New Baron Ward album? My thoughts

Chris has something to say. But, its all vanity, its all...vanity. Wait, I actually DO have something to say!! I really, really enjoy The Baron Ward.

For me: writing, rehearsing, and finally performing music with others has many layers. Layers that are difficult to put into words. The musicians and collaborators I am drawn to result from geographical location, luck, timing, and a few discriminations on my part. A dear friend observed recently "the people that seem to end up playing with you are a very strange, almost specific kind of person…but…I can't quite put my finger…on…"

I cannot control who finds me, or who I happen to find. But to Stick, I know this: I have to "love" your musical style. I have to feel comfortable/free/inspired/unrestrained playing "my" parts. And most, most, MOST of all, if its to last, I have to love the Person that you are. For Music, in her wonderful life-affirming Self, is ultimately about The People behind it. Regardless of what you sing, say, play, posture, perform, pose-behind, Sing: your True Self will always come out, and never be hidden. Music, Herself, cannot lie. From the most celebrated-catchy Pop, to the most vague "jam", any careful human listener can immediately and instinctively and humanly judge you to your inner core, and presume (if they so vainly choose) to decide "what makes you Tick".

Like most artists, musicians, painters, dreamers, writers, dreamers, I have been rejected, patronizingly "told" I'm not good enough, discouraged. I have been discarded in the heat of the moment by people who simply found more pressing priorities in their immediate present. I have been misinterpreted, misjudged, and misled on multiple occasions. And I've always come back to writing Music to smooth into a more comfortable understanding of what it means to be Me. Or Human. Or, whatever.

Today, what this really comes down to is that I think Dors Ward is Top Class. Not only is he Pure of heart and voice, but he makes everyone around him a better person. You can choose to ignore it, but you won't ever deny it. We've been through a lot together over the past decade, ups, downs, and in-betweens. I'm really looking forward to FINALLY putting an album together with him. We have 9 solid songs, we need 3 more.

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Jeremy Loops, from South Africa

I went last night with my friend Karma to the Hawthorne Theater, and we caught an artist from South Africa named Jeremy Loops. Karma's friend and colleague from "the old days" was the bassist/drummer, and thus, her and I were able to get in and meet the band.

The show was PHENOMENAL. The connection with the crowd, the organic movement of the music, the sincerity of the performers, the Power of Positive Lyrics In A Mob of Fans, the thoughtfulness of the musicians, the credit and emotion shared in the group's comraderie...all of this added up to one of the most inspiring intimate performances I've seen since The Avett Brothers at Britt Amphitheater in Medford OR. I CANNOT RECOMMEND JEREMY LOOPS and his touring group enough. Please go see them! Check out their online presence beforehand, if you like, but really, just Go See Them. As soon as possible. BIG THANKS to Sean, Chase, and the rest of the tour crew for being so cool, and to Karma, for giving me a head-up that this incredible show was happening. I caught it at the very last minute (very short notice), and it was well-worth going out of my way. http://www.jeremyloops.com/

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The Baron Ward @ Pickled Fish, Long Beach WA, May 13-14

After an almost 5-year hiatus, The Baron Ward has re-emerged. Dors Ward is an amazing vocalist, and friend, and his time with Portland rockers Broken Soviet really honed his skills as a frontman...and a tambourinist. As it turned out through those years, he had been a welcome guest in almost every project I've worked on (The Tummybuckles, Huge Sally, Friends @ Artichoke, read back in the blogs to get it all!). Also, I followed Broken Soviet quite closely, attending a few shows, and even filming some of them (in secret!). But as for Us being a Formal Duo, well...we're back, apparently. Pickled Fish in Long Beach WA is a wonderful establishment, they host FREE live music every single night of the week. Their hotel is beautiful, their staff is cutting edge in kindness, and their restaurant menu is pretty fancy! Find out more about them here: http://www.adrifthotel.com/...and I HIGHLY recommend booking a visit. Most of the very finest musicians I know that are on the regional circuit have played here...and EVERYONE loves it. If you are interested in The Baron Ward, we have a new Facebook page, courtesy of K8. Search it out and leave a comment! For this debut set of shows, we performed our old material, plus 3 new covers: "The Perfect Space" by The Avett Brothers, "Trouble" by Ray LeMontagne, and most especially, a mostly a cappella version of "Black", by Pearl Jam. This last one was planned as a surprise for Erin, Dors' wife, to fulfill a promise by Dors from a long time ago. She was pleased. We have 4 new original songs that we are working on, and on this run, we.just.might.actually.put.out.a.real.album. Imagine that! Our co-bill these two nights, I should mention, were two VERY classy musicians from the Bay Area in California called Misner & Smith. Please, Please look them up: they are really good, in every way that you'd want a touring musician to be. http://misnerandsmith.com/. We have already started recommending them to our friends in Portland for possible future gig opportunities. Hope to see you soon. I've been out of touch for a while on a scene up here, basically out of it since the Texas trip...but now, just maybe, I'm beginning to come back. We'll see!

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Will Downing Tribute Tour, Feb 2015, Part 3

Well, I am back in Portland Oregon, after 11 days in Texas. William Downing had such a profound effect on the people around him. I heard stories of him as an actor (the CIA tried to recruit him at age 16 after scouting his drama teacher's class); as a budding novelist (he had an idea for a 3-layered story, an idea he only talked about to his cousin Dawn, but never drafted...and she wants to draft it at some point); about songs he had started over the years and never finished (One of these, "Lost and Found", I am going to cover and release at some point); and as a "grumpy man with a beard" (I thought this was hilarious). Ultimately, his family's real happy, and his toil was blessed. My time at La Palapa since Will's passing always feels special. I imagined the first time I went back, it would be really sad...but there was a joy there, untainted by loss, untainted by any change in seasons...the Rio Grande Valley has one of the poorest economies in the nation, and yet, "they've got more freedom and time then they can stand, and everything is turning out just as they planned..." There is an easy love of life going on there, and family, friends, and Culture, including music, get everyone by. I performed 4 Will Downing songs there, for about 100 people, thanks to Bob Coleman ("like the lantern") slipping me into the lineup at the last minute...and of course, Huge Sally got a full, rockin', long-overdue set (it had been exactly one year since we appeared last in the valley)! Jake Riggs was On.His.Game! Once I headed down to Surfside/Lake Jackson, things got really interesting. Among the venues were Wursthaus, a german-themed warehouse-style pub; Dido's, a sea-food restaurant on a river with the classiest, friendliest owners you can possibly imagine; and Bridge Bait, a bayside bait-and-tackle shop that actually had a soundsystem set up for buskers like myself! I got to know William's family down there really well...I hadn't seen them all since William and I (and Megan Cronin and Jake) all travelled out to Brazoria County, and also San Antonio and Austin for a series of Huge Sally, Dirty Street Singer, and Tummybuckles shows in 2010. It was a fantastic catch-up, and a bonding experience through the power of music and memories. Also, I was staying in a house that was literally 100 feet or less from the surf of the Gulf of Mexico. Wow! I would not be the songwriter, performer, or man that I am today if it were not for William Downing's profound example of life. Not only did his music bind us all together, but he showed us all how to love unconditionally, without regard for circumstance, self-made pressure, or even boughts with despair. Before we would all get together, we were floating on air...and then, for weeks afterwards as well. "I posted lost and found all over this town I'm taking you up, on the deal you laid down Our song's in the air, But my ear's to the ground Cuz I really gotta see you and its all over town, Yeah, I really wanna see you and its all over town..."

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Will Downing Tribute Tour, Feb 2015, Part 2 of...

William Downing was my former bandmate, and my friend. I met him after an Evelate show in 2005, outside a suburban dive bar at 2 in the morning. He played a couple songs for me in the parking lot, and his producer, Rob Lewis, asked me if I'd like to help him make a record. I said that William's songs Immediately struck me as brilliant, and I'd love to. We made three albums together over the next 7 years, and Rob also ended up producing Cold-Hearted Bastard (Huge Sally, 2008), and Searchlights In Mexico (2008) with me as well. William's third album never got released; he passed away in May 2012 before turning in the final artwork, liner notes, credits, etc. The recordings, however, were finished and mastered, and the album was to be named "I Ain't So Dumb". William lived his last days in the Rio Grande Valley in south Texas, in the town of Mercedes. He recorded all of his music up in Portland Oregon with me, flown out and executive-produced by Rob Lewis. After his 2nd album, "Claire Avenue", experienced some success, William immediately put his success right back into the community. He helped Huge Sally find our footing: setting up shows, encouraging us, and lighting our fires. The same with Chris Baron Music. And, I even brought The Tummybuckles down to Texas one year, and Will embraced that band as if it were his own. His heart was full, and his head was strong. I remember driving around Texas with him, going between Mercedes, Austin, and Brazoria County, listening to music (I ended up covering "Bandit", from Neil Young's 2006 album Greendale, because it was Will's favorite track), talking about anything and everything, and even handwriting out some of his newer lyrics for me while I took a turn driving. One time, on one drive, we listened to nothing but Claire Avenue the whole time, roughly ten times through, over and over, without a break. He was so proud of that album, and for good reason: it is INDEED his finest work, through and through, in my opinion. I was proud to be heading down to perform a brief tribute set in his former hometown of Mercedes TX last Saturday (Feb 21st). His friends and former neighbors (and some family) set up a music festival at the restaurant La Palapa, where Will used to host open mics and perform regularly, trying to get a scene going. Huge Sally was there, Bob Coleman was there, Ricky Santori (sp?) was there...and a real sweet local Mercedes band called The Texas Sweethearts (look 'em up!). I have been re-learning all of Will's recorded music, and set up a short tour between Mercedes, Houston, Surfside, and Lake Jackson, where much of his family lives. Check out https://www.facebook.com/ChrisBaronPlaysWillDowning, a page created by K8npdx to promote this series! More blogging on all of this later...

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Huge Sally Tour, Feb 2015. Part 1...of...

Being down here in Texas, with my great friend Jake Riggs, is reminding me how silly good music can be. One thing that I've never been able to do is write clever, humorous turns of phrase...all my songs are so serious! Jake and I used to talk about this on tour (our last tour was 2010). He was struggling with the same thing. Too serious, "deep", etc. Some of the great songwriters we know of, William Downing included, had superb serious songs..but also...funny turns of phrase and silly song subjects to go along in the catalog. One thing I'm working on down here is laying the foundation for a new mentality that will foster this kind of creative output. Jake has a couple of new songs that are rather hilarious. I've been covering Will's songs, and several of those have made larger audiences giggle and shuffle as I move through. Next up: Chris Baron will give it a try. So far, I'm not very funny. Rather droll. Ooob. In other Huge Sally news, Huge Sally KICKED BUTT at our first reunion show, @ One2One bar in Austin last Tuesday (Feb 17). Courtesy of Gregg Ware, the same cool owner but in a different (and better?) venue space. Thanks to everyone who came out to support...we had a killer crowd, and it was a very friendly atmosphere. I love One2One. Check out their new location next time you can. Tonight, Friday night, is our main show of the Austin leg, in Bastrop. We leave in 2 hours!

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A Valentine For Richard, Feb 15 2015

Last Sunday night, A Valentine For Richard was staged. Richard Colombo purchased Artichoke Music, along with his partner Jim, in 2006. He transformed it from simply a retail shop into a thriving local community, then a full-on nonprofit school/retail-store/destination-venue. Artichoke has been my personal favorite venue to play at, of all time. It is a Listening Room, and one of the best parts about it is that because of the community that Richard built, there is always a full house, interested to Listen! I first met Richard in 2006 when Jake Riggs and I (Huge Sally) wandered in, looking for a new acoustic guitar for Jake. The very first guitar that Richard and Jim sold was: to Jake! From there, conversations struck up about their room and their stage in the back, and within a few years, I was developing as a songwriter in ways that I had never previously imagined. I was a wild rock and roller back then, and Richard would have me every few months for his Friday Night Coffeehouse series, where he hand-picked 5 performers to play 25 minutes each, hosted, and ran the sound board. My songs and performance ran outside the box, and I never repeated a song, so a lot of good-natured ribbing happened. It was like "oh god, what's Chris Baron gonna try to do this time...?" I got to know members of the local songwriting community here, Eric McEuen showed me how to get the audience to sing along with your song. Paul Sanchez told a story before one of his performances about singing on the playground as an enthusiastic youth, and the people around him telling him "to stop singing...until he got Here" (to Artichoke Music). This spurred my song "This Must Be Artichoke", which is honored to be on the compilation CD Artichoke Nights Volume II, and which has grown to become one of the standard theme songs of the community. At the big event, A Valentine For Richard, on February 15th 2015, Richard formally handed control and direction to a new administrator, so he could focus more on teaching, travelling, and not being an administrator. The new gal, Kathy, has been wonderful so far, and kind to Richard as he struggled with his decision to walk away. I was very grateful, and honored, to be one of ten special hosts on this night. I chose to perform a couple of William Downing songs, "6 Drinks For Rob & Jen", and "I Do What I Want, And Call It My Job", and I even snuck in a cover of a Richard Colombo original instrumental piece from his 2001 album Carry The Dream...called "Hope For Tomorrow"...he was surprised...Got him! At the end of the night, all the hosts, and performers, and a few extra friends (including Megan Cronin), got up onstage to sing "This Must Be Artichoke" along with the entire 150-person room. Richard also got to perform a few songs, and say a few words, and he kept his composure really well. It is an honor to know him, and it was a great privilege to be a part of this incredible, memorable night. Cheers to Richard Colombo & Jim Morris!

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Park Place Cafe, Spud's Bday 2015

Another fantastic night @ Park Place Cafe happened last weekend. I know I am a little late on this blog…but I had some things going on. I originally discovered the small coffee shop known as "PPC" in west Gresham through Doug Henderson, of The Grodie Bros, and Lo-Tech Promotions fame. Spud (as Doug prefers to be called) is an unrelenting, unabashed supporter of live music, and live musicians. He has a built-in ability to bring people together, stoke the community, and inspire the meek. I really enjoy his trio, and each of his bandmates, and I owe a lot to him in my development as a local performer. This night was extra special because it was Spud's birthday. There was cake, presented by "new" owner Omar, and a breathing-room-only crowd…The Grodie Bros opened the night in traditional fashion, ripping through their set for family and friends. I went second, and had the pleasure of being joined by "Piers Von Grodie" on the harmonica for "She Don't Like The Way I Roll" (a Will Downing cover) and being joined by the "Band Von Grodie" for "Down With The Shine" (an Avett Brothers cover). My dear friend and conspirator Dors Ward (formerly of the Portland band Broken Soviet) sang with me on quite a few songs. He is Awesome. Also of note: K8npdx. She was on the camera The Whole Time, and nobody can ask for a better friend and conspirator than K8. She is truly exceptional, selfless, and with a keen eye for excellence. If you are lucky enough to know her, YOU KNOW what I mean. I really appreciate everyone who came out to support Live Music, and to express our undying love for SPUD!

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Don't forget: follow your dreams!

I have always been a big proponent of following your heart and doing exactly what you want to do. It sounds so simple, right? But there are people who spend years—decades, even—trying to find a true sense of purpose for themselves. My advice? Just find the thing you enjoy doing more than anything else, your one true passion, and do it for the rest of your life on nights and weekends when you’re exhausted and cranky and just want to go to bed. It could be anything—music, writing, drawing, acting, teaching—it really doesn’t matter. All that matters is that once you know what you want to do, you dive in a full 10 percent and spend the other 90 torturing yourself because you know damn well that it’s far too late to make a drastic career change, and that you’re stuck on this mind-numbing path for the rest of your life. Is there any other way to live? I can’t stress this enough: Do what you love…in between work commitments, and family commitments, and commitments that tend to pop up and take immediate precedence over doing the thing you love. Because the bottom line is that life is short, and you owe it to yourself to spend the majority of it giving yourself wholly and completely to something you absolutely hate, and 20 minutes here and there doing what you feel you were put on this earth to do. Before you get started, though, you need to find the one interest or activity that truly fulfills you in ways nothing else can. Then, really immerse yourself in it for a few fleeting moments after an exhausting 10-hour day at a desk job and an excruciating 65-minute commute home. During nights when all you really want to do is lie down and shut your eyes for a few precious hours before you have to drag yourself out of bed for work the next morning, or on weekends when your friends want to hang out and you’re dying to just lie on your couch and watch TV because you’re too fatigued to even think straight—these are the times when you need to do what you enjoy most in life. Because when you get right down to it, everyone has dreams, and you deserve the chance—hell, you owe it to yourself—to pursue those dreams when you only have enough energy to change out of your work clothes and make yourself a half-assed dinner before passing out. Say, for example, that your passion is painting. Well, what are you waiting for? Get out there and buy a canvas and some painting supplies! Go sign up for art classes! And when you get so overwhelmed with your job and your personal life that you barely have enough time to see your girlfriend or boyfriend or husband or wife, let alone do anything else, go ahead and skip classes for a few weeks. Then let those paint brushes sit in your room untouched for six months because a major work project came up and you had a bunch of weddings to go to and your kid got sick and money is tighter than you thought it would be and you have to work overtime. And then finally pick those brushes back up again only to realize you’re so rusty that you begin to question whether this was all a giant waste of time, whether you even want to paint anymore, and whether this was just some sort of immature little fantasy you had as a kid and that maybe it’s finally time to grow the fuck up, let painting go, and join the real world because, let’s face it, not everyone gets to live out their dreams. Not only does that sound fulfilling, but it also sounds pretty fun. Really, the biggest obstacle to overcome here—aside from every single obligation you have to your friends, family, job, and financial future—is you. And I’ll tell you this much: You don’t want to wake up in 10 years and think to yourself, “What if I had just gone after my dreams during those brief 30-minute lunch breaks when I was younger?” Because even if it doesn’t work out, don’t you owe it to yourself to look in the mirror and confidently say, “You know what, I gave it my best half-hearted shot”? -by David Ferguson

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Anxiety swells, music comes, eyes glaZe

You can look into a person's eyes, and tell if they are Present, or not. In those glazed-over moments, what goes on? Perhaps it is different for everyone. I have moments when my anxiety starts to swell up. And for me, the music in my head just.gets.louder. Sometimes its a song that I like, concentrated, and I'm feeling safe through waves of detailed memory. Other times, its a song I am jealous of, or otherwise bothered by, and it grates on me, feeling like its pounding in my head unwelcome yet untamable. I think its a defense mechanism to drown out "the noise", and center myself under a childlike blanket. If you are talking to me at a time when this happens (maybe your words are bothering me!), I will seem to blank out for awhile, eyes far away, your voice a distant echo amidst a rich, silent swell of harmony and melody. If nobody is around, it still can happen this way, and I just drift silently with myself. The more my anxiety grows, the louder and more clear the music gets. Its weird! Eventually, though, since everything is eventual, I come back. And that is where my new song begins: "When Will You Come Back?"

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