httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1dVKEJFfZc

]]> http://www.alexnelsonmusic.com/2010/02/30a-songwriters-festival-video/feed/ 0 http://www.alexnelsonmusic.com/2010/01/30a-songwriters-festival-day-3/ http://www.alexnelsonmusic.com/2010/01/30a-songwriters-festival-day-3/#comments Sun, 17 Jan 2010 08:59:03 +0000 nelsone http://www.alexnelsonmusic.com/?p=636

Michelle Luchese & Cody Copeland

Was supposed to wake up much earlier to have  breakfast with Bob Corley but I just couldn’t wake up early enough.  woke up in time for lunch with Carmel (Mikol) and Evan (LeFloch).  Luckily, lunch was at Bud & Alys across the street from the hotel.  I was really hoping to see Cody Copeland play.  And that’s what happened.  We met Cody at the private kick-off party on Thursday and really got a good vibe.

He did not disappoint.  His setup for this show was a micro-korg, a floor tom & snare, and a guitar.  He has a really unique way of playing the guitar and his songs were simply amazing.  as an added perk we got to see  Michelle Luchese who was also just amazing.  Cute little quirky songs that just make you smile.  All in all, it was a great start to the day.   Just seeing Cody play the drums, the keyboard and sing at the same time made my head spin.

Augustine

Then a little bit of Augustine.  Augustine is a acoustic duo comprised of Louis Johnson and Jordon Meredith.  They are not a couple.  Why is it when two people from the opposite sex hang out or do something together people assume they are a couple?  huh? huh?  Anyway, they ARE NOT a couple and they made it pretty clear “We are not a couple, you can hit on us.”

Anyway, they rocked it.  Totally awesome.  You can check them out at http://augustine-music.com/.

Bud & Ally’s was a great venue.  It was pretty much the center venue of the festival. The nice thing about it was that it was a covered patio.  So you got the nice sea air but since all the sides were covered, none of the gusts.  Sweet.

I just realized that this was the last time I was able to have a decent meal.  Later that day, I had a tooth that decided it wanted to cause some trouble.  So it was super painful to eat anything after that.

Shawn Mullins and Nicole Witt

Then over to Central Square for the workshop with Shawn Mullins and Nicole Witt.   By the time we got over there it was very crowded.  I remember a lot of people trying to ask about where the inspiration came from and it was suggested that everyone just throw out their televisions.  Nicole sang an amazing song that I just can’t remember the name of.  All I remember was that it was amazing.  If anyone reads this far into the post and was there or knows here, please let me know what that song was called.

Ok Then, so in the middle of the ‘workshop’ I was forced to go back to the hotel to start getting ready for my show at 2:30.  So off I went.

Then run back to room for warm up and practice.

Alex Nelson @ Bud & Aly's

Over to Bud & Alley’s I played with Louise Mosrie and Jeep Rosenburg.  Holy crap I played fast.  It was super cold. I couldn’t stop shivering and I moved around WAY more than usual.  You know what those last sentences were?  Excuses.  But seriously, it was a really windy day and each time a huge gust would blow against the outiside of the tent I felt like we were going to take off!  This was the same place Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs opened the festival at.  Only today it was really windy.  The wind would sneak into the tent and it would make this sound that made me think we were going to go flying.  I was assured that we were safe.

A special thanks to Suzi.  Suzi, it was really nice meeting you. Thank you so much for your support!

Alex Nelson @ Central Square Records

Then over to central square for a set.  Brian, whom I met the night before was also there.  Thanks Brian!  This was a good set.  I was able to do an actual full set since this was just me performing.  Since this wasn’t a performance that was part of the festival, I was able to meet some really nice people from all across the country.   So people who were just in the store visiting got a chance to hear and be a part of the festivities of the weekend.

The store was host to several performances and workshops.   It was one of my favorite places to play.  Surrounded by books and albums.  Everything inspiring.   It was great. I had one of those “this is really cool” moments and the audio couldn’t have sounded better.

There will be a little intro of the store in the next episode of “are we there yet?” The place was amazing, I had to share.

Susanna Hoffs, Paul ?, Matthew Sweet, Shawn Mullins, Amy Ray

then over to aly’s beach for shawn mullins, amy ray, matthew Sweet, susanna hoffs.  Amy Ray ROCKED IT!  Totally.   The entire night was great but I had two ‘favorites’.  The first being Susanna’s Bangles medley and the second was Amy Ray doing “Rural F****t.”   Simply amazing.   The show ended with everyone on stage (and audience) singing Here Comes the Sun.  There was a little hickup at the beginning since there was  a brain fart and some people couldn’t remember the second verse.  but after a quick restart it went well.   Mistakes like that are humbling.  Sometimes when I’m on stage I might drift away and forget some words.  It’s nice to know that it’s just human and it happens.  The nice thing is when it’s live we can just move past it. Unless someone is recording it.  ha! I filmed a little of this and I’ll see if I can post some of the highlights up.  I’ve got hours of footage, so it might take a while.

One of the nice things about the venues is that the organizers setup special reserved seating for artist that were performing.  It was really nice since we were able to go see our peers without having to rush from one show to the next.  This made the entire weekend amazing and everyone was able to support each other without any troubles.

After the show I ran into Shawn and had a little conversation about what he’s been up to. Turns out this year I’ll be playing a lot of places he’s played and he offered up some advice and story’s about some of them.  Then it was back to the hotel for a clean up and getting some work done.  While in the room, I noticed that I had missed a call from Flash at the Wallflower Gallery in Miami.   When I called him back he mentioned that he was thinking of something that perhaps I might be able to be a part of.  In the end though, I think it turned out that I was going to be out of town and wouldn’t be able to do it.

For only three weeks gone by, it’s sure feels like we’ve crammed a lot in.  Anyway, after returning a bunch of phone calls and catching up on emails is on to get some entertainment.

Greg Barnhill & Tim Nicols

then over to Seaside meeting hall theater for Tim Nicols  & Greg Barnhill.  Tim Nicols wrote “live like you were dying” which was made famous by Tim McGraw and Greg wrote “House of Love” which was made famous by Amy Grant.  They had a bunch of other ‘hits’ as well but I think those are the most recognizable.   It’s really nice to see the ‘invisible’ guys behind the curtains of the big stars.   Sometimes I think these performances are better than the actual mega-star that sings them because the writers of the songs, actually have a connection to it.  Not that the big stars don’t, but there is actually a true connection between the song and the songwriter that makes it more powerful. At least, that’s what I think.  Or like to think.

Gre and Tim’s show was the last for me that night.  I walked over to the room afterwards and changed my strings for the next day then sat up all night watching Psych.  I started to feel a pain too in the back of my mouth.  Something weird was going on there.  More on that later.

I would like to end this by saying Adam Shiland is awesome.  The awesomenest.  A super hero.  A super model. You should find him and give him hugs and money.  He also has impeccable fashion sense. FYI ladies, he gives johnny depp a run for his money.