Deanna Fae Prall features at my Hirut open stage Wed. Dec. 14

Following a stellar week one debut with feature act Chad Campbell, the feature
for Week 2's of my open stage at Hirut Restaurant (2050 Danforth Ave. just west
of Woodbine) is another east end-based singer-songwriter, Deanna Fae Prall.
Originally from New Brunswick, this vivacious young artist has bite and edge in
her lyrics and catchy drive in her music. The night runs 8:30 - 1:30, with
Deanna's feature set, expected to be in trio mode with Chris Mills and Chad
Campbell, running 10-10:30.

During the open stage portion of the evening all styles of music are welcome and
there's no pre-set sign-up time. My house guitar and the upright house piano are
available for performers to use, along with three mics and plenty of PA inputs
for instruments. Between the live sets I spin music by local and Canadian
singer-songwriters and bands, quite likely some you know personally!

Last week at the debut episode we had performances by: Roger Zuraw; Steve
Raiken; Darwin Bruce; Mike Barr; Chad Campbell (doing the feature set); Jack The
Riffer with Darwin Bruce accompanying; Keith Griffin; Paul Cross; Kevin Davies
accompanied by Ken on the banjo; Ken playing a solo set with the guitar; John
Layton; Michael Oesch & Jeremy Smith of Army Of Freedom as a duo; then reprise
sets from Ken and from Kevin.

I spun tunes by Angie Nussey; Drew Winters; Gerry LeBlanc; Gayle Ackroyd; Pete
Otis (who was there but didn't perform); Ric Proctor; Deanna Fae Prall; Desmond
Nathan; Ellen Carol; Peter Verity; Steven Morrison; and The Outlanders.

People loved the sound of the room and were very comfortable there too. The
owners are a down-to-earth, friendly couple who like music (also featuring
occasional Jazz acts weekends), the food (Ethiopian and Canadian fare available)
is excellent, prices are quite reasonable and sight lines and ambiance are
perfect. It's just around the corner half a block west of the Woodbine subway
station. Come one come all!

Links to video and audio of my Dec 14 open stage feature Deanna Fae Prall Trio

If you want to get an idea what to expect from my feature tomorrow night at my new Wed. open stage at Hirut (2050 Danforth Ave. half a block west of Woodbine), you can hear a Deanna Fae Prall Trio audio clip on myspace and see her in action with the trio on my Toronto Moon TV channel on YouTube.

Here's the link to her myspace tunes:  http://www.myspace.com/deannapralltunes/music/songs/come-clean-feat-chad-campbell-85809924?ap=1

And here's the link to the vid I shot of her with her trio recently: http://youtu.be/zgWmZi2Bo20

Her set tomorrow starts at 10pm. Hope to see you at the show!

12 Days Of Christmas `Toronto Moon' New Subscription & Gift Sub Special

Today (Dec. 15) begins, in my mind at least, the Twelve Days of Christmas,
since, including today up till Boxing Day, there are twelve days.

In the spirit of the season I'm offering a special deal on new subscriptions and
an opportunity to get a gift subscription to my `Toronto Moon Magazine' and all
its related services (Toronto Moon Radio and Toronto Moon TV, show listings,
etc.) at a very jolly price!

For those twelve days I'll be offering new subscriptions at just $40, instead of
the usual $52 (which will rising to $60 early in the new year). Also, anyone
buying a second subscription during that time (it makes a really nice gift for a
loved one who's a musician or live music fan) can purchase it for half the rate
they paid for their own subscription!

That means a new subscriber could get a subscription for themselves and a friend
(or bandmate, etc.) for as low as $60! That works out to just $2.50 per month
per subscription, which my existing subscribers will tell you is one heck of a
great value.

`Toronto Moon' subscribers receive full-colour pages on an ongoing basis (as
well as access to our web-archive of several years of back issues, complete with
an index that can help you zero in on articles about specific people or events)
that cover all genres of live music in the GTA.  Since early 1992, `Toronto
Moon' (known as `to-nite magazine' until Sept. 2009) has been writing about
artists you actually know and in many cases has been the first or only
publication to write about up-and-coming acts. Our listings calendar often
includes shows and open stages/jams that are listed nowhere else. Subscribers
also get access to our database of venue info on nearly 1300 clubs across
Ontario. Also, in addition to the videos now available free to anyone on my
Toronto Moon TV channel on YouTube, a new subscribers-only channel will also
soon be added that will give subscribers exclusive access to some killer moments
on the live music scene. Similarly, the full catalogue of my Toronto Moon Radio
shows featuring tunes by the artists I write about in the magazine is another
exclusive subscribers-only benefit. And more new benefits are coming in 2012!

Your subscription support makes it possible for me to continue being the ONLY
magazine to write (and produce video and audio shows) exclusively about the
entire music scene in the GTA.

You can contact me at therealgary17@... or at
therealgaryseventeen@... to make arrangements to subscribe!

On Wed. Dec. 21 I'm holding my annual Solstice/Christmas party at Hirut
Restaurant, 2050 Danforth Ave a few doors west of Woodbine, starting at 8 p.m.
There's a pre-set lineup of players 8-12 (see below) then the stage is open as
long as we have players around to perform. As always I'll have the house guitar
and the upright house piano available!

Saturday Dec. 24 I host a wide open Christmas Eve jam at Rusty Nail, 2202
Danforth Ave., a block and a bit east of Woodbine Ave., from 8pm till 2 a.m.
I'll have my house guitar plus drummer Chris Mills and his drum kit will be on
hand!

There will be complimentary festive treats at both events, at least two mics set
up and there's no cover for either. All styles of music are welcome!

Here's the lineup for Wednesday's party:
8:00 Roger Zuraw
8:20 Steve Raiken
8:40 John Layton
9:00 Jace Traz & All Dressed
9:20 Michael Bar
9:40 Murray Powell
10:00 Jeremy Smith
10:20 Boris Buhot
10:40 Darwin Bruce
11:00 Kevin Davies
11:20 George Pliakes
11:40 Bryan Van Dusen
12:00 OPEN STAGE begins

OK, I'm really not supposed to be writing about this, but the other day I had a
chance encounter with our friend with the long white beard and jolly belly and
he tells me he's got a couple of stops to make in the Bloor-Ossington area early
in the evening of Sat. Dec. 24 but that he is thinking he may drop in on the
Xmas Eve Jam I'm hosting that night from 8pm till close at a new live music
venue in East York.

But whether or not Santa does make it there or not, I will definitely be hosting
an 8pm till late jam at The Rusty Nail, 2202 Danforth Ave., on the north side a
block and a bit east of Woodbine.

And I won't be alone either! Drummer Chris Mills is bringing out his full kit
and it looks like several players, singers, listeners and Christmas well-wishers
will also be there. The whole idea is that folks who, for whatever reason, won't
be with family and loved ones this night, don't have to sit at home on a
Saturday night and watch "It's A Wonderful Life" for the 17th time. Instead, you
can be part of our musical family for the evening!

Venue owner Gina tells me she plans to put out some nice Christmas eats
throughout the evening … hey, nobody should lack for a few victual treats on
Christmas Eve, right?

And Santa, if you're listening: we'll have a couple of shots of Jack Daniels
waiting for you if you make it out!

It's not easy following up a super night like we had last Wednesday at my weekly
8:30-1 a.m. open stage at Hirut Restaurant, 2050 Danforth just west of Woodbine
Ave.

Of course, last week's show was a special edition of the event, celebrating
Christmas and the Winter Solstice, with a good-sized lineup of pre-booked
artists, though that didn't prevent some very talented open stagers from getting
an opportunity to shine as well. (See more details below.)

In order to keep the great vibe going I've booked the incomparable Sebastian
Agnello, iconoclastic protest singer-songwriter and super Country/Rock guitarist
with a very entertaining stage patter to do the feature set from 10 – 10:30. I'm
pleased to also be able to confirm that his lovely and very talented daughter
Joanna will be joining him on stage to sing a couple of Country tunes –always a
delightful experience.

Back to more about last week's party: although two artists had to cancel and
there was one no-show, the following featured acts performed for about 20
minutes each starting a little after 8 p.m.:  Roger Zuraw; Steve Raiken; John
Layton; Jace Traz with his All Dressed duo; Michael Bar accompanied by singer
Deanna Giffen; Murray Powell joined by harmonica player Fred Bement; Jeremy
Smith; Darwin Bruce; and George Pliakes. As part of the open stage component we
welcomed Mark Ripp (accompanied by Patrick Montagne); Jack The Riffer; Paul
Cross; and, to wind us up in style, Peter Verity.

Participants and a good-sized audience also enjoyed some lovely Christmas treats
provided by restaurant owners Hirut and Tibebe along with a few goodies I
brought along. Some folks also enjoyed some of the dinner specials that are now
being offered every Wednesday and the Ethiopian cuisine in particular got rave
reviews.

As always this week all styles of music are welcome on the open stage and
there's no pre-set sign-up time. My house guitar and the upright house piano are
available for performers to use, along with three mics and plenty of PA inputs
for instruments. Between the live sets I spin music by local and Canadian
singer-songwriters and bands, quite likely some you know personally!

Come by and check out this room with lovely ambience, excellent food, great
sight lines and really good sound –not to mention awesome talent every Wednesday
night!

I was happy that we had another night of delightful musical surprises last week
to wrap up my 2011 Wednesday open stages, now taking place at Hirut Restaurant,
2050 Danforth just west of Woodbine Ave.  Sebastian Agnello, accompanied by his
amazingly talented vocalist daughter Joanna for four songs, did a superlative
showcase set that also featured her singing (and Seb playing!) a Jazz number!
(That had to be a first … but Seb says Jazz is easy compared to playing Blues.)

We'll have another very talented player from the East York area featuring this
Wed., Jan. 4, to kick off 2012.  Pete Otis is probably best known for the
significant contribution he's made to the GTA music community over the past few
years through creating the Honouring Our Own tribute concert series, the
showcase sets his Pete Otis Music Publishing has put together at the Winterfolk
Festival and for other special occasions, and for the two SongTown  compilation
albums he's released (with another in the works for early this year). But those
of us who've gotten to know him also appreciate the fact that this seemingly
tireless promoter/publisher is also a first-class songwriter. His tunes are
often quite catchy and, whether cast as adult contemporary Pop or one of his
more Rock-oriented numbers, always have a strong musical drive, while his
subject matter is always pithy and honest, with some clever lyrical hooks to
complement his music.

Pete will feature for a 30 minutes-or-so set (likely accompanied by a couple of
fellow players) starting around 10 p.m.  Before that, beginning at 8:30, and
afterwards, till 1 or later, the stage will be open for players of all types of
music, with a house guitar, upright piano, and a couple of small percussion
items (my bongos, tambourines and shakers) available for participants to use.

The percussion stuff got a good workout last week when drummer Dave Hutchinson
came out and utilized them, along with a chair, to accompany Greg Todd for a
set. Pete Otis also made use of them when club owners Hirut and Tibebe got up to
do an impromptu late set, while the house piano was sounding beautiful when
Peter Solmes, making his debut at this location, used it for his set earlier in
the evening. [Check out my Gary 17's Acoustic Open Stage group on Facebook to
see some pics from this and other nights, btw.]

Other players last week included: Roger Zuraw; John Layton;  Andy Griffiths
(making his debut as well after traveling in all the way from Burlington);
Michael Cuddy & Sarah Ives (aka Cuddy & Ives, also appearing for the first
time); Joanne Park (yet another debut!); Dawin  Bruce; John Charles Daly
(another newcomer); and Pete Otis, who was accompanied by Dave Hutchinson and
Greg Todd for his set.

As always there's no pre-set sign-up time to get on the performance list and
between the live sets I'll be spinning music by local and Canadian
singer-songwriters and bands, quite likely some you know personally! Last week's
tracks included numbers by Chris Casserly; The Good Lovelies; Desmond Nathan;
Diana Zitmanis; Ben Sures; James Sloan; Jerry Johnson; Linda Saslove; Maria
Kasstan; Mena Hardy; Mark Ripp; Melanie Peterson; Michael Theodore; Michael
Laderoute; and Neil Traynor.

BTW, you'll want to come here hungry. Everyone who's enjoyed either their
signature Ethiopian cuisine or more North American style offerings has raved
about the food. The ambience is lovely, sight lines and sound are very good and
you can pretty much be guaranteed to hear some awesome talents every Wednesday
night!

To listen to his songs and watch the video of his super-catchy Pop Rock tune
"Good Year" you'd wonder why young songwriter David Macmichael hasn't yet thrown
himself in front of a subway train. But let's hope he doesn't any time soon,
because this charming young man with a sweet face and vicious sense of humour is
destined for some major acclaim in my opinion.

If you come to my Wednesday open stage at Hirut Restaurant, 2050 Danforth just
west of Woodbine Ave. on Wed. Jan. 11 you'll know why I say that, as he and two
of the other three members of his band The Danger Bees do the feature set for
us.

I've heard David performing some of his tunes, such as "Good Year", solo at open
stages and on occasion backed by the house band at the Sunday jam at Relish, but
hadn't realized what a strong impression that tune had made on me until I
watched its YouTube video.

"Why are they doing a video of a cover song?" I asked myself. It was only after
doing some research that I realized that indeed this song is a Macmichael
original and that it had just become so embedded into my brain that I assumed
I'd heard it on the radio, tv and at Karaoke shows. It's that catchy! [Check it
out for yourself: it's also on the band's myspace page along with other audio
tracks, links to their iTunes store, photos, etc. –go to
www.myspace.com/thedangerbees]

David and his two musical comrades (a second guitarist and a piano player) will
do their feature set at my event from 10-10:30 or so and before and after that
set, beginning at 8:30 and going till 1 or later, the stage is open for players
of all genres and configurations. My house guitar, the club's upright piano and
a couple of small percussion items (my bongos, tambourines and shakers) are also
available for participants to use.

Last week Pete Otis did a delightful feature set accompanied by Jack Tassé on
bass, Norman Lucien on harp and John Romas adding percussion on the djembe drum.
Before and afterwards we had an additional dozen acts take to the stage,
including several first-timers.

Roger Zuraw kicked off with his gritty, soulful originals; Andrea Hatala made
her debut here using the house piano; fingerstyle wiz Steve Raiken returned;
Popster Tom Toner debuted; downhomers Darwin Bruce and Jack The Riffer made
another appearance; first-timer Cathy Elliott wowed the place with her soulful
tunes; TO Folk treasure Glen Hornblast made his first visit; Kerry Burnett and
Josh Sutton of The Dock Spiders shared a set of covers for their debut; Country
songwriter Herb Dale also made it out for the first time and teamed up with
Norman Lucien; young first-timer Dennis Kugappi delighted us with some Jazz
tunes on the piano; Steve Morrison, sharing his Pop gems for the first time,
teamed up with Norm and also utilized Angel Marr on some percussion; and Norman
played a solo set that started just before 2 a.m to wrap us up. Paul Cross and
Peter Verity were in the audience but had to leave before we could get them up.

(One decision I've made is that when we start to get busy I'm going to either
dispense with spinning between-set tunes or possibly play only part of the tune
until the next performer is ready. After all, the focus does need to be on those
who are actually in the room!)

Speaking of spinning tracks, last week I shared songs by Paula Shear; Peter
Eastmure; Sin City Boys; Son Roberts; Rob Minderman; Big Fix; John Romas; Mena
Hardy; Susan Latimer; Steve-Paul Simms; Ted Rusk and Taxi Chain.

I'd be remiss if I didn't also mention the food offerings at Hirut. Everyone
who's enjoyed either their signature Ethiopian cuisine or North American style
offerings has raved about the food. Add to that a lovely, relaxed ambience,
great sight lines and warm sound and you have the makings of a pretty wonderful
night out hearing awesome talents!

I think it's fair to describe Peter Verity as the patriarch of open stages on
Danforth Ave. in East York. He was the first one, about a decade ago, to run an
open stage at the late and much lamented Renaissance Café on Danforth Ave. near
Woodbine (whose owner, Randy Clark, came out to my weekly open stage at Hirut
Restaurant last Wed., btw!) and also hosted a weekly, then twice-weekly open
stage at another former venue, Café Au Lait, in the same area.

Both those clubs closed despite Peter's reliably excellent shows that always
attracted a loyal following. Indeed, after moving to that area nearly eight
years ago I soon became one of those who regarded his events as a kind of
musical literary salon night. Songwriting giants like Tim Harrison (now in B.C.)
and Sebastian Agnello (still proudly living in the area) would gather there and
discuss the music biz, life, argue and drink and, of course, play great tunes
till the wee hours. It was those nights that helped inspire me, after those
clubs closed, to start up my own east end open stage, in part as way of trying
to recapture those halcyon nights.

Now I'm hosting a weekly open stage at Hirut, 2050 Danforth, a long spit away
from where Café Au Lait was and a stone's throw west of Woodbine, and it's a
true honour and thrill for me to have Peter doing the feature set for Week 7 on
Wed. January 18. That is so not just because of his role in developing and
supporting the east end music community, but also because he just happens to be
a stellar award-winning Folk songwriter with lyrics that both grab your gut and
kickstart your brain, carried along by music that hypnotically allows those two
aspects to seamlessly unite.

Peter will start his 30-minute set at 10 p.m. and before and afterwards, from
8:30 p.m. till 1 or later, the stage is wide open and players of all genres are
welcome to use my house acoustic-electric Tak and the beautiful house upright
piano. I also have a set of bongos, some tambourines and shakers and there are
three mics and plenty of PA inputs. No pre-set sign-up time: just let me know
you want to play and I'll get you on the list.

Last week we set a new attendance record as The Danger Bees, fronted by David
Macmichael, delivered nearly two dozen fans along with the regular crowd we've
been cultivating. There were plenty of players, including several first-timers.
While we didn't go all that late (wrapping up a little after 1 a.m.) it was full
and rewarding night with great music. The Danger Bees set (David was accompanied
by guitarists Ed Kramer and Josh Gillard from the band, and rapper Bryan Van
Dusen also got up to improvise some rhymes on a couple of their tunes) was
absolutely awesome! This was a feature act that did all and more than you could
ever hope for.

Other players included returnees Roger Zuraw, Steve Raiken, Darwin Bruce, John
Layton (who brought a nylon string acoustic-electric in place of his usual
dobro-style six-string) and Greg Todd. Steve Morrison, who'll be doing the
feature Feb. 1, returned for his second week and much impressed everyone. Alan
Moffat made his first visit and shared some excellent new tunes –time for this
boy to get a cd recorded! Ethiopian singer Fasika, accompanied by Hirut's
husband Tibebe playing the house guitar, sang some enchanting Ethtiopian tunes.
Another first-time visitor, Sandra, was absolutely captivating sharing her
soulful original material that stems from deep inner places, at fist solo on her
guitar, then with Greg Todd joining her for a couple, and later on utilizing the
house piano while teaming up with Tibebe on the guitar.

From my computer files I spun a few tracks between the live action, including
tunes by Bob McAlpine; Norm Hacking; Shawn Sage; Michael Theodore; Michael
Laderoute; Ric Proctor; Annette Haas; Damon Hines; Melanie Peterson, Paul Cross;
Julie Long; and Kathleen Gorman.

Do also check out the food offerings at Hirut! Everyone who's enjoyed either the
signature Ethiopian cuisine or North American style offerings has raved about
the food. Add to that a lovely, relaxed ambience, great sight lines and warm
sound and you have the makings of a pretty wonderful night out hearing awesome
talents!

Kevin Davies will have percussion help for Wed. Jan. 25 feature at Hirut

A multi-disciplinary creative artist who designs video games, creates artwork,
dabbles in journalism and crafts very catchy and pithy Pop Rock songs, Kevin
Davies first came to my attention at a jam I was attending weekly last spring
and summer. I felt that his talent wasn't being given the proper show support it
merited (the sound was lousy and his sets were usually relegated to the end of
the night as an afterthought). So I was glad that I was able to provide him a
better setting when he started coming out to my open stages regularly and his
performance skills have improved, I think, as a result.

Kevin's songs, while invariably melodic musically, with choruses that invite
harmonies and mentally stimulating lyrically, vary in subject matter mostly
between themes of love gone wrong and  political observations, an interesting
and not-that-common combination. They'll be presented with the best possible
effect on Wed. Jan. 25 when Kevin does the half-hour feature set at my weekly
8:30-1 open stage at Hirut Restaurant at 2050 Danforth Ave. half a block west of
Woodbine Ave. Last week Kevin came out to give us a preview of what to expect
and was joined by drummer Chris Mills providing tasty percussion on the box
drum. The combo was so satisfying to everyone involved that Kevin has asked
Chris to join him again for his feature set, which starts about 10 p.m. so who
knows, this could be the beginning of a new band!

We were treated to an excellent feature showcase by east end and Canadian Folk
music icon Peter Verity, who was joined by Sebastian Agnello playing tasty
accompaniment on our acoustic guitar and the club's upright house piano for
several songs. Peter also called up Norman Lucien to sit in on harp for a tune.

(Peter and Seb, btw, will also be teaming at Hirut this coming Sunday, Jan. 29
from 5-8 as part of my new Sunday Dinner Showcase series debuting that night.
They'll do two in-the-round sets together, trading songs and backing up one
another, while the restaurant will offer Sunday dinner specials from their menu
of Ethiopian traditional and Canadian selections, including vegetarian fare.
Cover is just $5 per person and we've already got reservations for over a dozen
people, so it looks like this is going to be a great event!)

Chris also teamed up with a several other artists last week, adding another
dimension to their music as well. He backed up Brian Pickard (making his first
visit to Hirut) on a variety of Rootsy Pop covers and a couple of originals,
with Norm Lucien also sitting in on harp for a bit; Norman on several of his
soulful but catchy originals; and Mark Sepic, (also debuting) for a couple of
tunes, after which they were joined by late-arrival David Macmichael of The
Danger Bees band on the piano. Mark (who, btw, will be doing the second in my
Sunday Showcase series on SuperBowl Sunday, Feb. 5 –we're calling it the "Supper
Bowl" show!) also ferreted out an interesting Ethiopian stringed instrument
stored at the back of the club and ended up playing that solo for a tune as
well!

(You can see pictures of Mark playing the instrument and other shots from last
week and form previous weeks in the Photos section of my Gary 17's Acoustic Open
Stage group on Facebook, btw.)

I actually kicked off the show myself last week by performing a few of my own
tunes. Other returning performers included John Layton, Darwin Bruce and guitar
and piano-playing songstress Sandra, who did an early set on each instrument and
a late set on the keys.

The Wed. stage is wide open to players of all genres and performers are welcome
to use my house acoustic-electric Tak and the beautiful upright house piano. I
also have a set of bongos, some tambourines and shakers and there are three mics
and plenty of PA inputs. No pre-set sign-up time: just let me know you want to
play and I'll get you on the list.

From my computer files between live action sets I spun several tracks by my
brother, Ric Proctor, and others by Boris Buhot, Brokenjoe, Chris Casserly,
Gerry LeBlanc, Frank Wilks, Gayle Ackroyd, Jack de Keyzer, Jeremy Smith and the
late Kenny MacLean.

You should also check out the food offerings at Hirut! Everyone who's enjoyed
either the signature Ethiopian cuisine or North American style offerings has
raved about the food. Add to that a lovely, relaxed ambience, great sight lines
and warm sound and you have the makings of a pretty wonderful night out hearing
awesome talents!

Steven Morrison Wed. Feb. 1 and Mark Sepic "Supper Bowl" Sunday at Hirut

The kick-off to my new Sunday Dinner Showcase series at Hirut Restaurant (2050
Danforth Ave. a few doors west of Woodbine) with Peter Verity and Sebastian
Agnello on Jan. 29 went swimmingly well, with more than two dozen people in
attendance, and my open stage there, going into Week 9 Wed. Feb. 1, is
continuing to attract great talents and generate a festival-like atmosphere
every Wednesday night 8:30-1.

This week's open stage feature from 10-10:30ish is East-Toronto Pop Rock
songwriter Steven Morrison.

Though some musicians and industry observers aver that open stages and jams are
destructive to the live music scene (because they encourage songwriters to come
out and play for free and basically exploit their talent, they say) there is
another aspect to the picture that Steven's recent evolution perfectly
exemplifies.

When I first got to know Steven after seeing him perform a few years ago (I'd
seen him around the shadows of music shows in East TO for many years before
that) he was, despite possessing an obvious gift, quite awkward on stage,
seeming diffident and not really connecting with audiences. By the time the
first anniversary of the Sun. jam at Relish rolled around last Feb., however,
I'd noticed a profound change in his posture and poise. Backed by the excellent
house band there, his songs —many extolling the beautiful aspects of love gone
right and a few too about the obverse of that— were blossoming powerfully and
explosively, captivating the room and prompting harmonies.  I've been a big fan
since and I'm thrilled he'll be on hand to do the feature –the more so since one
I had planned for him a few months ago when I was hosting at Terri O's didn't
happen because his life was thrown into a whirl after his dog, a longtime-time
companion, passed away.

This Sunday's Feb. 5 "Supper Bowl Showcase" at Hirut will take place from 4-7
and features Mark Sepic for three sets –he's the equivalent of several musicians
in one! He excels at classical fingerstyle guitar and Jazz guitar and is the
creator of a raft of quirky, hugely interesting and complex original songs that
defy categorization and which are redolent with puns and a very sardonic sense
of humour. His use of tape loop machinery to record and create unique musical
experiences on the spot is also becoming well known.  And that's just the start
of this inventive genius's talents!  Mark also invents and constructs his own
musical instruments from others' garbage and stray materials and is the
originator and designer of "The Junkestra" musical constructions/installations
that have been featured at Harbourfront, the Fringe Festival and at other
festivals and events. (People can walk into and around the construction and
create musical sounds through a vast array of unexpected devices and apparatuses
–see www.marksepic.com for photos, history and a glimpse into this madman's
world!)  For the Sunday dinner shows at Hirut there's a $5 cover but the prices
for the dinner specials are very reasonable and drinks are affordably priced
too.

Last week's open stage saw a few more first-time performers, a fine feature set
by Kevin Davies accompanied by percussionist Chris Mills on the box drum and
some familiar faces returning, keeping us humming till well after 1:30 a.m.
Newcomers included: superb Jazz/Pop performer and songwriter Nicola Vaughan (who
teams up with likewise versatile Jo-Anne Park for the Sun. Feb. 12 dinner show,
btw); songwriter Bill Hedefine (who's better known as the drummer for the Brian
Cober Band that hosts the weekly Sun. night jam at Grossman's); Fernando "The
Riverdale Kid" Curcione (accompanied by Chris Mills on drum); Rock songwriter
Bruce Palait; and a member of Bruce's Palait Royale trio, bassist Tony Marone,
this night playing his 12-string guitar accompanying Bruce and then as a duo
with Kevin Davies.

Returnees Roger Zuraw; Steve Raiken; John Layton; Darwin Bruce & Jack The
Riffer; Sandra; and Brian Pickard performed too, so it was a full night all in
all.  Between the sets I spun tunes from Angie Nussey; Cuddy & Ives; David Pepe
Celia; Jerry Johnson; Melanie Peterson; The Spivs; Tim Harrison; Trevor Jones;
Tracy K; Redhill Road; Julie Long; and The Outlanders.

There's no cover charge or minimum for the Wed. open stage and players of all
genres and styles are welcome to use my house acoustic-electric Tak and the
beautiful upright house piano. I also have a set of bongos, some tambourines and
shakers and there are three mics and plenty of PA inputs. No pre-set sign-up
time: just let me know you want to play and I'll get you on the list.

You should also check out the food offerings at Hirut! Everyone who's enjoyed
either the signature Ethiopian cuisine or North American style offerings has
raved about the food. Add to that a lovely, relaxed ambience, great sight lines
and warm sound and you have the makings of a pretty wonderful night out hearing
awesome talents!

The excitement is getting intense here on Danforth Ave. as Hirut Restaurant
prepares to host "Supper Bowl I" featuring the inimitable and indominatible Mark
Sepic from 4-7 p.m.

Located at 2050 Danforth Ave., the musical playing field is in good shape with
great sight lines, excellent sound and superb eats from the kitchen featured at
half-time. There are dinner specials on both the Ethopian cuisine for which the
eatery is known and North American dishes.

Just $5 cover (added to your bill, after tax) and one of the most inventive,
interesting songwriters and musical maelstrom's you'll ever hear, with host Gary
17 spinning some light background tracks between live action plays!

It's hard to believe that Wed. Feb. 8 will mark the tenth edition already of my weekly open stage at Hirut Restaurant (2050 Danforth Ave. a few doors west of Woodbine)! The 8:30-1 (or later) event has had its hugely busy and moderately busy nights, but each week the talent level has been absolutely wonderful and several folks have become as hooked on the night as I am.

This week feature set, from 10-10:30ish, will be by very gifted and mellow Steve Raiken, whose fingerstyle guitar prowess is well known and perfectly exemplified on instrumental pieces such as "Muskoka Morning" and "Autumn Walk" from his 2011 album `Stages'. But I have also always been taken with the soulful and sometimes poignant lyrics on tunes like the album's title track as well as others such as "A Father's Song" and "Don't Back Down", in which he lays his heart out on his sleeve but in a non-cloying, natural way.

Last week's open stage had more excellent performances by some of our regular attendees and we had no problem filling the time and running up till about 1:45 despite the fellow who was supposed to do the feature set bailing as I was starting to introduce him —he was struck by a fit of pique it seemed, or maybe it was stage fright or some other mental aberration, because it made no sense to anyone else who was there.

In any case, last week we enjoyed a kickoff set by Darwin Bruce, accompanied for one tune on the piano by Sebastian Agnello, who, many have forgotten was actually initially a keyboard player when he began his professional music career with Lords Of London sometime shortly after the last ice age ended. Seb also did a few tunes later on for us, naturally, and we were also treated to a set by this week's feature act, Steve Raiken. It was a treat, too, to welcome back Sandra F., Paul Cross, Kevin Davies and Murray Powell.  Bruce Palait & Tony Moronne also returned —this time with Tony adding bass to Bruce's high-powered Rock originals and Kevin Davies on bongos. Another highlight was a debut performance by thoughtful songwriter Dave Cassels. Another debut was particularly stell: young firecracker Mena Hardy (who has a 9:30-12:30 showcase this Sat. night at Relish, 2152 Danforth Ave., btw) did some Country covers and one original, all accompanied by Darwin Bruce on the bass, her friend Kevin on the bongos and, for one number, Seb back on the house upright piano.

From my digital files I shared tunes by Tony "Wild T" Springer; The Spivs; The Kings; Peter Eastmure; Pete Otis; Marshall Dane; Mark Sepic; Mark Ripp; Neil Traynor; Peter Verity; Ric Proctor; and Rob Minderman.

There's no cover charge or minimum for the Wed. open stage (though you'll be tempted to try one of the great food specials the club has to offer!) and players of all genres and styles are welcome to use my house acoustic-electric Tak and the beautiful upright house piano. I also have a set of bongos, some tambourines and shakers and there are three mics and plenty of PA inputs. No pre-set sign-up time: just let me know you want to play and I'll get you on the list.

Hirut has a classy yet relaxed ambience, great sight lines and warm sound and we'd be thrilled if you were part of what is becoming a weekly festival/salon that's the perfect antidote to the "Hump Day" blues!

Rapper Bryan Van Dusen will put your mind to rhyme Wed. Feb. 15 at Hirut

It's been just under two years since I first saw Rap poet Bryan Van Dusen on
stage with the house band at the Sunday night jam that takes place at Relish
tapas bar in East York and in the many, many times I've seen him perform since I
have never grown tired of his amazingly apt and galvanizing rhymes, whether
renditions of set pieces such as appear on his album or completely
extemporaneous creations derived from audience shout-outs or themes that seem to
resonate in the moment.

There aren't a lot of white Rappers out there so he's a bit of an odd duck in
that respect, but his ability to get down with the jive and bring rhyming alive
in a visceral way is the equal of any household name in that genre –and he does
it without resorting to the gutter vocabulary and misogynist gangsta mentality
that is so prevalent in Hip Hop culture.

So you can see why I'm excited that he's coming to Hirut Restaurant (2050
Danforth Ave., a bit west of Woodbine) on Wed. Feb. 15 to do the feature set for
Week 11 of my open stage there! His feature will be later than most, starting
around 11 p.m., but it'll be worth the wait if you get there earlier: he'll have
at least three accompanists backing him: fellow rhyme-buster (also his brother)
Huxx; bassist Kevin Barbe; and David Macmichael of The Danger Bees (whom he
joined for a few tunes when the trio version of that 5-piece band did a feature
for me a few weeks ago) on the upright house piano or guitar.

BVD, as I and other fans call him, has also asked that we set up a chalkboard
for those who want to write down a phrase or word that they want him to
word-riff on during his performance. Got something on your mind you want to hear
put to rhyme? Come out before he starts the set and add your thought to the
list!

Speaking of arriving earlier, I'm now starting the open stage at 7:30 instead of
8:30, as I've noticed we're getting a lot of early birds who need to leave
before midnight.  I'll still be running the open stage till 12:30 or later, if
there's still people there to play and listen, but it'll give early arrivals a
better chance to share their talents before the feature sets. As always, the
house guitar and piano are available for use by performers, I'll spin tunes
between the live action sets (when there's time) and we have plenty of inputs
for guitars, bass etc. and three vocal mics set up.

In addition to a captivating and soulful feature set by Steve Raiken, last
week's roster included performances by Roger Zuraw; young Ilya V of the Dreadful
Starlings band; Peter Solmes; Murray Powell (next week's feature, btw); Boris
Buhot; Darwin Bruce; Pete Otis; Kevin Davies; Sandra Frieser; Bruce Palait and
Mark Sepic.

From my digital files I shared tunes by Dave Cassells; Derek Currie; Jack de
Keyzer; The James Clarke Institute; Jeremy Smith; Andy Griffiths; Ric Proctor;
Bri-Anne Swan; Chris Casserly; Cuddy & Ives; and David Celia.

There's no pre-set sign-up time for performers and both players and music lover
alike will find this a lovely place to be on a Wednesday night. There's no cover
charge or minimum but do think about trying one of the great food specials the
club has to offer. Hirut has a classy yet relaxed ambience, great sight lines
and warm sound. Your presence will make it even better!

My free Toronto Moon Magazine blog [URL appears below] is fully accessible to the public and an interesting, different way to read my daily magazine, with posts dating back to early December.

Although not all stories are included (hey, there have to be some extra benefits for my subscribers, who show their support of my efforts to promote live music in the GTA by putting their money where their heart is) most show listings are included and it enables me to include links to my Toronto Moon TV videos on YouTube, artist and club sites, etc.

Today's post contains  stories about The Loaded Dog's Phil Slaney toasting seniors with a live show this aft; Lenka Lichtenberg playing her tune that's in the finals of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest as part of a show tonight; emergence of a new band featuring Darwin Bruce via Sebastian Agnello's Mon. open stage at Black Swan; and cancellation of tonight's Julian Taylor-hosted open stage at Dora Keogh; plus listings for other shows on tonight.

Also, when you click on a picture in the blog it opens up a new tab with the photo much larger (but still high-res) and if you click again when your cursor turns into a little magnifier the blows up huge –talk about getting up close and personal with your favourite artists!

Naturally I'm hoping that readers will want to subscribe to the magazine in order to receive pages as pdf or jpg email attachments on a daily basis. Paid subscribers (it's $60 for a year, or $20 for a 3-month trial) get the pages in a timely way, access to my database of more than 1300 clubs, an index to past issues and can join two web groups on which pages are also posted and archived going back to Sept. 2009. (Send me a reply to this message if you want to talk about getting signed up –paid subscriptions are what keeps me out there promoting the GTA live music scene and its many talented performers, as I've been doing for 20 years now.)

While you're reading the blog, you'd be doing me a big favour if you click on one or two of the ads that appear between or beside my posts (not the ones for clubs or ads inside the posts but the other ones). That opens a new tab on your browser that takes you to the advertiser's site. Once you're there, if you click on anything (a photo, menu item –it doesn't have to be a BUY button!) it helps me a lot because I get a few cents each time someone clicks something on an ad site. It's a way to support my efforts with the magazine without having to spend anything yourself!

Also, at the bottom of each post is a +1 icon. If you click that it helps me to know that you liked that particular post, giving me useful feedback. And if you want to be notified when I make new posts, you can choose to "follow" the blog so you'll always be up to date. And feel free to add any comments or suggestions you feel are appropriate in the Comments box (or by clicking the Comment balloon) at the bottom of each post!

Here's the URL: http://torontomoonmagazine.blogspot.com/

Hey, if I don't like me how can I expect anyone else to like me? Whether you'll still respect me in the morning after hearing my original tunes when I do the feature myself at my Wed. 7:30-12:30-or-later open stage at Hirut Restaurant (2050 Danforth Ave., a bit west of Woodbine) tomorrow, March 7, is another matter, of course. But at least I know I'm going to get a fabulous introduction from the wonderful host!

All kidding aside, I'm looking forward to sharing some of my tunes about unrequited love, a few about requited love, a couple about strange love and a couple of philosophical and social commentary ditties when I face those oh-so-bright spotlights I subject other artists to for a feature set around 10 p.m.

Last week Sandra Frieser had a number of our regulars make a point of getting there before 10 in order to savour her feature of originals done on guitar and on the upright house piano that's available for performers to use. This is one very soulful woman and I'm happy to say she's become a staple of our shows –she's among the many who've asked when I'm going to play some of my own tunes, so hopefully she'll be on hand in time tomorrow to hear them.

The rest of the night, as usual, will be wide open and performers can borrow the piano or house guitar and I have three mics and four PA instrument plug-ins available. There's no pre-set sign-up time for performers and all styles and genres of music are welcome (including storytelling and comedy, so long as it's not just an excuse to get up and swear or be rude).

In addition to Sandra's feature last week we had sets by: Roger Zuraw, getting us warm and fuzzy as usual; Boris Buhot (making his first of what I hope will be many appearances –he's also doing a feature for us Mar. 28); Darwin Bruce (with Sebastian Agnello joining him on piano for one tune); Sebastian Agnello; Keith Griffiths (making his debut after attracting serious attention playing two open stages earlier in the week) with Kevin Davies accompanying on guitar and Chris Mills on his box drum; Norman Lucien (with Kevin and Chris again chipping in); Peter Verity; Kevin Davies (with Norm and Chris backing him on several); Bruce Palait (who'll be doing the March 21 feature, hopefully with his full Talang trio) and then a reprise finale set at 1:50 a.m. by Keith.

Since not too many performers are coming in early for the 7:30 start (so far), I've been able to spin a lot of the longer tunes from my mp3 collection on the computer early in the evening. (I don't like to start the live action until we have at least three players on hand –this week it was after 8:30 before we started with live sets, so I had lots of time to spin tunes in my DJ 17 mode.) Before Roger Zuraw's kickoff set I shared tunes by Melanie Peterson; Dan McLean Jr.; Bri-anne Swan; Peter Verity; Tamin' Thunder; David Rotundo; Pete Otis; Cats & Dogs; Tracy K; and Neil Traynor. Throughout the evening I also spun songs by Mark Ripp; Murray Powell; Redhill Road; Reverb Rockers; Shawn Sage; Sin City Boys; Son Roberts; The Nationals; Porchdog Choir; The Outlanders and Julie Long.

Hirut has a classy yet relaxed ambience, great sight lines and warm sound. And the menu includes several Ethiopian cuisine (this place's signature) sampler dishes at special prices as well as North American style items such as sandwiches, spaghetti, etc., so come early and enjoy dinner!

Versatile Nicola Vaughan will truly entertain as feature at my Hirut open stage
March 14

Nicola Vaughan makes me feel frustrated sometimes –no, not for the reason you're
imagining, though that might be true too. But this incredibly versatile and
talented performer ought to be a household name by now, not just because of her
uncanny ability to resurrect show tunes and Jazz-Pop pieces from the middle
decades of the last century and offset that with covers of Beatles-style Pop
Rock or Country classics or the best of pretty much any genre you can name
except Hip Hop maybe.

But she also has some very catchy yet lyrically penetrating Pop Rock songs of
her own that she plays way to seldom for my liking. Hopefully she'll deign to
share some of those with us tonight, Wed. March 14, when she does the 10pm
feature set at my 7:30 - 1-or-later open stage at Hirut, 2050 Danforth Ave. near
Woodbine.

Last week I did a feature set at the event myself –sort of. It was probably the
shortest feature set I've ever had at one of my open stages, but only because
there were (as the list below will show) so many other talented people in the
room whose songs I wanted to hear even more than my own.

Murray Powell kicked off, followed by the second appearance of Andrea Hatala,
playing the house upright piano with more confidence and elegance than I've ever
seen her demonstrate before –she's obviously been practicing! Darwin Bruce; the
Cuddy & Ives duo (Michael Cuddy, Sarah Ives); Mike Bar (back after a long
absence due to an educational commitment that just ended); Ilkka Lehti signing
as Sebastian Agnello accompanied; and Fernando "The Riverdale Kid" Curcione all
preceded my set.

Fernando also did a nice introduction of me and even snapped a photo, noting
"you're always taking pictures of other people playing but I want one of you on
stage too!"

After my brief set another cavalcade of talents paraded to the stage area: John
Wilks making his debut appearance; Boris Buhot back again and giving us a taste
of the feature he'll do in two weeks; Kevin Davies demonstrating more and more
versatility and adventurousness; Sandra Frieser; first-timer Erica playing the
house piano sweetly; Rock star Paris Black showing up late with Tony Morrone (of
the Talang Talang dynasty –er, I mean band, that, fronted by Bruce Palait, will
be doing next week's feature –Tony played guitar while Paris sang and we all
burned happily into yet-another post-2 a.m. final set. I wouldn't have traded a
moment of those performances for anything, let alone trying to hog the stage
myself!

From the computer I played several songs for an hour or so before the live
action got started and various tunes from a range of artists between live action
throughout the evening, to wit: songs y Andy Griffiths; Anger Brothers; Angie
Nussey; Ariana Gillis; Brian Gladstone; Big Daddy G; blueVenus; Cheryl Beatty;
Cynthia Namaro; Cuddy & Ives (spinning as they walked in the door –I love it
when that happens!!!); Damon Hines; Dave Cassels; David Celia; Desmond Nathan;
Lords Of London; Lynn Harrison; Marshall Dane; The Spivs (Michael Danckert &
Glenn Levine); Valerie Shearman; Tracy K; Tim Harrison; Vanessa Hanson; Tony
"Wild T" Springer; Kenny MacLean; and The Outlanders.

Performers who come out tonight can borrow the piano or house guitar and I have
three mics and four PA instrument plug-ins available. There's no pre-set sign-up
time for performers and all styles and genres of music are welcome (including
storytelling and comedy, so long as it's not just an excuse to get up and swear
or be rude).

Hirut has a classy yet relaxed ambience, great sight lines and warm sound. And
the menu includes several Ethiopian cuisine (this place's signature) sampler
dishes at special prices as well as North American style items such as
sandwiches, spaghetti, etc., so come early and enjoy dinner! Or come late and
make unexpected magic! But do drop by!

Talented Rock volcano trio Talang features at my open stage tonight

In Swedish, the noun "talang" means "a talent", while in Indonesia the word is a
proper noun referring both to the Talang district and the active volcano at its
heart. In some Toronto music circles however, Talang is now known as the name
that Rock songwriter Bruce Palait's has chosen for his new trio, the vehicle
which he plans to use to erupt his talent via his original songs onto the world.

(I prefer to call the band Talang Talang, since not only does it have a nice
ring, but it literally would refer to a "volcano of talent", but for now one
Talang is apparently enough for the ebullient and very self-directed Mr.
Palait.)

The threesome (which also includes Tony Morrone on bass and Mario Molinaro on
drums) will do tonight's 10pm-ish feature set for Week 16 of my Wed. 7:30-1 or
so open stage at Hirut Restaurant, 2050 Danforth Ave. a little west of Woodbine.

Performers who come out can borrow the house upright piano or my house guitar
and I have three mics and three PA instrument plug-ins available. There's no
pre-set sign-up time for performers and all styles and genres of music are
welcome (including storytelling and comedy, so long as it's not just an excuse
to get up and swear or be rude).

Hirut has a classy yet relaxed ambience, great sight lines and warm sound. And
the menu includes several Ethiopian cuisine (this place's signature) sampler
dishes at special prices as well as North American style items such as
sandwiches, spaghetti, etc., so come early and enjoy dinner!

As the 20th anniversary of the first publication of my live music magazine now
known as Toronto Moon grows quite imminent (it was April 15, 1992 when the first
edition of The Open Season hit the streets) and as other factors in my life
continue to force me to re-evaluate what I am doing, I have been engaging in a
lot of soul-searching and have been trying to think "outside the box" of late.

As much as I love live music, I've noticed over the past several years that in
almost every venue that offers such attractions the musical component is vastly
superceded in importance by Sports activities, particularly sports on tv.
Naturally I have found this somewhat offensive, particularly when bars neglect
to turn off the tvs situated right behind or adjacent to their live bands. But
now I've had a revelation: TV Sports is actually far more important to our
culture than live music, or at least most people feel that way and certainly bar
owners do. After all, in most bars, every tv in the place is always tuned to a
sports station, even when the "sport" in question is poker or some call-in host
doing an after-game show, or whatever. The default position for every tv is
always sports and there must be a good reason for this, I've finally realized.

Since my primary purpose with this magazine is to make as much money as I can (I
mean, come on, there's a reason why they call our way of life CAPITAL-ism,
right?) I've decided to go with the flow, so to speak. Therefore, effective
immediately, I am refocusing Toronto Moon Magazine as a publication that will
write about tv sports only.

I know many of my loyal subscribers will be disappointed with this shift of
direction, but I do expect they'll quickly be replaced by new subscribers who
really want to read articles about upcoming tv sports events and profiles of
sports stars they've never met and never have a hope of meeting and whatever
other sports stuff I can fill the pages with –hey, if the tv guys can have four
or five 24/7 channels doing it and making money (even if it does means recycling
the same stuff hour after hour) then I should have no problem filling a page a
day with stuff either.

I really hope this new direction is going to work for me so that I can finally
be in a position to pay my rent regularly and have lots of extra cash and maybe
even be able to afford a fancy tv like the one they have in the bars I go to. If
I'm wrong, then of course the consequences could be dire. Even beyond the
devastating impact of alienating the people who've faithfully supported me for
years now and betraying my integrity just to make a buck, the worst thing of all
would be that some members of my family might finally be proven right: that I'm
crazy to do what I do.

It would indeed, if that fate should eventuate, not be untrue to say of me that
I had finally become, incontrovertibly, a member of that class of people they
call APRIL FOOLS!

With the cancellation of Dan McLean Jr's open stage at Sarah's Café on Sunday
afternoons, someone had to step in to fill the void. Guess who? Guess where?
That's right, starting tomorrow, Sun. April 15, I'm doing a second weekly open
stage at Hirut, Sundays 3-6, with a more laid-back feel appropriate for hangover
afternoons and family outings.

Sensitive Country-Rocker Michael Neill showcases at Hirut Wed. April 18

I met Michael Neill fairly recently while attending what turned out to be one of
the last Sunday afternoon open stages hosted by Dan McClean Jr. at Sarah's Café,
when I invited him to come out to my weekly Wed. open stage at Hirut Restaurant
(2050 Danforth Ave. a little west of Woodbine). He did and I was once again
impressed not only with the very sensitive versions of tunes by James Taylor and
Brian White that he does but also by his original Country-Rock tunes from his
self-titled album. He's been back a couple of times since and each time gains
new fans enchanted by his sincerity and very sweetly melodic vocals.

So I was quite happy to ask him to do the feature for tomorrow's Week 20 edition
of the Hirut event. (I also hope to see him one Sunday afternoon at the club,
where, Dan and Sarah's having abandoned their Sun. matinee show as of last week,
I've now started hosting a second weekly open stage 3-6 or later.)

Michael will do his set from about 10-10:30, with the open stage starting at
7:30 or as soon thereafter as we have enough players to get things rolling. Last
week, in addition to Roger Zuraw's very fine feature set (a couple of highly
regarded fellow players said they've never heard him sound better) we also had
performances by Michael;  Murray Powell; Peter Solmes; Steve Raiken; Glen
Hornblast (who will be doing next week's feature, btw); John Layton; Kevin
Davies; John Charles Daly; Sandra Frieser; and Peter Verity –a star-studded
lineup for sure!

Tomorrow night as always we'll be going till 1:00 or later, depending on the
crowd, and of course my house guitar and the house piano will be available for
performers to utilize. Everyone who's ever eaten here raves about the food, the
sound and sightlines are good and the service friendly and never pushy. Check it
out and see for yourself!

P.S.: I'll tell you more about the dozen acts who performed at my Sunday
afternoon open stage in a reminder email later in the week.

Last week was a great kickoff to my new Sun. afternoon 3-6 open stage at Hirut
Restaurant (2050 Danforth Ave. ten doors west of Woodbine) as 12 acts performed
and we ended up going an hour into overtime!

Unlike the previous Sun. afternoon open stage at Sarah's Café hosted by Dan
McLean (its cancellation was what inspired me to start this one up last week)
we're not as constrained on the finish time and can go later if there's people
around who want to play (and put a couple of bucks in the venue's till, of
course!).

One of the neatest things about the kickoff week for me was that I got to meet
and hear several people whom I'd never had appear at one of my Wednesday night
open stages at the same venue.

Larry Skulky kicked off and was joined on backup vox by Roxanne Tellier, who
also sat in with several other acts. Randy Finney, Jessica Fodor, Sharron Katz,
Gary Woods, Lou Kirstein, Victor Cartuza, Eugene Ferlap, Roger Zuraw, David
Macmichael, Anthony Vanzand and Franco V all performed and in several cases
backed one another in various capacities. My house guitar and the club's upright
Heintzman upright piano both came in very handy, utilized by various performers.

Several people also enjoyed the fine Ethiopian cuisine prepared by owner Hirut
(North American offerings are also available) and many performers and audience
members commented on the warmth of the sound, great sight lines and cozy vibe.
Check it out for yourself!

I'm sure I'm not the only fan of charming Toronto Folk singer Glen Hornblast to
have bugged him incessantly over the past few years about the need to release an
album of his sensitive and thoughtful original songs. But I'm probably one of
the few to chide him about it "on the air" while hosting an open stage, which I
did several times. Now, I'm thrilled to say, I no longer have to!

His long-awaited debut album `Once In A Blue Moon' is finally out and it's
everything we'd hoped for and more. Some of his hit tunes that Roots audiences
across the city cherish and often sing along to, such as "Loretta", are
included, and there are several gems I'd never heard before, such as the title
track, that will take their place on the list of our favourites.

I'm not sure if Glen will play every song on the album when he does the feature
set for Week 21 of my Wed, open stage at Hirut (2050 Danforth Ave. about ten
doors west of Woodbine) on Wed. April 24. But he probably should! It's a true
tour de force by an artist whom legions of fans admire and value. In any case,
he'll have copies of the disc with him and if you don't have yours yet, I can
pretty much guarantee you'll want to pick one up by the time he finishes his
30-minute or so 10 p.m. feature set.

Before that, starting at 7:30 or as soon thereafter as we have enough players to
get things rolling, and afterwards continuing till 1 or later, depending on
crowd size and vibe, the stage will be open as always and the upright Heintzman
house piano and my Tak house guitar will be available for use by performers (as
they also are when I host my new Sunday 3-6 open stage there).

Last week was surprisingly slow given the quality of our fine feature performer,
Michael Neill, but what we lacked in quantity was more than made up for by
quality.

Since it was quite slow early (no Roger Zuraw to get us rolling!) we started
rather latish when I did a brief set of my own originals. A newcomer
father-and-son duo, Dave and Gareth Taylor, made a stunningly captivating debut
as Gareth accompanied his dad's guitar playing on cello, with wonderful effect!
Murray Powell; our feature Michael Neill; Kevin Davies; Sandra Frieser; and
Fernando "The Riverdale Kid" Curcione, all performed in that order. Then we
borrowed a leaf from the karaoke-people's book and started back at the beginning
of "the rotation" with those who'd already played getting back up. Kevin
accompanied Murray on some tunes then Sandra, who'd already performed on guitar,
did a few tunes on the piano to take us up to close to 2 a.m.

Everyone who's ever eaten here raves about the food and performers love the
sound, sightlines and lack of intrusive televisions and sports fans. This week
we'll also have a new server helping out Hirut and Tibebe, as friendly and
experienced Jennifer Allen will be on hand to help make sure you all get your
fill of drink and victuals in a timely way. Hope to see you there!

We had another great week of live music with several new faces, 13 acts all
together, at week 2 of my new Sunday 3-6 (or 7 p.m., since we've ended up going
till then each week so far) at Hirut Restaurant, 2050 Danforth Ave. ten doors
west of Woodbine.

Larry Skulky returned and once again kicked off the show –perhaps he'll become
the Roger Zuraw of Sunday afternoons! (Roger usually performs first when he's at
my Wed. open stage at Hirut, which is most weeks.)

Alan Moffat made his debut and charmed folks with his original material –this
guy needs to get an album out soon! Michael Neill, who'd done the feature at my
Wed. event earlier in the week, came out for the first time on a Sunday.

David Hines, a veteran performer and open stage host, also came out for the
first time, as did Norman Lucien, who chipped in on harp with several folks as
well as playing some of his own originals on guitar.  Alan McKinlay, a talented
player who was a regular at Dan McLean Jr.'s open stage at Sarah's, also joined
us for the first time.

Gary Woods returned, this time with buddy Frank Wood, and both were very
impressive. Sharron Katz also returned, as did Franco V. and we had first-time
performances by Mark Denington (using his steel resophonic guitar), Nicola
Vaughan (always a true delight) and duo Greg Todd on guitar with Doriann
Forrester on flute doing Greg's originals.

My house guitar and the club's upright Heintzman upright piano will be ready and
waiting again tomorrow, as will, of course, the fine Ethiopian cuisine (as well
as some North American offerings) offered by owner and cook Hirut. Also, server
Jennifer Allen, who was very helpful debuting for the first time at my Wed. open
stage this past week, will be on hand to ensure everyone gets their food and
drink in a timely manner.

We've got great performers, super sound, perfect sight lines and a very cozy and
friendly vibe. All we need to complete the circle is you!

It certainly appears that there is a strong appetite for the new 3-6 (or later)
Sunday afternoon open stage I'm now hosting at Hirut Restaurant, 2050 Danforth
Ave. ten doors west of Woodbine.

The third week last Sunday saw 15 sets involving 13 different performers, some
repeating in various new combinations with others, so there was a kind of jam
aspect to things again. We ended up going till 8pm this time –I'm all for that
if people are still buying food or drinks and want to listen or play. We had a
pretty decent dinner crowd last week too!

Debut sets were performed by Mark Martyre, James Sloan, Pete Otis, Jim Phelan,
Julian Taylor and Peter Matheson, as well as by Lynette Fairweather, who joined
returning player David Hines in their duo act. Larry Sulky, Sharron Katz, Norman
Lucien and Franco V. all returned and Hirut co-owner Tibebe also sat in on a
number during Norm Lucien's reprise appearance, accompanying him on harp.

My house guitar and the club's upright Heintzman upright piano will be ready and
waiting again tomorrow, as will, of course, the fine Ethiopian cuisine (as well
as some North American offerings) prepared by Hirut herself.

We'll have great performers, super sound, perfect sight lines and a very cozy
and friendly vibe. Come add that special extra ingredient to make it even
better: YOU!

The exquisite Folk music of Nicole Coward has been described by fans as
"medicine" and as being "like that flower that fights its way through a crack in
the pavement to bloom and make that small section of the sidewalk pretty." To
me, it's an antidote to the sterility of today's radio playlists dominated by
artificial, auto-tuned voices and stitched-together mish-mashes of recycled or
ripped-off licks and phrasings.

She is frequently compared to Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell by first-time
listeners and indeed, though only in her early 30s, she says her musical
inspiration hearkens back to the days when tunes by those artists, along with
Peter Paul & Mary, Gordon Lightfoot and The Kingston Trio, were being played
regularly on the radio.

Like that now iconic body of music, Coward's songs emanate a sense of solidity
and enduring appeal that is so notably absent from much of what is being
promoted by labels these days. The lyrics speak honestly to basic themes of love
and life without coming across as trying to be clever, yet are nevertheless
artful and often pointedly memorable. Her sometimes haunting, often playful and
always beautifully engaging voice melds with unpretentious yet intriguingly
intricate melodies and guitar playing to form the antithesis of "big box" music
production. See what I mean by visiting www.nicolecoward.com, where you can hear
tunes and see videos of her in performance.

She'll be releasing her debut cd, `Why Don't You Care', at a show in the main
hall of Tranzac Club on Fri. June 1, but tomorrow, Wed. May 9, she'll be
offering a preview of what to expect as she does the feature at my weekly 7:30-1
open stage at Hirut Restaurant (2050 Danforth Ave. about ten doors west of
Woodbine). She'll be accompanied by at least one backup singer and likely a
percussionist for her 10-10:30 showcase set.

Last week Michael Keith absolutely entranced us with his unique feature
performance on a 3-string tenor ukelele, combining Rock and Blues stylings with
elements of Chinese and Persian music in a unique fusion that is all his own.

The roster last week featured 14 other acts including a few making their Wed.
night debut at Hirut. Regulars who performed included Roger Zuraw, Steve Raiken,
Darwin Bruce, John Layton, Murray Powell, Sandra Frieser, Kevin Davies, Fernando
"The Riverdale Kid" Curcione, Pete Otis and Alan Moffat and Carla Dees also came
out and joined Pete and Fernando for a set. Mike Bar also returned but this
night brought his son Basil and nephew Alex with him, who accompanied him in
what I dubbed "The Bar Band" on piano and bass respectively. A couple of
performers who've been regulars at my new Sunday afternoon open stage at Hirut
also came out this week: Sharron Katz and Franco V. We also had an awesome debut
set from a friend of Hirut and husband Tibebe's when Hussein Said performed on
the house guitar.

The upright Heintzman house piano, my Tak house guitar and a set of bongos,
shakers and tambourines will be available for use by performers as always. True
music fans and performers alike will also appreciate the warm sound, good
sightlines and lack of intrusive televisions in this cozy, relaxed room.

And I haven't even mentioned yet the superb Ethiopian cuisine that Hirut makes
(along with some North American offerings) and the very reasonable drink prices.
Makes it pretty easy to come out and enjoy the great music we have on offer
every Wednesday!