Local Notes

• On tour in the New England area this summer is singer songwriter Bill Parsons. He will be performing a special concert with 60s folk legend Odetta at Jonathan's in Ogunquit, Maine. Also on tour on the East Coast is Bruce Springsteen sideman Nils Lofgren along with his brother Tom, Wade Matthews and Timm Biery. In between engagements, Lofgren is working on a new album.


• Back home after spending three weeks in the Persian Gulf entertaining U.S. troops is the gospel a cappella group Reverb. The quartet toured Army, Air Force and Navy bases in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain.


• DJ Leslie White has left radio station DC101 and is now at Smooth Jazz 105.9 WJZW. The Local Licks show at DC101 will continue with Buddy Riser as its host. Leslie has been encouraging WJZW to launch a local music jazz show. Nothing is define yet, but for now, music will be accepted on an individual basis. Cassette tapes or CDs should be sent to Leslie in care of WJZW 510 King Street, Alexandria, VA. 22314


• Singer/songwriter Steve McWilliams will host a songwriters' showcase the first Thursday of every month at the Luna Park Grille in Arlington. McWilliams started the showcase as an outlet for Washington area professional songwriters, so that they could experiement with new material and provide an audience with a glimpse into the artistic process. A Wammie Award winner, McWilliams will perform at each showcase, along with two guest songwriters. Those interested in performing in the showcase should send a tape or CD and press kit to Luna Park Grille Songwriters' Showcase 5866 Washington Blvd. Arlington, Va 22205.


• RuffStar Fraze and Bakin' Soda, known as the hip hop group Two Unique, showcased at the North by Northeast music conference in Toronto, Canada. The teenage duo rapped lyrics over a rhythm track and a cappella at the Atlas Club and joined Toronto hip hop group D.O.M. on stage at the Cameron House for a freestyle session.
• The progressive/jazz/rock group Boud Deun has signed with Maryland's Cuneiform Records. Cuneiform, which was established in 1984, has distributed over 80 albums since its inception. The label focuses on progressive, avant-garde and experimental music. Boud Deun's own independent label E.H.P. Records will become E.H.P. Productions and will continue to distribute the group's debut album Fiction and Several Days as well as take care of the band's bookings. Boud Deun is now in the studio working on their first release for Cuneiform, which is expected to be available for distribution in early 1997.


• "Screw the alarm I'm going to sleep in," sang Debi Smith at New York City's Bottom Line club where Shanachie Records and Christine Lavin were taping live performances of some of Lavin's funniest singer/ songwriter friends. Smith contributed Sleep to the upcoming double CD being produced by Lavin titled Laugh Tracks. Using her signature instrument the Irish bodhran, Smith sang Sleep with an Andrews Sisters style backup provided by Sally Fingerett, Christine Lavin and Megon McDonough members of the Four Bitchin' Babes. Smith is the newest member of the Four Bitchin' Babes. My Mother's Hand, another tune penned by Smith, was the first single off the Babes' latest release, Fax It, Charge It, Don't Ask Me What's for Dinner.
• Big Joe Maher booking agent at Fleetwood's, the blues club openned by Mick Fleetwood in Old Towne Alexandria, reports that as of July 7 the club is closed. Reason, "we just weren't making a go of it" said Maher.
• Ruthie and the Wranglers made their national television debut Wednesday June 26 on Prime Time Country on The Nashville Network. The honkytonk/ country/rockabilly based group performed two songs and were interviewed on the program which originates from Nashville.
• Doing their part to make D.C. "A Capital City," contemporary folk artist Steve Gellman and his new group Scatterbeat entertained tourists at President's Park (aka The White House lawn). In return, Gellman and the other performers taking part in the event, received a private tour of the White House plus a Certificate of Appreciation from the President.


• Country singer Cleve Francis has returned to his medical practice as president of the Mount Vernon Cardiology Associates in Northern Virginia. Though no longer touring, Francis continues to be involved in the entertainment industry performing at the 11th Morecambe Annual International Festival of Country Music in Morecambe, England and a TNT Television special "America's Music: The Roots of Country." Still involved in the Black Country Music Association, Francis continues to lobby for a compilation CD box set of Blacks in country music and hopes the project will materialize in February of next year.


• Celtic Thunder appeared on the Monument Stage on August 10 and in Carmichael Auditorium, in the National Museum of American History, as part of the Smithsonian's 150th birthday party celebration. Purveyors of Irish music, band members Jesse Winch, Patrick Ourceau and Linda Hickman have taken part in other projects recently. Jesse Winch joined the Paul Winter Consort in New York for a summer solstice celebration and along with Ourceau, Hickman and Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie performed on the PBS special "People in Motion."


• In late July, Pete & Maura Kennedy stepped of their plane at London's Heathrow airport, and caught a cab directly to Euro-MTV studios, where they taped the British VH-1 program "Take It To The Bridge." The Kennedys also performed at The Borderline, London's top roots music showcase, and spent two weeks touring England and Ireland. Back in the USA, the duo have signed with booking agent Lisa Morrison, of Roxy Entertainment Group in Bloomington, IN.

Larry Strother 1948-1996

Larry Strother, whose fiery tenor saxophone playing contributed to the success of many Washington area bands from the 1960s until the early 1990s, died of complications of respiratory disease April 20 in Fairfax Hospital. He was 48.

Facing health problems, Strother played one of his last performances with the Soul Crackers, a band he co-founded, at the White House for President Clinton's 1993 Georgetown University class reunion celebration.

Strother, who was born in Alexandria, Va., began playing in his teens, had already worked with several popular rock groups on Georgetown's M Street club strip by the time he was graduated from Wakefield High school in Arlington in 1966.

In the late `60s, he worked in area dance music clubs on the then-popular Fourteenth Street corridor, and also toured with artists such as Stevie Wonder and Martha and the Vandellas.

He attended Berklee School of Music in Boston from 1968 to 1970, where he became equally adept on soprano sax and flute. He then spent a year touring nationally and overseas with the road group of the musical, Jesus Christ, Superstar.

In the early `70s, Strother first worked in popular club show bands here such as Octagon and the Eye, which he co-founded.

Later in the decade, he worked and recorded with showcase rock and rhythm and blues groups such as Bill Holland & Rent's Due, Soul Crackers and Root Boy Slim's band, Capitol Offense.

His powerful, full-tilt style on tenor sax was cited in many performance and record reviews, including The Washington Post, Unicorn Times and The Washington Star.

Survivors include his mother, Leanette of Falls Church, Va.; a son, Larry Chris, of Gaithersburg, Md., and a brother, Scott, of Arlington, TX.

The Gathering Field

WAMA Reaches Beyond the DC Area

Nice guys don't always finish last especially if they have songwriting ability, good voices and can produce records. The pop/rock group The Gathering Field has this multi-talent package. Recently signed to Atlantic Records, their first deal with a major label, The Gathering Field will re-release their first album "Lost in America" on Atlantic in August.

Lauded by fans and press for his Jack Kerouac inspired lyrics, singer/songwriter Bill Deasy hopes to interest Francis Ford Coppola in one of the album's songs. "It's not for the visibility, it's because the connection to Kerouac would mean so much," Deasy said. Coppola is currently working on a film a based on Kerouac's generation bending book "On The Road."

The first single from the album is expected to be the title track "Lost in America," and the band is considering several possible music video directors to translate the song to film.

Like Brownie Mary and The Clarks, The Gathering Field has developed a strong D.C. following by playing regularly in the Washington area and on tour dates with area groups such as The Emptys and Vertical Horizon.

Seminars, Conferences, Workshops, Contests

Philadelphia Music Conference '96

The PMC96, to be held October 30 - November 2, 1996, has become one of the fastest-growing conferences in the country. The conference brings together people interested in all styles of commercial music, with an emphasis on rock, hip hop, and acoustic.

Over 200 industry speakers, 45 panels and 400 music showcases will be featured at the three-day, four night event. This year PMC has moved to the more spacious Double Tree Hotel on Broad Street at Locust.

WAMA members are entitled to $10 off the basic pre-registration rate until August 23. After August 23 the rate will be $95. For information call the PMC at 215-426-4109 or write to them at: Philadelphia Music Conference, PO Box 29363, Philadelphia, PA 19125-0363. The PMC96 web address is http://www.gopmc.com or e-mail at info@gopmc.com

Canadian Music Week

Canadian Music Week (CMW) International, a live music festival and music business conference, is scheduled to take place in Toronto, Canada from March 6 - 9, 1997. The music business workshops and seminars will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel while an industry tradeshow and consumer new technology/home entertainment exhibits will be at the Metro Toronto Convention Center. Performing artist showcases are slated at nightclubs throughout the city. Attendance fees start at $425 for an all-access pass, if it is purchased before December 31. Limited access passes start at $175. Bands interested in performing at the festival or appearing on the CMW sampler CD should call 416-695-9236 or fax 416-695-9239 for an application. The web address is http://cmw.com/cmw

Shouse Youth Scholarships

The Wolf Trap Foundation in cooperation with the MetroArts Consortium will award nine 1996 Catherine Filene Shouse Youth Scholarships in the Performing Arts in classical piano, violin and voice. Applicants must be high school juniors or seniors during the 1996-97 academic year and must reside or attend school in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area. The top prize will be $1,500. The deadline to apply is October 25. Call 703/255-1990 for more information.

Emerging Jazz Artists

The Fish Middleton Jazz Scholarship is offering scholarships to emerging jazz artists to further their educational and artistic development. The deadline is October 15. For more information call 301/933-1822.

Resources

The HMV Record Store chain is looking for groups interested in performing at their in-store promotions. Also, unlike other record stores in the area, HMV is accepting placement of independently distributed albums on consignment. Groups interested in placing their product with HMV should contact the store in writing, detailing the dollar value they wish to receive from the sale of each unit and an estimated volume of album sales. To be considered for either opportunity, a demo tape or CD must be submitted to Amy Scott c/o HMV Record Stores 1229 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20007. No phone inquiries will be accepted.