The latest:
11/08/09 - I'm so glad to see the 23 Club in Brisbane is BACK, and hosting some roots shows! Today there was a Sunday afternoon western swing barbecue bash, so I headed over for my first show at the 23 in a year and a half. I was worried that the band would be playing to an empty house, but in fact the place was pretty well full. And the band was my very favorite local band, The Cottonpickers, now seven-men strong. Though their set concentrated on western swing over the honkytonk standards on their CD, they sounded fantastic. The floor was packed with dancers and the energy was great. Most of the vocals were handled by the very capable Dayna Wills, but as good as she was, I was wishing for more than just a few vocals by Laura Benitez, whose powerful delivery could put Rose Maddox to shame.
It was a terrific return for the Cottonpickers, and for the 23. I recognized a lot of familiar faces on people I don't really know (but would like to), and I'm looking forward to the next of these western swing shows. I think it's set for the first Sunday in December. You should be there.
