dann russo: Blog

so I had this idea. I think it's a really cool idea and may have a future.

Every Thursday I want to play a short(er) show that has a unifying theme.

Problem: I need to find a theme.

Conveniently, yesterday was Edgar Allan Poe's birthday (a tidbit of knowledge I got not from google or wikipedia, but from the fantastic and talented brain of the fantastic and talented www.erindionne.com ).

Problem 2: I need to find songs about Mr. Poe.

I did a little research, found that Mr. Poe was born in Boston, lived in a bunch of places around the East Coast, ending up dying in Baltimore, MD.

"Self," (cause that's what I call myself) "Baltimore!" I said to myself. "Raining in Baltimore! Counting Crows! Hey - Crows are like Ravens, like the poem The Raven! And I can even do a Black Crowes song or two - I LOVE them. And Tori Amos was born in Baltimore too! And so was Adam Duritz? I TOTALLY need to do a bunch of Counting Crows songs..." And on and on it went (of course, when I talk to myself there is a lot less capitalization and a lot more exclamation).

So then I played. And people watching/listening thought the Counting Crows songs were my originals, which ruled. And I played "Remedy" by the Black Crowes which did everything BUT rule. I think I salvaged it with the rest of the show. And I was able to pull together a pretty decent song about the time Mr. Poe went missing towards the end of his life, entitled "Six Days."

here's the link so you can watch it (again):

http://www.livestream.com/dannrusso/video?clipId=pla_26578de2-c52b-4a9e-95d5-bd6b1c9c3ad5

and the set list:

Murder Of One (Counting Crows); Raining in Baltimore (CC); Cornflake Girl (Tori Amos); Remedy (Black Crowes); Six Days (original); She Talks To Angels (BC); Year (original); Mr. Jones (CC)

I LOVED playing the first two songs. I'm totally going to play them again. And "Year" is more of a Hemingway song than a Poe song, but it snuck in there somehow.

So, I'm looking for a theme for next week and hoping it will be equally as cool. Got an idea? let me know.