4.3.08
Happy Belated Oh-Eight to all, Happy Year of the Rat, Happy Leap Year, and Happy April Fool's Day (seriously). I'm out on the road right now on the first week run of Sparrow Quartet 2008 touring. We're taking it at a reasonable pace -- at least until the record comes out May 20th. Travels have been colorful and varied for the past few months. Most of my free moments have centered around preparation and recording of my next record. I haven't written in this log for a while, but that doesn't mean I stopped caring!
On a coincidental side note, I spent February 29th leaping out of a plane.
(in general chronological order)
The Colorfools (Matt Mangano, Tom Giampietro, CD) finished up a great year, playing to enthusiastic audiences in CO (Creede, Salida, Denver, Pagosa Springs), FL (Miami, Live Oak), St. Louis MO, and Nashville TN. Thanks to all that came to support our groove. Unfortunately and fortunately, Colorfools shows this new year will be more sparse as there's a new gig that is commanding more of my personal attention. (check back soon though -- I can feel a couple Colorfools gigs brewing).
The new gig is called The Sparrow Quartet. For those that are unfamiliar, we are a relatively new group that got its start touring China and Tibet in 2006. The members are: Abigail Washburn (vocals/songs in Chinese and English, claw hammer banjo), Béla Fleck (bluegrass banjo), Ben Sollee (cello and vocals), and myself. We just finished recording a new album to be released on Nettwerk Records in late May. From April through October, we'll be playing festivals and theatres across the U.S. with a club thrown in here and there. Canadian festivals are also on our list as well as some type of participation (400m 5-string fiddle relay??) at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.
In December, Uncle Earl released their Kung Fu clogging video in which I make a camio....and so did John Paul Jones. Follow this link for some good old-time music and a dance-off.
Later that same month, I spent a weekend with two of the tallest musicians I know, Robbie Fulks and Danny Barnes. We met up to participate in the final Secret Country (an XM Radio show) which featured the music of the Carter Family. Prior to that show, we played some clubs as a wacky trio.
2008 kicked off a few Tim O'Brien gigs in the northwest (Portland OR, Chico CA, Grass Valley CA), two Sparrow Quartet showcases in NYC, and a Colorfools gig in Nashville. January was also full of rehearsals and pre-production for my next record (more later).
Near the end of January, I left the country with Darrell Scott. Our first stop was Glasgow, Scotland for the Celtic Connections festival. There was not a night after my arrival in which my pillow welcomed me before 6am. We played two Darrell band shows - one concert and one live BBC Scotland show. I also had the fortunate opportunity to perform on the Transatlantic Sessions concerts at the Royal Glasgow Concert Hall.
Darrell and I spent the next week in the Netherlands -- homeland of the Driessen's. We played our first duo shows together - 5 of them. During this trip we visited the M.C. Escher museum, a giant Picasso retrospective, and the Van Gogh museum. The visual arts were incredible inspiration for the evenings music. I'd be asking myself, how would Escher, Picasso, & VanGogh play the fiddle.
Next stop, Chicago. I paid a visit to Prairie State College where I studied in the jazz combo while in junior/high school. I met up with the old crew of Daron Nelson (drums), Neal Alger (guitar), and Shaun Johnson (trumpet) who I haven't seen or played with in 10-15 years. Ivan Taylor joined on upright bass. We held a clinic for local school jazz bands and played an alumni concert that night. My old buddies tore it up!
Most recently, I've been gigging with Crooked Still. Skiing by day in Big Sky, MT turned into jamming by night. We then went on to Vancouver Island and Tacoma, WA for Wintergrass.
Amid all this traveling for the last 5 months hides my biggest news. I've been planning, writing, and brainstorming for my next record. The full group sessions went down last week - 9 tunes in three days. The musicians were Viktor Krauss (bass), Darrell Scott (electric guitar/pedal steel), and Matt Chamberlain (drums/percussion/loops). Jason Lehning (from 3D) is engineering and producing again. It's the first time the 5 of us have collaborated. There is more original music than the last record but still a traditional-esque song/tune or two. I am currently label-less so I'm going to ask for your help to stay tuned and spread the word. I'll keep you informed of the progress.
May your days be filled with the unexpected.
casey
9.25.07
Today I'm just writing this quick note and then I have to practice. I received some non-fan mail last night to the tune of:
"Sorry, but I've listened to bluegrass all my life and your music certainly isn't bluegrass."
Bingo! I hope it didn't take that person long to come to that realization. I don't think I've ever called my music "bluegrass." However, I would certainly say that I'm a bluegrass fiddler. Bluegrass, whether this person-who-didn't-sign-their-name wants to admit it, is responsible for all the music that I make. Additionally, the scope of bluegrass music is quite a bit larger than Bill Monroe's 1946 era band.
Is Vassar Clements a bluegrass fiddler? What about Stuart Duncan? Is Jerry Douglas a bluegrass dobro player? Is Tony Rice a bluegrass guitarist? Bluegrass and our other homegrown musical genre, jazz, are no longer black or white.
I'm not bothered by this curt email, but rather it made me smile. People like to have something to talk about. People like to be experts. So, Mr. Anonymous, pat yourself on the back -- you've just found the golden ticket! Without purists some may forget their roots, but that's certainly not me.
have a great day branching out,
casey
8.4.07
I've been gone for a solid 3 weeks...well, to be honest, I was home for the first of those three, that is, if you count just sleeping in my own bed as being 'home.' It's good to be back for a week, even if that week is a hot and humid week characteristic of a global warming Nashville summer. For the most part, I'm taking refuge in what I sometimes refer to as my 'cave.' My music room has a/c, but the thermostat doesn't read the temperature down there. while the house could be 78F, my room I'd guess is more mid 60s. Occasionally, I open the door to the outer world and let in some of the heat. Most of the time though, I open the door for Linus to go out...and then in....and then out.....and then back in again...etc...similar to my life...home, then gone....then home, then gone again.....and eventually and wonderfully, home.
April began with camp#1 of the year in Oxforshire, UK, called Sore Fingers. For the fiddle class, it's more like sore shoulders and necks. I taught the same class of 20 fiddlers all day for a full week...with tea breaks of course. I loved my class. It's a great treat for me to watch friendships develop, personalities open up, and fiddle playing to improve as the week goes along. The setting is at a beautiful private school out in the countryside while the normal students are away enjoying their spring break. After all obligations were finished for the day, the school bar (yes, that's right) would open up and we'd play tunes and buy each other pints until they kicked us out. I'd usually stop by the concert area before going to bed and hang out with the sound guys (who were awesome musicians in their own right) and crank the sound system for a while.
As soon as the camp was over, I headed off with Rob Ickes and Noam Pikelny to play a week of gigs in Scotland, with a quick gig in England on the way. We had never played before as a trio, so preparing originals and standards of our own liking after daily classes was a real treat. Speaking of treat, I have to say that we were treated very very well by our United Kingdom friends. Gigs took us between Glasgow and Edinburgh. I even ran into some old Boston friends while on this run. The craziness of the camp becoming a tour took its toll on me and I came down with a significant cold. I was the singer in this trio and did my best to push on through. Remedies given to me were Guinness and scotch. We did get a review in which my vocals were referred to as 'workaday,' and I rather liked that adjective. Some advice I'll pass along before I leave my UK trip....our Scottish driver, Gerald says "You have to chew your Scotch, like a steak."
The month of May brought a host of different gigs and different tunes.....
Weekend 1 was spent traveling the Californian coast with the Sparrow Quartet (Abigail Washburn, Béla Fleck, & Ben Sollee). We started in the Bay and ended up in the desert near Joshua Tree at the Stagecoach festival. Besides making music, the highlight for me was a delicious dinner cooked by mando monster Mike Marshall while we crashed at his home.
Weekend 2 began with three days in Colorado (La Porte, Salida, Denver) for my group, the Colorfools (Matt Mangano, Tom Giampietro). It was our first venture into the Colorado music scene. This was TommyG's first trip to CO and I'm afraid that we may lose him there someday as he fell in love with the whole vibe. The band dropped me off on Saturday so that I could fly to St. Louis, meet up with the Tim O'Brien Band, and play a show that night.
Weekend 3 proved to be one of the most unexpected gigs of my life so far....Kevin Costner. Sure, I know he's famous, but I honestly didn't grasp the scope. He's been making some music recently -- southern rock-ish originals and covers -- with old band mates from his past. The gig was a free show in Greenville, SC in conjunction with a Pro-Am golf tournament in which Kevin was participating. I went to the course for his tee-off and watched a large crowd of people follow him from hole to hole and receive autographs. I found him to be a genuinely kind person with a smile that really does melt people. The street was packed for the show, with a high concentration of females of all ages crowded up front. It was a rockin' loud good time.
The final May weekend coasted to a close back in California, this time the northern part, at the Strawberry music festival. Held at Yosemite, the setting is gorgeous. When I wasn't playing, I was cooling off in the on-site lake. I even pitched a tent and camped out so that I could hang and jam with friends in Crooked Still and the Infamous Stringdusters. The rest of the Tim band stayed at an amazing log cabin overlooking Yosemite. In harmony with nature, the cabin was built only with wood from it's property.
June, june june.... Again I found myself rehearsing for different shows each weekend, with two weekends performing with two different artists. The first weekend I got to try a combination that I've been wanting to do for a while. At the Blue Plum Festival, in Johnson City, TN, the Colorfools played and were followed by a Darrell Scott set. Matt continued to play bass for Darrell, I continued on fiddle with added mandocaster, TommyG switched to percussion, and Gary Ogan took the drum throne. In just about a month, we'll repeat this combo at the Four Corners Folk Festival in Pagosa Springs, CO.
The next weekend, us Fools went up to Decatur, IL to perform at the Rock Springs Nature Center. The show was to celebrate a traveling Smithsonian exhibit which details the history of American roots music -- gospel, country, blues, bluegrass, and old-time. I went to a bar afterwards and was challenged to a game of pool as soon as I walked in the door. Of course, I accepted, and lost...but not before putting up a good fight in a best of 3.
Mid-month, I drove to dry county Arkansas to play the Turkey Track Bluegrass Festival with Dave Peterson and 1946. We all dressed in period ties and did our best to pay homage to the music of the founding fathers of bluegrass. Coming home immediately, I switched ties, so to speak, and played two shows with Tim O'Brien and his lovely sister Mollie. One was for a private event up in Owensboro, KY at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame. The museum was closed to the public, but we were allowed to walk around the exhibits. Besides checking out all the great pictures and history, I enjoyed myself by pressing all of the listening station buttons at once. About 10 different bluegrass cuts were playing at once. I felt like I was in the lobby of the Sheraton during the SPBGMA festival.
On my day off before the next trip, I drove down to Watertown, TN and met up with the all girl old-time string band, Uncle Earl. They were in the process of shooting a music video and invited me to play a part. The song is one of Abby's chinese numbers, so the theme of the video was kung-fu clogging. Kristen Andreassen has a clogging history and invited a large crew of her friends to travel to Nashville and dance. I played the part of the chef at the scene of the clog-fight -- a Chinese restaurant. I also get a chef clogging part at the end. Look for it somewhere, sometime soon.
The very next day, I took a 6am flight to Denver, met up with a private plane, and flew into Telluride. For the record, Abby, Béla, KC Groves, Kristen, and my wife were all on this ride, and believe it or not, it was the most economical way to travel. The views were spectacular and I also was allowed to copilot. I learned a thing or two about flying...maybe someday I'll take some lessons. The weekend at Telluride was great as always....so many friends and so much music.....shows with the Sparrow Quartet, the Infamous Stringdusters, and Crooked Still (don't believe what you hear about a rabbit suit) made for exciting times.
June turned into July with a brief stop at Mark O'Connor's Nashville fiddle camp for the Buddy Spicher western swing dance night and a Colorfools wedding gig for fellow Sparrow, Ben Sollee. Congratulations and welcome to the club!
....which brings me to the last three weeks. Week 1: The Sparrow Quartet began recording a new record for release in April 08. Days and nights were spent rehearsing, rearranging, and recording 6 songs. It's our goal to serve the songs, and we're very exited about how it's taking shape -- from grit to lush and calm to drive.
The Sparrow Quartet continued it's hang at the Grey Fox festival. Once there, we joined camping and jamming forces with Nickel Creek, the Duhks, Uncle Earl, the Red Stick Ramblers and this summers favorites, Crooked Still and the Infamous Stringdusters. On Friday night, Ben and i stayed up jamming until 330am, not only because it's fun, but because we had a 6am flight approaching in Albany, an hour away.
From there, i make a quick laundry stop over in Nashville and caught the next mornings plane to San Diego. I spent 5 days teaching fiddle at Mark O'Connor's Strings Conference. This fiddle camp continues to be a very special experience for me. Near 200 fiddlers of all ages, levels, and styles come together with a hunger and curiosity for everything fiddle. Daily classes are held at a religious college that ironically doesn't allow dancing. The evening finds everyone staying at waterside hotel, brace yourself, fiddling and dancing. The highlight for me this year was getting the chance to sit down for a few hours one night playing and singing relaxed swing tunes with one of Bob Wills' fiddlers, Johnny Gimble. I want to be Mr. Gimble when I grow up....80 years old, teaching all day, coming out to jam until after midnight, and full of stories and conversation.
Fiddle camp ended with my second all-rrnighter exactly one week later for another 6am flight....this time to Rockygrass. I have no problem with staying up all night -- the difficulty is after getting to my gate and waiting the last hour before I walk on the plane. That's the hard part. I arrived in Denver, drove to Lyons, rehearsed and was onstage for the Mark Schatz & Friends set by 1pm. For the rest of the festival, i just hung out, picked, tubed down the river, and watched the cooking staff ignite the bacon fat from the week into a large fireball in the middle of the river.
For something totally unrelated, follow this link to see documentation of my 'once-in-17-years' cicada experience.
And now, I shall canoe the Duck River....which is also the name of a fun fiddle tune....
later,
casey
3.14.07
Matt Mangano, Tom Giampietro and I will set out this weekend for a few Colorfools gigs. Our last show was a month back in Knoxville, so we're glad to be making more music for ourselves and all you fine peoples out there. We've even been working on a few new tunes to try out. Come see us in Chicago, Asheville, and/or Raleigh. The gig in Chicago is for an XM Radio show called "Secret Country," hosted by Robbie Fulks. If you can't make it, tune into XM channel 12. I don't exactly know when our show will be broadcast, but I can tell you that show times are the last full week of every month: Monday at 11 am, Wednesday at 2 am, Saturday at 11 am (all times EST, DST).
If you haven't "sprung" forward, you must be in China, Japan, or India . . . though curiously, you are technically in the future.....
I spent the end of January and beginning of February on tour with Frank Vignola's Gypsy Grass Collective. The band is Frank Vignola and Vinnie Raniolo on guitars, Matt Flinner on mandolin, Gary Mazzaroppi on upright bass, and Rick Zukor on percussion. I got news for you, those guys can PLAY! Check out the Gypsy Grass link for some tracks from our new record and some video clips from the tour. The band got together for a day and a half of rehearsal before the first gig. I had met the guys and played a few of the tunes a couple weeks prior, but this was Matt Flinner's first meeting of everyone. Personalities and musicalities clicked immediately. After the first show in Roanoke, we drove to New York City and recorded a record on the Jersey side at Tony Bennett's studio. Tony was making the coffee himself! Kidding. Weighing in at one 12 hour day, we recorded a 10 tune record. This was the fastest and most intense record i think I've done....jazz style recording where everyone is in the same room and everything is recorded live. Within, you'll hear some Zappa, some Reindhart, some Slayer, and our very own original compositions that we made up all by ourselves. The record is for sale via download HERE. We'll be out playing more later in the year.
During that Frank trip, we went through Thomas, WV. On the way in I could see a field of giant wind turbines in the distance. I told myself, self, if we get close to them, we have to check them out....and there they were, around a corner. The closer I walked (observing the "Danger, Falling Ice from Turbines sign), the more my stomach seemed to clench up. At least 200' tall, 50' blades (according to my estimating eyeball), I found myself unable to walk under the spinning blade. The rest of the day I thought about it . . . and decided that I needed to pass beyond the threshold of the blade on the way out of town the next morning. It was snowing. I could see ice on the edges. I thought about my favorite Darwin Awards, and I ran.
That brings us to new red shoes and a silver tux that I found in the back of my closet from high school. I spent two days with my wife, Molly, for our anniversary in L.A. at the Grammy's. Times were had. A nominee party was held on Saturday night following the naming of new Lifetime Achievement winners. Go Bob Wills. Go Ornette Coleman. Weird Al was there. Day 2: Silver Tux Time. Pre-Telecast kicks off the awarding for 95 or so of the 108 total Grammy's given. I was category #84. The narrower the category gap became, the more I found myself going over the friends I'd thank. Your name appears on a big screen with 4 others, they read one of the five, and suddenly, life returns to normal. Hats off to Bryan Sutton & Doc Watson! Then I called the people I had planned to thank. Once all the awards are given, the pre-cast crowd headed to the Staples Center. The place was massive. We sat about ten rows off the floor at mid-court. Hey, Look! It's Snakes on a Plane, I Directed Snakes on a Plane, a Genie in a Bottle, Roxanne, You Get a Little Crazy, and so on. Even the Coffee Man from Earlier was there, with Fingertips! I had a great time. Seeing a show on that scale was impressive to say the least. The Gnarles Barkley performance was my favorite. What followed afterwards was a very large party where Chaka Kahn and Kool & the Gang played, dancers led a guy in a speedo on a leash, acrobats hung from the ceiling in spinning flows of white cloth, food steamed and drinks flowed from ice sculptures, and I got meowed by a dude while Molly was on my arm.
I spent a week in Tacoma -- at the Wintergrass Academy to kick it off and the Wintergrass festival to round it out. The lineup was full of friends and many musics were played.....Uncle Earl, Stringdusters, Tim O'Brien, Darrell Scott, Crooked Still, How to Grow a Woman Band, the Mammals.... While backstage, I did a small section of a tune for a video clip to be posted on the D'Addario Strings website (it may not be up yet, so check back). I'll be the featured string player of the month. One last thing about Tacoma -- the glass artwork is amazing. I checked out the Museum of Glass and had my mind twisted by a few exhibits and some real time glass blowing. Not many places like this out there....make sure to check it out if you're into that sort of thang.
For a couple of weeks after the recent activity, I've been back home in Nashville...writing, rehearsing, filling in for a buddy's Temple gig, playing deep catalogue bluegrass with Tavern Grass (see the next two gigs),attempting to predict the unpredictability of a charcoal grill, and watching the tulips come up that I bought at the Amsterdam airport last August. I'm looking forward to spring thunderstorms.
I will have goggles for sale soon....straight from Lhasa, TIBET.....the same as I'm wearing on the album cover.
Stay tuned,
casey
12.21.06
Happy Birthday Mom!
-Note the added "Email List Signup" on the navigation bar...if you haven't done so, please sign up!
What follows next is probably some of my biggest news to date.....
SUGAR HILL RECORDS CASEY DRIESSEN NETS GRAMMY NOMINATION ON DEBUT ALBUM: Groundbreaking Fiddle Player Nominated For "Best Country Instrumental"
Nashville TN, December 7, 2006 - Casey Driessen nabbed his first Grammy Nomination for his innovative playing on his debut album 3D. The nod was for "Jerusalem Ridge" in the "Best Country Instrumental" Category.
While he is indeed one of the fastest-rising sidemen on the bluegrass circuit, Casey Driessen is a restless explorer, a bold boundary crosser who listens for inspiration from Tennessee to Tibet. There's no solace in safety for this remarkable 28-year-old, and with his debut album 3D, a worldly instrumentalist and composer is able to show off a little, not merely as a fast and inventive fiddler, but as a visionary who translates his passion for tradition and improvisation into important new American music.
The press took note of Driessen's groundbreaking style; "He takes a couple of traditional tunes and Bill Monroe classic and strings 'em together as a fiddle-and-drums duet. And he combines his reinventions of these and other standards with originals that are simply gorgeous," stated Harp Magazine. The Boston Herald chimed in with, "Driessen has come into his own with a genre-busting, fiercely spirited work."
Driessen most recently embarked on the first-ever US-sponsored cultural mission to Tibet with The Sparrow Quartet (Abigail Washburn, Bela Fleck and Ben Sollee). The group also gave several performances along China's eastern seaboard, where they will brought. America's oldest and most original music form to, arguably, the world's oldest civilization through a special grant from the US State Department applied for by the Beijing branch of the US Bureau of Culture and Education. Driessen will continue to tour the United States in 2007 in support of 3D.
I found out about the nomination by waking up to a phone call the morning after my 28th birthday. Needless to say, I had a good birthday week.
I've been home from the China/Tibet tour for about a month, with my last gigs/travels being just before Thanksgiving. This last trip to Asia was the longest and busiest. Adding a new dimension to our travels this trip was a documentary crew that joined us for the last two weeks in Shanghai and Beijing. We hope to put out a movie about our cultural and musical exchanges between traditional American music and different folk musics of China....and if anyone is or knows an investor that would be interested in helping, please let me know.
For a sample of our experience, follow this link to YouTube in which you will see a 9 minute short by Danwei TV of the Sparrow Quartet melding music with Mongolian musicians Illiqi & Hujilitu of the band Hanggai. These guys are friends that I made last year. For our final performance of the tour, they joined us at the Star Live Theater to perform the material begun on that rooftop. I look forward to making more music together in the future.
Last week, Nashville's Rage printed an article that you might enjoy reading if you want to know more about the China trip: HERE.
For that Rage article, an excerpt from the journal I kept while in Tibet was printed. Here is day 4 in Tibet:
TIBET: DAY 4
October 28, 2006Sleeping at 13000ft is no easy task. The past three nights have all been fitful shallow sleeps with an early rise. Last night was the most consistent sleep so far, but I had many strange dreams which seemed like unconnected short stories rather than part of a long adventure….
At 9a, for the third day in a row, the band gathered in the hotel for a western style buffet breakfast and to decide the set list for the evening. The Tibetan Foreign Affairs office requires that we submit this each day. Making song decisions 12 hours before the show is challenging -- we can only draw on material from an eight month old government approved list of songs, and we must find a way to work in the performances of local musicians and our future collaborations with them before we’ve even met or heard each other.
At 10.30a we head over to the evening’s venue, Tanggula Feng, and meet Tiang Chu (known as the first Tibetan rock band) and a vocal group which I can't remember the name of. The plan is to learn a song to perform with each group and Tiang Chu will learn one of ours. Unlike the high school and university gymnasiums we played the last two nights and unlike any club I’ve played in my gigging time, this place is a giant dance cabaret theater, complete with 3 side wrap around balcony, sky boxes, and a clear bottom lit Plexiglas cat walk off the front of the large stage. I count six fog machines and two larger than life, multi person yak costumes. There are only two monitors and they are fixed to 4ft long cords near the front of the stage while the giant main speakers are behind the stage in the corners of the room. There is no heat in the club so everyone keeps their coat on.
In my last three years of playing music in China, the concept of sound reinforcement I find most often is geared towards Karaoke, not a live band. Each gig presents us with a new set of sound challenges that must be figured out with an interpreter and many gestures. Having a modest background in sound, my pre-gig job has been working closely with the soundman to find common ground between our different worlds and ideas... I ask for mics and receive three wireless mics. Realizing I did only ask for mics, I mime that I also need stands. We run outside into an office where there are four stands -- without mic clips. Now I motion for mic clips and we continue on our gear hunt. After checking every cabinet and shelf in the club, two more mics, one stand, and all the mic clips we need have appeared.
In the meantime, the Sparrow Quartet is beginning to teach the rock band (Tian Chu) “Nobody's Fault But Mine.” We figured it would be the best choice off our approved list for a cross-cultural, genre-bending bluegrass/old-time/rock’n’roll collaboration. The key is friendly for all our instruments, there is only one melody part, and the harmony is very modal. The song Tian Chu chose for us to learn was a rock adaptation of a traditional Tibetan folk song. I found their song more intricate than ours -- with a fiddle tune-like melody, more chords, and a lengthier arrangement. Neither of us picked up the other’s song with much ease. For the next hour plus, we went back and forth with language and music, slowly chipping away at the songs while we searched for the best methods of communication. It gave me a good feeling to know that each group wanted to spend their time on the other’s song more than their own, desiring to do the best job possible on the new music for new friends. With these two songs at a resting point, the singing group joins both bands to work on the finale piece, which will be another traditional Tibetan song.
Like a stereotypical band rehearsal, we take about 10 minutes to figure out the best key for all sing it in and what the chords should be. All during this time, people are talking and noodling on their instruments while not much is getting done...one guy will talk and then tell his buddy to stop playing so he can talk, etc. I ask one of the singers to sing me the melody so I can jot it down, but instead she takes my fiddle and plays the melody – at first surprised to find that I have five strings instead of the normal four. It’s interesting how, not being able to communicate, I instantly feel like I’ve bonded or made a new friend when I find we have an instrument in common.
We only have enough time to run the finale once. Tian Chu wants to play our tune one more time. Half way through, power goes off in the building -- so all of their amps go off too. We finish it acoustic while they play their unheard electric instruments.
Everyone scatters for lunch. Today I’m going yak-free.
The only tourist activity I participated in today was after lunch. Our destination is a Tibetan medicine factory/museum. It's a small two story building unlike a hospital other than the doctors in white lab coats. We head up to the second floor to walk around the museum part, finding displays of tools used through the years - metal tools for surgeries, scales, med bags, and many large mortar and pestles for the grinding of various raw materials. On the other side of the floor we find jars in display cases showing a few hundred of the different roots, rocks & minerals, animal parts, herbs, and unkowns used for medicinal purposes. A doctor approaches us and we take a seat on a couch. One by one he takes our pulse on both wrists, checks the left palm, and asks to see our tongue. Now comes the diagnosis. Béla needs to work less, get more rest, and has a fatty liver -- and something about sore kidneys. Abby has poor circulation. Our Chengdu embassy rep has stomach trouble while our Beijing ebassy rep has a temper, the 'fire' in him, and needs to work less. Ben is the healthiest and should not ever smoke because of some fire in his throat. I have two problems: I need to balance my breathing and work on some upper body strength. Apparently, I have fire in me as well and am told to do more sports. Downstairs, Beijing buys medical saffron for cooking and Béla buys a large pill for his fatty liver. I see the doctor that showed us around and translated our diagnosis smoking a cigarette in the building. I motion in my foreigner sign language that it's bad for him and he takes it outside to smoke.
We return to Tanggula Feng just as Tian Chu is finishing their soundcheck. Two and a half hours before showtime, people are beginning to arrive at the club. The SQ gets sound set and then invites the rockers up to rehearse a bit more. We play “Nobody's Fault” two or three times and the ending a few times. Béla and the bass player made a deal that he’d use his head to indicate the difficult changes. The SQ and Tian Chu are beginning to sound like a band. One of the two electric guitarists is singing in unison with Abby on the chorus. All day I could hear him walking around practicing the words. Now the group with two singing girls and one singing boy join us to do the finale tune. I hang with the violinist/singer and find that her singing companion plays a mean erhu. They ask me if I know any Chinese folk songs, so I play three that I remember...they know two of those. The erhuist and Béla play a standard reportoire tune together that has its origins in Mongolia. I guesstimate that the club is about 75% full, 400-500 concert goers. Suddenly, our embassy representatives come up and tell us we have to play NOW – the Tibetan officials are asking for us to play NOW...it's 730p on the dot…time for bathroom? No. This is not the first occasion that punctuality has been a very important and inflexible issue at a Chinese show.
Things that happened during the show: my mic is not on for the first song; I broke more bow hairs as a result of the very dry air; the singing girls screamed for the fast fiddle tunes and Ben’s and my solo pieces; my balancing fiddle trick that worked last night did not get any laughs this time; the stage lights were going crazy and there was even a laser show; Abby taught the audience to Yee Haw which really got them excited; and last, but certainly not least, the fog machine hissed loudly during a sensitive song and filled the stage with a thick smelly cloud. Abby stopped singing and the rest of us just started laughing. I wonder what the audience thought. This gig day was about the most Spinal Tap I’ve ever had. We all missed the ending on “Nobody’s Fault.” The singing group had fake headphones and wireless mics (Madonna style) and lip-synced and air-played violin, erhu, and tungna along to a track. The audience loved them. The finale tune went pretty well, with just a small arrangement hiccup. After the show, officials came up on stage and presented each of us with white silk scarves (called hada) while the audience watched. Abby received two – the second time a pink hada from a little girl wearing a pink jacket. Then there were the usual post-show group pictures with the local musicians and officials.
The night ends with a few of us going for a late drink and bite. Ben waltzes with a Slovenian tourist in the hotel lobby. Turns out that the night before, he was learning Tibetan dance steps from the staff.
Every day in Tibet and most every day in mainland China was like this day in someway…waking up with only a rough concept of what was to follow, wondering when and where musical/culinary/spiritual/political/social adventures would appear, adapting to different ways of life and thought, more new visual stimuli with every step, and though confusing, tiring, and challenging much of the time, I’d go to sleep knowing I’d made new friends, new music and feel that the day had been rewarding. Being in such a foreign environment inspires me to look within myself and evaluate the things in life that are most important, and for that I am forever grateful.
That's all I have for today. Time to finish up the Christmas present hunt....
Have a safe and enjoyable holiday times. Looking forward to running into everyone in the new year.
hohoho,
casey
10.11.06
i sit here, green tea in hand, and listen to Chinese and Tibetan folks songs that i hope will permeate my musical memory....
If the last two weeks -- the Americana Music Association Conference (AMA's) immediately followed by the International Bluegrass Music Association Conference (IBMA) -- were an indication of a storm to follow, i'm currently in the calm before the storm wall. Don't get the wrong idea, i love good storm -- and i love doppler radar, especially when it's red. (i also have a strange desire to experience, and survive, every natural disaster....tornado, earthquake, hurricane, volcanic eruption, etc. --- i bet there's even a name for that condition).
The storm that cometh? Travel to Asia. On October 16th i depart the States for 8 days in Tibet (12,000ft up) and then another 2.5 weeks in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou (near Hong Kong), and Hangzhou (near Shanghai). Traveling as a member of the Sparrow Quartet (Abigail Washburn, Béla Fleck & Ben Sollee), we will be the first US sponsored cultural tour of Tibet. I hesitate to say the Tibet portion is for sure since final approval for the trip from the Chinese will not happen until the day before, but i'm keeping my fingers crossed. We will play high school and university shows, clinics, theatre shows, club gigs, and share music and stages with local Tibetan and Chinese musicians. i'm excited to reunite with two bands, Hang Gai and Iz, that we became friends with on our last trip. The Quartet is doing its best to get some film footage of various portions of the trip....if it's good enough, there may be something we can release in the future. Keep us in your thoughts as we head off on what i'm sure will be an adventure filled with 'firsts' in an area of the world that can't seem to stay out of the (k)news. Look for updates upon our return.
Other than preparing for the Asia trip, i've spent the last weeks on the road with Tim O'Brien and playing numerous showcases for AMA and IBMA - for myself and for others. With Tim, the band recently played Wheatland, Winfield, Roots & Rhythm, and some miscellaneous clubs/theatres. At Wheatland, i had my socks blown off by Mamadou Diabate, a kora player you need to check out. Winfield was dusty and windy...and i had to change a tire. At R&R, i played a fiddle workshop with a bunch of cajun fiddlers....i love me some cajun music! Recent showcases/gigs were with Darrell Scott, the Sparrow Quartet, Keith Sewell, and Shawn Camp. I had some Colorfools Trio shows at IBMA -- Matt Mangano on electric bass, Tom Giampietro on drums. I love playing this new combo. Both Matt and TommyG are the perfect players for a trio. I'd call them "Metro-Musical" - sensitive to the volume and dynamics of the fiddle. I was excited to get to try my new project out at an event with which i have so many great childhood jamming music memories. Most seemed to like the experimentation, but alas, you can not please all bluegrass lovers (traditionalists). with a little smile, i read this among a post with the heading "The Not-So-Good Stuff:"
"I'll say the same about Casey Driessen with an amplified fiddle, electric bass, and DRUMS! Not at IBMA, please."
In my defense, my fiddle was amplified only by the 'traditional' bluegrass means, a microphone. And the drums, well, you got me...no hiding them. I'll say that we have respect for bluegrass and i would site that music as my basis for fiddling. I continue to look back within all sorts of musical traditions for inspiration, follow paths i find interesting, and play them the way i hear 'em....and the Colorfools aren't afraid to shake things up a bit. After all, people need something to talk about.
Speaking of shaking things up, look for the Colorfools to come to a town near you this next year. I've just signed on with Mongrel Music in Fairfax, CA to book my showdates next year. I plan to get out there more on my own (with band of course). If you'd like us to visit your town, camp, festival, cruise or whatever, please follow their link and let them know!
on a totally domestic note: if you haven't had experienced your first frost yet this year, don't forget to bring in those house plants.
lastly, since i'll miss Halloween this year due to my Tibetan trip, would someone go as me???
8.22.06
Whoa, writing twice in one month.....strange things must be happening in the univers. actually, nothing new about strangeness. I just happened to be updating my GIGS page and figured I'd give a brief hello and what's happenin'.
I had a pretty amazing experience this last weekend making colorfool trio history in Asheville and Johnson City. History? we'll, it's all in the past, and it was a new adventure. Usually I've tried to play as a quartet with either banjo or electric guitar, but none of my regulars were available....either previously booked or paid better.....actually, probably both. I'd wanted to try a trio of drums/bass/fiddle for a while and now had the perfect opportunity. I wasn't quite sure how it would work, but with guys like Matt Mangano on bass and Tom Giampietro on drums, I couldn't go too wrong. Actually, it felt very right. There was sonic space for everyone, new landscapes to be created and oh so much communication. I came home inspired to do it again soon. We'll be performing Friday Sept. 30 at the 3 Crow Bar in East Nashville. Banjoist/Songwriter Danny Barnes will do a solo set, followed by our colorfool trio with Danny sitting in on a few. It's during the weekend of IBMA FanFest, so if you're in town for the festivities and want to explore Nashville a bit more, come and explore us.
I leave you now to mow the yard before rehearsal....rehearsal in the yard? No. It just needs to be mowed. I head off to Denmark tomorrow. No liquids in carry-ons please....and watch out for SNAKES ON THE PLANE!!!!
mow mow,
casey
p.s. please check out new cd's by crooked still, tyler grant, and mark schatz...
8.3.06
First. 1. HAPPY BIRTHDAY REGINA!!!!!! My youngest sister is not so young anymore, now that she's 18. Love you very much!
Second. 2. Two caseydriessen gigs rapidly approaching...Aug 16 @ the Grey Eagle in Asheville, NC; and Aug 18 @ the Down Home in Johnson City, TN.
Third. 3. casey and his band of Colorfools performed on Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour recently, sharing the bill with songwriter Tim Easton. To listen to the show click either of these links: 56K lo speed, 300K hi speed. To view the entire show, click here.
I arrived home on Monday, where my heart will be for a few days. I've been off in summer festival world: Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival with Abigail Washburn/Tim O'Brien/Crooked Still/Steve Earle.....Falcon Ridge Folk Festival with Crooked Still.....Mark O'Connor's String Conference in San Diego.....and Rocky Grass Bluegrass Festival with, look out, Abigail Washburn/Tim O'Brien/Darrell Scott/Steve Earle/Crooked Still (and sat in with Yonder Mountain String Band, Uncle Earl, and Sam Bush's festival Closer. Thanks to everyone for asking me to join them on their sets. I feel honored and lucky to be playing such great music with such great people. All this different music is good for the mind, body and soul.
Some words about fiddle camp. This one time at fiddle camp..... Seriously amazing. I taught two days with Rushad Eggleston and Brittnay Haas which was a treat, and then the next two days on my own. I'm always amazed at the level of student ability and hunger for more fiddle. It brings me back to my days as a 14/15 year old at fiddle camp. Students and teachers alike, we'd be in class all day, sit through a 3 hour faculty concert, and then head back to the hotel 'base camp' to jam and hang until well after midnight...barely making to class on time, and by the end of the week\, missing breakfast for sure. Being in the presence of such student and instructor talent, I also feel like a student. The most inspiring experience at camp this year was listening to Dr. M. Manjunath perform solo improvisational South Indian music. I could not find a link for a website, but here is one to an interview. I was introduced to new sounds, tunings, and techniques that I had not imagined. More importantly, I was emotionally moved by his music....I'd even say that I felt it to be a spiritual experience....one of those rare times for me in which the music leaves me feeling a natural high and incapable of worthy description. At every opportunity I have right now, I'm experimenting with those new sounds and colors.
This last trip was bookended by fire. At the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival around 3am (having just finished some rousing hours of contra dancing) I spied a large fire some distance away on the camping hill. Within ten minutes, the fire trucks were in the camp. At first I thought it might be a bon fire, but I learned later that someones RV caught fire and burned up. No one was hurt and I do not know the cause. I do know that all hill campers were evacuated to the dance tent for shelter and a sleepless night. A weekend later, I hung at Rocky Grass until the bitter end playing some guitar/fiddle duets with Bryan Sutton. I'd heard something about a yearly river fireball tradition. Well, I witnessed it. The cooking crew takes a half barrel bbq pit into the middle of the shallow creek and builds a fire in it. Then they take the weeks accumulation of cooked off fat and heat it in a pot in the fire. When the fat begins to smoke and reach the appropriate temperature, someone takes a 10' pole with a can on the end filled with water and pours it on the grease. Some chemical reaction I'm unfamiliar with occurs and a giant ball of fire shoots at least 20' in the air...this can then be repeated until the grease is gone. I wonder what it all means.....other than don't throw water on a grease fire.
I'm going to the mountains with my sweetheart for a few days to keep our own fires burning.
Love to all,
casey
6.29.06
My cd, 3D, is still in stores. Get it while it’s hot...be the first of your friends to impress the others with your passion for fiddle music! The reviews have been positive...all except for a few unsuspecting Top 40 country music fans that had no clue what they were getting into.... You can order from me, or hit up your local cd retailer. If you do order from me, I’ll hand address the envelope and have Linus, my stepdog, lick the stickem’.
Coming up in the very near future are two opportunities to hear a new configuration of the Colorfools: Matt Mangano on electric bass, Tom Giampietro on drums and percussion and Hans Holzen on electric guitar. One show will be live on the radio (in the Nashville radius) and the other will be on camera and webcast for your remote location enjoyment pleasure.
-Sunday July 9th @ 3rd & Lindsley, Nashville TN. WRLT Lightning 100 Live Radio Concert. 100.1FM.
-Monday July 10th @ Lexington Theater, Lexington KY for Woodsongs Old-Time Radio Hour. Follow this link for the Woodsongs Webcast.
Otherwise, I just returned from LA, CA where I participated in my first music video. The artist was Abigail Washburn. The director was Jessica Cardinale. We spent the day on the beach...more rocks than sand....playing Abigail’s song, Eve Stole the Apple and teasing crabs with our bows. I’m excited to see it when it’s finished. Don’t adjust your computer screen, it will be in B&W. I’ll keep you informed, or you can just visit Abigail's website for more info as it becomes available.
Just released on iTunes: The Sparrow Quartet EP. This is a group consisting of Abigail Washburn (vocals/old-time banjo), Ben Sollee (vocals/cello), Béla Fleck (bluegrass banjo), and myself (whatever-you-want-to-call-it-fiddle). We are the “band that goes to China.” Actually, we played our first US gigs back in mid-May.
The Sparrow Quartet is so excitedly pleased to announce that we will be the first US sponsored cultural mission to Tibet mid-October through mid-November 2006. After spending 8-10 days in Tibet, we’ll head off to tour more of China. Our hope is to film this trip for future documentary purposes.
I must run now and pack for a trip tomorrow morning.
spf30+,
casey
5.16.06
I just had to share this review from iTunes.
Reviewer: jmg-kid
caseydriessen: 3D
1 star
"what is this crap?
this music sounds soooooooooooooo wierd
...other reviews by jmg-kid:
Big & Rich: Horse of a Different Color
5 stars
"ewwww!"
"riding a cowboy sounds so nasty and distrubing.... its still a good song"
Tim McGraw: Greatest Hits
5 stars
"WHEN STARS ..."
"This song is so peaceful (lol)"
Trace Adkins: Songs About Me
5 stars
"nice ^_^"
"this song is soooo hot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Hey, can't please everybody.
-casey
5.8.06
Know what tomorrow is? MY CD RELEASE STREET DATE! That said, you can already get it from me through my updated STORE...now accepting PayPal transactions. Everything is obviously finished, and I'm still excited about it. Rumor has it that i can actually see you through my glasses on the album cover, so watch out.
I've been receiving some additional web presence as a result of the new record. Here are some links to check if you're so inclined:
An Interview at Artistdirect.com
A Podcast for Sugarhill Records from Merlefest 2006
Some new record play streaming from Radioio.com, streaming high-quality, genre-bending music over the web.
A review for which I can not find a link...but it's real, I say. From the Boston Herald on 5/5/06:
Grade: A-
The fiddle has been liberated. Driessen, 26, known here for his stints at Berklee and with Matt Glaser, has come into his own with a genre-busting, fiercely spirited work. For all the slightly berserk touches, this emotional CD is rooted in tradition, from Dock Boggs' country and bluegrass to Celtic. Driessen has worked with the best and now the best play for him: Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Tim O'Brien, Viktor Krause, Darrell Scott. Download: ``Gaptooth.'' (Appearing Tuesday at the Cantab Lounge, Cambridge, and Wednesday at Club Passim, Cambridge.) - DANIEL GEWERTZ
As for other happenings in my life.....Recorded for the upcoming Crooked Still record at a studio in the beautiful northern California Redwood forests; gigged and skied in Colorado with Tim O'Brien...and only hit one tree, softly; played my second gig as the Colorfools in Nashville; opened up for the Duhks at a few shows; and played my first Casey set at Merlefest 2006.
I've begun compiling a 'cASEYdRIESSEN' email list, so if you read this and you'd like to join up, please just send me an email and I'll be sure to add you: fiddledude@caseydriessen.com.
If you're a myspacer, I also have that up and running. We can 'be friends' if you like....I'm very accepting. You can also hear 4 tracks from the new record and add them to your personal myspace player. http://www.myspace.com/caseydriessen
Finally, I leave for Boston tomorrow morning. I'm headed up to play for bluegrass night at the Cantab with Matt Mangano (bass), Rushad Eggleston (cello), and John McGann (guitar). We'll then open up for Hanneke Cassel at Club Passim on Wednesday for the release of her new CD.
don't wear flip-flops or crocs when you mow,
casey
1.21.06
Sitting in the studio, listening to the first mix of the first song of my first record. Since returning home from China on December 1 and up to January 2, I've been in record mode....writing charts, brainstorming arrangements and instrumentations, demo-ing ideas, trying out strings and mutes, getting my bow rehaired, having a new fiddle bridge cut, adjusting the soundpost, and praticing/playing as much as possible. The solo gig came and went so fast, I hardly knew it had started when it was over. I had a blast. Now that the first is out of the way, there will be more...oh, yes, there will be more.
Went home to Chicago for Christmas. It's been a while since the whole family has spent a holiday together which was a treat for all of us....and the first Christmas for Molly and I as newlyweds. The weekend consisted of turkey dinner, egg nog the old fashioned way, bowling, presents and many games of euchre. This was a welcome break since I would return home to continue my work for the record.
January 2, I trucked every musical item I own to the Sound Emporium to begin setting up. As of today, tracking is done, overdubs are just about done, photos have been taken, and mixing has begun. A few words about my recording process......I had an amazing time. Okay, a few more words.....why did it have to be over so quickly? If I hadn't had my friend, Adam Carlos, come and spend some time each day taking pictures of the sessions, I'd hardly remember what happened. The experience was so intense -- constantly working on music, listening to arrangements and parts and sounds, changing chords and melodies, fretting about not having frets, trying to remain calm and let the music and creativity flow unhindered, learning to leave well-enough alone....etc....I loved all of those things. And this time in the studio, rather than playing fiddle for others, I was playing for myself....and on tunes of my liking or creation. A whole new and wonderful experience. And my favorite part? That's easy: making music with everyone - Jason Lehning, Jamey Haddad, Viktor Krauss, Jerry Douglas, Tim O'Brien, and Darrell Scott -- and they're all a great hang too.
I want to take a moment to thank the three that spent about 16 hours a day with me, every day that week -- Jason Lehning, Jamey Haddad, and Viktor Krauss for all their invaluable musicianship and unyielding dedication to the music all week long. They went above and beyond the call of session musician duty and their ideas and their sounds are well represented within the entire project.... Admittedly, I was sad when the week of tracking was over and we all packed up to go home. I'm already excited for when my next record comes around.
Okay, enough of that. I'm sure I'll have another epiphany or two at the completion of the record.
I shall now leave you with my second impression of China, a year later. The participants were Abigail Washburn, Ben Sollee, and Béla Fleck.
On going again: Still foreign, but not as alien. I stayed in the same neighborhood as before and as such, I almost knew my way around a five block radius already. It's difficult to describe, but there's something really wonderful about recognizing and feeling at home half way across the world. I could buy a phone card without assistance, knew where to get tea, breakfast and wireless internet, and most exciting - I felt more adventurous to stray from what I knew of my surroundings and take a side path, wander it, see where it would lead, and then find my way home.
China is still the smoggiest place I've ever been, possibly smoggier this time, though it's hard to tell. I know that Shanghai was....maybe it's just how the wind was or wasn't blowing.
The New Stuff...
media, temple of heaven, iz, hangai
Right off the bat, the first show even, we had our first musical cultural exchange of the trip. We played a show in the Beijing Arts District (an old weapons factory) and shared the billing with local musicians in a band called Iz. They were our age and played a Chinese folk music in the Kazakh style, from the Xinjiang province....with guitar, a two stringed guitar like instrument, a two stringed horsehair cello-ish instrument, jaw harp, and folk flute. At sound check, they learned two of our tunes, and we learned two of theirs. After we each played our sets, we got together for a third set -- playing the tunes we worked out earlier, and a few more that we didn't work out. I love that we could communicate without talking, using eye contact and musical cues. We had a similar experience a few nights later with a Mongolian band named Hangai. The two bands shared a musician or two so we already had some common ground. The evening played out in similar fashion as the first exchange but the tunes were different from the Kazak band. They also had a throat singer which is a common part of the Mongolian traditional music. Both nights the crowd response was so welcoming. But, more meaningful to me was the relationships that were formed between the bands. Since we met them at the beginning of the trip, we had more opportunities to meet up and play music together. Two Sundays in a row, we joined Iz and Hangai at a 'folk night' that they hosted in a Beijing bar. The crowd was light...mostly musicians. We did more jamming on stage and I have to say that the second Sunday went smoother. The first Sunday I think we were all too careful about not stepping on toes and not really knowing about each others jam etiquette. The second Sunday was more loose and laid back. We all just wanted to show respect. I'd say a little Chinese moonshine probably helped too....I hope I see my new friends the next time I return. Before we left, Mamuar (from Iz) and I traded cd's of our respective traditional musics. Crazy that you can spend so much time not talking to each other and still feel a strong sense of friendship and like kind.
I said that if I ever made it back to China, I'd go and see the Great Wall. I made it back, and I walked it. Here's what I wrote to my folks back home: "Today was an amazing adventure. We had a day off. Ben and I took a car (taxi with driver that a friend arranged for us) about two hours north of Beijing out to a remote village. The first thing I saw were doctors giving the villages poultry vaccinations against H5N1. A guide was waiting there for us. He was fifty or sixty and about five feet tall...wearing blue pants and an army jacket. We knew no common words. All he carried was a hatchet. We walked for about 45 minutes, up hill, to reach the low part of the wall where we would begin the real hike. The wall was all overgrown with shrubs and grass and small trees. Actually, many places were crumbling. The steps weren't really steps anymore...I mean they were, but you had to be really careful. Ben had a shoulder bag and I had my fiddle over my back and my camera bag. Parts of the wall only had one side. There was a section that the stairs were gone and we had to scale down the wall about ten feet at least. I couldn't believe how steep some of the wall was. I kept thinking what a ridiculous idea, this whole wall concept. You'd look off in the distance and it would just snake around till you couldn't see it...always on the highest part of a ridge. We hiked to the highest peak in the area. Up there, I played my fiddle, took pictures and just reflected. It was so silent and beautiful....mountians for miles. When we came back to the village...the hike was about four hours total....there was a delicious meal waiting: potatoes and hot peppers, grilled fish with cumin and red pepper, Mao's favorite dish of chestnuts and pig skin with fat, grilled cauliflower, fresh flat bread, and scrambled egg with garlic, chives and some green leafy veggie. Oh, and pijio, or beer. An amazing day." I had walked upon a ancient part of our world that I believe the Earth will (and is already in the process of) take back.
There's talk of another trip brewing in the fall of 2006, and I hope it happens. This next time, Tibet is on the list. I cross my fingers.
Thanks for checking back in with me. The season for travel is about to begin. I shall see you soon.
Wishing you and your neighbors peace and prosperity in this new year,
-casey
11.9.05
Been traveling with the new Tim O'Brien band of late....Danny Barnes on banjo and electric guitar, Dennis Crouch on gut string upright, Tim on mando/fiddle/guitar/vox, and me on my usual fiddle...with an occasional baritone vocal thrown in. The band is an exciting churning beast of tradition and melodic exploration with a bit of honky-tonk thrown in for good measure. Every night feels different and every night, a new stone is turned over.
Honestly, I really just wanted to sign on and say that I'll be headed over to China again from November 15 through December 1. If you have any friends/relatives in Beijing and/or Shanghai, please alert them to our presence. I'll be traveling with Abigail Washburn (banjo/vox), Ben Sollee (cello), and Béla Fleck (banjo). For more information, including translation in Chinese, follow: http://www.ygtwo.com/abigailwashburn. You can also peruse my GIGS page which lists our whereabouts. I'm looking forward to another string of adventures in China. Maybe this time I'll be able to see the Great Wall. Maybe I'll make it back to the US without carrying H5N1. Maybe I'll drink some snake wine.
Lastly, I have booked the first ever Casey Driessen show where I'll be trying out some of the new material for the upcoming solo record. You can catch Matt Mangano (bass), Pasi Leppikangas (drums), Hans Holzen (guitar) and myself at the 3 Crow Bar in East Nashville, TN around 10pm on December 17th. See you there.
Gobble, Gaabil, Gahbul.
10.13.05
Guess it's been a while. My head's been other places than updating my NEWS, obviously. Where's my head? That's a good question. Right now it's sitting on my neck in seat 19A on a Southwest flight from Nashville to Baltimore.
Before I start, I'd like to say that my heart goes out to all people affected by the recent natural disasters that the world has been experiencing...Katrina, Rita, and the earthquake in Pakistan. If you don't know someone directly affected, you know someone who does.
Right when the hurricanes were happening, my wife and I were buying our first house together. It seemed strange to be spending money on a home when so many had just lost theirs. I ended up thinking that you should take hold of opportunities in life when they present themselves because you never know when you'll get yours. Well, we got our house, and with our recent marriage, a new life begins. It's a solid 1945 brick one level on top of a two car garage worked into a hill. My two favorite things: 1. kitchen with stainless counter top and mother of pearl Bakelite tiles; 2. a big Casey music room to be creative in and decorate without abandon. Look Out.
With the move over and most everything unpacked, I can settle myself and continue to work on music for my record. Tracking dates have been set...for the second time...for the first week of January 06. Helping me make some critical decisions and lending his hand in the engineering is producer Jason Lehning. Percussionist/drummer extraordinary Jamey Haddad will be providing the ratatattat while bassist Viktor Krauss will be boomboombooming. Various guests will be joining, but as to who......stay tuned.
I recently returned from Longford, Ireland where I participated in the Johnny Keenan Banjo festival for the last Béla Fleck Acoustic Trio show of the year. I'd say we went out with a bang, and then banged on some tunes in the packed, loud and noisy hotel pub. While in Dublin, we played on the Late Late Show...the same night as Michael Bolton, though I never saw him. I guess it's the longest running, most watched late night TV show in Ireland. When I returned home to Nashville, a visiting Irish tourist spotted me beer-ing and dancing at Robert's Western World. Funny. As always, Ireland is great and too short of a stay.
I participated in two music camps this summer: Mark O'Connor's Fiddle Camp in Nashville TN, and Rockygrass Academy in Lyons, CO. I met many new friends, caught up with the old and played lots of tunes. What else is new?
For the last five years I've lived in a large house with, over that amount of time, around 15 different people - most of them musicians. It was a house of mostly good tunes, interesting conversation, late nights, and late mornings. Instruments were strewn across most of the available space. Some we could play, some we just owned. We'd throw an annual Costume Kegger for Halloween and a Fireworks & Fiddles picking party for the 4th of July. But now, the Franklin Ranch is no more. Around January of this year, 4 of us were left. I really just kept a room as office space and hardly slept there. Then, one moved closer to town. Next, one outgrew the space we had for recording and bought a house/studio of his own. Afterwards, one got lonely and independent and also moved to up to Nashville. Finally, there was just me, the room I used on occasion, and the accumulation of 5 years of furniture and random kitchen items. As you've read, I also moved up to Nashville. I can still have the parties, however the 4th party will have to be without fireworks since it's Davidson County. That's probably for the better since everyone lighting them off was a musician. If you need furniture or kitchen stuff, look for a garage sale early next year. Now a family lives in the old Ranch and the Alice in Wonderland colors have been turned into antique white. I am sad that the old times have changed, but without a doubt, very excited for the futures of all those that have passed through the Ranch.
As one era ends, another begins.
6.20.05 ALERT!!!
On 6/17/05 at the Bean Blossom Bluegrass Festival in IN, my father's banjo was stolen from his camper during the middle of the day. It's the banjo he's played since before I was born. The incident has been reported to the Brown County Sheriff.
DESCRIPTION:
Gibson RB250, Serial #633656, 1971, Amber Tuner Buttons, Price Tail Piece,
Tenn. 20 Tone Ring, Tony Pass Thin Skirt Rim, Mahogany, RR spike nails at
7,8,9,(10?), Rick Sampson Dark Walnut sunken wood Bridge, 5-Star Head w/
Palm Leaf artwork done in multi-color fine point Indian ink. Minimal wear on
recent fret job. Clean overall finish with modest lower neck finish wear.
New TKL black case (clean, no makings or significant dings).
Reward. Tom Driessen 708-799-2648, email: drierock@comcast.net
Maybe if the thief understood that instruments are more than wire and wood to the owner, things would be different. Instruments grow with you and develop with you. They become part of your personality -- not only do you shape the instrument, the instrument can also shape you. Years upon years of memories are connected to the music that has emanated from that wire and wood. These memories are not just connected to the owner but to every being that has experienced the music created by the player/instrument duo. It is unfortunate that the relationship between a person and their instrument should end in this way. An instrument is not easily replaced and will be sorely missed.
If you can help, please let us know.
Thank you.
5.27.05
Chicago IL. Riding shotgun on the Bela bus heading to the Old Town School of Folk Music for an evening of music and family. It's a hometown show.
BIG NEWS .... I've been signed to Sugar Hill Records to create my own solo fiddle albums. I am now officially a solo artist. I know I keep talking about recording, but now it is really going to happen. Look for a new fiddle album spring of next year....I'm glad to be finished planning my wedding so I can begin to plan my record.
I'M MARRIED! The wedding was beautiful. Molly is forever beautiful. Friends and family showed up in large numbers. We packed the Station Inn while Tim O'Brien, Darrell Scott, Denis Crouch, Kenny Malone and I played tunes all night. We were later joined by Noam Pikelny, Pete Wernick, John Doyle, and my father, Tom Driessen. My dad and I finished the night by playing some fiddle/banjo tunes which doesn't happen as much as it used to and means a lot to me. The wedding weather was perfect. 65 and sunny on the 12th of February! The ceremony was totally us in every way. My college friends and Nashville friends joined up for Stevie Wonder's song AS. Poetry was read. We said our vows that we composed and didn't share until the ceremony. Jim Lauderdale married us. We kissed. And then....we ate, we danced, we hugged everyone, we ate cake. WE CELEBRATED. Coming back to the hotel, I experienced a wonderful wedding tradition. Our car was decorated so it was obvious that we were 'just married.' A man came up to me and pulled a 20 out of his wallet. He said it's an old family tradition that he's not about to break. Tell you what, it's a new tradition of mine. The next day, I was told that music was played many places well into the wee hours. What a weekend. What a beginning.
WEB UPDATE!! TAADAA!!
My biggest update news is that I've finally finished my photo update. Please view a few, take a break, and then come back for another taste when you need a break from your day. Included in this updated are photos from 2003, 2004, and my time spent in China. I've also been working hard on more GANG pictures, STUDIES, and PANORAMA. There's even a new section called 360 in which you can take a spin in a place that I've found interesting (just give'em time to load). If you miss any old pictures or are new to the site and want to see what's come before, there's now an ARCHIVE section. Head up to the toolbar and click on PHOTOGRAPHY.
The second most important update is the addition of a STORE page. You can now purchase a small variety of items -- audio, visual, and audio-visual. The audio is the Wisechild CD Firstborn -- progressive acoustic based original music with Luke Bulla, Matt Mangano and Pasi Leppikangas. The visual is artwork by Adam W. Carlos from his Hands of Music series in which he draws the hands and instruments of different musicians. From me, you can purchase the naked print, a print with a single mat, a print with a double mat, and a print double matted and framed. You can also choose from four different mat colors - red, white, grey, and black. The audio-visual portion of my store offers the instructional DVD Chops & Grooves with Darol Anger and Rushad Eggleston. Please visit.
Musically, I've been gigging with the Bela Fleck Acoustic Trio and Tim O'Brien. Great tunes. Great songs. This fiddle player is happy. His belly is full. Both gigs are extremely rewarding and the fellers are the best to travel with. Hanging together makes for better playing together. My only problem is that I'm trying not to break so many bow hairs...but man, it's tough not to when you get as excited as I do. I find myself inspired to write and practicing more than I have in years.
'Tis the season to be on the road. See you out there.
1.30.05
First things first. Happy New Year.
Lot's of news today....
Check out Homespun Tapes for the first ever Fiddle/Violin/Viola/Cello instructional 'Chop' DVD -- done with Darol Anger and Rushad Eggelston. To quote Homespun: "With the help of two of today's hottest young players, veteran violinist Darol Anger shows how you can create infectious, driving rhythms in a wide variety of musical styles. The percussive bowing techniques they teach produce exciting grooves that you’ll be able to use to accompany musical genres from bluegrass to Celtic, swing to ska, Latin to rock and funk."
I've been spending quite a bit of time rehearsing and recording lately. The bulk of the rehearsing is for the Bela Fleck Trio (w/ Bryan Sutton and myself). We played our first gig a week ago and are looking forward to many more this summer. We'll be hitting quite a few great festivals and Ireland, so keep your ears peeled.
I turned 26, I think.
Now I'm in the final two week countdown to marriage. Is there any end to planning? I plan on keeping this a once in a lifetime event. I'm very much looking forward to seeing all my family and friends from about every walk of my life under one roof. Then you won't find me for at least a week as I'll be on honeymoon eating unpasteurized cheese.
And if you got a minute . . .
I've been to China and back. The trippers were as follows: Abigail Washburn (banjo/vox/Mandarin language), Tyler Grant (guitar/vox), Amanda Kowalski (bass/feet) and Jon Campbell (writer/Mandarin language). I usually preface the china tale with 'it's pretty hard to explain' which gets me out of any awkward places.....it's not just a visual experience, it's a total body experience...sound, feel, look, taste, smell (I refer to smog though I didn't really smell it, it just formed black clogs in my nose), but it goes beyond the basic senses and affected me both mentally and emotionally....
What I usually tell people next is that I felt like I was on another planet. When I was leaving that final morning to go home, it was sad for me. I had a very strong feeling of how far away from China I was going, probably not to return for a while and in the same heartbeat thinking of how close it really is to me by hours on a plane. This is an example of the general contradictions within which I exist.....something can seem so far away AND so close all at the same time.....Or how about applying that to humans....me vs. Chinese.....we're so physically similar - aside from small details like hair, eyes, and coloring - and we all need to eat, be clothed (generally), have transportation, and shelter - the basic needs in life -- HOWEVER, we cannot really understand each other beyond basic surface value. I mean, I feel like my gut is a pretty good indicator for a read on folks, but without being able to communicate, so much is left to the imagination, or just left to be nothing at all. Coming to mind is our little bullet proof van (courtesy of the embassy) excursion to a rural village. I felt like I was an animal in a zoo. No matter where we walked, a crowd no less than 15 gathered to observe us. For all our human similarities, I almost didn't feel like a fellow human. I couldn't understand what was so amazing about us eating noodles. Maybe they were hoping that we'd screw up using chopsticks and it would be funny, who knows. I think about seeing a Chinese person (or any nationality) here in the states and I wouldn't think twice. I've never been a racial minority before and can say now that I can begin to understand, though hardly at all. I'm glad to have been in those shoes.
I suppose my biggest regret about the whole trip was my lack of ability to communicate. Now i don't mean that i really regret anything, I just wish that i could have been able to get to know people better. They'd come up after shows, all excited and want to talk, but their english was not good enough for much and my Chinese was only good enough to check a mic, wei....wei.....wei.....though I can say that I had one good conversation with the aid of embassy supplied superman translator, MAX. After we played a Shanghai classroom a student wanted to talk to me about what was improvised and what was learned. I told him we know the songs and their melodies, but just as framework. The concept was totally foreign (no pun). He excitedly demonstrated his teacher kicking over his instrument if he would ever attempt to stray from the written path. He wanted to know how to improvise. How do you learn? Through MAX I did my best to explain that music is language and conversation. In speech, we improvise our sentences. In a conversation, a good one anyway, you don't know what someone is going to say to you, and you have to respond with the tools that you have...words, sounds, gesticulations. It's all improvised. Music can be the same. Through a foundation of sound/scales and what-all, and rhythm, we are communicating...reacting on the spot with musical vocabulary. We got excited enough in the conversation that the TV crew told us to move to the hall and even while out there, told us to hush a few times.
That said, a cultural exchange (for me anyhow) didn't necessarily need exemplary verbal communication....which brings me to the beauty of music. I believe that a person's personality comes through in how they play music once their facility reaches a certain level of comfort. You can't really separate the musician from me, so through music, I was able to give of myself to those who were interested. I was in China to share something very dear to me, something genuine and heartfelt, and different enough to be interesting to an observer....not to show, not to convert, not to play American missionary...I'm happy to show if someone is interested further, but that wasn't my goal.
Friends ask, "how did people react?" "hard to say for sure, but good, I think" is my response. In Japan there's a big bluegrass scene...I don't know how big, but big enough to have a bluegrass magazine and japanese bands coming over to the US and big enough for me to hear that I'm known in Japan....wild. I felt as if China was hearing bluegrass/old-time for the first time in the history of mankind. Their overall response during the shows was hard to read. I was hoping for more excited reaction from the crowd, but maybe that's not how it goes in China . . . or maybe they were being respectful. I have to say that I did feel the excitement of our presence especially when we'd arrive to a college....however not shanghai. it's worth noting (though we talked about it) that i feel the harder up and more inland the community we were in, the more welcoming the people.....murals, stage backdrops, bouquets (forget the fleas), dinners. While during the shows i may have felt some distance from the audience, after the shows would tell a different story. People would hang around with us as long as we would hang around . . . and pictures, pictures and more pictures.... I was very touched by one violin student in Chonqing. She stayed around with intentions to talk to me, but that didn't get very far. She gave me five stamps of a famous chinese love story, each stamp illustrating a part of the story. I received translator assistance from Li Tao, a representative from the embassy. The girl was so sincere in wanting me to understand the story and to have the story. The stamps will stay in my fiddle case. The Chinese have no point of reference for our music. There are similarities between bluegrass and their classical music, but it didn't seem likely that the audience would get out of hand at a classical chinese show. After listening to some traditional China cd's that I found, our countries do have music in common. Scales are similar. Many instruments have 'brothers or sisters' and lead similar roles. Melodically, I've found tunes on the cd's that remind me of fiddle tunes or old-timey/bluegrass beats. I can't help but feel that there must be some elements to what we were doing that they connected with.
Okay...here are some things that surprised me.
Smog. never have i seen, and i mean seen, anything like this before. It's like it's okay to look at the sun, I even tried it though i know better. And people say that LA is smoggy. HA.
Dirt. everything was generally dirtier than i expected....especially the village, and especially the floor of the club Nashville! i know that the climate is humid and that's going to make more fog/smog which is then going to leave it's trace on the exterior of everything, but i wasn't expecting that much.
Old vs. new. The rate of change and progress in the major cities is astounding. Could there be a better time to be a contractor or architect in Beijing or Shanghai? I have a hard time knowing how to feel about the change. On the one hand, I love the old style Hutang (sp.?) neighborhoods. They're so unique and fascinating. I'd love to get lost for a week among the alleyways....it's part of China that is stereotyped in my mind. It's such a part of the history and the uniqueness of the country. And then residents are just told that their neighborhood is going to be pulverized and they must move. The ways of life the residents know is ending. I was told that the old generation does not like the change, but the younger generation does. Understood. While I hate the idea of loosing the character of the Hutangs, the population can't expand outward much more, just upward. Change must happen. I don't know what side to take. I can only say that I'm very thankful that I got to see China in it's amazing state of change.
The things that people will eat.....not just surprised that people WILL eat them, but that they CAN be eaten. chicken feet. pig snout. duck feet. rabbit head. I'm sure the list goes on.
I have to say that my culinary experience in China was AWESOME! The food was so plentiful and cheap by our standards....and so delicious. I really enjoyed the ordering process. I wish, oh I wish, that I could have understood what was being said. It may have been boring, but to me, it always sounded interesting. Jon and Abby would be hustling in Chinese and then look over at us and say a few simple words in English, and then recommence the ordering process. I felt like I had the comprehension of a dog......"human talk human talk blahblahblahblahbabblebabble.....SIT....human talk.....STAY......blahblahblah.....FOOD!" Here are the new things to my palate: whole fried eel, whole frog, rabbit, chicken feet, pigeon broth, duck brain, dragon fruit. Oh, the veggies.....so delicious. MSG has won my heart over. Ohhhhh, the hot pot tradition.......
On a funny note....when I tell my southern friends, or northern for that matter, that I was quoted in the Asian Wall Street Journal as "drawling," they all laugh. The morning that I left, there was a fresh copy of that issue waiting by the door of the airplane.
To conclude, this trip has given me a glimpse of understanding and opened up my eyes to a new part of the world. I understand that I've just grazed the surface, but it's a start. News of China and Asia will no longer just pass through me, it will feel more personal. I'll listen with a more knowing and open ear and heart. I feel that my understanding of the workings of the world as a whole has made a step in the right direction....awareness. How can this planet be so big and small at the same time! China has also helped me to be even more thankful of my fortune in life as a musician. What a way to lead a life....share music, meet people, travel the world, and be creative.
10.27.04
Do you ever have one of those times when you just wish that the UPS person would arrive? Well, last month in Longford, Ireland, my trusty camera for the last 4 years was stolen. I had been jamming with all sorts of internationals in the lobby of the hotel during the Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival, and when I finally decided to sleep, my jacket/camera/gloves were gone. Today the new photo-taker should arrive any minute. The message, keep an eye on yer stuff!
Lots of news. I'll start with travelling to Tonder, Denmark for a weekend. I flew with a cold for the first time in all my travels. Man, there's nothing worse. My ears and head felt like exploding for about 4 hours after I landed. I skipped the first soundcheck to drink tea, eat raw garlic, and take a nap. After that, i just barrelled through the weekend, stopping occasionally to eat more raw garlic. The best experiences I had while here were jamming until sunrise at the Festival Pub with old and new Irish/Scottish/Canadian/Danish friends. Literally, fiddle 'till you drop. I can't bear to miss a moment of anything when I'm overseas.
Less than a month later, I travelled to Longford, Ireland with Tony Trischka and David Grier for the Johnny Keenan Banjo Festival. We had never played as a trio before and the experience was quite fun. There was just one show, and then the BANJO FINALE (of which I was the only intruding non-banjo instrument) for my reqirements at the festival. So, I rented a car and took a road trip for two days. I had never driven on the Left side of the road, and stickshift to boot. It's much easier than you think if you just pretend that you're in a video game. My roadtrip took me to Westport, Co. Mayo to visit esteemed bow maker Noel Burke. His French style bows are amazing, and I had the unique opportunity to test drive one as the first person to play on it. There's something unique and difficult to describe about being the first one to play an instrument.
Last week I took a trip to Woodstock, NY with Darol Anger and Rushad Eggelston. There we taped the first ever FIDDLE CHOP VIDEO for Homespun Tapes. This video will show the basic strokes and applications of this new rhythm method for violin, 5-string fiddle or viola, and cello. It should be available for purchase around February....check my website around that time.
What's to come? A costume party this weekend. A two week trip to China with Abigail Washburn. Back in the studio with Tim O'Brien for another record. A two week electric tour with Blue Merle.
And the booking of a new group for next year....The Bela Fleck Acoustic Trio, featuring Bryan Sutton and Casey Driessen. The three of us are really looking forward to playing together for the first time outside of Bela's kitchen. I'll still be playing gigs with Tim O'Brien and Steve Earle, so keep your eyes and ears out for all the various musical combinations. I've also been attending a juggling club to help me with my life.
7.15.04
Hello All. Hope You've been spreading your wings this summer to visit family and friends, experience music and soul search. I'm on my way to the Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival while typing. We, Dave Nokken and I, were supposed to leave last night, but due to strong storms, were delayed at home overnight. Well, not quite the full night since I had to wake up at 4am. The upside is that we got bumped up to first class. I was soon reminded that complimentary food used to be served on a normal flight. And the first class seats . . . much more comfortable. I did try and take advantage of the Delta Members Only lounge, but was immediately asked to leave.
I have recently returned from the west coast Steve Earle and the Bluegrass Dukes tour (Tim O'Brien, Darrell Scott, & Dennis Crouch). We kicked off in Telluride at which I also played shows with Tim O'Brien and sat in with John Cowan, Yonder Mountain String Band, Darrell Scott, and K.C. Groves. I should mention that the festival closer set with Tim and illustrious friends was a two hour fingerboard-blazing vocal-soaring extravaganza. If you can find it online, give it a listen.
The Dukes tour bus left for San Diego after the Telluride closer. My first night off found me across the border in Tijuana eating Mexican to a 10 piece mariachi band. Afterwards, one of the fiddlers and I traded a few traditional tunes. Unfortunately, I can't repeat the rest of the night right now. I'll just say i made it back to the USA unscathed. Our first four shows shared the stage with Joan Baez. We moved up the coast with an occasional day off in a great city . . . . Truckee River bike ride in Reno, International Rose Test Garden and Japanese Garden in Portland, Fahrenheit 9/11 in Seattle. While in Portland, I took a cab to a juggling supply store to purchase my first set of juggling pins - two of which are supposed to glow under black light. I spent most my time off bus and off stage working on the pins. At the High Sierra festival i was fortunate enough to meet a fellow juggler who was patient enough to teach me how to pass the pins. Definitely one of my highlights! - thanks Steve.
Another highlight occurred on one of the days off. A new movie about Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash is being filmed and T.Bone Burnett is producing the soundtrack. Dennis Crouch and I were contacted and in a matter of days, we were flying to Capitol Studios in LA to record for the day. The room we tracked in held the piano that Nat King Cole recorded his hits on and next door was famous for Frank Sinatra sessions. The whole place had a hip and historic vibe. I played fiddle on Jukebox Blues - to be sung by June Carter Cash (Rheese Witherspoon) in a live concert scene. I also strummed acoustic guitar for Cocaine Blues sung by the Man In Black (Juaquin Pheonix) which is opening the movie. I'm not sure when it'll be ready for the box office, but look for me in the credits. It's my first motion picture.
When I returned home from tour, I walked into another very special musical recording experience. Bela Fleck was entertaining musicians from Madagascar for a few days, D'Gary on guitar and vocals and Mario on percussion and vocals. They were on a North American tour with down time in Nashville. The first night was spent meeting each other with the help of a translator with whom they spoke French. At that moment, I wished that I had chosen French rather than Spanish in High School. The words were few. All we really needed was music. We sat in a circle and jammed on a few different groves for a few hours, trying to get used to playing different feels and concepts. It was unlike any music i had played before and required all my concentration for timing. Later on, as things got more comfortable, the use of concentration shifted to more instinct. I went home feeling like I had just heard music for the first time. The next day, we recorded two of the songs we played the previous night, and one other new one. The experience was amazing. While we couldn't communicate much verbally, enough was shared musically to gain mutual respect and admiration and a bond of friendship to last a lifetime. I will always remember these days.
Almost to the gig now. Hope to see you there. Over and out.
5.5.04
BIG NEWS.....I'm engaged. It all happened this last weekend at MerleFest -- where it all began. You may have seen it on the Cabin Stage on Friday night if you were there, or else heard it live on XM Bluegrass Radio if you were tuned in. Her name is Molly and she's the most beautiful woman in the universe. As for the date....undecided. I figure that I'll have to hire Tim O'Brien for that weekend for two reasons: 1) so that I'm not gigging, and 2) so he can attend.
The rest of MerleFest was great, though the engagement is my top highlight. Numero 2 would probably be the short 15 minute set I played with Bela Fleck on banjo and John Cowan on vocals. We played straight through with minimal rehearsal - I guess you could say that we just warmed our fingers up. The festival crowd was as quiet and as attentive as I've ever heard - or I guess I should say never heard them. Wisechild made their first apperance at the festival, weighing in at three sets. We closed the festival on the Americana stage and brought the rain pouring down immediately following - just perfect for our load out. Thanks to everyone that atteneded the shows and supported the band.
Since last I've written, the beginnings of a Casey Driessen solo project have materialized. I regret to say that it will be a while before it's finished due to the fact that I'll be pretty busy traveling this summer festival season. The wheels of my brain are turning and I'm testing out some ideas that have been brewwing for some time. You can expect a fiddle based album that hasn't been made before.
I honed my skiing skills in February on the last Tim O'Brien tour. I conquered, or should say that I was somewhat conqured by, Crested Butte, Vail, and Grand Targhee. By the end of the trip I could make it to the bottom of the mountain while listening to Talking Heads Remain In Light on my iPod without falling. The next tour comes up the end of June when I hit the road again with Steve Earle and the Bluegrass Dukes (Tim O'Brien, Darrell Scott, and Denis Crouch). It's been a few years since we've played that much so we're all looking forward to the music and hang.
I began and almost finished a large photography update for this site, and then lost it all in a computer crash. Please, everyone, back up your computer on a more regular basis that I have.
And last for today, I had a typo on the site for an upcoming gig. I had previously written that I'll be in Boston on May 12th at a club called Johnny D's. The date is correct, however, the venue is not. The show will be at Club Passim located in Harvard Square. I hope this reaches everyone in time and that you don't make a needless trip to Davis Square. Sorry for the misprint.
Happy almost summer.
1.2.04
Welcome one and all to 2004. I already screwed up the date on the first check that I wrote this new year. I hope that all your holiday activities were safe and pleasurable. I also hope that you stuffed your body with so much delicious food that the top button on your pants was undone for the last month solid.
I would like to apologize to anyone who wondered about any caseydriessen news since May! of last year. Always remember....no news is good news. I've been just about busier than I could handle. Highlights from the last 7 months include, in no particular order....a loud weekend with a chainsaw after a tornado; the recording and release of Wisechild's debut album Firstborn; learning to drive a bobcat; the release of Tim O'Brien's new album Traveler; renting a power sprayer and sealing my deck; playing at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival; seeing my youngest sister Regina graduate from junior high; hanging out with Vassar Clements at Rockygrass; my first appearance on the Grand Old Opry with Darrell Scott; a week spent with Wisechild opening for John Mayer and the Counting Crows during their run in the northeast; Matt Mangano and I sitting in with Mayer for his sold out Philly show; soaking in the hot springs of Pagosa Springs CO; outrunning hurricane Isabel after a gig in Ashland VA; experiencing my first earthquake (with a richter reading of 4.5) in Charlottesville VA; successfully growing a mustache; playing in SanFran with Steve Earle and his Bluegrass Dukes at Golden Gate Park and the release of his new DVD and audio documentary Just An American Boy; recording for Hanneke Cassel's second Scottish fiddle album to be released around May; Thanksgiving with my family and extended family in Chicago; and learning that my dad heard my fiddling on Tim O'Brien's album while ordering lunch at a Boston Market. Feel caught up?
So, what's left to do in the leap year? I'm planning on sleeping all day on Feb. 29 since it feels like a bonus day. But before that, I'll be kicking off the first tour of the year by traveling with Tim and John Doyle to Ireland, Scotland, and England for the last two weeks of this month. I'll visit some castles, enjoy the countryside, and stay up playing tunes and drinking Guiness until sunrise at the pubs. At some point early this year I'll be recording with a new band called Blue Merle for their first record on Island/DefJam Records. Keep your ears and radio waves open for them. While that all sounds fun, I'll tell you that my real goal for '04 is to fill up 40GB of music on my new iPOD. It has changed my life.
And now that '03 is through, I have begun to compile a new batch of photos for your enjoyment. They are not up yet, but I'm working on it. There are even some new photo concepts and experiments that will be included, so stay tuned.
I must now sign off and fix dinner before my first gig of the year. Happily, I get to kick it off with my boys in Wisechild. I promise that you will hear from me before July.
Good luck with your resolutions....
5.8.03
Merle Fest, Wilkesboro NC, was pretty wild this year. For the first time since my teens, I had the opportunity to camp for a full weekend at a bluegrass festival. Interestingly, I camped at the waste water treatment facility grounds -- appropriately named "Sewerfest 2003." I forgot to buy a coolie. At the festival I had many more opportunities to play than expected. I performed with Mark Schatz & Friends, Donna the Buffalo, Darrell Scott and Jeff Coffin, Tim O'Brien, Jim Lauderdale, and a fiddle-for-all starring Vassar Clements, Darol Anger, Tim O'Brien, Mike Marshall, Laurie Lewis, and Michael Cleveland. As always, it's such a treat to be able to play so much great music in one weekend. And when the days were done at the festival site, the jamming would continue into the wee hours at the campground. We only had one noise complaint, well two, if you count the second time we had to be told.
In other news...Wisechild will be joining the John Mayer / Counting Crows tour for one week this August. From the 11th thru the 16th, we'll be in Cleveland, Cleveland, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Washington, and Philadelphia. Come and hang out. It has been brought to my attention that a Wisechild Discussion Board has been created. Please stop by, say hello and help spread the wise-word. Rumor has it that a full length Wisechild record will be availble in late July. Stay tuned...
One final thing today: enjoy the music of IAmJustinThompson.com.
April Fool's +1, 2003
Wisechild went on it's first week tour, visiting Memphis TN, Austin TX for South By Southwest, Dallas TX, and Ruston LA for St. Patrick's Day. It was my first time in Austin and the weather was perfect. Let me just say that you never can know what will happen in hottub a few miles south of town at a Holiday Inn late one Saturday night. The tastiest steak I think I've had was at Rabb's Steak and Spirits in Ruston, LA. Strongly recommended. Speaking of weather, it's beautiful out right now and has been for the last week or so. I've been spending some quality time at the park lately...fiddling, juggling, playing catch (just don't throw pop-ups near the sidewalk or parked cars with people talking on their cellphones....) and hanging out with friends. If you have windows, open them up and get some fresh air. If you have a motorcycle, ride, ride, ride, but don't come to TN without a helmet -- it's the law.
I've found the time to put up some more photos -- many are from the January cruise. New photos begin at the bottom of PHOTO page 4, continue on PHOTO page 5, and end on PHOTO page 6. There are four new pictures of the gang, including one of a brand new gang. Click THE GANG. Happy Spring.
And last but not least...
HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEBSITE!
2.22.03
I'd like to wish everyone a belated Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas (or the winter holiday of your choice), Happy New Year 2003, and a Happy Valentine's Day. Additionally, if you had a birthday since Nov. 23rd, Happy Belated Birthday. Highlights since the last update include a successful Wisechild opening for John Mayer in Raleigh, NC...the recording of a new Tim O'Brien album and a new Mark Schatz album...and a cruise to the Carribean. Let's talk about the cruise ship: basically, a hotel with 13 floors, 10 restaurants, a casino, 2 pools, 5 hottubs, etc...and weighs over 77,000 tons...and it floats!? I tried to make it to the engine room, but after September 11th, they're not having it. We visited the Cayman Islands, Roatan, Belize City, and Cozumel. In Roatan, I gave a workshop in a palapa with the ocean in background, drank a margarhita, and went snorkeling. If you haven't floated 25 feet above the ocean floor within a school of fish and a barracuda eyeing you, I highly suggest you try it. At the same port, just before boarding the ship to sail, Mark Schatz, Eileen Carson, and I had a little jam session for the locals. My only complaint was that I wanted to spend at least a week in each port city. Next time.
11.23.02
Welcome to the *new and improved* caseydriessen.com. The biggest change is the addition of a new PHOTOGRAPHY section. Make sure you take a peek at the photo diary, the gang, the studies, and the panorama categories. As life goes on, so will the pictures.
In the world of Wise Child, we now have a 5 song disc for sale. Included songs are Win, Perfect Day, Breakaway, What Am I Supposed to Do, and Beauty & the Mess. Look for them to be available at the upcoming John Mayer opening in Raleigh, NC, on Dec. 2 and any gigs thereafter. We hope you enjoy it.
11.7.02
For the first time all summer, I have a real weekend off. The last two months have just flown by. After Ireland - which was absolutly amazing - I wound up in Louisville KY for IBMA, spent a week on the west coast with Mark Schatz, played in San Fransico with Steve Earle and Tim O'Brien, and threw a costume party.
During the down time from those activities, Wise Child has been working hard. We now have a website where all things wise and childlike will soon be found -- audio clips, pics, gig dates, and contact info. Take me to www.wisechild.net. We also began recording more slammin' tracks for an album that should be ready by the end of the year. On Monday and Tuesday, Wise Child played two high energy opening shows for G-Love and the Special sauce in Lexington KY and Bloomington IN. Keep checking the new band website for the latest info.
8.29.02
Time to pack, clean out the fridge, and tell the roommates to water the plants...I'll be out for the next two weeks. This weekend I'll be with Mark Schatz and Friends and the Tim O'Brien band at the Four Corner's Folk Festival in Pagosa Springs, CO. I'll spend less than 24hours at home and fly to Dublin for a week in Ireland. The group is Tim O'Brien (mando, vocals), Jeff White (guitar, vocals), Dirk Powell (banjo, accordian), Mark Schatz (bass), and myself on fiddle. Look for us at pubs in or near Dublin, Westport, Omagh, and Donegal. Finally, my trip concludes at a gig in Dahlonega, GA with Chris Jones and the Nightdrivers...so, I'm sorry if I don't respond to emails for a bit. See you either on the road or when I return.
7.24.02
Yesterday morning, I "appeared" on Nashville Public Radio 90.3FM with Justin Thompson, an amazing singer/songwriter/guitarist who streteches beyond his jazz roots. His smoky voice, artful melodies, and clever lyrics are supported by Charlie Chadwick (bass), Tommy Giampietro (drums), and myself on fiddle. Take me to the show. For more info on Justin Thompson and his Tasty Puddin'