tag:thethugz.net,2005:/blogs/mike-s-rants?p=1Mike's Rants2023-03-12T11:32:04-07:00The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)falsetag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/71667192023-03-12T11:32:04-07:002023-10-16T07:57:19-07:00load in, load out & load in again<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/s:bzglfiles/u/395142/63ee396a30991509bfd0a385bcd57d8027eba46c/original/truck.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==" class="size_m justify_center border_" /></p><p>2023 - It's been a while. Haven't posted since 2019 I think. A lot has changed with the band yet a lot has remained the same. The pandemic shut down, severe winters (for California anyway) and other unexpected events have all had an impact. Still, the Thugz are still functioning and are embarking on a new chapter of music making. I'll be loading up the “thugz mobile” soon for a few shows that hopefully will be the beginning of a return to “normal” for us and all the other live bands here in Sonoma county and elsewhere.</p><p> The band has been working through the winter on a collection of brand new original tunes. Andre has his improved recording studio space just about ready for us to start laying down some tracks. When completed we will put out the tunes in some form or another. Probably in CD format for souvenir sales at shows and some online downloads. No big money making situation but we do want to keep trying to come up with new songs and sounds to keep things interesting.</p><p> In the area of live gigs we will soon do a Rio Nido, a Hopmonk and other local shows to get our “sea legs” back. Also look for a few new and maybe surprising venues we will be at. Our Bob Dylan Tribute and Jerry Garcia Celebration are in the works and should be back in full force. </p><p>Thanks to our loyal fans and new listeners that have been supporting us loyally for the sparse performances of the past few months! So here we go “one way or another”. Load in , load out & load in again - it's what we do.</p>The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968862019-06-04T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:13-08:00Shelter from the Storm
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/0e5b4554fb3bde73bcdef9f874e492a9d4fa7e77/original/hdwb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjYweDQ1OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="459" width="260" /></p>
<p>Our 10th annual Bob Dylan show has come and gone. It was quite an adventure .We set up on the newly refurbished Rio Nido Roadhouse stage with upgraded power and it's new stage lighting system. We were ready. </p>
<p> Rather quickly though the sky darkened and the rain began. We waited a while but things were just getting too wet. What now? Go home? With help from the Roadhouse crew we moved everything and set up again on the covered patio. Not perfect but it was something. After that the weather improved so the patio was opened up and many folks took up spots outside. There were a lot of people, as many or more than we have ever had there for the Dylan gig.So happy that the Roadhouse is back in business.<br></p>
<p> It turned out to be a very fun night. Puffinhorn opened ( myself - trumpet, John Norris on string bass & John Shebalin on cajon). We did One More Cup of Coffee, Blue Moon (from Self Portrait) and If Dogs Run Free. We were followed by "Tumbleweed Soul" with a very harmonious mini set of Dylan gems.</p>
<p> The Thugz came on with a few acoustic numbers and then full on electric mayhem into the night. I was especially happy to get to play a whole lot of harmonica and even a bit of trombone. We are so thankful to have such cool fans who stick with us through thick & thin and make the whole endeavor so worth it.</p>
<p>by the way - photo at top is of a bottle Dylan's new line of whiskey. Friends gave me some for my birthday but I have yet to go into it. The design on the bottle is is a sample of the metal gates that Dylan does in his welding shop. Anyway, it makes a cool item to put on the stereo. </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968852019-05-08T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00Jingle Jangle Mornin'
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/0d51d7040f147a62b0c06af852f7cbcd1ff45a7e/original/12ricky.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjUweDQ0MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="441" width="250" /></p>
<p>For me, our annual Bob Dylan show is my favorite of all. This will be our 10th annual version. A while back I posted a a question on the Thugz Facebook page - what is your favorite Dylan song? Well. there were quite a few responses. Some of them we will be playing at the Roadhouse on the 26th. One respondent asked what are the band's favorites? </p>
<p>For myself I will say "Mr. Tambourine Man". Most everyone is familiar with the hit version by the Byrds. That is a good one! On that track though the only Byrd actually playing was Roger McGuinn on the 12 string. The other instruments were payed by the session group know as the "wreaking crew". I think the bass on the song was played by Leon Russell. McGuinn's 12 string playing was quite unique as it employed a banjo roll with flat picked melody. It's something I can't quit handle yet. Anyway, the Byrds' version was very cool but the original on Dylan's "Bringing it All Back Home " album is, for me, the definitive version. The guitar parts with Bruce Langhorn's contrapuntal licks really set the mood. I can distinctly remember one day when I was in high school running home ( a mere mile) just to get to my record player to hear that song again. Anyway, years later it led ne to purchase a Rickenacker 12 string from Tall Toad music in Petaluma. I have to really struggle to play it but when everything is right the sound is just so - "everything" - that it's all worth it. I will be playing it for at least a few tunes at our next Dylan show. Dylan never really used the electric 12 string but so many other musicians have done versions of his songs with it that it just evokes his image with just one chord. The Rick 12 string is such an interesting instrument. I'll do my best to be worthy.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968492019-05-08T17:00:00-07:002020-09-18T03:17:40-07:00The Name of the Rose - Story of the Thugz (repost of an earlier blog)
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/9614cdc767e42c1d265897470406c53ae59541fe/original/vintage-thug.jpeg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDU2NSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="565" width="420" /></p>
<p>The Thugz! ? Yes, the Thugz. It's always interesting when our band ventures into a new geographical area and some folks react with horror to our "name". To our local fans and ourselves it is such a non issue. How did we end up- with this moniker anyway? Well, long, long ago in a bar not so far away.....</p>
<p> Back in the late 90's, a few friends and I had an informal band called "Miasma" (a kind of stinky swamp gas/what a name also!). We would jam/rehearse every Saturday night in Cazadero and we did some shows with a light show and poet at Connolley's Pub in Guerneville (now the site of the copy/Fedex shop). Some of us from that group eventually teamed up with another couple of guys and began playing gigs at McTee's Bullpen in Guerneville under the name "Altered Natives". At that time we were more of a Blues Brothers kind of band. Our drummer, Theo, began scouting for other bookings. When he went to Jasper O'Farrell's in Sebastopol the owner Jack agreed to give us a shot. When he asked the band's name Theo told him "Altered Natives". "That name sounds like some kind of neutered dog or something" Jack said. "Besides, I like to write the name of the bands on the club window and that name is just too long to fit" he added. Without missing a beat Theo belted out "How about the Thugs?" "Perfect!" said Jack. </p>
<p> Well, no one seemed much bothered by it at all. Later on though after 911,the War on Terror and the proliferation of gangsta rap, etc. really got going the name thugs became rather nasty. Every other word out of George Bush's mouth seemed to be thug. At least people were talking about us. Oh well, we changed the s to a z and continued on. Actually there was a cult called thuggies that worshiped the goddess Shiva in ancient India that had some very unpleasant, murderous qualities. So thugs a bad reputation way back. A more sanitized version of these thuggies can be found as the antagonists in the Beatles movie "Help. It was around this time that we became a more jam oriented ensemble. We didn't really expect to be around that long as a band. We just kept playing. </p>
<p> Theo became a real booking dynamo. We played virtually every club, restaurant and whatever in Sonoma, Mendocino & Marin counties. We even did New Year's Eve at the MGM Grand in Reno. These original thugz were Theo Mills -drums, Russ Kerger - keys & sax, Ian Favell (sometimes brother Justin) - bass and myself on guitar. Soon we also had Marc Basquette on guitar and various other players that came and went.<br></p>
<p> As we became known in the area Barry Marris offered us a weekly residency at the Blue Heron in Duncans Mills. It was then that Sylvia joined up and the present day personnel were more or less in place. As time went by we attracted a very cool and loyal following there. Thursday nights became important events to us and these fans. Duncans Mills is in a fairly remote part of western Sonoma county in California. For many folks (including us) it was the closest place to hear music and even then folks traveled up to an hour or so to get there! We all liked being thugz and many, many great nights of music and friendship followed. We settled into being a Russian River band. We loved the community and various venues and pretty much ignored the rest of the world.</p>
<p> Well, time went on and we began to expand into the outside world again. We did go through several attempts at picking a new name (The Space Miners, The Happy Flower People,etc.) but there was little agreement and we eventually decided it was pointless. We are who we are. We have been thugz so long now that it would almost seem like a betrayal to our old time fans to pick a more "bookable" band name. Besides, we are not at all interested in being a part of any mainstream entertainment scene. American Idol, Billboard charts? Yuk! Who cares? Not we. We play a rather non commercial archaic form of improvisational Americana kind of music that is fun for us and those with similar tastes. If someone doesn't want to listen to us or hire us for shows that's fine. There are plenty of people who do so why change horses at this late stage? About as far as we have gone regarding a name change is to use the somewhat awkward acronym "tribal hippie underground zone". Hey, it works for us and we have been able to play lots of cool places like A.T.& T. Park, Camp Winnarainbow and more. You can never please everyone so we do what we and our core fans like. Many of our loyal followers have been supporting us for years and we are very, very appreciative of that. We hope to keep creating music and playing as long as we are able to in our West Sonoma county homeland. If we are able to spread our music and message of peace, love, family and fun to other areas that is a bonus. Lately we have migrated up the river a few miles (to spawn?) to Guerneville where the Thursday night shows are still going strong.<br></p>
<p> This spring marks the 12th year that the band has been playing. To celebrate we are having an anniversary show at Jasper O'Farrell's in Sebastopol on June 28. We are inviting all past and present band members, fans and associates to join us for this party. Thanks so much to all of you that have joined us on our musical adventures. Hope to see you soon!<br></p>
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The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968842019-04-23T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00Skull & Roses come & gone "my oh my"
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/7a6634c0748bfa1d70f1bb138f2b287b046916e4/original/thugz-stage2.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzUweDI2MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="261" width="350" /></p>
<p>The Thugz have been as far north as Eureka and as far east as Reno but this was our first show in southern California. The Skull & Roses Festival at the Ventura County Fairgrounds was our destination. We made it there and back without too many mishaps. For various reasons the trip down on Friday took 11 hours with no breakdowns other than one vehicle running out of gas and then getting back on the road going the wrong direction. Eventually a passenger noticed seeing the same street names again and a correction was made.</p>
<p> Arriving at the fest we were ushered to a cool spot near the band food tent where we set up our "thugz camp" which consisted of several tents and trucks clustered around Russ' RV. Thanks to our friend and festival coordinator Greg we were set up with plenty of food, drink and info. Bands were already playing at the fest site which was held in the old fairgrounds dirt race track just a short walk from our camp. It was the site of a number of classic Grateful Dead shows in the 8o's.</p>
<p> The festival was much larger than I expected. There were two nice stages at each end of the stadium area with many vendors around the circumference selling all things Grateful Dead related.Through a portal was found a courtyard of food trucks and beyond that the parking lot. The parking lot scene was quite large and lively with lots of vending, food and some impromptu musical happenings. Then steps from there was the Pacific Ocean and a nice beach. The weather was warm and the sky was totally blue.Yay! </p>
<p> It was nice to see David Gans on Saturday morning and also our friend Rosie McGee (a long time GD family/employee involved with the band since the Haight /Ashbury days)</p>
<p> Our set went very well. No major flubs and some really fun and good jams. The sound system was super good and Drew's expertise at the board was a big plus. I think it was one of our best sets ever.</p>
<p> Anyway we spent the rest of the day and night hanging out, listening to other bands and watching all sorts of cool light show stuff and even illuminated drones flying above. </p>
<p> A real fun and uplifting adventure for our little band. We are looking forward to nice new season of music making and this festival was a great kick off!</p>
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The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968832019-04-03T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00Goin' Down the Road
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/d1c71784754eec89dd88b27d4a3f86fdbe8f45f9/original/dogsmall-jpg.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDIzOCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="238" width="420" /></p>
<p>Away we go to Ventura to play at the Skull & Roses Festival at the fairgrounds. 3 days of bands playing Grateful Dead music. We know a few of those tunes so why not? Part of the idea of the fest is to present Dead songs in different styles & arrangements. What we will be doing is pairing GD tunes with instrumental versions of thugz originals and going in and out of each with lots of improvised jamming. So far it seems to work quite well. We have done a fair amount of rehearsing for this one and feel ready to put on a great show no matter what conditions and weirdness we encounter.</p>
<p> Once we hit the stage on Sat. we hope to go with the flow and enjoy whatever happens. I am hoping that my well worn amp rig ( basically held together with electrical tape & such) will make it through the set. Maybe someday we will have a tech crew and state of the art equipment (ha!). Anyway, I'd like to thank our friend and supreme dead head Greg Peddicord for his efforts these last couple of years to get us into this interesting festival. If we survive intact I will give a full report after returning and recovering.</p>
<p> It's been a rough winter for everyone but hopefully a real spring is on the way and more great music happenings.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/ad80961ae9d8e32eca94a9990f86009fa81a24c6/original/schedulesb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDU1OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="559" width="420" /></p>
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The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968822019-03-04T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00After the Flood
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/8bf706a9bb5d03a265e28cc7e18fc80e5de3f908/original/rnrsmalll.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDI4MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="280" width="420" /></p>
<p>stay tuned</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968812019-02-23T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00brrrrrrrrrrrrr
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/3ca2d6f7b664ea8b31b339fdd4edb44c40d1036f/original/resize-pic.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6Mzc2eDY2NCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="664" width="376" /></p>
<p>Trying to keep warm has been the main activity these past few months. Nothing like back in Maine, but for here, it has been a struggle. I'm sick of dealing with firewood but it is our only heat source except for some electric heaters that soak up juice and don't do much. Oh well, spring will come maybe.</p>
<p> I haven't written here for quite a stretch. I really thought I wouldn't return to the band this year but I decided to give it another blast. I started the band in 2001 and it actually has roots that go back much further. It's been a part of my life for a long time so I will attempt to keep on and see what we can do with it. Maybe this will be our farewell tour but we'll see. Anyway, a lot of bands these days have annual farewell tours. It's kind of trend. We do have a bunch of upcoming dates that could be a lot of fun For the first time in quite a while we will be leaving our west county home base for a few shows out of the area. Maybe these feelings are just frozen winter nothings and we will be off on some great musical outings. I've gotta put a log on.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968802018-12-03T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:12-08:00Oh Well
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/3cc29d093632f1791a01fbaf4b3705527a6a296d/original/guitars7.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjI0eDMwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="300" width="224" /></p>
<p> At our last Cotati Caberat gig we were a bit short handed so in an attempt to make up for it I brought extra guitars. Not sure if it mattered but it was fun to play 'em all. </p>
<p>I totally flaked on blog/wrant writing during November . I will post more this month I think!</p>
<p>Thanks all!</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968792018-10-23T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00Ramble On
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/9729646254d652541d36170c1079571934a3972a/original/img-20180729bb2-rewind.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjAweDM1MyJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="353" width="200" /></p>
<p>More of a random ramble of a rant/blog this time. </p>
<p> Fall is here and things tend to slow down in the live music world around here. At the end of September I figured on just shutting down the band and starting up again in the spring--- or maybe not. Sometimes being a so called "band leader" is not that fun. There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes that the audience and fans are unaware of, broken gear, broken vehicles, schedule conflicts, hanging posters, keeping ink in the printer, communications, website maintenance, people complaining about the cost at some shows (even though we hardly if ever make any decent money), loading in - loading out, etc.. and other things to whine about that must remain private. </p>
<p> At some gigs, not all, I felt like I had so much non music stuff to deal with that I couldn't even enjoy playing in the band. These feelings come and go but fortunately things have been a bit better lately. The music has been more enjoyable and there has been some interest from venues about more bookings so on we go. I do feel more invigorated right now even as we go into the dark months. Hey, when the focus is on the music and not the baggage then things are worth it. I get to play with some great fellow musicians and do feel appreciation for the music from so many listeners and dancers. By the way, the trumpet in the accompanying picture was gifted to me by a kind thugz fan. It's a cool horn that I use quite a bit. <br></p>
<p> I felt like we did pretty well at our recent Redwood show and I am looking forward to some other things coming up like the return of Thugz Thursday at Rio Nido. The first one will be our annual "Holidaze Party". <br></p>
<p> On a different "note" some have asked what happened to our merch table. We did have for quite a while a pretty cool selection of merch items; shirts, hats, stickers, recordings, bottle openers (our biggest seller!) and other stuff (thanks Craig). Some of the funds generated from that went to augment the band members pay and the rest went into an emergency stash. Well, equipment emergency things did happen. It was good that we had the money saved to buy some new gear and do a few needed repairs on the sound system but it left nothing left to restock merch. Maybe we will scrape together some money for such things again but right now it's not likely. I already, in a previous rant, griped about cd sales going away and that was a significant loss for us but we will see. Maybe we can come up with something although you can probably ascertain that we aren't the greatest business people.</p>
<p> Well, enough for now. If anyone has read this far I truly appreciate it. Thanks for the support. It ain't over 'til it's over!</p>
<p> One more rant - my favorite Johnny Otis quote - "The c in rap is silent:</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968782018-10-14T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00I was so much older then...
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/ce92c5a12413001826035984c03dfbc67d551d95/original/solid-air-rr-starbb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjIweDE4NiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="186" width="220" /></p>
<p> Ever since I got the Byrds album "Younger Than Yesterday" back when it came out in the 60's I have always liked it a lot. It has lots of nice Byrds tunes, Dylan's "My Back Pages", Clarence White guitar licks and on one song "So You Want to be a Rock & Roll Star" it had the great South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela. I still listen to the album fairly often. My only complaint is that the songs are all so short.<br></p>
<p> Anyway, it was a pleasure to be asked by Sonoma county band "Solid Air" to play the trumpet part when they performed "So You Want to be a R & R Star" this past August at the KRSH Backyard Concert. The band is really good so it was a pleasure for me to join in. I didn't see anyone running for the exit so I guess the sound was decent. Lotsa fun & thanks Allegra, Sam & company!</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968762018-10-12T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00Free is Killing Music!
<p> <img src="https://thethugznet.hostbaby.com/img/jerry_small.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="388" width="220" /></p>
<p>I don't mean the band "Free" (btw - a great group with Paul Rodgers before "Bad Company" (All Right Now,etc). I am just mentioning that music, especially live music, has become so de-valued that it is having an impact on venues and musicians. I am reminded of seeing Jerry Garcia in the film "Festival Express" being confronted by people protesting that concert ticket prices were $5 or some small amount. He was like "hey man we need to buy some gas and food", etc.</p>
<p> So many people are now used to getting music free on the internet, illicit copies or at so called free public concerts. Musicians typically rely on CD sales to promote and augment their scant income stream but even that is going away. New cars and rentals don't even have CD players now. Companies like CD Baby that promote and support musical acts have not been selling much and are shrinking in size and influence. Musicians are still able to sell a few cds at shows as folks still seem to like having a souvenir, but with virtually no online sales it's hard to make even enough money to produce any type of recordings. Yes, there is music streaming now but unless you are a superstar the amount of money received is minute. The Thugz are streamed a fair amount but each time only receive about $.002 for each play. We have yet to even reach $20 in sales.</p>
<p> Another challenge has been the proliferation of "free concerts" in parks, town squares, on the green, etc that nearly every community now has. Sure, it's nice to go locally for some music that is free but it has put a damper on local venues who need to charge at the door or raise food and drink prices in order to afford live music. Many venues have gone out of business in part because of this. The free "town square" type shows aren't really free. They are paid for by local business, community and commerce groups. Many times these are fairly "square" groups that want to provide family entertainment. That's fine but it usually ends up being bland, generic, tribute type musicians with little or no creative spirit. Whenever a local group gets hired by one of these series it's usually just a token after thought with hardly any pay left over after the cheese bands have been hired. </p>
<p> This impacts local music venues and musicians alike. What would a restaurant think if the local chamber of commerce decided to have a free public dinner outside next to their business? Local music venues often now don't have music on nights of a local free show. New music and high quality repertory groups, especially at the local level, have even less of a chance to be heard. The decline in live music venues has now caused many regional touring acts to go after these community shows allowing for even fewer local spots to be available. </p>
<p> Things always change but the danger of harming music and all of the arts right now has become serious. I know of many bands and musicians that have just given up. </p>
<p> If you are reading this you are probably a music lover. We do thank you for your support. This rambling, stream of consciousness rant I put out merely as food for thought. Hopefully we can find ways for music to still thrive in these confusing and turbulent times. Please continue to support local music venues and the performers you enjoy. So much of what goes into having a band or show is hidden from the public eye. A typical bar band gig requires rehearsal, organization, instruments & sound gear, loading up, traveling,making a hanging posters, sound checking, loading out, etc. A 3 hour show often need up to 10 hours to actually do. Without audience support it is hard even to produce a lousy show, let alone a creative and artistic concert. </p>
<p> That's it for now . I know i will always do some kind of music activities but what form they will take down the line I can't really say.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968772018-09-23T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00Summertime done come & gone my oh my!
<p></p>
<p> <img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/101b135e4b2bbeafb99ace298b2292338a07a71e/original/sylviafestqqqq.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDI3OSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="279" width="420" /></p>
<p>Another season of music making is winding down. Thugz still have a few more shows before we go into winter semi-hibernation but overall it has been a blast. The current version of the band has really begun coming into it's own. We have been working to do more free form jamming in our sets. Sometimes it's not appropriate for some venues but the last couple of months have seen us venturing outside a bit more. Musically, I think some of our best performances have been the Rio Nido Dylan show, Sebastopol Community Center with Joe Craven, our Jerry Celebration and Rio Nido with Big Brother & the Holding Co. There are some others but right now those are what come to mind. And of course the extra special Love Fest with Sylvia's dynamic return performance. </p>
<p> The return of fall puts me in the "now what" mode. Should we take a break, write & record new tunes, morph into something else, call it a day, etc? Whatever happens I have such a special place in my heart for the band. The group has gone through numerous changes since our start back in 2001 but has somehow we keep chugging along. Russ and I were there at the beginning and he has now returned, Chris has been with the band since way back and Andre since the Pink Elephant days. Steph has been singing with us off and on since the Blue Heron days whenever that was (around 2005 maybe). Drummer John, who is a superior jazz player, has really gotten a handle on our style and drives the band solidly. Once in a while when Chris is unavailable we have been fortunate to have John Norris more than ably fill the bass slot. John also plays in my jazz duo "Puffinhorn" where I get to play a lot of trumpet.</p>
<p> Anyway, into fall we go. Stay tuned.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968752018-09-13T17:00:00-07:002020-10-12T23:41:16-07:00Big Bro Show
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/ac71d8ae7c6c969cc18a2aef78d155291946d73d/original/9-22-18-bbhc300-poster.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDQ2NCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="464" width="300" /></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/5a9bd2f57aee7b0e4eed9f9a9f9089b9bd7e7afe/original/mike-peter-albinc-7-18-18.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDUyOSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="529" width="300" /> Peter Albin & I</p>
<p>Big Brother & the Holding Company, Yes! Big Brother has always been one of my favorite of the great San Francisco bands. One upon a time as a teenager I attended the "Santa Clara Folk Rock Festival" at the fairgrounds back in May of 1968 (hey Tom you will also remember that). Many of my favorite "hippie bands" of the day were on the bill; Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead (my first Dead show), Steve Miller Band (back before his cheese days) and the Youngbloods. The event was quite small compared to festivals these days. The concert area was just a patch of grass outside the fairground office, a space about the size of the lawn at Rio Nido Roadhouse or Monte Rio Amphitheater. There were people but you could easily walk up to the front of the stage and lean on it. That was where I first heard the Dead ( about two feet from their feet). Around the side I was able to bend a bit of cyclone fence and enter "backstage". From there I climbed some steps and was able to watch the Steve Miller Band from the stage. Some short lady kept bumping me with her huge hat though. I turned to look and it was Janis Joplin. I was petrified! Anyway, all was cool and I eventually returned to the front of the stage and from inches away enjoyed Janis & the band right in my face.</p>
<p> So when we got the chance to play with the band in Sebastopol this past July it was quite a thrill for me. Even though Janis is gone as well as the two guitar players, James & Sam the band still makes some great music. Original members Dave Goetz and Peter Albin provide a solid foundation for the newer members and dynamic vocalist Darby (not a Janis clone). This band plays the classic Big Brother repertoire in a slightly modern yet faithful way. They are the last of the great San Francisco/Haight Ashbury bands ( Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead, The Charlatons(Dan Hicks on drums), Quicksilver Messenger Service & Big Brother) to still be playing today with at least some of the original members. So for our band, which we bill as old time psychedelic music, it is a nice connection to the source of it all. I am looking forward greatly to our next gig with them which will be on our home turf in Rio Nido on 9/22/18</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968742018-07-22T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00How to prevent Your Favorite Bands from Playing at Your Favorite Venues
<p>Two easy steps:</p>
<p>1. Go to the show</p>
<p>2. Don't buy any food or drink from the venue</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968732018-06-07T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:11-08:00Blue is the Color
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/f74d0c3e141087526239d28381cff73df188c308/original/blue-note-5bbbb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDIyNCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="224" width="300" /></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/adf1e055595b0cdbae479895ed49ed5816b69a94/original/blue-note-4bbb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MjI0eDMwMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="300" width="224" /></p>
<p>Most thugz shows occur in what could be called humble or funky environments but once in while we get to do our thing in a more deluxe environment. Such was the case when we ventured east to Napa and the Blue Note. We were there to do our Bob Dylan tribute show which somehow got the attention of the Blue Note. </p>
<p>We have done the Dylan thing for 9 years now at the the Rio Nido Roadhouse around Bob's birthday (May 24) every year. It came about because one day we noticed how many Dylan tunes we had in our repertoire and saw that it was enough for a whole evening. Since then we have added others in an effort to make each show different with tunes from various periods of the Bard's career.</p>
<p> Well, the Napa gig got off to a rocky start as the whole band was delayed by a fire at a pallet factory on the route there. Huge traffic and rerouting got us there late and somewhat frazzled. Fortunately Drew our sound master got things together for us without much of a sound check and everything went well. Hey, this club was nice! Really great sound system and some nice back line equipment to use. It was nice to use their Fender Twin amp instead of me bringing mine (hey they are at least 80 pounds). </p>
<p> We started the show as Dylan did during the 80's into the 90's with Aaron Copeland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" played by the London Symphony. Then Melanie made the intro announcement. This was a what Dy,an's manager would read before each show. A corny and yet bizarre newspaper description of Bob's career with a bit of updating from us. After that Rainy Day Women (everybody must get stoned). </p>
<p> We did two sets or shows as they call them there, each one different. The band did well. Unfortunately we didn't have Chris on bass as he had a previously planned trip to Oregon. We were lucky to get John Norris to fill in so well as he has done on other occasions. John is a masterful musician and played both stand up acoustic and electric bass (hey a Tomales H.S. grad). Adam Walsh also joined us on vocals and guitar. His participation really added much to the whole show - what a fine singer and player. And thanks to all the other thugz for fine performances - Andre, Steph, Russ & John John. </p>
<p> Nice dressing rooms there and a huge St. Bernard dog wandering about the joint.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968722018-04-12T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00Jazzin' it Up a Bit
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/29bb546551dd7ae9edb69b368beac8802250cb6a/original/puffinhorn-duob.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzAweDUzMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="530" width="300" /></p>
<p>Spring! April started out with a mess of showers but as the song says, "they bring the flowers that bloom on May".</p>
<p>Lots of Thugz stuff coming up and also a few side trips. One thing I have been working on is a jazz duo with John Paul Norris. I have known John since the day he was born and he later became one of my "star pupils" at Tomales High. He has subbed with the Thugz on a number of occasions and has a lot of experience playing all styles of music. He is a tremendous musician on bass, guitar and a number of other instruments. We will make our debut with a brief set at the Redwood Cafe Open Mic night and from there we have several gigs in Forestville and Cazadero. Speaking of the open mic at the Redwood, Andre has taken it over and will working to make it a cool scene for players and listeners. There will be a sound system with engineer Bubba and a back line of equipment (drums, keys,etc) so all sizes and types of musical groups can be comfortable. The owner Michael continues to promote and support the local music scene in Cotati. Drop by to listen, play or have a brew some Monday eve!<br></p>
<p> The Thugz will be heading into our home on the river Rio Nido Roadhouse" for a Thugz Thursday show and coming up in May our Bob Dylan Tribute Extravaganza (it's our 9th annual such show).</p>
<p> Stephanie has been busy as well, playing with "Tumbleweed Soul" and shows with the "Rock Collection" at Terrapin Station and other venues.</p>
<p>That's it for now. As always, thanks for your support!</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968712018-04-02T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00Time to Get it Up Again
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/6bd165589ef48df76a3d1b33f565bc2b92d1d9f7/original/solo-bybb.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDU2MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="562" width="420" /></p>
<p>It's been a while since my last rant but I have been trying. I wrote a huge one that suddenly disappeared before I could publish it. Maybe it was for the best but it kind of discouraged me from writing for a while. Anyway, here we go again. It's time for another season of thugz music. Since last time I wrote we have had a few quite cool shows like the Dead of Winter acoustic dinner/concert and also some fun Thugz Thursdays at Rio Nido Roadhouse. Mostly though we have been in semi hibernation but will soon bust out with some new dates, songs and fun release from the stress of these days. <br></p>
<p>We really appreciate all the support and interest that thugz fans have shown over the years. Our weird little scene seems to strike a chord (!) with so many of you. That is what really inspires us to continue and get it up again. </p>
<p> Currently we are booking spring and winter dates plus also working on coming up with new original tunes, getting our chops in shape and making plans to really enjoy and cherish the people, places and sounds to come.</p>
<p>Some random stuff: our keyboard/sax man Russ suffered a broken ankle recently and is healing at home . He expects to be back in action by our 4/21 Redwood Cafe show. He has also been writing a bunch of new songs which will start to appear in our sets. Russ was one of the founding members of the band and it is great to have him back.</p>
<p>Hey, Andre will now be moving from early morning to mid day on the krush 95.9 on April 9. Much better for a working musician to not have to get up at 5 a.m.</p>
<p>Coming up in July we will be playing with Big Brother & the Holding Company in Ives Park, Sebastopol. Even though they have only two original members (the rest have sadly passed) they still have a dynamic sound and are a direct link to the San Francisco scene of the 60's. That is something special for us. </p>
<p>Drew, our sound dude, still will do our big shows but he is experiencing great success as a sound engineer all over the greater Bay Area. He is a regular engineer at the Blue Note in Napa among other venues. Yay! (hey can we get a gig there Drew?)</p>
<p> I am going to sign off now before all this goes away - back soon and thanks for reading.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968702017-12-21T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00Winter Beans & Stuff
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/85a20e2b7802303cc530630dcc371c7157a61a4d/original/beans.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDMxNCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="314" width="420" /></p>
<p>Well, not much about beans. I just wanted to show this picture of pickled green beans from our garden.</p>
<p>We had a really fun holiday show at Rio Nido Roadhouse this past weekend, one of our best ever maybe. The place was packed and it was Sunday night! Antway, it was good to see so many long time fans and some new ones as well. It was a fine way to end this year of gigs. I think we are getting re-energized and ready for a real good 2018. We have introduced a few new original tunes and there are more on the way as well.</p>
<p> I had a weird experience at my regular solo dinner music gig on Monday. The restaurant was closed to the public and was hosting a party for a local winery and it's employees. The acoustics in the room are a bit tricky to work with and on this night particularly so. The folks were really enjoying themselves and their combined volume was like an ocean roar. Anyway, I could barely hear myself but I just keep playing (musical wallpaper). I started in on Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush". I couldn't really hear my guitar at all . When I came to the second verse suddenly the entire room of people joined in on "I felt like getting high" and then back like before. it was such a shock. It made the whole night. Oh, I believe there were some green beans served.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968692017-12-09T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00Truckin' with Blackie
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/241d1dc88f50a1a62f0661f2a84ff6a94f438bbf/original/blackie.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDc0MSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="741" width="420" /></p>
<p> We had a very cool evening of music with another Sonoma county band "Solid Air" last night in Cotati. What a great band they are with beautiful originals and some rockin' Beatles arrangements. We are hoping to do more events with them this coming year.</p>
<p> My regular truck, the big Ford, is in the shop so I found myself scrambling to get transport. Of course I could call on some other thugz to pick me up but I wanted to avoid that as I live in a pretty remote location in the hills. So I called on "Blackie", my beater Mazda and veteran of untold river gigs. Many nights I had to get a push to get home from the River Theater? (thanks Lee). Anyway the old truck has been sitting in semi retirement for a year or so I put in a new battery, got rid of spider webs, cleaned away the mildew, duct taped the seats back together, taped the license light back on, emptied the rain water in the bed, put a new sticker on the dash and loaded up. I also had to keep my fingers crossed that when it was time to go home that the headlights would actually turn on (they did! but I had to use pliers).</p>
<p> OK! All good!. Entering Cotati though I was pulled over by the local police. Too many Dead stickers? After giving my papers to the young lady officer I sat and sat. Eventually she came back and informed me that my trailer hitch ball was obstructing the license plate. After promising to remove it I took off to the gig. I wondered if i could remove it at all. It has been there since I received the truck long ago and is quite rusted on. Anyway, Blackie and I had a nice trip home later and are ready for a new odyssey. One really cool thing is Blackie seems to use little or no gas. Very helpful that is! By the way, thanks to all the fans that showed up and paid to get into the show. I was able to get groceries today! On to Rio Nido next week. I do wish Blackie had a music system though. Lately I have taken to driving with a harmonica and holder around my neck practicing Dylan tunes. I better not do it in Cotati.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968682017-11-11T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00winter looks good after all
<p>October off to a bad start, only got worse with the horrible fire storm. We feel blessed to have been in a much less affected area. Some band members did come close to evacuating and many, many friends lost everything. We are all grateful for the tremendous fire fighters and now finally the rain. </p>
<p> During this month we did have several refreshing musical times with Rio Nido Roadhouse, Odd Fellows Benefit and a very fun Halloween party. Thanks thugz fans for your kind and positive way of being. </p>
<p> A bit of good news - last week Sylvia had her final (hopefully) surgery and is resting at home. </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968672017-10-04T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:10-08:00Oh!
<p>Sitting on the deck here in Cazadero I just heard a banjo off in the woods somewhere playing the theme from Deliverance. Guess I'll raise the drawbridge.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968662017-10-01T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00October not off to a good start
<p>A bad day all around for Vegas and music with the horrible shooting and also the loss of Tom Petty. How fleeting everything is . I can't wait to play with the band this Saturday.</p>
<p></p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968652017-09-27T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Grateful part 2
<p>Hello again, Here we go with part 2 of last blog rant. Thank you to those who follow this random series of words (all 2 or 3 of you). <br></p>
<p> I am continuing with a few of what I consider our finest "shows" of this past year so far.</p>
<p>Camp Winnarainbow - We have been playing there every spring for the past 5 or 6 years and it is always a big fun event. It is a total and much needed escape from our daily schedules. The camp is an incredible experience for kids and also for the people at the Adult Camp at which we play for the Friday night dance. It's like the lyrics from "Home on the Range - where never is heard a discouraging word and the skies are not cloudy all day". If there ever was a model for a unified, global, one people planet then Winnarainbow is it. What a breath of fresh air after all the divisiveness going on today. Wavy is moving a bit slower these days but still is an active participant and inspiration at the camp. I encourage you to seek out the movie about Wavy Gravy -"Saint Misbehavin' " It provides a good look into his many positive contributions to this world in spite of tremendous challenges.</p>
<p>August 5 - Our annual Jerry Garcia Celebration. We don't call it Jerry Day anymore as some guy in the city got pissed and says he owns the name. That is a piece of shit. Anyway we had a very fun show. We had a short acoustic opening followed by much electric jamming and visits to songs from Jerry and the Dead. Of course we did a version of Dark Star as it was first conceived on the very spot that we were playing in Rio Nido. We once asked photographer Rosie McGee who was there when the Dead last played Rio Nido how it was. She could only remember that it was "hot as hell'. Others recalled how the Dead's equipment truck knocked down the Rio Nido sign. It was never repaired until about 2 years ago. We thought about knocking it down also but our truck is too small.</p>
<p> Cotati Cabaret on Aug. 12 - Another fun one. The Cab was a happening venue in the 80's with many, many well known performers: Neil Young, Bonnie Raitt, Jerry, NRBQ, etc. It was shut down by complaints from neighbors about rowdiness and noise. It remained shuttered for a number of years. Fortunately a cool and progressive group, Ner Shalom, has now taken it over and made it a synagogue. They have been having a few shows there to raise funds and this was one of them: a summer of Love Party complete with hippie fashion show. The placed was packed with friendly folks and the sound in the room was very good. Also, Drew & I found that if you park in the north west corner of the parking lot you get great reception of jazz station kcsm out of San Mateo. We sat out there until the wee hours listening and talking jazz.<br></p>
<p>KRSH Backyard Concert 8/24 - Another great Sonoma County super Jam. It was a pleasure hanging out with a bunch of cool, friendly musicians and being a part of this great review show. The Thugz did 3 songs including Sylvia's "Quiet Ones" and then backed up Danny Sorrentino on some of his rockin' originals. The final tune of the evening was a version of "Get Together" played by members of Solid Air, Thugz, & Pulsators. Thanks go to Andre for putting this show on. Even though the krush (krsh) is always under assault from mindless commercial interests it is still the last bastion of creative, almost free form radio.</p>
<p> A few days after the krush show we were again in Cotati at the Redwood Cafe. This was a gig where I really felt the power of the revitalized thugz show itself. The music virtually played itself and for a bit I know that I was lifted out of the sometimes drudgery of band logistics and into the zone of music bliss.</p>
<p> Now we go into the fall a new set of performances. On tap is a double bill with Solid Air which will include a John Lennon tribute, our annual holiday show and a few other things. We will get back to working up some more original tunes and hopefully spreading the joy and fun of live music.</p>
<p>One last show I'd like to mention is "Fishstock" on Sept. 3 - a fund raiser for our local Jenner Community Center. They built a new and nice stage and there was a huge crowd of folks enjoying the day. We saw a lot of old friends and felt like we were in a giant time machine transported back to long ago Golden Gate Park. The weather, which is often cool & foggy in Jenner, was perfect - warm, blue skies right where the river meets the sea. It was a very good finale to a string of summer of love shows and events. Even though the whole summer of love thing was a mostly a scam the ideals behind it of peace, love, nature, arts and unity of people are still our guiding lights</p>
<p></p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968642017-09-13T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Grateful part 1
<p>Hello everyone. We've come to the end of summer once again so thought I might throw out a few thoughts regarding our recent series of shows, gigs or whatever you want to call them. For me the first time I heard of what used to be rock concerts being called shows was from Deadheads. When I heard someone say "see you at the next show" I could pretty much know what they were talking about. However, a Dead "show" wasn't really much to look at as the band just stood there playing. The show was more about the audience and all the various subsets of folks at the venue. anyway, enough about that.</p>
<p> Some of the more memorable thugz "shows" this year for me were:</p>
<p>The May Bob Dylan Tribute show. I felt it was one of our best with a cool acoustic set and a nicely varied electric set. This was one of the first big gigs with our newest line up. On keyboards and sax we have Russ Kerger who is adding so much to the texture of our arrangements as well as playing some rippin' solos. Russ was one of the founding members of the thugz back in 2001 along with Dan Albers/bass, Theo Mills/drums and myself. That group literally played every possible venue in northern Cal as well as a three night stand for New Year's Eve at the MGM Grand in Reno. </p>
<p> New to the drum throne is John Shebalin an awesome musician, compose & educator with a incredible background in jazz, classical & theater music. He has demonstrated an uncanny ability to pick up on our style and propel it with steady drive and top notch musicianship. Rounding out our present line up is Stephanie Salva on vocals and uke. She first started singing with us part time back in the Blue Heron days and has now become a dominant part of our sound. she also has other very cool music projects going on so we feel really blessed that she is also with us in a big way.</p>
<p>Whoops, have to go. I will continue ranting in part 2 soon</p>
<p></p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968632017-07-04T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Mike's Basic Kazoo & Harmonica Lesson
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/51bcc9ec3eb83436bd831da146a0261d4e596d7d/original/dscn1238small.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDMxNSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="315" width="420" /></p>
<p>Kazoo - hum, don't blow</p>
<p>Harmonica - first you blow, then you suck</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968622017-06-14T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Summer of Love
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/b95b60f5112915a5eedfd3074a85194999b1dc7b/original/thugz-wavy.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NjgweDUxMCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="510" width="680" /></p>
<p>Summer is here (though not officially just yet). The band is heading up to our annual show at Wavy Gravy's "Camp Winnarainbow" for the adult camp dance. The following week the horde of happy kids descend on the camp for several sessions of fun & inspiration.</p>
<p> There have been and will continue to be lots of "Summer of Love" events this year marking the 50th anniversary of the original so-called summer. Actually the term was kind of a commercialization of the vibe & scene happening in San Francisco at the time. In fact it pretty much put an end to the whole thing and sent the hippies and other like minded folks scattering away. Even so, the time spawned a lot of great music, art and positive things that still resonate today. For that reason we will accept the "Summer of Love" term and attempt in our small way to "furthur' the good things from those days. We really need a dose of love in the world right now. So the THUGZ will continue on the path, remembering the past and adapting the "hippie thing" to meet the challenges of the future. Why not? The good still exists even though it may be underground right now. So off we go to live it up with Wavy! Thanks everyone for being a part of it all.</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968612017-04-18T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Bob Season
<p>For the Thugz it's Bob Dylan season about this time every year. On May 20 at Rio Nido Roadhouse we will present our 8th Annual Bob Dylan Night. His birthday is May 24 so we figure it's as good a time as any to play an evening of his music. Although we don't think of ourselves as a "tribute" band we do perform two "tributes" each year; One for Dylan and one for Jerry Garcia. These are the two musical forces that most influence our music. We don't try to play things exactly like these two masters but rather take the general style and play the songs in our way. Sometimes it's close to the original version and sometimes not. We get criticized, especially by some Deadheads, for not sounding like Jerry or not playing things at the right temp, etc. But hey, so what? What is common with both Dylan and Jerry's music are masterful song writing, roots in traditional folk music, flexible arrangements and improvisation. These elements are very important to the way the Thugz play. </p>
<p> Not everyone has been following Dylan for his whole career so sometimes there is head scratching and bewilderment at his various performance methods. I have pretty much been listening since he first appeared and have always found his music to be very satisfying. Most folks are familiar with his 60's songs but in fact much of his best material is from the 90's and beyond.</p>
<p> There are so many songs but we will play ones from various periods which will include some well known classics and a few more obscure tunes. Contributing to the show will be "The Front" who did such a great performance last year and "Tumbleweed Soul" which is our own Stephanie with partner Adam Walsh (Jug Dealers). Steph will really be working as she also plays bass with the Front. Also with the Thugz will be Terry Ann Gillette on fiddle.</p>
<p>We hope you can join us for this fun night of Nobel Prize winning music. With good weather, which looks promising, this show will be outdoors under the stars and redwoods.</p>
<p> In the meantime this week has the Thugz playing at Northwood on 4/20 and an Earth day Celabration in Sebastopol on 4/22. </p>
<p>Lots of Thugz music coming your way!</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968602017-04-03T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Onward Through the Mist
<p>The THUGZ are back at it. We took a few months off (Nov. - Jan.) to recoup and rest a bit. I especially needed the time. The band has been playing in one form or another since 2001. We have had ups and downs but the music still seems to work and give pleasure to listeners and band members alike. When we resumed gigging in February we didn't know how things would go musically or even if any people would come to hear us. Fortunately things worked and we were over joyed at the the response. Thanks you so much thugz fans! We all miss Sylvia as we know you do also. She has had a very hard time but things are looking up for her. </p>
<p> The current band line up is Chris-bass, Andre-guitar/vocals, Stephanie-uke/vocals, myself-guitar/trumpet/vocals. Russ Kerger-keyboards/sax and on drums John Shebalin & Rick Cutler. (Russ by the way, is our original keyboard player from back in the day when we had an s at the end of our name instead of z). For the story of our "name" you can read an earlier post of mine called "The Name of the Rose". We have had many great players throughout the years but this line up is really well suited for improvisation and taking the music way out. We are only just beginning. We also still have sound wizard Drew Carpenter.<br></p>
<p> We are working on doing our Thugz Thursday series once again. We have had an incredible run with that - 3 years at the Blue Heron, 3 Years at the Pink Elephant, 3 Years at Northwood, 1/2 a year at the River Theater and now back at Northwood where there is a new management. We are not sure if the Thursday night shows will attract enough people to continue but we are there now. The set up in the venue is much better for us and the new owners are really good. Come check it out soon.</p>
<p> Speaking of venues, the Redwood Cafe in Cotati is really becoming a hot spot for music. There is an improved stage, sound & video system as well as the great food and drink. We are there usually each month or so.</p>
<p> Coming on May will be our annual "Bob Dylan Tribute Show" - a night of Nobel prize winning music in various configurations. Opening the show will be "The Front" as well as an appearance by "Tumbleweed Soul". Also joining us will be Terry Ann on the fiddle. It will be Dylan all night at the Rio Nido Roadhouse.</p>
<p>That's it for now. I'll try to keep posting just in case someone out there is reading.</p>
<p>-Mike</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968592016-08-09T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Summer in the Zone
<p><img src="http://thethugz.net/img/Jerry-Day-small2016.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="278" width="180" /> Jerry Celebration #16 has "come & gone, my oh my!"! It's hard to comprehend that we have been doing the Jerry tribute show for 16 years. The first was indoors at the Blue Heron in Duncan Mills , CA. it was basically an excuse to play a bunch of Jerry/G.D. tunes. The "band" consisted of Sylvia on acoustic piano, Melanie Campbell on flute, Dan Albers bass (original thugz bass player) & Sylvia on acoustic piano. By the second year we went to a full band format and played outdoors. The last Jerry show at the Blue drew the largest crowd ever seen there. When the Blue closed up we went over to the Pink Elephant for a few years and then finally landed at Rio Nido. The Rio Nido Roadhouse has been a great spot for this event. It is such a classic Russian River venue with ties to the Grateful Dead who played there once upon a time.</p>
<p> This year we faced some challenges though. We almost threw in the towel. We had no regular drummer and worst of all no Sylvia. After much soul searching we decided to carry on as the power and influence of the music for us, as well as the fan support, was too great to ignore. Fortunately we were able to get Rick Cutler to do the gig and commit to learning a whole new (for him) repertoire and style. He is a real pro and a very cool guy. Everyone else, Andre, Steph & Chris (recovering from a saw accident on his fretting hand) kicked into gear. We also had my nephew Cody helping out on guitar and Shawn Britton contribution percussion. Melanie got the raffle and motivational speech going and show went very well. The support of the thugz fans was just inspirational! Thanks much much.</p>
<p> The unsung hero though is Drew Carpenter our sound engineer & equipment manager. He is the one who gets there 5 hours early with all the equipment and gets everything ready for us. For us, some of the equipment has become too heavy to deal with. Thanks Drew! What a tremendous help that is! His sound engineering skills have blossomed and he now is employed by several venues, a sound company and works various union jobs all over the area (as well as being a thug).</p>
<p> We don't claim to be a Dead cover band although we do versions of their tunes a lot. Sometimes we don't play any Dead tunes. But once a year we we salute Jerry with this tribute show as that music has so influenced everything we do.</p>
<p> I don't know if there will be a Thugz Jerry show next year. Maybe... maybe not. We do have a couple more summer shows though; Northwood tonight (8/11) and Taft St. Winery this Sunday (8/14). We will do our best to play well and enjoy the sweet days of late summer.</p>
<p>Thanks to everyone for the tremendous support and memorable times!</p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968582016-07-24T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:09-08:00Time of the Season
<p>I always liked the Zombie's song "Time of the Season". I am not sure why. It always reminds me of driving around with the windows open in the summertime ( hey, In the Summertime by Mungo Jerry. - we had a fun time doing that up at Wavy's place recently complete with a kazoo section). Anyway check out the Zombies as they are still happening with the main players including Rod Argent.</p>
<p> The time now for the Thugz is getting ready for our annual "Jerry Garcia Celebration". It will be our 16th annual such event. The first was at the Blue Heron with Sylvia on piano, Melanie on flute, Dan Abers (original thugz bass) and myself. It's mainly an excuse to play a lot of Jerry & G.D songs as our band has been so heavily influenced by them. We don't really try to sound just like the originals as in a tribute band. We take the songs chord progressions, lyrics and a few of the licks and attempt to do our thing with them. That style of playing is completely strange to many musicians. We have had many players sit in or try to join the band but they just don't get it. it's often completely the opposite of what bar bands, etc. do. Tightness and precision are not things that we do. 45 minute sets and requests to "put your hands together" are foreign to us. Sometimes things don't work but often something special happens in the middle of an improvised section that makes it all worth it, at least for me. We try to make things different every time, even if only minutely. Take any song, reduce it to chords, melody and basic rhythm and try to play it in an extended improvisational style. That's what we like and that's why we can play together for so many years.</p>
<p> Anyway, we are still at it at least for right now. By the way - we don't call our concert "Jerry Day" anymore because the guy in the city who started one got pissed. Whatever, his show is a bunch of rigid clones in my opinion. So here we go again. This time we will have Andre, Chris, Stephanie, Rick Cutler and myself with Drew working the sound board. The outdoor setting at Rio Nido is perfect and also the scene of some historic Dead shows and events. You can hear a cut of primal Dead from Rio Nido on the album "Fallout from the Phil Zone" (Phil Lesh).</p>
<p> At our Jerry show last year i did have a tough time. About 3 minutes before we started a staff member passed me the phone and my sister in law told me that my Dad had just passed away (he was 94). We played anyway and I was able to continue because of my passion for the music and the support of my thugz family. This year has found us with many changes and a world in turmoil. We are gonna play and do our best to celebrate and hopefully heal even if just for a few hours. truckin' on.</p>
<p> The Thursdays at Northwood have been going pretty well. Right now we are playing there every couple of weeks but it is still a work in progress. A couple of things the band likes: the room is now carpeted. It makes it harder to dance but the sound is so much better. previously the room was so echo prone that it was almost impossible to play. We made a lot of alterations to our sound and set up but it was never very good. We simply could not hear each other no matter what volume we played at. The other big plus is that we are able to set up in a better spot in the room and we can drive up and load in very easily. The old management made us cart everything in from the front parking lot on dollies. It was a real pain especially in the rain (the rain in Spain?</p>
<p> We also recently returned to Twin Oaks in Penngrove which is now owned by the Hopmonk people. They are still getting things together but we had a good time playing out back. We had Russ Kerger on Sax & keys and Dan Norris on Trumpet, flute and digeridoo. It gave us a much expanded choice of instrumentation. Soon Stephanie will be back and her great vocals and cool uke playing will push things up another notch.</p>
<p> Enough rant for now. Thanks for supporting our band!</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968572016-07-22T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00?????
<p>arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhagragagafhjdkdk!!!!! and that is just for today</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968562016-06-26T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00Rant Therapy part 3 I think
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/b4b3c4cfd04c332718efdc5567c6ee263ec8e734/original/adult-camp.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6MzE3eDI0MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="240" width="317" /></p>
<p>Well, we did our show at Winnarainbow on 6/17. We have been playing there for 5 years now. Before I get into it I should say that it was quiet a success. I was a bit worried that we would not be able to maintain the quality that we have had there previously. Mainly because we wouldn't have Sylvia, plus a new drummer and also reports of foul weather. </p>
<p> The weather starting the day before was not too good; rain, clouds, wind, etc). Usually the show/dance there is outdoors on the rainbow stage (Wavy likes it best under the stars). By the way, that rainbow stage which you can see in our photo gallery is quite interesting. You can walk on stairs over the whole rainbow and much of the sound equipment is from the Grateful Dead's touring stash. For most of Camp Winnarainbow's history the chief tech/sound guy there was Stan Goldstein. He passed away recently but the first few years that we played there he was the man. We learned so much from him about sound, music,etc. Thanks Stan. His ashes are embedded in the recently refurbished rainbow stage. Hey, Stan hired all the bands for the original Woodstock Fest.</p>
<p> Since the weather was iffy, it was decided that we move into the "big top" circus tent, a place usually used for yoga and meditation. While were setting up a belly dance class was happening a few feet away. It was a nice space. The sound was real good, kind of warm. We all got a fresh supply of clown noses as well.<br></p>
<p> Right before we are about to start there was some kind of commotion - A super sunset and a giant rainbow over the camp. Sounds phony but it happened. Wavy was ecstatic! We started playing and had a real good time. There were a lot of people in tent all doing their whatever in all sorts of way out costumes. </p>
<p> I must also say how pleased I am with how every member of our group contributed to a fun and satisfying musical sojourn. On a couple of tunes we had a kazoo section of Steph & Wavy! </p>
<p> Enough Winnarainbow I guess. We did Northwood this past Thursday 6/23. It was a bit strange, a very different version of the band. Due to some scheduling conflicts and an injury to our bass player(Chris will be back in action soon) the band consisted of Andre/bass, Shawn/ drums & myself, yow. I thought it was halfway decent. Andre rocked it on the bass and Shawn's groove and actual playing of the song and not just doing a beat were all yes from me! The new owners Chris & Jeff were very helpful and pleased with the turnout. As long as folks use common sense and move away from the building to partake of their herb we will be able to our weekly thing there. Too bad Tim & Tim ignored the rule. The new carpet in the place has improved the sound considerably. The old Northwood was one of the worst sonic spaces we have ever played in. A few folks complained about having difficulty dancing on the carpet. It was the same at the Pink Elephant. Ya gotta modify your technique I guess. We will return to Northwood on 7/7 and hopefully be there most Thursdays through out the summer. Next up for us is 4th of July at the Backyard in Forestville. On board for that one will be our original keyboard player Russ Kerger & a special guest appearance by Brackett Clark (all the way from Maine). Stop in for some tunes & a brew. It's free 6 - 9 p.m. Probably a bunch of Dead tunes will be jammed upon. Enough ranting for now. <br></p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968552016-06-03T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00Rant Terapy pt. 2
<p>We did our annual Bob Dylan tribute the other night (5/21). It was the 7th annual such concert. The Thugz have always played a lot of Dylan tunes. I remember looking at our list of songs and thinking that we had enough for a whole show. That was the beginning. We do it in May as that is near Dylan's birthday (5/24). Each year since, the show has evolved into what I feel is a pretty decent tribute to Dylan. We get to do songs from many of his different and always changing song book. He has always been an influence on the band but especially so for me. I was bitten by his music back in high school and have followed him pretty much since then. I have vivid memories of running home from school to listen to my new "Bringing it all Back Home" album (especially Mr. Tambourine Man which I an still obsessed with). A couple of years ago I received a gift from our drummer friend Shawn Britton. It was a remastered copy of that album that he did himself. He works as an engineer at Mobile Fidelity which is a company that produces audiophile super good sounding albums. Wow, it sounds even better than ever. Most everyone is familiar with Dylan's classic material from the 60's. However , many folks drifted away from him because he didn't want to keep sounding the same. After doing a stint with the Grateful Dead in '87 he became reborn "musically" and has since produced some of his best stuff ever. He is unpredictable but always great if you are open to it. I firmly believe that Bob Dylan is one of the greatest artists of the 20th century and the beginning of this one. Anyway, it was a fun show we did, especially the "Like a rolling Stone" harmonica jam. We were doing a multi track recording but the second & best set didn't come out because someone flipped the breakers off for some reason and it stopped the recorder from working properly. Oh well.</p>
<p> Everyone wants to know how Sylvia is doing. She is home and continues to get better each day. She experienced such a horrific event and the recovery has been an ordeal but her spirits are good. We are happy to let people know about her progress but sometimes it is not so easy. We have had people come up on the stage and ask about her while we are in the middle of a song, drunks constantly accost us to tell us bull shit about their own crap and try to make it all about them. People have inferred that we shouldn't be driving around at night and why are we doing these "stupid" gigs. They just don't have a clue. It's who we are and what we do. I say .... ... to them.</p>
<p>part 3 soon</p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968542016-05-08T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00Rant Therapy part 1
<p>May 9, 2016</p>
<p>Howdy folks,</p>
<p> It's been a while since my last post. I've had a hard time getting the gumption to write anything but I'll give it a shot. Many people have missed reading Sylvia's blog so I hope this fills the gap although my posts might not be as kind and polite. Sorry about that. I can't imagine that anyone will actually read this stuff but I'm hoping it will be good therapy for me and maybe a reader or two. I will turn on the comment feature just in case anyone wants to comment or even complain.</p>
<p> I am writing this on a very special day. By the time you read this Sylvia will be out of the hospital and finally home. it's been a long ordeal for her and she still has more recovery to do but this is a very important step for her.</p>
<p> I have been playing music with Sylvia for quite a while, since about 2,003 or so. For about 10 years my wife & I lived about a mile from Sylvia in the Fort Ross area so most of the time Sylvia and I would ride to gigs together. We have cut back our schedule since then but at the time we were averaging about 120 shows per year. That means quite a few rides at all hours, in every kind of weather all over Sonoma & Mendo counties, Marin & the north bay. I remember one time in dense fog where I had to stick my foot out of the car in order to find out if we were still on the road. </p>
<p> The band has been forging on in her absence somewhat with the hope that she will be able to play with us again. She has been and continues to be a source of inspiration to ,all us thugz and fans alike. It hasn't been the same without her but when we are playing I can hear her keyboards & voice anyway. I thank all the other band members (Chris, Andre, Stephanie,Drew & the drummers that help us out like Rick Cutler, Shawn Britton & James Foster) for their efforts to keep things truckin' on. We have our ups & downs but our love of the music and playing together is always present.</p>
<p>part 2 soon</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968532013-12-09T16:00:00-08:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00Dead of Winter
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/c07883a1672c760dbaf5176ad85e8c64f8c43401/original/silvertone.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDMxNSJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="315" width="420" /></p>
<p> Dead of winter</p>
<p>Well, it is certainly winter here. It's not as bad as many have it back East but it has been pretty cold. Temps have been down in the 20's at night, fish pond has frozen over (the fish are in a kind of suspended animation under the ice),everything is crunchy underneath your feet and we are going through fire wood at a rapid pace. So glad to have Richard and his firewood stash close by up the road. Because of the severe cold, the band has had to stop playing at some venues for a while. We really appreciate all that people have done to make things comfortable but heating has been a problem lately. We had a great show last week in spite of the cold but conditions were brutal. When it's so cold it is difficult to play the frozen keyboard keys and the guitar strings slice into your fingers like razors. I really want to play more trumpet but since I also need to play the guitar the horn has to sit for a while. In a matter of minutes the temperature of the instrument drops so low that if i try to play without warming the inside with air for a few minutes the pitch is so flat that it is unplayable, bummer. I've tried various means of heating the horn but to no avail. About the only thing that might work would be to have someone sit next to me blowing air through the horn constantly and then passing it to me at the appropriate time (!?) Oh well.</p>
<p>Even though the band is on a reduced gig schedule right now we still have a bunch going on. We are continuing to work on our new album and have about 7 tunes in rough form recorded. We will continue over the winter to record and hope to have the final work ready in March/April. So far all the tunes are Thugz originals and I feel they are our best yet. We may do a cover tune or two but who knows. Any suggestions? I don't care where the songs come from as long as we enjoy playing them.</p>
<p> When things are rough, like in the cold, I sometimes wonder why we are doing this music thing at all. The picture at the top of this rant is of my first guitar which I still have . It is a Silvertone from Sears that my folks got me in junior high. I actually started on ukulele but I think my constant noodling on the riffs from "Satisfaction" and "You Really Got Me" (which don't sound pleasant at all on a uke) drove them nuts enough to replace it with a guitar. Wavy Gravy has a room at his place filled with little trinkets, dolls, figurines, statues, posters, etc. that he calls "reminders of Heaven". My small music studio serves a similar function in that I have a few relics from my musical past like the Silvertone guitar, uke, etc. When I see them it reminds me of what I am doing and why. They really do help and I am glad to keep the good memories of the past around to help with difficult times. </p>
<p> Anyway, if any thugz fans read this I want to express my gratitude to you for supporting this band. Everyone of us has been in countless other groups but none have had the good community feeling of this particular band. Times are tough for everyone and I think every little thing like our music scene is valuable in that it can bring some relief and comfort during the harsh times. keep on truckin' y'all.</p>
<p>-Mike</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p> </p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968522013-10-07T17:00:00-07:002020-10-11T08:39:43-07:00Is it live or is it Memorex?<p> <img src="http://thethugz.net/img/trpta.JPG" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="400" width="265" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>In general I am not at all sure that everything was better in the good old days but I know that one thing was: the "Sound" of Music. Technology has made it very easy to get and disperse music in ways almost unimaginable a few years back but the sound has suffered greatly. The reduction of music into things like mp3's coming out of ear buds is an insult to musicians and listeners alike. They just sound awful. It's like eating the American junk food diet and losing all sense of taste. We get so used to hearing these gutted shadows that we often forget what things should sound like. Anyone can hear the difference when an mp3 is compared to a record on a good system. The mp3 is not as good. All of the information is not there. It's like watching an old TV picture made up of many tiny dots as compared to a high definition system. Why are we so concerned with HD video but not sound? These digital representations don't work. I agree with Neil Young when he says that with mp3 type sound he just can't feel the music the way he used to. With this low quality of sound music in general is not valued as highly as it should be. Of course none of this is new to you and other appreciators of fine sound but I am reiterating it anyway (ranting). Vinyl record sales are actually up (yay!) and our friend Shawn over at Mobile Fidelity reports that these days he is spending most of his time remastering classic LPs for vinyl release. Better head to the thrift store for a turntable before they are all gone!</p>
<p> I thought of all this (again) after playing a duo gig with thugz bassist Chris Lushington. We had only an acoustic guitar, bass and minimal sound reinforcement but it was such a refreshing experience. We played very softly but the sound of the two instruments and the polyphonic style we were doing felt real good. There was a richness to the sound that I just don't hear in the music played at most of the restaurants, coffee houses and such where digital music is used as a background or wallpaper. I'd like to see more businesses have a live musician or two to improve the atmosphere and quality of their establishments. Some seem to think that there are just so many music shows these days. In one sense there are quite a few shows but they are found only in the large "Live Nation" type venues or some of the bigger clubs like maybe the S.F. Bay Area's Sweetwater, Slim's, Terrapin Crossroads,etc. Everywhere else, live music is disappearing. There is some hope I think. Many folks are now discovering the value of organic food, handcrafted beverages, and other healthy living activities. These people are surely going to want their music to be of the highest and most real quality possible. I hope so. Let's get folk singers back into coffee houses, string quartets in the mall, a sitar player at the Indian restaurant, an old time string band at the feed store, etc. etc. The public, especially youths, are getting inundated with phony artificial unhealthy sound everywhere. It numbs both the body and mind. Back not that long ago ( well ok, maybe 40 years ago) kids wouldn't even thing of going to a dance where only records or tapes would be played . They wanted a real band they could feel, no matter how good or bad it was.</p>
<p>This feel of the music and the human interaction of playing and improvising music with good sound is what I experienced playing with Chris the other night. I hope we can do more and more. End of this rant for now.</p>
<p>P.S. - On a related subject - do you think beat boxing is actually music? The Stanley Bros. & the Clinch Mtn. Boys once had a guy do barnyard sounds and sound effects but it was a comedy routine.</p>The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968512013-09-12T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00I JUST WANT TO DO A BUNCH OF MUSIC
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/929a5cd543673802facf56220b020d774f165733/original/img-1936.jpg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDIweDI4MCJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="280" width="420" /></p>
<p>Drew & Mike (looks like we are in the key of B)</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968502013-08-05T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:08-08:00August Thought
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/395142/3f5405a6d5f385797dbcb32d53f0f0939355959b/original/u52ms7.jpeg/!!/b%3AWyJyZXNpemU6NDUweDU4MiJd.jpg" class="size_orig justify_inline border_" alt="" height="582" width="450" /></p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)tag:thethugz.net,2005:Post/61968482013-03-15T17:00:00-07:002020-01-30T04:17:07-08:00Good Guys
<p>Hi Y'all,</p>
<p> Well, I guess it's time to start ranting. Because things have been quite hectic & busy lately (a new grandson! & we are in the middle of moving up the road) I'll take the easy way out for now. Go to the following link and enter the code for a free download of a song called "Good Guys" that the thugz have been playing. So far it is an unrecorded political rant. The version here is a rough one man band version.</p>
<p><a title="Good Guys" href="http://www.volummonster.com" data-imported="1">http://www.volummonster.com</a></p>
<p>code: thugzwestcounty</p>
<p> </p>
<p>thanks for your interest & support,</p>
<p>Mike</p>
The THUGZ (tribal hippie underground zone)