Posted 26 March 2003
In my rant against Chris Mojo and Mojo Guitar Shop (below), I mentioned that there are several other guitar shops in the neighborhood — but I neglected to list them. Here they are:

East Village Music Store
61 E 3rd Street
New York, NY 10003
phone: 212/979-8222

Rivington Street Guitars
125 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002
phone: 212/505-5313

Sarah's Guitars
303 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002
phone: 917/476-0747

First Flight Music
174 1st Avenue, #2
New York, NY 10009
phone: 212/539-1383

Ludlow Guitars
164 Ludlow Street
New York, NY 10002
phone: 212/353-1775

Posted 22 March 2003

My new CD Get Your Glow On is now out! Though the official release date is 8 April, I've got copies in hand already. H'ray!!! You can buy the CD at our shows, on amazon.com, and at fine CD stores nationwide. Right on!

In less joyous news, I'm imploring all of my friends and fans: DO NOT PATRONIZE MOJO GUITAR SHOP IN NEW YORK CITY. THE PROPRIETOR, CHRIS MOJO, IS A PATHOLOGIAL LIAR AND A RIP-OFF ARTIST. HE DESERVES TO BE PUT OUT OF BUSINESS. THERE ARE MANY GREAT GUITAR SHOPS IN NEW YORK CITY — SEVERAL OF WHICH ARE IN THE VERY SAME NEIGHBORHOOD AS MOJO GUITAR, SO THERE IS NO REASON TO SHOP AT MOJO GUITAR. BOYCOTT MOJO GUITAR SHOP!!! BOYCOTT CHRIS MOJO!!! SHUT HIM DOWN!!!

Posted 21 March 2003
Road Report: If you're an avid reader of these postings, you likely noticed that I've been offline for a while and you may have been thinking, "What the hell? Dude got some good tour stories going, and then blacked out!" What happened was that after the last posting my laptop computer was acting a little weird and then I got really sick for the last few days of our tour. My computer is better now and so am I.

We've been off the road for six days, and it doesn't feel like we're still "on tour" — especially being in Austin now, which is home for the guys in my band (Red Young on Hammond organ, Brannen Temple on drums). I'm not home yet, though, so I guess this still counts as touring. Since we arrived here on Monday, I've mostly just been resting and relaxing. We had a gig last night — not an Adam Levy gig with original music, but a gig of jazz standards. Brannen ran the show and played drums, and we had Red on organ and Ephraim Owens on trumpet. Super-duper-mega-ginormo-fun!!! On Saturday our regular trio has a gig at the Elephant Room here in Austin and I am very, very stoked! We added three new tunes to our repertoire yesterday — two by Brannen and one by Red.

Okay, so you want to know about the rest of our tour? Here's a few pictures to tell the story.....

After we left Missoula, MT, our next stop was Breckenridge, CO. We got hungry along the way and figured we'd find something to eat in Denver. We didn't get off the freeway in Denver, though — we got off in Arvada. I can't say why, really, it just happened. As we drove around this charming, historic Colorado town, a sign called out to me: Ophelia's. I think I was drawn in because I'm a fan of the Band's song "Ophelia." They weren't playing any Band songs on the stereo when we ambled into Ophelia's, but we sat down anyway and took a look at the menu. We were all enticed by the sopapillas. The two Texans among us knew sopapillas as a sort of Mexican doughnut — definitely a dessert item. Ophelia's does serve them that way, but they also serve them savory, stuffed with spicy ground meat and fresh guac, smothered in chile, topped with lettuce, onions, and tomato. Outrageous. (For size reference, check out the eyeglasses and Coca-Cola glasses on the table!)

"Okay, everybody smile if you liked Ophelia's."

On to Breckenridge. This gig was loads of fun, and perhaps my first time playing a gig at an altitude of nearly 10,000 feet. At that height, I was a little worried about how exhausting it might be to play music. Then I started thinking about the band we were opening for, the Rebirth Brass Band, and I figured that if a band that lives in New Orleans (below sea level) could come to Breckenridge and play brass instruments (tuba, 2 trombones, 3 trumpets) all night long, we'd have nothing to whine about. Tour manager Leslie Rice has more practical matters on her mind, I'm sure, here in her backstage office at Sherpa & Yeti's in Breckenridge.

Twilight outside Sherpa & Yeti's.

Next stop was 32 Bleu in Colorado Springs, CO. This is not the marquis of 32 Blue in Colorado Springs. This is the marquis of the Fox Theater in Boulder, where we went after Colorado Springs. I don't have any pictures from 32 Bleu. Sorry. It was a fun gig — our first of three nights opening for Garaj Mahal. I sat in with them on their second set at 32 Bleu. They were totally smokin', and I did the best I could to keep up with them. I didn't sit in with them in Boulder or in Denver because this is when I was really sick. After our sets, I didn't have any more music in me to play. I hope I can jam with them some other time. Great players, and fine fellows as well.

Our gig at the Fox.

Still gigging at the Fox.

Okay, we're done gigging at the Fox.

After Denver, Leslie's job was done and she went back home to sunny California. We were left on our own to figure out how to get to Austin. Good thing we had our friend Rand along.... Randy Mac.... Rand McNally.... our hero.

Speaking of heroes, Red Young deserves a medal for his amazing driving skills. He drove straight through from Denver to Austin in one shot! I was at my sickest on this day, so I don't remember much about the drive except when we stopped to eat here in Tucumcari, New Mexico, at Dean's. The place looks like lots of other diners you'll see on the road, but Dean's has got that little something extra. I ordered the turkey and dressing, which included a trip to the salad bar. The turkey was fresh roasted, the gravy tasted like scratch gravy, and the salad bar featured real house-cooked beets (not the canned kind), blanched broccoli (not funky-tasting raw or boiled into oblivion, the way most places serve them), and pickled okra (which reminded me of Leslie, 'cause it's one of her favorite foods). Dean's Mexican food is solid too. Eat at Dean's!

Across the street from Dean's is the Pony Soldier motel. They've got phones. They've got cable TV. They've got some non-somoking rooms.

Then I blacked out again, and awoke just one more time before Austin, when we stopped at a Love's Truck Stop. They had a CRAZY selection of candy and snack foods, such as these varieties of popcorn: Tabasco....

....Pizza Hut pizza....

....Butterfinger!

We also discovered two new flavors of Mike and Ikes: Buttered Popcorn and Cherry Cola. I was frightened. I was intrigued. Good thing I was sick, or I might have actually tried some of this crap.

Posted 12 March 2003
Road Report: Since the last posting, my 'Get Your Glow On' tour has covered a lot of territory. We played in Seattle, WA on Sunday night, 9 March, and Missoula, MT on Monday night. Lots of driving in between — including two speeding tickets, just an hour apart. UGH! Yesterday was another long driving day, from Missoula to Casper, WY. (No gig in Wyoming, just a stopping point along the way.) This morning we'll be motoring on to Breckenridge, CO. Here's a couple of pictures from the past few days....

Tractor Tavern, Seattle.

Jessica Lurie was our Special Guest at the Tractor Tavern.

The Ritz, Missoula. Must've been Christmas time in Missoula, because there was no L. "Adam Evy" sez the sign. Despite this, the gig was great fun.

Onstage at the Ritz, Missoula. (Yep, it's a disco ball.)

I stopped taking the Ritz typo personally the next morning, when I spotted Zip's Auto Service sign nearby....

...."ALINEMENT"

The way Red Young plays organ, he always sounds like three people playing at once — groovy bass lines, full chords, soaring melody lines. Here, outside Red's Bar (across the street from the Ritz), his one-man power-trio shares an inside joke.

Not to be outdone, Brannen double-teams tour manager Leslie Rice.

Posted 9 March 2003
Road Report: My li'l tour has been going along quite nicely. My new band is just the bestest, and the road has been mostly all good for us. Since my last posting, we've played in Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, McKinleyville, and Portland....

Santa Barbara was memorable, in part, just because the weather was just so damn nice. We had wanted to eat at Taqueria La Super-Rica while we were there, but there just wasn't enough time. As luck would have it, we passed through S.B. a second time two days later. We played in S.B. on Sunday night, then drove back down to our little beach house to stay over Sunday and Monday so we could take care of some biz in L.A. (Also to save money on hotels; the beach house belongs to my family and, so far, they don't charge me anything to stay there.) Anyway, on the way up from there to Santa Cruz for our Tuesday night gig, we cruised into Santa Barbara and made our pilgrimage to La Super-Rica. Shortly after our food hit the table, I could sense someone behind me trying to squeeze by to get to the table next to ours. I turned to scoot my chair in, and who should I turn to see but Julia Child! You know you're eating at the right place when Julia shows up.

The gig in Santa Cruz was a bit of a wash-out, in terms of the head count. But the eight people who were there got one hell of a gig. We played better there than we'd ever played before, taking more chances, digging in harder, stretching, playing inside and outside the tunes, having fun. The crowd returned our enthusiasm, hooting, hollering, rattling their left-over New Years Eve noise makers, dancing.... it really was a hell of a show. We were a little bummed out when we got in the van the next morning and realized that someone had siphoned all the gas from the tank of our Dodge Ram 350. We had just enough left to get to the nearest filling station and tank up. Time to buy a locking gas cap!

Then we moved on to San Francisco, my former home town. Another great show, this time with much better attendance — though no noise makers. It was cool to see so many old familiar faces in the crowd, and some new faces as well. Starting in San Francisco, we added a fourth member to our touring party — tour manager Leslie Rice. Having her along has made everything even more fun, more effective, and more musical. (As a band, we almost never listen to music in the van. After three dead-silent hours in the van on Leslie's first day, she finally burst out with, "Hey, can we listen to some tunes?!?" Okay! Especially since she brought along Sam & Dave's Greatest Hits. Yeah!

McKinleyville was a long haul from S.F., but what a beautiful drive. The band somehow played even better than the night before, and we added a new tune to our repertoire — Red's silky, Latinesque "Pleasure Island."

This band is kicking my ass. I can tell because I broke a string during our Portland show at Lola's Room. That never happens! I break strings maybe once every five years, probably because I use medium-heavy strings and play with a light touch. But no more light touch when Red Young and Brannen Temple are behind me! The folks working at this show were as nice as could be. This was the first show of the tour where four big guys came out to meet our van at the curb when we arrived and helped shelp all the gear into the club. What a luxury. Lola's is a really cool room, and Ihope we can play there again soon. It's downstairs from the Crystal Ballroom, which is a big, amazing room. The Dark Star Orchestra was there that night. They're a Greatful Dead tribute band that recreates exactly one particular Dead show for each of their concerts. I think they were playing Buffalo '77 the night we were there, though we didn't stick around to find out.

Next stop: Tractor Tavern, Seattle, WA, with special guest Jessica Lurie on alto saxophone.

More pix from the tour....

At Largo, Los Angeles, where I went to see Carla Bozulich and Kihlstedt. Here I am with Carla K (left) and Marika Hughes (right, in "Boobs Not Bombs" t-shirt).

Sound-checking at Soho in Santa Barbara — I just couldn't hold still.

Waiting in line at Taqueria La Super-Rica in S.F. — try the #16!

The band, on Highway 280 (panoramic, using patentted PhotoStich™ technology!).

View from the Carnelian Room, 52nd floor, downtown San Francicso (PhotoStich™).

Boom Boom Room, S.F. — before the party started (yep, PhotoStich™ again).

Boom Boom Room — Brannen prepares, pre show.

Somewhere along the open road, Red does double duty.

Arriving at the gig in McKinleyville, we were disappointed that our name was not on the marquis, and even more disappointed to find that we missed seeing the Jhony Cash Band by just one night.

Gratuitous crotch shot

Somewhere near Grant's Pass, OR (PhotoStitch™).

Live on the air at radio station KHUM, Ferndale, CA.

Going organic at Burrito Exquisito in Willets, CA. Very tasty vittles, indeed, but Red & Brannen said this weren't like the Mexican food back home in Austin. Leslie — a San Francisco citizen — was missing the Mission.

Nobody could find anything to complain about at the Del Rey Cafe in Winchester, OR. Friendly service, comfy atmosphere, and the yummy food comes in ginormous portions! This is the "half and half" — a half order of hash browns and a half order of biscuits, smothered in sausage gravy. Tabasco bottle included to show relative size. This dish is a killer! (No, this is not a PhotoStitch™, it's an actual photo. What you see is what you get!)

Lola's Room, in Portland, OR, just before the throngs of fans busted in (PhotoStitch™).

Road fuel!

You may have noticed that there aren't a lot of photos of the band playing music. That's 'cause I'm the chief photographer, and I can't shoot us while we're playing. If you've been at one of our shows and have photos, please e-mail them to me. If I post your photos, you will be credited!

Posted 4 March 2003
Road Report: I'm on own tour now, with my trio — with Red Young on Hammond organ and Brannen Temple on drums). We played our first gig on Friday, 28 Feburary, at the Knitting Factory in L.A. Andy Stochansky was on stage before us, not "opening" just in an earlier time slot. I'm a fan of his CD, and it was a surprise treat to get to catch his solo acoustic set. This first gig was a litte bit nerve racking for me, being the first gig of the tour — with no chance for sound-check or rehearsal. We had to just show up and hit it. (That's a little different from what things are like when I'm touring with Norah!) I was also a little nervous becuase there were several heavy-weight guitaristos in the house — including one whom I've been a fan of since I was about 16. All in all, I think it was a doozie of a set. I don't remember the order, but we played "Get Your Glow On," "Trash-talking Pixie," and "Bib Front" from the new album, and "Buttermilk Channel," "That's All She Wrote," and "Sphere of Influence" from my Buttermilk Channel CD. I also played an impromptu solo-guitar version of the Tin Pan Alley standard "Smile."

After the show, we went to Roscoe's House of Fried Chicken & Waffles. Yum!

Our accomodations we're pretty sweet in L.A. We stayed in a cozy crib right on the beach (panoramic photo, using patented PhotoStich™ technology!)

For some reason, our cell phones would not work inside the apartment, so we had to out onto the beach to make calls or check our messages. How rough is that!?! Especially since this was the view outside my apartment when I was in New York just two weeks ago (PhotoStich™)

Posted 17 February 2003
Road Report: Business first. Two things — firstly, there's a new piece up on my GUITARVIEWS page, featuring guitar phenom and banjo enthusiast Kevin Breit; secondly, check it out, there's a blurb about my new CD on mtv.com.

Okay, now for the good news and the bad news. The good news is that we just got back from our tour of Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand. It's so, so, so good to be home. And, in further good news, I've got tons of pictures from our trip — especially the second half of it, Australia and New Zealand. Bad news is that it'll probably be a few days before I can post the pictures, because I've got to sort them and size them and write the HTML code for the Web page, et cetera, blah, blah, blah. I think I may throw a new section up on my site, just for photos, and keep the news pages mostly text. Hmmm....

So, that's all for now. More later. Much more.

Posted 3 February 2003
Road Report: So, okay, we're in Australia now. We've been here for about a week. It's 16 hours later here than it is where I live (New York). That's such a strange concept but, thanks to several naps, I've finally adjusted.

The biggest news, Norah Jones-wise, is the addition of two new people in our band, but I've already mentioned that. Hmmm, what else? Well, Norah's record has been #1 on the U.S. charts for three weeks in a row. I guess that's pretty big. Oh, and her record is up for eight Grammy awards. That's pretty hot stuff. What else? Oh, yeah, I finally got a guitar tech. He is an Australian named is Ben, and he's fantastic. He's not all mine, mind you. His official job title is "backline tech," which means he sets up amplifiers and drums and stuff like that. Our band's set-up is simple enough for one person to handle all the gear, and still find time to tune all the guitars and walk on at just the right moment to hand Kevin or me the right instrument for the song we're about to play. In my case, that's an easy job, as I use the same electric guitar on virtually every song and I use just one acoustic guitar for the few songs I play acoustic on. (All told, I have three electric guitars out on the road with me, but I'm using my trusty old Gibson ES-335 for nearly everything.) Kevin Breit's deal is a little more complicated, as he plays four totally different instruments in the band — acoustic guitar, National-style resonator guitar, mandolin, and regular electric guitar. First day on the job, Ben built Kevin a pedal-board — something he dearly needed but didn't have — and reworked my pedal-board so that when I look down at it I no longer see a tangle of black patch cables, looking like the remains of a plate of squid-ink spaghetti. Hey, maybe I liked it that way! No, not really. Go Ben! Having a seasoned guitar tech is a wonderful thing. Not only am I assured that I'll have fresh strings on my guitars at the beginning of each concert, but he has also given me a great recipe for roast lamb and showed me how to hot-wire the TV remote control in my hotel room so that I can watch free porn — er, I mean free movies. You know, the classics, art-house films, that sort of thing.

On our first night in Sydney (26 January), we went to see Jane's Addiction at the Metro. Total rock showmanship! Great stage charisma, plus the sound and lighting were incredible. The Metro is a relatively small club, not a big arena. Even from the very back of the room, it's easy to feel like you can reach out and touch the band. We got to meet Perry and Chris (the new bassist), and they were right friendly folks. Perry's in really good shape, so I asked him, "What do you do to stay in shape?" "Yoga, and some running,"he replied, "and lots of sex. Kundalini sex. Lots of it." Rock on!

Kevin and I had lunch in a Chinese restuarant here in Melbourne on Sunday, and there was a huge Chinese New Year celbration going on outside on the street. Street vendors hawking all sorts of Chinese items, firecrackers going off, dragons running around. Just as we finished our meal and got up to pay the check, a dragon came through the front door of the restaurant. The owner of the restuarant fed the dragon an offering — a head of lettuce. The dragon ate the lettuce head with apparent glee, but then spit it back out a moment later. All hell was about to break lose. There was a very long string of fireworks hanging outside the door to the restuarant. A man lit one end, and pulled the long string down to the ground....

BANG! BANG! BANG-BANG-BGANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG BANG-BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG-BANG-BGANG!!! BANG! BANG-BANG-BGANG!!! BANG! BANG-BANG-BANG-BGANG!!! BANG! BANG! BANG-BANG-BGANG!!! BABGANG!!!....

.... the onslaught of miniature explosions went on for about three full minutes, which felt like an eternety. The front door was open the whole time. The restuarant filled with sulfuric smoke. Cymbals were banged and crashed outside on the sidewalk, though we couldn't see the cymbals or the cybmal players. The experience, as a whole, was terrifying and also hystercially funny. Gung hay fat choy!

Sneak preview of the cover artwork for my new CD (designed by Hatch Show Print, Nashville, TN):

Posted 25 January 2003
Road Report: Have you ever had Singapore-style laksa (a spicy noodles-and-seafood soup)? This is not to be confused with also wonderful Penang-style laksa (another Southeast Asian fish-and-noodles soup, based in a clear broth, flavored with tamarind and garnished with pineapple). As we're currently in Singapore, it was the Singapore version — rich with coconut milk, tasting of the sea and yet earthy at the same time — that I sampled last night. The soup is usually fish-stock based, typically spiked with fish sauce, and may contain big pieces of deep-fried tofu, as well as fish balls or fish cakes. My bowl featured deep-fried tofu, fish cakes, and mussels. I found my little bowl of paradise at a 24-hour food court nearby our hotel. The place was jumping with young Singaporeans, out for a midnight snack. There are only six or seven kiosks at this food court, each one tiny and offering a small number of dishes. The place I went for laksa offered a couple of other soups, and one or two "dry" noodle dishes (ingredients similar to the soup offerings, minus the broth); another place offered Indian/Malay dishes, such as mee goreng (spicy pan-fried noodles) and murtabak (meat-filled crepes); another kiosk sold 25 varieties of bubble tea. Everything looked really fantastic, but I was at the food court just for the laksa, plus a Coca-Cola. The actual retail price of my laksa showcase, Coke included: SGD$4.70, or about USD$3.00. Ain't nothing wrong with that!

Yeah, the eatin' has been solid on this tour so far. Another highlight was the Shui Hu Ju restaurant in Hong Kong, where our meal included a salad of roast duck and cucumbers, a cold appetizer of lotus root coated with an earthy chili powder, delectible mutton shanks shredded at our table — crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside, somewhat like duck confit and also reminiscent of Mexican pork carnitas — served with a fiery chili-and-vinegar sauce on the side.... and then came the spiciest fried chicken in the whole world, ever, for all time!I'm not kidding. This fried chicken was like a fraternity hazing stunt gone awry. This dish alone was hotter than the combined heat of all the spicy food I ate in 2002. (And that includes the meal at the Clay Pit Indian restuarant in Austin, Texas, where Lee Alexander and I got cocky and said, "Turn the heat all the way up. We want the hottest you've got!" Learn from our mistake, my friends, and do not attempt this.) Yes, it did say "very spicy!" right there on the menu at Shui Hu Ju, but we must've thought that the warning was meant for others — for tourists, not for bravehearts like us. Just like Mama always said, stupid is as stupid does.

Hey, looking at my Elton John report (below), I just now realized that I forgot to mention Nikka Costa, who kicked off the evening with "Levon." Nikka, I know you visit my Web site daily, so I'm certain that you'll read this: I'm so sorry I forgot to mention you! You sang your ass off in Anaheim, and your glittery silver platform boots were righteous, and you set the pace so perfectly for the whole evening! Oh, Nikka, please forgive me.

We have played two gigs since the Elton John show — one in Hong Kong and one in Singapore. After a month off, with no gigs and no rehearsals, plus the initiation of Daru as a full-time keyboardist/vocalist, it certainly wasn't a given that we'd slip easily back into the saddle again. Things are working out nicely, though. Everyone in the band has a renewed enthusiasm for the music, and it seems we're collectively more apt to go for subtle variations our parts — things that we hear within the band, but that probably go unnoticed by audiences or even by our crew. Starting with our next show, in Sydney, Australia, we'll have another new band member: guitarist Kevin Breit, who played on some of Norah's Come Away with Me album. (That sweet Dobro solo on "Seven Years" is Kevin). He'll be with us on all of our Australia and New Zealand dates over the next three weeks. This is a very exciting development, as Kev is an incredibly gifted musician. He'll mostly be playing acoustic guitar, National-style resonator guitar, and mandolin. I've never played with Kevin, but I love playing with other guitarists in general and I happen to be a fan of his playing. And he's a real hoot of a fellow.

Speaking of guitars, I've got a new one kicking in the stable: a Mexican-made Fender '60s Telecaster. I mention it here not so much to give Fender free publicity but to offer a tip for poor (or cheap) guitarists. It's not the rock-bottom cheapest Telcaster that Fender offers but, for the money ($500 or so, about half the price of one of those American Vintage '52 models), it's hard to beat. I bought it so that I wouldn't have to keep taking my old '72 out and get it all beat up. Is it as cool as my old fave? No way, but it's cool enough to enjoy and make music with. And if the guitar should happen to take a dive — as it did last night in Singapore, falling from it's vertical orientation on the guitar stand to a sad horizontal position on the stage floor — no tears are shed. The guitar stayed in tune just fine and was right ready for action when I picked it up to play it, two songs later.

Item: I just posted a new addition to my GUITARVIEWS page. This latest posting is a street-smart piece of music-biz advice by Greta Brinkman, and it's aimed at touring musicians and those about to tour. Read it and reap.

Posted 19 January 2003
Road Report: We're in Tokyo now, in the frou-frou lounge at the Narita airport. Free Internet dial-up. Right on. We're not staying in Japan, just stopping over en route to Hong Kong. I hate to name drop (yeah, right!), but here I must. We just played on Friday night in Anaheim, for a big Elton John tribute. Here's a list of performers that night — Vanessa Carlton ("Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me"), Take 6 ("Philadelphia Freedom"), Michael McDonald ("Take Me to the Pilot"), Brian McKnight ("Daniel"), Brian Wilson ("Someone Saved My Life Tonight"), John Mayer ("Sacrifice"), Rufus Wainwright ("Goodbye Yellow Brick Road"), Bruce Hornsby("Burn Down the Mission"), Jewel ("Your Song"), Diana Krall ("Border Song"), and Ray Charles ("Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"). Then Sir Elton came out and played "Saturday Night's Alright"and "The Bitch Is Back" and totally set the house on fire. Oh, yeah — we performed "Tiny Dancer." Interestingly, Norah was the only artist that brought her own band. Everyone else was backed by the Elton John band. That's a hell of a band right there, including original members Davey Johnstone and Nigel Olsson. I think Davey has been on the gig longer than Elton has! Phil Ramone was the producer for the event, and I got to meet him. I said, "Hey, Phil, with so many great artists gathered for a good cause, this should be an easy one, eh?" He put his hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eye and said, "Nothing is easy if you want it to be great." Yeah, duh, of course. But hearing it from Mr. Ramone was something else altogether. Of all the stars I met that night (including Elvis Costello, who was just there hanging out), Ramone was the only one whose autorgraph I asked for.

Also, this gig marked the unveiling of my newest aquisition: a 1981 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe. The perfect guitar for paying tribute to Davey Johnstone, and just an all-around hot guitar. Pictures to follow soon!

Speaking of pictures, here's two of me Memphis — one in front of Earnestine & Hazel's and one in front of the Arcade diner. Both shots were taken by my travel buddy, Leslie Rice. (Cool old Telecaster courtesy of Steve Selvidge.) Look for more Memphis photos soon!

Posted 15 January 2003
Okay, so if you've been reading these postings you know that my forthcoming record is all about Memphis. I recorded most of the music there (overdubs were done in New York) and most of the original music I wrote for this project is inspired in some way by Memphis' unique strains of soul, blues, country, and roots rock. Unfortunately, when I went there to record my CD, I had almost no time to explore the city and soak up its manifold rich flavors. To rectify that sad fact, I went back there last weekend and spent four solid days and nights catting around Memphis. Luckily, I already knew a few locals who were ready, wiling, and able to show me around.

Of course, there's lots of music there — of all kinds. One night I checked out the Dempseys at Blues City Cafe. The Dempseys are a smokin' rockabilly trio whose stage antics are right out of a vintage Tex Avery-directed Warner Bros. cartoon. If you pass through Memphis, you've got to see these guys. Imagine a cross between the Stray Cats and the Barnum & Bailey circus. Wowsers!

I also went out to see the Kevin Paige Band at Alfred's. Kevin is a tremendous singer, fronting the best Top 40 cover band ever. On the set break, I chatted with the band (their trumpeter, Scott Thompson, is a friend of mine) and it somehow came up that I had played the guitar solo on Tracy Chapman's "Give Me One Reason." Next thing knew, the band was back on stage, and Kevin was calling me up to sit in with them on that song. (Kevin's cover is arguably better than TC's original.) I didn't have my guitar with me, so I used the guitarist's Gibson Flying V. Fun! It was all over and done before I knew what hit me, and then I went back out on the dance floor to do my best bump-and-grind in the undulating crowd of dancers.

Memphis has all sorts of incredible food. We ate at Gus' Fried Chicken ("Today's special: chicken"), Automatic Slim's (try the jerk duck), the Young Avenue Deli (the deep-fried pickle wedges are a sublime accompaniment to any sandwich), Paulette's (at brunch time, everything comes with a basket of steaming hot popovers with strawberry butter on the side; make sure to order a side of their "cabbage, leeks, bacon, and cream" unless your doctor advises otherwise; adamlevy.com is not responsible for any coronary difficulties you may encounter as a result of eating this dish), and the Rendezvous (despite a good sized menu with lots of choices, your only real option is the ribs — "Do you want five bones, or eight?")

I got to reconnect with many of the musicians who played and sang on my record — Susan Marshall (vocals), Jim Spake (sax), Scott Thompson (trumpet), and David Smith (bass). Plus I got to meet some cool new folks — guitarist Steve Selvidge (formerly of Big Ass Truck, now with Lucero), guitarist Luther Dickinson (of the North Mississippi Allstars), and Lou Rawls (of Lou Rawls). I met Mr. Rawls at the Memphis airport when I first arrived. He was in town to perform at a casino in Mississippi, 45 miles from Memphis. It happened like this: I saw several musicianly dudes pulling instruments off the baggage claim belt. Curiousity got the best of me, and I sidled up alongside them to try to figure out what band they were. Lo and behold, all of their bags had Lou Rawls luggage tags! Still no sign of the big man, though, until I stepped outside the terminal to hail a cab. Who should be standing there at the curb, in a mohair overcoat and copious amounts of gold jewelry? You guessed it — Lou Rawls! I introduced myself, and we chatted for a few minutes while he waited for his band to get the rest of their stuff. I didn't go see his show, and I'm kicking myself now. Ow! Ow! Ouch!

After Memphis, I flew to San Francisco to teach a class in "Organic Guitaring" at the Blue Bear School of Music. Perhaps, to be more academic, I should have called my class "Theoretical Paradigms in Post-Modern Organic Guitar Theory" or used the word "simulacra" in there somehow. Anyway, that's about all I did in S.F. Now I'm en route to Anaheim, CA, to reconnect with Norah Jones. We're performing at an Elton John tribute concert in Anaheim. Then we're off to play in Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand. It's summertime now in Oz and New Zealand. I am so excited about that, 'cause the weather back home in New York has ranged from "cold and crappy" to "crappy and cold." Summer. SUMMER!

Posted 9 January 2003
People, get ready! My forthcoming CD Get Your Glow On is almost done. I finished the two final recording sessions last week. The first of these was in Chicago, with the legendary Otis Clay. He's singing Dylan's "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You," with rhythm tracks I recorded in Memphis. Otis picked me up at the airport, then we went and had lunch at the best soul-food restaurant I've ever had the pleasure of dining in — Edna's, the place where Martin Luther King used to eat when he came to Chicago. I don't know what Dr. King liked to eat, but I opted for the short-ribs, with sides of collard greens and mac & cheese. After lunch, we went to Otis' home studio and recorded his vocal track. He sang incredibly well. Though we recorded on a Tascam DA-38, he has lots of historic gear in his studio — including the 16-track Ampex machine that used to belong to Chicago's Brunswick Studio (the Chi-Lites tracked "Have You Seen Her" at Brunswick on this very machine). We called it a day after we had four or five good takes on tape, and then Otis and I sat around for the next few hours talking about Sam Cooke and listening to Otis' favorite gospel records — the Soul Stirrers, the Dixie Hummingbirds, the Swan Silvertones, the Brooklyn Allstars, the Harmonizing Four. This is a day I will never forget!

Two days later, the Holmes Brothers came to Socerer Sound in New York City to record their track with me — "No Easy Way Down." When I first thought of working with the Holmes Brothers, I figured I'd do something kind of spare and open with them, having the three of them sing while I played guitar. But I thought about it some more and realized that I should have them play their own instruments because they're such great players. I couldn't have been righter. These guys play so great together, and they pushed me to play harder, deeper, funkier. When it was time to sing, drummer Willie "Popsie" Dixon took the lead, and his voice is like no other I've ever heard. People get ready!

The record was mixed and mastered this week, which means the audio is finalized. The next order of business is the artwork, which will be wrapped up by the end of this month. Then it's off to the presses for a March drop date. Huzzah!!!

Posted 27 December 2002
Did you know that I recently produced a CD for the Washington D.C.-based trio Touch Acoustra? It's true! The CD is called When It Comes Upon You, and it showcases lots of very fine guitar playing by the trio's leader, Rob Coltun, who also did nearly of the composing and arranging for the album. The disc features cameos by Norah Jones, Rob Burger (Tin Hat Trio), EJ Rodriguez (Los Cubanos Postizos), and yours truly on spare guitars. You can hear a few tracks from When It Comes Upon You in Real Audio format right here. The CD is available from my STORE page and at amazon.com.

Posted 25 December 2002
Attention Austinites — my Buttermilk Channel CD is now available at Waterloo Records.

Posted 23 December 2002
Road Report: I'm back home in Brooklyn now, after an action-packed week in Austin, TX. I went there to play my original music on four gigs with some of the finest musicians in Austin — Brannen Temple on drums, Roscoe Beck on bass, and Red Young on Hammond organ. (Roscoe called in sick for one gig; Chris Maresh came to sub for him and rocked the house on his own terms.) I had played in Austin before — ages ago with Dan Hicks and more recently with Norah Jones — but had never played a gig of my own there. Man, I am hooked on that town now. What a great place to play. People go out to clubs every night of the week check out all kinds of music. They listen, they react, they hoot and holler, and they're right friendly when you talk to them after the show. On top of that, the weather was mostly gorgeous, the Mexican food never ceased to please (got my mind on my migas, and my migas on my mind), I found an incredible Austin artist named Sue Zola who makes "glitter paintings" of Elvis, Fonzie, Marilyn, Jesus, and cowgirl pin-ups (I bought two of those), I was taken on a tour of the completely over-the-top Christmas lights of 37th Street (my own photos to follow soon), and bought a righteous locally built overdrive pedal.

Did you miss Norah Jones' appearance on Saturday Night Live? The show will be rebroadcast this weekend, on 28 December. On a related note, a lot of people have been asking me what guitar I played on that show. It's a Daisy Rock prototype of their new model Retro H. It's a fabulous instrument, and the folks at Daisy Rock couldn't be nicer. They mainly make guitars for girls, but guys should check 'em out too.

My record is almost finished — really! One more recording session, then mixing and mastering, and then it goes to press. I'm aiming for a late-February release, which will coincide with the impending tour.

Posted 19 December 2002
Road Report: Heads up — I'll be releasing my new CD Get Your Glow On at the end of February and will be going out on a month-long national tour to spread the word about this disc. Details to follow soon....