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Fluffy
Administrator
USA
10739 Posts |
 Posted - 02/07/2006 : 2:11:44 PM
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Hey everyone, Just wanted to help Corinne try and get the word out about these upcoming benefits. Please pass along this info to any other message boards you might be a member of or anyone you think might be interested. THANX!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: CORINNE TAMES: (713) 582-0175
National and Local Artists to Honor Musical Legend, Chris Whitley.
Two all-star concerts in Houston and Austin benefiting the Whitley estate.
Saturday, March 4, 2006 – The Glenn in Austin, Texas
Sunday, March 5, 2006 – Warehouse Live in Houston, Texas
Legendary singer-songwriter/guitarist, 45 year old, Chris Whitley died of lung cancer on November 20th at a friend's home near Houston. Chris leaves behind a younger brother Dan, an older sister Bridget, and daughter Trixie. Two tribute concerts for Whitley will take place in Austin and Houston. Proceeds will in part benefit a trust fund for Trixie Whitley. “My brother was all about life and living, and we want anybody who felt touched by him or his music to come and be welcome,” says Dan Whitley.
A man of rare poetic honesty, Chris Whitley maintained a resolute musical integrity throughout his career. His 13 albums, ranging from raw-boned folk-rock to lush electro-blues, had the thread of intense emotion and constant invention running through them.
Chris Whitley's debut LP, Living With the Law, was released by Columbia Records in 1991 and was received with critical acclaim. Chris’ Soft Dangerous Shores, (Messenger) came out in July 2005. Both discs now seem like spiritual/aesthetic book-ends, mixing roots-rock grit with heat-haze atmospherics. Chris Whitley’s final recording, Reiter In, will be released in Europe on February 28th (Downtown) and in North America on March 28th (Red Parlor).
In the Houston area, an incredible night of music will take place at Warehouse Live on Sunday, March 5. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m., with the show starting at 7:30 p.m. Current artists to perform include Shawn Colvin, Charlie Sexton, Vernon Reid, DJ Logic, Doug Pinnick, the Sonnier Brothers, the Dan Whitley Band, John Egan, Arthur Yoria and NDUGU. Warehouse Live is located at 813 St. Emmanual Street, Houston, Texas. Advance tickets are $20 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster- www.ticketmaster.com.
In Austin, the show will be held at The Glenn on Saturday, March 4, with the same lineup, but will also include Alejandro Escovedo and band and The Barbwire Project featuring- Eric Johnson, Malford Milligan, Steve Barber, Bill Maddox, Stephen Bruton, Chris Maresh, Rebecca Henderson and the Tosca Strings. The Glenn is located at 13101 Hwy 71 in West Austin by The Backyard. Tickets are $20 in advance and can be purchased through Get Tix- www.gettix.net
A raffle will be held at each event featuring special autographed items. Also be on the lookout for surprise guest appearances. All proceeds go to cover medical expenses for Chris’s care and to establish a Trust Fund for his daughter, Trixie Whitley.
A special thank you to The Raven Grill for their generous donations toward making this show happen. For more information, contact Corinne Tames at (713) 582-0175 or ctames@houston.rr.com. Also check out www.chriswhitley.com.
A special Benefit Concerts page will be added to
http://www.chriswhitley.com/ within the next 2 days that will offer a code for reduced airfare on Continental for fans wanting to fly to Texas. (How KEWL is that!!!) |
Peace & Keep the Faith
Fluffy         
"THE MUSIC BUSINESS IS A CRUEL AND SHALLOW MONEY TRENCH-- A LONG PLASTIC HALLWAY WHERE THIEVES AND PIMPS RUN FREE AND GOOD MEN DIE LIKE DOGS. THERE'S ALSO A NEGATIVE SIDE..." -Hunter S. Thompson |
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KevinLesko
Alien Abductee
3712 Posts |
Posted - 02/07/2006 : 7:19:21 PM
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Fluffy, are you going to be able to attend any of these? I wish I could, as I have a feeling they will be beautiful events, and would be very thereputic for friends and fans. Unfortunatly the logistics just don't work out. I think I might have posted this here before, but in lew of me attending, I thought I'd share what I wrote on Chris Whitley's message board the day I found out the bad news. It was something very emotionally for me to write, but also very therputic to get out.
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I had a very hard time dealing with this news when it first came out that was Chris was very ill, and under hospice care. I've just now started crying... not sure if it is the cd playing, or me writing about this... at first I was almost upset that they announced that Chris was terminal. I kept thinking that knowing he would die is harder to deal with, than simply learning of his death, and maybe it was for me... I can't speak for others. However, one thing that it also did was prepared me for his death. Every day over the past two weeks I woke up, immediately turned on my computer and fully expected to read of Chris' passing. Today was that day, so in a strange way I was ready.
I was first turned onto Chris Whitley by Fluffy. I remember sometime 1999 or so when they first started up the website, and email list, one of the very first emails from Fluffy (I found the email in an archive) he wrote this:
quote:
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Speaking of recommendations, How many of you are familiar with Chris Whitley? Another great guitar player. A little more in the blues realm but still worth a listen. He also has an amazing, unique style of playing. Tim is a big fan. Chris' album "Din of Ecstasy" had a big impact on Tim as well. He really loves Chris' diversity. They are very similar in that way. Great acoustic records to start with are "Live at Martyrs" or the solo acoustic studio album
"Dirt Floor"
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At the time, I was probably about 18? and was really just starting to become the avid music fan/listener that I am now at almost 24. As such, I was (and still am) very influential, and always looking for suggestions on new music to check out. I made a mental note of Fluffy's suggestion, and a few months later when I was in Lou's Records (a favorite of mine located in San Diego, just minutes away from the Belly Up where I've seen Chris Whitley play) I found a used copy of "Din of Ecstasy" for about five bucks. I listened to it, and was immediately hooked. I loved it. I had never heard anything so RAW and emotional before. To this day it is one of my top 5 albums of all time. Jump ahead to today, and I own just about everything there is to own from Chris Whitley minus a few rare imports and other hard to find collectables. I've seen Chris live 4 times. 3 solo, and one with the Vast Combo on the Hotel Vast Horizon tour that had Fluffy in charge of two Germans that spoke no English. The last time I saw Chris was just months ago. Friday July 22, 2005. (I just found the ticket stub). It seems so strange that a man that just months ago played in front of me with such power and emotion (despite being obviously frail) is gone. I often consider Chris Whitley to be my 2nd favorite artist behind Tim Reynolds. These two stand out above superstar acts like Peter Gabriel/Genesis, Fleetwood Mac, NiN, Tool, DMB, System of a Down... etc because on numerous occasions I've met both, and am still floored by the generosity, sincerity, and pure warmth that was shown to me when I shook their hands. I saw Chris at the Brick by Brick about 2 years ago, and at the end of the night Chris shook my hand and thanked me for working the merch booth for the show. I thanked him for everything as well. He started to walk towards the van, and about half-way to the van, he stopped, walked back to me grabbed my hand again, looked me in the eyes, and thanked me again. The sheer amount of sincere honesty and gratitude that was shown at that moment is not capable of being translated through words. It is something I’ll never forget,
The point I'm trying to get to here is that for everything I listed above AND A WHOLE LOT MORE, I WOULD LIKE TO THANK CHRIS FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART FOR EVERYTHING THAT HE HAS GIVEN TO ME.
I hope this isn't taken out of context and doesn't seem inappropriate, but they say that death does wonders for your career. I only say this because I hope that the acclamations that Chris will be getting today from his fans will one day be shared by a world-wide audience. Chris deserves that, and his music will live on forever. Thank you again Chris.
-Kevin.
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god
Kevin |
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Arthen
Alien Abductee
USA
4845 Posts |
Posted - 02/07/2006 : 8:21:43 PM
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I remember Fluffy's recommendations, I wish I would've gotten into him back then.
Maybe the shows will be taped? |
Steve Hackett: "I'm my own opening act, you see."
Tim (before "Faceoff"): "Peace, love....and SEX!"
cbenc41@hotmail.com |
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rubylith
Fluffy-Esque
1915 Posts |
Posted - 02/07/2006 : 8:36:39 PM
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I was lucky enough to talk to trixie on myspace recently...I cannot wait for her to put up some of her music.
Anyway check this out too, I'll cannot wait!
Come join us in this intimate Celebration/memorial of the Spirit of my brother Chris Whitley in NYC on Fri, Feb. 17th at:
the Baggot
82 W 3rd St (bet Sullivan & Thompson)
Greenwich Village, NYC
212-477-0622
8:00-Closing time (all night long!!)
Advance Ticket sales here:
http://www.thebaggot.com/feb06.html
There will be lots of great music/songwriters/musicians, spoken word
memorials, photographs, Chris Whitley audio/video. Also we will
probably allocate some time for people who would like to get up and
dedicate a personal spoken word memorial to Chris. Among those
performing music will be some of Chris's friends and family =) :William
Nowik, Dina Ragine, The SawTele's, The Dan Whitley Band, Kelly Joe
Phelps, Steve and John Conte and many other surprises! I hope to meet
some of you there and thank you.
Also stay tuned for info on the Austin and Houston Texas Benefits!
Love and Light,
Daniel
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Fluffy
Administrator
USA
10739 Posts |
Posted - 02/10/2006 : 6:39:46 PM
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A little last minute, but anyone in the area should definitely try and make this!!
CHRIS WHITLEY CELEBRATION,
SAT. FEB. 11 AT THE WINDHAM IN BELLOWS FALLS, VT
A celebration of the life and music of Chris Whitley will take place at the Windham in Bellows Falls, VT on Saturday, February 11. Known for his haunted vocals, propulsive National guitar and poetic songcraft, Whitley died in late November in Texas at age 45.
Chris Whitley has a special connection to Rockingham and Bellows Falls; he spent his teenage years with his mother, brother Daniel and sister Bridget in a cabin on a dirt road in the back hills of Rockingham. It's where he first picked up a guitar. And it is where he returned in the late nineties to record one of his most enduring cds, the gorgeously stark and somber DIRT FLOOR.
"Lots of people have been asking me about doing a small, grass roots musical get together up there," says Dan Whitley, Chris Whitley's younger brother who also contributed guitar to several of Chris's CD's. "It might turn out to be not so little." The Dan Whitley Band, a supple power trio, will anchor the evening event, with guest turns from close Whitley friend, former New York songwriter Melissa Sheehan and Ingrid's Ruse, the fast-rising area folk-rock trio that includes Ezra Veitch (for whom Whitley baby-sat a few times). Other friends may be announced. There will also be a display of photographs of Chris Whitley, courtesy of Chris Nofziger, the noted lensman who shot the DIRT FLOOR cover and many other pictures of Whitley throughout his career.
During the afternoon, there will be an open mic where fans wishing to share music influenced or by Chris Whitley will be encouraged to play. The open mic is hosted by Jesse Peters, the popular Rockingham guitarist and songwriter.
"When Chris died, there was a massive outpouring of love and support," says Dan Whitley. "There hasn't yet been an occasion where friends - whether or not they knew Chris personally - can come together and celebrate the amazing spirit of my brother and his music. That's what we're going to do."
Although Chris Whitley never achieved mass fame, his passing has resonated throughout the music community and garnered coverage on TIME, the New York Times, NPR and press throughout the world. His albums LIVING WITH THE LAW and DIRT FLOOR are regarded as classics, and passionate advocates abound for any of his dozen or so other releases, from the psychedelic DIN OF ECSTASY to the electronica of ROCKET HOUSE to the dark, jazzy minimalism of HOTEL VAST HORIZON. Bruce Springsteen, Iggy Pop and Keith Richards all count themselves admires of Whitley's music. Dave Matthews has said, "I feel more passion for his music than I do for my own. I have a fervent, religious devotion to the magic that Chris Whitley makes."
Large-scale big-city 'tribute' concerts slated for the next year are in the talking stages, but that isn't the aim of the Vermont shows. Charlie Hunter, whose Flying Under Radar Concerts is helping promote the event, says, "When Chris was up here last summer, he was talking about wishing he could just give the music away to people. He was incredibly generous of spirit; this event is not about celebrity. It's about celebration."
And as Dan Whitley says, "My brother was all about life and living, and we want anybody who felt touched by him or his music to come and be welcome."
Bellows Falls is located on I-91, a half-hour north of the Massachusetts border, 4 hours from New York, two and a half hours from Boston. There is daily Amtrak and Vermont Transit bus service to New York. Tickets for the 7:30 pm evening concert and 3:00 pm afternoon Open Mic are on sale at Village Square Books and Bulls Eye Music in Bellows Falls, and on line at http://www.virtuous.com./. All proceeds above expenses will go to the Whitley family. Persons desiring more information should visit http://www.flyingunderradar.com/ or call 802-463-3669.
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Peace & Keep the Faith
Fluffy
"THE MUSIC BUSINESS IS A CRUEL AND SHALLOW MONEY TRENCH-- A LONG PLASTIC HALLWAY WHERE THIEVES AND PIMPS RUN FREE AND GOOD MEN DIE LIKE DOGS. THERE'S ALSO A NEGATIVE SIDE..." -Hunter S. Thompson |
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Chris Whitley Benefits for Trixie
