Dennis Gonzalez Yells At Eels plays Tuesday Nite Jazz @ St. Paul

[Dennis Gonzalez]

http://hometown.aol.com/dennisgonzalezx/images/quartet%20eels%20tim%20a%20a.jpg

[Dennis Gonzalez]

We have added pianist Scott Bucklin to the lineup!

[Scott Dolan]

Can I get a bootleg recording of this event? :o

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Can I get a bootleg recording of this event? :oProbably!

[Jesse]

Jesus, at first blush I thought the thread title was referring to http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Saint+Paul,+MN,+United+States+of+America&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title!

:)


:(

[Scott Dolan]

HA!!

That's exactly what I thought as well. And I was saying to myself, "man, FUCK Jesse!!"

:mad:

But, I was mistaken, so I take the last part back until he really DOES play close to your stomping grounds.

[Derek Taylor]

Roadtrip!

And after... renewed efforts at getting Dennis & sons back to TC territory.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Jesus, at first blush I thought the thread title was referring to http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Saint+Paul,+MN,+United+States+of+America&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title!

:)


:(

No...Sorry!

[Dennis Gonzalez]

HA!!

That's exactly what I thought as well. And I was saying to myself, "man, FUCK Jesse!!"

:mad:

But, I was mistaken, so I take the last part back until he really DOES play close to your stomping grounds.
Actually, Yells recorded live in Minneapolis a few years ago (Home Away from Home) with Douglas Ewart and George Cartwright, and Stefan's Unconscious Collective played there as well a short while back with Ewart as well.

Never have played Scott's neck of the woods, as gigs in that area are very difficult to find!

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Roadtrip! Where to?

And after... renewed efforts at getting Dennis & sons back to TC territory.

Cool! What does TC mean?

[Scott Dolan]

Twin Cities?


And you've played pretty close to my stomping grounds, remember? Lawrence is only a 3 hour trip from my house. You just haven't been back there in a long time, and I was getting my ass handed to me by the flu when you guys were there.

[Scott Dolan]

Actually, Yells recorded live in Minneapolis a few years ago (Home Away from Home) with Douglas Ewart and George Cartwright, and Stefan's Unconscious Collective played there as well a short while back with Ewart as well.

I've got that album. A little birdie once delivered it to me. :)

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Twin Cities? Ah...you're right...TC=Twin Cities. Thanks.


[i]And you've played pretty close to my stomping grounds, remember? Lawrence is only a 3 hour trip from my house. You just haven't been back there in a long time, and I was getting my ass handed to me by the flu when you guys were there. I was talking to the boys the other day and suggested we base a tour around Dallas->Lawrence->TC, and they told me that the venue in Lawrence has changed the way it does things and the music it sponsors, so there is a hole there in our plans, but we're working on it.

[Jesse]

I was talking to the boys the other day and suggested we base a tour around Dallas->Lawrence->TC, and they told me that the venue in Lawrence has changed the way it does things and the music it sponsors, so there is a hole there in our plans, but we're working on it.

However I can help...

[Scott Dolan]

Ah...you're right...TC=Twin Cities. Thanks.


I was talking to the boys the other day and suggested we base a tour around Dallas->Lawrence->TC, and they told me that the venue in Lawrence has changed the way it does things and the music it sponsors, so there is a hole there in our plans, but we're working on it.



Have you tried places like St. Louis at all? The music scene there isn't much to write home about, but I can guarantee you'd have a few folks show up.

Same could be said for Columbia. College town, and fairly progressive for red state America.

[Scott Dolan]

Hell, I could even make Chicago with a little advanced warning. That's just a six hour slide up the road from here.

Sorry, I have no clue what it takes to book shows. So I apologize if I'm sounding a bit loopy or insensitive.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

However I can help...
Thanks, Jesse...

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Have you tried places like St. Louis at all? The music scene there isn't much to write home about, but I can guarantee you'd have a few folks show up.

Same could be said for Columbia. College town, and fairly progressive for red state America.
We've looked into as many possibilities as we can think of, and it's never worked out for any of Missouri. Even the punk scene, which is rich all over the country, and has a great network, is a difficult proposition there! College towns either have organizations that bring in jazz and such - with fairly straight-ahead festivals - or venues such as the Haunted Kitchen in Lawrence, which fluctuate with their booking interests as the demographics change in the towns. Usually it's individuals who will take on a band, or a series of concerts, with their own time and money - or, with luck, know someone who will lend a venue for some bookings.

Even in New York and Philly, it's individuals who have rallied and lobbied for us to be put into places like Vision and Danger Danger House or Fiume.

Hell, I could even make Chicago with a little advanced warning. That's just a six hour slide up the road from here.

Sorry, I have no clue what it takes to book shows. So I apologize if I'm sounding a bit loopy or insensitive.

No offense taken, Scotty!

We try to give as much notice as is possible through JC and MYSpace, and at times, by e-mail. In fact, as soon as a booking is secure, we get to work publicizing the shows. It's hard to reach everyone personally, but he 'net has worked wonders for us.

Chicago is a place that goes back and forth, but it's always been individuals who've brought us into already-established places there, and maybe they know someone who'll cut us a break. At the U. of Chicago show in March, one of the assistant curators at the last gallery we played was a fan from way back, and happened to have a show up at the time which he'd asked me to record some music for an installation. He paid me well for the music, and so I used that money to pay for the trip through Chicago, and I reached into my pocket to pay for the lodging and to pay my musicians (saxophonist Carl Smith and my two boys on bass and drums).

As far as booking a show, people who take on a booking have to know someone who has a venue or have to reach into their own budgets to bring the music in. Or if the show is en route to another show, the booking persons have to find a way to have people pay at the door for the group's fee (which is usually what the door brings in - hopefully enough to pay for gas to the next town). Usually the booker's friends rally round and cook up a meal or two and provide a couch or a floor for a bit of shuteye before the group heads back out to the next gig.

And another thing is that an audience will not just materialize, so that is where the creativity of the booking person comes into play...how to let people know that a special event is coming through. Posters? MySpace? E-mails? Phone calls? Radio exposure?

When the boys run out of venues for their punk shows, we will open up our house and let the bands play here. Carol will cook up a huge meal and some of the bands will crash here and at Aaron's place three blocks away. We have had to, fairly often, reach into our meager pockets to just give money and traveling food to the bands, because they are usually gasping by the time they get here, and we feel somewhat compassionate for the plight of a group of kids that is driven by some insane desire to live on handouts and in poverty in order to play their music and be on the road with absolutely no resources.

There are many ways to do it, and each place is different, and always much appreciated.

[Scott Dolan]

Usually the booker's friends rally round and cook up a meal or two and provide a couch or a floor for a bit of shuteye before the group heads back out to the next gig.


Naturally, you know you and the boys always have a place to rest your heads if you're ever in the vicinity. And Brother, Kelly and I can cook some shit up that will have you motherfuckers smiling!!

I wish I had more experience in getting someone a gig. Hell, ANY experience would do.

[Scott Dolan]

I need to get my main man Adam Lore to give me some schoolin'.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

http://hometown.aol.com/dennisgonzalezx/images/quartet%20eels%20tim%20a%20a.jpg

[jazzy mary]

Have a great concert, Dennis. I wish I could see it!

[Ron Thorne]

Break a leg, Dennis!

Even with a very large ear trumpet I don't think I could hear your performance from here. :D

[kh1958]

The concert was excellent--very nice. I especially liked the second set. Tim Green is a very good partner for you. Thanks.

[Scott Dolan]

Tim Green is a myth.

Nobody can be that good.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Have a great concert, Dennis. I wish I could see it! Thanks, jm...wish you could have been there too.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Break a leg, Dennis!

Even with a very large ear trumpet I don't think I could hear your performance from here. :D
We all broke a leg, Ron...thank you for your wish. And it's funny that you mentioned an ear trumpet; I was talking to a colleague of mine the other day about how lucky I am to live at this time of great advances in medicine...These 18 track digital stereo hearing aids are much better than the ear trumpets of yore and lore!

[Dennis Gonzalez]

The concert was excellent--very nice. I especially liked the second set. Tim Green is a very good partner for you. Thanks.

I'm glad you made it to the gig, because even if you work fairly close, the weather and traffic were terrible, huh? Tim and I have always shared a great bond, and now the boys can share in it too. Glad you liked the show - a bit subdued compared to other events of ours, but it was a great opportunity to reach out to a different audience and a bunch of new listeners.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Tim Green is a myth.

Nobody can be that good.


He beat out Donald Harrison two years running for New Oleans tenor player of the year in the Gambit readers poll...he's on his way to myth status if he's not already there.

[Ron Thorne]

I'm sure that you're hip to the fact that I was just being silly with my ear trumpet comment, Dennis. I'm delighted that you and others can take full advantage of the advanced technology to enhance your hearing.

I really wish that I could convince my dear mother-in-law to get state-of-the-art hearing aids. She's 87, and overly concerned about the cost. She's missing out on so much, including sounds and comments from great grandchildren, musical detail, birds, etc. I know that they're extremely expensive, but our family has offered to pool our resources to assist. Pride sometimes gets in the way of larger benefits.

My hearing is suffering a bit too, but not to the degree to which you've alluded. Mine is mostly a factor of tinnitus, which is truly annoying, however.

Glad that your concert was a success, Dennis. I never doubted that it would be.

[kh1958]

I'm glad you made it to the gig, because even if you work fairly close, the weather and traffic were terrible, huh? Tim and I have always shared a great bond, and now the boys can share in it too. Glad you liked the show - a bit subdued compared to other events of ours, but it was a great opportunity to reach out to a different audience and a bunch of new listeners.

Yes, the weather was terrible, but it was too close by my work to pass up and the concert was in a nice, respectful environment, as I prefer to listen to live music. Not to mention, I hadn't seen you since many years ago at the New Forest Theater--you are sounding rather good on trumpet these days. I liked your kids' playing as well. See you another time, not separated by such a long interval.

[Scott Dolan]

He beat out Donald Harrison two years running for New Oleans tenor player of the year in the Gambit readers poll...he's on his way to myth status if he's not already there.


He IS already there, and you heard it here first, Mr. Gonzalez.

[Uli]

He beat out Donald Harrison two years running for New Oleans tenor player of the year in the Gambit readers poll...he's on his way to myth status if he's not already there.

Has Donald Harrison switched his horn, Dennis?

[Dennis Gonzalez]

I'm sure that you're hip to the fact that I was just being silly with my ear trumpet comment, Dennis. I'm delighted that you and others can take full advantage of the advanced technology to enhance your hearing.

I really wish that I could convince my dear mother-in-law to get state-of-the-art hearing aids. She's 87, and overly concerned about the cost. She's missing out on so much, including sounds and comments from great grandchildren, musical detail, birds, etc. I know that they're extremely expensive, but our family has offered to pool our resources to assist. Pride sometimes gets in the way of larger benefits.

My hearing is suffering a bit too, but not to the degree to which you've alluded. Mine is mostly a factor of tinnitus, which is truly annoying, however.

Glad that your concert was a success, Dennis. I never doubted that it would be.

Oh yes...I understood the funnin' about the ear trumpet. I was just wolfin' you back.

The really good ear jobs are quite expensive, but it's helped me regain my confidence and my ability to communicate. I even go out into the audience and talk to people now!

The concert was successful and fun! That's always a great combination, huh?

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Yes, the weather was terrible, but it was too close by my work to pass up and the concert was in a nice, respectful environment, as I prefer to listen to live music. Not to mention, I hadn't seen you since many years ago at the New Forest Theater--you are sounding rather good on trumpet these days. I liked your kids' playing as well. See you another time, not separated by such a long interval.
Thanks for the comments on my playing. I knew you'd been at the New Forest (was that the night we opened for Herbie Mann?), so I imagine how my playing has changed. And my boys' mother will be so proud to read about her boys! They've gotten great reviews since they stepped out seriously into the jazz world. I'll keep lettin' you know when we play. Thanks for gracing us with your presence.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

He IS already there, and you heard it here first, Mr. Gonzalez.

I'll note that and send it to him as well.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Has Donald Harrison switched his horn, Dennis?
Yes, I think Selmer gave him a new one. ;)

I guess I meant to say saxophonist of the year...

[Dennis Gonzalez]

The video, just uploaded on MySpace:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.channel&ChannelID=74929309

Screen-shot from Tuesday's video:

http://hometown.aol.com/dennisgonzalezx/images/tuesday%20nite%20jazz.jpg

[Gerardo A]

The video sounds great, Dennis! Hopefully we'll be able to find a way to bring you here in 2008. Say hi to Stefan and Aaron from me.

[Ron Thorne]

I enjoyed the audio/video clip, Dennis. Isn't it amazing how well 6/8 works in so many different settings?

With nothing but praise for Tim Green, I can't tell you how many times I've wondered what might have occurred if you and Jim Pepper had hooked up, bro. The only trumpeter with whom Jim had an enduring musical relationship was Don Cherry, a Native brother.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

The video sounds great, Dennis! Hopefully we'll be able to find a way to bring you here in 2008. Say hi to Stefan and Aaron from me.
It was a challenge mixing it, as I didn't have time to fix two of the tracks before the concert...the phantom power boxes were on the blink.

It'd would be great to play Mexico in '08...let's work on it!

Stefan and Aaron send their best with wishes for a great Christmas and New Year! Love to you, mi hermanito.

[Scott Dolan]

Man, I forgot just how pretty that tune is. Very nice, Dennis.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Man, I forgot just how pretty that tune is. Very nice, Dennis.

Thank you, Scott.