Dear reader, this is the kind of cameraderie that makes Hamilton special for music and musicians. Used with permission. ~GB
Russell McAllister, Sunday, June 8 at 10:31am (Facebook status):
Myself and several hundred others had their Asses Kicked last night. The Bay City (Leander) Concert Hall was just.doing.FINE! Bump City a Tower Of Power cover band from Mohawk College took a direct flight.to Oakland California. WOW! Garibaldi.and Prestia were in full prominence last night. These young folks absolutely have the nuances and punctuation.down solid. Thank you, D’Arcy Hepner. Groove Corporation unloaded their Funk Arsenal on eveyone and filled the dance floor. And what can be said about Rita Chiarelli? Unbelievanle! What a set of pipes. She is every bit an equal to Susan Tedeschi or Sue Foley. And Big Mama Thornton’s, Hound Dog.was a show stopper. Kudos Rita Chiarelli. You sure make us proud to share your hometown. And an old friend.from The Hammer, Earl Johnson took the stage with Frank Cosentino and blew this fossiled Guitar.Slinger away. You haven’t lost a thing Earl. You and Frank work very well together. Oh how I miss working with Jerry Doucette and David David Burt. The juices were flowing well into the wee hours. Thank you, Richard Newell.
Rest well.
You, Lily Sazz, Vicki Fraser-MacDougall, Dave Beatty and 13 others like this.
Bob Kirkpatrick It was a great night of killer music and friends !!!
Neil Nickafor Nicely said Russ! Great to see you!
Earl Johnson Russ – Good to see you there last night. I was a bit overwhelmed with nostalgia about Biscuit and all the years I spent growing into a musician in Hamilton. Brought back a lot of memories and when Rita joined us for THRILL IS GONE it was the highlight of the night for me. You are a guy I always had a lot of respect for and those words mean a lot to me, Thanks.
David Colin Burt Drat … I didn’t open the Hammer Blues Society email and look what I missed. Hey Russ … Nice blog! I keep having these dreams of returning to the good ol’ days, and when I wake up, I don’t want to let it go … so, these must still be the good times….. a little different though. I went to Rita Chiarelli’s website to catch up on what I’ve been missing over the years — The Hammer sure does produce a great community of players with a lot of heart. And Rita … Wow!
Neil Nickafor Hey David, wish you could have made it. This show is put on by “The Friends Of Richard Newell Committee” and not the HBS. We are Paul Cronkwright, Paul Panchezak, Larry Feudo, Rob Platsko, Ian Wallace Sonny Del-Rio and myself. This is our 12th annual show since Richard passed away and this evening we have our 6th annual Richard Newell Blues Cruise on the Hamilton Harbour Queen. Trickbag along with Dave Rave and other guests will be entertaining the 180 party goers on the cruise with a catered dinner. Hope to see you next year… cheers!
David Colin Burt For sure, Neil … I will be there
Russell McAllister Neil Nickafor, Sir! You are without a doubt the most sought after and talented bassist I know. Your musical eclecticy has you working in so many Genres, it seems impossible to fathom. One week it’s Elvis. The next week it’s Country. Followed by Funk and Blues. You are an inspiration to me and I’m sure countless others. It seems somewhere along this lifeline, you took off the blinders and became a musician of substance. You never seem to judge the folk.you are on stage with. If they are accomplished in their craft or just beginning to grace the stage, you give it the best possible support that one can give. Good on you, my friend. Thank you. You are one of a kind.
Neil Nickafor Holy mackerel Russ, I’m blushing… geez thanks for the kudos! There are so many fabulous players out there. I’m just glad to still be able to do it at whatever level I’m at and to be able to work in different situations with different players… it keeps the moss from growing… LOL. I always remember what it felt like coming up as a young musician, getting opportunities to work with older more advanced players… being nervous and worried that you wouldn’t cut it… and having those players mentor you instead of crushing you! It’s so important to nurture!
Russell McAllister Amen!
Howie Maclean Do one thing really well and you’ll never feel like you’re working
Glen Brown Russell McAllister, may I post your review on my hamiltonmusician.com website?
Russell McAllister Let’er rip!
