Hey I’m starting to write at 8:08; if that were AM it would be great. As it is, it will be a miracle if I remember anything that happened yesterday. Let’s hope for a miracle.
At least I remember what I did, I headed to The Pronoia Community Project in Clifton, NJ, to see Carolann Solebello and Joe Iadanza. Pronoia is the house/artist commune where Bri lives. The project’s mission statement is;
The Pronoia Project is a place where people can feel at home. A place where arts and artists are supported. Where community building is encouraged, and where conscious growth is our goal.
Bri is my partner in Budgiedome music and Carolann camps with us, Joe has visited, this was very much a Budgiedome affair and therefore a family affair. No matter how long it took me to get there, it was a home game.
Getting there was not that far until the end when it became problematic. I mapped it out on Google which said to take the Jersey Transit 190 Bus from Port Authority. As I always do, I bought my ticket online with my app. Then when I got to Port Authority I checked to find the gate. There was no 190 bus listed but there was a bus to Clifton leaving at the right time. I went to that gate and asked, “is this the 190 bus?” The guy at the gate asked where it went, and I said, Clifton. He said it was the right spot. I was still not sure it was so when I boarded the bus I asked if this was the 190 bus to Clifton and he said yes. I tried to show him my ticket on the app but the app acted up. It had closed and had trouble getting to the ticket. He told me to just take my seat so other people could get on. It was a jitney, not a full-sized bus so nobody could get by me.
The trip went smoothly without real traffic. My only issue was the person that lit up a joint while we were in the Holland Tunnel. I did not need that smell and the smoke in my nose and lungs. I couldn’t see who did it.
When I got to my stop and started to get off the driver said, “You didn’t pay.” I said, paid on the app and showed it to him. He said he only takes cash. Now he knew when I got on that I was trying to show him the ticket on the app. He ignored it. So I argued with him and he let me get off just so he could get moving.
It was only a few blocks to Pronoia. As I approached I saw Erika and Arthur approaching from the other direction. We arrived at exactly the same time. I hadn’t noticed on the Facebook Event so this was a very pleasant surprise. She lives in Brooklyn and Arthur on Long Island so this was a schlep for them.
Coco and Bruce also came from Brooklyn. This was a show worth crossing the great water (the Hudson River) for. Come on, wasn’t there more of my New York friends there? Maybe not. Bri’s friends that I know well that were there were Katie, who I’ve known almost as long as I’ve known Bri, and Craig, who camps with us at the Budgiedome. I was so embarrassed that I forgot Craig’s name. For some reason Seth kept coming to me. I knew he wasn’t really a Seth. As I very much like my friend Seth, it was a compliment of sorts. I could admit it to Craig because he knows me well enough to know that I’m an idiot.
Other people I knew were Bri’s parents, Chris and Dorothy and Katie’s father, who I swear has a name. I can forgive myself for forgetting that as I don’t know him as well. Judy came late, but I got to talk to her after the show.
The show had an opener, Bri’s friend Afrah. She has a beautiful singing voice but sounded nothing like I expected to. Judging a voice from looks is even more futile than judging a book by its cover.
Carolann and Joe did not do separate sets, they alternated and joined in on each other’s songs. As Joe produced Carolann’s last album, Shiver, this was not that surprising. Bri did the photography; like I said, this was a family affair. Joe and Carolann are touring together and it’s different then seeing them separately. Even if you just saw one or the other you should see them together.
Is there anything left for me to write about Carolann? I’ve written about her countless time. She’s as much one of my musicians and one of my people as anyone. I decided I was correct, that my favorite songs of hers are Hiram and Jesus Played Guitar. Those songs highlight one of the things I love about her songwriting. She has a unique viewpoint, and that viewpoint is the ability to see things from other viewpoints. Hiram is the story about meeting Hank Williams in a bar. Hot tip, that never happened. Hank died long before she was born. It’s a vehicle for seeing things through Hank’s eyes. Lots of musicians will write a song about being lonely, the problem is that none of them will be the best song about loneliness, Nobody can beat Hank’s, I’m So Lonesome I Can Cry. Hiram IS the best song about meeting Hank Williams at a bar. Jesus Played Guitar is the best song about Jesus’s musical career. He didn’t have a band, the disciples preferred to jam. It was inspired by a painting at the Starving Artist Café, where I’ve seen Carolann perform, so it has extra personal meaning for me.
Joe took a hiatus from music. I love him the first time around and now that he’d back he’s even better. On the surface some of his songs would be the sensitive singer songwriter pap that I dislike. But that’s the surface. The difference is that Joe’s approach is muscular. If I were to name the genre it would be muscular approach. You don’t get it? Think of Springsteen, a big influence on Joe. The songs aren’t pretty, they are beautiful, they are powerful. The feelings aren’t sweet, they go much deeper than that. There’s much more than sugar, there is cayenne and turmeric and thyme. The music has subtleties. I’d love to see him do a show with Rod Picott. The places they come from are not that far away.
I would have been worried about getting home but Joe came to the rescue. He lives on Long Island so I knew that the way I would have come home from Clifton back to Queens would take me not far from where I live now. He kindly drove me home. That means quality time with Joe. One of the perks of being me is that not only do I hear great music I get to talk to the people that make the great music.
Now it’s 9:17 and I haven’t eaten dinner. I better make something quick. No idea what I’ll write about tomorrow. I hope I get inspired.
Wise Madness 