Welcome to the New Place!
Some of you are probably seeing this blog for the first time as a result of the new John Natiw Music Newsletter. Great! Others, well, I’m not sure HOW you found this! From now on, all the news that’s fit to print will be posted here.
The truth is that over the years I’ve posted in three or four different blogs depending on which band or group I was playing with at the time. Over the past few days I’ve gone back and posted some of the entries from the Arlington Station and Seven Bridges blogs, as well as my own music blog to this new page.
After completing the move, I was pleased to be able to read through the history of the past few years. It’s been quite a lot of fun. Here’s hoping it stays that way!
There are lots of things to read as well as some pretty nifty features on this new blog. The “Tag Cloud” at left, for instance, is pretty cool. Maybe you’ll even see your name in it!
Don’t forget the show this Friday at Solid Grounds!
John
December 15, 2008
It’s Enough
Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the good fortune of coming across some fantastic artists and songs. Here’s a little bit about each one and how it’s affected my music and shows.
Billy Brandt – This guy has been a staple in the Michigan music scene for years, but I just recently took the time to really listen. After getting his “blessing” during one of his breaks at a show recently, I’ve been covering Mission Band pretty regularly.
Great Lake Swimmers – Tony Dekker is a very smart and creative man. GLS is his creative vehicle. This, in itself, gives me hope for Arlington Station. A friend of mine named Kent turned me on to this group. Since then I’ve been listening a lot. I added Your Rocky Spine to my set list as well. Hope they don’t mind. ;o)
Last Saturday evening at East River local singer/songwriter Bill Bynum performed a wonderful country song called It Ain’t Easy Being Me by Chris Knight. I’m always impressed with Bill’s sets. He always finds great songs to bring to his audiences. Needless to say, I rushed home and looked it up on YouTube and learned it. Added that one and Send a Boat to the set list. See a pattern here? ;o)
A few classic tunes have crept into my repertoire as well. Pure Prairie League’s Amie and The Weight by The Band (which I actually got inspired to do because of a video on Billy Brandt’s site).
Thanks to Ann at work for getting me fired up about a Canadian band called Crash Parallel (as well as Big Wreck!). Their song Rain Delays was a project for me last Saturday at work. Yes, I play my guitar and sing at work. Had some great acoustics last weekend. It was raining really hard outside so I went in the back and played. I had to deal with a few “scalded cat” comments from the guys, but, hey, I’m an artist!
Still hoping to record a CD in the near future. Have a couple of obstacles to overcome there. First, choosing a studio. Have a few options there that I’ve begun to explore. Second, I must decide on what kind of band I’d like to put together for the project. Have a few ideas along these lines as well. Time will tell.
Each day is bringing new ground to till. Every week and month are new discoveries waiting to happen. Around every corner are wonderfully creative people who inform me as to how to better ply my trade. In the words of Great Lake Swimmers, “I am part of a large family, and it’s enough”.
It’s enough…
Some Important News About Arlington Station
Some important news about Arlington Station:
Dave and Lisa are no longer with Arlington Station. Ron and I will be finishing out the shows on our August schedule.
Dave, Lisa and I have been friends for a long time and that won’t change. They will continue playing with Seven Bridges and pursuing other opportunities as well. Speaking of Seven Bridges, you may want to come out to South Lyon’s McHattie park tonight. We will all be playing music together again, with Lisa’s brother Keith as Seven Bridges (I’m filling in for their drummer, Rick). Looking forward to a great night of music.
Finally, Ron and I hope you come out and give us a listen. This bulletin will take the place of the August 1st newsletter, and I hope to be able to send out another update around the first of September to let you know what will become of Arlington Station.
Thanks for your support (past and, hopefully, future!),
John Natiw
Arlington Station
Arlington Station is On the Air
Hey all,
Turns out this venture with Lisa and Dave is going very well. We’ve not done two shows together and can’t wait to get out and do more. Anyhoo… We’ve created a website for the new group. Dave and Lisa are still with Seven Bridges and I’m still working on solo material, but this looks like it’s going to be taking up most of my music time for the near future, at least. We’re having a blast. Hope to see you out at a show soon!
John
Here’s the bio info for Arlington Station as it’s seen on the band’s myspace:
Lisa, John and Dave have played music together in one form or another since 2002. They have been entertaining audiences (and themselves!) as Arlington Station since October, 2007.
Folk, country and original compositions are what you might hear when you come to an Arlington Station show. But there is more to this band than genres. What really separates the group is vocal style. As one fan recently put it, “when one or two of you are singing, it’s very good… but when all three of you are making harmonies like you do, it’s magic”.
Although a relatively new group, Arlington Station displays advanced musicianship and a very distinct sound. Lisa has a very strong vocal style, whether she is powering through lead vocals or providing tight backing vocals. John gives the band a variety of sound layers including acoustic guitar, harmonica and mandolin, as well as lead and backing vocals. Dave holds down the bottom end on bass and adds some deep emotion to the music as well as providing a lower vocal layer in harmony.
More than any of these observations, though, this is a group of friends having fun playing music. We hope it shows.
Look for Arlington Station at various events around southeast Michigan in the near future. Contact: ArlingtonStation@gmail.com for further details.
Baseline Show (first Arlington Station show)
Lisa and Dave joined me for a great night of music and fun at the Baseline Folk Society show tonight. It was really nice to make music with my friends again! We had planned on doing three songs, but were asked to do an encore! Also, Mike Mullen, founder of Baseline, asked me to host the April event! Looking forward to it! Thanks to all our friends who came out to be a part of a very special night. We really appreciate it!
John
Setlist:
- Orphan Girl
- Angel
- It’s the Rest of Your Life (debut performance of this original)
- Leave the Pieces (encore)
Goings On…
Since the show in Northville went so well last week, Lisa, Dave and I have decided to continue working together for awhile. We’ll be getting together once a week or so. We’ve added a few more tunes to freshen up the mix. As of right now, here is our schedule for the next few weeks:
Saturday, December 8 – John will be appearing at the East River show
Saturday, December 15 – Lisa, Dave and John will be appearing at the Northville Art House show.
We’re also talking about putting together and promoting a local show. We’d like to get two other acts to take over a coffee house with us for a few hours. Thinking perhaps after the first of the year or so. We’ll keep you posted.
That’s all for now!
John
