78s
Here we are again with another hack piece. Straight from brain to paper. Who knows where we’ll end up this time. Let’s begin with what’s sitting on the table in front of me and take it from there. Im currently sifting through a handful of blues 78s I got handed recently. Among them are some […]
Loser breaks
Some people were born to lose. It’s just the way it is. They never quite get those lucky breaks that other people get their entire lives. They only get loser breaks. At school they were the last to get picked for the football team. They got detention after class for getting caught doing what the […]
A Long Long Road
It’s a long way to wherever it is I’m going. Time to hit the road. After it’s too early. Before it’s too late. The destination is anywhere but where I am right now. And tomorrow it will be somewhere else. Somewhere a little further down the road.. I don’t stay anywhere too long. Comfort is […]
small town trap
While on the road, I often find myself in small towns that resemble home. I could be in Germany, but I’ve somehow wound up in their version of omagh. In fact, sometimes it’s even more like omagh than omagh is. These traps are all over the world. You could be anywhere. Then you walk into […]
Day off, not an off day
This weeks Boneyard Contributor is actor and musician Brenock O’Connor. You may know him as Olly from Game of Thrones, or perhaps you’ve seen him perform on the stage adaptation of Sing Street. Or maybe you have listened to his music under the moniker of McGovern. You may also be aware of his role in […]
A Kind of Interview with Howe Gelb
Dear Interviewer. There’s no way I can answer the questions you put forward. And I mean no disrespect. It’s too late in the day and I’m too long in the tooth to attempt to clarify my existence of song or sell myself to those unaware. I can only tell you that I believe Ireland invented […]
Blind Blake’s grave, Milwaukee
Dear Mark. Listen! Spent my entire shift, a little over six and a half hours, listening to the complete recordings of Blind Blake. Listened to the last CD twice, which included his final recording session up in Grafton, Wisconsin. Please make a pilgrimage to his gravesite, if you can manage it. I understand how tight […]
RECORD STORE HUNTER
HAIRY RECORDS / DIG VINYL (Liverpool) At the start of the 2000s, walking to Bold Street used to be a daily pilgrimage for me before band practice. Back then it was to go to Hairy Records, where you’d get into a lengthy conversation with the owner, and he’d recommend some band from the 60s you’d […]
Awkward but social