5/5 to 5/12

5/5 friday Hem at Bowery Ballroom
5/6 sat Shotgun Shack at Rodeo Bar
5/7 Hanks same as last week
5/10 weds Sunny's in Red Hook. Smokey's western swing band rehearsal/gig
5/11 My band "The Mood Illusion" playsThe Living Room at 11:00
5/12 Shotgun Shack at Waterfront Alehouse 11:00 till 2:00

4/21 to 4/30

I'm doing a few gigs with Hem this month. It is always a joy to be on stage with those guys. That is one band I love being in.

4/21 On friday its Hank's with Shotgun Shack at 11:00 till 1:00. This some sort of big event involving a wig or two. The shotgun shack band is getting to be pretty darn good.

4/23 its sunday so itsHank's with Shotgun Shack at 6:00 then more honky tonk mayhem with the The New Jack Ramblers from 9:00 till 1:00.

4/26 Hem in Northern Virginia/ DC
4/27 Hem in Phila
4/28 My band The Mood Illusion at Sunny's in Red Hook. We had a big band meeting and almost broke up over who would be in charge of the myspace page. After a vote we decided that we would just agree to disagree and hold off on our conquest of cyber space for now.
4/29 Hem in Boston

4/30 hey it sunday again ! Did you ever see the movie "ground hog day" ? Its sorta like that only without the love interest part. So its Hank's !

4/17 to 4/23

The picture is of my living room where I practice.

Monday 4/17 I'll be playing with Max Greene at the
The Pussycat Lounge

96 Greenwich Street at Rector, 2nd Floor, 212-349-4800

We start at 8:00.
I was hoping that this was a lesbian bar but its not. Its a strip place downstairs complete with a velvet rope and a few really fat black dude bouncers.

Upstairs I guess they book bands when they haven't rented it out for really crappy batchelor parties. But to there credit the only good batchelor parties are the really skanky ones when you think about it.

Then its Hank's on friday the 21st with Shotgun Shack.

And lest we forget on sunday night
6:00 Shotgun Shack at Hank's
9:30 I'm still on stage playing with Sean Kershaw

I've got a pile of gigs for my own band coming up along with Hem and a new project with Smokey Hormel.

Monday 4/10 flash update !

At 8:00 till 10:00 on monday my band "The Mood illusion" will be playing our brand of lounge music at the 68 Jay st bar.
This is a great local hangout in dumbo, Brooklyn on the corner of Jay and Water st.

The band will be:
Jonathon Haffner: alto
George Rush: String Bass
Tony Mason:drums
Bob Hoffnar: pedal steel guitar

4/7 to 4/10

The picture is of me in some truckstop in California last year on Valentines day.

On friday 4/7 I'm playing with Drazy Hoops at 8:00 pm at CBGB Lounge
313 Bowery. This just me and Drazy. Check out his website to hear his tunes.

4/9 Its sunday and that means
Hank's with Shotgun Shack at 6:00 then more honky tonk mayhem with the The New Jack Ramblers from 9:00 till 1:00

I'm also playing a brunch gig on sunday with Jan Bell and the Cheap Dates. That starts at noon at Superfine in dumbo
126 Front St., Brooklyn, NY 11201
Between Jay and Pearl Sts.
718-243-9005

Its a little depressing being in dumbo these days. It used to be were Kojack would film the scenes that needed to look extra rough. Now they film skinny hipsters selling car insurance with those $1,000 messy looking hairdos and that pathetic attempt at irony.

Superfine is great though.They actually have those real green chiles you can only get in New Mexico.

3/28 to 4/2

tonight, tuesday, I'm playing lovely duets with the lovely Sean Kershaw at some new club that is the resererction of that old lousy club 9C. Its at 9th and C on the lower east side. 9:00 to 11:00 and I can't imagine they could get away with charging money. I don't know the name of the new place but its on the corner.

3/29 9:00 I'm playing with Jan Bell and the Cheap dates at
The Pussycat Lounge
THE MAN IN BLACK: A TRIBUTE TO JOHNNY CASH!
96 Greenwich Street at Rector, 2nd
Floor, 212-349-4800, $8 admission - 21+ w/ID

I'm hoping its a lesbian bar like the old Pussycat lounge because that place was fun.

3/30 Its Shotgun Shack at Two Boots in Brooklyn. If you get there early you can watch the band order anything on the menu except steak or seafood.

THursday night update: Gerald Menke will be at the Two boots gig and I will be playing at The 55 Bar with the amazing Wallisonics. Its Kenny Wollenson's new band of inspired and concerned musicians that will be meeting each other for the first time ever on the legendary stage, or floor in the corner as it were, of this bar in historic Greenwich Village.

then on sunday 4/2
6:00 Shotgun Shack at Hank's
9:30 I'm still on stage playing with Sean Kershaw

Hem on Tour Movies !

The first of many exciting short movies:
On the Road with Gary and Greg
whoo hoo !
Find the lobby !
Northampton UK

mando solo UK

An attempt at a movie

My Dog Lucy having fun

3/20 to 3/26

This week I'm back in the studio with Hem all week. The sessions are going great. We are recording everything live in a big room. The session I played this afternoon for Erin Sax was live also. It seems like the music does more of whatever the good stuff music does when everybody gets together and bangs away at the same time.

I just played a batch of fantastic gigs at Zebulon. Butch Morris conductions with a Kenny Wollensen/Jonathon Haffner cast of caractures. At the end of the last set most everybody left the stage and some guy from Mali was playing this beautiful music while Kenny, the bass player, Bill Ware (vibes) and I played along. The whole thing felt like a cool fresh breeze blowing through me.

Its going to be hard getting to rehearsals for a couple gigs I have this week with everything going on. In any case on:

3/23 I'm at The Lakeside Lounge with Max Greene . Its a Cd release party that should be fun.

3/24 Its Matt Keating at theMagnetic Field
in Brooklyn.

I'm not sure about sunday at the moment. I seem to have overbooked myself. I'll do my best to make most of the Shotgun Shack set and then maybe head over to Galapagoes to finish the night with Dawn Landes .

3/13 to 3/19

Well, I already played at Rodeo Bar on the 15th and then a couple gigs at Zebulon the 15th and 16th.
3/18
I do have another Zebulongig sat. Shows at 7:00 and 9:00 with Butch Morris conducting a pretty wild batch of players. Amazing music with some of the best improvisers in NYC.

3/19 I'm back at Hank's from 6:00 to 1:00. Same as last week.

I've been in the studio all week and again next week so I haven't had much quality internet time. I've got some good gigs coming up next week also. I'll post them when I get it together.

3/6 to 3/12

Not many live gigs this week. The one worth catching is on Thursday 3/9 with Don Dilego . We are playing at The Living Room downtown. The Living Room is a great hip club to see music at where you can pay the same price for a coke that they charge the bands ! The bald big tough cream puff bartender with tatoos is a real asshole. I have watched him have truly great players tossed out by security because they dared to complain when he took there drinks away before they were done. He has pulled that same shit with another buddy of mine that packs that place once a week. What a fucking tool !
Anyway, Don is great and the band is well worth seeing. Order your drinks from the girls in the music room. They are sweethearts.

3/10 friday night in Red Hook with Shotgun Shack at the deisel gallery 242 Van Brunt St. We should get going by 9:00 and Paranoid Larry will be doing whatever he does also. This an art opening.

3/11 I'm at Freddy's on Dean st. in Brooklyn with Jan Bell at 9:30. I'll be there early to catch my buddy Gerald playing steel with somebody else.

3/12 Its sunday and that means
Hank's with Shotgun Shack at 6:00 then more honky tonk mayhem with the The New Jack Ramblers fro 9:00 till 1:00

2/27 to 3/5

2/28 Hem in phila Pa at World Café Live

3/1 Dawn Landes at Makor

3/3 Sean kershaw somewhere in New Haven Ct

3/5 6:00 Shotgun Shack at Hank's
9:30 I'm still on stage playing with Sean Kershaw till 1:00

2/19 to 2/26

2/19 6:30 Shotgun Shack at Hank's
9:30 I'm still on stage playing with Sean Kershaw
2/21 10:00 Shotgun Shack at Rodeo Bar

2/22 8:00 Mike Viola with George Rush on Bass at the 11th Street Pub (Manhattan, bet Ave A and Ave B, south side of the street, no sign, no phone)

2/23 8:00 Mike Viola at Barbes Mike is one of the greatest ever. Not to be missed.

2/24 10:00 I'm playing with my band at Sunny's (253 Conover St) in Red Hook, Brooklyn.
George Rush: Bass,
Jonathon Haffner: Alto,
Ben Perowsky: Drums

2/25 George and I will go find Hem in Boston. Click on the Hem link for details.

2/26 3:00 Shotgun Shack at Lillie's in Red Hook.
6:30 Shotgun Shack at Hank's
9:30 I'm still on stage playing with Sean Kershaw

2/12 to 2/18

2/12 sunday 12:00 noon Superfine with Jan bell and the Cheap Dates. No cover, great food.

Superfine
(718) 726-2356
126 Front St
Brooklyn, NY 11201

6:30 Hank's with Shotgun Shack

9:30 still at Hank's with Sean Kershaw till 1:00

2/13 Iota in Arlington Va. with Hem
2/16 Jan Bell pending gig
2/17 Shotgun Shack at Waterfront Alehouse

Some febuary gigs 2/1 to 2/10

2/2 9:00 I'm at Galapagos with Jan Bell and the cheap dates.
2/4 11:00 I'm playing with John Pinamonte at Freddy’s
2/5 6:30 till late Its Shotgun Shack till 9:30 then Hank's
2/7 I'm playing with "In the country" an open jazz piano trio from Norway. Check the couple great gigs post.
2/8 Hem on the radio. Sometime between 6:00 and 8:00 on WFUV
2/8 it more Sean at the Rodeo Bar
2/9 Hem at lincoln Center
2/10 Shotgun Shack at Hank's

A couple great gigs

on feb 7th I'm playing with In The Country from Norway at the Norwegian Seamen's Church.
http://www.norway.org/culture/music/In+the+country+concert.htm

then on the 9th with Hem at Lincoln Center

1/25/06 upcoming gigs

friday night 1/27 I'll be at Sunny's on Conover in Red Hook around 10:00 or so with Fred. Fred and I have been playing Sunny's from back when it was still a longshoreman's bar. Sunny's uncle John ran it and opened up around 4:00 AM to serve shots and eggs. This was back before women and car services would cross hamilton ave.

then on sunday1/29 you got your basic Hank’s

1/30 with Jan Bell at Barbes if I get out of a session with Hem in time

1/31 with the New Romans at BB Kings opening for Rick Derringer

1/21

I'm playing with my band at the Waterfront Alehouse in Brooklyn.
We play from 11:00 till 1:00 or so.
George Rush : Bass
Konrad Meissner: Drums
Reut Regev: Trombone
Bob Hoffnar: Pedal steel

Its our first time playing with the mighty Konrad. It should be a fun one.

No cover

Myspace

myspace

I'm going to see if I like myspace for gig news for a bit.

Week of 1/09/06 gigs

Tuesday the 10th I'll be at Zebulon in Brooklyn. Its a late night gig with the Himalayas with Kenny Wollensen, Johnathon Haffner, Tony Scher and about 5 more drummers and a dozen horn players. Its basicly a free jazz marching band. Some nights it really takes off.

Weds night I'm at Southpaw with Matt Keating. I've been wanting to play with Matt for a long time.

Then its back to Hank's on sunday.Whoo hoo !
Last week the audience got so out of hand the band could barely play we were laughing so hard. I won't go into details but it involved several sets of testicals, a very drunk babe and a lighter. Come early (around 6:00) and see Shotgun Shack.Its straight up country done right. Then its
Sean Kershaw and the New Jack Ramblers taking every corner on two wheels till 1:00.