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Mike and Ruthy make for ten house concerts...
Five years later, and Music Under the Moss has hosted ten great nights of music. Mike and Ruthy put on a heck of a great show, and they are just another group we were very happy to host.
Susan and I had grown to love Mike and Ruthy's music the past few years as we first learned of them through the Mammals, and more recently, through their duo act releases. We had only seen them at Springfest, but they always put on a fun and entertaining show. I (Bart) am particularly a fan, because while they honor the older bluegrass and folk style, they don't feel confined to that genre and are willing to take some chances.
After our spring house concert, Susan and I were debating some
acts...during Springfest mind you since it was the weekend following our
house concert with Amber and Roy. We got to see Mike and Ruthy at
Springfest, and they were great like always. I just didn't know if
they'd be willing to come down to Florida since they hail from the state
of New York.
As fate would have it on the Monday morning after Springfest, we stopped to have breakfast at the Huddle House in Live Oak before hitting the road. Mike and Ruthy were already there, and we couldn't resist broaching the idea with them. They said they would look into it. A few weeks later I got back in tough with Mike to see if it was still a possibility, and he said it all hinged on them getting a Magfest gig. Thankfully, they did, and we were set.
Mike and Ruthy also gave us a surprise a few weeks before the show
was to happen. They were going to be bringing a bass player and a
drummer. We have never had either, and I had concerns about the
noise to the neighbors. He assured me they would be quiet. A
quiet drummer....hmmm....an oxymoron of sorts?
They show up and quickly get down to business. They ended up stringing a lengthy number of dates together over a few weeks, and they were going on four days straight of a gig each night. They all got set up, and José got the sound perfect very quickly. We all sit down for dinner before the show and visit. Turns out that the bass player José Ayerve and drummer Craig Santiago are very cool people. José drives a mean Wii Kart, and Craig has the good taste to obsess over Tom Waits like yours truly.
Later that evening, the weather was clear but cold and windy
(mid-50's which is cold for Florida). This house concert had an
extraordinary amount of competition too, in that there were at least
four other concerts going on that same evening that would appeal to
those who came to see Mike and Ruthy. We still had over 40 people
show, so all was well in the end.
Mike and Ruthy (and the rest of the gang) put on one heck of a show. They played a lot of material from their two duo albums, but also pulled material from Mike's solo albums, the Mammals material, and even some unrecorded tunes. They have the perfect mix of relaxed entertaining Americana that serves them well in small settings such as ours or one where they will play for thousand like the next weekend at Magfest.
How cool is that? We got a private show for a band that is playing in front of thousands the following weekend!
After the show, Mike and Ruthy had to hit the road. The show
the next day was an early one, and they had a long drive still in front
of them. We all had our hugs and sent them on their way.
There wasn't an after-show jam this time. The weather had gotten
truly cold for this first time this fall, and everyone wanted to get
inside out of the cold.
Thanks to everyone who showed up for Mike and Ruthy. It was a great show, and yet again, I had multiple people come up and say it was their favorite Music Under the Moss show to date. We had multiple people calling the next day to say how much of a good time they had, and we even had someone come over to see if they could visit with them before hitting the road (they were already gone obviously).
Thanks to Mic and Geri for everything that they do. I was slammed with work and school, and Susan was getting around on a bum knee. This show in particular showed how much help they truly are, and we truly appreciate it. Mic took all the pictures that were for this show, and he's a professional photographer that is available for other work. Feel free to contact him at his web site. Thanks also to Elijah, my little brother, who came over and helped set up for the day. Finally, we'd like to thank Jeremy for making the breakfast meal and Beth for offering up the spare beds in case the band stayed the night.
It was another good one folks. We thank you for sharing it with us.
Here are some pictures:
Pre-Show Setup
Mike and Ruthy
Live Music Under the Moss Videos of
Mike and Ruthy
or
Back to the Past Shows page...
Photo Credits: All photos the property of Mic Dottorelli.