TDB plays Armando's

Okay.
I've been to Armando's four times now, including last Saturday night (for Houston Jones---go see 'em!). Armando's is a jewel of a room. It's a music room for music junkies. It's a gathering place for listeners of all kinds of bands playing all kinds of songs. It's a well-decorated, perfectly laid out music club with pristine sound, friendly staff, affordable cover charge, good beer and wine, and a more eclectic range of bands than the Fillmore in San Francisco. But with 925 less people in the room. Everyone has a good seat. You can hear everything. You can jabber with the owner, Roy, about anything/everything. You can go in and out.
But best of all, you can see Tamsen Donner Band there this Friday night. Zac Johnson will be blowing his horns. 707 Marina Vista in Martinez. One half block west of Ferry Street. 21 and over please. 8pm to 11pm.
Armando's.
"Open To Music"
www.martinezvibes.com/armandos/

Tamsen Donner Band to back Benny Arroyo

Howdy!

It is confirmed. TDB will be the backing band for harmonica man Benny Arroyo's show at Bo's Barbecue in Lafayette. Bo's features great barbecue in a suburban setting with live music on many nights. Join us on July 2 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm for some tasty blues and some tasty meat! Bo's is at 3422 Mt. Diablo Blvd. near Brown St. in Lafayette.

JD's Pool Jam and Birthday Bash

Hey gang!

Time for a Headsup from TDB. If you are reading this then you are invited to JD Dills' house this Sunday from 2pm until dusk for the Pool Jam and JD Birthday Bash. TDB will perform a set then host a jam that might go a while. Many talented players have promised to attend and last year's event was pretty successful, so let's top it! Music starts at 3pm, bring a chair and a dish to share, a swimsuit, a towel, and if you have an instrument you want to play, bring it! The Dills address in Concord is 3704 Larch Ct. Call the house if you get lost: 925-827-9893. See you there!

Tuolumne Blues registration is open. Visit www.tamsendonner.com for all the details.

The Rumor Mill:
TDB has been asked to back Benny Arroyo for some blues at Bo's Barbecue in Lafayette on July 2. Once that has been confirmed I will post more details.

Stay cool!

Jimmy V

TDB Summer

Greetings!

Thanks for visiting the TDBlog, the alternate internet home for Tamsen Donner Band. We're working on our calendar for the upcoming year. September is ready to go! In the meantime look out for a special event featuring TDB on June 22. Secret plans are in the works...

Tuolumne Blues registration will start soon. This is the 12th Annual Tuolumne Blues event at Tuolumne Camp near Yosemite. The dates this year are Sept. 2-8, with performances on Friday the 5th and Saturday the 6th. Saturday is the usual unpredictable and raucous TDB show. But FRIDAY---------------Look out!!! We've secured the Mofo Party Band for the evening. These guys play the blues hard and good. It is definitely going to be a party at the stage! Check out their site: http://www.mofopartyband.com/

Look for Tuolumne Blues registration to start in the next few weeks...

Ta Ta For Now

Jimmy V

WHAT'S IN THE BAND'S MUSIC PLAYER RIGHT NOW?

Perfesser Chris is listening to:

Old Man Dylan, a compilation of Dylan's last three releases put together by music savant and TDB supporter David Hillis, who rightly detected my need for continuing education in all
things Dylan. Thirty mostly great songs from Time Out of Mind (1997), Love and Theft (2001), and Modern Times (2006). Look for some of this material in a TDB set list soon.

Leo Kottke, 6 and 12 String Guitar (Takoma Records). First released in 1969, this pretty much turned finger-style acoustic guitar playing on its ear, especially the notoriously unwieldy 12-string. Rapid fire picking, phenomenal fretboard coverage, eccentric slide, and at the core, an exquisite sense of the song. Please play "Crow River Waltz" at my funeral.

Linda Ronstadt & Ann Savoy, Adieu False Heart (Vanguard, 2006). Perfect blending of two voices covering some great Cajun traditionals, contemporary folk songs, and two (count 'em, two!) Richard Thompson songs. Best version of "Walk Away Renee" ever.

Next: What the Doctor prescribes...

TDB at Vinnie's

Hi everyone. The bass player here, with a report from last night.

The return of Zac Johnson to the TDB lineup was highly anticipated and paid off in spades last night as Zac contributed his usual unique blasts of musical genius from the sax and the clarinet. The band was extra jazzed to have him back and thrived on the big sound of a five-piece. The sound at Vinnie's helped as well, with lots of power and good acoustics. TDB debuted five new tunes at the show and all went over well. I particularly enjoyed the new (to TDB) Los Lobos tune, "Shakin' Shakin' Shakes", with the duel lead guitar boys rippin' off blazing licks to take the end jam to a rousing finish. Also still ringing in my head today is J.D. Dills version of Magic Sam's "Give Me Time." Expect both of those tunes at a show next month. Special thanks to our guest players: Scott Mitchell, Larry Frick, Rob McCullough, and Bennie.

Thanks to all of our friends who came out on a rainy night to support us: Jill and Steve, David and Margret, Lalo and Celia, Rob and Laurie, Sean and Rosie, Larry and Cora, Kerry, Scott, Clay, Ali and Barbara, Dave, Peter, Ken, and all the rest of you---we appreciate it!

Jimmy V

WHAT'S IN THE BAND'S MUSIC PLAYER RIGHT NOW?

J.D. is listening to:
The Best of Clifton Chenier on Arhoolie This is some great stuff recorded between 1964 and 1981. The King of Zydeco and Louisiana Blues says it all.

Breakin' it Up,Breakin' it Down Muddy Waters, Johnny Winter and James Cotton on epic/legacy This is a live recording from 1977 coming off the Hard Again sessions. Throw in Pinetop Perkins and Bob Margolin and you got some red hot smokin' ensemble blues.

James Hunter People Gonna Talk on Rounder...Drop everything and go to this guy's website and check out his voice. www.jameshuntermusic.com
J.D.

Next post: What's in Perfesser Chris' player?

TDB News

Hello, blues fans. If this is your first visit to the Tamsen Donner Web Blog then welcome! This page is a trial run to see if it might work better than our current web page. We'll try to keep all the pertinent news where it's easy to find.

TDB has several gigs upcoming. On January 25 you can find the band at Vinnie's Bar and Grill in Concord. We'll be celebrating the birthday of Doctor Dave Rogers who turns forty-something. Helping us celebrate that evening will be our good friend and former bandmate, the great Zac Johnson. Zac will bring his bevy of saxophones with him to round out the TDB sound. We're excited to have Zac for this birthday show. Vinnie's is at 2045 Mt. Diablo St. in Concord. Showtime is 9:00pm. Look for the Vinnie's link on the upper right of this page.

On February 13 TDB returns to the Ashkenaz Music and Dance Community Center in Berkeley. Once again, this is a West Coast Swing Dance night at Ashkenaz with a dance lesson at 7:30pm. Nick and Shanna will be teaching you some easy steps to get your steppin' and struttin' up to par. TDB hits the stage at 8:30pm. Ashkenaz is at 1317 San Pablo Ave. in Berkeley near the corner of Gilman.

On February 16 TDB rocks the house at Ronnie's House Of Blues and Pasta, Dallimonti's. You are welcome to come down early for some great food followed by the sweet sounds of blues guitar from the Perfesser and JD. Doctor Dave and Jimmy V hold down the rhythm section as usual. Dallimonti's is at 1932 Oak Park Blvd. in Pleasant Hill.

Links for each venue are in the box at the right of the top of this page. Let us know what you think of the blog page. Your comments are welcome. See you at a show soon!

Jimmy V