The Band of Brothers: Brothers Blog

Big Rain Yesterday -
Down in the valley there was flooding after 3 inches of rain pelted Dansvile in an hour. Rained pretty steady through the day and evening. Saw some spectacular lightning bolts on the drive home last night from our performance at Epworth Hall.

A doe and her two fawns stopped by our dining room window this morning as I was having coffee. Later, a buck stood and stared at me while I mowed the grounds down by the big pond. I waved and called out a big "Hello." I'm not claiming any cross-species communication, but it sure was a good moment up on the hill. Hope your day was fine too.
Peace,
Michael

The internet is a wonder I tend to take for granted. Yet, once in a while I get knocked out of my complacency. Although we put our website on-line to help our local fans get to our shows, our site statistics tell us folks come from some unlikely places. Yesterday, it was Niue, the "Rock of Polynesia." A quick check at Wikipedia told me the island nation of Niue has a population of about 1,600, with a rich musical culture. Singing is frequently a cappela, yet many modern Niuean artists have produced records and at least a couple have created music that charted. Here's my point, directed to my fellow independent musicians: Indie Music is world-wide now and no matter where you live, your music is important and capable of touching people throughout the world. Do not lose belief in your ability!

Peace,
Michael

Here's the Top Ten from June:
1. Draper The Pirate
2. One Beautiful Day
3. Almost There
4. Evangeline
5. Railroads, Hoboes & Cowboys
6. Walking Home From Virginia
7. The Highwayman Waltz
8. Whisper
9. Big Fight In Canal Town
10. Shady Grove

Thanks for listening to our music!

We love our fans! And we love our international fans!

June brought us visitors from France, Germany, Australia, Argentina, United Kingdom, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Croatia (Hrvatska), Finland, Netherlands, Denmark, Russia, Hungary, Japan, Switzerland, Chile, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand, Sweden, Slovak Republic, Tuvalu (the fourth-smallest country in the world!!), Portugal, Seychelles, Ghana, Austria, Belgium, China, India, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Mexico, Norway, Vietnam, South Africa, Greece, Poland, and Singapore!

Peace,
Michael

My son Sean Smith (of "Sean Goes Pop!" fame) won First Prize in the electronic music category of the the "Upstate New York Songwriting Contest" for his composition "New York."
You can listen to it here:
http://songcontestny.com/winners.html

Congratulations Sean!!

Arrgghh! 'Draper The Pirate' rose to #7 on the iTunes folk music chart for Pirate Songs! Blow Me Down!

Peace,
Michael

Good day for it - sunny and warm up on the Hill. Received a card and a framed watercolor painting from my son. He's a talented young man, no doubt about it.

Peace,
Michael

Standing on the back porch with a cup of coffee - watching a doe lick her fawn clean by the pond. Later, a yellow finch sits in a tree and sings to my banjo picking. Gentle rain falls. Yep. Pretty nice day.

Peace,
Michael

Doc took the splint off my little finger today - it's about as flexible as a fence post - but free to the light and air after six weeks! Woot! Woot!

Peace,
Michael

Whew! It was hot in the studio tonight! We recorded several takes of Alan Fox's song "The Palm Of Your Hand" tonight. Alan brought this song to us shortly after our last CD was completed, and we have performed it at almost every show since then - it' has always been on the 'short list' of songs for recording.

Peace,
Michael

As Bo said: "It seems to me that nobody can come up with their own thing, they have to put a little bit of Bo Diddley there." Too true - and for good reason - those 'Bo-isms' are FUN TO PLAY!! His legacy will endure, and I'll continue to slap a little Diddley into my own music. I saw Bo decades ago on a double bill with Chuck Berry at the University of Rochester - he was cool for cats and had us all jumping. Thanks for all you did Bo - you'll be missed.

Peace,
Michael

Here's the Top Ten from May:
1. One Beautiful Day
2. Almost There
3. True Friends
4. Walking Home From Virginia
5. Through My Eyes
6. Draper The Pirate
7. Evangeline
8. Railroads, Hoboes & Cowboys
9. Clayton & Harlow
10. Car Radio
11. Sam Patch

Thanks for listening to our music!

We love our fans! And we love our international fans!

May brought us visitors from Germany, Canada, United Kingdom, Poland, Brazil, Belgium, Finland, New Zealand, Netherlands, India, Hungary, Mexico, Argentina, Singapore, Russia, Australia, Venezuela, Japan, Greece, Romania, Ireland, Italy, Slovak Republic, Seychelles, Latvia, Bulgaria, China, Denmark, Spain, France, Taiwan, Sweden and Vietnam!

Peace,
Michael

Made the trip up to Rochester yesterday - walked around Highland Park and sniffed all the lilac we could stand. Beautiful. Next stop was Park Ave. for a Chocolate Almond Frozen Custard. Then on to the George Eastman House for a tour of the gardens and a showing of 'Blade Runner' at the Dryden Theater. Sci-Fi-Noir Bliss.

Peace,
Michael

Got my battered pinkie x-rayed today to make sure the tendon is staying where it belongs while healing progresses. Doc says 3 more more weeks of bondage for the little fellow. Thanks to all who have sent me well-wishes & prayers.

Peace,
Michael

Happy Mother's Day to all - we spent a relaxing morning watching two doe browsing at the edge of the woods. A turkey wandered by and birds were singing everywhere. True beauty.
Peace,
Michael

The Band of Brothers extend our prayers and condolences to the family of funnyman/musician Jim Hagar - he made us laugh year after year on 'Hee-Haw.'
Rest in Peace Jim,
Michael

Tulips are up. May Apples too. Went outside and tossed the ol' football around with my son. Dinged my pinkie finger & now its sporting a brace for the next 6 weeks while the tendon heals. Guess it's time to brush up on three-fingered chord positions. All prayers gratefully accepted.
Peace,
Michael

Here's the our Top Ten from April:
1. One Beautiful Day
2. Almost There
3. Draper The Pirate
4. Evangeline
5. On God's Shore
6. Big Fight In Canal Town
7. Walking Home From Virgina
8. Railroads, Hoboes, and Cowboys
9. Through My Eyes
10. Whisper

Thanks for listening to our music!