Capital Swamp: The DC Resource Thread

Oh no, Little Royal has passed away.

If you dig down into this link for the City Paper's "People" issue, you will find my q and a with the singer known as James Brown's half-brother

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/special-issues/people-issue/article/13044834/the-people-issue-2013

I saw him perform at Westminster Church SW on Mondays 2 or 3 times. So sad. A great guy.

Check Little Royal out in this 1972 video from a regional tv show called Soul Street

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEbvK076HZU

More sad news. 33 year-old Karlston "Ice" Ross, bassist with the Chuck Brown Band, the Jo-Go Project and others, has passed away from some health complications.

A tough week for DC musicians.

https://www.gofundme.com/teenaramathemusica

Fundraiser for Teenarama the musical, about the Teenarama tv dance show for Black dancers in DC that was on from 1963 to 1970. It started when Black dancers weren't allowed on the Milt Grant dc tv dance show

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/how-a-small-dc-record-label-became-a-hotbed-of-modern-ethiopian-sounds/2016/10/06/7c3f0bcc-8667-11e6-92c2-14b64f3d453f_story.html

For you 1432 R Ethiopian-electronic dance music fans

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/blog/20836249/rb-singer-little-royalknown-as-soul-brother-no-2has-died

And now another one. Robert Goldstein at 66 from cancer. He was the Urban Verbs guitarist from the late 70s on (Eno produced their demo) and worke at NPR as a music librarian and did more too

http://www.npr.org/2016/10/08/497108776/remembering-robert-goldstein-nprs-music-librarian-and-our-friend

I'll be in DC next week to catch the Preoccupations show (the band formerly known as Viet Cong, whose throbbing post-punk eponymous album was my favorite release last year) when they play the Rock & Roll Hotel on Sunday, 10/16.

A few questions:

1) We're planning dinner at The Star and Shamrock around 8 PM. I am Jewish on my mom's side and my last name is O'Neill so this place seems perfect... If anyone wants to come out, feel free!

2) I am hoping the show won't sell out saving me $10 in online ticket fees. If you think that is unwise, please let me know and I'll suck it up and buy them in advance.

3) Anyone going to the show?

Oh, that's who the Preoccupations are. I heard that album last year. Sorry, I dunno whether it will likely sell out. I do know that the club and its booking agent steve dc lambert sometimes post on their Instagram pages, "Low ticket alerts" ...

Not sure if I'm going. Maybe not...

I kinda liked the opener's (methyl ethel) record from last year.

def get some pie next door at dangerousy delicious pies.

http://wamu.org/news/16/10/10/pop_star_bruno_mars_expected_to_open_new_maryland_casino

opening in December

The 3,000-seat venue (which can swell to 4,000 without the chairs) will be booked by Live Nation, the multinational entertainment company that also owns ticket giant Ticketmaster.

...

MGM National Harbor is billing itself as a luxurious getaway, with restaurants helmed by celebrity chefs and a high-profile sculpture installation by musician Bob Dylan. Meanwhile, room reservations start in the $300s, and the cheapest tickets to see Bruno Mars cost $150 — not including transaction fees.

http://bandwidth.wamu.org/on-the-first-album-from-d-c-s-feedel-band-the-future-of-ethio-jazz-is-now/

My interview/review of 1st Feedel band album that's out now. They are modernizing Ethio-jazz on some tracks (w/ mixed results). They are also backing old-school Ethiopian pianist Girma Beyene Friday night. He used to live and play music in DC. After his wife died, he quit music for awhile (she was his musical inspiration he said) and just worked in DC area as a gas station attendant. Later he moved back to Addis, and eventually started playing music again.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/article/20837636/blagden-alleys-last-remaining-artist-is-being-priced-out

Bittersweet article on Bill Warrell, who founded DC Space, ran District Curators, and was the last artist left in Blagden Alley.

http://www.dclibrary.org/node/54368

Go-go and punk photo exhibit till Nov. 30 at MLK Library

RIP Gogo Lorenzo at 53. He was riding a bike in Capitol Heights and got hit by a car.

He was in go-go bands way back when but was best known for his rapping on "You Can Dance (if you want to)"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8kmDPxcdEs

2 docs about late DC guitarist Danny Gatton are due in 2017, here's an article about one of 'em

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/blog/20838324/after-two-decades-filmmaker-virginia-quesada-is-close-to-finishing-her-danny-gatton-documentary

Will tha Rapper

or Innanet James

Your fave current DC rapper

Saw a story online where Seth Hurwitz of IMP/930 is bragging that when he created current 930 Club his goal was to make it the Orioles Park at Camden Yards of nightclubs, and that his new 6,000 seat venue at the Southwest Wharf will do the same for bigger halls. Plus he he praised the Wharf developer a bunch. Yawn to latter, and will have to wait and see about former. He says the building will host at least 50 events a year.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/blog/20838967/longtime-gogo-musician-gogo-lorenzo-queen-has-died

AW wrote this obit

DC is almost as cool as Europe says Dutch born dj who lives in Sterling , Virginia...

Martyn speaks highly of D.C.’s growing dance-music scene, particularly the Future Times and 1432R labels, and the roving-party series known as ROAM. He recently DJed at one in September.

“The crowd was just so healthy. It was so nice to see people really into the music and not really about posing or just taking pictures of themselves, just generally enjoying the music and generally enjoying the atmosphere and the other people,” he says. “It was just really cool to see that. It almost felt like a European party, you know? That’s something that I hadn’t experienced in D.C. before. … It was less sort of institutionalized clubbing, and more sort of, freedom. That’s obviously a very good time for people to play their music.”

http://bandwidth.wamu.org/for-martyn-semi-secret-star-dj-of-northern-virginia-the-circle-expands-in-life-and-in-music/

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/theater/article/20840195/dcs-first-gogo-musical-comes-from-unlikely-places

http://dcist.com/2016/11/new_musical_brings_go-go_to_georget.php

https://www.washingtonpost.com/express/wp/2016/11/02/could-this-be-georgetown-universitys-first-go-go-show/

Davis Performing Arts Center, 37th and O streets NW; Thu.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; Nov. 10–12, 8 p.m.; $15-$18.

WAMU's Ally S covered "Wind Me Up Maria" the go-go musical too. Its running this weekend and Thursday through Sunday the 12th.

https://wamu.org/news/16/11/03/with_wind_me_up_maria_go_go_music_comes_to_georgetown

Anyone vote yet? Columbia Heights looked crazy so waiting in line in Ward 6 atm.

Actually the line is pretty long here too, just hidden inside the gym.

voted day one; took like 45 min.

Me and the Mrs. saw "Wind Me Up Maria" Saturday night.

Nice shoutouts to Chuck Brown and the greatness of go-go, but sub-plot re 22 year-old UPS guy and naive 17 year-old guy; and the other plot re macho promoter and his stolen wallet were not effective. The show was sold out and has received lots of press attention, but it needs some big rewrites.

Good music & acting but some flawed, awkward story lines (plus males leads were all too creepy). It's there through next weekend

http://www.tmottgogo.com/rest-in-musical-harmony-go-go-legend-ivan-goff/

Another death. EU keyboardist, arranger and producer Ivan Goff

Sadly, various folks who promote gigs at C*met P*ng P*ng or whose bands have performed there, are getting hate mail and anti-Semitic tweets and more from the right-wing extremists pushing a conspiracy theory about the owner of that pizza place.

woah. curmudgeon, what's your take on the city after the election? have any thoughts about how it's affecting the job market? i'm moving to your fair city in a few weeks. gonna be looking for work as a librarian/archivist.

A federal government job hiring freeze that the president-elect wants (and that sort of exists now) won't help you, but there are still city government jobs, jobs with non-profits, lobbyists who work with Dems, big law firms, suburban area jobs, etc.

ty

Good luck. As in Bush years, will just have to ignore or use free speech to oppose those in power. Not expecting any of them to care about local DC, or the music and arts that we post about here.

What a sad year. RIP 83-year old Diz Russell, last surviving singer of Sonny Til & the Orioles, died in Md. He wonderfully warbled r'n'b, and was a musical pioneer in late 1940s, early 1950s. I saw him sing a handful of times in recent decades, most recently at Mr Henry's in DC this year.

Alona W obit for EU's Ivan Goss

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/blog/20844265/experience-unlimited-keyboardist-and-gogo-legend-ivan-goff-has-died

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/blog/20845197/legendary-orioles-vocalist-diz-russell-has-died

Doo-wop/r'n'b singer with the Regals, the Orioles (led by Sonny Til), and the Legendary Orioles. He also owned optical stores, record and book stores in DC

The uh gospel Marxist socialist situationist Make-up who had previously reunited circa 2012-2013, are doing so again in 2017 at the capitalist music fest Primavera in Barcelona.

I'm being tongue in cheek there. Ever since I read that article suggesting that some punk bands don't want to play corporate fests (or just corporate fests alone as compared to punk only ones in DC or Baltimore) and based on the "Marxist" spiels from Ian S of the Make-up, I just figured it was worth mentioning this. The Priests are also gonna be there. Hope they both get a good payday out of it.

So Flasher are heavily influenced by postpunk music from around 1982; around 34 years ago. So if a 1982 postpunk band had been influenced by music from 34 years earlier it would have listening to sounds from 1948.

Which might have sounded cool. Blues and rockin r'n'b did exist then.

Kids get off of my lawn....

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/DC-Area-Marching-Bands-Opt-to-Sit-Out-Trumps-Inaugural-Parade-406387625.html

Yes! No surprise they are getting some grief for this in the comments.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/clarendon-ballroom-gets-threats-after-refusing-to-host-trump-deploraball/2016/12/15/d2c956e6-3d30-4a1b-b6bc-0a4ae744325f_story.html?utm_term=.db14c6b1f643&wpisrc=nl_daily202&wpmm=1

lol okay 500 tickets already sold and no venue, 30 days out. good luck, fuckers

They'll probably have to do it at Breitbart's place

http://awards.xclusivegogo.net/

2016 go-go bouncebeat awards poll ballot

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/arts/music/article/20847560/the-year-in-music-2016

separate links included for jazz, metal, go-go, punk, danceclub/electronic, weird/experimental, hiphop

alas no old-school dc soul or southern soul (Hardway Connection; Young Senators Reloaded) and nothing from various immigrants like Ethiopians or elsewhere (Maracuyeah does get a mention under danceclub)

Finally saw Granny & the Boys at Showtime Lounge. Not bad (actually quite good), but still not Hardway Connection at Lamont's either.

Long before Granny and The Boys began playing soul songs at Showtime, Eddie Jones and The Young Bucks delivered their own idiosyncratic take on rhythm and blues 52 weeks a year at now departed clubs like Eugertha’s, Faces, and Gwen’s Majestic. Jones has been playing guitar and singing with various versions of the Bucks since the late 1960s, in addition to performing gospel pieces with a number of different ensembles and working as an occasional sideman for Bobby Womack and Peaches & Herb. Jones and the Bucks now play together infrequently, except for their annual January gig at Westminster Church. There, Jones frequently tells tales of old-school Washington and brings on his siblings as guests to hit the high notes and harmonize with him. ... Eddie Jones and The Young Bucks perform at 6 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 400 I St. SW. tonight Monday January 9

RE wowed 'em in NY at Globalfest. Videoclip I saw sounded great. Pareles liked them in the NY Times too.

Fader and others are all about DC rapper Shy Glizzy changing his name to Jefe. New tunes out too.

Eddie Jones and special guests were great doing the old-school soul at Westminster Monday. I can never convince soul record collecting geeks to go there because to them it won't sound exactly like 1965 does on their hi-fis (plus no vinyl scratchiness). Whatever, their loss.