Gettin’ Ready
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
Tonight we’re playing the first of our 2 shows of the weekend, at the Church of the Blues, in Dewdney. There’s a lot of prep work that goes into all of our shows. Art does most of it, since he owns and maintains the band’s sound equipment.
He has recently had some repairs, maintenance, and upgrades done, and also added something, that I don’t really understand, so he’ll have to write about it. It’s an amazing addition however. The sound coming out of the PA is so different, it is incredible. The clarity, crispness, and definition have never been as good. I’m hearing things I’ve never heard before.
For me, I have regular maintenance to perform as well. Saxophones have approximately 500 parts, and when they are played, the springs, rods, keys, pads, levers, and rollers are all exposed to stresses. The harder you play: the more stress they’re exposed to, & the more you need to check everything over before a show. I play pretty hard with Deception, so before a 2-day series of shows, I have to unstick sticky pads, apply tenon oil, and check everything over. This helps avoid nasty surprises on stage.
So here’s a picture of my workhorse… My Selmer Mark VI tenor, just after it got its pre-show maintenance. I love this sax. It was built in Paris, France in around 1972. I got the horn in 1981, and it has been my favourite tenor ever since. It’s travelled a lot with me; done a lot with me; played a hell of a lot of different styles of music with me; and never let me down.
Hopefully we’ll see you at one of our shows this weekend. If you can’t make it out either tonight, or tomorrow afternoon, check out our upcoming shows page, to see when and where we’re playing next.
New Year’s Eve
Posted by Steve | Filed under Uncategorized
As I have been available for a few jams at the “Church of the Blues” on Sundays at the Historic Dewdney Pub, I got the call from Dave Conroy to come out on New Year’s Eve and play with the “Church of the Blues Allstars” for the first set. Gerald Charlie and the Black Owl Blues would play two more sets after that.
It was a good crowd in spite of the weather, which was snow! We had three guitars in the front line with Dave, Cory Lavigne, and Larry Stiles, Greg Thompson on drums and myself squeezed into the corner. These guys will keep you on your toes with changes (it’s not all blues), but it is fun and challenging.
Art and Sharon Panchishin came in with Randy and Doreen Mathers as a last minute decision to go out, so I got to sit with some people I knew for the midnight meal and Gerald’s sets.
I also came in with Karen the following Sunday for the jam, there were several other bass players there and Bob was playing a Gibson Thunderbird Bass on the flat where his top keyboard would normally go! I went on for the last set, but the crowd had mostly departed as it had begun to snow quite heavily again, there were four inches on the car when we decided to go.
A Friday Night Of Blues At The Gourmet Gallery
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
On Friday night we had the chance to play for the new owner of the Gourmet Gallery in Abbotsford. Deception has been playing at the Gallery for many years, but Kimberly Arthurs has only owned the coffee house/art gallery/antique store since November. This was our first time playing there since she took over.
Photo by M. Margison
We played to a packed house of patrons who seemed to really “drink in” the electric Blues sounds that Deception is known for. Speaking of “drinking in”…
Kimberly has found out that she needs to buy more of certain brands of beer for our fans. She had been given a list of fan favourites to buy, and thought she bought enough. But the number of people there that night, surprised even us, and the supply in the cooler didn’t quite go far enough. However, people do adapt, and were quite happy with their 2nd choice. They did come for the music after all…
Photo by M. Margison
…And the music didn’t disappoint, despite both Art and Gary struggling with a viral infection that was effecting their throats and their vocal chords. Art and I just did slightly longer solos than normal, and we just had to be more selective in our song choices.
For us, playing the Gourmet Gallery, is like coming home. It is a great place to play music. The ambiance, the crowd that actually comes to hear the music, and the staff, all blend together to make this a very comfortable and pleasurable place to play.
Abbotsford has so few venues for live entertainment, that we really owe a big ”thank you” to the establishments that host live events. If it weren’t for places like the Gourmet Gallery, the performing arts in this town would have even fewer outlets then they do.
So “thank you” Kimberly for carrying on the tradition that Diane established, and continuing to have live acts at the Gourmet Gallery. We’re looking forward to playing there again in ’09.
Our First Show At The Church Of The Blues In Dewdney
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances, Photos
Well, we had a great deal of fun this weekend at The Church Of The Blues, in Dewdney. On Saturday night, we played a regular show to a packed house. The crowd was really appreciative, & seemed to really enjoy themselves.
Here are a couple of shots that were taken that night…
Left to right: Art on guitar, Helen on sax, Steve on bass, & Gary on drums.
The front line in action: Art, Helen, & Steve.
On Sunday afternoon & evening, The Historic Dewdney Pub was rockin’ to some amazing Blues sounds, as we played host to the Church Of The Blues’ weekly Blues Jam. As usual, there were some amazing musicians there who stepped onto the stage. It was a privilege to be the house band for this very talented group of Blues players.
We’d like to thank Doug McNeil & Julie McDonald, the owners of the Historic Dewdney Pub, for booking us for the weekend. We had a great time, & we are really looking forward to doing it again in the near future.
As Dave keeps saying, what you’re doing here is amazing. The fact that you’re providing a venue for Blues musicians to play in the Fraser Valley is awesome.
This weekend was only the 9th or 10th weekend of the Blues Jam. There were enough musicians there to keep the jam going past its scheduled 7 pm end time. Deception finally wrapped up the evening with a few songs at 8:30.
Let’s keep growing the weekly jam, and ensuring it’s continued success. There is a lot of talent in the Fraser Valley. This venue gives us an opportunity to showcase that talent.
If you’re a musician, and you haven’t yet checked out The Historic Dewdney Pub, AKA, The Church Of The Blues, since it’s under new ownership, please do. If we want to have a place to play our music, we need to support the places that support us.
Thanks again to Doug & Julie for having us this weekend.
Upcoming Shows At The Church Of The Blues
Posted by Musician | Filed under Performances
We are just a week away from our first weekend of shows at the Church of the Blues, AKA, The Historic Dewdney Pub in Dewdney. The pub has been under new ownership since last summer, and the new owners have transformed it into a really interesting Blues club.
Next Saturday, the 29th, we will be starting our first set at 9:00 PM. Hope to see you there! And don’t forget to wear your dancing shoes! It should be a good time.
On Sundays, the Church of the Blues holds a Blues jam. On Sunday, the 30th, we will be hosting the jam, starting at 3:00 in the afternoon. So if you’ve always wanted to jam with a Blues band, here’s your chance. Bring your guitar, bass guitar, drum sticks, Blues harp, sax, or whatever else you use to play the Blues with, and come on down & join us on stage.
If you don’t know where the pub is, you can find it at: 8793 River Road S, Dewdney, BC. Here’s a link to help you get there. (I’m not sure the contact info is correct, since it’s still got the old pub name, but the location is right.)
Deception is the Abbotsford-based blues band formed in the mid-90s by guitar player Art Panchishin.