Monday 27 March 2017

Fans, LyndaHere And Bootlegging At Concerts...

Lynda Elstad or LyndaHere has bootlegged twice in the last couple of weeks with little regard for other fans, the wishes of the venue or the musicians and artists. 

First she bootlegged and took photographs at the 'Come From Away' musical on Broadway in New York City during the production and towards the end. They were distributed on social media including The Online Kitchen Party Great Big Sea Community Forum Facebook page. Anyone interested in this production can already find a lot of professional reviews that contain professional photographs and videos in quality online publications. LyndaHere's bootlegs and photographs would have not added anything new to the story. Maybe I am one of the few, but I would find it particularly annoying and rude if someone continued to take photographs during theatre or a musical.

Now she has bootlegged and taken photographs of Alan Doyle performing new music again with little regard for the venue policy and his wishes about how it should be seen and heard. The policy of the Tupelo Music Hall states that they do not allow videotaping without the consent of the artist. I have included a screen shot from their webpage. LyndaHere to the best of my knowledge has never gained consent from Alan Doyle or his management to bootleg. Her endless photographs and bootlegs posted on her Twitter account and posted to Alan Doyle have not been responded to in the past two and a half years. I would gather then she does not have permission. But off she goes. It it unfortunate that her endless bootlegging and photographs often of really poor quality is endorsed by some fans. An example of her poor quality and disappointing bootlegs were of the Great Big Sea reunion in New York City.

I have copied a post I wrote a couple of years ago about a discussion the fandom had during the Australian Indoor Garden Parties. LyndaHere did not take too kindly to suggestions she refrain from bootlegging taking and photographs.







A response to @lyndahere’s latest blog post on Between The Rock…the OZIGP. Friday, 24 January 2014.


“That way, if viewing said images offends any delicate sensibilities, said offendees can simply Cease and Desist before arriving at that disconcerting juncture. I’m reasonably sure they will be able to survive the one view- of Alan with which I began this part of the blog”. LyndaHere... Between the Rock January 2014.

I have just read @lyndahere’s latest blog post about Russell Crowe’s Indoor Garden Parties at Coffs Harbour in Australia Part 2 23 January 2014. It is on the eve of Murray Foster’s Cocksure Lad’s CD Launch in Toronto which she has informed us she is attending via Twitter, flying from St John’s, Newfoundland to Toronto. She is staying overnight before returning and attending another concert in St John’s on the following night in the hope of seeing Alan Doyle. @lyndahere uses her blog as an opportunity to attack the fandoms once again when the issue of appropriate conduct at concerts is raised on social media.

I have decided to respond to her blog post via this blog as she doesn’t take too kindly to any discussion that doesn’t support her own views and behaviour. @lyndahere to me seems to exist in a magical world where she is entirely right regardless of the country she is in, what the laws say, the venues say, the fandom say and most of all the musicians and artists she professes to love say. After providing a detailed list of her self-indulging concert going across three continents that gives her a sense of entitlement and establishes herself as the big name fan, there comes an attack on the fandoms, followed by the tantrum chucking and name calling to anyone who makes a suggestion or criticism that her conduct is not wanted by either the fans or the musicians and artists involved.

In this blog post @lyndahere refers to a discussion on social media about the ethics of photographing and bootlegging at the concerts in the fandom a ‘stink’ and those that raised it ‘stinkees’. Time and time again individuals within these fandoms, not just the Russell Crowe fandom but others too, have raised the issue of appropriate conduct at concerts, bootlegging and photographing have been bullied into silence all because they have a moral and ethical conscience and want to do the right thing by the musicians and artists. Calling fans ‘stinkers’ and ‘stinkees’ is the stuff of little children and their playground world. It is outright rude and would do nothing to endure Alan Doyle to new or other fans, and in particular Russell Crowe fans.

“My course of action was then to get a few photos and videos of any new songs (and Alan’s song, since people who have no clue about him or his solo career will watch anything connected to Russell Crowe) if I could do so discreetly enough as not be seen thereby trigger a “She’s got a camera so I get to use mine too!” avalanche of souvenir-photo-seeking from fellow audience members. Which I did, by hiding my camera down low on my knee, in full view of every single person on the stage but out of sight of the audience members Spirit of the Law, Not Letter of the Law.” LyndaHere


I am wondering why she thinks Australians shouldn't take photographs for personal use at an event in their own country? Are they not entitled to a souvenir photo as Americans and Canadians have done before her? And there lies the problem for musicians and artists. @lyndahere has a hundred explanations for justifying what she does travelling the world photographing, bootlegging and writing reports. There is one rule for her and one rule for everyone else. I find these justifications interesting because she is personally alienating many people who are and could be fans due to her uncompromising conduct in concerts and online including myself. There are many ways for people to say no and for someone who professes to know these musicians and artists on stage presence intimately, @lyndahere is not reading their body language on stage or their social media responses particularly well.

I have made this point before in previous blog posts about what a ticket means but @lyndahere doesn’t seem to get it. The price of the ticket and venue holder’s requests does not include the right to photograph and bootleg performances. Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea do not have to inform her not to take photographs and bootlegged videos. She has stated she understands this in this instance. She knows the rules and procedures for taking photographs and recordings. It isn’t about asking permission from the theatre. It is her responsibility as a ticket holder as I understand it, to apply for permission through a license to record and take photographs and respect their right to say no. If @lyndahere applied for a licence in accordance with law then she would know what the musicians and artists wanted and not second guess them.

As @lyndahere states and others have stated Russell Crowe can be very particular about cameras and taking photographs. That is his right. These are his concerts in his adopted country. However, as @lyndahere has shown in the past it doesn’t matter what the musicians and artists want. She totally disregards it anyway and does exactly what she wants because well @lyndahere knows best. And this time fans chose to speak up and say photographs and bootlegging should be taken with permission from those involved. Fair enough. There are no rights for ticket holders beyond admittance to the concert. @lyndahere has in the past photographed and bootlegged the Indoor Garden Party concerts to death, choosing to put up entire shows and take hundreds of photographs. Most musicians and artists don’t seem to mind people taking a couple of photographs and even a video for personal use. However, @lyndahere takes an excessive amount. I have also heard they are making a movie of the Indoor Garden Parties. And despite the fact @lyndahere would have known this she chose to ignore it.

@lyndahere informs us she has put photographs of the first concert up only because of pressure placed on her by the Russell Crowe fandom. I would love to know where this pressure came from as it seemed she was having a great time with all the Russell Crowe fans who went to Australia from around the world on Twitter and Facebook. She totally ignores me and is not interested in anything I have to say. I am wondering if there was nothing said by the musicians and artists and it were business as usual, then why were there bootlegged videos and photos taken from her kneecam as her tweets and blog posts indicated. The rumour about photographs and bootlegging to me seems to be started by some Russell Crowe fans more, to take the pressure off themselves for producing the goods, rather than any concern about the wellbeing and wishes of the musicians and artists. From the photographs @lyndahere did take she didn’t seem to be in a good position although close enough to Alan Doyle right at his feet as usual. She would have had a stiff neck at the end. Again there are many reasons why @lyndahere did not take photographs and bootlegged videos these concerts, including not doing the work, being told not to take photographs and bootleg as bootlegging is also illegal as it is in other countries.

“I am not a Russell Crowe fan. But then, I’m not an Alan Doyle fan, either, though I expect only a few – the few that matter the most to me- will comprehend the Truth of that statement”. LyndaHere


And the cryptic double meaning world of @lyndahere goes on. But if you’re not a fan then why hog the prime ‘Alan Doyle can see me position at every concert’?. Why not give it to some other fan? @lyndahere clearly states in the blog she is not a fan of either Russell Crowe or Alan Doyle and only the people closest to her knew exactly what their relationship is. She could have fooled me. As I have said before in previous blog posts @lyndahere is not the first fan to imply there was a relationship with those musicians and artists they admire and love where there was none. Although I could have told people she wasn’t really a fan, more like a fan scorned. Being a fan isn’t a dirty word as she implies. Fans and fandom are words that have many meanings, with many layers and are constantly changing. They are continually being constructed and reconstructed by the people who participate in them. And that is what makes this all fascinating to me.

Alan Doyle And TBG And 'The St. Patrick's Day Month Tour 2017'...Some highlights...

“…One thing you have to admire about Alan Doyle – and there are many enviable attributes – is that he has neither allowed success to go to his head, nor does he take for granted the success, the accolades, the fans or the respect he has accrued over the past quarter century at the heart of the Canadian music scene...” Jim Barber in musiclife.magazine.net

Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies ‘St. Patrick Month Tour of 2017’ has been under way for over two weeks and I have decided to put up some social media highlights. These highlights include links to some nice reviews, great photographs, an interview and some social media posts that have been shared along the way by the professional media and Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies on the road.

Many thanks to Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies, the professional media and fans that went to the concerts and shared their words, photographs and videos on social media including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. I really enjoy researching and reading them all. No copyright infringement intended.




Reviews....

“Alan Doyle Celebrates St. Patrick’s Day With a Kitchen Party in Pennsylvania” is by Great Dark Wonder, the online music webpage. This webpage contains some nice words, some fabulous photographs (especially of Murray Foster and the band) and a copy of the setlist for Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies and Donovan Woods.

“…Following the brief intermission, Alan Doyle would grace the stage alone to open the show with “River Driver,” and used the acapella delivery to fully engage audience participation out of the gates. As the Beautiful Gypsies took their places during the applause, Doyle would not only deliver a 20-track setlist, but he and the band would prove to be in full St. Patrick’s Day spirits. Music, props, and some fine Irish ‘black stuff’ kept both the band and the crowd partying all evening. Doyle and his band once again pulled off the type of performance that keeps his fans returning time and time again, and engaged audience participation each time a familiar Great Big Sea tune was played.

It truly was wonderful to see Murray Foster out there, playing both the familiar and new (to him) material without missing a beat. Kris MacFarlane, Todd Lumley, Kendel Carson, and Cory Tetford were on top form too (as always – Doyle has a way of surrounding himself with top-notch musicians and friends)…”

Link to the webpage...

https://greatdarkwonder.com/alan-doyle-kitchen-party-pennsylvania/





Long time music fan, concert goer and Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies fan Jaimie Lubrin wrote this wonderful review of the concert in New York.

“Return to the King: Alan Doyle and the Beautiful Gypsies Take NYC by Storm Again" by Jaimie Lubrin and published on the 21 March 2017 in the Huffington Post.

“…If it’s true, as genius director Elia Kazan wrote, that we live in the past, present, and future simultaneously, this concert captured that sensation perfectly. “Re” seemed to be the evening’s prefix of choice—reunion with Alan, Bob, Murray, and drummer Kris Macfarlane (the closest anyone may come to a Great Big Sea show for quite awhile); remixes of old favorites sent rocketing into our hearts with tantalizing new flavors. It was the first time I’d seen Kris use maracas to underscore his drumbeats in “The Night Loves Us” injecting fresh passion into the homey crowd-pleaser like a master chef adds spice to a familiar recipe. Todd Lumley, at various points brilliant on accordion and keyboard, tickled the ivories to standout effect in the middle of “Sea of No Cares”—and immediately that laid-back song was transformed into a call for action.

Multi-talented Cory Tetford (check out his solo album In the Morning!) was an absolute stunner in a guitar battle with Alan during the hard-rocking anthem “I’ve Senn A Little” He also let that axe wail loud and proud in a spotlight moment during the Irish classic “Lukey’s Boat.” Special mention goes to the performance of this traditional tune, lent more of a modern edge than I’d ever heard before by Bob Hallett and the combined assembly. An instrumental break featuring Bob on accordion, Murray on bass, and violinist extraordinaire Kendel Carson on her trusty fiddle electrified the audience, many of whom were already on their feet. Cory and Kendel got plenty of chances throughout the set to show off their tremendous voices, especially in the penultimate number “Shine On.” Few vocal pairings reach the ear with such soulful force and pristine splendour…”.

Link to the full webpage and a couple of nice photographs…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/58d19dcee4b062043ad4adae





Photographs…

Some fantastic photographs were taken by Steve Benoit and published on musicsavage.com on 25 March 2017.

“Photos | Alan Doyle + Donovan Woods @ The Sinclair”

“…This past Thursday night, Mr. Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies graced the stage of one of the best venues in the region when they took the stage at The Sinclair in the heart of Harvard Square. Opening with a solo and a toast, Alan proceeded to work his way through a set covering his solo material and a handful of classics (I think we can call the that now) from the Great Big Sea catalog. Flanked on all sides by fantastically talented musicians (including former bandmate Murray Foster,) The Gypsies had every person in attendance waltzing, stomping, ranting and roaring through to the last note—leaving both the audience and Doyle himself ready to reconvene at the pub afterwards…”

Link to the full review and amazing photographs….

http://www.musicsavage.com/2017/03/photos-alan-doyle-donovan-woods-the-sinclair/





Some amazing photographs were taken by Boston Concert Photographs and shared on social media sites including Twitter and Facebook. They captured some great moments for example Donovan Wood’s last night on tour with Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies. 








The Interviews…


‘Alan Doyle talks talks Spring tour, New Book, New music, and his Beautiful Gypsies'…by Jim Barber published on the 16 March, 2017 on musiclifemagazine.net. 


“As well as the new literary tome, Doyle is also completing the mixes for his latest solo album, which is most likely going to be billed under the moniker of Alan Doyle and the Beautiful Gypsies, in recognition of the respect, esteem and affection he has for his backing band.


“I went back there about a week ago for a day just to kick-start the mix and we’re just getting the final mixes now and will very soon be in the can. We’re going to release a single in the spring and the main record in the fall around the same time as the book. I wanted to treat it as a band record and do it with the band that I play with live. I wanted them featured heavily on the record and they are. I wanted everyone to know about what they’re going to see when they come see me live and I thought it was a great opportunity to have the band involved and tell all the fans in advance that, by the way, this is the kind of thing you will hear when you come and see Alan Doyle and the Beautiful Gypsies in concert,” Doyle said, adding that the album will be called A Week at the Warehouse, as it was recorded over that short time period at the Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, which is owner and run by legendary Canadian producer Bob Rock, best known for his hard rockin’ work with Metallica, Bon Jovi and The Cult.”

Link to the full interview…

http://www.musiclifemagazine.net/alan-doyle-talks-spring-tour-new-book-new-music-and-his-beautiful-gypsies/

Social media posts...

As usual some absolutely drop dead gorgeous selfies and photographs along the tour. The photographs are from the official Twitter account of @alanthomasdoyle. (No copyright infringement intended)










Tuesday 21 March 2017

Alan Doyle, The Beautiful Gypsies…And the great big reunion.

Alan Doyle@alanthomasdoyle One of the finest nights of my life in NYC tonight. Thanks so much. 17 March, 2017.

Bob Hallett@bobhallett Great fun playing with my friend @alanthomasdoyle in NYC last night. Headed to @Erinspub now via many airports…17 March, 2017.


B.B. King Bar and Grill was definitely the place to be in New York City on the 16 March, 2017. Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies with their guest bass guitarist and former Great Big Sea member Murray Foster were going to take the stage that night. The night before Great Big Sea member Bob Hallett was also in New York City to attend a special performance of the Newfoundland hit musical ‘Come From Away’. So with Alan Doyle, Bob Hallett, Murray Foster and Kris MacFarlane (four fifths of Great Big Sea) within three blocks of each other, they wasted no time in organising a mini reunion that included some Newfoundlanders performing in ‘Come From Away’.

There wasn’t a lot shared on social media by the fans that were lucky enough to be there. These fans just preferred to be in the moment enjoying the music. A couple of great photographs, videos and a copy of the set list were shared by fans on the On-Line Kitchen Party, A Great Big Sea Community Forum on Facebook. Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies rocked the house with some old favourites from the ‘Boy on Bridge’ album and the ‘So Let’s Go’ album like “I’ve Seen A Little’, ‘Testify’, ‘1, 2,3, 4’ and ‘Shine On’ . There were also some new songs including ‘Ready To Go’, ‘Row Me Bully Boys’ and ‘Forever Light Will Shine’. Then there were 
some Great Big Sea favourites including ‘When I’m Up’, ‘Old Black Rum’, ‘Run, Run Away’ and ‘Sea Of No Cares’ which the fans danced and sang along too. 

The fans erupted when Bob Hallett walked on stage to perform with Alan and The Gypsies for four songs. He opened with ‘Come And I Will Sing You’. Despite the Great Big Sea hiatus rolling on to four years since the last concert, Bob and his accordion were right where he belonged. Bob looked liked he enjoyed every minute of being on stage and Alan and the band loved having him there. Together they went on to perform ‘Ordinary Day’ and ‘Lukey’s Boat’. For the final number they were joined on stage by two members of the ‘Come From Away’ cast Petrina Bromley and Romano Di Nillo and sang the Newfoundland classic ‘Sonny’s Dream’. From the videos it looked like the artists and musicians as well as the fans loved every minute it.

I have included a copy of some photographs of the artists and musicians on stage that were kindly shared on social media. I have also included a copy of the set list. Videos including Bob Hallett singing ‘Come And I Will Sing You’, ‘Ordinary Day’ and ‘Sonny’s Dream’ are available on the On-Line Kitchen Party, A Great Big Sea Community Forum or by searching YouTube. No copyright infringement intended.








Republic Of Doyle And Pirated DVDs Seized…

Recently the official webpage of the US Customs and Border Protection Agency reported that counterfeit DVDs of the Canadian television show The Republic of Doyle (and other television shows) had been seized. The article was picked up and circulated to Allan Hawco’s official Twitter account who confirmed the story was legitimate.

A couple of years ago I bought four out of my five seasons of Republic of Doyle DVD collection in Canada. Only season one was available on DVD in my home country. These DVDs were available where all good DVDs were sold (and from Walmart) and cost under $20 each. The sixth and final season I watched pirated on YouTube a couple of days after the episodes aired in Canada. I watched these episodes as part of my research about the importance of access to content needed by fans for interaction with other fans and celebrities as a television series unfold. The results of my observations and experiences are described in another post.

And there is the interesting thing about the seizure of these counterfeit DVDs of the Republic of Doyle. Pirate copies of all episodes from all seasons (like so many Canadian television shows) were loaded up quickly onto YouTube after they aired in Canada and are easily available including some on what looks like an official Republic of Doyle YouTube site. So why bother to buy a counterfeit DVD when every episode and season is available on YouTube?

From my experiences of watching popular television shows from the US and Canada, is that the US is much more vigilant on issuing notices to pirates and blocking content on YouTube. Although a lot of Canadian pirated locally made popular television shows loaded up onto YouTube are not of the best quality, full episodes and seasons are still there for those fans willing to sit through a slightly altered recording that flies under the radar of those issuing blocking notices.

For example, I have watched the Canadian television series Book of Negroes, and as previously mentioned Republic of Doyle, Season 6 and a couple of episodes of the new series filmed in Newfoundland, Frontier on YouTube pirated and often sanctioned with advertisements. They were not available in the country where I live.

It is difficult to know the impact of pirated DVDs sales. However, for the US Customs and Border Protection Agency this was a great catch. In the past authorities have confiscated hundreds of boxes of counterfeit DVDs that are distributed through webpages in Canada, Australia, the US, Germany and New Zealand.

Those caught face charges including fraud under the Criminal Code and breaches in the Copyright Act for reproducing items for sale. Consumers while getting a cheap DVD may be getting an inferior product. The sale of counterfeit DVDs can generate up to hundreds of thousands of dollars of income for pirates that does not go the investors, creators and copyright holders to create television series like Republic of Doyle which we love.

I have provided a copy of the article from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection official webpage. (No copyright infringement intended).

“Counterfeit DVDs of popular television shows seized.” Release Date: March 15, 2017

BLAINE, Wash. — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Office of Field Operations at the Pacific Highway Port of Entry detained two shipments of DVDs bearing a counterfeit DVD logo. Two separate shipments in February were found to hold popular television programs that aired in Canada and the United States. The products had been in storage awaiting further inspection.

One shipment contained 10 boxes of the popular television series, “Little House on the Prairie” and another held 20 boxes of the program “Republic of Doyle”. They all had the counterfeit DVD logo which is protected under CBP recordation trademark 00-00247. Little House aired on NBC from 1974 to 1982 and Doyle from 2010 to 2014 on CBC in Canada. The violations involve United States Code, title 19, Chapter 4, 19 USC 1526(E), which deals with merchandise bearing a counterfeit mark.

“The DVDs were seized because the importer violated United States laws,” said Area Port Director Kenneth Williams. “Our vital national security mission also includes protecting businesses and consumers through an aggressive Intellectual Property Rights enforcement mandate.”

Other media products and games were on the same shipment and released.

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/counterfeit-dvds-popular-television-shows-seized


From the official CBC site (no copyright infringement intended).



Friday 10 March 2017

Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle And The Musical Album…Part one.

Earlier this week Russell Crowe announced on his official Twitter account that fans can soon expect a new album from him, Alan Doyle and their Indoor Garden Party friends. This album has been a long time coming. The band is called The Indoor Garden Party and features members of the Indoor Garden Party concerts including Scott Grimes, Samantha Barks and Carl Falk. The album is called The Musical.

Russell Crowe and Alan Doyle’s previous collaboration the Crowe and Doyle Songbook, Vol. 111 was released in 2011. I have included a copy of a review below previously published on a post written about the first Indoor Garden Party in St. John’s, Newfoundland in 2011.

I have circulated some videos of songs from the their album from Russell Crowe’s South Sydney YouTube site on my Google + page including 'Disappeared' 'Too Far Gone', 'Perfect In Your Eyes' and 'From Here Clear To The Ocean' just to remind us how brilliant Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle and Scott Grimes are together along with their friends Samantha Barks and Carl Falk. I can’t wait for this new album.

The images are from Russell Crowe’s official Twitter account. No copyright infringement intended.







Russell Crowe & Alan Doyle The Crowe/Doyle Songbook, Vol. 111’ by Ryan Belbin on the 4 August 2011 in the Independent.ca (no copyright infringement intended)

It’s easy to take the collaborative friendship of Great Big Sea frontman Alan Doyle and Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe for granted, particularly with the former’s role as a minstrel in Robin Hood last year, and the latter’s highly publicised visit to St. John’s. Outside of the spotlight, however, the two initially bonded over music, writing and recording songs together over the last number of years.

The Crowe/Doyle Songbook, Vol. III is Crowe’s most recent foray into music, since the Doyle-produced My Hand, My Heart in 2005. Whereas that record was clearly based around Crowe’s band, the Ordinary Fear of God, the Songbook is all about the duo.

The album, which exists solely as a digital record, can best be described as a singer-songwriter collection of tunes. Doyle’s band is a good starting place in describing the sound, particularly with its contemporary folk vibes, but that doesn’t quite cut it. There are influences of rock (“Perfect in your Eyes”), old-school country (“Killing Song”), heraldic folk (“Queen Jane”), and even R&B (“Love is Impossible”), but the production and mouthfuls of poetry are what stand out. The nine songs on Songbook are denser in subject matter, music, and lyrics – don’t expect any breezy pop songs, but don’t misinterpret the album for pessimistic or cynical.

Take the chorus from the leading single, “Too Far Gone,” about a doomed relationship: “Your fingers tear at my skin / Release the blood, let the feeding begin / Your intentions will never be blamed / We’re both too far gone to be saved.” The word that immediately comes to mind is sophisticated, and any concern that this project is just a novelty ought to be dismissed.

The two musicians are joined on most songs by Danielle Spencer, an Australian recording artist who also happens to be married to Crowe. With three distinct voices at their disposal, the opportunities for interesting arrangements and nuances are numerous, especially considering that Great Big Sea have turned harmonies into a trump card. However, the performers share the mic more often than not, usually singing the same melody line, reminiscent of a few friends having an impromptu jam. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the lyrics and the music are at such a high calibre that you can’t help but wonder how the songs would have sounded if they had taken the effort to explore the vocal arrangements. There are glimpses of this, where the voices become distinct and offer different perspectives to a single song – the bridge of “Sadness of a Woman” does it best – and they make the melding all the more conspicuous.

Crowe himself has been performing music since the ’90s, but it’s tough to picture the Gladiator with a guitar, and begs the question of whether or not he can actually sing. His growl is so similar to Doyle’s baritone that the two voices gravitate towards a single entity, and when one stands out it’s usually Doyle, so we never really get to hear him alone. Still, he’s not sitting on the sidelines or ridding any coattails (or, even worse, lending his famous name to the project); the partnership demands the two musicians complement each other, and that’s ultimately what happens.

Also noteworthy, The Crowe/Doyle Songbook includes the original demos of all the songs. Although the final versions are stronger, these tracks offer the bare bones of the lyrics and instrumentation, and suddenly the “friends having a jam” image becomes “friends having a jam, and you’re personally invited.” With the release of this album coinciding with Doyle and Crowe’s intimate and informal shows at the LSPU Hall, the duality makes sense: two experienced artists at the top of their games, crafting quality songs that, when the lights go down and they abandon their egos to embrace acoustic vulnerability, are still capable of standing on their own.

By the sounds of it, neither is too far gone yet:

Cory Tetford, Chris LeDrew And Friends At The Holy Heart…A concert in St John’s.

On March 8,2017 Cory Tetford and his good friend and music partner Chris LeDrew performed a concert at the Holy Heart in St, John’s, Newfoundland. A number of their friends and band mates helped to entertain the audience including Alan Doyle, Kendel Carson and Paul Kinsman. What an amazing concert it would have been.

Some of the artists and musicians who were there posted some great photographs before and during the concert on social media. Some wonderful photographs were taken by a local Newfoundland photographer enlightenedphotography.nl and shared on their Instagram account. They were then circulated by Cory Tetford on his official Twitter account.

As there is always a steady interest in Cory Tetford and his work and music independent of Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies on my blog, I decided to keep a copy of the social media posts for this concert I found here for those interested fans.

Many thanks to all the artists and musicians who took photographs of the concert and shared them via social media. I really enjoyed researching and viewing them. As always no copyright infringement intended.












Friday 3 March 2017

Alan Doyle And The Beautiful Gypsies In London 2017...

A totally gorgeous Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies tour poster...

Photograph by Shehab Illyas (no copyright infringement intended).

Murray Foster & Alan Doyle & TBG Tour 2017…Some thoughts.




The fans are certainly excited that former Great Big Sea member Murray Foster will be touring with Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies this Spring while their regular base player Shehab Illyas attended to family business.

Recently Murray wrote a post for his Toronto Songwriting School webpage on his thoughts about the up and coming tour and shared it via his official social media accounts including Twitter. I thought what Murray said was really interesting and I decided to post a copy of a couple of paragraphs here. The full post is available from the webpage and I have provided a link to it at the bottom of this post.

I also found some wonderful photographs of Murray Foster and Alan Doyle taken by fan during a Great Big Sea XX concert in Red Deer in October, 2013. I have posted a couple of photographs here and have provided a link to those below.

I hope you enjoy this post and photographs as much as I did. No copyright infringement intended.

17 Again by Murray Foster… “…I haven’t been on the road since the final (forever final?) Great Big Sea show on New Year’s Eve, 2013, just over three years ago. Have I missed it? Well, there are elements of it that I’ve certainly missed, primarily the camaraderie, the sense of tribe you have when you’re in a band. Plus, Great Big Sea kicked ass – it was amazing to be a part of a musical juggernaut, a band with an incredible repertoire that could shift effortlessly between the frenzy of Mari Mac and a cappella version of Old Brown’s Daughter off-mic at the front of the stage.

I’ve missed that.

What I haven’t missed – and it took me several months off the road to realize this – was the mental/spiritual/psychic toll that being on the road exacted. It wasn’t until I’d been off the road for several months three years ago, after I’d reinstated my regular Friday night soccer game and Sunday morning brunch, that I realized the greatest thing you sacrifice when you go on the road is continuity. And continuity is healthy. The continuity you have in your life is how you triangulate who you are – you’re the guy who gives away the goal every Friday night during the soccer game and then makes the stupid joke about it over beers at the bar afterward (not me – I’m speaking hypothetically)...”


From Murray Foster’s official webpage Toronto Songwriting School…

http://www.torontosongwritingschool.com/17-again/

The photographs of Murray Foster and Alan Doyle are from a fabulous collection of Great Big Sea XX photographs in Red Deer on October 28, 2013, by Trevor Bollinger ©PlayaPhoto

http://www.turbo.ca/thumbskey.php?keyword=Murray__Foster





Some Nice Words About Newfoundland Music Audiences…From Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo.

I would say that Newfoundland and Labrador are of the most musical audiences that we play.” - Jim Cuddy.
 
"People from away always say, when you start a conversation with a Newfoundlander, it's as if you are continuing a conversation, not starting a conversation. That level of friendliness is also quite unique, the whole experience is great," Jim Cuddy.

I really enjoyed this article from CBC News in which Jim Cuddy from Blue Rodeo shares some really interesting observations about Newfoundlanders and their appreciation of music and his social interactions with Newfoundlanders.

Jim Cuddy and Blue Rodeo have of course worked extensively with Newfoundland musicians and artists in Newfoundland and on mainland Canada and visited Newfoundland many times to perform. So I decided to post a copy here for my own interest.

I have provided a direct link at the bottom of the post and circulated a copy of the article on my Google + page. No copyright infringement intended.

‘N.L. audiences some of the 'most musical,' says Jim Cuddy’ by Lukas Wall, CBC News posted on 18 February,2017.

When Blue Rodeo takes the stage at Mile One Centre in St. John's on Wednesday, it will be a special performance for the band.

Frontman Jim Cuddy says shows in Newfoundland and Labrador are always special, and audiences in the province are among the best the band plays to.

"We certainly know a lot about regionalism in this country because we've travelled so much, but why certain areas are more musical than others I've never really been able to understand," he told CBC Radio's Weekend AM while on the road in Hamilton, O.N.

"But, I would say that Newfoundland and Labrador are one of the most musical audiences that we play — the ones that sing in tune, clap in time, that seem to be most enthused by whatever dynamic you're presenting."

'I would say that Newfoundland and Labrador are of the most musical audiences that we play.'- Jim Cuddy

Cuddy said the band pours more energy into a performance when an audience is more receptive. The excited and responsive crowds in the province, Cuddy said, show the quality of the people.

"People from away always say, when you start a conversation with a Newfoundlander, it's as if you are continuing a conversation, not starting a conversation. That level of friendliness is also quite unique, the whole experience is great," he said.

Cuddy said Wednesday's performance will be a more theatrical show than previous trips to St. John's, with a mix of old favourites and new songs.

"This is the one time we're really bringing all our gear out to the Rock … often we just have it shipped in for the day," he said.

"As with all our concerts, we try to give people a lot of what they want and expect and some stuff they don't expect. There'll be songs that'll be reworked, there's a big acoustic part in the middle that we have really great players, and it kind of goes scene by scene."

Getting to and from the island can be a challenge, however, and after coming to Newfoundland in the winter a number of times, Cuddy said the band and crew have learned to plan ahead and make the best of their time.

"Nobody ever comes to the Rock on the day of the show — too risky. We do allow at least a day on either side of the concert, if not two," he said.

"We've had guys stuck on the ferry for 12 hours. I was there during the Junos when people were stuck there for three or four days, which is never a hardship, I was actually a little disappointed my flight got out."

Blue Rodeo's latest album 1000 Arms also has a visual connection to Newfoundland and Labrador, as it features a photo of the Fogo Island Inn and was designed by St. John's graphic artist Jud Haynes.

As for his extra time in St. John's while on tour, Cuddy said he plans to spend some time visiting and "wandering around" the city.

"I have lots of friends there, dinners to go to, hockey to play, so I like to get out there for a few days," he said.

‘N.L. audiences some of the 'most musical,' says Jim Cuddy’ by Lukas Wall, CBC News posted on 18 February,2017.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/nl-audiences-most-musical-1.3989929

The photographs of Blue Rodeo with some Newfoundland friends including Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea is from ‘The trying times of Blue Rodeo’ by Michael Barclay, published 9 November, 2012 at http://www.macleans.ca/culture/the-try-ing-times-of-blue-rodeo/



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