Leo's and the list.

I've been wandering about the country and world for awhile now and have met quite a few people. Some are friendly, some are scary, some are vastly more useful than others when your car breaks down...some are infinitely useless for any reason at all. I'm sure these people categorize me as well... God knows where.
Few people that I've met have been astonishingly kind, humble, and giving, but I have met some of them and take great pride in my acquaintances of great human qualities.

When I got an email from an Italian Restaurant in Oelwein, IA I wasn't sure at all what kind of people I would meet, but the offer was good, the timing was right and I'm always game for an adventure...so...

After a few very professional emails that both worked out the details and eased my mind that the business was a well-kept one I put the show out of my mind until time to leave.

Arriving in Oelwein, IA is a kind of experience that few people have learned or remember to treasure, but it was like opening up a page of American History for me and I immediately was thrilled to be there. The town is what's left of a Hub City boom town that once hosted music up and down every street and in cornfields to entertain 1000's of steelworkers and travelers any given night...with tracks spoking their way to the rail yard, a gas-light main st, remnants of theaters and saloons everywhere (which is an image I dearly love). The downtown area is filled with interesting little shops and restaurants and the community spills out of those streets into rural farm life. Unfortunately, the first smell I found was smoke in the air as the previous nights fire was coming to a close...the downtown antique store was now gone.

Into the bar. I'm playing at Leo's Italian Restaurant in the upstairs Lounge which is called 'Generations'. Through the door into the main restaurant area I find the room FULL...not a place to sit in the house. I was directed to the elevator to go up to the lounge but decided to go have one more smoke before going up (you know...what if it's hours before I get to or something). Outside 3 large groups of people are chatting about the coincidence that they're all there...again. I'm seeing signs.
I went back in, hit the magic 'up' button and was off. It was an awfully slow ride, although the vator seemed top of the line, clean etc. Bout a 90 second trip to the second floor...door opens...BAM! This place is pretty slick, nice floors, nice bar, hints of a good PA system, lots of staff on hand...I'm feeling good about this...but we'll see.
To the bar! Let's see what this place is about. The coolers behind the bartenders are FULL of choices, lotsa imports, lotsa local micro's, lotsa options...I like. The bar manager (or at least the lady who gave me the impression she was) greeted me as a patron, asked if I'd like a menu and a drink, which I accepted. After a short conversation she figured out I was 'the musician' which changed everything. She said very quickly, as she snatched up my menu..."you can't eat yet!"

"I can't eat yet???" I'm confused. She laughed and said the owners wanted to come down and eat with me. OK... within 10 minutes (probably 5), a sharp-dressed pair matching the photographs of the owners on the wall appeared from the door to the back deck area. They were all smiles and headed my way, but were greeted by everyone in their path so it took a minute to get us together. The greet. The small talk. We're headed downstairs because Mike Leo insists I get a good taste of his cooking and the bar has an abridged menu. Off we go!

Downstairs, I had one of the finest meals of my life in unbelievably good company. Mike and Laurie are music lovers, family people, smart business-folk, aggressive in their efforts to provide incredible service and damn charismatic. It was impossible not to be impressed. They greeted everyone who came in the room, everyone seemed to want to hug them...I was beginning to want to hug them. What's with these people?? LOL

Time to play. Mike called in the guy who set up the house PA to make sure I had all the help I needed (1 guitar, 1 mic, but he's being sure)...turns out it was a good idea, I thought I'd never find that one gain button. The room filled up, the lights came down, and a hundred or so people gave me the warmest reception a performer can receive. Nothing could have gone better. I don't know what else to say about that part. Great crowd, great room, hosts are in control of the atmosphere. Fantastic appreciation filled the air, they paid and tipped well, bought CD's, laughed at my bad jokes. GREAT!!

Show's over..."where are you staying, Jefferson?". He actually asked me earlier but I'm blogging...not writing a book...
"I don't know yet, Mike". "You're staying with us!" "deal"

Off to the Leo house! These two people, along with their son and daughter-in-law whisked me away to the homestead, so I didn't have to drive, got me settled into a nice spare room, fed me enormous amounts of alcohol (no, that was my fault), Mike and I stayed up most of the night exchanging family history, dog stories and telling each other jokes. It was a fun and fabulous night.

I woke up, had a cup of coffee, (threw up in Lauries bathroom), visited with everyone awhile, then headed off to the rest of the road trip (which was not nearly as much fun).

*********flash forward********

I've done the show at Leo's once more with the same incredible hospitality and a furthering of my belief that these people are more than good business-folk, they're not putting on an act...they are full of charity for others, supportive of everyone around them, eager to serve people, make the world a better place and a TON OF FUN!

Leo's Italian Restaurant, Mike, Laurie and Nick Leo, their staff and the town of Oelwein IA. These people and this tiny town have won my heart and moved into the #1 slot on the 'Jefferson Fox's favorite places to play' list. (they bumped Flatiron in Hot Springs, SD to #2, if you must know)

Thank you Mike, Laurie, Nick, Clay, Bruce, Gary and everyone else who have been so welcoming in Oelwein. I hope to see you soon!

Jefferson Fox

Kevin Rose and my new record

Who the heck is Kevin Rose.

I'm not sure anyone knows, really. I met the man in 1989 (ish) where he was acting as one of two guitar players in a band called 'City of Lindas'. I was living in Rincon, Ga, just outside of Savannah and the Linda's were the premier local act with a global sound that I and my musical friends couldn't get enough of. They were a smart rock band with a big flare for the dark and obscure...everything I ever wanted to be. Kevin lead the sonic mayhem, at least in my mind, with outstanding live tone and great parts that I was almost capable of playing which made it all the more attractive. We watched the Linda's blossom and then disband a few years after I was out of High School. (best band ever?, maybe)

Then Kevin began recording bands other than his own at a little studio called Elevated Basement on Waters Ave (don't quote me, I'm not Googling right now) and he became a part of another great band, GAM. Same story...phenomenal band. Crazier, darker, considerably risque. Loved it. There were other projects like Dare Dukes Band (still alive and well), Shitrocket (still alive, uncertain of wellness), I think he may have participated in Superhorse...not sure, and God knows what else the man has played on. Everybody who passes through Savannah tries to get this guy on their team and no one can blame them.

The obvious next move was to become a fishing boat captain...which he's done. ??

There was some stuff in between, like recording folks ranging from Gregg Allman to Greg Williams, starting a family, raising kids, conquering small nations with rogue independent record labels, and to be quite honest I'm not sure what else he's done. Oh yeah he has engineered the live shows and recordings of the Savannah Music Festival Live project, numerous other fine events and some random events that were probably only fine because he was on the job.

In 1997 I started a record with Kevin at the console while I was singing and playing guitar for a band called 'All That Matters'. The recordings were fabulous but the band broke up before we could finish. I was left with strong desire to complete a project under Kevin's technical direction and in Elevated Basement if possible. It finally happened.

Kevin Rose was kind enough to bring me into the studio recently for a day to see what changes had been made and just to catch up a bit really. After a few conversations we decided to cut a little acoustic record that I needed badly in a spiritual sense and for some loyal fans. Something that was virtually un-produced. Me, live, but in the studio. I picked a few songs out, he fired up the console and placed some sweet mics ...tada...'little epiphany' is born. The new record is done, is for sale in the digital form on my website and will be in print soon. I printed some test copies recently and have made the changes I needed in order to print in volume so they'll be with me at shows henceforth.

I think Kevin will tell you that he didn't do much on this project because he's insanely humble and that type of guy, but the truth is, he made some very nice decisions, has an incredible ear for tone and made my tiny little performance sound fantastic. It's the best look at what I do that I've ever had the pleasure to listen to. I'm proud of the project, indebted to Kevin Rose and eager for you to hear it.

www.jeffersonfox.bandcamp.com

Thank you Kevin,
Thanks everyone who inspires me,
Thanks Tim Gill (you inspire me too, but get a special note for housing me during the recording and all the great work you put forth)

See you soon I hope
jf

Ourstage

Hey gang,
I just wanted to say a little more about the whole 'Ourstage' thing. This is the site that I'm devoting the most of my 'musical energy' lately. There are a million places to look at artist profiles etc but this one makes sense. MTV started this a long time ago and at it's inception I wasn't very impressed...but they've changed.

They have a site now where music lovers can go find new music in several creative ways, artists can post lots of material and have a reason to do it. They are promoting 'competitions', so to speak which people can vote on and FINALLY, this site has a voting system where you CANNOT just go on and vote for YOUR guy. You have to listen to music in the categories you select and stack people up from best to worst...whoever they put in front of you. The reason I love it is that it's not a popularity contest, it's an enjoyment contest and I don't see a way to cheat in it. Everyone else like Myspace etc has created something where you tell all your friends to vote for you and the band with the most fans wins. Not very helpful in the realm of honest judgement.

Ourstage appealed to me also because I had an chance to win opportunities to play with bigger name artists, money, tools etc for entering contests. Let's face it, these are the things that artists need. I didn't have any idea that I could possibly win because historically these things are terribly unfair. Despite this fact, I entered a few tunes in the last couple weeks and at the time I'm writing this I find my song 'My Brothers Keeper' in 17th position out of 555 entries in the 'acoustic' category. My song 'Nobody's Fault' is in 32nd place out of 428 entries in 'Folk' and a couple of other entries are floating around in categories not doing as well but it's interesting.

I have 0 fans on this site as I have not promoted it in any way and I think that's fantastic. Once again, not a popularity contest.

I will ask you to log in, sign up and vote, but the wonderful part is that I can ask you honestly to just vote for the things you like, not necessarily for me. Enjoy the site. I do.

Sincerely
Jefferson Fox

Here's a link to my profile on 'OURSTAGE'

http://www.ourstage.com/profile/jeffersonfox

New Music

I've been really frustrated for quite some time by the fact that I haven't released any new music and I've heard from a lot of fans that it was time as well. So I finally decided to get some tunes out.

Here's the new deal.

'Chronicles Of Harvey' is a downloadable recording that will eventually contain 12 tracks. They are being released to my music site ... one song every two weeks (possibly even more often than that). You can spend a buck and collect the songs as they come out, you can just listen and enjoy, or you can wait until it's all there and get the collection. The first song released was 'My Brother's Keeper', recorded here in Jackson Mo. I have several new tunes in the mill and a ton already recorded so it's going to be fun assembling this record for you and satisfying to see it in your hands and at your ears.

I hope you enjoy the process as much as I am going to!

lotsa love
jf

Gone Fishin, a VIDEO RELEASE and more music!

Hello,
VIDEO:
I'm very proud to announce the release of the 'Simpleton' video. We've worked on this one for quite a while now and I am certain that this is the best work Tim Gill and I have done together. Tim directed, filmed and edited this video but more than that, he helped me with the concept, the story and my approach to making the video. He did what friends and great artists do...he made me do the right thing and find the heart of what I was after. You can see more of Tim's amazing work at www.timgill.net and you can see some of the work we've done together on jeffersonfox.com Thank you brother!

Also a huge help to us through the project was Eric Darling of Savannah, Ga. Eric is the owner of E Three Media, is an independent film-maker, editor, techie, jack-of-all-trades, all around great guy to know if you need to make something happen. Eric supplied Tim and I with essential equipment and technical assistance as well as helped develop the story as we brainstormed through the process. Check out his company at http://www.ethreemedia.com/ I sincerely look forward to working with Eric again. Thank you also brother!

The video is now on youtube at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa4AEry7_rI

GONE FISHIN:
I've had a fantastic couple of years and want to thank all of you for that. It has been a rewarding time in my life, I've traveled a lot, had some nice reactions to my work, grown musically and as a person and I've made a lot of great new friends and business partners. All of it has been great. The only exception to the wonders of a great and successful period in any career is that usually they come with a strain on other areas of life.
I've been feeling a bit out of touch with my family and friends (the ones I can wave at here in my hometown) and need to pause for a moment to do some living. Don't worry, I'll write about it and record it soon thereafter, but I need a small vacation so I'm taking one.

I am going to play my Feb 18 show at Stooges in Jackson and the Feb 25 show at Loudhouse Cafe in Greenbrier TN and then I'm going to be off the stage until MAY.

I will resume touring extensively beginning May 3 at The Record Bar in Kansas City, Mo.

If you need to contact me, visit jeffersonfox.com and feel free to email me from the link on the contact page. I'll be checking that and popping in occasionally on Facebook, though I probably won't be posting much.

MUSIC:
More music is in the works. I have been working on a couple of releases and did some more recording while in Georgia this week...at Elevated Basement Recording Studios with Kevin Rose. Kevin is an outstanding musician and sound engineer (and architect, and dad etc etc) who was hugely inspiring to me as far back as my days in High School when he was the guitarist in mine and Tim Gill's favorite band 'City of Lindas'. He's played on countless projects, recorded some outstanding music, coordinated takeovers of distant planets and recently become a Captain (of the open seas). I am very excited to finally be working with him and look forward to giving you something to listen to as a result. More soon on that. Check out Elevated Basement at http://elevatedbasement.com/ and thank YOU brother!

That's it for now.
Enjoy Valentines Day, 'Simpleton', and every moment you have

Sincerely
Jefferson Fox

Opportunity and I

Opportunity is a friend of mine. He calls me from time to time and we chat about what we could do together. Then he starts one of his sentences with a preposition and begins digging around in his mind for the rules of proper English and becomes distracted or becomes reminded of a dream he had by hearing of mine and loses focus. Sometimes the main thing becomes some other thing and quickly becomes nothing. Opportunity is just that way I think.

Still I admire Opportunity for all of his talents and vision. I don't disregard him because of his shortcomings. They're a lot like my own. Of course, I see in Opportunity failures that I would never succumb to because, of course, I am better than Opportunity. I sense fear in Opportunity though He denies that fear is something He knows of. Opportunity is a liar but then aren't we all. Not to suggest that You are a liar...well really yes...I know You are a liar.

I grow weary when Opportunity begins to make excuses for I sense in excuses the lies that they are born of and I grow angry. Then I begin some sentence with a preposition and get distracted and again I love Opportunity for the things that I see in Him that remind me of me. Occasionally He asks of me something that I should have done long ago and I make excuses, or lie, that is.

We sometimes wear the same clothes and bear the same shoe size you know. We are cousins or brothers. I can't remember which. Once I had Opportunity look it up for me but He forgot the answer or that's what He said and I took it for granted that He had forgotten to seek the information at all and then we politely dropped the subject altogether. He forgot though, I'm sure of it.

Opportunity called the other day. I missed the call. (actually I was busy flirting with a lady named Ruine (French lady) and didn't want to talk). I called back when it was convenient for me (and at a time when I knew He would be busy) but He didn't answer (which worked out well). I left a funny message like 'Tag, You're It!' or something to that effect. He'll get back to me, I'm sure. We're close like that. Once we got together and did some things. Some GREAT things! Maybe a couple of times. We still reminisce and joke with one another about how talentless OTHER people are and how much we'll get done when we find the time. There's always time, you know. Always time.

hang on, there's the phone

It's not Him. It's some other joker pretending to be Him. Jackass.

Anyway. Opportunity has been ill lately. Not feeling Himself. Chestpains, etc. I'm a little worried. If the bastard die's off I don't know what He'll do...I mean what I'll do. We get to feeling like this and then things get all weird for a few sentences, a few conversations...for a bit. I mean He gets to feeling like this...you get it, of course. Our mother says it's a result of the ill-fated conception of us. The connectivity or Siamese disorder, if you will. He talks, then I talk, then we talk...we talk a lot! Pushing and pulling, Opportunity and I. When I push Him he, of course, pulls me into the fall. It's useless. Yelling at each other in our minds and fully aware that our ears are are just two. It's all going to be just as loud for one as the other. No sense screaming at Him. I'd kick Him but I can't and if I could coax someone else into doing it for me it would hurt. It gets frustrating, all the talk and disgusting silence and waiting and and pondering and discussions about discussions and really nothing of a result.

I blame Him, He blames me...we just talk and talk and talk and talk and talk and talk....

There, I think He's going to shut up.

jf

Chance?

I never get tired of watching fate work her magic but I've also become aware that we decide whether or not to volunteer for the mistress' show. And as I continue to put my hand up, she continues to bring me into the light of fantastic things that I hadn't imagined before.

I was at a Christmas party with a bunch of average folk like myself the other night...local shopowners, an FBI agent, a school teacher, dance instructor, antique store proprietor, some retirees, and a guy that delivers furniture. Conversations happened between every group, one after another, exchanges of goodwill, queries about work, background, etc. Half way through the evening it was time for me to talk to the furniture delivery guy. So be it.

What do you do? Where are you from? Oh, you own a church?...interesting. We went to see what all of the other guests referred to as 'the most amazing living space you'll see in your life' and honestly, I had my doubts... I was wrong to doubt them. It was truly an UNBELIEVABLE space. Thousands upon thousands of antiques overflowing from well defined spaces in a huge church. Trunks, antiques, chairs, disco balls, suitcases with bulbs protruding from them that actually lit, all hanging from the ceilings. Candlelit piles of treasures stashed on walls and in corners like monuments to the bizarre, mannequins in tubs, ladders suspending art...the ARTWORK!!! Oh, and a STAGE. It was truly an OMG experience.

The strange thing to me was that I have been scouting for a place remotely similar to this one for an upcoming video shoot and I presumed that I would find something acceptable in a far-away place that we could dress up to fit the bill...but this is complete...and it's in my hometown. So then I pop the question...can I shoot in here? Turns out he's been looking for years for a way to immortalize the space and all of his hard work and vision. Waiting for some nutcase like me to come along. I'm your man.

Tonight I photographed the space for the film director, and actors. The proprietor and I discussed our chance meeting. Shortly before both of us headed to the party where we met, we each had second thoughts about going. Neither of us were sure the other would be interesting to talk to...

And the lady just continues to invite us in.

Be sure to raise your hand.

lotsa love
jf