Camp Revival

My friend Meghan and I shared one of the most traumatic (wedding) experiences, ever. As string players, wedding season does not always translate into receptions, friends and cake. For us it can mean hours of practicing, preparation and nerves that rival the bride’s, or groom’s, cold-feet jitters. The experience that I am referencing above took place in Chicago in the summer of 2005. Meghan and I were hired to perform the music for a wedding. Nearly every cue that we entered in on was wrong, every solo started off flat, and when we weren’t playing the silence was filled by the sound of the groom’s father wrapping his knuckles and staring at us with the intent to kill. To top all of this off, on the way out of the wedding Meghan ended up stepping on a sharp metal object that had her bleeding during the entirety of her long train ride home. This was truly one of those experiences that warranted drinking to the point of forgetting a day ever happened.

To celebrate the upcoming five year anniversary of our worst day ever, and the entry into the 2010 wedding season, Meghan and I met for PHO in Ballard to stuff our faces and talk over the music that she is listening to. In an apologetic tone Meghan informed me that she was not really listening to anything ‘new’ or ‘fresh’. Instead she is listening to a lot of Tim Eriksen, the celtic/folk virtuoso, ethnomusicologist professor and leader of the band Cordelia’s Dad. I assured Meghan that ‘new’ and ‘fresh’ are not necessarily the aim of this blog. We also appreciate ‘beautiful’ and ‘listenable’, which is exactly what she brought to me. Enjoy some of Meghan’s choice selections from Tim Eriksen on this Mother’s Day.

Vernon / Wrestling Jacob, 95

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Idumea Sacred Harp Singers at Liberty Church

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Am I born to Die?

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Bassett Creek

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