Not Dead Yet Blues Blog

Benefit Show for Ralph Speas

2008-02-16T11:32:00.002-05:00

Well, for those of you that didn't make the show, the benefit for Ralph Speas, historian for the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society as well as a dear friend, was a success! We raised some needed money for Ralph and had a great time in return.

For those of you who may not be familiar with Ralph's situation, last month he cut off half of his index finger when a piece of wood he was splitting got stuck in the splitter. Four days later he was hospitalized - not for the finger - but for pneumonia. Needless to say, the medical bills are starting to pour in; one for $13,000.00 arrived the day of the show.

We had special guest performers galore, including Tony Dunn who performed with us, the PBPS Board Band, and a super fine performance from Tommy Yow of the Misdemeanors and his lovely wife Renea Page who just tore-it-up. Thank you all for coming out and helping us!

If anyone that didn't make the show would like to donate some money to Ralph's cause, feel free to contact me at info@notdeadyetblues.com and I will pass make arrangements.

Yes Weekly was there and did a nice piece on Ralph that you can view here:
http://www.yesweekly.com/main.asp?SectionID=22&SubSectionID=49&ArticleID=3347

That's it for now,
Tom 'Valleni' Veltri

Blues Jam at the Zion Bar & Grill

2008-01-06T09:05:00.000-05:00

Had a wonderful time jamming with some great musicians last Sunday evening at the Zion Bar & Grill In Greensboro. It got started up around 7:00. If you like Real Live Blues, you really need to come out and enjoy yourself here. Free admission, Great Food, And Great Service. Great way to finish up your week-end.

Red Lion in High Point Blues Jam is Mondays at 9:00 and The Club House in Greensboro Blues Jam is Wednesday at 8:00. All have free admission ,great specials, and Live Blues.

Help support us if you can.

Love playing the Bluueesssss.

Keep on jammin,
Mike ( Curly ) Carter

PBPS Festival Pics!

2007-05-14T08:32:00.000-05:00

My friend Scott Hummel sent me a few shots from the Festival I thought I'd share. First up, Bump and Logie who, as always, mesmerized the crowd with an outstanding performance.

The Grit Pixies from Ashville were down in the kids area playing between sets and if you missed them you missed out on a truly unique performance. Look for these ladies of the blues to go places!

Jimmy Thackery and the Drivers simply Tore. It. Up. In a show filled with stars and great music, Jimmy just went supernova and was on fire. This boy can play some git -tar!

And last but not least, the legendary Hubert Summlin - playing with the Michael Burks band. I mean, this guy played with the Wolf - what more can I say! The crowd that braved the elements to attend this phenomenal show were treated to outstanding performances by all. I can't think of a better way to spend a rainy Saturday. Can you?

Strum and Stroll Event July 15th

2007-05-01T09:43:00.000-05:00

NDY will be participating in the Eileen Anderson Memorial Strum and Stroll to benefit Hospice and Palliative Care of Greensboro on July 15th. Updated will be posted here as well as on the Strum and Stroll site as they become available.

Benefit Sunday April 22th for the Angel Band Foundation at the Red Lion

2007-04-10T08:34:00.000-05:00

***UpDate***

*******************************************************
The bands appearing at the benefit are:
The AA Meeting Acousitc Band, The Deal, Stage
Left, Not Dead Yet, Jimmy Hayes, The Gary
Redd Band, Self Redemption, Jammin Julian,
Sourwood, and Basically Speaking.
*******************************************************

OK - Triad. It's time once again to open your hearts and lend a helping hand to those less fortunate. You may remember last year when we lost talented shining star Joey Tucker in a tragic automobile accident. Well, Joey's legacy live on with the Angel Band Foundation. You can find out more about this great foundation here.

There is a fund raising benefit at the Red Lion in High Point on Sunday April 22nd starting at 2:00 to raise proceeds for the foundation. The details so far as found on the Davis Tucker site:

"Lots of food, fun and music by some of the states best musicians and entertainers. All donations, monetary or instrument wise will be gladly appreciated and accepted anytime, anywhere, so we can get instruments into the hands of those who need them. We thank you for your support and hope to continue serving the music community to the best of our ability."

I will post more information as it becomes available. Gary Redd, the proprietor of the Red Lion was kind enough to ask us to perform and of course we honored to do so. I will post a schedule as soon as I can get it. I hope to see you all there for this great cause!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

2007-03-26T15:40:00.000-05:00

Thanks to all of you that helped to make the David Michael Shadrick fund raiser a success. There were outstanding sets performed by the Matt Hill Band, the Miles Blues Band, the Impacts, Bandit and Friends, the Piedmont Blues Preservation Society Board Band (with Buzz guest starring on harp), and last but certainly not least, the grand finale by Also Known As. A sincere thanks from the bottom of my heart for these great musicians who donated their time to come an play.

Thats a shot of David Shadrick Jr. addressing the crowd at the Raven.

Let's not forget the wonderful folks from Time Warner who cooked up a storm and fed the hungry horde of attendees! Great food from a great group of people. Many thanks also the the vendors and local merchants that donated items for the raffles and silent auctions. And we can't forget Julian who graciously allowed us the use of his club, sound board personal, and barstaff.

All you folks are just a testament of how generous and giving the folks in the Triad are - the best in the world! Thanks again for all of your support.

Benefit Show March 25th for David Michael Shadrick at the Raven

2007-02-20T21:37:00.000-05:00

***Band list updated 3/4/2007 - we have 7 bands now performing***

Benefit Show March 25th for David Michael Shadrick at the Raven

On Sunday March 25th from 3:00 – 8:00 the Not Dead Yet Blues band will be hosting a benefit for David Michael Shadrick at the Raven in Burlington.

David was diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus in July of 2006. He was hopeful for a recovery after undergoing chemotherapy treatments and radiation, followed by surgery in October. Unfortunately, the cancer has resurfaced and there is no treatment available at this time. David has been referred to Hospice of Guilford County for at home care.

David served in the United States Army from 1972 to 1974 as a communications specialist and has worked for Cable TV in Greensboro and Burlington for 32 years. He has been married to his wife Jennifer, a Greensboro City employee, for 29 years and has two children, Kristin, a sophomore at UNC - Charlotte and David Michael Jr who works at Advance Auto in Greensboro, and two grandchildren, Rebecca Nichole Shadrick, 5, and Zackary David Shadrick, 8 months.

His wife Jennifer says that the support from David’s co-workers at Time Warner during this tragic time has been overwhelming and the family is very grateful for their love and compassion.

Julian Doby, the owner of the Raven, has graciously allowed us to use his club as the venue for this benefit. The Raven is located at 971 Kirkpatrick Rd in Burlington. Admission is $5.00. The entertainment will be provided by several local bands including the The Piedmont Blues Preservation Society Board Band, The Miles Blues Band, The Matt Hill Band, Bandit & Friends Band, AKA Band, The Impacts, and the Not Dead Yet Blues Band as well as others. More details and a schedule will be posted as soon as the lineup is finalized.

Just added - The Impacts out of Madison playing a variety of Oldies and Beach Music

Raffle tickets for a $100 first place and $50 second place prize will be sold and
a silent auction is also planned.

***Purchase raffle tickets in advance at Scales Street Music 1304 S Scales St, Reidsville!***

All proceeds will go to David Shadrick and Family to help with their medical expenses. Please plan to attend to support a good cause – you’ll be glad you did!
For more information please email us at info@notdeadyetblues.com

Next Gig Feb 24th in Reidsville

2007-02-12T20:38:00.000-05:00

Hey, gang - we will be appearing once again at the Sports Restaurant Bar & Grill in Reidsville located at 2009 S. Scales Rd. Be sure to mark your calendars - a good time will be had by all!

Like the Blues? Get Sirius!

2007-02-09T19:31:00.000-05:00

I think one of the greatest innovations to come along in a while is satellite radio. You might be lucky enough to catch a blues show on a college station now and then (like my buddy Mike Caudles' show Thursday afternoon on WQFS) but almost never hear the genre on commercial radio.

Enter Sirius Satellite radio - now I can listen to the blues, jazz, jam bands - even Howard Stern - 24/7. Especially appealing to me is that fact that they offer a stream so I can listen to the blues at work. If you'd like to check them out you can get Free Online Trial of SIRIUS' 100% Commercial-Free Music here.

It has also turned me on to a lot of Blues artists that I've not had the pleasure of hearing before. They occasionally will have guests like Buddy Guy stop by the studio, and at the time of this post Shemekia Copeland hosts a show every Saturday afternoon. If you're a fan it's definitely worth a listen!

International Blues Challenge

2007-02-03T11:11:00.000-05:00

Looks like local favorites Mighty Lester have advanced to the finals in the International Blues Challenge. Let's wish them well!

>>>Update<<<
Mighty Lester took third place AND Best Self-Produced CD winner at the IBC Blues Challenge!

AAHHHOOOO - The Wolfman comes to Greensboro

2007-01-27T16:34:00.000-05:00

I had the pleasure of attending the Walter "Wolfman" Washington show at the Empire Room on Thursday. What a great setting to see a show! Local favorites Blues World Order set the tone for the evening with a rocking 45 minute of solid blues.

The Wolfman followed and had the crowd on their feet most of the evening with his brand of Louisiana Jazz and Funk. I think the thing that I admired the most about Mr. Washington - aside from his wonderful guitar playing - was the fact that it was apparent this guy was having fun! I love to see an artist that never seems to get tired of playing shows. If you missed it, you missed a good show. Lets hope that this is a harbinger of future blues and jazz shows at the Empire Room.

This just in - read about the Wolfman in this Yes Weekly feature.

Random Thoughts

2007-01-25T08:06:00.000-05:00

Another fine night at the Club House last evening at the Blues Jam - all participants appeared to be in fine form. I spoke to Art, the owner of the Club House about booking NDY. He asked me if we were a blues band and when I replied to the affirmative he laughed - said every time he books a blues band attendance, and of course sales, are not very good.

That got me to thinking (often a dangerous thing at best). Last weekend when we played in Reidsville the place was packed, and with lots of younger folks that were hoopin and a hollerin and dancing and having a grand old time. Then the light bulb went on - these kids liked the blues - they just didn't know that it was the blues they were a hoopin and a hollerin too. Of course the reason this is a random thought and not a brilliant idea is that I haven't figured out what to do with this new found knowledge.

The answer, of course, is in reaching and educating the younger generation so that they not only show up at these shows, but, more importantly, can keep the blues alive once us older guys are not Not Dead Yet. I love it when I see someone like Matt Hill take the stage with the passion he has for the blues, but he is outnumbered by us old folks.

Ideas? Comments?

Monday Jam at the Lion

2007-01-23T07:29:00.000-05:00

What a great night at Gary Redd's Red Lion in High Point yesterday! In addition to many of the Blues Jam regulars we had Justin and Quinn, a couple of great horn players who brought the house down. The club was packed with people digging the live music - always a great thing, and Gary himself even took a set behind the kit last night. A good time was had by all!

Thank You Reidsville!

2007-01-21T10:11:00.000-05:00

Wow - what a great turnout and welcome we had at our 2nd live show at the Sports Restaurant Bar & Grill in Reidsville last night. You guys know how to have a good time and on behalf of the Not Dead Yet blues band thank you for letting us be a part of it! Hopefully we will be seeing you again real soon.

Preparation for the Show

2007-01-20T08:43:00.000-05:00

Well, our second show is tonight and I'm as anxious as a kid on Christmas Eve. You'd think at my age (which I won't reveal, but suffice it to say old enough to know better) I'd lose some of the eager anticipation before playing but I never do. I think it's the sheer joy I get of playing the blues with my fellow NDYers that makes it hard to temper my enthusiasm.

After a week of work and dealing with the general stresses of daily life, playing the blues is a release. So here I sit at 8am on Saturday morning listening to a Roy Buchanan recording from 78 at My Fathers Place in Roslyn NY - my old stomping grounds - waiting to hit the stage later. For those interested, the show can be streamed from www.sugarmegs.org along with a lot of other great shows.

Live to play - play to live!

T

Welcome to the Not Dead Yet Blues Blog

2007-01-18T08:45:00.000-05:00

While sitting at the Clubhouse in Greensboro last evening enjoying some of the music being served up by some fine local musicians I realized that we really need to give props to the local club owners that support the open mic blues jam format. If not for the blues jams Not Dead Yet would not exist (some may think that a good thing...), I would not have started playing the guitar again after an 11 year hiatus (again, some may think that a good thing...), and, more importantly, I would never have met my fellow bandmates as well as a host of other fine people that I am proud to call friends.

So... lets give kudos and our support to Art at the Clubhouse, Gary at the Red Lion, and the fine folks at Dezyres and Backstreets for supporting our addiction to the blues.