 | Current mood:  contemplative Category: Music Shenandoah pulled out of the Kroger parking lot around 1:45 am..with John Gee driving. We were off to do a Thursday night show at a club on a naval base in Goose Creek, SC. We arrived Thursday.. around noon, in the little town Of Goose Creek. When I got off the bus, we were sitting behind "The Dive"..a club where military and civilians were welcome. This club was located on the naval base. Later that night.. Naval VIPs and brass would be there for our performance. We hung out for about 45 minutes..checking out the stage and what not and then were taken down the road to a military picnic..all part of the days activities..which was all about the commissioning of a naval ship.. At the picnic, there was a bluegrass band playing and tons of out-door games..which included cornhole..where you throw a bean bag and try to get it in a hole on a wooden platform.. Byron Cumbie, Jimmy Yeary, Mike Mcguire, Mike Folsom and myself participated.. I pretty much sucked at that game.. the big hole-in-0ners were Yeary and Mcguire.. Other games included sumo wrestling and jousting...Yeary tried his best to get me involved with those..he did not succeed..lol Food for the day included, barbeque, baked beans, cole slaw, rolls and dessert..had my fill as usual. After we ate, they took us back to the club where we loaded in and ran through a soundcheck. When we were done, we went inside a truck parked by the club that housed a mobile pro tools recording rig inside.. very cool.. the owner played us some stuff he had recorded live from his truck. He then said he planned on recording us live that night from the truck. I guess they will send us the recording. They took several of us to a private condo on the base..so we could rest and get showers...Jimmy Yeary stayed on the bus and Mike Folsom went off with an old friend. It was nice and included two bedrooms, a living area, kitchen, bathroom and outdoor balcony-patio. We had a little over three hours till we had to get back to the club. It was nice to have a little time to chill. Once back at the bus..we had almost an hour before show time..I hate it when you get back to the bus just in time to change into show clothes and get on stage. We took the stage at 9:15 and the crowd was going wild...I hadn't heard that kind of excitement in a while.. It always makes for a better show when the audience is really into it! They brought us back for an encore and we did, "Under the Kudzu"..one of my all time fav Shenandoah songs. They were singing every word of it ..I'm glad we all remembered it. After the show I met up with songwriting buddy, Jim Evans and his lovely wife, Becky. I met him online on the Nashville Music Pros website about 8 months ago. It was nice to finally meet him in person. They drove almost 3 hours to see us and we enjoyed having them as our guests. After a long autograph session, lots of pics were taken.. and we met a lot of long-time Shenandoah fans that night.. great folks and a good time to remember.. Thanks to Byron Cumbie for all of his hard work.. loading all of the gear by himself and for a great job manning the FOH console. Thanks to everyone involved with having Shenandoah there. ...Another Country Music Adventure had been had by all in SC. Down the Road... Stan Munsey |
Monday, May 4, 2009
Shenandoah at "The Dive" in Goose Creek, SC/ April 23 /2009
Shenandoah at the Sticks Music Festival/Auburn, Al/April 18/09
| Current mood:  chill Category: Music After just hitting the bunks and getting not much sleep..we awoke in Auburn, Al at the Sticks Music Festival. Our brains were still foggy from the late show Friday night..as we crawled down the bus hall towards the coffee pot. The sun was out but the air was still cool as I climbed off the bus and walked to the stage to do a soundcheck. Folks were already gathering in front of the stage ..even at that early hour of 7 am. Breakfast was being served down the way under a big tent but I was still full from the giant Waffle House breakfast I had eaten in Macon, three hours earlier. The Sticks festival already had a day under it's belt and we were hoping for a good turnout for the 2cnd day. A good friend of mine, Ray Brown, who I used to play music with..showed up and hung out with me for about an hour before we had to hit the stage. It was great to see him again.. it had been over 10 years since we had seen each other. Jim Seale's bride to be..Donna K, brought lots of folks down from the Shoals to see the performance and Jim would be riding back home with them after our show and not on the bus. Shenandoah hit the stage at 12:15 to a lively bunch..in fact, I had my own little fan club going during the show and they continued with the loud antics..at the autograph table..that's what happens when ya get a bunch of college kids drinkin' lots of beer..in the hot sun..starting really early..way before noon.. After Shenandoah's performance, we were taken in golf carts to a pavillion.. by a small lake, where lunch was served.. burgers, b'bq, chicken, ribs, coleslaw, potato salad, beans..I could go on and on....hmmm.. I ate way too much.. After eating, we had to go sign our names on a door frame inside this rustic log cabin..and then we did a short.. on camera interview.. Once outside the cabin..another short on- camera interview was done and we did several radio station liners..from there we were taken to a tent where lots of merch had to be signed..hats, t-shirts, guitars, etc Before leaving that tent..pics were taken with various VIPs.. We had a little over an hour left to kill before we would be pulling out ..so Mike Mcguire, Mike Folsom, Bart Bartlettano and myself wandered over to stand on the side of the stage and watch Ashton Sheppard..(not sure if I spelled her name correctly or not).. I thought she and her band did well..I love her voice. Bart worked with her for a brief spell, as did Curtis Wright..who used to sing with us. Our golf cart driver took us back to the bus where John Gee was waiting and we waved at everyone as we left the Sticks festival grounds. Interesting note.. the man who owned the 300 + aces of land that the festival was held on..always wanted to have a huge country music festival on that land but he died before he realized that dream...his son made it a reality. We had fun and appreciate Sticks Music Festival for including us on their roster. We wish them good luck in the future and hope they have us back again next year. Another Country Music Adventure had been had by all.. Down the Road... Stan Munsey |
Shenandoah in Macon, Ga 'Whiskey River (club)/April 17/09
| Category: Music Myself, Mike Folsom, Bart barlettano, Byron Cumbie and Jimmy Yeary left aboard the "Hillbilly Hotel" from Tn to pick up Jim Seales and Mike Mcguire on our way to do a show in Macon, Ga. John Gee was driving. We arrived in Macon, Friday..April 17 ..mid-morning, at the Whiskey River Club. Our soundcheck was scheduled for 2 pm that afternoon, so we had plenty of time to kill. Our opening act was from Nashville and we had fun hangin' with them and talking about mutual friends. After soundcheck they fed us a meal..whatever we had ordered off the menu..and we ate in the comedy club that was right next door. It was very good..I had the grilled chicken dinner and a salad. After eating, several of us went back to the hotel to get cleaned up. Got back to the venue from the hotel around 9:30 and hung out till showtime. Thanks to our buddy, Butch Horton for running us around. Shenandoah hit the stage at 11:00 pm and rocked a very enthusiastic crowd for a long set and afterwards we signed till we headed back to the hotel around 3 am. Several of us ran in and got showers..because we would not have any for the show in Auburn, Al later that day. We left the hotel and left Macon around 3:30 and headed on down to Auburn, Al. I hit the bunk around a quarter till four..knowing we would have an early morning load-in and soundcheck in Auburn..just three hours later..at 7 am.. We were gonna be some tired boys. |
Shenandoah at the Flagler County Fair in Bunnell, Fl April 11/09
| Category: Music Shenandoah, along with former singer and buddy, Curtis Wright...who had performed earlier in the night with us... pulled out of Muscle Shoals, Al...after finishing a successful benefit for Billy Ryan. We were on our way to Bunnell, Florida to play the Flagler County Fair. We arrived in Bunnell, Sat, April 11, mid-afternoon and loaded in to do our soundcheck and the wind was blowing around 25-35 mi an hour, non-stop! It was blowing so hard that we had to cut out the toms on the drums..get them out of our mix... because the mics were picking up so much wind noise. In my headphones it sounded like nothing but a giant roar. All of the mics onstage were picking up the wind and making it extremely hard to hear anything else. There is nothing you can do but make the best of it.. and we did. The owner of the sound system told me that I looked familier. He asked if I had ever played around there before. I told him I had many times and years ago, I had played with the artist, Jim Stafford around those parts. He asked me if we played at the Holiday Inn for a week in Sarratoga about 25 years ago. I said yes.. it turns out he was at that gig and was just 17 years old and remembered me. Wow.. I thought.. I am getting old and what a small world it is..indeed. The ride took everyone who was going to the hotel..to the hotel and they somehow left me standing on the stage...leaving me behind..so I had to catch a ride with Penny..one of the staff who was so helpful to us throughout the day and night.. They saw me put my bag in the truck and heard me tell them I was going with them..and not to leave me but I guess they are getting so old..that they can't remember much..past 5 minutes anymore..lol Oh well.. when I got to the hotel..they were still sittin' in the lobby waiting on the room keys. After cleaning up at the hotel..we arrived back at the fairgrounds to find chicken and ribs waiting on us and boy were they good..mmm.. I can still taste em'. We had several hours to kill before the show..and some of us napped , while others watched TV.. Around 6 pm, Penny came to the bus door and asked if we would mind doing a meet and greet for a few folks. Mike McGuire and Jim Seales were sleeping, so Mike Folsom, Jimmy Yeary, myself, Byron and Bart went out and did the deed..shaking hands, signing pics and accepting 6 chocolate roses that were given to us by one nice lady. I never got to sample one..as they were eaten very quickly by other ravenous bandmates. Showtime was at 8 pm and we did a 75 minute set, to a very small but appreciative audience. Curtis Wright sang back-up vocals and played 12 string acoustic guitar with us ..since he was already out with us.. from the night before. It was fun having him and Jimmy singin'. I had heard that attendance to the fair this year had been slow for all four days. I guess this economic downturn is hitting us everywhere it seems. I hate that we didn't have a better turnout, as we were the first national act they had ever had. I hope that will not deter them from pursuing this type of show in the future. After the show, we signed autographs and did the usual..takin' pics, givin' hugs, etc and I got to meet face to face, for the first time..one of my facebook friends, Sherry Bach and her daughter.. We have been friends online for almost a year and I appreciated them coming to the show and saying hi afterwards. I wish we could have had more time to chat but time is limited when we have to get on the road. We appreciated all of the great food and warm hospitality from the good folks at the Flagler County fair. After all the goodbyes were said and the bus was loaded up, we headed back to Alabama and dropped Mcguire and Seales off , before making our way back to Tennessee. We arrived back in Tennessee a little after noon and tho' we were a little tired..it had been a great run and we knew another country music adventure had been had by all.. Down the Road....Stan Munsey |
Benefit for Billy Ryan/ Shenandoah Celebrating 20 Years and Marty Raybon Reunion
| Current mood:  accomplished Category: Music Benefit hosted by Shenandoah for Billy Ryan's family in Muscle Shoals, Al/April 10/09 Shenandoah Celebrating 20 Years and Reuniting with Marty Raybon! Friday morning, April 10, MIke Folsom, Jimmy Yeary, Byron Cumbie, myself, Bart Barlettano, his daughter, Chelsie, son, Dallas and his friend Zachary left at 10 am for Muscle Shoals, Al. with Mickey Riley driving us. Billy Ryan drove down because he would be staying with family in Al after the benefit. My wife, Donna would not be going on this trip because of prior commitments at her place of work. I sure hated it that she would be missing a once in a lifetime show. The weather was horrible with rain, high winds and tornadoes all around us and we found the same storm system once we got to Alabama. We arrived at Muscle Shoals high school around 1:30 pm that afternoon and met up with Mike McGuire and Jim Seales, who were already there and waiting on us. All we had to do was unload the bus and set up for sound check. After we were done, the opening act, the KGB band soundchecked and pizza was waiting for us in the cafeteria, along with ice tea. After eating we hung around on the bus and watched the weather situation on the tv and saw that Murfreesboro, Tn had tornado damage from a couple of twisters..our merch man, Byron Cumbie owns a business and lives in Murfreesboro...so he was especially attentive to the weather news. The weather had died down in Muscle Shoals by the time the next round of catered food was served around 5:30 but the winds were still up pretty high. For dinner they had an assortment of sandwiches, including, club, chicken salad, turkey..along with potato salad. For dessert, they had some cookies and brownies. It was all very good and we ate our fill. For those of you who don't know ... this show was a benefit for our good friend, Billy Ryan who is a singer/songwriter who sometimes travels with us and opens shows for us. His sister's life was taken by her ex-husband a few weeks back..in a very violent way. This benefit was to raise money to help offset the family's expenses as a result of the tragedy. We were all hoping and praying for a great turnout. The show started at 7:30 pm with the KGB band (which includes Shenandoah's own, Jim Seales and his son , Jake Seales) ..and they played an hour before the 2cnd part of the event started up. At approximately 8:45, a speaker who had been a quarterback at the Univ of Alabama and was an old friend of our drummer..got up and gave the audience a look back through the years at Shenandoah. He took the audience through time and the history of the band...from the early days with Marty Raybon and Stan Thorn..to the addition of myself..from singers, Curtis Wright to Jimmy Yeary and bassist Mike Folsom after the death of original member, Ralph Ezell. It was quite an informative and moving segway to Shenandoah taking the stage. The basic theme of the show would be Shenandoah celebrating 20 years in the business and reuniting with Marty Raybon for the evening. Before Shenandoah hit the stage, Billy Ryan sang a song about his Daddy and then Shenandoah came out with Jimmy Yeary..our current singer. After Jimmy did a few, Curtis Wright came out and sang "Next To You, Next To Me" and "Rock MY Baby"...both were hits that he wrote . Then Billy Ryan and Jimmy Yeary sang the song they wrote, along with Mike Mcguire, called, "You Never Know". The song was inspired after the untimely passing of our brother, Ralph Ezell. The next part of the show was the introduction of Shenandoah's original singer, none other than Marty Raybon. Marty sang the rest of the show by himself till we did a Muscle Shoals medley...consisting of "When a Man Loves a Woman", Old Time Rock n' Roll" and "Sweet Home Alabama"...On Sweet Home, everyone, Shenandoah and the KGB band ...got up on the stage and jammed ..and Marty, Curt and Jimmy swapped out verses to sing.. I even noticed Jimmy Johnson , ( legendary swamper and producer) up there with us. After our last song, "Church on Cumberland Road", Marty, Mike and Jim came out by themselves and did "The Road Not Taken" and "I was Young Once Too" acoustically. It was a fitting ending for a great nostalgic trip down memory lane. The benefit proved to be a wonderful success with a great turnout. I would like to thank everyone that made this night.. one to remember. Thanks to my Mom and Dad and my Aunt for coming out..thanks to Devon Barlettano for driving down from Lebanon, Tn.. thanks to Sherry O. for all of her hard work and great pics..thanks to all of our old friends who came out...thanks to the KGB band..all who gave of their time and talents..thanks to Jim Seales, Donna K and Mike Mcguire for their tireless efforts in putting on this event. Billy Ryan and his family are most appreciative and humbled by the great show of love and support. I would say, most assuredly..that a unique, country music adventure had been had by all. See ya...Down the Road...Stan |
Shenandoah in Weirsdale, Fl at the Orange Blossom Opry/ March 28/09
| Category: Music Shenandoah embarked on it's second road adventure for 2009, with a bus load of folks. Guests onboard the "Hillbilly Hotel" included singer/songwriters, Billy Ryan and Tyler Farr, Jake Seales and his buddy, David. John Gee was manning the cockpit and navigated us down to the great little town of Weirsdale, Florida...where we would be playing the Orange Blossom Opry. We arrived Sat morning around 11 am..ish..We were running a little late but managed to get loaded in and get our soundcheck done in pretty good time. After soundcheck..we ate deli snacks and sat around till our first show, which was at 3:45. There was an opening house band that started around 2 pm. The first show's attendance was a little less that what we would have liked to have seen but they enjoyed the show... and that makes us happy. After the show was over, we had a wonderful home-cooked meal that included, turkey, ham, sweet potatoes, sweet corn, turnip greens, cornbread, dressing, gravy and dessert...mmmm.. I'm getting hungry all over again just thinkin' back on it. After dinner..we had a little time to rest or do whatever before the 2cnd show..so I wandered around looking at all of the pics they had on the wall.. of the artists that had played there.. very interesting. They also have a ton of local talent that are regulars at the Orange Blossom Opry..Some of the guys took naps, a couple went to the hotel for showers and I was feeling way too lazy to go back to the hotel..so what did I do?... I washed my hair in the tiny little sink in the bus bathroom..that was a lot harder than I thought it would be! lol Shenandoah hit the stage again that evening at 8:45 and had a larger turnout than the earlier show and the crowd seemed a little more livelier.. and we appreciated them..appreciating us. After the show the usual was done...signing autographs and taking pics..sayin' goodbyes and loading the bus. We all appreciated Earl, Gloria and the rest of the staff for their warm and gracious hospitality and hope they have us back again real soon. Kudos to Bart Barlettano and Byron Cumbie..our sound and merch guys..who always make it happen. We arrived back in Nashville on Sunday, mid-morning..all of us knowing... ..another country music adventure had been had by all.. Down the Road...Stan Munsey |
Dan Seals Passing..
Category: Life
The music world has lost another great and he will be missed by a lot of people. I can say that it was truly an honor to have known Dan.
My deepest sympathies and condolences go out to all of his fans, friends and family. Rest in Peace...
Stan M.
