Can't Get Over Getting Over Losing You

A rare and hard to find gem...

Grounds for Thought - John Jorgenson Quintet

Former band member extraordinaire John Jorgenson has a new project;

John Jorgenson and quintet heats up Grounds for Thought

By: Laura Lee Caracciolo
Issue date: 2/22/08 Section: Pulse

Most coffee houses limit themselves to espresso and the occasional donut. Some might add chess and CDs to the mix. Grounds For Thought offers all of this and much more.

The popular coffee shop and bookstore, located at 174 S Main St, has been putting on free live shows once a month for the past several years.

Grounds owner Kelly Wicks came up with the idea nearly 18 years ago but it wasn't until recently that he decided to bring free live music to the Bowling Green community on a regular basis.

Past shows have drawn in an average of 150 people, but last Friday the John Jorgenson Quintet played to an audience of over 200, according to Wicks.

"It was the biggest crowd we've had to date," Wicks said. "In December we had a crowd of 170, so people seem to be responding really well to what's going on."

The Quintet performed two one-hour sets of lively gypsy jazz to an all-ages crowd which included many regulars.

Wicks rearranged the book cases to accommodate around a hundred seats, but the venue was so packed that many enthusiastic audience members stood in the aisles and the back of the room.

The mostly instrumental music was fast-paced, animated and created a comfortable atmosphere. The result was a very involved crowd - shouting, cheering and clapping during songs and after.

Between numbers, Jorgenson, who has recorded and toured with artists such as Elton John, Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash, would explain his inspirations and reasons for writing certain songs.

Fans lingered when the show was over to speak to the band and support them by purchasing merchandise. The energy of the music continued even after the band stopped playing which is a good sign of a successful show.

Each month Wicks hopes to appeal to a variety of audiences by bringing in bands of different musical genres.

The next show at Grounds is on March 19 and features the Chicago-based jazz ensemble, Eddie Shaw and the Wolfgang.

For more information on upcoming shows check out the Grounds For Thought Web site at www.groundsforthought.com.

Didn't I suggest Elton release an EP?

That's "Extended Player" for those of you scratching your heads...From Billboard;

Mraz Rolling Out New Album With EPs


Jason Mraz

February 21, 2008, 1:25 PM ET
Katie Hasty, N.Y.

Jason Mraz isn't so much releasing his upcoming effort as he is rolling it out. "We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." will be available as trio of EPs, with each to hit shelves on different dates.

"We Sing" and "We Dance" will be released March 18 and April 15, respectively, while the third EP is merely bundled with the other two when the full-length debuts May 20. Purchased separately, the individual sets will come packaged with bonus alternate versions of the songs.

"We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." features Mraz' new single "I'm Yours," which appeared originally as a demo on an EP that accompanied his last album, "Mr. A-Z." The track resonated with fans and bred more than 300 user-generated music videos online. Mraz also tapped fellow songwriters James Morrison and Colbie Caillat to contribute to the album.

Mraz will perform Feb. 28 for iTunes Live: London Sessions in England in support of the album. Additionally, he's in the midst of planning a North American tour and already has dates slated for Europe, Australia and Asia.

"We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things." is the follow-up to 2005's "Mr. A-Z," which debuted at No. 5 in 2005.

Elton and Mary J. Blige to duet at his Oscar party...

Mary J. Blige will join Elton John onstage for a duet at John's AIDS Foundation party Sunday after the Oscars.

John's annual Oscar party has raised more than $15 million over the past 15 years. Blige's AIDS-awareness efforts date to 2000, when she worked with MAC Cosmetics on its Viva Glam fund-raising campaign.

The "queen of hip-hop soul" has worked with John previously. He played piano on her single "Deep Inside." No word yet on what song the two will perform at the Oscar party.

SeeqPod - Sugar On The Floor

Pretty cool new music search engine called SeeqPod.com which finds and plays just about anything. Here is one of the best "B-sides" ever;

Sudbury scandal goes on...

That's why they call it the blues in Sudbury: Elton ticket flap angers some fans

18 minutes ago

SUDBURY, Ont. - Sorry seems to be the hardest word, after an Elton John ticket flap in Sudbury.

Local hoopla over an upcoming concert by the pop music legend turned to scandal when it was revealed that city councillors got first crack at buying tickets, resulting in an apology from the mayor. Local media coverage prompted accusations of unfairness, with some citizens vowing revenge at the polls.

"They raise our taxes, do almost half of the meetings in camera," one anonymous poster griped on the Sudbury Star website.

"These people have been voted in with our trust and when that trust is broken it's time to go. Where would you draw the line?"

John's hotly anticipated March 2 show - one of just two Canadian stops on a greatest hits tour - saw 6,000 seats sell out in less than an hour in the city of roughly 85,000.

But disappointment turned to anger for some empty-handed fans when the Sudbury Star reported that 100 advance tickets were made available to city councillors.

The ruckus forced Mayor John Rodriguez to issue an apology last week before a city council meeting.

"My decision to offer so many advance purchase tickets to council was rushed and not given sufficient consideration. For that I apologize," Rodriguez said in his address, adding that the practice was not so unusual.

"These tickets are not free: the cost is paid in full by the councillor. This same practice occurs in the City of Kitchener, where Elton John is also playing next month."

Rodriguez did not immediately return calls for comment Tuesday.

A spokesman for concert promoter Live Nation says it's common practice among most venues to let city officials have first dibs at tickets.

"Their practices are no different from all the other arenas I deal with in this country, whether it's privately owned or city owned," Riley O'Connor, chairman of Live Nation Canada, said from his Toronto office.

"I don't even know what the big deal is."

O'Connor said the Sudbury arena has sold an extra 1,200 seats for the pop star's show, including those located behind the stage and at the extreme sides. A typical front-of-stage set-up offers only 4,800 seats, he said.

"In fact there was more tickets available for this concert than any concert in the history of that arena, probably since 1978, April Wine," he said.

The manager of the Kitchener Auditorium says 61 advance tickets were sold to councillors in that city, plus another 382 advance tickets were made available to other city staff, venue suppliers, concert sponsors, and arena tenants like the minor hockey team.

"When somebody doesn't get access to something, I'm sure they're upset," manager Kim Kugler said from Kitchener.

"It does limit people's access but we try to make it as open and as available to people via (sales on the) Internet, phone, and in person."

Just over 6,500 tickets were sold in Kitchener, but Kugler said ongoing renovations to the auditorium could make more seats available for the March 3 concert.

John, whose hits include "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," "Bennie and the Jets," "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word" and "Rocket Man," follows up the Ontario shows with a string of dates in Las Vegas.

-By Cassandra Szklarski in Toronto