The Beaverfest Gallery
Summerhill Twp. VFC Home Page

Nice thing about living in Johnstown is I can be just about anywhere I want to go in 30 minutes or less. Left my home in Moxham Saturday before the 4th of July, and pulled into Beaverdale exactly 20 minutes later, for the annual Beaverfest celebration and, yes, it was. I’m a little confused over the sponsorship, but I think the fest is presented by the Somerhill Twp. VFC located in Beaverdale, and I think if you want to call it the Beaverdale VFC, it’s okay by them, but I’m not sure.

Anyway, got to catch a bit of the Beaverdale fun and a bit of Ribbon Grass music before I had to head back to town to shoot the Galleria fireworks. I think you can tell by the photos that most everyone had themselves a real good time. I know I did. Can’t wait till next year.

Mom raised me on Johnny Cash and Ray Charles. My first-ever concert was around 1965 or 66. Eleven years old and I was sitting in the balcony of Cochran Auditorium watching Mother Maybelle and her girls, and the one and only Man in Black himself. Whoa! What a rush! Forty-five years later and I happen to meet Bill Venet at his Benscreek Variety Depot and learn that he’s been bringing Johnny and June to the people for 22 years. I’ve been following the Cash Review ever since, and when they played Johnstown PA’s VOMA earlier this month, I was there, in the balcony once again, camera in hand, eager to share the experience with you through photos and video.

What a great time we all had: hearing the old songs once again, performed by an excellent band; and sitting in a beautiful and appropriate venue. If you haven’t been to the VOMA yet, I’ll ask again, “What are you waiting for?” They’d love to have you, and they’ll treat you right. And if you haven’t seen the Cash Review, you’re missing an authentic back-yard Johnny Cash experience and a treat for the whole family.

We had 2 special treats on this special evening: Marianne Zima Locher in her first performance as June Carter Cash, and Mike Miller playing a brief set of Hank williams favorites. What a blast!

The Cash Review is:
William Venet – as Johnny Cash – Rhythm Guitar/Lead Vocals
Marianne Zima Locher – as June Carter Cash – Vocals
John Wolfe – Lead Guitar
Michael Delgrosso – Drums
Richard Vargo – Bass (filling i this evening)
Billy Venet – as John Carter cash – Rhythm guitar

Laurelight fancy Cash Review Album is here. Regular photos are below, following the video.

And we’ve got photos and video to prove it. Adam Mundok, the Nagys, and Curtis Cox did NOT take it up a notch, or move to the next level the other night at VOMA. Taking up laurelight’s February challenge, they leapt everything in between and Jumpin’ Jack Flashed right to the top. Their performance was tight, focused and non-stop. Embraced by the solid, pulsing rhythms of Matt Nagy (bass), Curtis Cox (drums) and Gene Nagy (guitar), and the beguiling back-up vocals of Karen Nagy, front-man Adam Mundok and lead guitar Sean Nagy kicked it into overdrive and dragged the eager crowd on a journey two thousand light years from home (requisite Stones reference) and back again.

Performance, theatrical or musical, is all about sharing. Like some cranked-up game of hacky sack, this ball of creative energy gets kicked around, growing and glowing as it caroms from performer to performer until it envelopes the audience and comes back again. On stage, you either kick it up or you pack it up and go home. Dead Flowers chose the former last Saturday, and once this house started rockin’ there was no stopping it. It’s hard to tell where or when it began, but between Mundok’s strut, primp and pose, and Nagy’s swagger and blistering licks, the energy consumed us all. This band could play with anybody. As Ronnie Hawkins cries early on in The Last Waltz: “Big time, Bill. Big time!”

Dead Flowers is:
Gene “Street Fighting Man” Nagy – Guitar
Karen “She’s a Rainbow” Nagy – Supporting Vocals
Matt “Out of Tears” Nagy – Bass
Sean “Too Much Blood” Nagy – Guitar
Curtis “Have You Seen Your Drummer, Baby, Sitting in the Shadow” Cox – Drums
Adam “Beast of Burden” Mundok – Front Man and Percussion

Very pretty laurelight photo gallery of the Dead Flowers performance at Johnstown’s VOMA is here. Regular gallery is directly below. Scroll all the way down to check out the video.

We’ve got the vid hot off the hard drive. Another rockin’, jammin’ blues night at the VOMA. Special award to Scott Jeffreys for putting together an exceptional group of talent. Scott and Dom Peruso once again provide the steadiest rhythm section this side of Wyman and Watts: never missing a beat, and never passing on an opportunity to show us what they’re capable of. The ever-ebullient T.K. Mundok got to strut his stuff on a couple of tunes in the second set. (You’ll see one of them below.) How can anybody sing the Blues with such joy? T.K. knows. But it was Jeff Perigo and Steve Azami who brought a special character to the evening. It was like String Cheese meets Leadbelly by way of Jerry Lee.
Midnight Special indeed. We pitched our Wang-Wang-Doodle
and Howled All Night Long. All Night Long. Shoulda been there.

Blues Gathering IV @ Johnstown, PA’s VOMA:
Keys – Even Steven
Stringbender – Jeff Perigo
Harp & Choir – T.K. Mundok
Skins – Dom Peruso
Big, Big Bass – Scott Jeffreys

Find the gallery below the video, or, for a nicer view, check out the BG IV Album here.

Sorry for the jitters. Had to move early to get Steve in the shot and had to scratch my nose about half-way through.

SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC IN JOHNSTOWN PA!

Striped Maple Hollow is:
Adam Milkovich: mandolin and guitar
Michael Mood: guitar and banjo
Sonya Giuffre: vocals
Jayna Mood: vocals and guitar

the VOMA: What are you waiting for? Get there.
Striped Maple Hollow: Check ‘em. And remember who told you.

You might have noticed I’m spending a lot of time (and drinking most of my wine) at Johnstown PA’s VOMA – the Venue of Merging Arts in Cambria City. That’s because it’s such a hoot. We had another wild night in January, organized by Johnstown’s most prolific bassist, Scott Jeffreys. Once again, the band, and the good times, exceeded expectations. The lineup included:
Mike Borstnar – guitar and vocals
T.K. Mundok – vocals and harp
Dom Peruso – drums
Scott Jeffreys – bass and vocals
Frank Genovese – guitar and vocals
Can’t wait till next week, and I’ve got no idea who’s gonna show up. Meanwhile, VOMA’s got a full slate over the coming months. Check it out here, and then get down there and have yourself a real good time.

While I was waiting on a friend in another land (aka the VOMA, Johnstown PA), Rolling Stones tribute band Dead Flowers slipped in under cover of the night and started me up. They were hot stuff. “Come on!” I cried. “Let’s spend the night together.” Jumpin’ Jack Flash, they played like they were out of control! More than respectable, they got me rocking. Then, having come to my emotional rescue, they were out of time. I don’t know why, but I ain’t too proud to beg, so I cried for one more and they gave satisfaction. Then they rolled out the door like tumbling dice and left me shattered with my 19th nervous breakdown. They needed wild horses to keep me from slipping away. Anybody got a mother’s little helper? I know I’m a fool to cry, and you can’t always get what you want, and it’s only rock and roll, but I LIKE IT!! It’s a real (doo doo doo doo doo) heartbreaker.

Dead Flowers is:
Gene “Street Fighting Man” Nagy – Guitar
Karen “She’s a Rainbow” Nagy – Supporting Vocals
Matt “Out of Tears” Nagy – Bass
Sean “Too Much Blood” Nagy – Guitar
Curtis “Have You Seen Your Drummer, Baby, Sitting in the Shadow” Cox – Drums
Adam “Beast of Burden” Mundok – Front Man and Percussion

In a nutshell, the band seemed a little out of synch for the first few tunes, but once they settled in the songs were tight, the musicianship outstanding, and the house rocked. They remained a bit rag-tag between the buttons, though, but that gave the crowd a chance to interact. Adam was distracted at times, juggling lyrics, percussion, harp (an excellent harpist, by the way), wardrobe and personna, but I expect, putting the effort in, he’ll grow into his role quickly and comfortably. Besides, Mick’s got two dozen people just offstage handling his every need. Local musicians are lucky if they have a honey to fetch their beer.

Speaking of Mick, I’ve seen the Stones a dozen times. (Hope it’s not the last time, but time waits for no one, you know.) And I’ve passed on Stones tributes probably a dozen hundred times. (If I wanted to watch imitators, I’d go to an Elvis convention.) Dead Flowers is no Nanker Phelge (wikipedia it), but the music’s good, they play it good (yeah, I know: grammer) and they bring their own character to the stage. I’ll make it a point and make the effort to see them as often as I can. If you were at the VOMA last night, you know what I’m talking about. If you weren’t there, you’ve no one to blame but your self. We had us a real good time.

Read about the VOMA here.
Video of Dead Flowers at the VOMA, Johnstown PA

Caught Denise Krestal-Baldwin @ the VOMA a few weeks back. Sorry for the delay in posting, but I’m backlogging again. Denise is a remarkable talent: hypnotic vocals, accessible jams, and engaging lyrics. It’s a lot of fun just sitting back and letting yourself be entertained. Meanwhile Johnstown PA’s VOMA is turning into a happnin’ place to be. No excuse for missing the venue or the artists performing there while you’re slouching back complaining there’s nothing to do. Catch Denise and a few of her exceptional tunes on her ReverbNation page and VOMA’s got a page of their own. Be there.

Denise Krestal-Baldwin on ReverbNation
the Venue of Merging Arts – VOMA

Related Links
Flood City Music Festival
Johnstown Area Heritage Association

Yeah, time to get back to posting again. We’ve got a lot of catching up to do and, although it’s a lot of fun to annoy Theresa by not doing anything, it’s probably past time to fulfill her fantasies, so here are the shots from the 2009 Flood City Music Festival.

Kudos to JAHA and Ameriserv for taking a huge risk by turning the Johnstown FolkFest inside out. The bigggest change is probably in the timing of the event. JAHA has moved the Fest from Labor Day weekend to the middle of August. This means that Johnstown PA now enjoys 3 weekends of big summer events rather than just 2, and that can only be a good thing for the city and surrounding area. The organizers are now actively soliciting “contributions” for admission to the event. While this may rub some the wrong way, I was more than happy to throw for the $20 weekend pass in anticipation of bigger name future acts and for access to the Train Station area. The Fest is also presenting fewer acts than in the past, encouraging the hiring of bigger names and minimizing the “Okay, which one should we listen to now” dilemma. Oh yeah, almost forgot. They got rid of the scrip! Woo-hoo!

All that said, I’ve got a few suggestions regarding the event that I hope JAHA and Ameriserv will take in the spirit in which they are intended:

1. More Blues! What this town really needs is a good blues club and/or an annual blues festival. In the meantime, FCMF could help a brother out by adding a few more blues acts to the lineup.
2. Jams in the Train Station – I sat in the Station for a bit, drinking my beer amid the ferns and other decorations, wishing there was something to listen to; maybe some local accoustic acts or, here’s an idea: how about some blues?
3. Scheduling – As always, the ’09 Fest generally had a good variety of musical acts from which to choose, but all the early Sunday afternoon acts were just a bit more laid-back than I might have hoped for. I’d like to see the organizers put just a little more effort into scheduling divergent acts playing at the same time.
4. Did I mention “more blues?”
5. Bring back the scrip!! – Just kidding

Anyway, we had us a real good time at the ’09 Fest and look forward to bigger and better events to come. Good job JAHA.

Enjoy the pics.

Related Links:
The Laurelight Wheels and Wings Gallery
The Laurelight Parade of Lights Gallery
The Laurelight Bike Rally Music Gallery
The Laurelight Bike Rally Food Gallery
The Laurelight Bike Rally Crowds and Faces Gallery
The Laurelight Bike Rally Bars Gallery
The Laurelight Bike Rally Sights Gallery
The Full Kilt MySpace Page
The Wheels MySpace Page

Okay, there were no mason jars, except for what I found cleaning Mom’s garage, but there were plenty of cars and bars and bikes and trikes, and more great jams than Donnie Iris can shake his dipstick at. Saturday was the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen in Johnstown, PA. This event is going to take 7 stand-alone galleries and 3 posts just to catch a glimpse of what a blast every moment was. For convenience sake, I’ve combined 4 of the galleries into this post and set aside Wheels and Wings and Parade of Lights for their own posts, but, as always, you can catch the individual gallery links up at the top of the post.

The Company You Keep

The quality of life is often determined by the quality of those you choose to keep around you. This year’s rally was top-shelf because of the moments I got to share with Karen, the En Brothers (Glenn and Ken – no relation), Ken’s new friend Theresa, and, the lightning in my thunder, the Lovely Brenda. And we got to meet plenty of other fine folk along the way, and it seems, since Satori Sunday that I’ve acquired the habit of meeting old friends I never knew I ever knew. All in all, I had me a real good time.

Location, location, location…

I’ve got thousands of biker pics on the hard drive, and hundreds on the site. This year was time to branch out and see what else could be seen. We took in the sights at Richland Fire Hall, Ebensburg’s Wheels and Wings, and along Graham Ave. in Windber. The En Bros. and I even incorporated the World Famous Windber Walking Tour into our visit. I missed Beavedale Hill Climbs and Cernic’s Somerset party, and blew off Greenhouse Park and Cambria County Fairgrounds. We hit a lot of bars, Hurdle’s, TNC, Windber Hotel, Town Tavern, Crousey’s, Jerry’s, Ohio Street Lounge; but left many undiscovered. Maybe next year. Ate lots of great food: snack at Clark Powells (no wonder their pizza has a county-wide reputation), breakfast at Erikson Field (Geistown-Richland Lions), lunch at the Knights of Columbus (best halupki ever), and dinner split between TNC (blow-you-away baked Italian hoagie) and Town Tavern (just a quick chef salad, cause I’m not getting enough veggies). Again, next year I’ll have to try harder on the food.

Jammin is My Life

The Wheels Rock! Course, any band that covers Tom Waits, Bob Dylan and Gram Parsons, as well as writes their own excellent material, is okay by me. Check out their MySpace page up above. Nice to catch up with The World’s Greatest Cover Band, The Desperados, once again. Michael Obrian and Full Kilt (also linked above) rounded out the cream of the crop. The Desperados don’t need no stinkin’ website. WHOA! Almost forgot. Honeys abounded once agan. I LOVE this town and I love my life. Thank you Jesus.

All right, wrap it up. I’ll take it. Here’s most of the phots and more to come in the next 2 posts.