Santa Tracker: 0.0 percent

He sees you when you're sleeping
He knows when you're awake
He knows if you've been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake

Introduced in 2007, it became a recurring feature in 2008. And now it's time, once again, for the Santa Tracker!

Tofurky and Coke

My delicious, vegan Thanksgiving culinary creation this year is called "Tofurky & Coke" and its recipe is pretty straightforward:

1. Combine in a crock pot:
   • One frozen Tofurky (no need to thaw)
   • One package frozen Tofurky brand Giblet and Mushroom Gravy
   • 1 liter Coca-Cola
2. Heat at high temperature for about 5 hours, stirring occasionally

I invented it yesterday morning then had it for Thanksgiving dinner and it was yummy.

Going overboard for Thanksgiving

I thought I'd share one of my favorite Thanksgiving stories, one which has been in the family since 1620.

Please welcome today's guest blogger, William Bradford, who will tell us the tale of my ancestor...

...John Howland, the lustie yonge man who fell off the Mayflower.

In sundrie of these stormes the winds were so feirce, & ye seas so high, as they could not beare a knote of saile, but were forced to hull, for diverce days togither. And in one of them, as they thus lay at hull, in a mighty storme, a lustie yonge man (called John Howland) coming upon some occasion above ye grattings, was, with a seele of ye shipe throwne into [ye] sea; but it pleased God yt he caught hould of ye top-saile halliards, which hunge over board, & rane out at length; yet he held his hould (though he was sundrie fadomes under water) till he was hald up by ye same rope to ye brime of ye water, and then with a boat hooke & other means got into ye shipe againe, & his life saved; and though he was something ill with it, yet he lived many years after, and became a profitable member both in church & comone wealthe.

Thanks, William!

The Devil's Alphabet

Not everything I get in the mail is about gorillas and disembodied brains. My preordered copies of Daryl Gregory's new novel, The Devil's Alphabet just arrived from Amazon.

Mark your calendar: Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival

I stopped in at the Sunshine Daydream® Tie Dye Hippie Store and saw this poster for the Chicago Bluegrass & Blues Festival, coming up on Saturday December 12th at the Congress Theater.

Banjo versus TV week 90: Las Vegas

A check-in on the Banjo versus TV project — J.R.'s ongoing plan to spend more time on his banjo than on TV. This post covers 11/15/2009 through 11/21/2009.

It didn't all go exactly like this...

...but I had a pretty musical week while attending G2E at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

When planning my trip I'd searched the web for a jam and found Mrs. Hyatt's Legendary Old-Time and Bluegrass Jam, Tuesday nights at the Lorna J. Kesterson Valley View Recreation Center in Henderson NV. It was about an hour away from the Las Vegas strip by bus. (I got a lot of use out of my three-day bus and monorail passes.)

The jamming was wonderful. There were about 20 people in a traditional song circle playing guitars (~9), fiddles (2), banjos (~5), mandolin, spoons, harmonica and Dobro for two hours.

That night's set list (or about 80% of it; I missed writing down a few) was:

• Cry Baby Cry in G
• Maryanne in A
• One Day at a Time in D
• Eagle's Already Gone
• She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain in G
• Viva Las Vegas in G
• This Old House in G
• Redwing
• Will the Circle Be Unbroken in G
• Rocky Top in G
• Take Me in a Lifeboat
• Where the Soul of Man Never Dies
• Mama Tried
• No Place Like Home in D
• Kentucky Waltz in G
• Bonaparte's Retreat
• I Don't Want Her in G
• Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain
• Folsom Prison Blues in E
• Go Tell It on the Mountain in G
• Good Old Mountain Dew in G
• Let It Be Lord
• Hey Good Lookin' in G
• Goodnight, Irene in G
• Just Because
• Who's Gonna Miss Me
• Tennessee Stud

Viva Las Vegas and Good Old Mountain Dew were mine. My Viva Las Vegas was a little weak, but it was my jamming debut for the song. I got big praise for my Good Old Mountain Dew. I sang an opening verse and a closing verse and called out people to sing the all the one's in between. Passing the singing duties around worked well for the song and gave it a lot of energy. One of the banjo players (who sang the "Roosevelt" verse) said he thought it was the best Good Old Mountain Dew that the group had done.

If you're ever in the neighborhood of Henderson, NV on a Tuesday night, look this group up!

Other places I played my banjo:

• I played the Hyatt! Okay, I practiced in my room at the Hyatt.
• I played the Rio! Okay, I practiced in the parking lot of the Rio for about an hour while waiting for the Penn & Teller show. As it turns out, I should have gone into the theater instead of waiting outside. For about an hour before the show begins there's a piano concert and they give audience members a chance to go onstage and check out some props.
• I played (a little) at the Las Vegas McKarran International Airport in front of the magic money sign.

---

Also in the last week:

• Added Viva Las Vegas to my Learning Songs list.
• I decided to travel with my second-best banjo and followed the please-don't-bag-check-my-banjo-it's-only-got-this-gig-bag-to-protect-it philosophy of air travel. I think I prefer this to the bring-the-banjo-in-my-hard-case-because-it-might-get-bag-checked approach. It's certainly easier to walk and bus around town with the gig bag.
• I got mocked by a ventriloquist's dummy.
  
  
  
  I was carrying my banjo in its gig bag and sitting down for a bite to eat at the G2E Variety Entertainment Showcase Stage while Taylor Mason was on. He picked me out and his dummy, Romeo, decided to mess with me.
  
  "Hey, it's Jerry Garcia! The Grateful Dead! They're aliiiiiiiive!!!"
  
  According to his Wikipedia bio, Taylor had an upbringing similar to mine: a Congregationalist son of an entertainer in the Chicago suburbs.
  
  His book The Complete Idiot's Guide to Ventriloquism will be out in May. I've preordered a copy. Next time Romeo starts something, I want to be ready.
• Ordered a Banjo Hero decal off of eBay. Not sure what I'm going to do with it, but had to have it.
  
  
• Ordered a few new, not-very-expensive fingerpick options from Elderly just to try them out:
  
  

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Me, showgirls and a photobomber

I talked the girls into taking a photo and even doing a can-can line, then I get photobombed.

Banjo versus TV week 89: Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands

A check-in on the Banjo versus TV project — J.R.'s ongoing plan to spend more time on his banjo than on TV. This post covers 11/08/2009 through 11/14/2009.

The big event of this last week was, of course, Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands at Morseland, organized by Arlo Leach and featuring...

• The Brass Note Jug Band, whom I played with, playing...
  • I Can't Dance
  • Sun Brimmer's Blues
  • Bay Rum Blues
  • Feelin' Good
• The Barehand Jug Band, Chicago's busiest jug band, playing...
  • What's That Tastes Like Gravy
  • T'aint Nobody's Business What I Do
  • Cocaine Blues
  • Tear It Down
• Strictly Jug Nuts, this year's winners of the coveted sausage grinder trophy, playing...
  • Yum Yum Blues
  • What's the Matter with the Well?
  • One Meatball
  • Keep It Clean
• Deep Fried Pickle Project, whom I voted for (Sorry, Brass Notes, but they were great!), playing...
  • Tear It Down
  • Rubber-Legged Jim
  • I Saw Your Picture on the Internet
  • Fat Bottomed Girls / I Like Big Butts / Baby Got Back
• The Hump Night Thumpers, my former band that I'm going to go back to some day, playing...
  • Walk Right In
  • Mobile Line
  • KC Moan
  • Cocaine Habit Blues
• The Schticklers, Chicago's one-and-only Jewish jug band, playing...
  • Coney Island Washboard Roundelay
  • Cakewalk Into Town
  • Arkansas Traveller
  • Gimme Back My Wig

Additional entertainment was provided by our opening act, The Northside Southpaws, who played...

• Kohala March
• Vicksburg Stomp
• Carolina Glide
• Wobble March (medley of Stone Mountain Wobble / Sea March)
• Morning Glory Waltz
• Carbolic Rag
• Old Folks Better Go To Bed
• You're Gonna Quit Me Baby
• Toots
• Havana River Glide
• Jackson Stomp

...and by Hotfoot Annie, who tapped her way through...

• Nagasaki (accompanied by The Vaudeville Tramp)
• I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy
• Mister Bojangles
• Pack Up Your Troubles In Your Old Kit Bag
• Side By Side

...as the votes were counted.

I was pleased with my performance. I held my own in Bay Rum Blues (my first VI-II-V-I song) and I bluesed it through both chords of Feelin' Good (the stage debut of my recently-developed string bending talents).

I also kazooed up a solo for Sun Brimmer's Blues and gutbucketed along with I Can't Dance.

There are gobs of photos at my Flickr set.

---

Also in the last week:

• Purchased The Grascal's self-titled debut CD...
  
  
  
  ...because it's got Dolly Parton joining in on Viva Las Vegas.
• Added two songs to my Learning Songs list because I learned 'em for the battle: Bay Rum Blues and Feelin' Good.

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Bloody Brain and Voice Transformer in the mail

My Bloody Brain and Voice Transformer have arrived in the mail while I was away at G2E in Las Vegas.

This brain looks a little small, like the last one. I guess all brains look smaller than you expect them to.

The voice gadget has 5 different binary switches...

...for different voice disguise effects, shown on the back of the box.

If I can find a good setting for Monsieur Mallah's voice and a good setting for Brain's voice I'll buy a second gadget. I hope so. I saw some ventriloquist acts on the G2E Variety Entertainment Showcase Stage this last week...

...and I'm looking forward to trying out some of the schtick.

This has been a Monsieur Mallah and Brain costume update.

J.R. & Teller

Learning songs on my banjo: Viva Las Vegas

Hello, J.R.

Hello, imaginary interviewer. How you doin'.

TCB, thankyouvermuch. What banjo song are you learning right now?

Viva Las Vegas, music by Mort Shuman and lyrics by Doc Pomus.

Why are you learning Viva Las Vegas?

I'm going to Las Vegas for G2E and I'm taking my banjo. How could I not learn Viva Las Vegas for this trip?

What recordings do you have of Viva Las Vegas?

1. Of course I've got Elvis Presley singing it with The Jordanaires doing backup vocal. It's the 2007 remastered version from the album Elvis - Viva Las Vegas, played at 144 BPM in the key of G.
   
   You can take your pick of YouTube videos featuring Elvis. Either black & white Elvis...
   
   
   
   ...or colorized Elvis.
   
   
2. I've also got The Grascal's self-titled debut album, which has Dolly Parton joining them on a bluegrass Viva Las Vegas. At 148 BPM it's just a touch faster than Elvis' version. They also sing it in G.
You can watch them perform at CMA Music Fest:

What tab arrangements do you have?

None. I'm taking it as a challenge to dope out this one without resorting to tablature. I did look the chords up. It's a your basic I-IV-V song with a VIm thrown in and a II for the bridge:

Intro (4 measures):
G - - - |

Verse:
G - - - | - - - - |
Em- - - | - - |

Chorus:
C G C G |

Bridge:
C - - G - |
C - - A - - - |

Ending (Extended chorus):
C G C G | C G C D | G - - - ||

What's your target performance speed?

144 BPM, just like Elvis. Because, of course! So I'm going to have to work up to a practice speed of 172 in order to follow the practice-at-20%-faster rule.

In what key?

G.

Which lyrics are you learning?

The only ones there are: the Elvis lyrics.

Anything else you'd like to tell me about this song?

I'll post some licks here when I work them up.

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Congratulations, Strictly Jug Nuts

Congratulations to Strictly Jug Nuts, the winners of Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands. You can see them above, posing with the coveted sausage grinder trophy.

I took a zillion photos, which I've uploaded to a Flickr set.

Tonight: Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands

I'm heading out soon for rehearsal with the Brass Note Jug Band as we get ready for Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands, tonight at the Morseland.

If you want to live vicariously through my blog, check out my Flickr set for the event. I'll be sending photos there through the night.

But you really want to come and see it for yourself. Here are the details:

Who?	You, watching opening act Northside Southpaws and cheering on six competing jug bands: The Barehand Jug Band, Strictly Jug Nuts, Deep Fried Pickle Project, The Hump Night Thumpers, The Brass Note Jug Band and The Schticklers.
What?	No-holds-barred jug band action.
When?	Saturday, November 12th at 7:00 pm
Where?	Morseland, 1218 W Morse Ave, Chicago, IL 60626, (773)764-8900
Why?	Because last year was so much fun.
How much?	Seven bucks, cheap!

Learning songs on my banjo: Feelin' Good

Hello, J.R.

Hello, imaginary interviewer. Thanks for this opportunity.

You've earned it. What banjo song are you learning right now?

Feelin' Good.

Why are you learning Feelin' Good?

This is one of the songs that I'll be playing as part of the Brass Note Jug Band on Saturday 11/14/2009 at Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands. Our instrumentation will be:

• Arlo - guitar
• Jacob - guitar, voice
• Jim J. - jug
• Jim S. - mandolin
• J.R. - banjo

What recordings do you have of Feelin' Good?

1. Levon Helm played it on his 2008 CD Dirt Farmer, which was a 2008 Grammy winner for Best Traditional Folk Album. He played it at 110 BPM in the key of G. You can listen to it for free here or see it on YouTube.
   
   
2. J.B. Lenoir sang Feelin' Good in the 1950s. It was included in the 2002 album Passionate Blues and you can preview it by following that link.

What tab arrangements do you have?

I have the lead sheet that the Hump Night Thumpers posted on the songs section of their site.

After discussing it with my instructor, David, I'm going to just mess around on the jazz pentatonic...



and throw in a little string-bending.

What's your target performance speed?

110 BPM, since the rest of the band is practicing along with the Levon Helm recording. I don't think I need to follow the practice-at-20%-faster rule. Rather, I need to make sure that my groove is slow and steady.

In what key and what tuning?

Gizmo (Jacob Fishman) wants to sing it in G, just like Levon Helm. So that'd just be the basic g'dgbd' banjo tuning.

Which lyrics are you learning?

Same as Levon Helm. Though as I noted, Gizmo will be singing. I think he's going to have his daughter join him on stage for this song.

Anything else you'd like to tell me about this song?

Don't confuse this song with J.B. Lenoir's better-known I Feel So Good, which is all over YouTube.

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Learning songs on my banjo: Bay Rum Blues

Hello, J.R.

Hello, imaginary interviewer. I like your hair.

Thank you. What banjo song are you learning right now?

Bay Rum Blues.

Why are you learning Bay Rum Blues?

This is one of the songs that I'll be playing as part of the Brass Note Jug Band on Saturday 11/14/2009 at Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands. Our instrumentation will be:

• Arlo - guitar
• Jacob - washboard
• Jim J. - harmonica, voice
• Jim S. - mandolin
• J.R. - banjo

What recordings do you have of Bay Rum Blues?

1. Joe Filisko & Eric Noden recorded it on their 2006 album Live right here in Chicago. They played it at 89 BPM in the key of Bb.
2. I also found a 2008 performance by James Conway on YouTube, played at 98 BPM in the key of C. He drifts from Bay Rum Blues into Sweet Georgie Brown and back.
   
   

What tab arrangements do you have?

None, so my instructor David and I (mostly David) worked up some simple rolls. You can see them in week 55 of my Banjo versus TV project.

What's your target performance speed?

89 BPM, since the rest of the band is practicing along with the Filisko/Noden recording. If I follow the practice-at-20%-faster rule that means I'll need to get my practice speed up to 118 BPM.

In what key and what tuning?

Jim J. wants to sing it in A. I described in week 86 how I used Audacity to change the pitch of the Filisko/Noden version to our desired key so I could practice.

For tuning the first four strings I'm going start with standard tuning and then capo at 2. For the fifth string I'm going to tune it down from G4 to E4. So I guess you'd call my tuning e'eac#'e'.

David had originally suggested that I capo the fifth string at 7 as usual for a song in A, but my fingers had trouble hitting the fourth string instead of the fifth strings on those rolls. Tuning it down to E4 meant that I sounded good even if I included the fifth string in a roll.

Which lyrics are you learning?

For right now, none, since I'm not singing it. But when the time comes I think I'll combine the ones that James Conway sings on that YouTube video (I like the references to "Roosevelt was wet / Hoover was dry") and the Filisko/Noden ones.

Anything else you'd like to tell me about this song?

The Filisko/Noden lyrics reference the "Rayless chain". Apparently, Rayless Department Store was the place in Gastonia, NC where you could purchase booze. (I think Conway is in error when he says "railin' chain".)

Here's a shot of an old Rayless Department Store in Virgina, South Boston:

Cross-posted at J.R. Jenks' blog

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Dome and brain in the mail

My plastic dome and Pink Prop Brain Decoration have arrived in the mail.

You can't tell if from the photo, but the brain looks kind of small. True, the brain is actual size. Reportedly, the human brain is the size of two fists. But it still looks small.

This has been a Monsieur Mallah and Brain costume update.

Banjo versus TV week 88: Earl Scruggs, Henhouse Prowlers

A check-in on the Banjo versus TV project — J.R.'s ongoing plan to spend more time on his banjo than on TV. This post covers 11/1/2009 through 11/7/2009.

They don't want you to take pictures at concerts at the Old Town School. Maybe that's because pictures come out badly.

So please imagine that that was a very clear photo of The Legendary Earl Scruggs, Family and Friends, who performed at the Old Town School of Folk Music on Saturday night.

It was nice to see the band again. I walked up to say hello and several of them remembered me.

Their opening act was Henhouse Prowlers, a great bluegrass band from my neighborhood of Rogers Park. The Prowlers were a perfect choice for an opener. Our other neighborhood band, Sexfist, would have been inappropriate.

Henhouse Prowlers set:

1. Who Me?
2. I'm a Drifter
3. Syracuse
4. Caroline
5. Diesel
6. Angeline Malone
7. Helter Skelter

Earl Scruggs set:

1. Salty Dog
2. Borrowed Love
3. Earl's Breakdown
4. Steamlined Cannonball
5. You Ain't Goin' Nowhere
6. Soldier's Joy
7. In the Pines
8. Doin' My Time
9. Sally Goodin
10. Sittin' on Top of the World
11. Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Loud, Loud Music
12. Foggy Mountain Rock
13. All Night Long
14. Black Mountain Blues

---

Also in the last week:

• Since I went to Costello's jam for the sixth time, that's just four more jams before I get my free sandwich.
  
  
• Ran across All Folked Up: The Punk Rock Collection, Vol. 1 (folk covers of seminal first and second wave punk music).

Cross-posted at J.R.'s Banjo Hangout blog

Connecting gorilla to Brain

It has occurred to me that I could operate Brain, wirelessly, as a ventriloquist's dummy. And it wouldn't matter that I moved my lips because I'd be wearing a gorilla mask.

This has been a Monsieur Mallah and Brain costume update.

Trib: Jug band revival brewing in Chicago

Arlo Leach pointed me to an article in today's Chicago Tribune: Jug band revival brewing in Chicago. It focuses on this Saturday's Chicago's Second Annual Battle of the Jug Bands (which I'm practicing hard for, thank you for asking) but also gives the bigger picture of Chicago's jug band scene.

There's also a sidebar telling you where you can go in Chicago for jug band music.

Thanks, Arlo, for the heads-up.

Bullets in my mailbox

My order of four Bandolier Bullet Belt Deluxe arrived today.

This has been a Monsieur Mallah and Brain costume update.

20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall

On the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, here are some photos from my family's 1980 trip to West Germany and East Germany.