Professor Louie & the Crowmatix: Whispering Pines

Many Band fans are familiar with the name Professor Louie & the Crowmatix, but not all fans are familiar with the group's authentic and original blend of roots, rock, country, and blues. If you haven't heard the music of Professor Louie & the Crowmatix, now is a great time to check it out.

The group's seventh studio album, whose title song is a beautiful rendition of (and touching homage to) The Band classic "Whispering Pines," has just been released on Woodstock Records. The album features 10 songs from the Crowmatix' vast repertoire, including covers of two other Band classics, "The Weight" and "Ain't No More Cane," which was taught to "Professor Louie" by Rick personally.
For those who don't know--and as The Band's fan base continues to grow and as younger generations continue to discover them, some of you don't--"Professor Louie" is producer, singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Hurwitz, who worked with The Band in a number of significant capacities in the second half of the 80s and throughout the 90s. In addition, his wife "Miss Marie" Spinosa sang background vocals for both The Band and for Rick.

"Professor Louie" is a name that Rick inadvertently bestowed on Aaron, whose middle name is Louis and who is known by lots of friends as "Louie"--and the moniker stuck. Aaron began working with The Band--multi-tasking both in the studio and on the road as an engineer, co-produceer, keyboard and accordion player--in the 1980s. He also co-produced and engineered The Band's three albums in the 90s: Jericho, High on the Hog, and Jubilation.

Later in the decade, Aaron began accompanying Rick on the road, performing with him in his solo shows. He also was involved in the production of Rick's last two albums, Live On Breeze Hill and the posthumous release, Times Like These.

These days, Professor Louie & the Crowmatix are busy both in the studio and on the road, performing not only in the Hudson Valley and the Northeastern US, where they have quite a following, but abroad as well.

If you'd like to check out Professor Louie & the Crowmatix live--and help a very noble and significant cause at the same time--head to the Rosendale Theatre in Rosendale, New York, where the group will be performing a benefit concert for the Queens Galley (http://www.queensgalley.org/), a Kingston, New York-based nonprofit organization that provides awareness, education, relief, and prevention of food insecurity in America. The Queens Galley supports, creates, and implements programs dedicated to the affordable nutritional education of children, families, and seniors.

The concert is being presented by WKZE, and tickets are $12.50. Attendees are asked to please bring a non-perishable food item for donation. For tickets or more information, call the Rosendale Theatre box office at 845-658-8989.

For more information on Professor Louie & the Crowmatix, or the new album Whispering Pines, check out http://www.woodstockrecords.com/.

The Band Jewelry Collection (a follow-up)

Yesterday, I wrote about a wonderful and unique collection of jewelry by artist and jewelry designer Jenna Wainwright and, since I've received a number of queries about the jewelry and about what exactly prompted Jenna to create the pieces, I decided to follow up with her.

One of the questions was "Why is there no 'Richard necklace'?" In the link I provided yesterday, only four of the five Band members were shown immortalized in wearable art.

"There is, in fact a 'Richard necklace,'" says Jenna. "I finished it a couple months after the others, so the image didn't make it onto the website." Here is the image of the necklace that Jenna provided:
Like many people who are touched by the music of The Band, Jenna was inspired to create something of her own. "I guess I just started listening and couldn't stop," she says. "I didn't and don't know any of them personally; I just fell in love with the music. Then, reading Levon's autobiography gave the songs a more profound earnestness than I had fully recognized before. There's something so satisfying thinking about this brotherhood overcoming hardship and weakness to produce brilliant work together. Levon's story-telling is truly amazing, inspiring, and entertaining, and I only hope to capture a little of that spirit in my jewelry."

The Band Collection, says Jenna, "in a way has been the most focused and meaningful of the work I've made, as I was so honed in on particular feelings of admiration, melancholy, and the meaning of work. But I also had a sense of relaxation and comfort in letting things evolve on their own; hand-carving the mustaches and beards while listening to my records and thinking about the countryside was a truly enjoyable process."

A couple of readers inquired about the materials used to make the necklaces as well as whether they are, in fact, for sale. "The necklaces are all one-of-a-kind" says Jenna. "All of the chains are handmade in sterling silver; the 'facial hair' is carved in bass wood. Garth is painted with dissolved lps, which gives it that thick black sheen, and the others are shellacked." Though all of our guys are priceless, Richard and Levon have been sold. Rick, Garth, and Robbie are available for $500 each. For more info, email Jenna directly at jenna.wainwright@gmail.com

A Rick Danko Necklace...Really

There's something about The Band, something that goes beyond their talent and charisma, that inspires artists in all media. More than many other more "famous" artists, The Band has served as muse to other musicians, visual artists, crafters, writers, designers, and more.

Of course, The Band has always been hugely influential in the music world, and lots of songs have been written about the group--especially Rick.

In addition, I've seen and received paintings, drawings, etchings, and poems inspired by and/or dedicated to Band members.

But this is the first time I've ever seen a collection of jewelry inspired by--and named for--The Band. Jenna Wainwright is a jewelry designer who co-owns a boutique in New York City. She's designed a collection of necklaces based on...the facial hair of The Band. Here is the Rick Danko necklace:



The collection is called The Band: Upstate Collection. I'm curious as to why there's not a Richard necklace...I'll let you know when I find out. In the meantime, check out the collection and Jenna's other designs here: http://www.jennawainwright.com/main.php

A Short Interview with Rick from August, 1999

This is a short interview that Rick did in August, 1999, with the Middletown, New York paper, The Times Herald Record, just as we were starting promotion for Live On Breeze Hill, which was released the following month.

Aside from the fact that the writer leads in with a thinly vieled copy of Rick's media bio, the interview itself is kind of cool in that the writer caught him "in the moment," so, before Rick settled into "not trying to change the world," he spoke candidly about what he (and many of us) saw as the totally un-Woodstock-like behavior exhibited at Woodstock '99.