Union Glue: Time to stick the country back together

Okee dokee folks… I remember seeing a political cartoon from the 1860s showing Abraham Lincoln patching up the United States with Union Glue — a perfect visual analogy for what the country needed at the time. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have their own brand of Union Glue and are currently the ONLY hope for this country. Drumpf will just pour paint thinner all over the place, light a match and say, “I fixed things.” If you haven’t voted yet, please do. Every vote counts. But I do hope that you will use your vote wisely and vote for progress, decency and reconciliation, not hate, regression and division. These days your politics speak volumes about your humanity. No matter what, we are headed into dangerous and uncharted waters for the next three months. I truly hope we can ride out the coming storm and will fare better on the other side. Read on…

A few months back (okay, maybe longer…time has become a totally abstract concept for me), Common Fence Music had a songwriter contest and the winner of said contest was John McDaid from Portsmouth. One of the songs he performed caught my attention — “Lost In Translation.” The song refers to “The Mango Mussolini” currently squatting in the White House and is included on his debut CD, Trail of Mars. Other notable tracks from the disc are, ”Down To The River,” “Sigmund Freud’s 115th Dream” and he saved the best for last with “Walking Off The Earth,” which features guest performers Craig Akin, Jim Henry, Tracy Grammer and Abbie Gardner. If you are a lover of clever lyrics, then this should satiate your word lust. McDaid delivers his material with a Randy Newman/Leonard Cohen/Dire Straits feel. For more “Buy The Ticket, Take The Ride” at: JohnMcDaid.bandcamp.com

Another new compilation recording that is a free download has been released by 75 Or Less Records and is titled Smash Hits Volume 1 (there are two more volumes). The recording was called to my attention by musician David Tessier. His song “Wire” is part of the compilation and is a prog-rock masterpiece. While the entire collection of songs is a bit uneven, there are quite a few stand-out tracks. The Sorry Boys, which is a Mark Cutler project, contributed “Way Out Now.” Though Cutler does have another cut in the mix, “Queen of the Dive,” which is a good track, I preferred the Sorry Boys’ song. Besides Tessier’s mini-opus, Minky Starshine really delivers with “Andrea’s Fault.” It’s a very clever, very well done and slickly produced ditty with lines like: “my heartache is like an earthquake, it’s Andrea’s fault.” Other songs that caught my attention were, Bob Kendall’s Nerve Pill with “Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is” — a perfect message for today’s political climate, Matt Fraza’s catchy and upbeat “Without Saying” and Gladhouse’s “Mine, All Mine.” The collection is a potpourri of musical styles and artists, and it’s a FREE download. For more, get “Rhode Trippin’” to: 75orLessRecords.com/75orless-presents-smash-hits-vol-1-3.

Though I have not yet seen it, a new film about the legendary Bluebird Cafe in Nashville has just been released. If you are not familiar with this venue you should be. It is a Mecca for songwriters. I have been to the Bluebird a couple of times. One of the nights that I was there, Walter Egan popped in to play a few tunes with the band that was booked that night. Of course he played “Magnet and Steel” and one or two others. It’s common for the Bluebird to have “pop-in” performers. From the outside you would never know the importance of this venue, it is very nondescript and located in a little strip mall, but its influence reaches far and wide. For more about the Bluebird film, flutter on over to: BluebirdTheMovie.com     

The Narrows in Fall River opened for live shows a couple of weeks ago under strict COVID guidelines, but due to Massachusetts’ uptick in cases has been forced to go virtual once again. Check NarrowsCenter.org for updates.

Common Fence Music will present Joel Mabus, a Mid-Western songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, in an online concert on Sunday, November 8 at 7pm. He has been a long time sideman to Tom Paxton and has played on stage with Doc Watson, Dave Van Ronk, Norman Blake and Peggy Seeger. A link to the online concert will be provided at CommonFenceMusic.org prior to show time. Part concert, part workshop, part visit, Aubrey Atwater and Elwood Donnelly will present selections from their repertoire online Thursday, November 12, 7. You can also chat with Aubrey and Elwood during the presentation. Atwater-Donnelly.com

That’s it for now. My band, Forever Young is playing a live show at the Greenwich Odeum on November 14. Only 100 tickets will be sold. Hope you will practice COVID safety and see the show! Thanks for reading. www.JohnFuzek.com #DumpTrump2020!