Rock 'n' Roll Fridays

Interview with Kat Souponetsky (née Katerina Kramarchuk). She is a composer, pianist and educator based in Philadelphia whose music has been described as "quick-witted, tightly constructed and ruefully introspective, with propulsive, sometimes jazzy rhythms and suave textures" (The Oregonian). Her works have been performed and broadcasted across the globe at respected venues such as The Louvre, Bargemusic, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Dresden Music Festival, Peter Jay Sharp Theater, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Le Fontainebleau Château, U.S. Airways radio, and the Isabelle Stewart Gardner Museum. She has been commissioned by chamber music groups and institutions such as Curtis Institute of Music, Dolce Suono Ensemble, Portland Chamber Orchestra, New York Choreographic Institute, The Rock School for Dance Education, The Mousai, ensemble39, and PRISM Saxophone Quartet. In a previous season, she was the recipient of the first ever commission by Philadelphia Inquirer, as a part of their new media initiative in the arts. She has also been commissioned by the Chamber Music Northwest Festival where she was the first protégé composer in residence in 2012. In 2011, she was the first composer to be commissioned by One Book One Philadelphia. 

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The Greatest Music Poster Story Ever Told. It is a classic interview with Mitch Diamond who through various circumstances came to meet Ravin’ Ray who would introduce Mitch to a loaded gun, his girlfriend, swing dancing, beers at a VFW hall, Alaska, The Country Music Hall of Fame, $60,000 in cash and one of the greatest finds in concert poster history.

Mitch Diamond has a love affair with music all his life. As a teenager he started collecting records and wrote record reviews for a small local folk music magazine . In the early 1970’s he began working in and managing record stores. About this time he began collecting movie posters with pictures of musicians on them.  He went on to work the wholesale side of the music industry by being an area rep for independent music labels.  Around 1980 I bought my first two concert posters, a 1941 Duke Ellington and a 1941 Cab Calloway.  He fell in love with the concert poster “Genre” and have been collecting them ever since.

He has written For “Goldmine Magazine”, been interviewed by “Worth Magazine-The Robb Report” and appeared on the T.V. Show “Chronicle“. My collection has appeared in “Time-Life Publications”, P.B.S. documentaries, news reports and many books.

His collection consists of what are called “boxing style” posters because of their similarity to posters used to advertise boxing matches. It includes all types of concert posters, flyers, handbills and musicians business cards from the dawn of recorded music until Dec 31, 1969  11:59 p.m.

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Great Chat with Mark Brown of Hambone Relay. Mark talks about his music, move to the west coast and meeting Neal Evans. With elements of blues, jazz, funk and rock & roll, Hambone Relay redefines the modern organ trio with their unique brand of improvisational jam music. Since their founding in 2012, the band has played between 75-100 shows a year and have shared the stage with such great bands as Melvin Seals and JGB, Cris Jacobs, The James Hunter 6 and New Orleans legends Rebirth Brass Band. The band was founded in 2012 by organist Mark Brown. He began his career playing keyboards with the Baltimore-based jam band The Bridge. The band began playing a handful of shows and festivals and started to gain some recognition in the area. This would eventually lead to them recording their first album. The self-titled LP would feature 8 brand new original songs and 2 covers recorded live. This first album featured Devin Coleman on guitar and Kyle Moken on drums. On February 16, 2018, Hambone Relay played WXPN’s “Free At Noon” concert to a packed house at World Cafe Live. John Udinsky had left the band and Luke Ferracone of The Groove Merchants had taken his place. The band shared the stage with British R&B singer James Hunter which would lead to a short tour in supporting The James Hunter 6 playing City Winery in New York City and MusikFest Cafe in Bethlehem, PA. Following this successful run, the band would hit the road for the rest of 2018 growing and writing new music along the way. In early 2021, the band relocated to Los Angeles and continues to record and play shows on both coasts. More dates are being released frequently and new music is currently in the works, set for release in 2021 and 2022. Their live shows are a mixture of danceable grooves, psychedelic overtones and improvisational jams. 

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Great chat with John Torres telling a story of playing with Jason Bonham the great English drummer.

Simply put, The John Torres Band is an American rock and roll band. And much like rock and roll, the band has its influence in soul, country and all-around groove music. John describes his sound as “South Jersey” – acoustic guitars, a little slide, woodsy violins and some progressive soul voices that have spilled over from the Ben Franklin Bridge, eastbound to the shorelines.

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Great chat with Barry Hollander, Collingswood Musician, guitar player and songwriter. Barry tells his story of meeting Pat Martino at Chris Jazz Cafe in Philadelphia, PA. Barry has been playing guitar since Gerald Ford was president. He is currently performing with Jazz group. "Stolen Moments", Bluegrass band " Jersey CornPickers" , "Love City Music Collective" under the direction of Peg Lane, and "The Michele Show" featuring Michele Harron. You might also hear him picking some Chet Atkins while you're buying zucchini at some Farmer's Market. 

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Interview with Jared Loss who is part of the band Cosmic Guilt and runs and manages Rockdale Music.

Jared Loss is a songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia. His debut album, "Your Loss" chronicles 10 or more years worth of material written, performed, produced and recorded in his cottage studio in Media, PA. 

In addition to solo gigs, Loss fronts his group The Real Feel and performs with various Philadelphia based bands, including Scantron and Ali Wadsworth. 

Rockdale Music is a performance based music school in the Philadelphia suburb of Aston, PA. Students of all ages and skill levels are welcome and encouraged to participate in Rockdale’s musical community, including our music camps, rock band programs, and private lessons.

About Jared:
https://jaredloss.com/home

About Rockdale Music: 
https://rockdalemusic.com/

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A conversation with Joe Clementi. Joe talks about shooting Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Bill Graham, Chic & Music Photography overall.

Joe Clementi is a commercial photographer who lived and worked in NYC during its most exciting time, 1970s–1990s. Joe was on the scene and privy to nightclubs, red carpets, movie premieres, street protests, and more where he captured slivers of the synergy of New York esoterica. In NYC 1970s–1990s.

To See Joe’s Work:
https://www.facebook.com/joe.clementi.1
https://bigdayfilmcollective.com/joe-clementi/

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The story of David Bowie's time in Philadelphia recording 'Young Americans', and the unique bond he formed with the city, and with his biggest fans, The Sigma Kids.

Sigma Sound Studios was a recording studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1968 by recording engineer Joseph Tarsia.[1][2]

David Bowie recorded much of his album Young Americans in August 1974 at Sigma Philadelphia. Madonna used the New York studios to record her 1983 debut album, Madonna. On April 15, 1972, singer-songwriter and pianist Billy Joel and his touring band played an hour-long concert at Sigma Studios. The recording of "Captain Jack" from this event received extensive radio play in the Philadelphia area, long before Joel became widely known, which helped him establish a national following. 

Watch The Sigma Kids Here: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdGVR_xI7PA

Rock 'n' Roll Fridays:
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A Musical Life Conversation with Michael J. Beckerich.  We discuss meeting Jorma Kaukonen of Hot Tuna, the music blog www.thunderbirdranchramble.com and the https://musicpeopleproject.com.

Michael J. Beckerich

Since I was child I have had a deep connection with rock music. I saw Van Halen at MSG in NYC in 1982, I was nine years old. I dressed up as Alice Cooper for Halloween in the second grade. I listened, bought records, 8-tracks, boom boxes and iPods, played in bands and solo, read about, talked about, and since my first reporting job at Villanova University as the school’s first music editor… write about it. Twelve years ago (2008) I moved my music writings to the current platform (Blogger, owned by Google) and set-up a domain at www.thunderbirdranchramble.com

I traveled far and wide to not only see my favorite performers, but also visit landmark venues. The tales of these shows pepper the TBR Ramble. The concerts are greatly missed this year as COVID has dropped a bomb on the live music worlds, and to be honest, I’m getting older and have seen so much. The thing I miss most about attending shows are the music people I went with and met there. There are plenty of other ways to connect with Music People outside shows, but they were certainly an orgy of music chatter for me. When I am talking music with music people I am deeply rooted in the moment and using all corners of my brain... something people are in constant search of and some never find. 

Ever since I can remember I have been putting together collections of songs and sharing with friends and Music People I meet along the way. When the Philips CD Recorder first came I quickly abandoned mixed cassettes and tried to raise the bar on presentation. These CDs were called the Thunderbird Ranch Productions Music Collections. The most popular series were “Boozin’ Tunes” and “Independence Day) released annually on Christmas and July 4 every year. When CDs were replaced by streaming music, they petered out. Sharing music via an Apple Music playlist or Spotify isn't the same as a good old mixed tape.

Hence, The Music People Project... a creative installation that centers on the stories and ramblings of Music People. It is a way to touch, feel and connect with other Music People. At some point when I have enough interviews, the project will be shared at galleries and maybe created into a film for entry at film festivals, and online outlets. 

Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest places if you look at it right.

- Michael J. Beckerich

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An great interview with Gary Waldman, an artist manager-tour producer-musical instrument enthusiast, who spent decades with Neal Casal throughout his career. We discuss Neal Casal's music, his foundation, and his legacy. We discuss mental health in the music business and the songs of the great Neal Casal.

To learn more about the Neal Casal Music Foundation visit:
https://nealcasalmusicfoundation.org/

To Purchase Highway Butterfly, The Songs of Neal Casal:
https://nealcasalmusicfoundation.org/store/highway-butterfly

About Neal Casal:
Neal Casal was born in Denville, New Jersey in 1968. He was a songwriter, singer, guitarist, record producer, photographer, surfer and friend. 

When his parents divorced in the mid-70’s, Neal moved with his mom from NJ to Georgia to California, before coming back to NJ and growing up in Rockaway, NJ. After graduating high school in 1987 and the end of his high school rock band, Exire, Neal started working at a guitar store called The Music Maker in Hackettstown, NJ. It was there he met a musician named Davis Jaynes, who would become Neal’s mentor and a huge influence on his guitar style. They would play guitar together at the store all day and spent a year or so playing shows together around New Jersey, where Neal would develop the sound that would become the foundation of his solo career. 

Neal would go on to appear on multiple recordings as a member of bands like Circles Around the Sun, Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Beachwood Sparks, The Skiffle Players and Hard Working Americans. He added his sublime musical touch to studio sessions and live performances by a long list of artists, including Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Sheryl Crow, Lucinda Williams, The Jayhawks, James Iha and Vetiver. 

His vast body of solo work was embraced by audiences worldwide and continues to be rediscovered in his passing. With the formation of the Neal Casal Music Foundation, the body of work Casal left behind, including an extensive archive of unreleased material, will be reimagined to further shine a light on his artistry, while providing resources to raise money for positive change. 

Neal Casal brought joy to so many and, in his absence, the foundation created in his name will further that purpose. It also hopes to reflect back to Casal the beauty he brought to this world in pursuit of a life dedicated to music and art.

Neal Graeme Casal
November 2, 1968 – August 26, 2019

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