It was a sad moment yesterday when I heard about the passing of Tony Rice. I had not seen him in some time. Actually, the last time I saw him was some years ago when the brought the Tony Rice Unit to play our Fur Peace Station. Our paths had intersected over the years. I first met Tony at Merlefest in the late 90’s and although we were not ‘hang out’ bros, I considered him a friend. There is a picture of Tony and my from that first Merlefest in our Library here at the Ranch. Every time we would meet, we would have a gentle conversation. I don’t know if I believe in ‘a better place’ after death, but if there is one, Tony deserves to be there. Fair wind and following seas brother!
The show must indeed go on… and last night we aired Quarantine Concert Series #32. We recorded it yesterday afternoon. With the White Christmas Winter storm, we didn’t want to put Andy, Myron and John at risk driving late at night. Anyway, it turned out to be a show that lasted over two hours and here is the set list:
Jorma Kaukonen 42, 2020
Quarantine Concert Series #32
The Fur Peace Station
Darwin, Ohio
Saturday, December 26, 2020
- Been So Long
- I’ll Be All Right Some Day
- River Of Time
- Watch The North Wind Rise
- Whining Boy Blues
- Follow The Drinking Gourd
- Ballad Of Pancho & Lefty with John Hurlbut
- People Get Ready with John Hurlbut
- Trial By Fire
- What Are They Doing In Heaven Today
- Ode To Billy Dean
- Embryonic Journey
The upside to the afternoon recording was that I got to be on the chat in the evening, which I really enjoy! That’s about it for now.
so glad to hear that playing Ode to Billy Dean acoustically has agreed with Jorma. I was afraid we’d not hear it as much with the electric shows on virus hiatus. The Ode on #32 was just terrific (as was the anecdote).
South Seas Plantation is exactly as it was 40 years ago…It’s a block north of the restaurant Jorma ate at…The beach is better up there on Captiva and the water is clearer…A record Hammerhead shark was caught up there a few years ago…It has a gated entry and they won’t let you in unless you are a guest…In 2004 Hurricane Charley split north Captiva in half with its 180 mph winds…Took my next door neighbor’s tin off and deposited it on the neighbor across the street’s front yard in two big pieces…Rain destroyed the contents of their house…Snapped a thick tree on my driveway like a toothpick and laid it down the length of my driveway…Florida Fish & Wildlife agents came on ATV’s and helped me chainsaw it out…
@Jorma I will do that today, after I’ve made my Cream Cheese, green chile, butter in a Sour Dough bread bowl for my Lovely Lady. I’ll see you Sat Night on the live stream
@Jorma Couldn’t you detune a guitar to a “D” Maj and then just capo up? seems there wouldn’t be any extra strain on the neck that way. Looking forward to watching #33 on the 70″ big screen Saturday. Also wishing you, Vannessa, Izzie and the whole Fur Peace Ranch Brigade a bright and prosperous 2021!!! You never know, I may even make it to the Fur Peace Ranch for some personal improvement 😉
Hey Dale… I’ve got o learn to think about consequences before I open my big mouth. Back when I usually had one guitar on stage decades ago it just took too long to tune and re-tune.That said… the capo 2 thing would seem like it would work and it would… technically. It absolutely does not sound the same and it feels different to play. Go to YouTube and listen to Blind Blake’s original.
I am…. we’ll see what happens.
Happy New Year
Dan N Hopefully my Son & Daughter-in Law are in the Mask wearing crowd that you are seeing in Jupiter. They are there for the week visiting her parents who are snow birds from LI/NY.
Brain it’s been 40 yrs. since I was there is South Seas Plantation still at the end of Captiva Island? A friend had friends who were working on their Grandmothers house near the end toward the golf course. Paradise for me as I had just got done working all winter outdoors building the first Harrah’s tower in AC
Happy New Year & a Healthy One to all Tuna Fans
hello jorma…happy new year to you and family…
Hey Brian, here on the east coast in Jupiter it’s the opposite. You can tell people are visiting because they are wearing masks. Anyway best to all for 2021, and be smart and stay safe. Many thanks Jorma, Vanessa and all the folks at FPR for the Quarantine Concert series, the best thing to come out of this pandemic
Sanibel has a lot of New Year’s visitors…Of the 5 dozen people I passed on the bike path last night none were bothering to wear masks…Myself, I take an old cotton T shirt and fold it over 3 times and cover my nose and mouth like a rag when people get close…There are close to 4000 people dying a day from the Coronavirus…
@Jorma
Thanks, Jorma. And Happy New Year!
Good morning, Jorma.
I’ve been listening to Willie McTell and it made me wonder if you ever explored a 12-string and what your thoughts/experiences are on those.
Hey Ed:
I’ve owned 12 strings but not many and not recently. In my opinion it’s really a different instrument and I’m getting to know the 6 string even after all these years. They are cool sounding given the right setting. Willie McTell has certainly found the right setting. I may try again sometime… who knows?
Dale, I was told that, once you reach mid-60’s, it’s not being lazy; it’s putting things off til later so you’ll always have something to do!
Without Tony Rice, I doubt there would be a Larry Keel – one of the quickest pickers I’ve seen up close. m
Dug 32. Thank you.
At the age of 80 you are doing 10 times what I am able to do at 67, I wouldn’t use the word Lazy for anything or anybody working at the FPR
@Mike Boyd Thanks Mike 😉
Brief reference to Clarence White,John does a great job with his song selection and frequent nod to the BYRDMANIACS .Today you can still see the legacy of Clarence White when Marty Stuart straps on his guitar with the infamous “string bender”.The heavily touring second iteration of the Byrds ( post Crosby thank God), was always dynamic with Skip Batten ,Mcguinn ,Gene Parsons,and Clarence White .White was great to watch ,he rarely moved on stage ,just stood and ripped .Funny story ,a Sunday night show at American U .circa 1972.Small crowd (150+~),
Mcguinn starts show as he opens a cigar box and purges it into audience ,full of rolled ones ,You ain’t going nowhere.
We saw Jorma et the Stoughton Opera House some years ago. Then we saw him at the hotel breakfast next morning. My GF was kind of intimidated by the legendary headliner next to her at the scrambled egg buffet. She said, great show last night. And he turned to her and started talking about how great the venue was.
He’s a nice guy.
@Dale Radeleff
Jorma meant “open E” tuning, not standard E A D G B E tuning. It requires cranking up 3 strings to a higher pitch to get and open E chord. The extra tension on the neck is a potential concern.
Well explained Mike… all that being said, I’m probably just being too lazy, 🙂
You mentioned that you don’t like tuning your guitars to an “E” tuning, which is what most everybody starts out with. What is your preferred guitar tuning? I appreciate the Quarantine Concert Series, Next Saturday I’m just gonna hook up the 70″ flatscreen and make a Saturday Night at the Concerts in my living room.
I hail from the holy land of Rockland County, New York…Hot Tuna played Rockland Community College in 1974…I was only 14 and not in to that scene and missed it…My friend Larry Graham got hired as on-stage security for that show…He told me Leslie West played that show too…Tony Rice never made my radar but that says more about me than him since his videos show he was pretty good…
After Clarence White, Tony Rice revolutionized modern melodic playing from he bluegrass genre to Miles Davis.
If I disappointed in years past, forgive me.
I’ll make it up.
Love,
Santa Claus
This weeks song that I can’t stop humming/singing, is Pancho and Lefty 🙂
@Bill Rodgers
I’m from Texas and I caught it. The song, that is. Couldn’tve told you who played it, though.
Brian, are you by any chance from Pittsburgh, or western to central PA? I’m guessing not many will recognize the reference to the song “The Rapper” by the Jaggerz – but I do!
There is a better place and you sing about it sometimes. It is called Heaven …..
And an acknowledgment, a goodbye to one of my favorite guitarists, Leslie West.
May he rest in peace.
I will always cherish the memory of seeing Tony perform at The Station with Peter Rowan. Another good man gone, many more still here. Great show, BTW, John’s picking out some good stuff. m
Chatter chatter chat, they call him the chatter…Chat, chat, chat, that nobody’s after…You’ll find him anywhere…On a website, a blog, or a grocery store…He’ll say excuse me…Have you posted somewhere before?…