ARTsMART: A Family Affair

Craig and I have been performing our original tunes for the Shasta County Arts Council's ARTsMART since it began many years ago in Redding's Downtown Mall.

We missed last year, because I was in Germany for the birth of our Granddaughter, Lydia Rose Sire:

Still Married will be back in force this year, playing an hour long set at 10:30, Saturday morning at the Mount Shasta Mall. We'll sing some old favorites and several songs from our latest album: Whiskeytown Roadhouse. We'll also be bringing along our daughter, Annie and granddaughter Lydia, who will help haul our gear and cheer wildly keep us smiling.

And since the Friedmans are all about hogging the stage, we'll be back later as spectators, to watch our son, Joe Friedman, dance a duet with Melody Wallace around 4:30 in Mall's Center Court. After his lyrical duet, Joe will crank it up a notch and dance with his Hip Hop Crew around 5:30.  

A sneak preview of Joe and Melody's routine:

Local crafters will be demonstrating and selling goodies to give you a head start on your Christmas shopping. C'mon down to the Mount Shasta Mall  on Saturday -- performances and art all day long.  

Outdoor Venue for Shasta County Tunes

When I first started writing songs about far northern California, I had a vague notion that the music might be used to help promote the area that Craig and I have come to love and call "home." 

Well, a 'vague notion' isn't worth much (except maybe on a Scrabble board) BUT folks with a plan and website content have moved beyond that nebulous concept, and they've done an admirable job of pairing local music with local outdoor recreation information on a new website.

We are excited and honored to be included, along with several other local musicians, at:

www.shastaoutdoorsrecreation.com

The website is the brainchild of Redding's Sharon Waranius.  She explains:

"Our goal for Shasta Outdoors Recreation is to promote Shasta County to the entire world as an outdoor mecca, with top class recreation and entertainment.

The bright interactive site features a number of recreations spots, amenities, vistas, maps on how to get there, links for more information, videos for enjoyment and original music by local artists to entertain the viewers as they peruse the pages."

 

In addition to several original tunes from Still Married, the site includes music from:  

Pine Dogz, Jonathan Foster, Chris McCandless, Kyle Williams and others.

Jonathan Foster

Pop on over to ShastaOutdoorsRecreation and check out the bounty of recreational opportunities here in the North State, backed up by North State musicians.

Lights Out

The Whiskeytown Roadhouse had its moment, but the water's rising and time is running out.

The last bottle of Jack and an old, beat-up Gibson guitar. That's all that Dan carries when he takes one last look around and closes the door on The Whiskeytown Roadhouse for the last time.  He walks away to the sound of "Mournful Sighs and Rising Water."

The final song on our Whiskeytown Roadhouse album -- and all the rest of them -- are available for free download at our website:  Whiskeytown Roadhouse. 

The Parting Glass

It's a rainy Saint Patrick's Day evening at The Whiskeytown Roadhouse. The downpour falls like a curtain and a restless, somber mood hangs over the room.

At the end of the bar, a grizzled old man requests a shot of whiskey and a song: "Something old and sad. Like me."  But he winks and grins as he asks.

Song #9 from The Whiskeytown Roadhouse CD is a traditional Irish tune, The Parting Glass.

Download it for free at our website:  

The Parting Glass (trad.)

Bourbon and Bitters

It culminated in an angry, ugly break-up, with cruel missteps and pain.  But once upon a time,  it was a joyful and passionate love affair.

And that's what these two celebrate, at a table in a darkened corner of The Whiskeytown Roadhouse

with a couple of glasses of Jim Beam. They drink to love and memories and everything they were before
"The Bitter End."


Song #7 from The Whiskeytown Roadhouse album is available for free download on the Still Married website.

Click here: The Bitter End.

All Aboard

The Whiskeytown Roadhouse has been the scene of passionate love affairs -- and a fair share of doomed liasons. Sometimes changing partners is easily done. Other times, the only answer to romantic disaster is to leave town.

If a woman wants to leave Redding by train, and she doesn’t want to hop a freight car, her only option is to climb aboard in the wee hours of the morning.  

It IS a lonely time for leaving, but train travel offers the benefit of long hours for contemplation, and the whole adventure is ripe with promise and possibility. Even on a dark, winter morning at 2:20.

Download song #6, 2:20,
from The Whiskeytown Roadhouse
album for free - click here:

Whiskeytown Roadhouse  

The Best Damn Man

He sits at the end of the bar at The Whiskeytown Roadhouse, racking up a tab and drowning his sorrows. He learns from his mistakes, really, he does.  And he believes in the continual pursuit of education.

The Best Damn Man (with the help of Crown Royal) amuses the patrons at The Whiskeytown Roadhouse.

Song #5 from The Whiskeytown Roadhouse, available free on the Still Married website: The Best Damn Man

Ghosts on the Dance Floor

The Whiskeytown Roadhouse is a little bit haunted.  The spirits aren't evil; they are restless, weary and sad.

Some nights, after Dan serves you a drink  -- or two or three -- if you listen carefully, you might hear the soft strains of "The Ghost Miner's Waltz" played on a distant piano. And in the smoky mirror behind the bar, you might even glimpse a couple of ghostly dancers moving slowly out on the floor.

You probably shouldn't drive home.

Song #4 from our Whiskeytown Roadhouse album, The Ghost Miner's Waltz,  is available for free download on the
Still Married website: Click here

Overheard at The Whiskeytown Roadhouse

Maybe I should? Maybe I shouldn't?

Two people, speaking quietly and thoughtfully, while silently weighing the risks and the benefits of revealing themselves to each other.  It happens in the early days of a relationship and,  although the song is called "Fearless Conversation," it is anything but. 

And because life throws all kinds of curves and people grow and change, many couples find themselves having another version of the same discussion twenty years later: 

"You're not the woman I married." 

"Thank goodness."

"Now what?" 

And so begins another Fearless Conversation.

Song #3 from the Whiskeytown Roadhouse album is now available for free download at our Still Married website. Click here:  Still Married - Whiskeytown Roadhouse

Siren of the Whiskeytown Roadhouse

Isabel -- a siren, a spirit -- is a fixture at the Whiskeytown Roadhouse*. This song tells the story of how Isabel came to California and why she's so bitter about it.  

The tale began in Ireland long ago and it begged for an Irish melody, so I borrowed an old folk tune for this song.  The Irish version is "Red is the Rose," in Scotland they sing "The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond."  And at the Whiskeytown Roadhouse, it's  the tragic story of "Isabel." 

This song (and others) are available as free downloads on our Still Married website. 

Click here:  STILL MARRIED DOWNLOAD PAGE

* It’s a mythical honky-tonk: One part Cheers, one part Brigadoon, shaken with an ornery, old west attitude - that’s the Whiskeytown Roadhouse.

The Whiskeytown Roadhouse lives in the past and the present. It’s inhabited by ghosts and lost souls, lovers and their sordid stories, and it’s tucked away in a canyon on the rough-and-tumble back roads of old Shasta County.

Whiskeytown Roadhouse

A mythical honky-tonk, one part Cheers, one part Brigadoon, shaken with an ornery, old-west attitude: That’s the Whiskeytown Roadhouse.

The Whiskeytown Roadhouse lives in the past and the present. It’s inhabited by ghosts and lost souls, lovers and their sordid stories, and it’s tucked away in a canyon on the rough-and-tumble back roads of old Shasta County.

If this were the 1960s, Whiskeytown Roadhouse would be a Concept Album, with an artsy, vaguely risque, 12-by-12 cover and a litany of liner notes and lyrics on the inside sleeve.  But Craig and I missed the '60s music scene, because we were in elementary school at the time, and being Still Married would have been frowned upon.

So here we are:  2013 and the music world is all download-y and green. Whiskeytown Roadhouse is our Concept Not-An-Album, and we're releasing one song at a time on our Still Married website --  all for free. 

First song is up -- click HERE go to our download page. 

North State Songapalooza

Over on Facebook, the North State Songwriters Group has begun the North State Songapalooza (thanks to local country star Nate Rogers for coming up with the name).

I was inspired to organize our Songapalooza after reading about a songwriting game going on in Texas. This challenge requires members to write a song around a given phrase in a short period of time. Journalist Jon Lewis gave our group their first songwriting assignment: "love's simmering" and we had two weeks to come up with a completed song using the phrase.

For me,  undertaking a songwriting challenge is like offering my muse a triple-shot espresso with a Redbull chaser. I get very caught up in the creative energy and forget to do things like sleep, feed my family and finish zipping my dress  other crucial daily activities.

I worked on one song for ten days and wasn't at all happy with it, but last Monday I unwrapped a bowl my sister gave me and was immediately inspired. I wrote, recorded and rewrote over the next two days and finished "Good Days" this morning.

Good Days

Words and music by Erin Friedman

She bought a bowl because she thought

It would be pretty filled with apricots

Seems like summer’s nothing but a winter dream

She tries to be her own best friend

But she knows where it hurts and then

Sometimes that girl can be so mean

Chorus:

On Good Days she sees

Both forest and the trees

On Good Days she believes

The best is yet to be

A poor excuse

But Lord, it’s true

Good Days are few

And far between   

Her morning prayer’s a plea for grace

Wipes the slate of her mistakes

Heals in the spirit of love’s simmering song

Then the music fades away

As she stumbles through her day

Shouldering the blame for what went wrong

No, it's not in Washington, DC.....

We're celebrating Independence Day with a new song, Where America Lives, and we're giving away free downloads this week -- help yourself!

Where America Lives

Food and Fun and Hank

We've been rehearsing all week - we're looking forward to bringing our music to the Red Bluff Crawdad Festival this Saturday afternoon.

It'll be a warm one - or, as we like to call it: Good Singing Weather.  The Red Bluff Chamber of Commerce has scheduled some cool Cajun and Zydeco band and has added some cool water features - so don't worry about the heat.

We'll be playing original tunes at noon -- but we'll throw a little Jambalaya into the mix because it's the Crawdad Festival, for heaven's sake.

C'mon out and enjoy the food and the festivities. And sing along with Hank:

Crawfish, Crayfish, Crawdad.....

Whatever you call them,  they're delicious and Red Bluff is celebrating the Cajun treat in high-style this weekend.

Craig and I are looking forward to sharing our original tunes on the local stage at noon on Saturday, June 8th, at the Red Bluff Crawdad Festival.  C'mon out to the Tehama District Fairgrounds and Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!

Porter Wagoner and friends get us in the mood:

Redding City Hall Art Reception and Concert

May 16, 5-7 PM

Redding City Hall

777 Cypress Ave

Redding, CA

We are celebrating in Redding this week -- It's Rodeo Week --Yeehaw!!  This week also marks the opening of the Summer Art Exhibit at Redding City Hall.  

The CIty of Redding will host a reception on Thursday evening May 16th, 2013, from 5-7 PM --  meet the artists, enjoy complimentary refreshments and original, local music from two Cottonwood duos.

Still Married 5-6

We're looking forward to singing some new tunes from our upcoming CD and singing "The Redding Song" in the heart of the city that we love.

The Pine Dogz 6-7

Our friends Diana and Steve Wallis are a little bit country a little bit R and B and a lot of heart and soul, with tunes like "There's No Such Thing as a Free Goat" and "The Cowboy Flies Away." Their energetic performances include dynamic vocals, smokin' guitar licks, harmonica and mandolin.

Hope to see you there!

Folk Tunes at Going Local

Nick Ciampi has gathered a boatload of local folk musicians to share their tunes at Going Local this Saturday night.  Still Married will play at 7.  Other folkies on the bill include: 

Nick Ciampi, Jim Dyar, Bryce Goldstein, Daniel Horton, 

Hayden Ball, Josh Lang, Tommy Ghiorso, Daniel Davies, Richard Morris, Mary Rose, Miss Jackie, Jake Standifer

Craig and I will debut The Redding Song at this event and we are excited to be sharing a couple new duets from our upcoming CD, Whiskeytown Roadhouse.

7-10 PM
Saturday, April 20, 2013

Going Local 

1410 Beltline Road

Redding, California 96003

  

The Redding Song

Over on Redding.com, blogger Marc Beauchamp posed a challenge -- 

".....a contest to come up with a telling or funny acronym that spells R-E-D-D-I-N-G."

I call it a Dream Assignment for a songwriter who loves Redding:

The Redding Song 

music and lyrics by Erin Friedman

R is for the river and the trails that run beside her

E is for the eagles raising hope and flying higher

D is for downtown dining:

         Art and music, beer and wine-ing

         Another

 D is for diversions

         Recreational excursions

         Golfing, skiing, fishing, hiking

         Gardening, boating, swimming, cycling

         Fly kites, tie flies,

         Sun shines

         Most days of the year

         Anything you like to do outside                          

         (That’s legal)

         You can do it here

I is for infernal heat that keeps the wimps away

N is for night lights on the Bridge at Turtle Bay

G is for the Gem of Northern California

        

Redding, Shasta County, USA

Angry? Bitter? This Valentine's 4 U

If you're looking for a sweet, sentimental love song to celebrate this day of romance,  keep looking.  But if you like your Valentine's Day tunes with a dose heartbreak and twist of revenge, then go ahead and help yourself to "Heart Shaped Stones."

I wrote this song many years ago - and it's still one of my favorites to sing. Our kids think it's kind of creepy and that's part of what I like about it.

So whether you're happily single, looking for love, or celebrating the day with your One and Only, please hop on over to our website for a free download of "Heart Shaped Stones."

Click here: Heart Shaped Stones at StillMarried.Net

Hope you get chocolate and champagne and NOT stones. Unless, of course, they're diamonds.

All Aboard for Redding's Cultural Cruise

Redding City Hall (777 Cypress Ave) will ring with the sound of original music on January 25th, when the North State Songwriters present a showcase featuring local singer-songwriters as part of the city-wide Cultural Cruise.

The music will range from country to folk, rock to blues and bluegrass.  The evening's lineup: 

4:00pm Nick Ciampi

4:40pm Jackie Lynn Brodersen

5:00pm Matthew Songmaker and the Mountain Messengers

5:30pm Pine Dogz 

6:00pm Still Married

6:30pm Richard Morris

7:00pm Will Miller 

7:30pm Paul Howell

Nick Ciampi is a popular Redding music teacher and folk-rock musician. Jackie Lynn Brodersen is inspired by the folk music of the 60s and 70s. Matthew Songmaker and the Mountain Messengers play lively bluegrass and traditional country.

The Pine Dogz present  folk-rock, Americana and blues.  Still Married country-folk music celebrates the landscape, the characters and the independent spirit of Far Northern California.  Richard Morris plays a lively blend of pop and rock.  Will Miller performs country folk tunes with an acoustic flair. Paul Howell's original tunes are a little bit country, a little bit folk with an edge of the blues. 

For more information on the musicians: 

Nick Ciampi: www.nickciampiproductions.com

Matthew Songmaker: http://matthewsongmaker.com/

The Pine Dogz: The Pine Dogz

Still Married: www.stillmarried.net

Will Miller:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Will-Miller/247502455305381?fref=ts

Still Married will be playing a few new tunes from our upcoming CD: Whiskeytown Roadhouse -- c'mon out and enjoy complimentary refreshments and meet the artists whose work is on display at Shasta County's largest art gallery.

  

Cottonwood Art Wine and Music Festival

Where The Heart Is: Cottonwood

Fifteen years ago, we sold our house, packed up our kids and left the suburbs of San Jose for a place we'd only passed through a couple of times on vacation.  We landed in the cowboy town of Cottonwood, put down roots and never looked back.  

This song has been trying to write itself ever since we fell in love with this place --  the landscape, the people and the spirit.  We're looking forward to singing this new tune in our hometown at the Cottonwood Art Wine and Music Festival on Saturday, January 19th. 

Cottonwood Fun: Art Wine and Music Festival

C'mon down to Cottonwood - enjoy the art, the wine and the music in this charming Old West Town.  Craig and I are looking forward to playing some new tunes at this local event coming up on January 19th.

The details:

The Cottonwood Art Wine and Music Festival at The Community Center on January 19th will showcase three local musical acts.

Still Married is a husband and wife duo from Cottonwood and their original music celebrates the landscape, the characters and the independent spirit of Far Northern California. They'll perform songs from their upcoming CD, "Whiskeytown Roadhouse," including a love song to their hometown: "Cottonwood Calling Me Home."

The Pine Dogz are another Cottonwood husband and wife duo. Diana and Steve Wallis play tunes that are a little bit rock and roll, a little bit country, a little bit R&B and a lot of heart and soul. 

Jackie Lynn Brodersen is a singer-songwriter who performs originals and cover tunes. She picks up her guitar every chance she gets and is inspired by the folk music of the 60s and 70s. 

3:30 - Jackie Lynn Brodersen

4:00 - Still Married

5:00 - The Pine Dogz 

The art show will feature more than a dozen artists and it runs all day, starting at 10 AM. Wine tasting is from 4-6 PM and tickets for the wine tasting are $15. They're available at The Elegant Bean in the Holiday Market Center. 

The art show and the musical entertainment are free. The Cottonwood Community Center is at 20595 Gas Point Road  Cottonwood, CA 96022

For more information on Still Married: www.stillmarried.net

For more information on The Pine Dogz: http://www.reverbnation.com/pinedogz

For more information on the event, contact Mary O'Keefe (530) 347-1230

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