You want NEW news, don't you? - June 22, 2008
If so, then visit http://www.rainperry.blogspot.com. That's where I'm posting dispatches from my life as a singer-songwriter/mom.
Rain Perry: News
Rockrgrl Rocks! - November 30, 2005
ROCKRGRL 2005: I'll try to make it quick, because I have to get up at 6:00 and get the kids to school.
SARA HICKMAN rocking the guitar like Jimmy Page and being a wonderful pal - Johnette Napolitano and Julie Christensen on a breathtaking version of "Ghost Riders in the Sky" - girl talk in the hotel room with Sara, Julie, Kari Estrin & Karen Hammack - getting to hang out in Seattle with my cousin Trish Lester and her lovely cohort Joan Enguita - PATTI SMITH (aka God) urging us to take care of the world and our teeth and doing a stunning Chris Farley imitation - many inspiring rockrgrls - and last, but far from least - the amazing Carla DeSantis, tireless advocate for women who rock. Thank you, Carla, for such a wonderful experience.
SARA HICKMAN rocking the guitar like Jimmy Page and being a wonderful pal - Johnette Napolitano and Julie Christensen on a breathtaking version of "Ghost Riders in the Sky" - girl talk in the hotel room with Sara, Julie, Kari Estrin & Karen Hammack - getting to hang out in Seattle with my cousin Trish Lester and her lovely cohort Joan Enguita - PATTI SMITH (aka God) urging us to take care of the world and our teeth and doing a stunning Chris Farley imitation - many inspiring rockrgrls - and last, but far from least - the amazing Carla DeSantis, tireless advocate for women who rock. Thank you, Carla, for such a wonderful experience.
ROCKRGRL 2000 - December 1, 2000
Thoughts from Rockrgrl:
Black clothes, multi-colored hair, and attitude...the first annual Rockrgrl Music Conference in Seattle was quite a scene. I was one of a handful of earnest singer-songwriters in a group of cute punks and young lesbians, tough-looking but wide-eyed. There were useful panel discussions ("Mommy, do we have to go on tour?" "Building a Following: the Team"), and one not-so-useful one where the leader took her role as moderator as a chance to talk about herself for an hour. I gleaned a lot of good information from the weekend, and I recommend the conference. Ultimately the best thing about it was (pardon the cliche) the feeling of solidarity, of being a part of something good and important.
CELEBRITIES: Ann Wilson at the Women of Valor awards dinner telling the assembled rocker-chicks, "If you back down one inch, I'm going to personally come and kick your ass!"...down-to-earth and very likeable Amy Ray talking about her independent label Daemon Records. Someone asked her about using the word "Girls" in the name of her band, as opposed to "women," and she said, "I like the word 'girl.' Emily and I don't have a problem with it. Otherwise, what, the Indigo Womyn, with a 'y'? That looks like 'yeoman.'" ... Jill Sobule demonstrating her charm and way with current events with a song about George W. Bush's DUI ... Ronnie Spector telling the heartbreaking and truly inspiring story of her 15 year lawsuit against Phil Spector for the rights to her own songs. Women were in rock and roll long before Lilith Fair, obviously, but watching her made me realize that when she was starting out, women had to go it alone. What's new and good now is the community that's being built. Her speech brought the house down, and she left with the grinning benediction "Rock on, Rockrgrls!" And then there was Courtney Love, a surprise guest. Her Q&A started out as a high security event (no cameras, no press, no in-and-out privileges, only questions written in advance, blah, blah, blah), but once she got in the room and got comfortable, she abandoned the format and made herself and her experience available to the audience for over two hours. I have to hand it to her. She's totally full of shit in some ways, but she admits that, and she's very smart, very savvy and hilarious. She seemed moved by the hundreds of little rockrchicks there, and was truly encouraging and helpful.
One more celebrity story: I was sitting in the hotel lounge near Stephanie Eulinberg, Kid Rock's drummer, and someone asked me what kind of music I played. I gave my stock answer these days: "thoughtful rock and roll." Stephanie goes, "Oh, is that where you say 'let me turn down, so the audience can hear you better?'"
MUSIC: There were 250 female-fronted bands in Seattle last weekend, and I was able to catch about a dozen of them. Recommendations: I have seen the future of rock and roll and her name is Melissa Ferrick! She puts on the most charismatic live show since Peter Gabriel. I'm not kidding. Someone defined "charisma" as "loving what you do so much that there's no psychic or emotional drag between you and your art," and that describes her. She's goofy and sexy and very cool with a little sneer that appears spontaneously sometimes, and she does groovy rock and roll moves like jumping up on top of the kick drum with total sincerity and joy. Watching her made me want to slip my wedding ring off and go up and ask if she needed any help breaking down her gear. CHECK HER OUT WHEN SHE'S IN YOUR TOWN. Okay, enough fawning ... Cindy Bullens just released an unbelievable album called "Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth" about the life and death of her 11-year old daughter. It sounds devastating to listen to, but it isn't -- it's uplifting and wonderful. Wendie Colter, my new pal (she accompanied me in my showcase), is an amazing pop songwriter and effortlessly beautiful singer. My current favorite songs from her great album Payday are "Peephole Queen" and "Pushing The Rock Up the Hill." For pure kick-ass thrash music, the Vessels of Sin, from Decatur, Georgia, were killer. They're an all-girl band fronted by a cute, very heavy-set little gal who looks so sweet between songs and then goes off like Linda Blair when she's singing. The one guy (on guitar) in the band looks straight out of ZZ Top. I wish I could have seen everyone - that was the most frustrating thing. I didn't even get to go to the Experience Music Project because I didn't have time. One or two hours would have just been a tease ...
One more thing. While I was up there, I was invited by Immunex, makers of Enbrel, the medicine that's helped me so much with rheumatoid arthritis, to sing at a party honoring 5, 10 and 15 year employees. I sang "Yosemite" and "Four Cylinder Love," and they were very sweet and attentive and it was an honor to be there and be living proof that what they're doing is great.
Black clothes, multi-colored hair, and attitude...the first annual Rockrgrl Music Conference in Seattle was quite a scene. I was one of a handful of earnest singer-songwriters in a group of cute punks and young lesbians, tough-looking but wide-eyed. There were useful panel discussions ("Mommy, do we have to go on tour?" "Building a Following: the Team"), and one not-so-useful one where the leader took her role as moderator as a chance to talk about herself for an hour. I gleaned a lot of good information from the weekend, and I recommend the conference. Ultimately the best thing about it was (pardon the cliche) the feeling of solidarity, of being a part of something good and important.
CELEBRITIES: Ann Wilson at the Women of Valor awards dinner telling the assembled rocker-chicks, "If you back down one inch, I'm going to personally come and kick your ass!"...down-to-earth and very likeable Amy Ray talking about her independent label Daemon Records. Someone asked her about using the word "Girls" in the name of her band, as opposed to "women," and she said, "I like the word 'girl.' Emily and I don't have a problem with it. Otherwise, what, the Indigo Womyn, with a 'y'? That looks like 'yeoman.'" ... Jill Sobule demonstrating her charm and way with current events with a song about George W. Bush's DUI ... Ronnie Spector telling the heartbreaking and truly inspiring story of her 15 year lawsuit against Phil Spector for the rights to her own songs. Women were in rock and roll long before Lilith Fair, obviously, but watching her made me realize that when she was starting out, women had to go it alone. What's new and good now is the community that's being built. Her speech brought the house down, and she left with the grinning benediction "Rock on, Rockrgrls!" And then there was Courtney Love, a surprise guest. Her Q&A started out as a high security event (no cameras, no press, no in-and-out privileges, only questions written in advance, blah, blah, blah), but once she got in the room and got comfortable, she abandoned the format and made herself and her experience available to the audience for over two hours. I have to hand it to her. She's totally full of shit in some ways, but she admits that, and she's very smart, very savvy and hilarious. She seemed moved by the hundreds of little rockrchicks there, and was truly encouraging and helpful.
One more celebrity story: I was sitting in the hotel lounge near Stephanie Eulinberg, Kid Rock's drummer, and someone asked me what kind of music I played. I gave my stock answer these days: "thoughtful rock and roll." Stephanie goes, "Oh, is that where you say 'let me turn down, so the audience can hear you better?'"
MUSIC: There were 250 female-fronted bands in Seattle last weekend, and I was able to catch about a dozen of them. Recommendations: I have seen the future of rock and roll and her name is Melissa Ferrick! She puts on the most charismatic live show since Peter Gabriel. I'm not kidding. Someone defined "charisma" as "loving what you do so much that there's no psychic or emotional drag between you and your art," and that describes her. She's goofy and sexy and very cool with a little sneer that appears spontaneously sometimes, and she does groovy rock and roll moves like jumping up on top of the kick drum with total sincerity and joy. Watching her made me want to slip my wedding ring off and go up and ask if she needed any help breaking down her gear. CHECK HER OUT WHEN SHE'S IN YOUR TOWN. Okay, enough fawning ... Cindy Bullens just released an unbelievable album called "Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth" about the life and death of her 11-year old daughter. It sounds devastating to listen to, but it isn't -- it's uplifting and wonderful. Wendie Colter, my new pal (she accompanied me in my showcase), is an amazing pop songwriter and effortlessly beautiful singer. My current favorite songs from her great album Payday are "Peephole Queen" and "Pushing The Rock Up the Hill." For pure kick-ass thrash music, the Vessels of Sin, from Decatur, Georgia, were killer. They're an all-girl band fronted by a cute, very heavy-set little gal who looks so sweet between songs and then goes off like Linda Blair when she's singing. The one guy (on guitar) in the band looks straight out of ZZ Top. I wish I could have seen everyone - that was the most frustrating thing. I didn't even get to go to the Experience Music Project because I didn't have time. One or two hours would have just been a tease ...
One more thing. While I was up there, I was invited by Immunex, makers of Enbrel, the medicine that's helped me so much with rheumatoid arthritis, to sing at a party honoring 5, 10 and 15 year employees. I sang "Yosemite" and "Four Cylinder Love," and they were very sweet and attentive and it was an honor to be there and be living proof that what they're doing is great.
Agility Music Festival 2000 - September 1, 2000
All About Agility
Well, regular life has a way of intruding - getting the kids settled in school, catching up on the household responsibilities that stacked up in the months before the music festival. But I'm finally sitting down to write a little recap of Agility: a Women's Music Festival to benefit the Arthritis Foundation.
Starting at the beginning...I had never put on an event of this size before, so I was especially grateful to work with such a knowledgeable, hard-working and fun staff. The awesome sound crew arrived before 8:00 a.m., and it was a beautiful thing to watch the Ryder truck pull in and all the equipment roll off with military precision. Throughout the morning the booths were set up on the lawn, Libbey Park was decorated and the (killer) sound system hooked up.
Once everything was clicking together, I found myself sitting backstage with nothing to do but try to mellow out and psyche myself up to go out on stage. I even had a chance to run all my songs with my band.
The concert started right at 3:00 p.m. with Mary Z. Wilson and friends singing beautiful bluegrassy harmonies. By then the heat had died down a little under the oak trees and the afternoon was very pleasant. After Mary, we had the chance to hear some of Patricia Cardinali's original songs. A vision in purple, Patricia sang beautifully with her husband Don and friends.
My grandmother, Kae Herron, was really cute backstage. She kept trying to get out of everyone's way, and I told her "Nana, you don't have to sit in the corner. These people are here to support YOU, and you can be wherever you want." Then when she went out onstage, she was a total ham, playing with the confidence and skill of someone who's been doing it for, oh, seventy years! She told me later the sustain pedal wasn't working on the keyboard, and I hadn't noticed that at all. It was really great to do a duet with her. We'd never done that before. And after her set, I walked into the green room and she was sitting there absorbing the gear talk and chatting of Victoria Williams' band. I asked her if she needed anything, and she smiled said "No, I'm just listening."
Alan Thornhill was very thoughtful to give me a sweet introduction (I wasn't sure how I was going to introduce myself), and we came out to do our set. It was so moving to look out into the crowd at everyone's smiling faces that finally I lost it during "Four Cylinder Love" and started to cry. As an explanation: when I started planning this event, I barely knew Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen, so having them onstage with me with this great audience on such a beautiful day with everything coming together so well and Sara Hickman and Victoria Williams waiting backstage was almost too much.
After me came Perla Batalla. It had to be a challenge to follow up "Mestiza," but the songs from her new album "Heaven and Earth" are as good. They do go deeper into the themes of "Mestiza" in a really timeless, beautiful and, yes, funky way. She's just an amazingly skilled and focused performer with an unbelievable band. I was also grateful to her for inviting the audience down front, where they stayed, making the rest of the show more intimate.
We found out just a few weeks before the festival that Victoria Williams was going to be able to join us, and having her there was a blast. Some in the audience knew & loved her and some were being introduced to her for the first time. She won everyone over with her unique instrumentation (a distorted banjo, two drummers, which caused a few heart palpitations amongst the sound crew) and her charm. She and Julie Christensen did a duet on "Water to Drink" that was really groovy and cool. She's a deceptively loose performer - she makes it like her living room onstage, and the audience is invited to sit in, yet she's an amazing songwriter and generous and focused band leader. It was great to have her there.
After Victoria came Julie Christensen. I stood offstage and watched her belt out songs from her new album and was struck by what a true diva she is. Leaning back with the microphone in one hand and the other raised dramatically in the air, or cooing down into the front rows, she's a wonderful combination of honesty and drama. Caught up in the music, and probably also due to the fact that by now the show was mostly over and everything seemed to be going fine, I spent most of Julie's set backstage sobbing at the beauty of it all.
I think it was after Julie's set (although it may have been before -- it's kind of a blur) Don Ferre of the Arthritis Foundation and Courtney Self of Immunex Corporation (a major sponsor) got up and gave speeches. They both seemed happy to be a part of the event and glad the word was going out that arthritis doesn't only affect old people.
The last act was the awesome Sara Hickman. It was so cute to watch her walking around the festival with her husband and babies, and then come out onstage and just rock the place with only a voice and a guitar. From gentle ballads to kick-ass anthems, she captivated everyone, sending the audience home joyous and exhilarated. Thank you, Sara!
Finally, we had everyone onstage together for a finale, singing "Put a Little Love in Your Heart." Julie was passing out lyric sheets to everyone and she had designated which verses we'd all sing. I asked Victoria Williams if she was clear on the words to her verse and she said "well, we did this as a finale every night at the second Lilith Fair..." Okay. I was humbled.
I was, actually, humbled by the whole thing. What a day. What a great, happy, enthusiastic audience. Yeehaw!
Well, regular life has a way of intruding - getting the kids settled in school, catching up on the household responsibilities that stacked up in the months before the music festival. But I'm finally sitting down to write a little recap of Agility: a Women's Music Festival to benefit the Arthritis Foundation.
Starting at the beginning...I had never put on an event of this size before, so I was especially grateful to work with such a knowledgeable, hard-working and fun staff. The awesome sound crew arrived before 8:00 a.m., and it was a beautiful thing to watch the Ryder truck pull in and all the equipment roll off with military precision. Throughout the morning the booths were set up on the lawn, Libbey Park was decorated and the (killer) sound system hooked up.
Once everything was clicking together, I found myself sitting backstage with nothing to do but try to mellow out and psyche myself up to go out on stage. I even had a chance to run all my songs with my band.
The concert started right at 3:00 p.m. with Mary Z. Wilson and friends singing beautiful bluegrassy harmonies. By then the heat had died down a little under the oak trees and the afternoon was very pleasant. After Mary, we had the chance to hear some of Patricia Cardinali's original songs. A vision in purple, Patricia sang beautifully with her husband Don and friends.
My grandmother, Kae Herron, was really cute backstage. She kept trying to get out of everyone's way, and I told her "Nana, you don't have to sit in the corner. These people are here to support YOU, and you can be wherever you want." Then when she went out onstage, she was a total ham, playing with the confidence and skill of someone who's been doing it for, oh, seventy years! She told me later the sustain pedal wasn't working on the keyboard, and I hadn't noticed that at all. It was really great to do a duet with her. We'd never done that before. And after her set, I walked into the green room and she was sitting there absorbing the gear talk and chatting of Victoria Williams' band. I asked her if she needed anything, and she smiled said "No, I'm just listening."
Alan Thornhill was very thoughtful to give me a sweet introduction (I wasn't sure how I was going to introduce myself), and we came out to do our set. It was so moving to look out into the crowd at everyone's smiling faces that finally I lost it during "Four Cylinder Love" and started to cry. As an explanation: when I started planning this event, I barely knew Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen, so having them onstage with me with this great audience on such a beautiful day with everything coming together so well and Sara Hickman and Victoria Williams waiting backstage was almost too much.
After me came Perla Batalla. It had to be a challenge to follow up "Mestiza," but the songs from her new album "Heaven and Earth" are as good. They do go deeper into the themes of "Mestiza" in a really timeless, beautiful and, yes, funky way. She's just an amazingly skilled and focused performer with an unbelievable band. I was also grateful to her for inviting the audience down front, where they stayed, making the rest of the show more intimate.
We found out just a few weeks before the festival that Victoria Williams was going to be able to join us, and having her there was a blast. Some in the audience knew & loved her and some were being introduced to her for the first time. She won everyone over with her unique instrumentation (a distorted banjo, two drummers, which caused a few heart palpitations amongst the sound crew) and her charm. She and Julie Christensen did a duet on "Water to Drink" that was really groovy and cool. She's a deceptively loose performer - she makes it like her living room onstage, and the audience is invited to sit in, yet she's an amazing songwriter and generous and focused band leader. It was great to have her there.
After Victoria came Julie Christensen. I stood offstage and watched her belt out songs from her new album and was struck by what a true diva she is. Leaning back with the microphone in one hand and the other raised dramatically in the air, or cooing down into the front rows, she's a wonderful combination of honesty and drama. Caught up in the music, and probably also due to the fact that by now the show was mostly over and everything seemed to be going fine, I spent most of Julie's set backstage sobbing at the beauty of it all.
I think it was after Julie's set (although it may have been before -- it's kind of a blur) Don Ferre of the Arthritis Foundation and Courtney Self of Immunex Corporation (a major sponsor) got up and gave speeches. They both seemed happy to be a part of the event and glad the word was going out that arthritis doesn't only affect old people.
The last act was the awesome Sara Hickman. It was so cute to watch her walking around the festival with her husband and babies, and then come out onstage and just rock the place with only a voice and a guitar. From gentle ballads to kick-ass anthems, she captivated everyone, sending the audience home joyous and exhilarated. Thank you, Sara!
Finally, we had everyone onstage together for a finale, singing "Put a Little Love in Your Heart." Julie was passing out lyric sheets to everyone and she had designated which verses we'd all sing. I asked Victoria Williams if she was clear on the words to her verse and she said "well, we did this as a finale every night at the second Lilith Fair..." Okay. I was humbled.
I was, actually, humbled by the whole thing. What a day. What a great, happy, enthusiastic audience. Yeehaw!
Telluride 2000 - July 1, 2000
Well, I didn't win the Troubadour contest, and I know it's a cliche to say that winning doesn't matter, but after the initial sour grapes I'm completely sincere when I say that winning became irrelevant.It was an incredible weekend, one I'll be assimilating for a while.
I've gotten so caught up in the business side of my music career this last year that I'd forgotten how important it is to experience great music and get to know fellow musicians. I feel like I'm part of a network now that I didn't realize was there, and look forward to being a part of in the future.
The Telluride Bluegrass Festival is a remarkable, well-thought out, not-oversold and well-organized event, with a lineup of some of the world's most inspirational and talented performers. I've never seen an audience that huge (10,000) so willing to listen to diverse music, so eager to be friendly to each other and in generally such a good mood, despite rain all day Sunday. And Telluride is a wonderful place - beautiful and fun (though expensive).
Highlights:
Performance in Elk Park as part of a songwriter's workshop for the public; Playing on KOTO radio, my first on-air appearance; Bela Fleck appearing onstage many times throughout the weekend, contributing his remarkable talent to the sets of Bruce Hornsby, David Grisman and others; Hearing and getting acquainted with the wonderful songwriters - Garrin Benfield, Zoe Lewis, K.C. Groves, Michael Veitch, Michael McNevin, Diana Jones, Christopher Williams, Kaniali Kalai, Bob Hillman and the winner, Mary Coppin (as well as seeing her perform her set on the main stage Sunday evening); Michelle Shocked's unbelievable Thursday night set, the best, in my opinion, of the festival. I sobbed all the way through "Anchorage" and her breathtaking un-released gospel songs. Thousands of people singing together:
"A burden shared is only half the trouble
I knew you cared - I knew you'd understand
A burden shared is only half the trouble
Joy shared is joy made double..."
Then we thrilled as she and her band all turned around and shook their butts in unison. She convinced the entire audience to do the same, shouting out "who's brave enough to give me a full moon?!?" One guy was brave and dropped his pants - she squealed "thank you for that!"
Surprise appearance by Bonnie Raitt during Jackson Browne's, Susan Tedeshi's & Bela's sets (on the latter, she sang a Bob Marley medley with the Flecktones' Future Man, Susan Tedeshi, Peter Rowan & Jackson Browne.
Watching Natalie Merchant get goofy with the altitude and have to be given oxygen onstage. She shouted out "hey, can I get a little oxygen in the monitors?"
Getting to go to the festival for free!
Thanks for all your support!
I've gotten so caught up in the business side of my music career this last year that I'd forgotten how important it is to experience great music and get to know fellow musicians. I feel like I'm part of a network now that I didn't realize was there, and look forward to being a part of in the future.
The Telluride Bluegrass Festival is a remarkable, well-thought out, not-oversold and well-organized event, with a lineup of some of the world's most inspirational and talented performers. I've never seen an audience that huge (10,000) so willing to listen to diverse music, so eager to be friendly to each other and in generally such a good mood, despite rain all day Sunday. And Telluride is a wonderful place - beautiful and fun (though expensive).
Highlights:
Performance in Elk Park as part of a songwriter's workshop for the public; Playing on KOTO radio, my first on-air appearance; Bela Fleck appearing onstage many times throughout the weekend, contributing his remarkable talent to the sets of Bruce Hornsby, David Grisman and others; Hearing and getting acquainted with the wonderful songwriters - Garrin Benfield, Zoe Lewis, K.C. Groves, Michael Veitch, Michael McNevin, Diana Jones, Christopher Williams, Kaniali Kalai, Bob Hillman and the winner, Mary Coppin (as well as seeing her perform her set on the main stage Sunday evening); Michelle Shocked's unbelievable Thursday night set, the best, in my opinion, of the festival. I sobbed all the way through "Anchorage" and her breathtaking un-released gospel songs. Thousands of people singing together:
"A burden shared is only half the trouble
I knew you cared - I knew you'd understand
A burden shared is only half the trouble
Joy shared is joy made double..."
Then we thrilled as she and her band all turned around and shook their butts in unison. She convinced the entire audience to do the same, shouting out "who's brave enough to give me a full moon?!?" One guy was brave and dropped his pants - she squealed "thank you for that!"
Surprise appearance by Bonnie Raitt during Jackson Browne's, Susan Tedeshi's & Bela's sets (on the latter, she sang a Bob Marley medley with the Flecktones' Future Man, Susan Tedeshi, Peter Rowan & Jackson Browne.
Watching Natalie Merchant get goofy with the altitude and have to be given oxygen onstage. She shouted out "hey, can I get a little oxygen in the monitors?"
Getting to go to the festival for free!
Thanks for all your support!