Exile in Dunganville

(The following column first appeared in the Charlotte Folk Society October 2006 Newsletter)

by Dennis "Cuz" Frost

Greetings music lovers and welcome to another addition of Cuz's Corner. It's hard to believe it's already autumn and I'm back from yet another Americana Music Association Conference . So, before I get into some recommended listening, I thought I would give a brief run down of what transpired last week in Nashville.

In addition to all the great concerts associated with the conference, my highpoint is always the awards show, held in the historic Ryman Auditorium, where you can take your seat and literally feel the "hillbilly dust". If you love the great traditions of American roots music, I would highly recommend taking in a show at "the mother church", as it's a very powerful and moving experience you will not soon forget.

With "The Clowned Prince of Americana" Jim Lauderdale as emcee, and a Buddy Miller-led house band comprised of Al Perkins, Phil Madeira, Byron House, Bryan Owens and Sam Bush, this was definitely a night of music I will not soon forget.

Here is a quick run-down of some of the award winners at this year's conference: You can find a complete list here.

• Lifetime achievement for songwriting: Rodney Crowell

• Lifetime achievement for producer: Allen Toussaint

• President's award: Mickey Newbury

• Emerging artists: The Greencards

• Artist of the year: Neil Young

• Album of the year: James McMurtry Childish Things

• Song of the year: "We Can't Make it Here" - James McMurtry

Of all the compelling performances that took place over the course of four days, my very favorite was Abigail Washburn & The Sparrow Quartet featuring Bela Fleck & Casey Driesan. She has a way of combining her old-time/clawhammer banjo stylings with Chinese tunings and lyrics.

Abigail spent most of her childhood in China and is fluent in the language. This group, by the way, has just been asked to tour Tibet, the first Americans since the Chinese takeover - so hats of to this soft spoken young woman and the power of music!

Other performances of note were Anna McCue from Australia, swamp legend Tony Joe White, The Duhks from Canada, the trio of Keiran Kane, Kevin Welch and Fats Kaplin, the Darrell Scott Band, and Elvis Costello with New Orleans legend Allen Toussaint.

For any of you folks thinking about perhaps a road trip to Nashville in September, the AMA's might be worth your consideration. Even if you don't want to attend the whole conference or find it cost prohibitive, you can purchase a wristband for all the venues for all the days for about $25 and purchase a ticket for the awards show for about $35 and you are set for a good time.

If you are looking for a musically intense good time like Merlefest, this is it! As one of the fiercest defenders of American roots music, consider joining the Americana Music Association.

Well, back to the topic at hand. Here are a few new releases that you folks might enjoy this fall. The duo of Chip Taylor & Carrie Rodriguez have temporarily parted company to each put out solo releases. Both are great albums and are highly recommended, but the one that really caught my ear is Carrie's Seven Angels on a Bicycle. This is a beautiful record, as open & airy as the Texas hill country she's from.

Another recommendation is the new one from Solomon Burke entitled Nashville. Produced by the great Buddy Miller, this disc romps through songs by Buddy Miller, Patty Griffin, Kevin Welch, Dolly Pardon, and Gillian Welch. A gospel singer of Solomon's statue singing the songs of Americana artists influenced by southern gospel truly closes the circle and you ain't heard nothing until you've heard folks like Emmylou Harris and Gillian Welch sing with this guy!

For some American/Canadian folk music that rocks, you might give a listen to The Duhk's new one, Migrations. If it's folk music from North America & even beyond, the Duhks probably cover it in their own style.

As for singer/songwriters, I don't think you can beat the new one from Mindy Smith entitled Long Island Shores. The title track is indicative of the lean, intelligent songwriting on this disc.

Briefly, three other picks are Bob Dylan's Modern Times (not Blood on the Tracks - but darn good!), Old Crow Medicine Show's Big Iron World and Ollabelle's Riverside Battle Songs.

Well, I'm out of space again, so as usual, make sure you get out & support the music you love and catch my new gig on WGWG-FM 88.3 starting in mid October. Next month, in addition to my music picks, I'll be informing you of some exciting new developments in the local music scene.

I know I live in Gaston County. That being said, I expect a level of Gaston-esque behavior in this town. Some of it I love and some of it, well, we won't go there today.

Nonetheless, this post isn't really about Gaston County - it's about CiCi's Pizza. CiCi's just so happens to be my son's new favorite place to eat. And when a three-year old wants to eat something, you better strike while the iron is hot, or in this case - when the belly is hungry.

But for some reason, our visit to CiCi's last night was different from most visits.

For those who have never set foot in a CiCi's Pizza before, the standard operating procedure is for the staff to greet you with a "Welcome to CiCi's" the moment you set foot in the door.

Notice I said staff - not one staff member. Practically every employee belts this salutation in their own tired, yet creative way. Wal-Mart has the lone greeter when you walk in. CiCi's spreads the greeter position to all of its employees.

Now I understand good customer relations is key to all successful businesses. But for some reason this customer-oriented blitz at CiCi's feels forced. They don't want to greet you anymore than you want to be greeted. Especially in an accent that sounds like Gastonia meets Italy. Let me just say - it's not very flattering.

Let's face it. I go to CiCi's because it's inexpensive. My son and I can eat for less than $7.00. Not bad for two people. They have a decent variety of pies and desserts and a tolerable salad bar. That works for me.

You don't have to treat me like family when I walk through the door. Just acknowledge me. Simply smile or just say hi. Be real. Be yourself. And whatever you do, please don't talk to me in a Gaston-esque Italian accent.

The following column will appear in the October 2006 edition of Gaston Alive:

It's not often that an opening act outshines the headlining act. That's simply not the job for the opener. Their job is to simply warm the audience up. They are the appetizer, the pre-game show, and the late-night show host monologue all rolled up into one.

I once attended a show where Danielle Howle stole the show. She was the opening act that night, but apparently had not read the rules about how an opening act was to perform. Call it ignorance, but something tells me that Danielle wouldn't have followed said protocol that night even if she knew better. That's just how she is.

Her latest release Thank You, Mark (Valley Entertainment), again shows that Danielle doesn't like to be kept inside a box. Her new release welcomes all forms of American music into the fold including jazz, country, swing, down-home rhythm and blues, and more.

I wouldn't expect anything less from this South Carolina native. Howle has soaked up every ounce of what this region has to offer musically, yet hasn't forgotten to add her own personal touch. Ultimately - it's her vocals here that draw you in.

So, whether you pick up her new CD, or find her playing in your backyard (as an opener or as the headlining act), you can't go wrong with an evening with Danielle Howle.

Five years have passed since that dreadful day on Sept. 11, 2001. Since that time, the world has changed. Books and reports have been written about the event. Movies have already been made and released. However, as time passes on, it's the music I tend to remember best.

You may think I am talking about the songs that Toby Keith ("Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue") and Paul McCartney ("Freedom") wrote following the event. Those songs have their place I suppose, but the songs I tend to graviate more to are what I call "thinking-man's" songs. Song's like "No Sure Way" by Loudon Wainwright III.

And Loudon Wainwright III showed with "No Sure Way" that sometimes the most seemingly mundane story can be the most evocative. Singing about one man's subway ride through Lower Manhattan days after the towers collapsed, he nailed the feeling of a world turned upside down in two stark lines: "They say heaven's high above us and that hell's not far below/But inside that subway tunnel, there was no sure way to know."

Source: Thor Christensen, Dallas Morning News