A Somewhat Quieter Weekend

Hey Everybody,

So last weekend, the "release" of the newsletter kind of trumped this space, but I have to tell you it was a whirlwind.

It kicked off last Thursday at the William Paca Garden in Annapolis, MD, where Will and I did a show. We were billed to play with Jason, who came down with food poisoning - the poor soul.
He's back on his feet, though and will be joining us tonight in Takoma Park - hooray.



Then, Friday night, I opened for the illustrious Catie Curtis at the Cellar Stage in Baltimore.
She was terrific. Great, real songwriting and I offered my services to sometime back her up on percussion and harmonies. She said, "Whatcha doin tomorrow night?"

As it turned out, I was playing Herndon Festival the next day, but that was in the afternoon, so we got together at 11 and ran some tunes. We also wound up running inside before the bitter storm descended upon the day. Here's us jammin in the backyard. Very cool. Photo by Laela



On the Road again from Herndon to Easton, MD where Catie had her show. Here's Laela doing her favorite thing. She did, however, take a break for a moment to film us. So, without further ado, here is Laela;s debut as a cinematographer.

Catie Curtis with Yours Truly, LEA backing her up at the Coffee East in
Easton, MD. (Hold your applause til the end :)






So, this weekend, it's just this evening at the Takoma Park Co Op and a secret show tomorrow I can't tell you about :)

That's it for me, that is. If you wan to know my pick for the weekend, though, it's Ellis and Bob Sima at Focus in Alexandria.
If you've got the time GO GO GO. You will be so glad you did.

See you next time.
Lea

You Heard It Here - Edition 1

Here it is, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The first installment of my article in conjunction with the newsletter, Now Hear This. .
I also drop by here from time to time to fill y'all in on goings on.

This is a great chance to share new tunes and introduce you to some of the incredible music and musicians I'm encountering along the way.

So, without further ado, this tune is called: The Moon, A Planet & A Star

If the embedded song below is taking a while, you can listen here.

The Moon, A Planet and a Star

Written by: LEA

The moon, a planet and a star in the midnight sky, well, they're not so far. 70 some years ago. Was it a night like tonight? Guess we'll never know. The light has journeyed for a while just to land on you and to make you smile. On the night I'm dreaming of, it could have been us just discovering love. If you take a photograph, looking back, well we'll have to laugh. We are near and yet so far form the moon, a planet and a star. I wish I may, I wish I might reach into the darkness and grab a light. I would keep it tucked away just to shine for a while on your rainy day. But I have to let it go. It's the law, everybody knows. We are near and yet so far to the moon, the planets and the stars. We are so like the moon, the planets and the stars. I should explain. This song was born on the road. Very literally. I was driving in the midnight hours to make it to a show in Alberta, VA the next morning. As I always do, I was listening to NPR and happened to catch the StarDate information that they gave. The astronomer announced that souls lucky enough to be awake so late would get an eyeful of a cosmic triangle: the moon, the star Regulus and the planet Saturn. Naturally, I looked and got an eyeful of cloud. About 10 minutes before arriving at the hotel, the sky parted and there they were. It was as though they wanted me to see and of course, I was instantly inspired. Perhaps what moved me the most was the knowledge that the light I was seeing was sent my way some 77 years ago. Quite a journey just make me smile for a few moments. To download this song to your computer and share with friends , click this link & retrieve from Audio page.

Remember, You Heard it Here.
(come back soon and tell a friend)

The New CDs have arrived & other cool news

So, I'm scrambling.
Not unlike the proverbial chicken, freshly decapitated.
Got a gig this afternoon at the William Paca Garden in Annapolis. Looking forward to it.

Also, working on some things with bigBEE Records this morning. Packing up some preorders to go and getting the drill on the very first production of Project MiniMuse at the Chesapeake Children's Museum.


And very excitingly, my new CDs have arrived. Horrah!
They're still available at the pre-order price of $10 until the release.
More info soon. See you tonight!
Lea

Live from Annapolis

Where were you this morning at the crack of dawn.
I, my friends, was yawning awake.



Made it into the WNAV studios in Annapolis, MD just after 8. (That's an hour from my homestead and in traffic, I should add). Did a little mini interview with Scotti Preston and radio personality, Maria Day. Hopefully, we drummed up some interest for the first ever Garden Concert Series at the William Paca Garden - the coolest backyard in town!

Check out the info at my site.


Looking forward to playing outdoors with Will and Jason again so soon.
Here are some pics from the radio interview.
Photos by Preston Carter. Thanks Preston!

Tasty Goodness

Hey, you guys. It's late. What are you doing up?
What am I doing up, considering that I'm going to be singing at Washington Ethical Society way early in the morning tomorrow?

Well, I just wanted to let you know that there are sound clips up from our show at the Taste of Wheaton on Sunday. Have a listen: at my website.
I was joined by the illustrious Mr. Will Henderson on electric bass and Jason Walker on drums. We mixed it up with a bunch of covers ( including my new favorite, Proud Mary).

It was a pretty rainy day, but the food was great and I'd call it a success. You can hear me trying to cheer up the Sunday morning, grey sky crowd on No Woman No Cry.

Will and I played with Doug Alan Wilcox over at the Rainbow Connection in Hagerstown.
We love those guys. They obviously love us, too, as we've been invited to be part of their Pride event this year. We'll keep you posted on that.

I'm actually, thinking about tagging along with Karla from the Rainbow Connection and singing a little bit for the good folks at a few of the regional Prides. Look for me at local Farmer' Markets, too. Wherever good people are celebrating - I want to be there :)

Oh, yeah and stay tuned. I'm going to be posting video and audio from Will and my appearance at the Montpelier Arts Center soon.

By the way, you guys are all coming to the CD Release, Benefit, Birthday party on June 20 at the Potter's House, right?

If you're looking for something a little quiter, more cozy and intimate, I'll be doing a release at the Ten Thousand Joys in Frederick, MD. You can buy tickets at my website or take your chances on the evening of the show at one of the few seats available in this house concert like atmosphere.

Later,
Lea

Survived the weekend

Hello everybody. Miracle of Miracles.
I survived the weekend.

Generally speaking, playing 5 shows over a weekend is, as my sister would say, "Doing a lot."
Considering that I had just gotten back from a 2 week European tour a day before, it was doing a whole lot.

I'm of the school of thought that any gig worth playing that comes my way - ought to be played.
As it turns out, I got 5 such offers for this weekend.

Friday, thank goodness, I was able to relax. However duty (labor of love) called in a different way. I had the privilege of sitting ( ) this close to Odetta while she sang at the Montpelier Arts Center in Laurel. It's a beautiful venue in Laurel and I will be performing there this Friday.
It was a great opportunity to see the place and finally experience this mesmerizing pioneer in person.
If you don't know, check out some of Odetta's stuff on youtube. You'll be awed, I think.

Saturday, I played a private party at Strathmore. That was pretty trippy is so many ways.
First of all, we did a 90% cover set, which I haven't played since... geez, I don't know the last time I played so many covers. What was particularly surprising is that it was actually kind of fun.
You know, playing with Doug and Will is fun anyway, but we did tunes like Proud Mary and Wind Beneath My Wings and it was a trip.

Also interesting was the room. Chris VanHollen, Ike Leggett to name a few. If you're from elsewhere, these are Maryland politicians. BIG names. As a matter of fact, Mrs. Leggett came over to tell us how much she was enjoying the set.

Nice.

That night, played an opening set for the Grandsons at the Folk'n Great House Concert. Inuendos were flying left and right.
It was kind of hilarious, as one point when the host says to his wife, "Hon, I think this is the first time we've had sax in the basement."

Groans. And then, the voice of a 9 year old, "I don't get it."
So, everybody's still trying to figure out how to classify the Grandsons. I think it's surf music. Seriously. You listen and tell me what you think.

Really nice guys, super fun music.

Sunday, Will, Jason and I played the Taste of Wheaton.
If you were awake at all on Sunday, you know it was not exactly prime weather for a festival, but we had ourselves a time. Actually got a decent recording of the show. I'm going to put up a few tracks on the website, for your listening pleasure.

(The afternoon show got cancelled, which was only kind of a bummer, cause... well, you got to sleep sometime).

Then, Laela and I did a 25 minute set at the Music for Myanmar event at the Rock and Roll Hotel. I tell you, it was, indeed, a rockin way to end a wacky weekend.

A great weekend in music.
It is good to be home.
It was good to be gone,
but it's way better to be home.


I'll be keeping the next few days holy ( you know, Sabbath.) - working from home
So, see you guys on Thursday or Friday - depending on where you hang your hatt

Jiggity Jig Baby

That's my poetic way of saying, I'm BA-ACK.
It may interest you to know that I was on the road (or in the say, as it were) for about 25 hours yesterday. I arrived alive, so I'm not complaining, but it was a heck of a long day.

The whole experience was made bearable by an unexpected and pleasant conversation that took place over half of the Atlantic Ocean. One the advantages of American Airlines Economy Class (READ: lack-o-elbow room) is a ready-made opportunity for intimate discourse, if you want it. Of course, you can always just stare at the water, if you prefer. (That's why my sister always gets a window seat).

Now, tonight the pleasure of a second grade opera. Tomorrow a bit of band practice and this weekend 5 shows. I find that to be only mildly insane. My family seems to find it annoying.

Too bad my body doesn't realize it's in North American again.
Awake at 5:30 AM. Got myself a fresh cup of yerba mate and I am ready for the day.