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PLAYING OUT LOUD!
ARTICLES
Danni Leigh. Preview by Peter Ashton.
 “The
South Will Rise Again” festival taking place in Poole between July 29 -
31 brings together the best in country music from the UK and the USA. One of the
visitors from across the pond is a young lady by the name of Danni Leigh who is
making a big name for herself with her honest and heartfelt singing style.
Born in the small town of Strasburg, Virginia, Danni was reared on the music of
artists like Buck Owens, Kitty Wells, and Patsy Cline, who came from the nearby
"big city" of Winchester. When Danni was in her teens she took her first job at
a record store where she was exposed to every genre of music under the sun.
Singing came naturally to Danni, who soon hooked up with a variety of country
bands, playing up and down the east coast. After a stint in Orlando working with
both country and rock bands, she headed to Nashville, taking a waitress job at
the legendary Bluebird Café.
When it came to establishing herself as a recording artist, instead of
networking with the musical powers-that-be right away, Danni took the time to
learn the ropes of the business and to gain knowledge of the power structure of
the industry. "Everyone goes to the Bluebird - artists, songwriters, people who
head up record labels and publishing companies," says Danni. "I really kept my
ears open and just shut up and listened while I was working there."
Eventually one Bluebird regular called Michael Knox of Warner Chappell Music
challenged her to show him her songs. The sort of woman who can't turn down a
dare - especially a career turning one - Danni unveiled some of her wares
and soon found herself with a publishing deal. Though Danni's talent for song
craft paid off (she co-wrote "I Want To Feel that Way Again," a top five single
for Tracy Byrd that stuck to the USA charts for some 28 weeks), she viewed
this phase as yet another learning experience. "Songwriting is a very important
form of expression for me, no doubt about it," she explains. "But what drives
me, what burns my soul, is performing live."
She continued honing her sound and her style and signed with Decca Records in
1997. After many years of watching and learning and honing her talent, it
appeared that she had finally realized her dream, but her joy was short-lived
when a corporate merger forced Decca to fold. "We cut the album “29 Nights” and
we got one song out -- and then the damn thing closed!" Leigh says, referring to
the infamous Universal Records merger that folded labels like a house of
cards. "When everything you always wanted in life is yanked out from underneath
you, it pretty much sucks!"
Shaking off her setback, Danni was quickly welcomed to the Monument Records
roster. to make “A Shot Of Whiskey & A Prayer.” In November 2000, after the
release of two singles on the Monument imprint met less than expected radio
success she once again found herself without a label deal. But since there was
great interest from her fans for the CD, Sony decided to release the disc in
their Fan Demand programme in February 2001. It has since met with Top 10
Internet success in the USA, Great Britain, The Netherlands, Belgium and
Switzerland.
Eventually Danni signed with Audium Records to record her last album “Divide And
Conquer.” “Finally, I got to make the album I always dreamed of making," says
Danni. "This album is more me than anything I have ever done.” The
country singer went on to tour with Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Sawyer Brown,
George Jones, Dwight Yoakam and Tracy Lawrence, among many others.
Internationally, she has performed at festivals in Brazil, England, Sweden,
Switzerland,
Italy, France, Japan, Poland, Bosnia, Kosovo, and Korea. For the complete lineup
for “The South Will Rise Again” see our Festival Focus section or the website
www.thesouthwillriseagain.co.uk . The festival is not just about music -
there are also line dancing sessions and classes, displays of American cars,
motorcycles, trucks and motorhomes and American horses
The Old Crow Medicine Show. Preview by Peter Ashton.
 The
intimate Railway Inn in Winchester is the place to go to see the best of
Americana. The latest attraction are former street buskers from Nashville,
Tennessee, The Old Crow Medicine Show who play at the venue on Tuesday July 26.
The Old Crow Medicine Show, or OCMS for short, play pre-World War Two blues,
fiddle tunes, rags, hollers and jug band music, but with a contemporary feel.
Their dynamic style comes from growing up listening to acts like AC/DC, Nirvana
and Public Enemy and the result is a fiery, all-action stage show full of
instrumental dexterity and compelling vocal harmonies.
OCMS are five young men from four different states who joined forces in New York
and lit out gypsy style while still learning their instruments and repertoire.
They rambled town-to-town across Canada in a van, playing for food and shelter.
They settled for a year in the mountains of North Carolina, where their
knowledge of old-time string band music blossomed and their loyalty to one
another deepened.
While they were there they enjoyed a stroke of good fortune while playing in
front of a pharmacy in Boone. A woman approached them and asked if they'd be
there a while; she wanted to fetch her father to hear them. Dad turned out
to be folk icon and flatpicking pioneer Doc Watson, who expressed his delight by
inviting the band to play MerleFest, his four day-congress of acoustic and roots
music.
MerleFest led to an invitation to play street-style in the plaza in front of
the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville and eventually the Opry stage itself,
where the band earned a standing ovation. By this time Old Crow had moved
to Nashville in their battleship Cadillac and moved into a rented house between
two highways, where they studied ever-widening circles of early American music
and wrote their own new American music. As they evolved toward a more urban,
rollicking jug band sound, more high-profile gigs followed, including opening
slots for Dolly Parton and the Del McCoury Band.
Once they'd attracted the interest of Nettwerk America , the label that
launched the career of Coldplay, OCMS was more than ready to go, and after a
year working in the studio they eventually completed their self-titled album
which included a wide range of traditional country and blues songs, from the
reeling mountain party sound of “Tear It Down” and “Hard To Love” to the juggy
stomp of “Tell It to Me” and the mournful Leadbelly-inspired version of “CC
Rider.”
OCMS members have no illusions that they're rediscovering the music of the
pre-War era; many of the songs they hold dear aren't being released for the
first time but being reissued for the umpteenth time. But by reinterpreting
and reintroducing this canonical American music to new generations, they are
feeding a deep cultural hunger. The band’s assets go far deeper than the songs
themselves - it is their unbridled spirit, and unique individual skills that
make an OCMS gig a night to remember. For ticket information ring 01962 867795.
Frank Marino. Preview by Peter Ashton.
 Now
in his fifties, cult 60s Canadian rocker Frank Marino makes his debut at The
Brook in Southampton with his band Mahogany Rush on Thursday July 28.
Born Francesco Antonio Marino on November 20, 1954 in Montreal, Canada, half
Italian and half Arabic, Frank is one of five children and only has a 7th grade
education that even included a short stint in military school. "Those years were
the late sixties and everyone was into the hippie peace movement and we were so
busy getting stoned that we certainly didn't want to attend school.
All we did besides getting stoned was listen to Hendrix, The Doors, The Beatles
and a few others as well as getting involved in movements such as peace, love,
anti-war etc. Those were definitely the days, not like now where many young
people seem to be into negativism and hate".
It was during those days that his experimentation with LSD would lead him to
what was later to become the definition of his life. As a young person doing far
too much acid, he couldn't really understand when it finally caught up with him
and gave him such an incredibly vivid experience that was so overwhelming, that
it landed him in hospital. "This experience became the basis of everything that
I was to do in music, says Frank, “including the name Mahogany Rush, which was a
description I would use to describe a certain sensation that I was having on the
trip. The artwork on the albums, “Child of the Novelty” and “Strange Universe”
are an artist's rendition of my trip as told by me to the artist, Ivan Schwartz,
who has since passed away".
Because Frank played much in the style of Jimi Hendrix who had recently died,
the press built up a series of completely erroneous stories about Frank.
"The most often heard story is that I took an overdose and woke up from a coma
in the hospital and somehow became the spirit of Hendrix,” says Frank, “or that
I met this spirit and it entered me, endowing me with this amazing ability
to play a guitar and magically know everything about it. Later on the story
changed into a version that said I was in a car accident, died and came back as
Jimi Hendrix in my body. They never ask me the truth and when I told them,
they wouldn't listen. The short truth about it is that I learned how to play
guitar while recuperating from my trip. The guitar became a soothing help for me
because of my great fear of letting my mind wander back into the trip if I
wasn't occupied, and besides it was the only thing in the hospital relaxation
room. I never even thought about the guitar before since I played the drums
quite well anyway. I had this trip while Hendrix was still alive and began to
play his music because it matched perfectly to what I was going through at the
time".
It was only a few short years later after many different band members, that
Frank Marino recorded his first album. "In the early years I played in a church
and even on a float in a parade. I did mostly cover songs by The Doors,
Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Cream, Johnny Winter, The Beatles and even The Grateful
Dead, as well as a few originals that I had written".
Although Frank Marino's music never reached the mainstream of popularity, he has
built up a devoted fan base that is still growing. Being sober now for over 35
years, he still plays with the enthusiasm that he's always had.
Tickets for The Brook gig are £14.50 and available through 02380 555366 or
www.the-brook.co.uk .
Zoot Money. Preview by Peter Ashton
 Bournemouth
pianist and vocalist Zoot Money returns to Dorset when he and his
Big Roll Band play Mr Kyps in Poole on Wednesday July 20. Born George Bruno,
colourful showman Zoot and his original Big Roll Band were a big hit on the
local scene in the early 60s before moving to London during the early days of
the blues boom to play alongside artists like Alexis Korner.
The early version of the Big Roll Band included two former members of Georgie
Fame’s Blue Flames. Their classy, jazzy, soul-tinged style of R&B made them a
popular act on the London club circuit and across the country, including
Southampton where they played the old Concorde Club in Burgess Road. But despite
their popularity they only achieved one minor chart hit “Big Time Operator”
before evolving into the psychedelic outfit Dantalian's Chariot. Sharing bills
with the likes of Pink Floyd, Soft Machine and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown,
for a few years Zoot entered a world of white khaftans, lava lamps and
sweet-smelling incense at the most underground of clubs.
After the demise of Dantalian’s Chariot, Zoot moved to Los Angleles to join Eric
Burdon's New Animals. Zoot toured and played on a couple of albums with Eric
before beginning a parallel career as a film and television actor, which has
continued until this day. Later Zoot was to join up with a variety of acts
including The Grimms, Ellis, Centipede, Kevin Coyne and Kevin Ayers before
signing up in 1980 to Paul McCartney's label, MPL, to record the Jim
Diamond-produced album “Mr. Money.“
In addition to his instrumental and acting talents Zoot also became a successful
songwriter, producing "It Never Rains But It Pours" for Jimmy Witherspoon and
writing for such artists as Lulu, Maggie Bell and Long John Baldry.
His prodigious musical knowledge has also been called on from time to time as a
radio programming consultant, and Zoot also became a record producer, working
with artists including soul diva Ruby Turner. Zoot also acted as musical
director for "Tutti Frutti", the BBC TV drama which first catapulted Hollywood
favourites Emma Thompson and Robbie Coltrane to fame during the 80s. Over the
next few decades he continued to appear as a featured musician with a host of
quality acts including the Spencer Davis Band, Georgie Fame and The Blue Flames,
Mick Taylor, Alan Price's Electric Blues Band, Humble Pie, The Blues Band, The
Foundations and Geno Washington's Soul Train, while continuing to run a new-look
Big Roll Band.
The current Big Roll line-up is Paul MacCallum, (bass), Steve Laffy (drums),
Gary Foote (sax) and Ronnie Johnson (guitar), and there is an extended Roll Band
"squad" which includes Mike Stock and Phil Mulford on bass, Martin Wild
and Jeff Allen on drums, Mornington Lockett and Pat Crumly on sax. Early in the
new millennium Zoot embarked on a new solo venture, touring his new one-man
blues show around Britain on an occasional basis, and also joining forces with
old pals Paul Williams, Ray Dorset and Long John Baldry for the "British Legen
ds of Rhythm & Blues" UK-wide tour.
Constant gigging coupled with the recent CD re-issues of some of his vintage
recordings has brought renewed interest and fresh critical acclaim for Zoot, who
is now enjoying success with a new generation of fans in addition to his
loyal following. Last year saw further tours including regular outings with Alan
Price and Papa George, a European tour with Albie Donnelly, and a tour of
Denmark, alongside Cliff Bennett and Tony Sheridan, as special guests of
Danish 60s star Peter Belli, plus numerous all-star one-offs. After over 40
years in the music business, Zoot lives in Fulham, West London, with his wife,
the redoubtable Ronni, and their grown-up daughter Marisa.
Advance tickets for the Mr Kyps gig are £8 via 01202 748945, tickets on the door
are £10. See www.mrkyps.net
for more details.
Status Quo. Preview by Peter Ashton
 The
peaceful surroundings of Beaulieu will be reverberating to the sounds of one of
the UK’s longest-running rock bands on Friday July 22 when Summer Pops 05
present Status Quo with support from Paul Carrack.
Quo have come a long way since their first hit “Pictures of Matchstick Men” back
in 1968. Starting out as a lightweight psychedelic outfit they soon transformed
themselves into head-banger heroes with their trademark rocking boogie sound.
The band have produced scores of hit singles through five decades, but
surprisingly only two No 1 hits in the UK, “Down Down” in 1974 and “Come On You
Reds” in 1994.
The origins of Status Quo lie in a London-based beat group called The Spectres.
Francis Rossi (vocals, guitar) and Alan Lancaster (bass) were the core members
but within a few years, the band had added drummer John Coughlan and organist
Roy Lynes. The Spectres released three unsuccessful singles before
changing their style to psychedelia and adopting the name Traffic Jam and
releasing another miss, the aptly-titled "Almost But Not Quite There." After it
flopped, the group added Rick Harrison (guitar, vocals), formerly of the cabaret
band, The Highlights in 1967, changing their name to Status Quo at this time.
After “Pictures of Matchstick Men” hit No 7 in the UK charts, the hits just
flowed - "Ice in the Sun," “Down The Dustpipe” and “Paper Plane” were among the
early successes before Quo found the template for their sound with
“Caroline,” and the formula has not changed much since. “Down Down,” “Rockin’
All Over The World,” and “Whatever You Want” were all massive hits during the
70s with the 80s yielding “What You’re Proposing,” “In The Army Now,”
“The Wanderer” and many more hits.
Throughout the 70s, every Quo album Status Quo hit the Top Five. Drummer John
Coughlan left the band in 1981 to form his own goup, Diesel to be replaced by
Pete Kircher. During the early '80s, tensions escalated between bassist
Lancaster and guitarists Rossi and Parfitt, who were the group's main
songwriters. Lancaster left the band after performing with them for a final time
as the opening act at Live Aid in 1985. He subsequently took Rossi and Parfitt
to
court to prevent them from using the name "StatusQuo." Lancaster lost his
battle, and the name became the property of the guitarists.
Once the lawsuit was settled, Rossi and Parfitt assembled a new band, hiring
bassist John Edwards, drummer Jeff Rich, and keyboardist Andy Bown, who
officially became a member of the group. The new lineup continued Status Quo's
run of remarkable success, as they racked up more hit singles and hit albums, as
well as consistently selling out concerts across England and Europe. By the mid
90s, Status Quo had scored 50 British hit singles, morer than any other band in
rock & roll history.
And they just keep on going - and I must be about the only rock fan who has not
seen them live. Maybe that will be remedied on July 22! Tickets are £30 via the
ticketline on 0871 230 2627. The event takes place at the National
Motor Museum site at Beaulieu, and there’s more music over the weekend - Will
Young plays on Saturday July 23 with support from Lucie Silvas and The
Australian Pink Floyd Show present their spectacular act on Sunday July 24.
Howard’s Alias. Preview by Peter Ashton
 Fans
of Southampton rock heroes Howard’s Alias had to be turned away from their last
gig at The Joiners in Southampton after over 400 people turned up.
Consequently The Joiners are featuring the band over two nights this time - on
Wednesday July 13 and Thursday July 14.
Howard’s Alias come to The Joiners celebrating the release of their third album,
"Beat Heart, Beat." Following on from their well-received album “The Answer Is
Never” it boasts a shimmering production full of crashing emotional
rock, through upbeat post-hardcore, to atmospheric melodic riffing with
introspective, intelligent lyrics. The band are definitely on the up with
favourable comparisons to Biffy Clyro, Mars Volta and RX Bandits making them an
outfit to look out for on the underground scene.
Based in Southampton, Howard’s Alias formed in 1999, recorded their first demos
in November 2000 and gradually developed a distinctive rock-based sound.
At the beginning of 2002 the band went on their first tour supporting US band
LINK80. Since then they have played over 350 shows, touring the UK extensively,
as well as playing some highly successful shows in France, sharing the
stage with bands such as Anti-Flag, Therapy?, and Capdown along the way.
Howard’s Alias released their debut album "The Chameleon Script" in late 2002 on
Good Clean Fun Records to a very positive reaction. They then spent most of 2003
on tour playing up and down the UK building their ever-growing
legion of fans. In January 2004 the band recorded 3 songs for a split release
with US band DESA; they then entered the studio for a month to record their
second full length album "The Answer is Never". The album, released on Household
Name Records, showed the band had matured, taking in a huge range of influences.
The band find that writing and performing music is a very natural and exciting
process, and their collective aim is to create something new and refreshing with
every song, recording and performance.
Howard’s Alias line up with Matthew Reynolds on guitar and vocals, Steve
McCusker on bass guitar, Nick Horne on trombone, vocals, trumpet and keyboards
and Jevon Snell on drums. For ticket details on the Joiners gig ring 02380
225612.
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Featured artists:
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Danni Leigh
Poole
between July 29 - 31
Old Crow
Medicine Show
Railway Inn, Winchester
Tues July 26
Frank Marino
The Brook, Southampton Thursday July 28
Zoot Money
Mr Kyps, Poole Wednesday July 20
Status Quo
Beaulieu
Friday July 22
Howard’s Alias
The Joiners, Southampton
Wed July 13
& Thurs July 14
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