It was a breakthrough weekend for us here at Frederick Playlist (if “breakthrough” means “memorable,” of course). We kicked things off on Friday with our first-ever Frederick Playlist Presents … show down at the Carroll Creek amphitheater and followed that up by giving away hundreds of brand-new beer koozies at the Flying Dog show Saturday night that featured Lucero and Brooks Long and The Mad Dog No Good. There’s a lot to say about all that went down. Let’s get to it.
1. First and most certainly foremost, a gigantic THANK YOU (notice the capital letters) to our old friend Pete Goodwin, who came through at the very last minute to replace Doug Alan Wilcox on our bill Friday afternoon. As it goes, Wilcox had a cut on his finger that didn’t heal well enough to play and it wasn’t until Friday morning that he realized he would have to cancel all of his weekend shows (that’s OK – we still love you, Doug!). A couple text messages, a few phone calls and one frantic morning later, and the fabulous Pete Goodwin made it down to the creek just in time to plug in for a quick set. For those interested in learning more about Pete, any of his various musical projects, or how you can land a few lessons from the maestro himself, check out his website or his Facebook page (also of note: His band 3:AM is looking for a bass player). Tell him we sent you, and tell him THANK YOU (in all capital letters) again.
2. Who knew Todd C. Walker was such a local celebrity?! We snapped the quick video above with an iPhone (more on videos later this week), and we knew he was an incredibly great guy … but we had absolutely no idea that his well-known profile around town was based on the fact that he once hosted a cooking show! More than once, we were approached by creek-walkers who wondered aloud of the guy on stage was the same guy who once went into local restaurants to interview chefs and videotape it all for the masses to see. How neat! Anyway, we must thrust another gigantic THANK YOU in his direction for coming out and providing an afternoon filled with entertaining stories, memorable covers, and, of course, his made-for-coffee-shops-everywhere original songs. Without Walker and Goodwin, we would have just been some schlump of a website, trolling the creek, giving away paper fans and koozies. But with Walker and Goodwin … well, with them, we were some schlump of a website, trolling the creek, giving away paper fans and koozies … with music playing in the background! No, but seriously: Check those guys out. They’re the best.
3. We might be only two shows into a four-show slate, but the set of the summer so far goes to Brooks Long And The Mad Dog No Good, who opened Saturday night’s Flying Dog Summer Sessions concert. Not only were they kind enough to help us out with an interview last week, but they also brought a stunningly authentic R&B vibe to the entire event Saturday night, and that’s hard to do if you only happen to be a trio. A lack of personnel left no shortage of depth, however, as those three dudes made the stage sound as though an orchestra was hiding somewhere behind them. Better yet was their cover of The Four Tops’ “Baby I Need Your Loving,” which turned out to be far more than a pleasant surprise. Honestly: If you get the chance to go check them out, do it. And yes: They’re based in Baltimore, so you have no real excuse not to.
4. Lucero, Lucero. Despite the rain that kept drizzling with consistency once the headliners took the stage, those Memphis dudes brought the (figurative) house down with their blazing set of Southern-style country rock. Lead singer Ben Nichols’s raspy croon rang through the clouded skies with his signature subdued enthusiasm, and the crowd drank it up like Dead Rise Old Bay Summer Ale. The only real impact the weather had was on us: With Lucero on the stage and our koozie supply down to nothing, we were unfortunately forced to pack up just a few minutes early (didn’t want to get those paper fans wet, you know!) Still, a fabulous night was had by all, and as Flying Dog posted on its Facebook page Saturday night, “Tears don’t matter much and neither does the rain. An incredible end to one badass show.”
5. Winner. Winner. Again. Chicken. Dinner. Because we were asked on Facebook about who won our ticket giveaway last week, we felt it imperative to offer a big, ol’ congratulations to Mr. Paul Eckert and Julia Miller! Much like what happened at the first Flying Dog show this summer, the winners stopped by to say hello and chat for a minute, and we couldn’t be happier for them! (Though it was a bit sad to see that they had already bought tickets and couldn’t get rid of them in time for the show). Don’t forget: The next Flying Dog Summer Session is set for Aug. 23 and it will feature J Roddy Walston and the Business as well as the fine young men in local rock outfit Old Indian. Check back here in the coming weeks to learn how you can win two free tickets to the event. Though we should also mention that if you don’t feel like waiting around, you can always buy tickets here. We met a super-ton of super-great people this weekend, so for anyone who might be stopping by this corner of the World Wide Internet for the first time, remember: Tou can email us at frederickplaylist@gmail.com, you can follow us on Twitter @Fredplaylist, or you can like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/frederickplaylist. Truly: With the exception of that one guy who told us he will “absolutely not” take a free koozie off our hands as the rain began to increase (meanie!), you guys are THE BEST!
