Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Hangin' Tough in '08

As I contemplate my annual move to the west coast (15 years and counting), and eat my homemade DiLego Formula Soup, I’m staring at a photograph from sometime ago that is not near now, that looks like a comic book version of me. Thing is, it IS me. Wait, did I really wear a Duran Duran shirt for my yearbook photo. Really?! I’m sure it made absolute sense at the time. I hope it did anyway, because I’m certain I almost got beat up for it. (And by "beat up", I mean someone said "Duran Duran are gay!")

Moving on. Why am I looking at this evidence? Someone yesterday mentioned the New Kids on The Block and some kind of reunion or rebirth of the band. I lived in Boston during their heydey, and yes, they were bigger than Jesus there. They were everywhere. E V E R Y W H E R E. I think I may have actually wiped myself with NKOTB toilet tissue at one point, though that remains unconfirmed, since I don’t actually remember having gone to the bathroom in the 90’s... (another story)

It occurred to me, that my college roomy and I thought it funny at one point, to record this video where we, he and I, were The New Kids. And so we did. Record. That. Song. With. Us. Singing. Hanging. Tough. In. Front. Of. A. Video. Camera. I just remembered this yesterday, and went on a quest to find said tape, aka "the evidence", to see just how funny we were in "making fun" of NKOTB. Folks, here’s how funny we were. None.

We were none funny at all. In fact, the jokes on us. BIG TIME. Though I’m sure at the time we may have thought..."Maann, if the New Kids see this, they’ll be SO embarassed! Who’s hangin’ tough now?"

Really?! Let’s just put it this way. This tape is getting filed under "never to be seen ever. For all neverness." Fact is, it’s not so much how embarrassing it is to us, as much as my fear that this tape would do more for my career than my music ever has. God bless us all, the YouTubians!

So what does this have to do with anything? Absolutely nothing.
I’m playing a show this March 28th back at Helsinki in Great Barrington, MA. Details:

3/28 – GREAT BARRINGTON, MA @ CLUB HELSINKI – 9PM
284 Main St. | Great Barrington, MA 01230 | Tel: 413-528-3394
w/ Spottiswoode & His Enemies


Next time: we discuss Don’s Western Mass punk rock street cred.

Hangin’ tough,
DD

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Yes. I’m announcing a China Tour!

Well, not exactly the country, but the woman.
The lovely and talented China Forbes (of Pink Martini) is heading out on the road to promote her new solo album, "’78." By sheer coincidence, Ms. China and I shared the same manager in NYC way back when. So here we are some many odd years later playing a tour together.

And it’s a great band, not in the very least for the inclusion of Gregg Williams on drums and Lael Alderman on multi-instruments. I will be fool-hardedly handling guitar and some piano and singing along. Look for me and my new guitar pedals in these fancy locations:

Apr 7 - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour
Apr 8 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
Apr 10 - Portland, OR - The Aladdin
Apr 11 - Seattle, WA - Triple Door
Apr 13 - Boston, MA (hi mom!) - The Paradise
Apr 14 - New York City - Bowery Ballroom
Apr 16 - Philadelphia, PA - World Cafe Live
Apr 18 - Washington, DC - The Birchmere

China’s record is really quite wonderful, and you can listen to it here:
China on MySpace.

While I spend my time writing the songs for the new record, come out to a show and say hi. See me pretend to know what I’m doing...LIVE!

Spring time all the time,
Don

Other abettors:
Gregg Williams
Lael Alderman