Evening at Frank's - #14 Dec 6, 2008 with Dave Jonasson and Smedley B

It was awesome! Dave Jonasson and Smedley B rocked the night at Doug and Margie’s. Dave has such a deep knowledge of blues history and loves to share what he knows about the origin of each song. Combined with his huge repertoire of such songs and with the accompaniment of Smedley on keyboard made the night an overwhelming enjoyment. Songs were both originals “Bowater Blues” – by Jonasson, Smedley”, “Smedley’s Rag”, and covers such as “Dust My Broom” by Elmore James

Dave’s got such a fine touch with his slide guitar, which even when it’s done very subtly, exponentially multiplies the soul sound of the song to a point where you want to say with a smile and your eyes closed, “oh yeah… play it Dave”. And to hear and watch Smedley fill the room with the notes from his fingertips is overwhelming. I had the honour to join them for a number of songs with my harmonica, but sometimes was mesmerized as I watched Smedley’s hands move smoothly over the keys and pressed the keys with such precision and soul. It kind of reminded me of the description of Mohammad Ali’s boxing style – “Floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee”. In Smedley’s case it was like watching a child in a playground. As his hands floated over the keys then pressed ever so effectively to add the jazz and blues nuances to the songs, I couldn’t help but stare and had to sometimes be jolted into reality and remember that I was to play a few notes on the harp too. Many times I find that listening to music is enhanced when you can watch the musician play, and during this evening, it definitely was the case.

Before the music, we started with Charles Wilkins (one of Thunder Bay’s most prolific writers – and, one of my favorites) reading a few witty pages from his newly published “From the Land of Long Fingernails”. He sold a number of his books that evening and put a portion of the sales to our evening’s charity “Run the Dream”. Thank you very much Charlie.

Doug and Margie’s place is a great venue. They even have a loft from where some watched and danced. Yes, there was enough room for dancing in the loft, in the dining room and in front of the band. The place is much bigger than mine, so there was more elbow room.

Money raised from the sales of Dave/Smed’s CD’s went to another destination. Margie’s next door neighbours from her former home have recently adopted five kids. That is not a keyboard error, I did indeed write five – that’s 5, and that’s no joke. So, Margie, in her random act of kindness way, was also trying to help this very new family get a start.

The food was great thanks to everyone who supplied, and a thanks goes to Vienna Bakery for supplying fresh bread and baking, and Elaine Mckenzie with her own apple wine.

We had a total of 25 people at their place. That would maximize the spacee at my place, but their’s can hold many more. For the next Evening at Frank’s that happens at their place let’s fill it up! The venue is awesome. The next one at their place will be during a warmer and brighter season. Gareth Evans who came to record the evening found the sound quality in their home quiet exquisite, probably to the very high ceilings. Gareth will have videos and CD’s of the evening available for sale with proceeds going to the new big family. If interested in a disk, let me know.

Lastly, Dave and Smedley have a self titled CD of a mix of their originals and covers are available for a low cost. I’ll connect you with them if you want to buy any.

Until the next Evening at Frank’s, have a great and Merry Christmas.