TO CONTACT ME, EMAIL ADRESS IS tracey6894@hotmail.com
Here are some highlights over the last couple of years for me…
*Winner of the 2007 Nothwest Harmonica Championship.
*2007, One of the featured harp players at the 2007 annual Bill Rhoads Waterfront Blues Festival Harmonica Blowout.
*2008, One of the featured blues artists at the annual Portland Harmonica Summit
*2008, Winner of the annual song writers contest at the Willamette Valley Music Festival.
THIS ARTICLE FROM THE ASHLAND MAIL TRIBUNE............
(Headline)..Michael Tracey is — literally — following his dreams.
(PICTURE)
Michael Tracey is looking for a new sound for his original blues music.
By Laurie Heuston
Mail Tribune
February 15, 2008
Michael Tracey thought that playing blues harmonica was a thing of the past for him, just something that he did when he was younger. He was too busy supporting himself by working at blue collar jobs to think about playing music.
"I use 'professional cotton picker' as a metaphor for the kind of work I did," he says. "I was trying to follow my father's example. He was a hard worker."
Tracey was close to his late parents, and they have proved to be with him in spirit, he says.
"This is a true story. One night my mother came to me in a dream and asked me why I was unhappy. For some reason I blurted out, because I’m not playing music. I would never have said that had I been awake. I’d spent years suppressing my natural inclination to play music again because I just thought I couldn’t do it anymore. I thought I was too old and too much time had passed. My mother told me that she knew singing and performing music was what I was supposed to be doing and that she just wanted to see me happy again. The next night my father came to me in a dream. In this dream there was a large acme stage that needed to be constructed. My dad assured me that he would help me build it. His last words to me before I woke up were, “Mike, lets give that stage a shot." When I woke up I had the strongest feeling that these were indeed spirit visitations and not just my normal nightly dreams. But to be sure I decided to put the dreams to a test.”
So the following night Michael picked up his rusty Hohner Marine Bands and headed to a blues jam at the Overtime Tavern in west Eugene, a venue known for both talented and emerging musicians.
"I waited until it was almost the end of the night before I began my set," Tracey says. "By the time I'd finished the first song I just knew that this is what I was supposed to be doing. It felt so good to just let it all out. I had been holding so much in me for so long that it felt like a river of soul pouring out of me.”
Right after the set, the person running the jam approached Tracey with an offer to play there every Thursday as part of the house band for a weekly stipend. Later the same year, Tracey took first place at the 2007 Northwest Harmonica Championship held at the Secret House Wine and Vinyard in Veneta. He was also one of the featured blues artists at the annual Bill Rhoads harmonica blow off held at the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland. He now helps host two weekly blues jams in Eugene, at the Overtime and at Diablo's.
Tracey and his band will perform at 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 15-16, at Alex's Plaza Restaurant, 35 N. Main St., Ashland. Tracey's plans include taking the next couple of years to devote souly to music full-time, he says. There's also a debut album in the works.
"I have all the music written for it, I'm just working on a sound that is new. It's blues, but it doesn't always follow the traditional style."
MY SCHEDULED PUBLIC PERFORMANCES
Thursday June the 5th, Paul Biandi and Michael
Tracey band will perform at THE COUNTRY SIDE bar and grill. We will start at 8:00pm and play till 12:00am-ish
Friday June 6th, 2008 at Diablo’s Downtown Lounge
959 Pearl Street with the downtown blues and what ever the hell else we like band (including special guests???)
Next to the Greyhound Bus Depot, Eugene, Oregon 97401
Cost : NO COVER!!P>
Saturday June 7th, I travel to Ashland to be backed up by the house band there. By popular request I'm bringing up guitar player Stan Welsh to back me up. I love playing there as much as anyplace I've ever performed.
June 14th, Private party with Skip Jones and whomever he chooses to accompany us.
June 21st, Private wedding in Mapleton with Steve Arriola, Rick Markstrom and Mike Hatcher
Saturday June 28th I will be performing with the Traceys at the Saturday Market at 12pm. Is that high noon or low noon? Hmmm, I don't know.
Sunday June 29th at 5pm till 6pm My band, The Michael Tracey Band will be performing on the big stage outside at Hayward Field track as part of the entertainment for the Olympic Trials. I will have special guest Paul Biondi playing sax with me. This may be the biggest gig of my entire life!!
Saturday June 28th, The Michael Tracey blues band will play at I believe it was 8:30 at Cosmic Pizza as part of the Olympic Trials celebration
Friday July 4th, 2008 at Diablo’s Downtown Lounge
959 Pearl Street with the downtown blues and what ever the hell else we like band (including special guests???)
Next to the Greyhound Bus Depot, Eugene, Oregon 97401
Cost : NO COVER!!
Saturday August the 30th the Michael Tracey band will be performing at the Saturday Market and then that night I will be performing with the same band at Macs at the Vets Club. A brilliant bit of booking if I do say so myself
Every Wednesday at Diablos blues jam
Diablos & The Downtown Lounge. 959 Pearl Street 541-343-2346
I'm in the house band, music starts at 7:PM
Every Thursday at Overtime Tavern blues jam
770 S Bertelsen Rd Eugene OR 97402 (541) 342-5028
I'm in the house band, music starts at 8:30:PM
