Into April with Rusty Bladen

Greetings y'all. Caught Rusty's debut at the Rock Lobster in Broad Ripple (Indianapolis) Thursday (3.29.07). Highlights: countryfried version of "I Want You to Want Me", a cover of the Kevin Welch song "Millionaire", an improvised Jethro Tull "Locomotive Breath" after an audience-yelled request, plus a whole lot of Rusty Bladen originals (I thought "Just For Awhile" was the highlight of those).

He's back on April 26, one of two Indy dates for the month

Here's the homegrown rock and roll schedule (as of 4.1.07) for
APRIL 2007
5 Kingpin's - Butlerville, IN - 9:30 pm - 812.458.6500
7 The Happy Hour Sports Bar - Celestine, IN - 10p - 812.481.2400
13 The Cricket Bar & Grill - Rising Sun, IN - 10p - 812.438.21
14 Gallagher's II - Indianapolis, IN - 10p - 317.884.3850
26 Rock Lobster - Indianapolis/Broad Ripple - 9:30p - 317.253.5844
28 Pub 51 - Salem, IN - 10p

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NEWS YOU NEED TO KNOW- TRUST ME...
As country music gets wrapped up in demographic studies, chart races and chasing advertising rates all in the pursuit of a younger market, the genre’s elder statesman aren’t content to rest on their laurels or going out with a whimper. Willie Nelson had two albums out last year and Merle Haggard one. This year they team up with long time pal Ray Price to produce a fantastic 2-disc set covering a wide breadth of Country Music.

Last of the Breed (Lost Highway) is the first album to team up all three Country legends and also the first to team Haggard and Price. read more

CD Releases for April 3
Peace, Love and Anarchy by Todd Snider
A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection ~ Alison Krauss
Because of the Times ~ Kings of Leon
Live at Texas Stadium ~ Alan Jackson, George Strait, Jiommmy Buffett
Waking Up Laughing ~ Martina McBride
Traffic and Weather ~ Fountains of Wayne

Finally, here is a classic video we think is still cool, digging the black-and-white approach.

Into 2007 - Bladen, Mellencamp and Super Bowl

Good Shows over the weekend; had brief report from Rising Sun, at the Cricket Bar. Wanna download a short (:07) cellphone video? click here...

Got some great photos from Cheri Herron last week. We will be using them within the Rusty Bladen site in the coming weeks and months.

Have any photos or video? email me

...Bought the new Mellencamp album...heard it once all the way through... textured rock and roll. Been drawing some comparisons to 60's rock. I hear it. Surf rock guitar in first song.

...Colts in Super Bowl. Think there will be any hype this week? and (besides Go Colts!) most importantly, what about them doggone commercials we love so much?!

Rob

Christmas CD Released - COMPLETE INFO

Fans:
Merry Christmas Everybody!
It's finally here! My new CD... "Feels Like Christmas"

I am so fired up about this CD!!I think you'll love it. Make it a "CountryFried Rock & Roll Christmas."

Order Yours! Only $12.97 each plus shipping.

For a limited time, I'm offering a special price.
Give this Cd to your loved ones for Christmas.
Buy 2 or more for only $10.38 each.

Here's a link to the website to purchase and hear samples:
http://www.rustybladen.com/

I was so fortunate to work with an all star line up for this CD :
Mastered by Ray Kennedy (producer/engineer for John Mellencamp, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams & Stevie Nicks)
Produced by Dane Clark (drummer for Mellencamp)
Engineered by Mike Petrow (assistant engineer for Lynyrd Skynyrd's Anniversary CD)

(above) Dane, Rusty and Mike mixing in the studio

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Here's what Ray Kennedy says about the new CD:
"Feels Like Christmas is the most fun and refreshing Christmas CD I've heard. It has such an upbeat and spirited vibe. My wife and kids start dancing every time I put it on and then they say. "Turn it up!"

The CD features these incredible musicians:
Dane Clark (drums and percussion)
Troye Kinnett (keyboardist for Mellencamp)
Sandy Williams (guitars, mandolin)
John McDowell (back up vocals)
Vernay Reindollar (bass).

Upcoming CD Release Shows:
December 22 at Gallagher's II in Indianapolis, IN.
December 23 at Poppy's in Aurora, IN.
New Years Eve at The Broadway Livery Stable in Madison, IN.
Latest Schedule, CD news, video and audio at http://www.rustybladen.com/

Please pass this email along to all of your friends and family.
(Send it to your ex-wives, ex-husbands, ex-girlfriends, ex-boyfriends and in-laws too!

Thanks so much for your support. I hope you have a great Holiday Season.
Sincerely,
Rusty Bladen

Christmas CD update

Heading into the last week of October, and the new Rusty Bladen Christmas CD is mixed and mastered. We have heard the entire set of songs, and Rusty fans are going to say this is the best stuff he has ever done. Honestly. No kidding. You'll believe me when you hear it... :)

Let me leak some titles: Frosty the Snowman (which you can hear a piece of on rustybladen.com), Winter Wonderland, Santa Looked a Lot Like Daddy, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. If you hear the two cuts that are on the website and linked here, that is the theme of the sound of the rest of the songs: it is all Rusty's homegrown rock and roll sound. It feels right when you hear it. You say "yeah, that is it..."

Of those cuts, The Frosty piece is from the fully mixed and mastered final version, while the original Feels Like Christmas is a rough mix version.

Rusty says artwork is in final stages, and we will sneak some onto here when we get it.

As of now, the CD will feature 12 cuts, though that can change at the last minute if Rusty adds or pulls one late. Look for a Thanksgiving-ish release to the public. He has some CD release shows being booked.

Do you need a Christmas party to make your year the best ever? Rusty says he is booking a few private and corporate parties for the holiday season. He says to call the office at 812.265.3075 to get the info, or you can email RiverRoad Records.

Bladen's Christmas CD; Seger to tour?

BLADEN IN STUDIO, MIXING CHRISTMAS CD
Rusty Bladen is in the mixing stage with his upcoming Christmas release, a set of holiday and Christmas songs, recorded with producer Dane Clark over the past three weeks.

The record has a decidedly rock and roll sound, and twists songs you may have heard thousands of times into new pieces of work that have a unique american rock sound.

A couple of tracks that are in the set include an unnamed orginal that rocks like Tom Petty during his heyday, and the classic Winter Wonderland.

Clark, the drummer in John Mellencamp's band, plays on the recordings and fit this project into the schedule before he hits the studio himself, focusing on playing with his boss, as Mellencamp is apparently set to work on another record beginning this fall.

Mike Petrow is engineering, and the band recorded the tracks with minimal overdubbing; most of the music was recorded as live takes with the musicians playing at the same time (ain't is sad more records aren't made this way?) rather than adding tracks one-by-one. It lends a live, joyous, happy rock and roll feel to the sound.

Thanksgiving is the tentative release date. Look for a radio push, as, after hearing some tracks, you can't help but think this is the kind of material that would fit perfectly with the always-popular xmas tunes that radio stations roll out each holiday season. Almost every song could sit comfortably next Springsteen's Santa Claus is Coming to Town or Mellencamp's I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus, or even the Eagles' Please Come Home for Christmas.

More to come...

SEGER ALBUM OUT - GOOD BLOG LINK
It sounds good. It rocks. It is a return of one of my faves. Interesting comparison between Seger and Springsteen in this blog. Worth a read, really. And talks of his tour as if it is a done deal. And we hear it is.

Americana Rock News: Black Crowes, Bad Reviews, Sam Moore and More

BLACK CROWES BOUNCE KEYBOARDIST
The Black Crowes have parted ways with longtime keyboardist Eddie Hawrysch due to unspecified "personal issues." Hawrysch has been an intergral component of the Crowes' sound for 15 years. He will be replaced on the band's fall tour by Rob Clores, whose prior credits include Jesse Malin and Blues Travelers' John Popper. In addition, the Crowes have pushed back the planned Aug. 29 release of the double-disc rarities set "The Lost Crowes" to Sept. 26 due to "a recently discovered manufacturing error," according to a spokesperson. Following a summer outing with Robert Randolph & the Family Band and Drive-By Truckers, the Crowes will return to the road Sept. 7 in Richmond, Va.

Maybe that is why the Indy Star reviewer David Lindquist was all pissed about the Black Crowes show in Indy on August 5th
"The Black Crowes turned in a joyless, uninspired effort Friday night at the Lawn at White River State Park.
On the bright side, the weather was pleasant, and a pair of supporting acts made the concert worth the price of admission. The Crowes ran into trouble early, when vocalist Chris Robinson strained to reach high notes. As the performance progressed." Read full story

PAT GREEN
You like Pat Green? Who is Pat Green? I call him the Texas Bryan Adams.
He's opening for Dave Matthews this late summer, and AP says he has to feel as though he'd gained a few more converts. Not a bad opening slot, really, before heading back to Texas to headline arenas and rodeos. Read Associated Press story

MELLENCAMP MP3's
We found a site to download classic Mellencamp MP3 bootlegs. Shhhh. Sharing music is bad. Just like buying and taping albums onto casssettes was bad. And just as DVD's would kill the movie industry, sharing this info will kill the record industry as we know it. Well, good. Die. We don't need another Shakira record anyway.

SPRINGSTEEN ON NEW SAM (of Sam & Dave fame) MOORE CD
Bruce has added his vocals to a duets sort of album by the old soul master Sam Moore . He helps out on the second track, “Better to Have and Not Need”. The album is coming out on August 29, but you can listen to the whole thing as streaming audio here. And let me say, some of it is not half bad. It may not hold a candle against his classic songs like “Soul Man”, and “Hold On, I’m Comin’”, but it’s better than a lot of stuff out there. Bruce does a good job too. The roar in his voice is back. He should use it some more on his next album.

Meanwhile, Bruce is denying rumors of a marital split. Whatta I think? Trust the art, not the artist.

BLADEN'S FULL SEPTEMBER
Twelve shows dot the September calendar, including three band gigs in a row, and four shows this weekend, over three days, including a Saturday Madison doubleheader.

And check out the burgeoning postings of YouTube rock videos on rustybladen.com. Bootleg stuff, Fogerty, Bowie, alt-country. Mucho mas. It' s cool and classic and hip and rewound-ish.

Rock on, my brothers and sisters.
Rob

Rusty Bladen Update: Mt. Adams Report; Website Tweaks

Exchanged email with Rusty Bladen this week. Mt. Adams Music Festival, which he headlined with the band, rocked, according to Rusty.

"Mt. Adams was awesome," he wrote. "Huge stage and PA. Over 800 people. Sound was awesome too."

Tony Burton, longtime guitarist with Rusty's previous band, the Shakin Jakes, subbed for Designated Driver guitarist Mark Hamilton. All was well. "It was as if Tony Burton never left. He sounded great," Rusty wrote.
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Friday night blowout? The Magic 8-Ball says...most likely. Always a rocking, enthusiastic, singing crowd at O'Shea's Irish Pub in Lousiville this Friday (Aug. 18) - solo - 10p -map

note: OB's in Seymour gig on Aug. 24 is not happening - they closed da business. Rusty always drew well there, including the last time in...

Just added:
September 1 @ The Cellar -North Vernon, IN - 10p - - (Rusty goes punk clubbin', at this low-ceiling up-close/most intimately-rocking place you will see Rusty do at this stage of his touring career.)
September 23 @ The Chicken Place - Ireland, IN - 10p - outdoor solo concert -(See the gig at the early leader in the "2006 Best Name for a Club" sweepstakes

website tweaks are complete and online. Video, audio and latest schedule updates are the guts of the site, with new areas for fans to add their own photos and show review.
Wanna see? CLICK HERE to eyeball it.