Yesterday---dress rehearsal day---we were hoping to get away with a few showers, but instead it pretty much poured from 2:00 on, all during the time we were checking in our volunteers, moving the stage onto the field, and running the show. It was a constant battle to keep the water off the stage, fought with… Continue reading A Very Rainy Dress Rehersal
Month: January 2009
“It Wasn’t On My DVD!”
Okay. So I just got done with a lesson with Bob. (The golfer.) We’re working on “When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder” from the Amazing Grace DVD. The last lick of the song is the Roll in My Sweet Baby’s Arm lick, which itself ends with the tag lick. (Got all that?) Bob kept… Continue reading “It Wasn’t On My DVD!”
Super Bowl 43 Blog #5
Yesterday was definitely the most exciting day so far here in Super Bowl land. For the first time the band came and rehearsed inside the halftime tent with full sound, lights, and cameras. As you may know there is a lot of secrecy surrounding the halftime show. They don't want anyone to know in advance… Continue reading Super Bowl 43 Blog #5
Goodbye to Butch Baldassari
This month, we said a sad "goodbye" to our friend Butch Baldassari, whose death leaves a large gap in the mandolin world. Butch, along with being a virtuoso player and human being, left the mandolin world much better off than it was before. When we heard the news, our son Chris and I sat and… Continue reading Goodbye to Butch Baldassari
Dalton Brill Tribute Show
On Sunday, January 25th, 2009, a concert was held in Dalton Brill's honor at the Virginia Brewing Company, in Winchester, VA. Chris Henry organized the show. The Winchester star did a nice story on the event. One of Murphy's former students, Luke Johnson, is mentioned in the article. He posted the text of the song… Continue reading Dalton Brill Tribute Show
That’s Going On My Resume!
Last night: Casey Henry solo show in Raymond James Stadium (that's a 68,000 seat venue). OK, technically there were only about 500 people in the place at the time (mostly the stage volunteers, various production crews, and the security folks), and I was filling time while the volunteers were sitting in the stands and the… Continue reading That’s Going On My Resume!
Kristin Scott Benson with the Grascals
Last night we ventured away from our hotel compound to the Manatee County Fair, south of Tampa. I'm working on editing the interview I did with Kristin Scott Benson at IBMA after she won her Banjo Player of the Year award and I had gone to the Grascals website to look for something and I… Continue reading Kristin Scott Benson with the Grascals
Super Bowl XLIII Blog #2
Wednesday night was our second volunteer rehearsal on the practice field beside the stadium. Our volunteers are the stage crew, tasked with assembling the stage on the field in the three or four minutes after the first half of the game ends, and then disassembling it and getting it off the field before the second… Continue reading Super Bowl XLIII Blog #2
Happy Birthday to my Mama!
Today as I write this, January 21, is my mama’s birthday. She is 84 years old and just as cute as she can be with her snow white hair and her still beautiful complexion. She’s not as tall as she used to be (who is?), but she can still play a mean game of Scrabble… Continue reading Happy Birthday to my Mama!
Super Bowl XLIII Blog #1
I'm here in partly-sunny, fairly-chilly Tampa, FL, working as the assistant volunteer coordinator for the halftime stage crew for Super Bowl XLIII. This is my second Super Bowl, my first being last year in Arizona where the New York Giants won an amazing victory over the up-to-then undefeated New England Patriots. (I actually had to… Continue reading Super Bowl XLIII Blog #1