We've getting some questions about clarifying our taping policy. This will be up on our official Web site shortly, but here's the policy as it stands:

Big Sky Official taping and trading policy
We encourage audience taping at our concerts. Soundboard patching is typically NOT allowed, and at no time will audience taping be allowed to interfere with the enjoyment of other concertgoers, or the regulations of the venue. If Big Sky Stringband is playing in an event, which features multiple bands, the taping policy of the headlining band and/or the festival event will dictate the taping policy for that concert.

Please be prepared with battery power and all adaptors or cabling required to record. Power or other auxiliary equipment will not be supplied. Please arrive early and always respect the wishes of the venue, band and sound crew.

All taping must be for personal and non-commercial use only. No profit is ever to be made from patrons recording our live shows. Fans are permitted to post our shows on the Internet, or trade shows with other fans for an equal amount of media, and no money may exchange hands except for postage required to send the media if applicable. Big Sky Stringband reserves the right to seek legal remedies against anyone that is in violation of this policy and to alter this policy at its discretion.

Sincerely,

Big Sky Stringband
..http://bigskystringband.com/
..

We had a great time playing the Montrose Room. It's a new gem of a venue out in the NW 'burbs of Chicago. It's worth checking out if you weren't able to make it to our show there last Friday.

Here's our setlist:

Powder Finger
Della Vane
Find You Gone
Harlan's Theme->
Baked On Beauty
Martin's Song
The Yeti
If I Had Known
Give Back the Key to My Heart *^
Tulsa Time *
Four Sticks/I Just Wanna Make Love To You #
Wagon Wheel
Bette Davis Smile
Grandpa's Groove
Diamonds on the Souls of Her Shoes
Stalker (Commandant's Daughter)
Not-so-new A Thing->
Slow Train %

* = w/ Tim Peters on acoustic guitar and vocals
^ = First time Played (originally by Doug Sahms; popularized by Uncle Tupelo)
# = Teases during technical difficulty as the sound staff fixed the issue (first time played in both cases, originally by Led Zeppelin and Foghat, respectively)
% = Included teases of Sweet Child of Mine and the Beverly Hills 90210 theme song


(Opener was Sean Shiel)

Flying Blind
Dialog with John
Big Foot
Martin's Song
Antonin
Shady Grove
Find You Gone
Going to New Orleans
Wagon Wheel
Slow Train


Opening for Stroker-red

We had a great time playing before Paradise Waits at Abbey Pub last night. Hopefully we'll be able to play before this great band once again (check 'em out every Wednesday at Abbey Pub).

Here's the set:

Cuckoo
Find You Gone
Wreck of the New Orleans (Brandon on piano)
Sherman Hemsley
Della Vane
If I Had Known
Ale House*
Slow Train
Hester
Wagon Wheel
Paradise City

* = First time played live

We always end up playing more covers than normal at the Brew Fest, but I can't think of a more perfect way to spend a Sunday than sitting outside, listening to music, and enjoying all-you-can-drink microbrews. This was our 6th time playing Brew Fest, and we're already looking forward to number 7!

6th Annual Barrington Brew Fest
Barrington, IL
July 11, 2009

[Soundcheck: Stalker (verse one only)]

Set I:
Tangled Up in Blue (with China Cat Sunflower tease)
Somewhat New A Jam->
Whiskey Row
If I Had Known
Black Coffee Blues
Della Vane
Going to New Orleans
Harlan's Theme->
Baked on Beauty
Crossroads
Up on Cripple Creek->
Salt Creek->
Rich Koz

Set II:
Big Foot->
Diamonds on the Souls of Her Shoes
Tulsa Time*
Martin's Song*
The Weight*
Wagon Wheel-> $
Crack on the Track $
Blue Sky
Going Down The Road Feeling Bad
Slow Train

* = w/ Tim Peters on acoustic guitar and vocals
$ = w/ Tim Peters on acoustic guitar


Tim Peters (vocals and guitar) and Jay Stanek (vocals, mandolin and guitar) played a brief set (including, at times, Brandon Cochran & Jason Taylor) prior to the full band joining them on stage.

Well, to say the least, playing Taste of Chicago on the 4th was a lot of fun. And how about our stage's headliner, Lubriphonic? Tight.

Here's the setlist from the 4th:


Taste of Chicago
Illinois Lottery Taste Stage
July 4, 2009

(Soundcheck: If I Had Known)

Bette Davis Smile (no Brandon due to guitar/power issue)
Della Vane
New A Jam->
Slow Train*
Red Clay Road
Shady Grove
Big Foot
Cadence
Dialog with John
Feelin' Alright
Wagon Wheel
Grandpa's Groove
Hester
Whiskey Row
Paradise City

* w/ short "Jessica" (Allman Brothers Band) jam


Hope to see ya'll out at Barrington Brew Fest on Saturday, July 11. This is far and away the best event we play each year. All-you-can-drink microbrews plus music by Big Sky Stringband with special guest Porter Ideal. More info on our site.

Thank you to everyone who came out to McDunna's. It was our first time there, and probably not our last. We hope you enjoyed the show (both on the stage, and oddly, in front of it).

Setlist:

New A Jam*
Slow Train
Beat It Tease
Stalker (Commandant's Daughter)
Spitter Blake (with Wang Dang Doodle intro)
Big Foot->
Red Clay Road
Going Down The Road Feeling Bad^
Bird Song->
Whiskey Row
Centralia
Grandpa's Groove->
Billy Jean&->
Grandpa's Groove
Wagon Wheel
Bertha

Encore:
Feelin' Alright#

* = First time played, new original instrumental
^ = First time played, traditional
& = First time played, original by Michael Jackson
# = Featured It's Tricky lyrics at one point and Brandon on drums with Zach at another; length was about 15-20 minutes

Opener was Scottie Long Trio

Green Fest
Navy Pier, Chicago
5/16/09

Flying Blind
Going to New Orleans
Shady Grove
Statesboro Blues
Get Down Boys
Della Vane
Hester

Sorry, been a bit behind on these things. We've got a pretty good recording of this that we'll get up on Archive.org soon...

Martyrs'
Chicago
5/11/09

Tangled Up in Blue->
Big Foot->
Della Vane->
Stalker (Commandant's Daughter)
Find You Gone
Black Coffee Blues
Wayside Blues+
Sherman Hemsley->
Crack on the Track
Bette Davis
Lonesome Fiddler's Reel
If I Had Known
You've Gotta Line
Harlan's Theme->
Baked on Beauty
Cadence
Slow Train (sweet child of mine tease in intro)

Encore:
Wagon Wheel (w/ sweet child of mine tease)

+ = First Time Played as Big Sky Stringband; new original (no drums or bass)

Here's the setlist for Big Sky's show at Bird's Nest. Lots of first time played tunes...

Set I
Slow Train
If I Had Known
Going to New Orleans
Baked On Beauty
Crossroads
Della Vane
Stalker (Commandant's Daughter)
Statesboro Blues
Martin's Song (w/ Tim Peters on guitar and harmony vocals)
Tulsa Time* (w/ Tim Peters on guitar and lead vocals)
Ophelia (w/ Tim Peters on guitar and harmony vocals)
Fluff Head+ (w/ Tim Peters on guitar and harmony vocals)->
Diamonds on the Souls of Her Shoes

Set II
Mercy Mercy Mercy# (instrumental; without Jay or Chris)
All Blues$ (without Chris)
So What$ (without Chris)
Spitter Blake
Hey Hey What Can I Do@
Rocky Top
Wagon Wheel
Fire on the Mountain->Gin & Juice->It's Tricky->Fire on the Mountain% (without Brandon; Tim Peters on electric guitar, harmony vocals)
I Know You Rider (without Brandon; Chris on electric guitar; Jay on mandolin; Tim Peters on acoustic guitar)


* First Time Played; original by Don Williams
+ First Time Played; first time covering a Phish song; Original by Phish, performed in honor of Phish's return show at Hampton (also Phish's first song of the show)
# First Time Played; original by Joe Zawinul
$ First Time Played; originals by Miles Davis
@ First Time Played; original by Led Zeppelin
% Last Fire->Gin->Tricky medley: 5/27/06