WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 7, 2009
Hi all, as days get longer it’s time for me to punch the keys (I type with one finger..pathetic!) touring Project Blues through the winter was a lot of fun with Bernie Bremond and his sax joining us on stage for some of the shows. Definitely a highlight was having Chris Wilson play with us on a few of the Melbourne dates… luxury!!
Lately I’ve been working on a project very close to my heart - my nephews Daniel and Kyle’s music “Halfway To Forth” they have an EP coming out soon that I have mixed and added a few instruments to. The songs are great. Check them out on myspace or at Live at Lizottes in December when they do some of the supports for our shows.
We had a good time last week doing the iTunes show in the Sydney CBD. It was great to have my family joining on stage, playing tracks from Project Blues.
This summer we will be getting around the country with “Hits & Blues” a tour designed to cover a lot of ground- drawing from material right back to the beginning (yikes!) to the blues of “Saturday Suffering Fools”. C –u –then.. m.
WEDNESDAY APRIL 8, 2009
Hey there, I thought I'd better put finger to keypad as we are already 4 months in to '09?!
The 45 odd dates on the "days like these" tour last year seemed like it would go forever at the start, but it was over before it began - having great audiences I guess accelerated things for us (a good one is quick one?). Thanks to all who got familiar with the album so early on, it always feels great when the "in" joke becomes an "out" having the strings and backing vocals of Carmen Smith and Lily Lizotte at some of the shows boosted morale on the tour to say the least! A luxurious sound...
As for what's been happening of late... I think it was my father Hank that pushed me to want to make another blues album. We recorded this in Feb. in 8 days finishing on the last day of summer.
It was a family affair with my brothers Mike on baritone sax, Brian on trombone, dad on tenor and joined by Bernie Bremond also on tenor, they were led by Andy Bickers - what a sound! There is something indescribable about kicking the jams with your family, of course Hank was still the boss!! Making a record this way without the usual kind of scrutinizing was nothing short of exhilarating. I guess it makes you realise how far we have come with technology and how it has dictated things. It should be no surprise that 9 humans can play all at once and be recorded-finite.. that's it! ...
Thanks to my band Ritchie Vez and Lee Moloney for changing their spots yet again and to Nathan Shepard and Richard Bailey for the accompaniment on upright piano and riddum guitar, a luxury for me.
The shows we have done to preview "project blues" were a lot of fun. Great hearing Bernie on stage after so many years?! We are going far and wide with this in '09 so see you around!- m.
TUESDAY AUGUST 12, 2008
Hey all, with the release of "days like these" around the corner, it's been great getting around Australia playing a chunk of it to you. Thanks for listening! We are having a different experience playing the new songs as the album was recorded quite quickly, we are forced to actually figure out what it is that we did! Some fantastic shows where you made us feel quite at home in our "new surroundings". I guess they will be "old songs" soon enough anyway...!
The launch in Sydney at the Oxford Arts Factory was probably the best launch experience yet, thanks to the people who were there, it really felt like a "gig" and not just a launch.
We will be shooting a video for the track "days like these" this week in Melbourne, I'll endeavour to get it up on the site asap.
Ciao for now- m.
THURSDAY APRIL 24, 2008
Hey there-with a bunch of solo and selected shows behind me i've experienced some of the best audiences ever. Your song choices have been interesting and it's good to see you like the same stuff I like. Now that the new record is taking shape, we will be testing some of that on you at the band shows coming up through May, June and July.
Thanks for coming to the Solo & Selected shows and making me feel like I have the biggest band in the world! (Nice singing and clapping b.t.w)
Speaking of singing, if you want a great record to listen to check out "Raising Sand" Robert plant and Alison Krauss-a friend tipped me and it's a good one.
Ciao 4 now-m.
WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 27, 2008
Hey there - still at it finishing the record, I could liken it to the man who paddles his kayak across the pacific - hopefully I will see the "first bird" soon!
if you made it to any of the DAY ON THE GREEN shows I hope you enjoyed them as much as we did - I got to meet some of you after the show and your comments are much appreciated - always good to hear someone else's perspective as I feel we are way too close to it!
I'll be flying solo for the next tour but am looking forward to getting your selections and to playing some songs that I have never or not played for a long time - we have posted the song list on this site, so you can get an idea of the choices.
you can't help but feel there is a huge hole in music with the passing of Jackie Orszaczky, he is going to be missed ... r.i.p Jackie x. m.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 06, 2008
Greetings, if you have found your way to this page there is a good chance that you have also found your way to a show of late. Actually getting out of the house, making the effort to do so is no small feat!- I thank you for that. I will over the course of '08 endeavour to add my thoughts to this page.
You may have noticed a few new songs making their way into the set at recent shows, you'd be right in guessing they are from a new album, I'm really looking forward to getting a few more of these out of the "secret life" of my studio and into the "real world" where they will most probably take on a life of their own!-
c you soon- m.
