, Busy. I know I’ve said it a time or two before, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen more people out on a Friday night for Harvest. Gotta be a record breaker for sure.
Steven Page at the Mojo at 6pm to a packed house. This guy is a crowd pleaser and he did a super set. You know . . . I’ve listened to the Ladies for years, but the full range and clarity of Page’s voice never clicked for me. Man he can sing, and of course, he writes great songs! Happy we went.
Up to the Blues tent for another listen to the Marcus King Band.
Sounded better tonight . . . it was probably just me. Maybe I was a bit
harsh last night . . . nah. Anyway, stayed for a bit, took a walk, then
to the Blues Court for the first part of Blind Dog. This band is back
together for Harvest after a twenty-five(?) year hiatus. It sure didn’t
show . . . they sounded good. We left before the end, so we missed when
Bruce took the stage with his band for three songs, and that is my loss
for sure. It was good to see you later at the Mojo, Bruce.
Over to the Blues tent for Trey Anastasio. A true road warrior and established veteran of festival stages. Eight piece band with lots of sound. Stayed long enough to get a good feel for him, and then to the Mojo for Matt Minglewood. Not surprisingly, Matt packed a Harvest tent . . . again. It is crystal clear that Fredericton music fans have inter-generational love for Matt Minglewood. He and his band did songs from Fly Like Desperadoes as well as many of his old standbys. They take me back to Freddy in the 70's and 80's, and I like the trip. It must be a great feeling to look out from the stage and see a jamb packed room singing your songs right back at you. Bonus . . . along with CD’s at his merch table, there were posters . . . four different posters. Being a 61 year old poster-groupie, I cabbaged on to three of them. Thanks for coming back to Freddy, Matt.
Closed the night with the 11:30 performance of The Trans Canada Highwaymen. This is a Steven Page/Sloan collaboration and it works famously! Clear sound, great songs, good stage rapport, excellent show. For the first time in years, I didn’t have the feet to catch the tail end of The Downtown Blues Band at Blues Court. Went home instead.
Two takeaways from tonight: The clarity and range of Steven pages voice, and the love Fredericton fans have for Matt Minglewood. Time for bed.
Harvest 2017 - Saturday:
Harvest 2017 – Saturday – What a week!
So much music in so little time . . . and now it’s over.
It’s been a busy, fun week, and it kind of all runs together in an overlapping maze of memory. More than once this evening I caught myself doing the day-four spaz-stare.
Over to the Blues tent for Trey Anastasio. A true road warrior and established veteran of festival stages. Eight piece band with lots of sound. Stayed long enough to get a good feel for him, and then to the Mojo for Matt Minglewood. Not surprisingly, Matt packed a Harvest tent . . . again. It is crystal clear that Fredericton music fans have inter-generational love for Matt Minglewood. He and his band did songs from Fly Like Desperadoes as well as many of his old standbys. They take me back to Freddy in the 70's and 80's, and I like the trip. It must be a great feeling to look out from the stage and see a jamb packed room singing your songs right back at you. Bonus . . . along with CD’s at his merch table, there were posters . . . four different posters. Being a 61 year old poster-groupie, I cabbaged on to three of them. Thanks for coming back to Freddy, Matt.
Closed the night with the 11:30 performance of The Trans Canada Highwaymen. This is a Steven Page/Sloan collaboration and it works famously! Clear sound, great songs, good stage rapport, excellent show. For the first time in years, I didn’t have the feet to catch the tail end of The Downtown Blues Band at Blues Court. Went home instead.
Two takeaways from tonight: The clarity and range of Steven pages voice, and the love Fredericton fans have for Matt Minglewood. Time for bed.
Harvest 2017 - Saturday:
Harvest 2017 – Saturday – What a week!
So much music in so little time . . . and now it’s over.
It’s been a busy, fun week, and it kind of all runs together in an overlapping maze of memory. More than once this evening I caught myself doing the day-four spaz-stare.
A
1pm start today with Matt Minglewood and his keyboardist Jeff Stapleton
at Tony’s Music Box for a one hour (Yamaha gear promo) set. It was great
with maybe twenty people inside the store and a few more on the
sidewalk. So here I am, about twelve feet in front of Matt, almost like a
private performance, and he closes with a heartfelt Can’t You See. I
closed my eyes and took it in. I’m not going to get all weird here, but
from the little bit I know about out-of-body experiences, I think I had
one. It was a Harvest moment. Right after Matt, I went to Officers
Square hoping to catch part of the Rick Fines family show but I was late
and Rick was gone. Such are the tribulations of a Harvest groupie
trying to see it all.
Back at 5:30 for Steve Earle in the Blues tent. Not much can be said about Steve Earle that everyone doesn’t already know. He is everything you would expect, and nothing you don’t. He is a seasoned, talented, professional, and opinionated veteran of the stage. Well worth seeing.
Down to the Mojo for The Ghost of Paul Revere. They were an unknown quantity for me, and I was pleasantly surprised. A five piece acoustic band from Portland Maine with a banjo player and a harmonica and lap steel player. The banjo worked well . . . not annoying corn-cob pipe banjo . . . but mellow banjo that blended nicely with the acoustic bass and acoustic guitar. I liked these guys and I bought their cd’s.
Then to the Blues tent for The National Reserve. A five(?) piece band from NYC. Good solid rockin’ blues. They were followed by the evening headliner and a packed house. Collin James is the epitome of guitarmanship, professionalism, and class. He’s also the smoothest and hardest working guitar player I’ve seen or heard . . . and he doesn’t break a sweat . . . ever! He’s a master of the electric blues, and he skillfully manages to add a little swing wherever it fits. Very pleasing guitar sounds. He’s been here before, and he will be here again.
The last show I see at Harvest each year is always a happy-sad event. So much music, so many friends, so much life. Harvest is euphoric. It takes a few days to come down, and twelve months to repeat. We are so fortunate to have this incredible concentration of talent right here in Freddy each September.
Now it’s time for bed.
Back at 5:30 for Steve Earle in the Blues tent. Not much can be said about Steve Earle that everyone doesn’t already know. He is everything you would expect, and nothing you don’t. He is a seasoned, talented, professional, and opinionated veteran of the stage. Well worth seeing.
Down to the Mojo for The Ghost of Paul Revere. They were an unknown quantity for me, and I was pleasantly surprised. A five piece acoustic band from Portland Maine with a banjo player and a harmonica and lap steel player. The banjo worked well . . . not annoying corn-cob pipe banjo . . . but mellow banjo that blended nicely with the acoustic bass and acoustic guitar. I liked these guys and I bought their cd’s.
Then to the Blues tent for The National Reserve. A five(?) piece band from NYC. Good solid rockin’ blues. They were followed by the evening headliner and a packed house. Collin James is the epitome of guitarmanship, professionalism, and class. He’s also the smoothest and hardest working guitar player I’ve seen or heard . . . and he doesn’t break a sweat . . . ever! He’s a master of the electric blues, and he skillfully manages to add a little swing wherever it fits. Very pleasing guitar sounds. He’s been here before, and he will be here again.
The last show I see at Harvest each year is always a happy-sad event. So much music, so many friends, so much life. Harvest is euphoric. It takes a few days to come down, and twelve months to repeat. We are so fortunate to have this incredible concentration of talent right here in Freddy each September.
Now it’s time for bed.
