{Rewind} July 2004

“Well from way up where the Red River flows, on down to the Rio Grande, I was born a native Texican and I’m proud to say that I am!” Those lyrics from Pat Green were definitely part of my personal anthem for the month of July. And I know from all of the posts on the board, it resonates throughout the walls of Galleywinter. July is definitely prime time in the Texas music scene as there are endless concerts to go to. You start the party in July by celebrating the USA in all its’ glory, and the party seems to continue throughout the month. Good times, good friends and good music – God Bless America!

The Shows… A few representatives of the Galleywinter contingent started the month out on the 1st annual Cruisin’ with Ragweed trip to Cozumel and Playa del Carmen aboard a Carnival cruiseliner. The trip that lasted from June 28th until July 3rd allowed guests access to the band that isn’t common very often – plus special guests Stoney LaRue and Mike McClure were on board as well. The fans were treated to live shows, acoustic shows, and exclusive meet & greet events, all the while surrounded by white sand and an endless supply of alcohol. What could be better?!?! Pappa Cope had this to say

“The night of the first show, the Boy’s Rocked the Botizzle!! Nat got me the set list Whoo Hooo!! Randy broke his snare drum and whilst he was out getting one, Grady, and Cody started Row, Row, Row your boat!! I never heard them do that cover!!! LOL!! It was a cool show, great view and we all laid around in couches and Rocked!! Was absolutely the Best!!”

The trip was such a success that they have already scheduled a date for next year – so if you are interested in sailing away with Cross Canadian Ragweed next year, mark June 27-July 2, 2005 on your calendar – no doubt this party will get bigger and bigger every year…

The first full weekend in July brought out a couple of musical events in the state of Texas. First of all is the Willie’s Annual Fourth of July Picnic. This year the event moved to the Stockyards in Ft. Worth so they could accommodate the larger crowds as this event seems to grow by leaps and bounds each and every year. They had a killer line up that included Django Walker, Los Lonely Boys, Jack Ingram, Cross Canadian Ragweed, and of course, THE man himself, Willie Nelson. Possum, who came all the way from North Carolina for the show, had this review:

“I loved Django’s set, and my pal who went with me that doesn’t really listen to any Texas country was talking about nothing but Django at the end of the day. I think he earned a new fan with his performance!”

That’s one of the great things about events of this magnitude – they afford so many bands exposure that they could not get anywhere else.

Down the road in Austin, Pat Green was putting on a party of his own. The day started out with great performances by Mike Graham and Pauline Reese. I hadn’t heard either of them before, but they kicked off the holiday jam in style. Next up was Wade Bowen and West 84. These guys came out and jammed – regardless of the fact that it probably felt like it was 110 degrees up there, they laid it all out on the table – and left the audience wanting more. Then up came Jack Ingram – who, if you will notice above, was also at Willie’s Picnic earlier in the day. So you would think that after giving one performance in the scorching July heat, and then hopping in the bus and driving to Austin, one might be a little worn out. Oh but no. Jack jumped up on that stage, and put on a show like only Jack can. He sang a lot of the favorites, and he also sang the touching song he wrote for his daughter, Ava Adelle. Next up was who I would consider to be the legend of the day, Mr. Jerry Jeff Walker. Jerry Jeff just has those songs that won’t let you sit still – they make you get up and want to dance. You know them all, whether you realize that you did before the show started or not – he’s a man that has never lost his touch – and can connect with audiences young and old. Cowboy Mouth took the stage after Jerry Jeff and got the crowd all kinds of riled up. They had more energy within the group than I think the entire crowd did – they were insane, but they were a lot of fun to watch – definitely a band to keep an eye on. And last but not least, Pat Green took the stage. It was a great performance, as if we would expect anything less. He brought Cory Morrow up on stage to sing with him to “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?”, and then brought everyone that covers “Atlantic City” up on stage to join him as well – that meant that I got to see Wade and Pat sing it together (Renee=EXTREMELY HAPPY) – plus I think I remember Mike Graham getting up there too. And to top it all off, it was Lori’s first Pat Green show in Texas – the look on her face could have summed it up for all of us – and anyone that saw her that weekend knows what I mean…

The next weekend brought what I believe will prove to be one of the most memorable weekends of the year for a lot of us – the float trip/preview party with the Randy Rogers Band. The afternoon started with a float down the Comal River with the entire band, and some of the most die-hard fans of the RRB. It was a great time getting to know everyone, enjoying the river, and enjoying the frosty beverages even more. I believe I speak for all of us when I say that the absolute highlight of the river was meeting William, or Wendall, or Willard, what ever name you decided upon for the blow-up plastic man doll that was taking the trip with another group of floaters. It was great to finally meet Wendy’s counterpart… Once we got off of the river and got back to RRIH, Randy and Brady (with the help of Jon during “Ten Miles Deep”) treated us to an acoustic run through of the CD complete with stories in between. NEVER will we be able to hear it like that again. Then Ryan Turner and Bleu Edmondson jumped up on stage and sang a couple of songs before Randy got back up there. Then came the emotional part of the night. One of the RRB’s biggest supporters is our own Sweet Caroline, and this was her last weekend in Texas as she moved to South Carolina the next week. Randy called her out on it, and thanked her for all of the support – then sang the song he always sings for her, “Sweet Carolina” – a Ryan Adams cover. Well the waterworks kicked into high gear all around – as you can see by the pic attached – there was a lot of emotion in the room. After Randy got done with that – the party was back on in a big way. They played the CD for all of us to hear, and we were dancing around, hanging out, and reveling in the fact, that we would more than likely never have an experience like that, with those guys again. As for the weekend, Sweet Caroline summed it up as follows:

“It was just so meaningful to me to see everyone loving the RRB and sharing in a monumental day for the band – whoever missed it, missed one of the most true occasions of our cause and truly should get to know the RRB… Float was fun, hearing the new songs live all in a row was really moving, and hearing the cd twice was just amazing…”

I think that says it all…

Fast forward a couple of weeks and that brings you to a night where both Ft. Worth and Houston were treated to great shows. At Billy Bob’s Texas that night, Honeybrowne and the Lost Trailers burned up the joint. It was the first time the Trailers had headlined there, and they put on a stellar performance. Galleywinter was well represented as people came from all over the state, and even Georgia, to see guys blow it up. They were not at all disappointed by either band. Texasgirl513 said this about the Trailers performance:

“After the first encore, they started turning the house lights back on but everyone starting banging on the tables and chanting “one more song” It was awesome! I think I pissed off the guy in front of me by being too rowdy; but dude it’s the Trailers, you gotta rock!”.

Definitely a night to remember, or not, depending on your bar tab that night…LOL…

Many in the Houston crowd opted for the Peter Dawson show at the Firehouse that Friday night. And once again, we had representatives from across the country as Lori from CA, and Megw2 from Boston came into town for a visit. Peter and the band were so excited to have us all there as this was also their first time to headline the Firehouse. They were hoping to have a good crowd there, and they definitely got it – you could feel the energy radiating off of the stage as the guys played their hearts out. MeiLee, one of Peter Dawson’s most loyal fans, posted this review:

“What can I say… I’ve been following this band all summer and it just gets better every time. I was ecstatic to see so many GW people there even though I only got a chance to say hi to a few. Peter, Eric, Brooks, Josh – y’all were amazing last night!!! I think a lot of it was that we could tell y’all were having just as much fun as we were. Thanks for a good time!!”

Catch these guys when you get a chance – they are coming up quick, and are definitely a good time on stage and off…

And last but not least, the Houston crowd was treated to a Bleu Edmondson and Stoney LaRue song swap at the Side Car Pub to close out the weekend as well. If you have not been to one of these shows – get to one as soon as you can. It is not only a great acoustic show with some of the best music you will hear, it is one of the best dang comedy shows you can find. These guys are great friends, and just feed off of each other all night long – compound that with Jaeger flowing like water, and you have quite a combination on your hands. Tank was in attendance at this show and had this to say: “Holy Ballz and hide children, these boys were tore up and loving it. Never-ever seen that much excitement over an acoustic show. After these shows I never have the words to express what I feel. I think I’m still on a high from it.. or maybe it’s the Red Bull. Nah it’s definitely the music.” The highlight of this show was when someone let the guys on stage know that there were people from California, Boston, and Georgia in the house – Stoney mentioned it, and Bleu immediately knew that they were part of the Galleywinter contingent – how cool is that?!?! Lori could hardly put her experience about seeing Stoney into words:

“I’m still reeling from this show and this man – oh my it should be illegal what he can do with that guitar!!!!!!! He said that it was church a few times that night. And I’ll tell you it was the most spiritual experience I have truly ever had…”

Once again one of those times you have to store in your memory banks forever because you aren’t going to experience anything quite like it again…

The artists… There are a few congratulations in order for the artists that keep us inspired through their music..

First of all, Casey Twist, bass player for Wade Bowen and West 84 had quite a weekend as June came to a close. On the 26th, he got married, and on the 27th he turned 21. Congratulations and best of luck to you and your new bride…

Jack Ingram welcomed a son into the world on July 13th. Elias Owen Ingram, “Eli” (like Eli not Ely) joins big sister Ava, and I’m sure will bring much joy to Jack and Amy. Congratulations and best wishes…

I recently saw Jason Boland, and he mentioned that the drummer, Brad Rice also celebrated the birth of his son Noah. I’m not sure how new or old this news is, but it was the first I had heard of it, so I’m going to send out the congratulations regardless – I hope he brings much happiness to you and your family Brad!

We also received news that Cody Canada is going to be featured in a novel by Ken Burke titled “Country Music Changed My Life.” Burke was interested in the band’s story about a dear friend in their extended family, Nick Benson, who was lost in a training mission during his stint in the Air Force. The story reveals some very personal endearments about the band’s relationship to Benson and the impact he made on their lives through Ragweed’s music. It’s a very touching testament to the power of song from the artist’s perspective. Be sure to check it out…

On the horizon… First and foremost – if you are anywhere near Austin this coming Sunday, August 8th, you have no excuse for not being at Y’allapolooza. This is an all-day event featuring great music from Jarrod Birmingham, Ricky Calmbach, Jason Allen, Randy Rogers, Jason Boland, Jack Ingram, Doug Moreland and Kevin Fowler. It’s sure to be a ton of fun, and I’m sure we will all be entertained with the stories when hangovers wear off…

Also in August is the Margarita Salsa Festival in Waco on the 28th. This year, the mayor of Salsaritaville, Pat Green, returns to headline the show. Joining him this year are Cross Canadian Ragweed and Wade Bowen. The event will be held at the H.O.T Fairgrounds, so if you were thinking about not going due to chaos in years past, don’t let that stop you. They changed venues last year to alleviate that problem, and received resounding cheers from attendees. Tickets went on sale on August 1st. Get them now before they sell out, and make plans to join the crew from Galleywinter out there…

As September begins, we get yet another three-day weekend – but it’s kind of bittersweet – it means that the summer season is drawing to an end. What am I saying?!?! That just gives us an excuse to party, and venues across Texas are making sure we do just that!

That Friday night, Kevin Fowler is playing at a little gem of a festival that many of you may have never heard of. It’s called Westfest, and it has become a tradition for me and my friends for years now. It’s in the town of West, TX which is just outside of Waco. If you’ve ever wanted to experience a small town Czech polka festival – this is THE place to do it. And to top it all off, you get a good dose of Texas music as well that Friday night. So go load up on Pivo, grab some of the best food you will have all year, and dance like it’s nobody’s business – all in the name of tradition…

The next day in College Station, Ziegenbock kicks off their fall tour of festivals in College Station. It will be held at Lake Bryan and features an amazing line up including the Eli Young Band, The Lost Trailers, Macon Greyson, the Bottle Rockets, Max Stalling, Wade Bowen, Phil Pritchett, Bleu Edmondson, Jason Boland and the Stragglers, Kevin Fowler, Jack Ingram, and Roger Creager. This show has a potential of being a 12 on a 10 point scale – it’s sure to set the standard for all of the festivals to follow throughout the coming months…

And wrapping up the Labor Day weekend will be Jack Ingram’s Second Annual Real. American. Music. Festival at Floore’s Country Store in Helotes. The show will feature Jack Ingram, Joe Ely, Kevin Fowler, Reckless Kelly, Ray Wylie Hubbard, James McMurtry, the Bottle Rockets, Scott Miller, Bobby Bare Jr., Monte Montgomery, The Lost Trailers, Randy Rogers, Chris Knight, Nathan Hamilton, and Hayes Carll. Once again a stellar line up – and you don’t have to work the next day – no excuses will be accepted. I remember hearing great things about this festival last year, and I expect nothing less with such an amazing group of musicians.

Whew. I think that about does it. I need a beer, or a bed, or both… As always, see ya where the music is playin’…

Renee (monee2000)