The most surprising thing I learned as a house concert host is how remarkably small the music community is.
Back in 2004, when I began booking shows on a regular basis, I met dozens of singer/songwriters and acoustic musicians who all seemed to be traveling the same path, playing the same venues and festivals up and down the west coast.
Their styles might have been divergent, but what they all had in common—aside from being ridiculously gifted musicians—is that they seemed to be fans of each other’s work. From one house concert to the next, I could see the connections being formed and have been lucky enough to witness the truly inspired collaborations that ensued (Paul Brill’s band backing ambeR Rubarth at Heidi’s house concert last May, for example).
So I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised to hear that my friends Brian Gore and Susan Z were teaming up to play as a duo at Acoustic Vortex. But I was.
In short, I’d been a fan of them both. Separately. I didn’t know they knew each other. Then I got an Evite from Bruce Victor and the Vortexers announcing a show that would present Brian and Susan as a duo—and I had to rethink my preconceived ideas of who these two musicians were.
I love it when I have to do that. I love being surprised. I love having my expectations subverted. It doesn’t happen often. But it should. I mean, isn’t that goal of art? To show us something we can’t see on our own?
Kudos to Brian and Susan for joining forces in service of these songs. I’m a fan of performing songwriters, for sure. But I’m not one of those purists who thinks a song loses something in the translation if it’s not sung by the person who was inspired by the muse. Sometimes the interpretation takes the song somewhere even better—Jimi Hendrix’s “All Along The Watchtower” and Patsy Cline’s “Crazy” come to mind.
Hearing Z sing Brian’s “Zen Scream” gave me new appreciation for both her voice and his songwriting. Take a listen to this inspired collaboration in the YouTube video above and tell me what you think. Many thanks to Nusi Dekker for capturing the performance on video.
I had the great fortune of hosting a living room concert featuring one of my favorite singer/songwriters in all the land – Allie Moss (Ingrid Michaelson’s guitarist-singer-sidekick). This is a clip of her encore song, “Rally” from her new record, Passerby. For more info on Bay Area House Concerts, visit http://drewpearce.com/
You may know her best as Ingrid Michaelson’s guitarist-singer-sidekick, but Allie Moss is a superb singer/songwriter herself. Her new record, Passerby, is soon to be released, and I highly recommend snapping up a copy as soon as it hits stores/iTunes.
When I met Allie and Ingrid two years ago, they were still on the verge. It was before the cover of Billboard magazine, before the tours with Dave Matthews and Jason Mraz, before the appearances on The Tonight Show and Conan O’Brien, before the R.E.M. Tribute at Carnegie Hall. Though I’ve basically been begging/hounding/cajoling Allie for years to come and do a show with us, after they hit it big, I figured I missed my chance. So you can imagine how thrilled I am about this show. Though I officially retired from hosting house concerts after last November’s farewell show with Glen Phillips, I’m making an exception for Allie. That’s how freakin’ awesome she is.
(Note: I will be booking house concerts on behalf of friends who are hosting, though, so keep an eye on the events calendar for their shows as well – i.e. April 8 with Molly Venter at Heidi’s House.)
Don’t miss this rare chance to catch an intimate living room performance before she becomes too famous to do this again. To attend the show, RSVP to me at drew.pearce@yahoo.com or 415.706.3800. Seating is limited and though this is a rare Tuesday night show, it will “sell out” quickly.
On Wednesday evening, April 8, my friend Heidi will be hosting a house concert party at her pad in Fairfax featuring the amazing Molly Venter, Alden Schell and Jayar. To attend, RSVP to drew@entireproductions.com or 415.706.3800. Directions and details will be sent after you RSVP. For more info, visit drewpearce.com
Here’s a clip of Glen and Jonathan Kingham performing his song “Released” at the final house concert of our series. About 100 people packed into Joe Sherer’s living room in Mill Valley to hear Glen, Jonathan and special guest openers, Kym Tuvim and Amie Penwell. It was the perfect way to bring the series to a close. Thanks to everyone who came to the shows, opened their homes and created a new kind of music community in Marin. In the new year, I’ll be presenting events in public venues such as Sweetwater Station, Bazaar Cafe and Axis Cafe. Some of the events will be music workshops sponsored by Acoustic Guitar magazine. Stay tuned for details. Hope to see you out there!
Been so busy with planning and promoting events over the past few months that I’ve neglected to post the videos I’ve been compiling. Here are a few of my favorites since last fall: Noe Venable and Alan Lin performing the Tears for Fears classic “Mad World” at Kimi and Rosanna’s house in San Rafael.
Edie Carey and Rose Cousins performing Edie’s song “The Night” at Nancy’s in Terra Linda.
Jerry Hannan at Kimi and Rosanna’s place in December.
ambeR Rubarth at John and Catherine’s place in Novato in November.
Joel Ackerson at Eric and Jill’s place in Mill Valley in January.
Despite spending the entire day driving between shows on tour with Ingrid Michaelson, Allie was kind enough to preview a couple of songs from her forthcoming album. I’m hoping to schedule a house concert date next year featuring Allie and Ingrid in an all-acoustic setting like this. Stay tuned to my calendar of events at drewpearce.com/events.html – I should have 2008 dates posted sometime in November.
Of the many highpoints I can remember over the past 3 years of hosting house concerts, having the leader of Toad the Wet Sprocket perform in Diana Parker’s living room has to be the pinnacle. I’ve been a fan of Glen’s music since I first heard the album Fear back in 1991.
For smart, subtle songcraft, Glen has few equals. Sometimes his songs are hilarious (see the YouTube video of “Drive By” above), sometimes they’re uplifting (see the YouTube video of “Courage” below). But no matter what he’s singing, it always sounds authentic and true. He simply has one of the most distinctive voices in pop music. It was actually a bit surreal to hear that voice coming directly from the man himself singing without a microphone in a living room (rather than on TV or your iPod or a giant PA system at Great American Music Hall)—probably the aural equivalent of seeing an actor at the grocery store when you’re used to seeing their face two-dimensionally on the screen. As he was singing and chatting up my roomful of friends, I kept thinking what a lucky music fan I am to get to present a show like this.
I owe a big thanks not only to Glen for including this house concert in his tour, but also to Diana and Craig Parker for opening up their home and making this special event happen. Thanks also to all of you who attended. I’m working on putting together another show with Glen in 2008. Stay tuned.
Thanks to all of you who joined us at Nancy’s place last weekend. Larkin Gayl and Walty inspired the most unbridled sing alongs we’ve heard to date. Here are a few clips of their performances.
