Dear Jango Airplay CEO Dan Kaufman,
I am wholly not interested in what you are selling.
 Your company has put my music & image on your pay-to-play website without my express permission.
 Please remove it immediately.

rather furious
Thomas Bailey

Once again. I didn't do anything or give anyone any permission WHATSOEVER to have my content uploaded to Jango.com, it just showed up there mysteriously and now I'm being solicited to buy more airtime credit. This an unscrupulous and predatory business model of which I have no interest in participating.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ksm80ShqJA

I had the honor of headlining the Vilnius Bluegrass Festival earlier this year. I went straight from the airport to the gig. Here's Sally Goodin after 14 hours in transit.

Just stumbled across the vids that were shot last November. It's The Wyios' release event for their self titled CD at the Brooklyn Lyceum. They brought me into PIE studios with them to record a handful of tracks; one of which - "Number Nine" was released on said album.
"Danville Girl"

"Number 9"

I never bothered to be very politically aware until about 10 years ago when the level of baiting and fear mongering reached it's all time highest since Regan's run for the White House, even then I was too young to grasp what was going on and much more concerned with adolescent pursuits. My brain is too small to grasp the larger picture of history's twists and turns, so I made a slow effort to decode the noise I'd been hearing on the news and in the streets.
Any political viewpoint I took on was only based on whatever my peers told me, and since some or most of them were seemingly more informed or eloquent, I just took whatever they had to say as the bottom line. It was about the time that the witch hunt began to impeach Bubba Clinton for tagging the fat chick in the oval office that I tried to take a closer notice of what was going on behind the curtain. Granted there were some fairly unlikeable things about old Bill, but fellatio is not an impeachable offense. I mean, come on folks he did preside over the greatest economic increase in 30-some years. We deserve to prosper regardless of who's driving right? With all the indictments an trip before the Fed Grand Jury over a blowjob, it was obvious to me that we were being distracted from more devious goings on - but I digress...
This past presidential campaign was historic in the sense that we had two candidates surface from their primaries that were fairly progressive. Of chief significance was the amount of grass roots organization going on getting the real fact out there in the face of some of the most intense and desperate fear-mongering we've seen in ages. For a change, it seems, an earnest mandate from WE THE PEOPLE was declared as folks jumped party lines to either cast their vote for a positive step towards the future or fear and aggression. I cried when I heard Sen. McCain's concession speech because he really wasn't the candidate for the truly conservative base. I fear that his call for cooperation fell on some deaf ears and we haven't seen the last of violent skinhead plots or white trash crack heads shooting folks in Unitarian churches because "liberals have destroyed our Country".

That said, I wanted to share some words with you from an old friend back home in Virginia.
"The day after election day"-Ray Cohen
"It's the day after election day and Barak Obama will be our next president. I am excited to see the desire for change manifest in way that seems to hold such promise and opportunity. Today, I feel inspired. I resist the urge to see Obama as the change, but as a representation of our combined intention to change. Just as the politics of recent years have represented the aligned consciousness of many, the politicians are not the ones to conveniently shoulder the blame. We live in a representative democracy, and although flawed, there is the unique ability for our political process to allow the cumulative intention of the people to be seen, and manifest in our government. I am grateful for this, and feel blessed to live in an age, where those that may have been owned as property some generations ago can now lead. I see promise for the continuing evolution of humanity. This has felt like an important election. The prospect of our continued growth
being forced through experiencing the cataclysmic results of our fear-based choices has looked pretty foreboding in recent years. We can get the message now, or we can get it later, but we will get it, we will continue to evolve. What we can choose now is whether we need pain and suffering to motivate us to look for a new way, a higher choice.

I watched Cornell West on the Bill Maher show the other night. He is a professor of African American studies at Princeton. I saw him speak here in Lexington a few years ago.. He is brilliant, well spoken, and his message is always compassionate and inclusive. There was a discussion about the accusations regarding Obama being a socialist. This is part of what he said:
It's an exciting moment to be alive when you see that kind of desperation. This was the last gasp of the conservative era where the economics of greed, the culture of indifference, and the politics of fear have been brought together in such a way that it hides and conceals the plight of the poor people and the working people. This is exciting, but we are in a transitional moment. The real questions are:
Can we generate a commitment to fairness and justice in the face of greed?
Can we generate compassion in the face of indifference?
Can we generate hope in the face of fear?
This is what Barak Obama is all about.

Our continued intention and conscious awareness as to how we choose is what is at issue here. Obama represents our will, our intention. He can do nothing for us, but he can lead with us. The wave of our accumulated will is what is manifesting this opportunity we see before us. It is our responsibility to continue with this divinely inspired mission to improve this country and our world. This work begins with ourselves, our relationships, our lives. Through our focused intention to be more, we become the light, we transform ourselves and our world. This is the opportunity before us. As I say these words out loud, I see the opportunity for my own higher choice, the potential to be more. I am filled with gratitude to know that this possibility exists. To know that all that is necessary is the faith to honor my intention to choose fairness, compassion and hope in the face of greed, indifference and fear. We get to choose who we will become,
independent of circumstances and other's choices. Not that the world does not affect us, but that it provides the backdrop, the opportunity for how we will choose to experience life. As things become difficult, scary or painful, this faith becomes the foundation to hold true to the vision of who we can be. This is true individually and collectively. Remember who you can be. Revel in the infinite potential and unlimited possibility that life offers. Recognize and enjoy those moments where it is evident that the power of our consciousness aligned can manifest miracles. Have a great day!

Ray"

Hey gang, big changes here in "Tom-land". My time with the Freight Hoppers has come to a close. My 1500 mile round trip for rehearsals was making it very difficult to get much done. With Rounder Records over-pataiently waiting for a third release, I proposed to Frank and David that they find a guitar player in NC to take my place. It was an amicable split and now I'm cut loose to join the rest of you & do stupid things like spend all my money on new Freight Hoppers stuff. My last show with the boys was Sept. 20 at the Watermelon Park Festival in Berryville, Va. By the serene banks of the Shenandoah River, no less. A perfect close to a wild ride.(although, I will sorely miss playing with David Bass; he is one of my best friends and travel companions)


(photo by Tara Noelle)

We had a big mess of showcases lined up for IBMA. I had arrived a few days early to help out with Megan Lynch's Fiddlestar camp. The boys brought their new guy and the timing couldn't have been better. So, I now had the week free to pursue further development of the ideas planted with "It's Always August"; something that I'd modestly kept on the back burner because of it's departure from so-called "real" old time music.

I also was at leisure to hang with some of my good buddies from the UK, some of which came to work and some for the hang.


(5am one more tune and I gotta go to the airport jam with Neat Leath)

I came home long enough to do my laundry then I got on another plane and headed off to England where I had a few dates in Derbyshire, London and Wales. Lastly, I visited Phil Davidson's studio to pick up my mandolin.


(Pembrokeshire, Wales & Matlock, Derbyshire)

Now I'm back home in New York, I get to finally rest up, spend quality time with Mozell & get moving on the next thing. That will include a local mandolin ensemble, more original material, and I can't wait to play more with Nate Leath which means we'll get more hang-time in Virginia. WOOT!


(fixing a late night snack, Breakin' Up Christmas at Debbie & Tim's place in Konnarock, Va)

Hello England!!
I was pleased, honored, and overwhelmed to have tutored the Old Time fiddle class at Sore Fingers this past spring!

I'll be back this fall to play a few dates as mutual support with my pals The Groanbox Boys:
8 Oct at The Travellers' Rest in Draycott, Derby
11 Oct at The Green Note in Camden, London
Pembrokshire and more dates TBA

I'll be available for private and small workshops also. Contact me directly on yellowbarber @ yahoo.com if interested.

Wish I could come earlier for the hang at the SF weekend...ah, well.
See you in Oct
TB

We had a great time and barely slept a wink all week(obviously). Watch this space: more to come...

Well, I meant to do this a while ago. I’m easily distracted, plus all the fun stuff with the Freight Hoppers signing on with Rounder and big changes around the Bailey household have kept me duly occupied.

So, if you’ve signed up for the old time fiddle course at Sore Fingers Week ’08, here’s some of what you can expect:

We’ll take a look at the bow all week long, it will be the primary focus as we investigate how to use it better to articulate phrasings in the left hand and how to get the most out of a few open tunings. I’ve cracked into my vault and hauled out some Kentucky/WVa stuff from Ed Haley, Eddn Hammons and WM Stepp in particular for AEAE examples. We’ll listen to Western North Carolina’s Marcus Martin, Virginia fiddlers Albert Hash and Greg Hooven, and the great Nebraska fiddler Bob Walters. Because the 21st century has washed away most isolations and there’s more source material readily available than ever before I’ll make every effort to take you on non-scholastic and disorganized forays into a sea of traditional American fiddle music.

Most importantly, our esteemed old time banjo instructor and all around gentelman, Brett Ratliff and I will confer upon a set of tunes so you fiddlers will have something to play with the banjo players. He’s an honest-to-God Kentucky boy, so our repertoires intersect in many places. It’s my hope to impart the enthusiasm to "be your own fiddler", to enjoy the time you spend with your music and share that joy among your friends and family.

So tune up the fiddle, rosin up the bow and I’ll see you in Oxfordshire, right after the Easter egg hunt.
SoreFingers.co.uk

The idea to make "It's Always August" was spurred on in the late hours after respective gigs and "proper" old time music gatherings. Co-producer, Joe DeJarnette and myself cut our teeth in the central Virginia old time music and dance communities. This recording is rooted in numerous late nights at festivals and house parties, influenced by the mix of humor, musicianship and community spirit of home town heroes like "Two-Gun" Terry, Kelly Perdue, David Grant, Danny Knicely, "Fiddly" Dave VanDeventer to name just a few. Our common roots go so deep that many of the arrangements were composed telepathically. Joe and and Wiyos' guitarist realized the need for a "Thomas Bailey guitar album" before I did, and I was easily talked into the project. My relationship with the guitar has been a love/hate affair for the better part of 29 years. I've been very lucky to have accompanied a number of the most notable old time fiddlers out there these days; with that old Gibson flattop in my lap almost every day, it was a matter of time before all the "extra guitar stuff" would gurgle to the surface.

This recording is just an ice-breaker towards a more thorough project that will include an even more contemporary sound, featuring original material and songs from some of my favorite composers. The title harkens back to those Oregon Hill days of LSD and doughnuts, 3 bands for 3 bucks at New Horizons, and most of all my old neighbors at 709 Pine St.(Timmy Toad, Johnny, Leo, Jeffrey, Splash, Elbow and Devil-bunny - aka: Always August, and that huge collection of great vinyl LPs).



1)Hesitation Blues - This is one of those ageless standards, almost everybody has done some version of it. The "hesitation" comes from Charlie Poole's version. We take a chorus or two to explore Dave Grant's lowest common denominator theory.


2)Darling Nellie Grey - A nugget from the American song bag, I drew my inspiration from Fred Cockerham's treatment of it on the fretless banjo. A relative of an old English folksong, this tune is attributed to Benjamin Russell Hanby(1833-1867), who also composed the Christmas carol "Up on a Rooftop".


3)The Girl I Left Behind - The Wiyos' guitarist, Parrish Ellis produced a fantastic solo guitar CD and put an arrangement of Bob Wills' treatment of this number. In direct folk-process-rip-off mode, I had Parrish to play along on my arrangement of his arrangement.


4)Cum'rlin' Gap - A prominent geographic feature that straddles the Kentucky/Virginia state borders where they T-off on the Tennessee border. A fine tune with as many different versions as there are fiddlers who play it. Lydia Martin is a fantastic banjo player who has all kinds of great music just oozing out of everywhere.


5)Sleepin' Lulu - The Skillet Lickers recorded this during one of their last sessions as a fiddle heavy ensemble. It's a blast to play on the guitar and I'm surprised I haven't heard anyone else do it yet.


6)Yellowbarber - Honestly, I really can play this tune on the fiddle. This was done in one take by playing the guitar backup first and humming the melody to myself then immediately putting the fiddle part down without a practice run. No, I don't know what a yellowbarber is.


7)Oh, the Sandy Boys - Shows up in minstrel era sheet music for "classical" banjo. It was well married into the fiddle traditions of West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina and out into the Ozarks. I've taken lately to flat-picking A tunes in E.


8)Utpik - I've heard so many different versions from dozens and dozens of fiddlers that I'd only recently discovered that this isn't public domain at all. It was, in fact composed by British Columbia fiddler, Frankie Rogers in the 1960s. The Inuit legend says the owl, "Ook Pik" carries the soul to the afterlife.

 Hello friends and welcome the newest entry of SEND MONEY/internet busking. I am back home in NYC for a brief break before heading back to rock out in E.Tenn./W.NC with The Forge Mountain Diggers. 

  Last Saturday night, we played for the big dance at the Appalachian String-band Festival, aka: Clifftop. It's an honor bestowed upon us for surviving the finals in the so-called "traditional" string-band competition at last year's event.*  We were paired up with callers Beverly Smith and Taylor Runner who rocked the mic in style and let us rip it up at our preferred tempo. 

  So, I carpooled with one of my guitar students and his brother. We arrived shortly after 11pm to the sight of a Fayette Co sheriff's deputy telling us the box office/gate closed at 11 and we couldn't get in. After a little diplomatic maneuvering, we were on our way to our respective camps. "My" fiddler, David Bass wasn't as lucky when he got in with his wife and two babies at half two a.m.

  Jamming commenced immediately with Josh Bearman and Arron Lewis of "Special Ed" fame along with the very small contingent of real hillbillies** who you'll find at Clifftop; outnumbered nearly 100 to 1 by nicely heeled cityfolks with fancy camping gear and expensive banjos.

 I just acquired a fancy field recording device. However, thru my technological ineptitude, I'd set the recording format to it's largest size and only got about one and a half minutes of myself cursing at the machine recorded before the card maxed out. Forgot my camera too but the phone takes a not-so-half-bad pic; so here's a shot of what I feel gets at the real essence of what this festival is about.

 The Perdue Brothers, Dave & Darlene Grant and the Mando Mafia clan at large have tossed this lil party every Clifftop on sat afternoon. This funky calypso string-band jam was further nurtured at this party.*** This year, we celebrated the release of the late, great Dave Grant's CD, Bubbalon By Bass - adventures in entropy . If you've ever wondered what I mean when I talk about the "lowest common denominator theory", it is wisdom personally gleaned from him, and this disk would be a great place to begin decoding it yourself. Don't forget a cold beer, folk nazis need not apply.  

  The a beauty(?) of a blogspace is the freedom to have a beef with someone or something. It's too easy to have something negative to say everytime I post here. Posting my gripes for the world to see has taught me alot about my own misperceptions of the world around me. Thanks to the folks who don't take crap from me or sign off on my bullshit. That said, there are some sociolocical things about Clifftop attendees that give me the heebie-jeebies and this years gripes are, in order:

1) Closing the box office at 11pm. 2)The washtub bass solo guy in the dark late Saturday night - you know who you are. 3)Also late sat nitght. The singer-songwriter guy who was singing some words to "greasy coat" and wailing vocal improvisations at the back of Meredith McIntosh's head. Just because two people at the Cantab lounge think that you're brilliant doesn't mean you are. There's alot of of shut-the-fuck-up-and-listen that goes into this stuff.

  Yes, I know were at a festival, and we're deliberatly having a tune right out in the road among the general population. There's a fine line of personal space at festivals between disturbing grumpy, sleepy campers or putting your beer down on their cars and inviting yourself into some stranger's session. A fine, sometimes nebulous line between "it's all good" and "have a little common sense and respect".

  This year's gripes are down considerably from last years. And once upon a time, it was me, not Greg Burgular who was propped among the folks with sleeping babies; playing really loud and shouting drunken obscenities (I still am, to some degree) - so go figure. So there.

And as much as I say that I don't want to ever go back, I probably see you there and we'll have an another orgasmic time.

* In our freshman days, three years ago; we came in last in the finals - although we were the undisputed crowd favorite.

**Matt Kinman, The Pea Ridge Ramblers, Tammy Sawyer, and the Linefork Girls in this particlar meeting.

***And late night on the basketball court. Props to Chris Leva and Vicne Farsetta.