Rita Returns

Singer-songwriter Rita Hosking grew up in Eastern Shasta County and she'll return to her roots on November 19th when she and her band, Cousin Jack, perform at Bernie's. The last time they played here in Redding, Craig and I were absolutely captivated by the musicianship, the songs and the stories, and we're looking forward to hearing more.

Bernie's offers an intimate setting for fans of Hosking's emotionally-rich voice, a voice the California Bluegrass Association has called a "soulful howl from the mountains." Hosking has received accolades for her songwriting, winning the Dave Carter Memorial Songwriter Contest in 2008, and her 2009 release "Come Sunrise" was nominated for Best Country Album by the Independent Music Awards.

Hosking spent time last summer touring the UK, and her playlist abroad included a song she wrote in a traditional Celtic scale. She wrote"When Miners Sang," she says, "as an offering to folks in the UK." She recorded the song on a live EP that pays tribute to miners of days gone by, including her own great-grandfather, who was a miner from Cornwall. The entire EP was recorded in a working mine in Alleghany, Calif., and it is available at CDBABY.

On this trip, she's looking forward to performing for students at the Montgomery Creek school she attended as a child. Hosking says that whenever she drives on I5, she's drawn to the mountains of Eastern Shasta County where she spent her youth.

"The strongest pull is to the east, to go home to Hatchet Mountain...It's all I can do to keep my eyes on the road because I'm gazing east trying to make out the mountains, the weather, everything--my senses are turned up."

Tickets for her Redding performance - sponsored by the Oaksong Society - are available at Bernie's for $18: 3086 Bechelli Lane Redding, CA 96002 - (530) 223-2040

Details on the Oaksong site: Oaksong Society.

More on Rita Hosking at her website: Rita Hosking.Com

Thanks to Merle Haggard ....

...we get to hear about Grandma's unfortunate encounter with a reindeer -- over and over and over again.

Songwriter Randy Brooks shares the back story on the novelty song he penned 30 years ago. Inspiration, he says, came from a Haggard song.

Read the story on the Great American Country website.

Indie Music with Shasta County Roots

Singer-songwriter Rita Hosking is originally from Eastern Shasta County. Her voice and her honest songwriting have won her high praise from critics and fans throughout the country. Rita won the prestigious Dave Carter Memorial Songwriter Competition in 2008 and her latest CD, Come Sunrise, has been nominated for a 2010 Independent Music Award.

You can listen and vote at the IMA website: Here

Read more about Rita and purchase her music -- a perfect Christmas gift for the country-folk fan on your list -- at her web site: Rita Hosking

(Photo from Rita Hosking's website.)

How success spoiled Hallelujah

Too many versions of the song Hallelujah have songwriter Leonard Cohen pleading for mercy. Those royalty checks, though, are probably coming in handy....

Read the story on Tampabay.com:

Leonard Cohen

Riding in the Car with Dylan?

If a Seger song can turn up in a Chevy commercial, why not Bob Dylan as your car navigator's voice?

Read it here: Bob Dylan

Songwriter Bequest

Hit songwriter Cindy Walker's legacy goes to the Country Music Hall of Fame - great story here:
Cindy Walker Leaves Songs

Songwriter's Revenge

Songwriter Dave Carroll turns frustration into Youtube hits - gotta love that Lemons-into-Lemonade attitude:

United Breaks Guitars

Performing Songwriter Coda

I've subscribed to a boatload of magazines in my life - I graduated from Tiger Beat in the late 60s, to Seventeen, then Glamour and on and on and on.

For the past couple of years I've enjoyed every delicious issue of Performing Songwriter magazine. The publishers promoted indie artists, provided incredible Behind-the-Song stories of old favorites and pages of encouragement and advice. I devoured it from cover to cover - I save them, I share them. The writers and editors understood what I do and why -- and that doesn't happen very often. At least not to me.

A note in my mailbox this morning announced the last issue has just been published. I feel like I'm losing an old friend. I hate that. But I suppose I will begin looking for another way to get that monthly validation and support.

Read more here.

Crazy

Yesterday's crazy weather had me humming Crazy, the old Willie Nelson song.

In the early 60s, Crazy didn't appeal to many Nashville producers, who thought the song was too off-beat and not country enough. Several artists passed on the song.

Patsy Cline wasn't interested in recording Crazy - she wanted "Funny How Time Slips Away," but that Nelson song was snatched up by Billy Walker. Cline's producer convinced her to give Crazy a shot, and she was the first of many lucky artists to lend their voices to that tune.

Read the whole story at American Songwriter website.

Enjoy Patsy Cline's magnificent rendition:

Tom Paxton: Lifetime Grammy Award

Lovely piece by J. Freedom du Lac on singer-songwriter Tom Paxton, who talks candidly about his long, fascinating folk music career that began in the coffeehouses of New York.

At the Washington Post website.

Local Gal Makes Good

Last Sunday morning, Max needed a ride into town. In a rare moment of perfect cosmic timing, the drive coincided precisely with Rita Hosking's appearance on KPIG's Please Stand By live music show.

What a treat! Hosking is a superb songwriter - she won the prestigious Dave Carter Memorial Songwriting Contest this year in Sisters, Ore, and the lady has a voice that delivers with amazing style and heart.

She sang a few of her songs, talked about growing up in Shasta County and her upcoming appearance at Bernie's (3086 Bechelli Ln) on December 5th. I'm looking forward to enjoying her tunes in this intimate venue.

More on Rita Hosking at her website. Buy tickets for the show at Bernie's or at the Oaksong Society web page.

Here's Cool Black Water -- from her Silver Stream CD:

A Songwriter's Dreams

When busker Steven Bacon saw the movie "Once" about an Irish street musician, he was inspired and energized. The movie, starring Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, was a low-budget success that won an Oscar for best song.

Bacon's own story deserves a prize of some sort. Here's the Boston Globe article about what happened to Bacon, when the stars of Once played a concert in his town:

For this street musician, dreams are taking flight

Danny Dill: Co-wrote Long Black Veil

I used to listen to the Joan Baez version of Long Black Veil on my Dad's old reel-to-reel tape recorder. It's still one of our favorite songs to sing here at home and an example of truly masterful songwriting.

Danny Dill died on Thursday at the age of 84 . He co-wrote the song with Marijohn Wilkin, who passed away in 2006.

Just found this version, with Johnny Cash and Joni Mitchel providing splendid harmony:

It's a Small (and sometimes harsh) World

A friend, D, is in town, visiting from Bali. He stopped by Wrap-N-Pack this morning -- this is the email from Craig:

"He bought a new CD and mentioned he had been in Italy visiting on a house swap. Looking at the guy's music collection, D pulled "A Kiss Beneath the Sundial Bridge" (our first CD) off the shelf.

When D asked him about it, he said, "Still Married is very popular in his town among the singer-songwriter set."

"For a price," D told him, " I could probably get that autographed."

The gentleman replied, "They're not that popular."

Don't know how that CD made it to Italy, but the story made me smile.

Sisters Folk Festival - Songwriting Finalist

Congratulations and best wishes to Rita Hosking for being named a finalist in the Sisters Folk Festival Dave Carter Memorial Songwriting Contest.

It's a prestigious contest and a well-deserved honor for this talented, hard-working singer-songwriter. She hails from Shasta County and plays in Redding often -- she has an Oaksong Society gig scheduled at Bernie's in December.

From Rita Hosking's web site:

"Rita Hosking was raised in the mountains of eastern Shasta County, Northern California, where she internalized dusty woodsheds, the scent of springwater, forest fires and the troubles of rural economies. Her musical experience began as a child at church, and under the wings of an old time jug band made up of seasoned mountain characters. A descendant of Cornish miners who sang in the mines, Rita grew up with deep regard for folk music and the power of the voice."

And Rita does, indeed, have a powerful voice - one that makes you listen and believe. Wishing her all the very best in Sisters in September.

(photo from Rita Hosking's website)

Still Married in Cottonwood

I tell my children -- "Because everybody else is doing it" is really not a good reason.

And here I am -- blogging because my regular website (http://www.stillmarried.net/) doesn't allow me to play with the rest of the blogging gang. No rss feed -- which is, apparently -- a deal breaker.

So I'll be posting here and on our band web site blog , mostly about our mid-life crisis band -- Still Married. And about this somewhat bizarre (just ask the neighbor kids) family life --- songwriting, homeschooling and making music.

More to come.