glitter and gold

spring broke loose with a firey Aries birthday night at Vincent’s where we were joined by maestro Cliff Goodwin, one of the guitar legends of central masssachusetts, and with good reason. we all managed to squeeze in for our maiden voyage and have booked the Burren in Somerville on September 7th for a second show with Cliff. this was followed by a trip to the crescent city for the second weekend of Jazzfest 2024, kicked off by the Rolling Stones, still reigning as the greatest rock and roll band in the world. Mick was in particularly good form, and of course everything sounds better with an English accent. my son was finally able to break the Stones curse after 3 misses in 22 years, which had become a family challenge we now have behind us. as always, there was more good music than anyone could know what to do with over 4 days, so, after recognizing Cranston Clements’ performance with the New Orleans Guitar Masters (more on Cranston later), i would say that my favorite moment was Moroccan guitarist Mahmoud Chouki with his incredible 5-piece band. breathtaking.

i will return to new orleans early this summer to launch a new side project, “Poisoned by Eel,” with Cranston Clements on lead guitar. Cranston and I have become fast friends over the past year, and his talent was foreshadowed 20 years ago when his daughter Annie played bass with us prior to Clayton joining up. Cranston’s playing is so unique, that, as i looked for a club he was playing at on Bourbon Street, i heard him before i saw the club. i’m really excited to kick off this fun project, named after a bad sushi lunch we shared. tentatively his twin sons Austin and Tyler will join us on bass and drums respectively. Cranston’s incredible resume includes the CC Riders (with a teenage Jaco Pastorius), Robert Palmer, Maria Muldaur, Dr John and Cyril Neville (whom he and Austin joined this year at Jazzfest). amazing.

next stop this spring is los angeles where i’ll stay in my beloved malibu. i can’t wait to reunite with my many friends, and the spirit of home which i’ve never encountered anywhere else in this world. stay tuned for tales of musical meanderings from that trip in next month’s blog. unfortunately, i will miss Daniel Lanois, who is speaking at our Composer’s Breakfast Club of Malibu, today, May 6th. you can’t win ‘em all!

all this, with a little more studio time, should be enough to keep me going until the van Gogh Brothers resume playing, tentatively scheduled for September. we will keep you posted, but our Vincent’s monthly residency is scheduled to begin again on September 14th.

life is precious and brief. seize the day and tell your loved ones how much you love them. write the song you’ve been wanting to write. paint the painting. dance. sing. travel. i hope to see you out in the wild.

love,

jc