Note!: If this monday is going to be your first coming down to the utah, do not be alarmed by the large number of Bob Dylans in house. You may be tempted to believe you are hallucinating and lay the blame on the suspect al pastor you had at lunch, or you may be tempted to believe you have fallen into an odd Spike Jonze movie of sorts, but no... reality is not as strange as fiction in this case. It is simply the Battle of the Bobs (from here on referred to as botbs) going on this monday at the Hotel Utah. BOTBs you ask? well: its a contest of sorts, and "Best Bob" can mean best looking Bob or best Bob song, but like I've been saying, the winner will most likely be a combo of the two. At midnight or so, we'll all vote (via applause-o-meter) for the Best Bob, and the winner will get exciting and valuable prizes and bragging rights until the next BOTBs. There's a couple of rules: you must be present to vote and win, the actual Bob Dylan is disqualified from entering (yes, I am talking to you), and there is a FOUR VERSE and a FIVE MINUTE limit (whatever comes first) on the Bob Dylan songs and violators will be doused in old spice aftershave and forced to watch "joe vs. the volcano". (seriously though, we all have to work together in keeping things quick and moving in order to be able hear everybody play). If you are not into the dylan - do not worry: the BOTBs will be interspersed with the regular open mic, so even if you're not participating, you should still come on down and play us your songs and say hi.

and if that's not enough, Ralph Dungeon (!!) is the feature this monday. If I close my eyes real tight such that the colors come and I ponder the shapes, I can vaguely make some of them out - is that Elvis? no! Elvis is dead (I think). but then if I listen real close (still with my eyes closed tight and the colors coming), I can vaguely make out some truth in the wo... * what? oh - ahh 25. hmmm? oh - ahhh, you're 32., anyways where was I? right! Ralph Dungeon! Ralph, man, has got a style that's shot straight out of 1950's New York city, and I'm not talking the saccharin glitz of the era's pop voices. No, I'm talking smoky night clubs, hot and sweaty and small and men in jackets, and there's Mr. Dungeon up there growling out the truth to a swing groove, and if you look real close in amongst the wildness and the jazz angst, there's a twinkle in the eye to let you know he's on your side and he's... * what? oh -ahhh, 25. hmm? oh -ahh, you're 27. doubledeck. Hey for more info on Ralph Dungeon (and all the upcoming features), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

check it out: Bidget put together a slide show from last wednesday's Beer Drinkin' Acoustic showcase (with Palefighter, Mary Margaret, Todd Shipley, and Coexist!): http://www.200pockets.com/projects/beerdrinkinacousticseries/2008/13_August_2008/flash.html. Thanks so much Bridget! (I can't say that enough - Bridget's work is priceless)

that's about all I have today. hope you're doing good.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Yeah, the dude plays a shovel! I'm not sure if I can get my head around that: a shovel! with strings and then he plays it! through a loop station! what is this world coming too? Am I now to acquire a house shovel for the utah? Where does one acquire a musical shovel? These are big questions for these crazy times: I mean what's next? a backhoe? are we gonna string up a backhoe and play it through a loop station? am I then to acquire a house backhoe for the utah? I'm big on questions this morning, short on answers. but that's usually the case. Hey, I was at Manny's house concert last night, and I'm going to throw two words out to you: Joey Hebdo. Write that down and stick it on the fridge and thank me later. Anyways, where was I? Every now and then you think you've seen all the shoot* you're going to see. I mean, I've seen Keith Savage do modern dance and I've seen people play the typewriter, and you think to yourself, that's it, seen it all, and you kick back with your beer enjoying the festivities and then, out of the ether, comes Shovelman. and they don't call him Shovelman because he plays the guitar. nahh, like I was saying: the dude plays a shovel! and you know what, he plays that shovel like no other: when he puts the slide on those strings and makes the shovel weep... well, me, I might get a little dusty, but I keep it together because I got the show to run, but shoot, when he's got the slide on those strings and he's singing those old time songs and he's bringing you back the days of LPs and a decade old needle on the living room floor and... well shoot, here I am getting a little dusty again...... hey for more info on the Shovelman and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

This wednesday night (the 13th) is the next installment of the big Beer Drinkin' Acoustic show at the Hotel Utah! I'm really excited to anounce that this month we have Palefighter, Mary Margaret, Todd Shipley, and Coexist (what a lineup!). Doors are at 8pm and its $5. Come on out! - its going to be a great show and it'd be awesome if you could come out and support. On top of catching a great night of music, its important that these shows go well - the Beer Drinkin' Acoustic showcase is the mechanism that allows you to break into the playing shows at the utah. The booker and I set it up as way for artists who come out on monday to develop a relationship with the utah (sometimes it can be hard to break in with a booker and develop a relationship), and this monthly show is ours for as long as there is support for it.

From our East Bay bureau (Bridget): http://gigdoggy.wordpress.com/.

Don't forget about the "Battle of the Bobs" happening at the utah on August 18th. The "Battle of the Bobs" is a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two. Note: there's a 4 verse limit on the Bob Dylan songs. (Brevity is key!).

* this is a family email


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

I guess it may have started with our man Josey Baker and his epic, iconic ode to our fair bartender, but thinking about it, it must have started much earlier, as Josey was just making a detailed reporting of the facts on the scene. Regardless, its encouraging to see that the Main Stream Media has decided to start reporting facts as well, as Laura won 'Most Crushworthy Bartender' in San Francisco in this year's Best of the Bay awards!!! Like I was saying, its encouraging to see the main stream media pick up on what we at the utah have know for years - congratulations Laura! Hey, and congratulations to you as well - all of us at the utah won for "best open mic" too!! very cool.

You know, straight out of the badlands of middle michigan there comes a man who goes by the name of Fancy Dan, and Fancy Dan's got a band (and some dancy fans), and man that band is in demand and so I'll tell you what, here's the plan: tomorrow pm, they're gonna be on hand to jam for our clan down in old san fran as the feature performer at utah open mic! (man). Fancy Dan's got some honky tonk licks to go along with his heart of gold, and we are very fortunate to catch him and his band just before they head off to Nashville to record their new ablum. Hey, for more info on Fancy Dan and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

You know Bridget's wonderful green utah box? - the one with the show info, the cds, the lollypops, the dvd player, and everything else? Well, have a look at this - the green box is now online!: http://www.200pockets.com/links/greenbox.html. This page contains pretty much everything you need to know about everything related to the utah, the artists from the utah, and other open mics too. Its a really amazing resource - you should check it out.

I don't know if you know this, but Linny Kenny is the maker of fine handmade guitar straps. These are not the kind of straps you would ever find at a guitar center or guitar center equivalent - each one is a one of a kind, and they'll easily last 2 lifetimes. If you're interested in learning more about them or buying one, have a read here - she's written up description of her inspirations and her techniques and her contact info is there as well. (or you can just say hi when you see her at the utah...)

Don't forget about the "Battle of the Bobs" happening at the utah on August 18th. The "Battle of the Bobs" is a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two. Note: there's a 4 verse limit on the Bob Dylan songs. (Brevity is key!).



JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody - hope you're doing good. Hey this week's feature at the ol' utah is Jesse Dyen. I'll come right out and say it: I think Jesse is one of the most talented singer-songwriters out there - he combines intelligent and poignant lyrics with some soaring melodies, and he adds a touch of Randy Newman when the situation calls for it. just a touch. Hey for more info on Jesse and all the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Check it out: Bridget put together her photos from the July 7th open mic... you can view them right here: http://theutah.org/gallery. Thanks so much Bridget for all you work in putting together these photo collections.

Don't forget about the "Battle of the Bobs" happening at the utah on August 18th. The "Battle of the Bobs" is a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two. Note: there's a 4 verse limit on the Bob Dylan songs. (Brevity is key!).


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey good morning. JJ here. Hey bad news on last week's recordings... you are probably already painfully aware of this, but I messed the recording last week and the audio quality is low to non-existent. I simply forgot to plug in a mic and this caused all sorts of bad problems.... I know - its a bummer man.

Hey this week's feature is Palefighter. and now one might be tempted gather, based on the limited information of his name, that Palefighter is a bit of a superhero, but this would be a classic example of judging a book by its cover, which we all know is bad (except for when it comes to playboy magazine), because Palefighter is not a superhero (because what's a hero?) - Palefighter is a man and his guitar and a bag full of songs and he sings with such honesty and passion and plays his guitar with such a subtle fury... perhaps there is more to Palefighter than meets the eye, perhaps it is I who am judging the book by its cover, perhaps Palefighter really is The Palefighter. perhaps...

One note on the 'Battle of the Bobs' (BOTBs): as we all know, Bob Dylan is not into the whole brevity thing... but, in order for everybody to get to play, we need a little brevity. And so!: I am adding a FOUR VERSE LIMIT on the Bob Dylan songs at the BOTBs- and best editing will definitely be a criteria. (please forgive my defensiveness:) I know, I know - it sounds a bit 'wrong' to edit another artist's work, but what do we do? - we can't have everybody go up and play for 6 to 10 minutes... many people would go home unhappy, and so we have to do some trading off. and in my opinion, people are more important than hearing the 5th verse of 'the man in me' (as great as that song is). so please know that there's a 4 verse limit in the Battle of the Bobs and violators will be taken out back and given a bad perm and doused with oldspice aftershave. If you have no idea what I'm talking about with this "Battle of the Bobs" business, its a contest of sorts, and its happening at the utah open mic on August 18th. At midnight, the audience will vote and award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song, best looking Bob Dylan, or best editing, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the all those.

Need rehearsal space? I rent a room at Secret Studios, and I have an opening for a subletter. The rent is $150 and the room has a PA, drumkit, couch, fridge, and large rug that really ties the room together. Drop me an email if you're interested.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello everybody. Hope you're doing great. Hey, this wednesday (the 16th) we'll be having the 3rd installment of the Beer Drinkin' Acoustic concert series over at the Hotel Utah - we've got Mike Chase, Schuyler Dean, and Foxtails Brigade on the bill, and needless to say its gonna be a great show and an awesome night of music. For those of you who don't know about this showcase - its a monthly show put together for artists from the utah community as a way for them to develop a relationship with the booker. The booker is giving us the showcase for as long as there's support for it, and so far its been a huge success and hopefully we can keep that momentum going.

This week's feature is Lynn Gentry! Lynn's got one of the richest and most distinctively smooth voices I've ever heard - his voice is like a layer of melted butter spread over his songs, all smooth and warm. Lynn writes with a lot of imagery an emotion and when he sings his stuff and he gets that low vibrato going, what can I say, its like butter. Hey for more info on Lynn and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Don't forget about the "Battle of the Bobs" happening at the utah on August 19th. The "Battle of the Bobs" is a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two.


that's about all I have this week. see you soon-



JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! JJ here. Hey, I am rescheduling the 'Battle of the Bobs'* to August 19th! The idea for this night came from the mind of Ezra Lipp, and he'll be out on tour until the middle of august... so August 19th it is.

This week's feature is Manny Bernal, the keeper of all things fleeting, straight out of Halifax Nova Scotia (or is that Compton LA CA?), but currently residing in Oakland, Manny mixes the poetic lyricism of a modern day Conor Oberst with a punch from his black strat, and every now and then, when the mood strikes, some instant reggae (for the ladies). Its gonna be a (super) great feature from one of our long time friends and I do not advising missing it. For more info on the Manny and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

* The idea is that its a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan (as chosen by the audience). Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two. Anyways, on Monday August 19th it's gonna be a "Battle of the Bobs"**.

I was out last week, and I want to send a big thank you to Mike Chase (and Tyler, GG Tanaka, and Lorenzo Levinger) for filling in for me while I was on vacation. I haven't had a chance to listen to or work on last week's recordings, so no podcast this week (and no updates to theutah.org), but I'll get on it this coming week.

** Bob O'Magic will always be Bob #1. This is really a contest for second place.

The San Francisco Frozen Film Fest is happening next weekend (the 11th through the 13th). The fest is organized by our friends Gabriel and Isaac Woodrow and it looks like they have a killer line up. check out all the details here: http://www.frozenfilmfestival.com.

that's about all I have. hope you had a great fourth and you still have all your fingers (fingers make playing the guitar much easier), and I hope to see you tomorrow.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

hey there. just to ease your shock this monday: I have not tossed out my razor and grown a beard and the long hair, and the person you see holding the clipboard is not me in disguise, nor is it the "legends of the fall" Brad Pitt - it is actually Mike Chase! I'm on vacation this week and Mike Chase will be handling the doubledeck announcing duties. My prediction: there will be a slight increase in "yeah!'s" and a marked decrease in "doot doot doot's" and a good time had by all.

Hey the feature this week is the Jazzman James Frost Winn. I find James to be a fluid and creative trumpeter in own right and even though he's got the chops to wow us with the notes, he knows that music lovers are not concerned with the number of notes played or intricacy of the solo - he's learned at his young age that its more important to be poetic and soulful when soloing and James is all that and more. James is also a bit of a collaborator extraordinaire, and I'll bet he'll be bringing up some of his crew throughout the set. Its gonna be a great feature, and hope you can check him. Hey, for more info on James and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Ezra Lipp had a great idea for the next theme night down at the ol' open mic: Battle of the Bobs. The idea is that its a contest of sorts, and at midnight we'll award a prize for the best Bob Dylan. Now this could be best Bob Dylan song or best looking Bob Dylan, but I'll venture to say that the Best Bob will be a combo of the two. Anyways, Monday, July 28th: it's gonna be a "Battle of the Bob's".

Speaking of "Bests"... this is your last week to vote in the Bay Guardian's Best of the Bay reader's poll: http://www.sfbg.com/bob/2008/, and on page 2 (item 37) they want to know what you think is the best open mic, and so, if you have an opinion on the matter, I encourage you to vote. Me, I went with the utah - my mom says its her favorite open mic in san francisco and that was all I needed to hear. Mom knows best. But hey, that's just one person's opinion. Polls close on July 2nd, and, to repeat my self (again), it'd warm my heart if you voted for us down at the utah.

that's about all I have this week. a big thanks goes out to Mike Chase for subhosting and a special thanks to Kathy Rose for watching my cat while I'm away.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

I'll warn you straight away: lots of stuff this week. lots. But first! (and perhaps most importantly) DJ Real is missing his 'Bruce' sweatshirt. See, DJ Real has this charcter 'Bruce' and 'Bruce' has a special sweatshirt, and DJ Real performed 'Bruce' last monday at the utah, but after his song, the special sweatshirt went missing... Here's a picture of it: http://69.94.17.53/brucepic.htm. If you know of the whereabouts of this sweatshirt, please contact me or DJ Real (http://www.myspace.com/djrealsmells).

This week's feature is Death To The West. Now we all know that having a name such as Death To The West would prevent one from ever successfully running for president, and this name could actually preclude everyone in attendance from ever successfully running for president (example - FOX NEWS: "Were you, JJ SCHULTZ, in attendance when DEATH TO THE WEST played the hotel utah?!?" me: "yes, and not only that, I quite enjoyed it" FOX NEWS: "aaaaha!"). BUT! who wants to be president anyways if it means you cannot not be a fan of Death To The West (from here on referred to as DTTW (or DTW for short)). DTW's got soul in his voice and his worlds and I'm not talking the Blue Eyed or Detroit variety - its more guttural and from the heart and drawing on heartaches etched in the bones like Leadbelly or an Appalachian singing by himself next to his still in the woods. For more info on Death to the west and all the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

Don't know if you noticed, but the San Francisco Bay Guardian is conducting their annual reader's poll, and one of the categories is 'Best Open Mic'... If you've got opinion on the matter, you can vote right here: http://www.sfbg.com/bob/2008/. Like I was saying before, and I may be slightly biased, but I gotta go with The Utah for the simple reason that I know where all my friends are going to be once a week and hey, that's what makes an open mic great - the people coming out and sharing some songs and some laughs - we're really quite blessed. Anyways, like I was saying, it'd warm my heart if you voted for us over at the utah.

From Art Blammo: San Francisco pop band BLAMMOS looks to bring the local independent music community together by exploring and showcasing music videos by other bands, artists and filmmakers. Once again they have teamed up with the Mission Creek Music & Arts Festival to present the 2nd Annual Bay Area Indie Music Video Festival. The event -- Saturday July 19th at Artist's Television Access -- will be hosted by BLAMMOS, and will feature the works of unsigned artists from the greater Bay Area. To submit, your video must be independently produced, under 5 minutes, and sent to blammostheband@yahoo.com via web link no later than July 16th. All genres are welcome and greatly encouraged!

Ever want to break a Guinness World Record? (I personally am going for longest open mic newsletter right now). Check this out: on tuesday, July 1st, there will be an attempt to break the world's largest guitar ensemble - they'll be performing Guthrie's 'This land is your land'. Here's all the details: http://jjschultz.com/guiness.pdf. (thanks to Julie Larson for passing this along).

That's about all I have. see you soon!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! Hey, I don't know what you're up to this wednesday (the 18th), but we're having the second installment of the Beer Drinkin' Acoustic series at the utah. This month we have DJ Real, Courtney Nicole, and Lime Colony! Its going to be a great show and it'd be awesome if you could come out and support.

This week's feature is our old friend Burt Ronk. I find Burt to be a folk singer from the old-school. Much like his namesake Dave Van Ronk, I believe you will find nary a casio organ in his act. What you will find are well crafted and detailed songs delivered with Burt's own brand of panache. Burt's been doing a bit of traveling recently and I'm sure he's going to regale with some stories from the road. Its gonna be good times! Hey, for more info on Burt and the rest of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

So... I was just wondering - what's your favorite open mic in the Bay Area? Me personally, I like the utah: its a great bar, they record your songs, the host is quite handsome, etc. Anyways, the Bay Guardian is conducting the annual "best of bay" reader's poll, and one of the categories is "Best open mic". (!) You can express your preference and do all the voting online right here: http://www.sfbg.com/bob/2008/. Needless to say, it would warm my heart if you voted for us over at the hotel utah.

that's about all I have. see you tomorrow!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there. Hey, I'm not sure if you were watching the MTV last week, but the True Life episode featuring Keiko (with bits filmed at the Utah aired). In case you missed it, you can view it on the 'internet' right here: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1586148&vid=236311. The segment that features the utah (and possibly you) is this one: http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1586148&vid=236397 (the segment that has the utah starts with 2:45 left).

This week's feature is Leslie Rafferty and her band. Now I don't how she got them, but Leslie's got the blues. and I'm not talking mentally here - she's got them in voice. Its hard for me to describe what Leslie does when she sings - she definitely channeling something or somebody. I'm not into the hocus pocus or anything like that, but when Leslie sings, its a magical thing and it never fails to raise some goose bumps in the upper middle of my back. Needless to say, I'm very excited to have her and her band feature this monday at the utah. Its gonna be great. For more info on Leslie and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Check this out: Slim put up a new Hotel Utah page on his openmic documentary site: http://www.theopenmic.net/hotelutah208. The videos were shot at the Feb 11th open. They came out really good - he used two cameras and an audio feed from the sound board. Thanks a lot Slim!

Rhapsody is doing a songwriting contest with Coors Light. They're soliciting song writers to write lyrics for a song titled "Catch the 4:53 to Happy Hour". The winner gets $5000 and will have their song recorded by Seattle's indie roots band Westerly. Here's all the details: http://rhapsodyextras.com/coorslight/contest

that's about all I have. see you soon.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody. hope you're doing good. I'll bet our friends from Girl's with Guns are doing quite good as well as they no fooling are touring with green day right now. We all know how hard Lani works, and so its great to see it paying off for her. and me, I'm not exactly touring with green day, but I did hang out with Neil Howard and Frank Rathbone last night, and that was cool too.

...and speaking of features, this week we're going to hear from Miriam Speyer. I think Miriam's great - when I listen to her music, I hear some silky latin tinged beats and I find that her voice has a bit of the yin yang going on (much like sweettarts or icyhot) - its both strong and forceful, but with an occasional touch of vulnerability. Its a really beautiful combination. Miriam is also a collaborator extraordinaire, and I think she's going to be bring a number of different musicians to accompany her. I think its gonna be great stuff. for more info on Miriam and all of the upcoming features have a look here http://theutah.org/features.

I can't remember if I mentioned this before or not, but I've got a new way of assembling the podcast. Here's the new way: on saturday, I take all named (not named 'Title Unknown') and shared songs from the previous week and assemble them for the podcast. So, if you want to reach our vast podcast audience, just share and name your song by saturday.

Also, if you've had any trouble at all with the website - if you've had trouble registering, listening, sharing, whatever, please let me know. If you're having a problem, other people probably are as well, and that's no good.

see you soon -


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

hello! hey, I don't know if you're aware of this or not, but Slim Critchlow is broadcasting his open mic documentary videos on the TV on Channel 28 out of Berkeley. The "Live from Hotel Utah" show ran all last week and will run again in July. I'm sorry I didn't get the word out on this sooner so you couldn't watched it, but a big thanks goes out to Slim for getting this up there.

This week's feature is Alana Sveta. Now in a sane world that would be all the introduction needed. I would say "Alana Sveta's featuring" and your mouth would go agape and your brain would go !!!! and you would make darn sure you got to the utah this monday. ...but we all know the world's a crazy mixed up place, and so you might not be aware of what I speak of. If this is the case, if you have not heard Alana sing, I truly feel bad for you. Not pitty (because people don't like pitty), but empathy (because people like empathy), because you've been missing out on one of the most expressive, soulful voices to come around in a long time, and this doesn't even mention her songwriting (which is exquisite). If you haven't heard Alana, tomorrow night, this monday, is your chance to discover what's been missing in your life (that slight ache in your heart - that's the lack of Alana), and if you have heard Alana, I'll see you tomorrow. For more info on Alana and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

Hey, the Fur bearing animals out of Vancouver (BC) are going to be in town from May 29th to June 8th and are looking to do a little show swapping (have them open for you out here, you open for them in Vancouver). Drop them a line at http://www.myspace.com/furbearinganimals if you're interested.

that's about all I have this week. hope you're doing good.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there - How's it going? Hey, the booker at the Utah asked me to put together a monthly showcase for musicians that I meet through the openmic - he thought of it as a path for the artists who are new to the SF scene to develop a relationship with him. (sometimes its hard to get through to a booker and put together a show if the booker doesn't know you and if you haven't played the club before). Anyways, the first of those monthly showcases is this Wed - the 21st, and we'll be hearing from Kelly McFarling, Not an Airplane, Great Girl's Blouse, and Nutarah. (what a lineup!!). The doors are at 8pm and the show starts at 8:30 and its a $5 door. The booker is giving us the third wed. every month for as long as the show is supported and does well - I'd really like to make it go forever and have it be a reliable way for artists who come through the open mic to get some traction with the booker.

This week's feature is Brian Byrnes. I'll tell you this, only because I think its indisputable: Brian Byrnes is one talented dude. (I was going to cuss there, but then I remembered the family nature of this newsletter). Brian is really rare talent - the man's got such wonderful sense for melody and the funk, and he makes it all look so effortless - he plays these brilliant soulful tunes as if he were merely exhaling. come check him out this monday. For more info on Brian and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

We get a lot of performers from the East Bay over at the utah and that is really cool. It takes some extra effort to get over to west bay - and not only that, but it's much easier to get to the utah than to get home as the bart conveniently stops running at around midnight. This genius public transportation policy results in a number things for us at the utah: either the performer has to leave prior to midnight, the performer has to drive home after hanging out at a bar for a number of hours, or, if the performer drove, they usually end up driving a bunch of their friends home. Bridget and I have been brainstorming on how we can get the performers home safely, and one idea we've been thinking about is having a van service from the Utah to the East Bay bart stops. Just to get the conversation started, here's one way it could work - the van could leave the utah after the last performer, stop at east bay bart stops and cost $5. We'd subsidize the rest of the costs through the utah fund. Anyways, please email me back and let me know if you would use this service or if you have any better ideas on how to get the artists safely home.

that's about all I have. Hey, I'm playing at the utah tonight (saturday) with my band. Its my birthday party show and it'd warm my heart to see you there. Its also Manny's birthday - and he's on the bill too, along with Andy Mason and GG Tanaka. Hope to see you soon -



JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! I forgot to mention this last week, but I want to give a big thank you to Eric Goodfield for assembling and producing the DVD of Jeremy Hill's memorial night. The DVD looks beautiful - it has footage that he and Slim Critchlow filmed that night, and I think its a priceless gift for Jeremy's family. Thanks a lot Eric and Slim.

This week's feature is Courtin' Disaster! Yeah - I love Courtin Disaster! They sing the country death songs like no other. I'm not sure if that's a proper genre name or not, but what the heck. They also sing the country life songs like no other as well. But Country Life is a magazine (or perhaps that's country living). Either way, Cara, Gary, and Loonabide spin some wild tails in three part harmony and it takes me back to the days when the appalachians were still wild and the moonshine still made you blind. Its going to be an excellent feature. For more info on Courtin' Disaster and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

I'm changing the way I select the songs for the podcast. I don't quite remember how I did it before, but here's the new way: I'll include all shared songs that have a song name (other than 'Title Unknown') - so, if you'd like to be included on the podcast and reach literally tens of listeners, just share and name your song by sunday. If you don't know how to share or rename your song, just drop me an email and I'll help you out.

Also! if you have a cd for sale, be sure you add it to your myutah page - if you add it to your myutah page, it automatically gets listed in our cd listings: http://theutah.org/cds. (related: Christmas is just around the corner, and what makes a better gift that the gift of music? We've got all your utah cds right here: http://theutah.org/cds)

see you this monday!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! Hey, this week's feature is Skeleton Television! The thinking man's or woman's punk rock outfit straight out of oakland. I don't know what that means, but its sure fun to say and it seems to fit. Mike, Bennett, and Zach are bringing this monday down at the utah and I guarantee its gonna be awesome. Hey more for info on Skeleton Television and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Congrats to Jen and Bob! The wee Faith-O'Magic has got rock and roll in her genes and some shoegazin' in her heart.

that's about all I have tonight. hope to see you soon!

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello all. Hope you're doing good. I'm about three beers in, so I'm doing good too. Hey, I don't have a lot new this week. (aftshadowing: your guide to quality literature), but I just want to remind you that if you haven't done so already go here: http://theutah.org/myutah or here: http://theutah.org/search. Its the way of the future and we all want to hear your songs.

Hey this week's feature is the Lime Colony. Couple months ago, Kelly McFarling turned me on to the Avett Brothers (I know, I know, even though I subscribe to No Depression, I was late on the Avett Brothers). Anyways, Kelly gave me a few of their CDs, and man, I would listen to those fellas all the time, and they were my new favorite, even though everybody I talked to about them was already aware: "yeah, the Avett Brothers. Where've you been?". Same thing happened to me with Anchorman. Saw it way too late. Nobody wanted to talk about it. I'm digressing here. Anyways, one day the Lime Colony gave me their CD and man it was right up my alley and I listened to that album over and over and I forgot all about the Avetts. These fellas are right up there with their sweet harmonies and meth-ish hooks with a little of the country noir and man its good stuff. I sure hope they record some more soon. Anyways, I am very excited about this feature and you should come on out and check them out. For more info on Lime Colony and all the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

For whatever reason, I find this to be fascinating: http://blog.wired.com/music/2008/04/a-scientific-at.html.

Hey, this thursday, the legendary 924 Gilmore is having an acoustic openmic: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/499259. This is a rare opportunity to play at this legendary venue. I would recommend going to see Stitchcraft at Amnesia (http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/468759/) and then heading over to 924 Gilmore.

that's about all I have this week. hope to see you tomorrow!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! Big news this week: I'm introducing a new way for your to get your utah recordings. In short, if you play at the utah, you'll be able to access your recordings one or two days later by going here: http://theutah.org/search, or on your own myutah page - here's Courtney's for example: http://theutah.org/artist/courtneynicole. You have your own - go to the search page and search for your name - you should see your stuff. I've got everything going back to 2005, so if you've played at the utah in the last 3 years, you should see your stuff. (Although 2005 is a little spotty, as I didn't come every monday, and I usually didn't stay all night).

Once you see your songs, you'll probably say 'great, I can see them, but I can't listen to them'. In order to listen to your songs, you first must login (and register) - you can do that by going here: http://theutah.org/myutah. In the future, you can always access your stuff by going to http://theutah.org/myutah. Your songs are linked to your email address, so please register with the email address at which you receive the newsletter.

Tips:
- by default, only the performer(s) can listen to their songs - nobody else can listen to them... Unless you 'share' them. Once you've logged in, each song has button labeled 'Share' - clicking this button will make the song public and allow everybody else to listen to it. My hope is that people make as many of their songs public as possible.
- if can't listen to your performances after registering and logging in, this means that I didn't know your email address and wasn't able to link your songs up. To remedy this situation, just click the 'This is my song - let me listen to it' button on one of your performances. - I'll link the songs up to your email and you should be good to go.
- if you click on a performance date, you'll be shown a list of all performances for that date
- if you click on a song name, you'll be shown a list of all performances of that song

If you have a questions or problems, please drop me an email and let me know.

I'm also very excited to announce that Jeanne Foss is featuring this week down at the ol' utah. Jeanne means a lot different things to me - poet, neighbor, chestnut cooker, and not least of all: brilliant singer-songwriter. She sings (what I think are) highly personal songs with a quiet passion and a subtle fury that never fails to pull me right in and connect with what she's saying. and I usually do very much connect to what she's saying. (especially the do-do-list song.). I remember one of the first times I saw Jeanne sing at the utah, and she said something that I think of often, and not just when I'm performing: she was on stage and she reminded herself not to forget to breathe. I honestly think of that all the time, especially when it seems I forgetting to breathe or I'm a little worked up. anyways, I digress. Its going to be a great feature. For more info on Jeanne (and all of the upcoming features), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

Couple more notes on the new website
- If you click the 'I love this performance button' - the performer will get a note letting them know. I don't tell them who loved it- I just let them know that they were loved.
- If a song isn't shared but you want to hear it, you can click the 'Ask performer to share song' button. I'll let the performer know that somebody (or some people) want to hear the song, and hopefully they'll share it. Again, my hope is that people share as much of their stuff as possible
- I can't pay songwriter's royalties, and so I can't have cover songs on the site - if you see a cover song that's been made public, please click the 'More>>' button, and then the 'No rights' button. Covers of other utah performers are cool - as long as the songwriter is cool with the song being public

Wow! you're still reading? that's great. There were a lot of reasons to put the website together, but the big reason is I would record the entire show, and then fit as many songs as I could onto a cd. Since I could only get about 1/5th of the performers on the cd, that meant that 4/5ths of the performers were getting no benefit from the recording. That's no good. I also didn't like having to choose what songs got on the cd and what songs did not - it was inherently unfair and I always stressed about that. Also, 25 cds a week (x5 years!) is a lot of paper, plastic, and ink (and money). The servers to run the new site cost about the same as what I was spending on cd materials.

You'll probably notice the ads on some of the pages... The servers cost ~$100 a month to run. My goal is to make the website sustainable, such that it doesn't rely on me writing a check for $100 a month. I ain't gonna be around forever to do that, and so I need to find a way to make the site pay for itself. The ads are a step in that direction. I open to any ideas you have as well.

I built the new website starting from scratch about a year ago - I mostly wrote it on my daily bart commute - banging out code in 30 minute shots. I'm pretty excited about the results and the opportunities it opens up. My goal is at some point to get other open mics posting their music up here, and to have it be a well known aggregation point for live singersongwriter performances. If you have any ideas on where to take all this, let's talk.

You may find some bugs with the website or find some things to be less than clear. I you have any problems, please email me and let me know. I was the sole designer, developer, quality assurance, etc. on the project, and so I'm sure there's some things I've missed or that I haven't made as clear as I could have.

The downside of all this progress is I'm going to cease putting out a cd every week... My apologies go out to all those who do not have internet access and for who the cd was the optimal music distribution method...

that's about all I have. Hope to see you monday -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! how's the weekend? I got a little sun, myself. Its a true fact that my shoulders have not seen sunlight for almost 6 months - they didn't get any this weekend either, as I prefer the farmer style tan, but there was the opportunity. And that's I can ask for in a weekend - opportunity.

Now, I don't know if he eats honey sandwiches or he just drinks it straight for the bear shaped bottle, but Roz King, this week's feature at the 'ol utah has got some honey in his voice there. His voice is so rich and smooth with a shot of whiskey in there too, I could listen to Roz sing all day long. Now, you may be asking yourself: one trick pony? A: no! Roz couples some fine songwriting with that voice - he writes them songs just like I like 'em. He's got some characters in those songs, he's got some trailer parks, and he's got some booze. That's country music right there. I hope Roz doesn't mind me calling his stuff country, because, as a fellow 'country' artist myself, I know how stigmatized that word can be. Let me calm your mind: Roz plays the good kind of country, before pop music producers went and screwed it all up. But I digress. Hey, this is going to be a really special feature this week. Hope to see you out. For more info on Roz and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features

Hey, the maestro Adam Balbo's going on tour. He's got all his gigs listed on his myspace there - http://www.myspace.com/adambalbo. If you know anybody in those towns he's hitting - get the word out. We here in San Francisco all know the degree of awesomeness that Adam delivers with his guitar, and it'd be good if the rest of the country did as well.

That's about all I have this week. (Those italics were a bit of foreshadowing. To quote Opus the penguin - "Foreshadowing: your guide to quality literature". Anyways, I have big news next week.)

see you soon -


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody... sorry I'm a little late with the ol' email. I took the week off from making the cd/podcast, and so I guess that bit of laziness bled over into the newsletter writing. Hey, this week's feature is Great Girl's Blouse - a powerful, rocking duo last from Minnesota. If you've been coming around, you know what I'm talking about with the GGB - Amy's got a voice that reminds me a lot of Linda Perry back in the day. She really knocks me back when she opens up. hey, you know, I am bit of a vocal snob when it comes to doing sound - I prefer to have the vocals way out in front of the guitars, because I like to hear what people are saying, and I admit that I'm a bit guilty of neglecting the guitars a bit. Well, Jason brought it to my attention that his bass was a little low in the mix, and at first I was thinking "yeah yeah yeah, 'more me', I get it", but then I started cranking him up, and well come to find out: I've been screwing up all this time! this man is one of the finest bass players I've heard down at the utah - he's up there squeezing it like Brian Ritchie, and I'd like to formally apologize to Jason and everybody - never again will I neglect the bass guitar. Wow, two apologies in one email - I must be at step 8 or something. Anyways, I can't wait to hear what Amy and Jason got cooked up for tomorrow. Its gonna be a great feature. For more info on GGB (and all the upcoming features!), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

that's about all I have tonight. see you tomorrow -


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hola! hey, big stuff this week. Yeah, was reading the New York Times this morning, as I do, cosmopolitan guy that I am, and hey - there's ol' Fancy Dan right there - travel section, page 10. Very cool. Now, in my opinion, Fancy Dan should be the style section (or perhaps the business section...) (Fancy Dan being, as one would say in late '90s LA, so money), but Travel's good too. Especially if you're from New York. They got some photos up on the web too - Manny B, Dave G, and Chris Stroffolin and the aforementioned Fancy Dan! (and the back of Michael Loebs' head). Plus, not to be outdone, Michael Koppy has a sweet writeup on the Gibson Guitars website.

Hey, this week's feature is Eugene AKA Otto Graham AKA The Hellbender AKA John Merker, and I'm not 100% confident that John Merker is his real name either, but that's the one he seems to use most consistently, although Eugene works pretty well too. This is all beside the point. Hey, you ever walk around just, like, screaming? Top of your lungs. No particular reason, just screaming? Maybe smashing some stuff*. Me neither, but when I think about what that would be like, you know, the feeling of reckless abandonment, the who gives a darn*, the wild energy - I think this feeling is similar to how I feel when I watch the hellbender Johnny Merker. He can draw the crazy feeling out of me a little bit, and, cosmopolitan guy that I am, I keep it under wraps, but its good to know its still there, you know? He's got style that I'd like to call punk, but I don't know what punk is anymore its so overused, mixed with a little Paul Anka, and I don't what Paul Anka means anymore, its so overused - you know, I don't think there's a need to put labels on the Johnny Merker, just come check him out this Monday. Hey, for more info on John Merker, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.

*this is a family newsletter

One important note: Johnny Merker requested that he start his feature at midnight, and, cosmopolitan guy that I am, I said "cool". So - the feature starts at midnight this monday - right after I announce the street cleaning.

that's about all I have. see you tomorrow!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there - hope you enjoyed the easter weekend all that. Easter kind of snuck up on me this year, and, sadly, I did not have a single easter egg or jelly bean. I'm a little bit sad about that, to tell the truth, but I having trouble my finger on why and what it all means. Existential crises aside, we got an open mic going on this monday, and not just any open mic: its the Hotel Utah open mic, and if that's not enough, we've got Samuel Eli Victor (esq) on the feature! Hey, I heard from a very reliable source that Samuel Eli Victor (esq) wishes for us to dress in red this monday, red being his favorite color. (or, as the Enlish would say: favourite colour), and who are we to deny this wish, on his feature day of all days.

For those who don't know Samuel Eli Victor (esq): #1. where've you been? #2. I think he's a bit of an old-soul, and I have no idea what that means, but I do know what it sounds like. When he gets that far away look in his eye, and his perennial smile darkens to a more serious glower (I gotta say its a cheerful glower, but a glower none the less) and he starts to sing, one becomes aware that he sings from a place in his brain where there are no mp3s and emails and the other trappings of this modern life, and the simmering rage and delicate screams he so beautifully emits transport me there - where things were was more basic and direct and where Easter would not pass without at least one egg. or jelly bean. or peep. Hey, for more information on Samuel Eli Victor (esq), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

Quick summary: Easter, wear red, Samuel Eli Victor (esq), quick summary.

that's about all I have. see you tomorrow.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody. Yeah, little late this week with the email. The weekend kind of got away from me... I'll leave it at that. Hey, this week's feature is Kathleen Dunbar. Kathleen was going to feature last month, but she got walloped by that flu that was going around. I'm really excited about Kathleen's feature and I'll tell you why. (there's a couple of reasons actually). I find that Kathleen is a bit of a conjurer when she sings - she's got some rich characters walking around in her brain and when she sings out they come and I don't usually get into the hocus pocus, but its kind of a magical thing. She's got such a beautiful voice and she's got a bit of the vibrato and she's equally adept whether she's singing a cappella or with her band, and I think she's bringing at least her guitar player with her this monday. This is going to be a really cool feature, and I hope you come and check Kathleen out.

Bridget has released the photos from the 3/3 openmic (Gary Butterwick's feature!). Check them out here: http://theutah.org. There's some really cool shots in there. Thanks so much Bridget - hey, if you like the work Bridget is doing, she supports her operation by donation and through the sale of prints.

Thats about all I have today. Hope to see you this monday!

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody - hey wasn't last monday cool with all the new songs! I thought the room felt especially warm and supportive and I was really blown away by all the new stuff. I've got some of the songs up here http://theutah.org/listen.html - have a listen when you get a chance. (it was a really great night)

This week's feature is Lorenzo Levinger. Lorenzo was growing his beard out for while and you know it gave him kind of this Moses the early years look, which I found entirely appropriate given how much his song delivery reminds me John Prine. He's got that plaintive and expressive voice and the sad songs but always always a twinkle in the eye to let us know that its gonna be ok. Sitting here, listening to all the Lorenzo songs I could find, it puts me in the mood to brew up some more coffee and give my parents a call or possibly look up some old friend who I haven't talked to in a while. I not sure what that all means - I'm just telling you how his music makes me feel. (Perhaps this is just my own personal reaction). Hey, this is going to be great feature and I hope you can make it out and have a listen. For more info on Lorenzo and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

Bridget has come out the slideshow from the 2/25 openmic (the night Brooke Brown Saracino featured) - check them out here: http://theutah.org/gallery.html. Thanks so much Bridget - we're so fortunate that you take the time to do this.

That's about all I have this week. Hope to see you this monday!


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody. how's it going? Hey, this monday night is new song night over at the utah - this is where you debut what you've been working on. I know I know, some people write new stuff all the time and so this night's no big whoop for them - but for people like me, sometimes having a goal and a date in the calendar helps me wrap things up and say "ok, that song there, that's a song".

This week we've got Mr. Gary Butterwick as the feature performer. Gary is a supremely talented singer/songwriter hailing from Michigan (ever notice how many ex-michigander's come to the utah?) (well, if you haven't, there's a lot!) (I don't know the reason). He's got a really cool style of songwriting - he uses a lot of bouncy chord progressions that give the songs kind of a grooving, walking down the street waving at people kind of feel. He sings a lot about stuff going on in his life and his songs never fail to tell a story. Its going to be a really great feature this monday - I hope you come check it out. For more info on Gary and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

that's about all I have today - hope you're doing good.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello everybody, how's it going? Hey, this week's feature is Brooke Brown Saracino (sera-'see-no!). Now I'm going to digress for a sec, but I think it worth discussing: I think Brooke was riding in the car with Roger Rocha when he cut off that Gypsy in traffic, because for whatever reason, Brooke is cursed with bad number luck. But this week, this is not a problem, because she's the feature! Excellent. Brooke is talented and quite polished folk singer with a voice that always surprises me with its nuance and depth. She's very talented this Brooke Brown Saracino and its gonna be a great feature. For more info on Brooke and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Hey, Bridget put together an excellent musician's resource page: http://www.200pockets.com/links/musicresources.html. She's got all sorts of helpful stuff up there to help you promote your music and to get your music copyrighted. (Bridget is so awesome)

March 3rd is new song night! That's where we're all playing a new song - that night. I'm not sure how to better explain it... well, that's about all I have this week. hope to see you on monday.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody. Hey, I'm not trying to cause a ruckus or anything, but I just got word from Dave Gursom that Smilin' Dave Fish is in town and is gonna be coming down to the utah this monday. Man, I haven't seen Smilin' Dave Fish over a year, I wonder what he's been up to... Dave also wanted me to pass on that, in order to properly commemorate the return of Smilin' Dave Fish, we're all going to wear cowboy hats. That's right: this monday will be cowboy hat night over at the utah.

Hey, in addition to the cowboy hats, we got a feature performer going on. Sadly, our scheduled feature performer, Kathleen Dunbar, has fallen ill with the flu and we've rescheduled her to 3/17, but, as the saying goes, when one door closes another door opens, and while I have not, through controlled experimentation, found this to be true, I do like the thought behind it. And so! (no more ado), this week Mr. Steve Arnsten, is filling in for Kathleen. Yep, you heard it here first. Steve really needs no introduction - he's a traveler, a friend, and a masterful piano player who is able to quiet the rowdiest of rooms with just a few key presses. Hey plays a bit of Chopin, Bach, and (my favorite) Show-pan. A bit of Mozart too. But now, as otherworldly as Steve is on piano, and he is hyperbole free the finest piano player I know, I find him to be an even better poet, and I truly hope he shares some of his words with us tomorrow. His words bite and then sooth and pour out of him and get me all excited. Anyways, its going to be a wonderful, wonderful feature, and I hope you come out and see it. For more info on Steve and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

Bridget sent me the slideshow from the February 4th open mic (Kelly McFarling's feature). Have a look here: http://theutah.org/gallery.html. It looks so good - thanks Bridget!

Reminder: on Monday, March 3rd, we're having 'New song night'. That means that if you're like me, and sometimes need a little something extra to complete a song, March 3rd is that little something. We're all going to be debuting the new stuff.

Hey, one week from today (February 24th), there's a big Utah related show over at the ol' Cafe Du Nord: Fancy Dan's playing, Oona's playing, Fleeting Trance is on that bill, and me and my band are on it too. It's gonna be such a great show. A chance to perform at Cafe du nord is a really big deal to me and the rest of the bands on the bill, and it'd be wonderful to see you out there. (it'd warm my heart). (doors are at 7pm and music starts at 7:30 sharp). Here's all the info: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/426239/.

One further note: I screwed up when recording last week's show, and a bunch of noise got in the line... I denoised it and eq'd the best I could, but recording quality is still a bit subpar. Its a good thing the performances are stellar - I found once I started listening, I forgot all about the noise, and didn't really hear it again until it went away. Anyways, sorry about the messed up audio.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there. hope you're doing. Hey so March 3rd is my 2 year anniversary as host over at the utah, so I was thinking it'd be fun to do another song theme night... I was thinking of making this one really simple: brand new song night. As in, I think we should all write a brand new song this month and play it on 3/3. My reasons for having this are somewhat selfish in that I haven't been writing and I need to get my butt in gear, but I think other people are like me could use a little extra motivation to put pen to paper. So anyways, yeah, March 3rd: new song night.

Hey this week's feature is none other than Corey Hennessy. Corey has been coming to the utah for years and years and I am really excited that he's finally featuring. Now usually when I talk about an artist, I like mention who that artist reminds me of (for example: "if you like Gillian Welch, you'll love Kelly McFarling"), but with Corey, its a bit more difficult, as I think he might be from outer space. Mars, Jupiter, perhaps Canada - who knows? But I think I can truthfully say this: Corey is a piano man totally unlike any other piano man you ever heard. His lyrics are fancyful and tell us story, and he delivers them with such glee and excitement - these stories of weird times just burst out of him and out over the piano and I can't help but smile when I listen, and like I was saying earlier, I've been waiting for this feature for a long time and its gonna be a great one. For more info on Corey (and all of the upcoming features), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

That's about all I have. Hope to see you on monday -


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey there everybody. Hope you're doing good. Hey, just a quick note to let you know what's happening down at the utah this monday, and what's happening is this: Kelly McFarling is featuring! Kelly reminds me of slightly more expressive Gillian Welch - and I'm pretty sure I'd feel this way even if Kelly wasn't performing a Gillian Welch song the first time I heard her. I hear a real plaintive streak in her voice and just a slight hint of a rasp - not so much that it takes over, but just enough to scratch the back of your spine and get the goosebumps and the chills going. She blends covers and originals so seamlessly that I usually guess wrong (me: "who wrote that?" kelly: "me") and I think she could just as seamlessly share the stage with most anyone at the hardly strictly bluegrass and perhaps someday she will. But not this monday... this monday she shares the stage with you and me down at the utah. Hey for more info on Kelly (and all of the upcoming features), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

That's about all I have this week. Hope to see you tomorrow.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello everybody. good morning. Hey, can you believe that 2008 is already 1/12th over? Man time flies... I'd suggest, before 2008 gets away from you, coming down to the Hotel Utah and seeing all your friends and playing us a song. Me, personally, I'd love to hear what you've got cooking (and there's a whole Hotel Utah full people just like me).

Hey this week's feature is Billy Banks and I'll tell you what, this is going to be like a clinic in how to let a song flow through your body and mind and out through your finger tips. Billy has a special talent for communicating with his guitar, and you can feel just what he's saying without him saying a word. When he gets into his song and starts picking that guitar, the crowd gets real quite and they lean in and its always an intense and captivating moment. Its gonna be good stuff this monday night. Hey for more info on Billy (and all of the upcoming features), have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

One more thing! if you've got a show coming up, you can add it to our website and it'll be seen by literally hundreds of people (ok, maybe a hundred people). We manage all of our show listings through upcoming.org - its just a matter of tagging your show as being part of theutah group. Here's some instructions for how to get your show up there: http://theutah.org/addshow.html.

that's all I've got. Hope you're doing good.


JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello! good morning. hope you're doing ok. I've been down with the flu for a while - wow, it really took me out! (and now I'm left with this Incredible Hulk/Tom Waits'y voice - I should quick record some songs while I have it). Anyways, a big thanks goes out to Michael Loebs for hosting in my absense last week.

Hey this week's feature is Courtney Nicole. I find Courtney's songs and her songwriting style to be so powerful, but I think the real power of performances comes from the manner in which she sings them. She delivers these songs in with a Edith Piaf'ian voice that is song strong but at the same time has this venerability to it - you can't help but be swept up and captivated. Its gonna be good stuff this week over at the utah. For more info on Courtney and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Slim Critchlow put together a page dedicated Jeremy Hill over on his theopenmic.net website. Check it out here: http://theopenmic.net/jeremyhill. He's got videos from Jeremy's memorial show up there and a bunch of Bridget's photos up there and it looks real good. Hopefully his friends and family back home will check it out and get a glimpse into what he meant to us out here.

That's about all I have this week. Hope to see you on monday!

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody... hope everybody's doing ok. Hey, this week's feature is Oona! Oona's got a voice that's straight from an old sepia toned movie - its classic and full and warm and very alluring. She sings about passion and anguish and bliss with that signature voice and her signature zest and I'm really excited to hear her feature. I think she's playing with her band: Oona dos tres! My predicton: a feature not to be missed. For more info on Oona and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

see you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody - how's it going? I'm taking down the tree today, so that's it: now its just plain ol' winter. Hey, thanks to everybody who came out on the 17th for Jeremy Hill's memorial... it was an emotional night for all and it was difficult night for me to work through, but when I got home that night I don't think I've ever felt closer to my friends down at the utah and I really felt the importance of the community that we've all built. Having everybody there talking about Jeremy and playing his songs - it really helped keep his spirit alive for me and I'm sure many others. That night, you all donated 830 bucks to help Jeremy's father deal with the financial side of the funeral, so a big thanks for that. This coming monday (1/7), we're going to bring back the journal for everybody to sign and we're going to assemble photo albums for Jeremy's family. We'll mail the journal and photo albums off to Michigan after this monday so Jeremy's family can have a glimpse into his life and family down at the utah.

Hey speaking of our music family, Brent Newcomb is featuring down at the utah this monday. Brent brings a big voice to his heart felt songs and he never fails to blow me away when he plays. And for as big as his voice is, its still got some sweet vibrato - really beautiful stuff. For more info on Brent and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Bridget put the finishing touches on her photos from 12/10 - check 'em out here http://theutah.org/gallery.html. Beautiful! thanks Bridget!.

Hey, I read a really interesting article about labels and music distribution and the like last week (written by David Byrne): http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_byrne?currentPage=all

that's about all I have for right now. See you on monday

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello all. Hope everybody's doing ok. This is just a quick update on what's going on this monday down at the utah... As most of you know, we lost our good friend Jeremy Hill last weekend and this monday's open mic we will be dedicated to him and his memory. We won't have a featured performer this week.

When you have a chance, please share a memory with Jeremy's friends and family: https://www.todaycenter.com/events/funeral/funeral_tp.php?pid=30889&display=messages.

Bridget has done a wonderful job of putting together all of the photos and videos we have of Jeremy. This memorial page can be found here: http://www.200pockets.com/projects/jeremyhill/remembrance/archive.html.

take care -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello everybody. I apologize if this email is how you are receiving this news, but our good friend Jeremy Hill died over the weekend... It broke my heart when I heard the news and I'm very sorry to be delivering it to you. Jeremy was such a cool guy and I'm never gonna forget his smiling face and that mischievous laugh. It's just all so sad.

Bridget set up a special page on her website with all of the pictures and video of Jeremy she could find: http://www.200pockets.com/projects/jeremyhill/remembrance/archive.html

We are planning a couple of things for this coming monday as a memorial to Jeremy:
- We are going to pass around a journal for people to write their thoughts or the memories of Jeremy. We're going to mail this journal to Jeremy's family back in Michigan, from one family to another.
- We are going to collect donations to help Jeremy father with the funeral costs
- If you have any photographs of Jeremy, please bring them to the utah on monday or email them to me. Bridget is going to put together 2 photo albums for Jeremy's family
- If you have any recordings of Jeremy (outside of the utah live recordings) that you'd like to share with his family, please forward those to me as well
- Courtney Nicole was very generous in rescheduling her feature (to Jan. 21)
- We are encouraging people to cover one of Jeremy's songs. If you'd like to cover one of his songs, but need a reference recording, drop me a line - I have recordings for the following songs:

• Broken Hearted
  
• Couldn't tell you why
  
• I am yours
  
• Involuntarily
  
• Just 14
  
• Maybe tomorrow
  
• Miss Sadness
  
• Mr. McGee
  
• Naked
  
• Second
  
• Stronger than strong
  
• Sunny meadows
  
• Take yourself back
  
• The Fourth of July
  
• Wine and dine
  
• You think
  

A special thanks goes out to Bridget for organizing most all of this and getting in contact with Jeremy's family.

Hope you're doing ok. see you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody, how's it going? Hey, our friends "If your hands were metal, that would mean something" are up for band of the month in Deli magazine's band of the month poll. I'm not suggesting who you vote for or anything, but if you're not doing anything after this email, check out the contest here: http://www.thedelimagazine.com/sf/. My only qualm is that its only a band of the month contest. Those guys are least the band of the last 6 - 8 months, in my opinion.

Hey this week's feature is Anna Perlmutter. Anna is a long time contributor to the utah scene - she's is a collaborator extraordinaire adding her silky (and yet bubbly) violin to many a performance (she's even expert at accompanying herself!), but this monday! it'll be all Anna. She's gonna be performing her songs and it's gonna be great. I'm not sure how to describe Anna's songs, but here's what I'm think about: If I close my eyes when I listen to her songs, it makes me feel like I'm running through the woods or a field and the sun is shining through the leaves and hey maybe I'll go swimming. I'm not sure what genre that is, but who cares, it's really wonderful and she's going to do a great feature. For more info on Anna and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

New slideshow alert! Bridget has completed the slide show for the November 12th openmic (Leah's feature) - she added some new effects in there and it looks really cool - check it out here: http://theutah.org/gallery.html. Also! it can be difficult to see on her website, but has enabled a way for people to donate to the photography effort if they'd like to help her out: http://www.200pockets.com/donations.html. Outside of the time it takes her to process the photos, it takes a bit of money to host the photos online - I'm sure she would greatly appreciate any help she can get towards paying that bill.

Note: there will be no open mic on December 24th or December 31st. We'll resume in full musical force on January 7th. That's about all I have, hope you're doing good -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello. hope you're doing good. I'm doing pretty good. Got my wool socks on - I'm excited about that. Anyways, here's what I got on my mind:

Who is Adam Balbo? as I pen this email this morning, the first of decemeber, the winter of my 34th year, this is the question facing me. Sure - he's this week's featured performer at the utah, that goes without saying. But besides that: who is Adam Balbo?. Brilliant, brilliant songwriter - sometimes rocks the casio. But this is not who he is, this is not what defines him... and that is what I'm searching for this morning. who is Adam Balbo?. Good friend. Maker of fine guacamole, that's for sure. (but this does not satisfy my knotty curiosity) I need to know: who is Adam Balbo???. because maybe, just maybe, the answer will shed some light on: "who am I?" and "who are you?" and (perhaps the biggest question of them all): "HOW CAN SOMEBODY WHO'S NEVER BEEN TO MEXICO MAKE SUCH FINE GUACAMOLE????" Troubling questions, troubling times. Perhaps Adam will shine some light on these subjects this monday night. Like I was saying, Adam is one of the finest songwriters I know and I love watching the man perform, and this will be an all time classic feature. mark my words.. For more info on Adam and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Note for all those who eat: The utah is undergoing some seismic retrofitting this week, and so the kitchen not be open this coming monday. They'll have menus for take-out places, but, sadly, they won't have their world famous fried cheese sandwich.

that's all I got this week. hope to see you on monday -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Good morning. yeah, we cooked it up over at my casa on thursday, and so I'm am sitting on about a year's supply of turkey. I'm having a bit with my coffee as we speak. (They are balancing each other out quite effectively.) but enough chit chat! let's get down to business here:

Hey, this weeks feature is GG Tanaka. Dude's a rock and roller, I tell you that. He can open it up and let it loose with the best of them. If I was an A&R guy, I'd probably say something like "GG Tanaka? he's the total package", but I'm not an A&R guy, I'm just a lowly open mic host, and so I'd probably describe him as this: "the dude's the total f'n* package!!!" (* frickin'). He's got the chops on the guitar, a voice that reaches out at taps you on the shoulder and says "hey man", and he's a brilliant f'n* song writer. (* frickin'). What more can you ask for? Me, I'd ask for a beer with a jaeger so that I can properly enjoy the show. It's gonna be good times down at the utah this monday. For more info on Alex and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

We got some new cds up on the ol' cd section of website (http://theutah.org/cds.html): Nina Jo Smith! Great Girl's Blouse! Tony Adano! Check them out (and them buy them). As always, if you'd like to get your cd up there (new release, or lil' bit of you past), just drop me an email with the following 3 things: 1) the cover art of the cd. 2) a review of the cd. and 3) the url where it can be purchased, and I'll take care of the rest.

that's about all I have. see you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody. Hope you're doing. I'm doing pretty good. Hey, check this out: Bridget put the together the slideshow from the 11/5 open mic and we've got it up on the website at http://theutah.org/gallery.html. She does such a good job with those photos - we are so lucky that she donates her like she does, and so a huge thank you goes out to Bridget.

This week's feature Alex Statan. You know, Alex has got some sort of energy when he plays - and I'd like to say it's infectious, but I won't, because that would be cliche, but let's just say it's communicable. Either way, I dig it and the crowd really gets into it, and Alex, generous performer that he is, feeds off that and returns it back to the audience and it turns into a feedback loop of sorts, and before you know it, it's bedlam, crazyness, drinks are spilled and people are screaming, and then... it's over. this is one song open mic you know. but not this week! Alex gets a half hour and I guarantee he's gonna blow us away. He's pop craftsman and heck of a singer and it's gonna be a great feature. For more info on Alex and all of our upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

Its been a while since we've had anybody put there cd up in our cd listing (http://theutah.org/cds.html)... This doesn't make me sad per se, but I'm just worried that the cd listing page is feeling neglected. So - if you've got a cd for sale, new release or a blast from your past, drop me an email with a review, and image, and a link where the cd can be purchased, and I'll get it up there.

Also - if you've got a show coming up, you can add it to our website. We manage all of our show listings through upcoming.org - its just a matter of tagging your show as being part of theutah group. Here's some instructions for ya: http://theutah.org/addshow.html.

That's about all I have. See you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hello everybody! wow, what great night last week with everybody covering everybody else's song. I think we had an all time record for "theme-night" participation with about a billion people participating. So many that we gotta do a double cd this week to fit everybody on! very exciting.

Hey this week's feature is Lea Grant. Yeah, what a voice on Lea! I didn't know this before I read her bio, but she's trained as an opera singer. but even though I didn't know that for sure, if somebody come up to me and asked me if Lea had an opera background, I would have said "I think so". but, you know, opera isn't her only thing - she's got folk and pop chops to match and I'm sure we're going to be treated to a bit of both this monday. It's gonna be a great feature. Hey, for more info on Lea and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

That's about all for today. see you soon.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hey hey hey - big week this week. It's cover your friend's song night!!! (very exciting). The idea here is that you learn one of your friend's songs, and then you play it for us. We've done this kind of thing before at the utah, and it's always a hoot. I gotta admit, I stole the idea for this theme night from the old Nickie's BBQ open mic. The last night they had that open mic - at their closing party - they had a cover your friends song night, and I just thought it was so cool - it was really touching to see people teaching each their songs and all that. anyways, there go, credit where credit is due.

This week's feature is Nomi. I'll say it right away - I am very excited for this feature. I find Nomi's songs so catchy and melodic and I'm tempted to say whimsical... but on second thought, I think it would be a mistake to say that her songs are whimsical - if I focus on the lyrics and let in what she's saying, the whimsy drifts away, and I find the songs to be something else entirely: I find them to be important. Song writing aside, Nomi has special presence about her when she's playing (and also when she's not playing) and I find her performances to be one of the highlights of my night, and now we've got a whole half hour of Nomi. a very special night indeed. Hey, for more info on Nomi and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

A big thanks goes out to Mark Underwood and Michael Loebs for running the show when I was on sabbatical. I'm sure it was a good time had by all...

Hope everybody is doing good-

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hola. I gotta admit, I feel a little awkward emailing you even though I didn't host last monday and I'm not hosting this coming monday, but what the heck... in my continued absence Mr. Michael Loebs and Mark Underwood are cohosting.

Hey, this week's feature is Leslie Rafferty... The first thing that jumps out at me when I listen to Leslie is that voice - I find that it's got just enough angst to balance out how buttery smooth it is, and then every now and then, she throws in a little twang to remind us that she is from Kentucky, after all. She's a special performer and I am very sad that I will not get to hear her feature... I tell you what, you go check her out and then tell me how it went. For more info on Leslie and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Don't forget!!! The next songwriting theme night is November 5th - we're going to do another "Cover your friend's song night". In case you missed it the last time around, that's where you learn one of your friend's songs and you play it for us.

See you soon.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Hi everybody... hey, I'm out traveling for a bit, so this monday and the next Michael Loebs and Mark Underwood are cohosting over at the utah...

This week's feature is Nick Haswell and The Haswellism Project. Wow, a better band name you will not find. Why I am now speaking like yoda, I do not know. Yeah, Nick's music really speaks to me. The man's music has so many influences - its like a smorgesborg of music and it goes good with beer. I'm a very sad I'm going to miss this feature, but please don't make the same mistake as me... For more info on Nick and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

Don't forget!!! The next songwriting theme night is November 5th - we're going to do another "Cover your friend's song night". In case you missed it the last time around, that's where you learn one of your friend's songs and you play it for us.

Ok, that's about it. Hope to see you soon.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Good morning... yeah, little chilly out there this morning. Man, I'm guessing it's what: 55 - 56 degrees? winter has clearly arrived. You non-california readers are probably laughing right now, and I gotta admit, being from Wisconsin, that I see the humor in it as well, but hey, when it's 67 degrees every day, and then it's 57, 57 feels a little chilly. that's all I'm saying. I know this all off topic, but it's just what I'm thinking about this morning. Perhaps I should just put on a sweater.

Hey this week's feature is Roger Rocha. I was reading up on Roger's myspace page (http://myspace.com/rogerrochamusic) and he's saying his music is rock/pop, and man, I gotta disagree. I would say that it's more primal than that - Roger's up there slinging the blues like a madman burying the evidence. When he opens it up and brings it - man, it hits you right in the chest. Now, from a pure technical point of view, Roger is one of the finest guitar players I've seen, but like I was saying, it's all more primal than that and he doesn't let that technical virtuosity get in the way of base rush that comes when he's up on stage bringing it. For more info on Roger and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

The next songwriting theme night is November 5th - we're going to do another "Cover your friend's song night". In case you missed it the last time around, that's where you learn one of your friend's songs and you play it for us.

Ok, that's about it. Hope to see you soon.

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

How's it going? I'm doing good. Hey, I was just browsing performermag.com, and I saw a live review of the Parasol/Moanin' Dove show that went down a couple of months ago. Check it out: http://performermag.com/wcp.livereviews.0710.php

Hey this week's feature is Jonathan Rosen. Jonathan is really talented singer-songwriter and who, I'm sad to say, moved to New York a couple of months ago. Anyways, I really wanted to get him a feature before he left, but we couldn't fit it in. but lucky for us, he's back in town on vacation... He's got a certain energy about him when he plays - the songs just about leap out of him. Hey for more info on Jonathan and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html.

The next songwriting theme night is November 5th - we're going to do another "Cover your friend's song night". In case you missed it the last time around, that's where you learn one of your friend's songs and you play it for us.

Hey, thanks to everybody who came out to Cafe Du Nord on tuesday night. It was a really special night for me - I can't tell you how fortunate I feel to have the support of so many of my friends. I am one lucky fella to be involved with such a supportive (and talented) group of people. anyways, thanks...

I hope to see you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah

Before I get going here, I just wanted to let you know that sunday night is indeed the new saturday morning...

This week's feature is Artemas. Other than having more nicknames that anybody I know (with BZ being the nearest competitor. Eugene is up there as well...), Artemas is a fine musician and songwriter. He's got genuineness about him that really comes through in his songs - like I believe him when he sings to me and tells me his stories. He plucks the banjo and plays the piano and, according to my girlfriend, bears a not-so-slight resemblance to Leif Garrett. Anyways its gonna be a great feature. For more info on Artemas and all of the upcoming features, have a look here: http://theutah.org/features.html

Bridget has put together another one of her wonderful slideshows - this one is from the Sept. 17th open mic. Have a look here: http://theutah.org/gallery.html. Man, how cool is Bridget - on top of being a such a talented photographer and donating those talents to the utah, she comes up with so many great ideas. to name a few: she started championing upcoming.org, she maintains the artist directory, and have you seen her gig-listing box? Check it out next time you're at the utah - it is very cool.

The next songwriting theme night is November 5th - we're going to do another "Cover your friend's song night". In case you missed it the last time around, that's where you learn one of your friend's songs and you play it for us.

Hey, I don't know what you're up to this tuesday night (10/2), but I'm releasing my new cd with a concert at Cafe Du Nord. It's gonna be good times - Carroll Glenn, Terese Taylor, and The Invisible Cities are on the bill with me.

see you soon -

JJ
http://theutah.org
http://myspace.com/theutah