JON LANGFORD
ARTWORK
Many thanks to Jon Langford for the new
artistic flourishes around the House of the Shoes! For further
art go see...
JON
LANGFORD - NEW BLUE PAINTINGS
December 2
through December 31, 2000
@ WWW.YARDDOG.COM
1510 S.
Congress Austin TX 78704 512.912.1613
REXROTH ON
SONG..
Kenneth Rexroth's article "Subversive
Aspects of Popular Songs" is now
online at http://www.slip.net/~knabb/rexroth/songs.htm.
It's a lively examination of marginal or underground music,
from the
medieval lyrics of wine, women and satire popularized in
Orff's "Carmina
Burana" to the folk and rock songs of the 1960s
counterculture.
Rexroth traces its development in France through the bohemian
underworld of nineteenth-century cabaret and street singers to
the post-World War II
renaissance of poet-singers such as Georges Brassens and Anne
Sylvestre,
whom he praises for "replacing the acquisitive appetite
with the lyric sensibility."
In America he traces a parallel evolution from traditional
folksongs and
blues to the lyrics of Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell
and the
rock bands of the sixties. Along the way he has lots of
pungent comments on
jazz, rhythm & blues, protest songs, Elvis Presley, the
Beatles, and on the
society they at once reflect and (with varying degrees of
awareness)
react against.
COSMIC
AMERICAN WEBSITE MOVES!
The Cosmic Website can now be found at
http://freespace.virgin.net/michael.spencer2
at least until I find someone who can write a decent site
for me!
full venue links + Caitlin Cary tour + Peter Bruntnell tour
JIM ROLL
NEWS!
Jim recently wrote music for a play by
one of his favorite
authors, Denis
Johnson (author of Jesus Son, Angels, Already Dead and several
other unspeakably great novels and volumes of poetry). The
three songs feature lyrics by Denis
Johnson and music by Jim Roll and the play is
scheduled to debut in the San Francisco area in
November 2001.
Additionally, Jim is hard at work on demo's for a new album
- which is tentatively to be produced by
Chuck Prophet and engineered by Jacquire King
(Tom Waits - Mule Variations, Chuck Prophet -
The Hurting Business). Plans are
to begin recording in early 2001 for a Fall 2001 release.
FLYIN SHOES
ARCHIVES ARE BACK!!!!!!!!
YES SIRREE! Thanks to the kind offer of
extra web space over there in France - the entire run of Flyin
Shoes from Issue #1 - Spring 1999 - can now be viewed! My
warmest thanks to Paris patron of the arts Herve - long may
your star shine. Check out his great bunch of sites dedicated
to fine songwriters ( see below) including Tom House, David
Olney and Eric Taylor.
COME DOWN AND MEET THE FOLKS
From Rosie O'Gradys to Goldie
O'Lionys................and it's still free.
Alan Tyler and Big Steve bring you more Sunday
afternoons in the company of some of the finest roots singers,
writers, performers and DJs, passing through or inhabiting
London. We've missed having every Sunday spoken for and are
looking forward to catching up with all of you.
Did you spend your Sundays wisely? We've written some new
songs, bought some new records, been drinking in other pubs,
and are both currently going to be recording new material with
our respective bands, (The Arlenes & Alan Tyler Band).
After dodging fireworks in Barcelona and getting seriously
pissed on Guinness in Galway, my pre-season warm up to the new
Sunday session is now complete.
We nearly took COME DOWN AND MEET THE
FOLKS to Kentish Town, but Mary the lovely landlady has
convinced us to keep it a Camden thing. Hoorah! We are
starting again at
The Golden Lion,
Royal College St, NW1.
Walk not 400 yards down from Rosie
O'Gradys against the traffic to where it crosses Pratt St.
You will find us on Sunday afternoons from 4pm til 8pm.
It's a beautiful traditional old boozer and that's what we
like...........
There are always floor spots, but if you want
to play get there in good time.
www.comedownandmeetthefolks.co.uk
www.arlenes.demon.co.uk
With my window on the world, I can give you an
update on Rosies!
They've painted the gents toilet door tonight, a lovely shade
of cornflower blue.
TOM PACHECO
Will be touring the
UK in December - see gig guide
Also check out The Outsider website for Tom Pacheco news -
http://pacheco.cjb.net
RAMBLIN JACK MOVIE
The new movie
"The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack Elliot" played at the
Film Forum in New York. The movie was made by his
daughter.
STEVE EARLE - OLD TOWN SONGWRITER CLASSES!
Thanks to the sterling efforts of
pupil J.J.Calderas the full text plus photos of Earle's great
set of lessons at the Old Town can be found at
http://frothzine.homestead.com/index.html
look out for a paper edition of these
classes in next copy of Luke magazine too!
NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS

http://www.wpln.org/songwriters/songwriters.html
Check out the great online webcasts of Nashville Public Radio
with their Nashville Songwriters series. Recently featured
was a programme featuring Tom Russell, David Olney and Jimmy
La Fave. There are archived shows available online for just
one week after the show then a new bunch play
live in the studio every Saturday (US time 7pm).
If you can stand the buffering it's well worth a listen.
Better still catch 'em early sunday morning when everyone else
is asleep!
MORE SONGWRITER SITES!
Talking of David Olney - also check out these resources on
him and Eric Taylor and Elliott Murphy.
www.multimania.com/songwriters,
e-home of David Olney and Eric Taylor Susbcribe to IllegalCargo,
David Olney and Eric Taylor's list:
www.egroups.com/group/IllegalCargo
www.multimania.com/murphy,
e-home of Elliott Murphy
'ZEEN
SEEN
Check out
the latest 'music' issue of top Stateside 'literary' magazine OXFORD
AMERICAN
which not only has a lot of great southern music articles from
such as Peter Guralnick, Roy Kasten, Holly George-Warren,
Marty Stuart, Rick Cornell...etc.etc...but a brilliant cd too........highly
recommended. While you're trying to track that down in Borders pick
up the latest NO DEPRESSION
which has articles on Vigilantes of Love, Afro-Cuban Allstars
( at last a bit of cross border invigoration) and a great Tim
Perry feature on London based starlet Eileen Rose. Finally
don't forget our home-grown purveyor of excellence
Bucketfull
of Brains - latest issue
- #56 contains interviews and articles galore including Tom Ovans
, Gene Clark, Velvet crush, Cosmic Rough Riders, Josh Rouse
and Dorian Gray. Available this side of the pond through
Helter Skelter, Compendium (until it shuts) HMV and stateside at
Miles of Music
Keep an eye
out for Leicester's very fine LUKE which
issue#6 Winter 99/00 contained a great 20-track ep of FSR related
music including Tim Easton, Carter & Grammar and Tombstone
Trailerpark. Available from SAVAGE HENRY
PO Box 655, Leicester LE3 0ZG or contact Rob.Forbes@btinternet.com.
Whilst on the
subject of new magazines look out for latest issue of COMES
WITH A SMILE - impeccably produced and with a free cd
containing tracks by Vic Chesnutt, Lambchop and Calexico.
OXFORD
TOWN, OXFORD TOWN...

NEW VENUES!, WHEATSHEAF AND PORT MAHON, OXFORD
coming
soon a special xmas jamboree with lots of special guests!!!!!!!
If you want to catch the best local talent and
major artists then get along to The Wheatsheaf in the centre
of Oxford every Monday. For
further details of this venue follow the link to Oxford
Songwriters