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Friday, August 22, 2008
The Lee Boys - From The Road
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The latest Dispatch From The Road comes from The Lee Boys, the Florida-based sacred steel act with metro Atlanta ties.
They’re performing for free at 99X Unplugged In The Park Sunday, with Dante Harmon and Barbeque Church.
Planning to go? Seen The Lee Boys before?
Well here’s how Chad Edwards caught us up:
Hey, there, Atlanta!
2008 has been a very busy year for the Lee Boys. From the festival circuit to elementary schools in Louisiana to Key West, Florida, we have played them all. We started out our festival run at the Suwannee Springfest in Live Oak, Florida and will end it in Live Oak in October at Magnolia Fest.
This year we will be well on our way to hitting about 50 of the major music festivals in the USA. Some of the highlights this year so far have been playing at the much-beloved New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, and what is pretty wild about that is, not only was it our first Jazzfest appearance but we played 3 consecutive days, which no band from outside Louisiana has ever done before.
Other highlights were playing at the first annual Delfest in Maryland featuring Del McCoury and Vince Gill, and Bela Fleck among others. Later that night we were asked to stay and join the late night jam with Del McCoury’s band as well as The Davisson Brothers (See the video HERE ).
High Sierra Music Festival in Northern California was a blast with Marco Benevento joining us on the Hammond B-3 for both days and of course we can’t forget our two gigs at Bonnaroo this past June (look for this to be released on DVD sometime this year and check it out now HERE.
We have been so blessed this year to do have done tours and jammed on stage with Susan Tedeschi, North Mississippi All Stars, Col. Bruce Hampton, Chris Layton, Big Sam and Efren Towns, JB from The Time, Warren Haynes, Eric Krasno, Marco Benevento and Michelle Shocked. We even got to hang out with drumming legend Dennis Chambers and actor John C Reilly while in New Orleans during Jazzfest.
We have already played New York City twice in the past two months with Warren Haynes, Marco Benevento and Eric Krasno joining us to play and will be back in New York City in October with Del McCoury playing the beautiful Highline Ballroom. We have tasted wonderful BBQ in Memphis and in Kansas City, dipped our toes in the water in Key West, Florida, watched a Braves baseball game, toured the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, and frolicked in the majestic Rocky Mountains in Colorado. If I’m not mistaken we have traveled well over 60,000 miles so far this year and still have 4 months to go (we would LOVE lower gas prices).
The rest of the year is looking pretty good as well with hits at Austin City Limits Festival in September, Biker Blues and BBQ in Arkansas, Voodoo Fest in New Orleans, Magnolia Festival, and Deadwood Jam in South Dakota. We are putting together a tour with Dirty Dozen Brass Band that will tak up much of the month of October and working on a short tour with Del McCoury Band in early December.
We return to Hot’lanta this Sunday August 24th playing at Park Tavern in Piedmont Park. We always have a good time playing in Atlanta and this time our dear friend, and pedal steel player Dante Harmon and friends join us for this concert series. It is a free show, so we expect a shake and boogie because that is all you will want to do!
If that were not enough, The Lee Boys will be back in Atlanta Oct. 10 for a very special event! Roosevelt and Earl have been invited to sit in with our friends the Allman Bros. Band at Chastain Park and The Lee Boys will be hosting the official after party with Oteil Burbridge and other special guests at Smith’s Olde Bar. YEOW!!!!
You can find us online at www.leeboys.com, www.myspace.com/leeboys and we also have a YouTube page at www.youtube.com/theleeboysmusic.
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Jon McLaughlin’s Ferts, Errr - Firsts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Since he is the FIRST artist to perform at Georgia Tech’s FERST Center For The Arts new season — tonight, to be exact — we decided to ask singer-songwriter Jon McLaughlin for three memorable FIRSTS in his life.
(That the pin-up could tell a daily newspaper, of course).
“Performing at the Oscars [earlier this year] definitely was one,” began McLaughlin, who did “So Close” from the movie “Enchanted”. “It’s such a classy night. That’s what I was most impressed by. I mean, every musician ultimately wants to win a Grammy and go to the Grammys. But you can basically go to the Grammys in a diaper. The Oscars were so classy. And to go there before I even go to the Grammys, it’s like, wow!”
“Another one was when I heard my first real recording played back to me for the first time. It was the first time I heard one of my songs (‘Giving You Reasons’) recorded in a great studio, mixed by a good mix engineer. And I was sitting at the sound board and my eyes were tearing. I had my head down though, cause there were other guys there.”
“Then there is the first show I ever played — first song I ever played at a show. It was the Living Room in Muncie, Indiana. And I opened up for my best friend. I did ‘Raining In Baltimore’ by the Counting Crowes…I don’t think I was good though, because I’ve kind of blacked the rest of it out. I don’t remember how the crowd responded.”
Do you plan to be in the crowd this evening? Remember McLaughlin on the Oscars? Have his latest CD, “OK Now”?
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Ludacris Vs. Jay-Z — You Decide
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lil Wayne may be the best-selling rapper — make that, recording artist — this year (in terms of first week numbers), but Atlanta rap mogul Ludacris upset him in vibe.com’s Best Rapper Alive tournament.
Now the hip-hop star born Christopher Bridges (top photo) is in the Final Four. And he’s going up against “the greatest rapper alive” (according to Lil Wayne), Jay-Z (below); while Eminem matches lyrical firepower with The Game.
(The Game - believe it or not - defeated Andre “Dre” Benjamin in the previous round).
You can vote HERE through Saturday at 12 a.m. .
After that, tell us why you chose who you chose. Or do you think it’s ridiculous for these four to be in this Final Four in the first place?
(The Top Two will be announced Monday on vibe.com).
