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***MOST SHOWS START AT 9PM (doors open at 8PM) UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE***

For advance tickets call Weird Harold's Records 319-753-5353, 411 Jefferson, Burlington


THE WASHINGTON
   306 Washington Street   319-758-9553

 THE BLUE SHOP     320 North 4th

 **The Washington's Myspace Site**

THE WASHINGTON is the recently renovated entertainment venue is located at 306 Washington Street right around the corner from  THE BLUE SHOP in downtown Burlington, Iowa. Please Bookmark this page for updates. The Blue Shop is a b.y.o.b. venue--the Washington has a full service bar.


2009 SCHEDULE

         

 


2009

SEPTEMBER

SATURDAY 12......CHUCK MITCHELL     $7

Born Charles Scott Mitchell in New York City, he grew up in farm country north of Detroit. He thought of becoming a forest ranger like Aldo Leopold. Instead, he graduated from college with a degree in English and drama. After a brief time pursuing but not capturing an acting career in New York, Mitchell was drafted into the US Army, where he learned to drive a tank and use an assortment of weapons. Then he spent a peaceful year in Korea as a reporter for Stars & Stripes and as a hoofer in musical comedy reviews, entertaining the troops. Mitchell returned to Detroit and became a writer for the Great Cities project, a public school experiment bankrolled by the Ford Foundation to develop programs for educating "culturally deprived" children. A program called Head Start was one. Mitchell started singing in Detroit folk clubs and saloons, and left his writing job in 1965. In Toronto, on his first out of town gig, he met Canadian songwriter Joni Anderson from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. They married, and as a duo Chuck and Joni Mitchell played the coffeehouse circuit and gin rummy until they divorced in 1968.

The folk clubs faded, and Mitchell moved on to college and arts council residencies. He has lived in Coconut Grove, Florida, Santa Monica, California, and Greeley, Colorado. In the eighties, he gravitated back to the middle west, and bought a tall brick house built by a riverboat captain in 1879 overlooking the Mississippi River in Iowa. Mitchell's credits include A Prairie Home Companion, and repertory theatre in Texas and England. He has played Harold Hill in The Music Man, and Woody Guthrie in Woody Guthrie's American Song. Most recently, he wrote and produced Mr. Foster & Mr. Twain, in which Stephen Foster joins Mark Twain for an evening of story and song. Chuck Mitchell's one-man show combines his seasoned skills as an actor, singer and guitarist with a selection of delightful material. He sings cabaret songs by Brecht and Weil -- "Mack the Knife" and "The Bilbao Song" -- and whimsical songs by Flanders & Swann -- "The Gnu" and "Have Some Madeira, M'dear". He roves the room singing "Freeborn Man" by Ewan McColl, or "Necessity" from Finian's Rainbow. He weaves poetry by Robert Frost and T.S. Eliot into his shows. He has been called a renaissance man, and thinks he is old enough to be one.

 

 

FRIDAY 18.......CURTIS SALGADO $10  opening set by BOB SAAR

Curtis Salgado's musical journey began with his birth in Everett, Washington, in 1954. His family moved to Eugene, Oregon when he was one and he grew up there listening to jazz, and to his father, an aspiring singer of classical music. His ambitions coalesced when, at age 12, he saw Count Basie's band perform in Eugene. Curtis became a part of the burgeoning Northwest blues scene starting in 1972 with a band called Three-Fingered Jack. Eventually he hooked up with up-and-coming guitarist/vocalist Robert Cray, and recorded the album "Who's Been Talking." In six years with Robert, the higher level of visibility enabled Salgado to sit in with the likes of Muddy Waters, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Albert Collins and Bonnie Raitt. Aside from being a tremendous vocalist, Curtis is one of the finest blues harmonica players in the country. In 1979, when John Belushi was in Eugene filming Animal House, he caught Curtis' act and liked what he heard and saw. Curtis took the actor under his wing and schooled him on blues and R & B history, which Belushi soaked up like a sponge, and used a good portion of Curtis' show as the basis for the Blues Brothers act he and Dan Akroyd put together. The first Blues Brothers album was dedicated to Curtis......He left the Cray band before it broke through nationally and from 1984 - 1986 he fronted Boston's Grammy- Winning Roomful Of Blues before returning to Portland where he formed The Stilettos, who toured nationally with such acts as Steve Miller and The Doobie Brothers. He even did a stint as lead vocalist with Santana in the 1990's.

 

BOB SAAR can't remember his own lyrics sometimes. A professional writer, columnist, videographer, human, and musician, Bob played his first gig in march of 1965, when "the jesters" got five bucks apiece to play on the floor at the local masonic temple. he never looked back; had he looked forward, he might be a dentist instead he has two out-of-print albums to date:"david's buick" and "blue shop."

 

 

 


SATURDAY 19.......PRIVATE PARTY

 


FRIDAY 25.. DAVE ZOLLO  and the Body Electric

David Zollo is a countrified rock and roll keyboardist with a great backing band. They're often classified as alt-country, which I suppose is all right, except that Dave's songs defy the strict boundaries of any particular genre. There is certainly a country influence present in the music, but there is also plenty of rock and blues as well. They sound something like the Black Crowes playing ragtime piano with a hefty dose of the old Rolling Stones swagger thrown in for good measure. Ripping slide guitar solos and fancy fretwork are held up by a steady backbeat of tasteful drum and bass work, and Dave is blessed with a voice both rough and sweet. His keyboard skills are featured throughout, and are a pleasure to hear. [Mathew Brady]

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATURDAY 26........CALVIN JOHNSON with opening set by PASH(LY)

Calvin Johnson (born November 1, 1962) is an American guitarist, vocalist, songwriter, music producer, and disc jockey born in Olympia, Washington, USA. Known for his uniquely deep, droning singing voice, Johnson was a founding member of the bands Cool Rays, Beat Happening, The Go Team, Dub Narcotic Sound System, and The Halo Benders. Calvin Johnson is also the founder and owner of the influential indie label K Records, and has been cited as a major player in the beginning of the modern independent music movement.[1] As a prominent figure in the Olympia music scene, he was one of the major organizers of the seminal International Pop Underground Convention.


PASH(LY) Pash or Pash(ly) is Susan Ploetz pretending to be a band all by herself. The band motto is "Heal Those Wounds". A lot of people use Pashly as a salve, rubbing it on indiscriminately, but really there are highly complex systems and structures to the uses and meanings of PASHLY.

Pashly is Ploetz is making words, music, movement, feelings, visuals, stories, video. From the Midwestern inner-city opium dens of her youth, to on-the-floor Javanese art salons to New York boiler room raves, Pashly has been forming a secret invisible movement inside everyone who sees her.

Susan Ploetz has toured in the US, Canada, and Asia with her work. She has self-released 2 CDs: "Meet Me behind the Couch" and "Soft is Not Weak". She performed as a part of the Ladies of the Lake night at TBA 05 and opening for BARR in the TBA of 07. and has a small role in Gus Van Sant's "Paranoid Park". She co-curated a performance/experiment night called "Grab Bag" with Khaela Maricich of The Blow, started in July 2006.

pash has performed at PICA's TBA Festival, Ladyfest Olympia, Yale, Sarah Lawerence, Bard, Reed College, NYU, The Kniiting Factory, CMJ Music Showcase, among other venues. pash has toured with The Blow, Al Larsen, Old Time Relijun, and Anna Oxygen. Pash (ly) has played with: BARR, Lucky Dragons, Anne Waldman, Yelle, Dirty Projectors, Calvin Johnson, High Places, The Mircophones/Mt Eerie, E*Rock, Yacht, High Places, Dynasty Handbag, Jenny Hoyston, Extreme Animals, Valet, Nikki Click, Tender Forever, Leg and Pants Dans Theeatre, Scream Club, Lauren Flax, amongst others.

 

 

OCTOBER

SATURDAY 3.......HARPER   9 PM, $10 ADVANCE, $12 DOOR

PART HARMONICA WIZARD AND PART rhythmic explorer, Harper is a fiery artist who blurs the lines between rock, blues, soul and world music. His latest Blind Pig release, "Day By Day", displays his trademark virtuoso harp performances, distinctive instrumentation, deeply soulful grooves and instantly memorable songs and provides another prime example of why his unique roots music style occupies a category of its own. Harper has been described as "a singer with the deep soul of Motown, a harmonica player who can graft Sonny Boy II and Little Walter with John Popper, a songwriter who tells his own compelling stories in an unhurried, J.J. Cale-like manner, and a musical visionary who is unafraid to mix the didgeridoo, an important part of his Australian indigenous culture, with infectious modern percussive rhythms". His skill lies in the fact that he is able to tap into the kindred spirits running through his traditional and modern influences, borrowing from western and world music to develop a highly original take on the roots genre. He also takes the harmonica beyond its assigned place. Harper’s innovative use of electronic enhancement and feedback breaks the traditional boundaries of the harmonica, giving his music its distinctive harmonics and effects.


SATURDAY 10....FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS

Fundamental Elements mix a fresh blend of soul and pop/rock, with catchy song writing and remarkable musicianship to create songs that are making people take notice. Their tight, high-energy live performances have them being praised as one of the most promising and talented bands to come out of St. Louis........Drawing comparisons to artists such as Stevie Wonder, Maroon 5, and Jamie Lidell, Fundamental Elements consistently amaze crowds in venues across America. An ever-growing resume of accomplishments include pairings with the likes of Rihanna, Matisyahu, Ozomatli, Bob Schneider, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Three 6 Mafia, The John Popper Project, The Spin Doctors, Matt Wertz, and Will Hoge (among others).

 

 

FRIDAY 16......ANNIE RAINES and PAUL RISHELL

Listen to the simmering joy these two bring to the blues and you can almost see the mystical line that separates the timeless from the merely old. They clearly adore the vintage charms of early blues masters like Charley Patton, Ma Rainey, and Blind Lemon Jefferson, but there is nothing archival about the sweet muscle and urban sass they bring to their arrangements. Rishell is a wonderfully convincing singer - and such a hot guitarist that he taught both Susan Tedeschi and Michael Tarbox. Raines plays the harmonica like she was born with one in her mouth. On their undulating whoop of a new album, "Goin' Home," they wear classic blues tunes like a second skin, and their own songs feel right at home beside them.
-- Scott Alarik, October 4, 2007 Boston Globe:

 

 

 

THURSDAY 22.....MARIA MULDAUR and Her Jug Band $20

.....For over 40 years as a performer, Maria Muldaur has literally lived the life of someone steeped in the American roots music songbook, whether it's blues, jazz, gospel, folk, country or rhythm & blues. She's the real deal, a true natural resource without any artificial affectations or jive.

For Maria Muldaur, the inspiration to sing and perform literally arrived in her own backyard. Born and raised in the Greenwich Village section of New York City, Maria was at the epicenter of the burgeoning folk and roots music boom that happened in the early '60s, with Greenwich Village as its hub. The pull of this exciting new music was strong, drawing singers, songwriters and musicians such as a young Bob Dylan from all across the USA to "The Village" to be a part of that scene............During the same time, Maria discovered the bluegrass and "old timey" music of the American rural south, which also informed her musical upbringing. All of these elements inspired Maria to sing, learn how to play the fiddle and perform, eventually becoming a member of the Even Dozen Jug Band, whose members included John Sebastian, David Grisman and Stefan Grossman. She later joined the Jim Kweskin Jug Band, which included her future husband, Geoff Muldaur. It was also around that time that she met legendary blues singer Victoria Spivey, who took Maria under her wing and taught her the finer points of blues singing and performing. Throughout her critically-lauded career as a singer and performer, Maria has held tight to her roots, carrying the torch for these truly American music forms. Even her substantial commercial success with songs such as "Midnight at the Oasis," "I'm a Woman" and others, owes a debt to the music she loves.

 

 

 

FRIDAY 23.....JIM FRENCH AND THE SMOKIN' MOJO KINGS

Smokin Mojo Kings are based out of Southeast Iowa and West Central Illinois. The line-up consists of Dennis Albee guitar, vocals John Wentzien bass, vocals Jim French harmonica, vocals and Eric Bartholomew drums. The Smokin Mojo Kings’ up-tempo blues are tempered with a New Orleans funk, which is not surprising as both John and Dennis plied their musical craft down South for several years. Notably John, has played with such luminaries as; J.D. Hill, and Pat Ramsey. Dennis has been a full time musician since his early teens, when he won a battle of the bands and a recording contract in a contest sponsored by Chicago’s premier radio station, WLS. Eric is a veteran of U.S.O. tours that have entertained our troops around the world as well as backing many top professionals on a cruise line. Jim has been playing harmonica and performing with area bands for thirty years. The Smokin Mojo Kings have been busy writing and recording their second c.d., which like their first c.d. features all original compositions. Their music has been featured on; The Texas Blues Café, WLSO F.M., Blues train F.M., Flying Coyote Radio, The Blues Room (nz radio), Kansas City Online Radio, Fat Cat Radio, as well as Blues Into The Night and Mark Kerr’s Blues Nation Radio. The Smokin Mojo Kings performances are hallmarked with an energetic “let it all hang out” approach that always guarantees a good time. Shut Yo' Yap

SATURDAY 30.....SEAN COSTANZA BAND $5

Born in Albuquerque, NM, and raised in the desert of Arizona, Sean picked up an acoustic guitar at age 16. Exposed to many different types of music as a child, from Rock-n-Roll to Native American tribal beats over laid with Southwestern folklore, his lyric and music takes on an honest and earthy feel all its own. With just over a quarter-of-a-century in life experience, Sean has tried to focus his lyric on the most true and yet mysterious aspects in life. Sean’s live show experience began with his first band in Phoenix, AZ, around 1999 A.D., performing in such honored venues as the Yucca Tap Room in downtown Tempe, Sean began to learn the true art of transmitting his feelings and emotions thorough his music to the audience. A few years later, Dallas, TX, came calling, and just like the westward wind, Sean blew into the “Long Horn State.” After landing in Dallas, he began to perform acoustically and soulfully, with just him and his guitar. This is when Sean really began to develop the earthy and honest sound that is his music today.

 

 

NOVEMBER

FRIDAY 6............DUFF'S RETURN

 

SATURDAY 7......SARAH'S PARTY

 

SATURDAY 14.......TOMMY CASTRO

Tommy has wowed and won fans on every stage he's performed on, with is riveting presence growing stronger by the year...... Prominent observers of the blues have extolled Tommy's dynamic musicianship and pointed to him as being among a small few that represent the future of the blues. B.B. King was so enamored of the Tommy Castro Band that he invited them to be openers on his 2001 concert tour, and again in 2002. When teenaged Castro bought his very first blues album (B.B. King's Live at the Cook County Jail) and listened to it incessantly, trying to copy the guitar licks, he never dreamed that one day he'd be sitting side by side on a concert stage actually playing those licks with B.B. himself. In all, the band played over eighty concert dates with "the King of the blues."And Carlos Santana, who's also invited Castro to share the stage with him, said of Tommy, "The blues is in good hands. This is the person who has the voice, the sound, and the right intentions to touch everybody's heart."

 

FRIDAY 20....NADAS

Like so many American bands, the Nadas started as a way for its members to pass the time between classes. Unlike so many American bands, the Nadas outlasted their educations and rode a growing fan base to a genuine, honest-to-goodness career...... they work flawlessly as a songwriting unit, skillfully evoking the romance, introspection and uncertainty of living life on one's own terms in the 21st Century. Altogether, the Nadas have sold more than 75,000 albums through their own Authentic Records, including 2003's Transceiver and 2005's Listen Through the Static, both produced by Todd and Toby Pipes of Deep Blue Something. The Nadas have also been called the "Best College Band You've Never Heard Of" by Playboy, had one of their songs ("Walk Away") become the official elimination song on Speed Channel's "Pinks" show, and were one of the final four bands for Bon Jovi’s Have a Nice Day band competition -- all the while steadily touring the country in Meatloaf's old tour bus, named Meatloaf (of course).

 

DECEMBER

SATURDAY 12......TYPHONIE MONIQUE and NEAL ALGER and their HOLIDAY JAZZ GROUP

Typhanie Monique and Neal Alger have been performing their brand of soul-infused jazz for over eightyears now. Spawned from a weekly residency at Chicago’s famed jazz venue Pops for Champagne, the duo has carefully honed their groove-oriented versions of jazz standards, pop/rock songs, and material from the R&B/Soul genre. The duo continues to embrace tradition and modern ideas simultaneously but this time in the songbook of holiday ditties. In the holiday spirit of an inclusive 'musical family', YULETIDE GROOVE, the newest project from Alger and Monique, features many special guests including rising Hammond B3 organ star Tony Monaco. Monaco brings an infectious beat, a rock-solid swing, and warm vocals to the chestnut "Baby It's Cold Outside" while Monique revels in Monaco's vitality, turning in an inspired vocal performance. A horn trio of trumpet, sax, and trombone brings a lush but not overly sentimental flavor to Vince Guaraldi's "Christmastime is Here" and the classic "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree". The sultry sexiness of "Santa Baby" is beautifully enhanced by a cha-cha arrangement which features the contagious musical exuberance of latinos pianist Darwin Noguera and trumpeter Victor Garcia.
Unafraid to venture away from the same instrumentation and conservative musical ideas embraced by so many jazz groups in these times, the duo of Typhanie Monique and Neal Alger forge ahead with a unique and fun musicial vision that emphasizes groove, experimentation, and soul. Their three strong discs, supported by nationwide live performances, radio airplay, and favorable press, showcase the duo's individuality in grand fashion.

 


2010

JANUARY

FRIDAY-SATURDAY 29-30...JASON LINDNER  (html)  $18 Door--$15 Advance Door opens 8PM--Show at 9PM

"Jason Lindner is a musical universe." - Chick Corea

"Lindner ranks among the finest all-around pianist-composers of his generation." - Time Out New York

"This is the sound of young New York, and one of the US's brightest jazz hopes - pianist Jason Lindner" - BBC, London

"This guy [Lindner] is tearing up the jazz scene. Easy to see why. He has enough personality to make his presence felt in the midst of a roaring big band ...Don't miss this one!" - Keyboard Magazine

 

Pianist Jason Lindner has been a fixture in the New York jazz scene since the mid-90s when the venerated Greenwich Village club, Smalls, became the home for a new generation of forward-thinking jazz musicians. Lindner's large ensemble performances quickly became the focal point for critics who frequently wrote about the club, and record label representatives eagerly tried to capitalize on the buzz. Lindner regularly drew sold out crowds on Monday nights at Smalls, something more established musicians could only accomplish on weekends. This earned them their IMPULSE records debut on JAZZ UNDERGROUND/LIVE AT SMALLS, which led to their full-length release on CHICK COREA'S Stretch label, PREMONITION. Now in their 12th year, they are preparing an exciting and much anticipated double CD recorded live at the JAZZ GALLERY.

"...one of the most impressive big bands to emerge in years... filled with declarative themes, recurring motifs and varying temperaments that range from elegant balladry to body-rocking grooves." - Jazz Times Magazine

JASON LINDNER grew up in Brooklyn, NY, started playing piano by ear at age 2 and was playing jazz proficiently at 15. He apprenticed with master bebopper Barry Harris and the mystic harmonic master Chris Anderson (Herbie Hancock's harmonic guru), and also with Junior Mance, Tardo Hammer, Harold Danko, Frank Hewitt and Jaki Bayard before exploring a world of Latin and African rhythms, Funk, R&B, Hip Hop, Electronica, Rock... in general, MUSIC.

Jason frequently performs in New York and around the world with Claudia Acuña, Meshell Ndegeocello, Baba Isreal, Dafnis Prieto Absolute Quintet, Avishai Cohen (the trumpet player), Omer Avital, Dana Leong, Yosvany Terry Cabrera, Pharaoh's Daughter, Forro in the Dark, Anat Cohen, Luisito Quintero, Malika Zarra and Juancho Herrera, and with his own groups AB AETERNO TRIO, NOW VS. NOW, PROGRESS REPORT, JL-ECTRIK, BIG PUMP and the JASON LINDNER BIG BAND. He has also recorded with and MD'd for Lauryn Hill and Amel Larrieux, toured with Roy Haynes, performed with and arranged for Arturo O'Farrill's Grammy winning Jazz at Lincoln Center Afro-Latin Orchestra, and shared both stage and studio with Chick Corea, Junior Cook, Elvin Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Paquito D’Rivera, Jon Hendricks, James Moody, Graciella (Machito Orchestra), Mark Turner, Lou Donalson, Dakota Staton, Randy Brecker, Arnie Lawrence, Jimmy Lovelace, Jimmy Cobb, Lou Donalson, The Henry Mancini Orchestra, Mark Turner, Christian McBride, Clark Gayton, Clarence "C" Sharpe, Vernel Fournier, and other artists.