****SPECIAL JAZZ FEST PRE-PARTY****
Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Tribute to the music of Weather Report, Return to Forever and Herbie Hancock's Headhunters as played by Donny Frauenhofer Trio!

It's gonna be a full night of electric jazz fusion music! Two sets featuring music from the kings of fusion: #HerbieHancock's #Headhunters, #ChickCorea's #ReturntoForeber, and #WeatherReport!

The Donny Frauenhofer Trio is a musical chameleon that focuses on modern jazz, funk, and fusion taking inspiration from the thick history of American music while looking forward.

Donny Frauenhofer - keyboards/compositions/arrangements
James Benders - electric bass
Joe Goretti- drum set

Donny Frauenhofer is a virtuosic multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, singer-songwriter, composer, arranger, and educator from Buffalo, NY that has been making big waves both regionally as well as nationally in several genres since the start of his professional career. Dipping his toes into multiple scenes, Frauenhofer has become a recognizable name in the jam scene circuit as keyboardist/vocalist with nationally touring act Intrepid Travelers (dubbed “Improvisation Kings” by The Buffalo News Gusto) and their performances at festivals such as Summer Camp Music Festival, Night Lights Music Festival, Some Kind of Jam, Woodhenge Sustainability Festival, among others. Largely known as Buffalo’s best kept secret, the secret may be starting to spread with nominations for “Best Jazz Pianist” in JazzBuffalo’s Reader’s Poll 3 years running, and an award for “Best Jazz Fusion Act” with THE TRUTH, a group he helps compose and arrange for. Constantly rejecting and reinventing narrow labels to expand his craft, Frauenhofer truly best represents an incoming generation of musicians that embrace and access an infinite amount of influences

James Benders studied double bass with Paul Zapalowski of the BPO and Henry Preyerbrune of the TCO, and got his jazz start with Rodney Appleby and Phil Aguglia. He's played with the likes of Greg Banaszak, Mingus Band member Lauren Sevian, and Grammy winning artist and composer Gordon Goodwin, and premiered a musical at Playhouse Square of Cleveland while studying double bass performance at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of music. In Buffalo he's a regular member of the Truth, Kristen Smigielski Combo, DF3, Nickel City Jazz, and was with Gruvology on their European tour.

Joe Goretti also joins DF3 on drums, whose impressive resume includes performing and touring around the world with Moby, Ne-Yo, Robyn, AJR, Ingrid Michaelson, Sam Moore, and the Temptations; and has also performed on hit television programs such as Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with Dave Letterman, The Today Show, LIVE with Kelly & Michael, VH1 Big Morning Buzz, PBS Front Row Center, MTV Online Awards, and the iTunes Festival. Together, the three musicians, each considered top of their class in WNY, combine to form a sound that is dynamic, aggressive, confident, and above all else - grooves hard."

https://www.facebook.com/events/373615916696717

Cover: $10

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

The Talbott Brothers

Blood is thicker than water and there’s nothing like family creating music together to prove it. With contrasting blood-harmonies and left-handed/right-handed guitar playing, singer-songwriter duo The Talbott Brothers combine rock, blues and pop with honest storytelling.

Nick and Tyler were born and raised in Imperial, a small town in Southwestern Nebraska, just a stone’s throw from the Colorado border. They began writing and performing together before relocating to their mother’s birthplace of Portland, Oregon. Tyler, the youngest (lead vocals, baritone guitar, harmonica) and Nick, the oldest (backing vocals, lead guitar) discovered their love of music after digging their dad’s old dreadnaught guitar out of the basement and teaching themselves to play along to Johnny Cash, Bob Seger and the Beatles on vinyl.

Following the release of 2017’s GRAY, they found themselves in front of sold out crowds in the US and sharing the stage with ZZ Ward, Johnnyswim and AJR. Ear to the Ground Music dubbed the record as one of the ‘Top 5 Albums of the Year’ stating it as, “equal parts optimistic and captivating, inspiring and hopeful.” Through rigorous touring and over half a million streams on Spotify, they continue to build a strong and loyal fanbase wherever they go.

https://www.thetalbottbrothers.com

Tickets: $12 advance, $15 day of show, on sale now at Abilene Bar and Lounge, Bop Shop Records, Record Archive and online at https://abilene.showare.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=254

Special thanks to our friends at DSP Shows

Doors 3:00pm • Music 6:00pm

Happy Hour with great drink specials ($1 Off Well Drinks and $1 Off Craft Draft Pints from 3pm till 7pm), FREE HOT DOGS ON THE PATIO!!! and the return to Abilene of  THE ANGLE!

The Angle is a 5-piece band performing homegrown original music…songs that were born in a barn in Upstate, New York…an acoustic/electric mix that leaves you wanting to hear more.

Check out the original rock sounds of Rick Palumbo, Scott Schipper, Scott Stevenson, Tom McTamity and Chris Zolellick.

www.facebook.com/The-Angle-1439706646286180

Doors 3:00pm • Music 9:30pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night One!

Don’t miss Buffalo’s 8-piece New Orleans brass band - The “Rust Belt Brass Sounds” of

THE BUFFALO BRASS MACHINE

NOLA second line, bop and horn influenced r&b

www.facebook.com/thebuffalobrassmachine

No Cover Charge!

Doors 7:00pm • Music 9:00pm

The Surfrajettes
Toronto's premier psychedelic instro surf band!!!
https://www.facebook.com/thesurfrajettes

With Special Guests: Televisionaries

Sponsored by Rohrbach Brewing Company

Tickets: $10 advance, $15 day of show...and on sale beginning Friday, March 22.. at Abilene, Record Archive and Bop Shop Records and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

Doors 5pm, Music 6:30pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Three!

Finishing off a great opening weekend of Jazz Fest, Abilene presents a line-up of some of Rochester's finest roots groups, including:

Abilene favorite, THE CROSSROADS QUINTET, playing their driving brand of traditional Irish music and song;

Rebel Irish folk group, GAVIN BARRY'S REBEL BANJO CIRCUS (two of the three rings, at least);

After some fresh woodshedding, local Americana band, YESTERDAY'S NEWS makes its Abilene debut;

And lots of special guests will be making appearances all evening.

Weather permitting, we'll have music indoors and out!

https://www.facebook.com/johnryanceol

https://www.facebook.com/GavinandPyntch/

https://www.facebook.com/events/348135579237560/

No Cover Charge

Doors 4:00pm • Music 9:00pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Four!

Hot Rockabilly with...
THE LUSTRE KINGS!

www.lustrekings.com

No Cover Charge!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 9:00pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Five!

Live Rhythm & Blues with..
Luca Foresta and the ElectroKings

With a style unlike any other, Luca Foresta and the ElectroKings have broken the mold with their energy and emotional intensity to captivate audiences in clubs across Western New York. The group focuses on creating their original songs based on the danceable roots of American music such as blues, swing, and good old rock and roll. Intermingled with their original tunes, the band covers a wide variety of musical styles. They include familiar tunes from the 1950's such as those of Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Big Walter Horton, Little Walter, Sonny Boy Williamson and Elmore James, to the current West Coast sounds of William Clarke, James Harman, Charlie Musselwhite, Rod Piazza and Little Charlie and the Nightcats

www.facebook.com/pg/Luca-Foresta-and-the-ElectroKings-210486412378513

No Cover Charge!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 9:00pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Six!

RUCKUS JUICE JUG STOMPERS!

Hailed as “America’s happiest music,” jug band music has its roots in the country blues, old-time folk, and early jazz traditions of American music. The Ruckus Juice Jug Stompers have been bringing their old-time, good-time jug band music to audiences in western New York since 2008. The band’s captivating, high-energy performances transport audiences back in time as Ruckus Juice blends musicianship, creativity and tradition as Ruckus Juice keeps the audience dancing, stomping, singing and kazooing along a “bottomless barrel of musical ear candy” in the words of one eloquent fan.
The Ruckus Juice Jug Stompers are led by a three-time winner of Rochester’s Best Busker competition, and every performer in the band exudes a love of music. Juxtaposing homespun instruments (jug, washboard, and kazoos) with traditional string band instruments (banjo, guitar, doghouse bass, fiddle and the less-traditional banjolin), this is a band that knows how to entertain. Audience members have described the Ruckus Juice Jug Stompers as “excellent musicianship combined with entertaining showpersonship,” “upbeat music with catchy lyrics that make people of all ages want to sing along,” “high energy with a feel-good vibe,” and “lots good-natured fun.” It’s not unusual for the unusual to happen at Ruckus Juice’s loose and free-spirited performances—you never know when they’ll bust out a wacky instrument or special guest musicians will hop up and raise a ruckus with them.

https://www.facebook.com/jugstompers/

No Cover Charge!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 9:30pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Seven!

Rockhouse Riot is a raucous Roots Rock / Rockabilly band from Rochester, N.Y. They combine the classic stylings of Old Time Rock-N-Roll with original flare and a modern edge. Their music will take you back, and propel you forward. You'll be on you feet and dancing the blues away.

https://www.facebook.com/RockhouseRiot

No Cover Charge!

Doors 3:00pm • Music 9:30pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Eight!

The best in Roots/Americana/Country-Rock/Bluegrass with...

GRAND CANYON RESCUE EPISODE

https://www.facebook.com/Grand-Canyon-Rescue-Episode-57787511996/

No Cover Charge!

Doors 5:00pm • Music 5:30pm

Special Jazz Fest Early Show!
Saturday, June 29...doors 5pm, music 5:30pm
Presented by Rohrbach Brewing Company
”ERIN & ROSS”
Ross Falzone and Erin Futterer met last summer and have been busy writing and making music since. Their unique, somewhat nostalgic sound reflects their diverse musical backgrounds and experiences, from the conservatory to the street, and Through their original music and reimagined versions of standards the duo seeks to include the audience in the magic and the mystery of the musical experience.
"...It was magic. It was Tin Pan Alley ensconced in velvet. It was a trip to the moon on gossamer wings...
I was enchanted, entranced, entertained."
Frank de Blase, The F Word, CITY Newspaper
http://futtererfalzone.com/about_the_band/
No Cover Charge

Doors 5:00pm • Music 9:30pm

Rohrbach Brewing Company presents Abilene Late Night Sessions….Night Nine!

The Final Party!!!!

A Full Night of the Dead…

DELILAH JONES!

Featuring the awesome 5 piece Grateful Dead tribute band featuring 5 veteran musicians with diverse backgrounds- together for the love of the music….featuring Mike Bowers on drums, Steve Kralles on guitar and vocals, Jack Moore on guitar, pedal steel and vocals, Chris Ott on keyboards and vocals, and Joe Worden on bass and vocals.

https://www.facebook.com/DelilahJonesBand

No Cover Charge!

Doors 4pm, Music 8pm

Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones

Don't Miss This Show!!!

Hannah and her band killed at the Rochester International Jazz Festival...and are gonna be awesome in the intimate setting that is Abilene Bar and Lounge.

Fronted by 21 year old triple threat vocalist, songwriter and guitar player, Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones boasts a resume that can be hard to match for most multi-decade musicians. With over 2,500 shows under their belt, three completed albums and festival appearances at Peach Music Festival, Firefly Music Festival and Kaaboo Del Mar, Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones are on their way to becoming Rock & Roll’s next marquee act.

Formed in 2006, by a then eight year old Wicklund, the band has come along way from playing Janis Joplin and Neil Young covers. Between then and now, Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones have been billed alongside legacy acts such as Jefferson Starship, Kansas and The Marshall Tucker Band. Fast forward to now, one year after the 2018 release of their 10 track self titled album, Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones has amassed over 2.5mm streams on their most recent project and have been billed alongside current and legendary chart topping mainstays such as X Ambassadors, Cage the Elephant, Tom Petty, Alanis Morissette and Muse.

Although Hannah’s roaring guitar riffs on her custom Tom Anderson guitar and orange amp set the tone for The Steppin Stones performances, it’s her vocal range and well-beyond-her-years songwriting that have led to the success of their latest release, helping to propel them to a regular mainstay festival act. Hannah’s musical vision stays close to her classic rock roots, but in no way is a classic rock tribute. Their music is a refreshing focus on raw and organic emotions in a time of digitally driven recordings and performances.

2019 is poised to be a momentous year for the blossoming power trio on the road and in the studio. Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones are supporting the Stone Temple Pilots, joining Peter Frampton and Joe Bonamassa on a Mediterranean cruise and bringing the heat at Shaky Knees Festival in Atlanta, GA to kick off their summer headline tour across the United States. Throughout the year, Hannah will be working on intimate, authentic and stripped down tracks about embracing and learning from the darker sides of life in addition to a new full band record. Hannah Wicklund & The Steppin Stones will leave their fans feeling inspired and connected in a way they haven’t felt in a long time.

https://www.hannahwicklund.com

Tickets: $12 advance, $15 day of show, and a limited special of two tickets for $20 (available at the bar only) and on sale now at Abilene and online at www.abilenebarandlounge.com

Doors 3:00pm • Music 5:30pm

Happy Hour with great drink specials..$1 off well drinks and $1 off craft draft pints from 3pm till 7pm, free munchies and live music featuring…

Benny Bleu Band!
“Benny Bleu is a fresh voice that speaks to the roots of country, old time, and authentic American music.” – John Bernunzio

Playing with The Brothers Blue, The Crawdiddies, and as the banjo player for the well respected Mount Pleasant String Band, Benny has shown that his playing is versatile and of the highest caliber. He now emerges with his new solo project, Warm Prickly. The album is half old-time tunes and country favorites and half original songs which focus on compassion towards those facing homelessness, addiction, and loneliness. Benny blends old-timey fiddle and banjo sounds with elements of country and Cajun music forging an earthy yet atmospheric palette, always focused on the feel.

Doors 7pm, Music 9pm

Cottage Street with Chris Stephens and The Sand Shapes


Cottage Street is a four-piece alternative band from Rochester. With a collection of rock and folk instruments, their range is anywhere from rocking out to crying their eyes out. They often feature guitar, bass, cello, and some funk grooves on a minimal kit. Mostly performing original music, the lyrical content dives into the meaning of relationships and honest expression about life.

They have played at the Rochester Fringe Fest, local clubs, coffee houses, weddings, and house shows. Stream or download their music for free at CottageStreetBand.com.
https://www.facebook.com/cottagestreetband/

Chris Stephens
Chris is an acoustic/pop singer-songwriter from Canandaigua, NY. He has released five studio albums and has received four Canadian GMA awards.

www.chrisstephens.ca 

The Sand Shapes are...
Crystal Poirier Jackel: Vocals, Keys, Melodica
Joe Burns: Vocals, Guitar
Mike Best: Bass, Vocals
John Kumetat: Drums
https://www.facebook.com/thesandshapes/

Cover: $5

Doors 4:00pm • Music 5:00pm

Don’t miss Eilen Jewell in the intimate setting that is Abilene Bar and Lounge

EILEN JEWELL

Gypsy
(Signature Sounds)

American Songwriter describes Eilen Jewell as, “one of America’s most intriguing, creative and idiosyncratic voices.” The Boise, Idaho songwriter is one of a kind.

That singular voice springs forth from a woman of more than one mind, and she taps into many of them on Gypsy. By turns personal and political, pissed off and blissed out, Jewell’s first album of original material since 2015 expands brief moments of joy into lifetimes, and distills epic sentiments and persistent doubts into succinct songs.

Yet rather than pulling artist and listener this way and that, the tensions within and between these twelve tracks propel her eighth studio album forward as a remarkably cohesive full-length.

The disc kicks off with "Crawl," a rollicking country rocker that revels in indecision, pitting the terrifying urgency of now against nostalgic longing: ‘I want to crawl right out of my skin, Go back in time, cake walk in red fringe I want solitude, don’t want to be alone, Want to put down roots, want to be a rolling stone.’

"I've been writing bits of that one for close to eight years now," says Jewell. "I've felt that polarity in my life a lot, ever since I can remember, and I wanted to capture that discomfort and angst. Putting it into words and music felt cathartic. Now, whenever I feel that tug-of-war, I can sing my song about it."

"Witness" sits at another end of the spectrum, a celebratory sunset burnished with honesty and understated brass, written quickly in a Central Idaho cabin. "I was still a relatively new mother, and experiencing this frequent opening of my heart, realizing that it had been clenched like a fist for so long. Little ones have this way of disarming us, and so do little moments that startle you, like a beautiful sunset or a bird song …but that openness is always there. You don't have to seek it out, you just have to choose to open yourself up to it."

Agitated by the state of the world, Eilen gave herself permission to tip-toe into protest music on Gypsy, too. "79 Cents (The Meow Song)" skewers sexism and discrimination with pointed humor, while "Beat The Drum" lifts up a rallying cry to fellow travelers struggling to maintain hope in the face of adversity. Startled by backlash from both sides when she casually spoke some common sense about the Chief Executive in a recent interview, she decided to speak out rather than shut up. "I don't see politics as separate from the rest of life. They're intertwined. This is personal, especially in the past few years."

Further testing her limits, Jewell played electric guitar on Gypsy, the first time she's recorded on the instrument. "That posed its own set of challenges," she admits.

"Playing it on stage, where there's more room to have things sound not exactly the way you want them, is one thing, but in the studio I'd think 'Is this really the way I want to portray this song?'" Not only did certain sounds elude her, so did the words to express precisely what she was seeking. "I lacked the vocabulary, but it's great to feel humbled in that way. You realize that the world of music is so vast that even one aspect can represent a lifetime of learning, and that's what makes it so cool."

Longtime fans who love Eilen Jewell in classic country mode will delight in "These Blues" and "You Cared Enough To Lie." She describes the latter, the sole cover on Gypsy, as "one of many songs I wish I'd written." Even so, her foray into the music of Idaho legend Pinto Bennett felt as intensely personal as any original.

"Pinto was playing every Saturday at a local dive bar that I'd always been too afraid to go into, one of those real beauties with no windows, the kind of place that makes you think, 'If I go in there, the needle will scratch across the record and everyone will stare.'" Instead, prompted by a friend who was playing drums in Bennett's band, Jewell and her husband, Jason Beek, found themselves returning week after week to learn more from the hard-living Nashville veteran.

"The first time I heard Pinto play 'You Cared Enough to Lie,' I looked at the steel player, and he looked at me, and he tapped his head with a finger, then pointed at me and mouthed 'You have to cover that,'" she remembers. "Which is so funny, because I'd just thought the same thing." (The affinity proved to be mutual: Jason produced Bennett's latest album, The Last Saturday Night, with Eilen providing guest vocals.)

Long hailed for her ability to interpolate different genres into her own sound, Jewell manages to make the distinct songs of Gypsy play well together, without compromising their individuality. By the same token, she's rarely seemed more willing to let different facets of her personality and talent shine through.

"I always try to be honest when I make an album. 'Is this really what I want to say? Is that how I want to say it?'" With time and experience, trust in her own ideas and abilities continues to escalate. "Writing still doesn't feel like an easy process, but after thirteen years, it's a bit more second nature." Gradually, she's accepting that all her feelings are valid, even if they sometimes seem at odds.

"I often resent that feeling of being pulled in different directions, but without that pull, life is like a guitar string that's not taut," she concludes. "A loose string makes a terrible sound."

http://www.eilenjewell.com/

Tickets:: There will not be any general ticket sales for this show.
This is an exclusive show for those who have donated to Project 153. Here’s a link to see more details and to donate - http://centerforyouth.net/project-153/

and here’s a bit more about Project 153..

”About a year ago, I visited the the Crisis Nursery on Genesee Park Boulevard.

Run by the The Center for Youth, the Crisis Nursery offers free, temporary child care for parents who have no other safe place to leave their babies or young children during a crisis. Open 24/7, the nursery has been a refuge for little kids whose parents are dealing with unexpected emergencies, mental health problems, domestic violence, homelessness and other issues. Every year, more that 1,000 kids are welcomed here.

I held a young baby in my arms, a baby whose mother truly was in crisis….and I was profoundly moved….and knew then that this was place worth telling people about…and fighting for.

The Crisis Nursery and Owen’s House, a second location in the Beechwood neighborhood, keeps these kids safe, healthy, happy and removed from chaos and trauma. They are clearly loved by the staff and volunteers, who also help parents find permanent solutions to their crises.

It is such a warm and compassionate place that I left feeling the desire to support is good work. I decided to do that through music, with the help of Abilene Bar and Lounge's loyal customers—definitely a warm and compassionate bunch. So, here’s how this ongoing fundraiser is going to work:

1) Join! Become a member of “Project 153.” There will be three annual membership levels…and minus the small PayPal processing fee, your entire, tax-deductible contribution will directly support the Crisis Nurseries.

2) Reap the benefits of Project 153 membership. Twice a year Abilene will be hosting intimate shows featuring national acts . All levels of membership will include free and exclusive access to these events. There’ll also be the opportunity to meet and greet the musicians, receive commemorative Abilene merchandise and more.

Simple, right?! But it will make a big difference for so, so many young people in our town.”

Thanks a ton,

Danny Deutsch

Here’s a link to see more details and to donate.. http://centerforyouth.net/project-153/

Doors 6pm, Music 8pm

****SPECIAL SHOW****
Carolyn Wonderland
A musical force equipped with the soulful vocals of Janis and the guitar slinging skills of Stevie Ray, Carolyn Wonderland reaches into the depths of the Texas blues tradition with the wit of a poet. She hits the stage with unmatched presence, a true legend in her time.

She’d grown up the child of a singer in a band and began playing her mother’s vintage Martin guitar when other girls were dressing dolls. She’d gone from being the teenage toast of her hometown Houston to sleeping in her van in Austin amid heaps of critical acclaim for fine recordings.

Along with the guitar and the multitude of other instruments she learned to play – trumpet, accordion, piano, mandolin, lap steel – Wonderland’s ability to whistle remains most unusual. Whistling is a uniquely vocal art seldom invoked in modern music, yet it’s among the most spectacular talents the human voice possesses.

That vocal proficiency was well-established in the singer’s midteens, landing her gigs at Fitzgerald’s by age 15. She absorbed Houston influences like Little Screamin’ Kenny, Albert Collins, Lavelle White, Jerry Lightfoot, Joe “Guitar” Hughes, Little Joe Washington, “borrowed” a car to sneak out and jam, ended up swapping songs with Townes Van Zandt at Houston’s Local’s on White Oak, got involved in the underground theater scene becoming the first “Photochick” in Jason Nodler’s “In the Under Thunderloo” and soaked up touring bands like the Paladins, Los Lobos, and the Mad Hatter of Texas music, Doug Sahm. Her music played in television series such as “Time of Your Life” and NBC’s “Homicide.” The Lone Star State was as credible a proving ground for blues in the 1980s and 90s as existed, especially in Austin with Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Angela Strehli, Omar & the Howlers, and Lou Ann Barton all in their prime. By the following decade, Austin’s blues luster thinned, but Houston, always a bastion of soul and R&B, boasted the Impferial Monkeys with the effervescent Carolyn Wonderland as ruler of the jungle.

In the early 1990s Wonderland & the Imperial Monkeys were invited to the Guadalupe Street Antone’s in Austin. There, they were treated like royalty with the singer as the queen of hearts in the club’s post-Stevie Ray Vaughan stable, which included Toni Price, Johnny and Jay Moeller, Sue Foley, Mike and Corey Keller, and the Ugly Americans. It was a good bar for the Monkeys to hang, and Austin felt so comfortable that when the band called it quits a few years later, after a run in with black ice and a semi that wound young Miss Wonderland in the hospital, she set her sights on Austin at the start of the millennium. Besides, Doug Sahm had told Carolyn while they were signing autographs together at the High Sierra Music Festival she ought to move to Austin, as it was the land of free guitar lessons. She was there in months.

Living in Austin renewed Carolyn Wonderland’s focus on her multiple talents, underlining luxurious vocals with fine guitar work, trumpet, and piano, as well as that remarkable ability to whistle on key. Despite spending two years homeless (or as she puts it, “van-full,”) Austin has been fertile ground for Carolyn. A series of each-better-than-the-next discs began with Alcohol & Salvation in 2001 (“songs about booze and God; records are a time capsule of what happened that year”) 2003’s “Bloodless Revolution”, The Bismeaux Releases: 2008’s “Miss Understood,” 2011’s “Peace Meal” (recorded at Bismeaux and at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock,) 2015’s “Live Texas Trio”; and here we are with 2017’s “Moon Goes Missing.”

Carolyn also got to stretch out with other bands and notably appears in Jerry Lightfoot’s Band of Wonder’s 2002 release, “Texistentialism” featuring Jerry Lightfoot, Vince Welnick (Greatful Dead, The Tubes, Todd Rundgren,) Carolyn, Barry “Frosty” Smith (Lee Michaels, Sly & the Family Stone, Rare Earth, Soulhat) and Larry Fulcher (Taj Mahal, Phantom Blues Band). She has released many songs for charity, 2016’s “Room at the Inn” (iTunes) benefits Doctors Without Borders, 2013’s “Money in the Game” (featuring Marcia Ball and Shelley King) benefits Planned Parenthood, “the Farmer Song” from “Miss Understood” benefits Farm AID, “Annie’s Scarlet Letter” from “Bloodless Revolution” benefits NORML, 1997 Justice Records released Carolyn’s version of Little Screamin’ Kenny’s holiday lament, “Blue Lights” (featuring Ian McLagan) benefitting MD Anderson Children’s Art Project.

Carolyn’s first appearance on vinyl? She’s with James Williamson (Stooges) on the April 2014 Record Store Day single, “Open Up & Bleed” AND on the full LP inspired by that fun session, “Re-Licked” featuring Raw Power Era songs with cool and risky guests.

Her circle of musician friends and admirers broadened to include not only Ray [Benson, who produced Miss Understood] but also the late Eddy Shaver, Shelley King, and yes, Bob Dylan, who likened her composition “Bloodless Revolution” to “a mystery movie theme.” She appeared on the same taping with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings when she made her debut on PBS’ “Austin City Limits” (Season 35.) and had the thrill of her life when Bonnie Raitt joined her onstage for “The Road to Austin” concert film featuring Stephen Bruton and all his friends, got to play with James Cotton, Pinetop Perkins, and so many others at Antone’s, she and Erin Jaimes put together a benefit for Uncle John Turner and Johnny Winter insisted on bringing his band by to play, Carolyn’s wedding to A. Whitney Brown was officiated by Mike Nesmith (Monkees,) who serendipitously introduced them on set at VideoRanch in 2010. (there is video of the two of them on stage together that day!) She began co-writing with locals Sarah Brown, Shelley King, Marcia Ball, Ruthie Foster, Cindy Cashdollar, and Guy Forsyth; sat in with Los Lobos, Levon Helm, Vintage Trouble, Robert Earl Keen, and Ray Wylie Hubbard; and toured relentlessly for the past two decades, sometimes with luminaries like Dave Alvin, Buddy Guy and Johnny Winter, so far spreading her music in US, Europe, South America and Japan. She also claims membership in the all-girl Sis Deville, the gospel-infused Imperial Crown Golden Harmonizers, the Texas Guitar Women, and the Woodstock Lonestars.

Carolyn recently joined John Mayall’s Band as his guitarist and is balancing life on the road with writing time at home and on the road. She’s been touring for over 25 years and clearly ain’t done yet. Come see why at a show! (seriously, she’s perpetually on tour.)

http://carolynwonderland.com/

Tickets: $25 advance, $30 day of show
On sale beginning Friday, May 10 at Abilene, Bop Shop Records, Record Archiveand online at www.abilenebarandlounge.com

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Doug Deming & The Jewel Tones

MOST PEOPLE, UPON HEARING MUSIC BY DOUG DEMING AND THE JEWEL TONES, RECOGNIZE THEM AS A BAND THAT RETURNS TO THE ROOTS OF BLUES AS OPPOSED TO A CONTINUATION OF MODERN ADAPTATIONS OF THE STYLE… COMPLETELY RESTORED MY FAITH IN THE GENRE” -MUZIK REVIEWS



- Grant Britt, Blues Music Magazine

Eastside Detroit native Doug Deming, now hailing from Florida’s Gulf Coast, has garnered widespread attention for his deft guitar work and memorable songwriting. With a nod to the likes of T-Bone Walker and Charlie Christian, as well as Luther Tucker and Robert Jr. Lockwood, Doug leaves his own mark whether swingin’ on the big jazz box, or playing straight up blues on the solid body Fender guitar. Since playing the local Detroit scene beginning in the early 90’s, Doug has spent much of the following years touring and recording with top blues artists, including Fabulous Thunderbirds frontman Kim Wilson, legendary Louisiana swamp bluesman Lazy Lester, Texas' Gary Primich, Chicago greats Johnny “Yard Dog” Jones and A.C. Reed, as well as Detroit’s own Queen of the Blues, Alberta Adams. Leading his band The Jewel Tones, Doug continues to bring noteworthy traditional and original roots music to his audiences.

Doug’s third recording, What’s it Gonna Take, exhibits the outstanding guitar work and remarkable singing and songwriting that have become Doug’s calling card. This critically acclaimed Vizztone debut spent several months on the Living Blues Charts Top Ten, and earned Doug the 2013 Blues Blast Music Awards Sean Costello Rising Star Award.

COMPLICATED MESS, the new recording from Doug Deming & The Jewel Tones, is their most courageous effort to date, combining traditional blues, jazz, swing, soul and R&B, delivered in 10 original Deming tunes along with three familiar covers. Captured at Bigtone Records in Hayward, CA, this analog recording achieves the tone and warm, authentic atmosphere ideal for DEMING’s style.

https://www.dougdeming.com/

Special Low-Dough Show--Only Ten Bucks at the Door

Doors 4pm, Music 8pm

An Intimate Evening with Blues Great and Rochester Music Hall of Fame Member... Joe Beard
And Very Special Guest: Phil Campbell of The Campbell Brothers

Born and raised in Ashland, MS, guitarist Joe Beard grew up with the Murphy brothers, one of whom later found an international following as Matt "Guitar" Murphy. Guitarist Nathan Beauregard lived with Beard's cousin, so he was surrounded by aspiring and veteran blues musicians while growing up, and he began singing at an early age. Beard became interested in playing guitar via the Murphy brothers, who sat in with a young B.B. King when he played at the Roosevelt Lake Club. Beard began to learn guitar at age 17 from Ernest Scruggs, a neighbor, before heading to Chicago.

Beard moved to Rochester, NY, and from time to time would visit one of his brothers in Chicago. He quickly became enamored of the blues being played in clubs there by people like Jimmy Reed and Sonny Boy Williamson. Beard sat in with John Lee Hooker one night and received encouraging words from Hooker, and also later sat in with his idol, Muddy Waters.

While in Rochester, he formed the Soul Brothers Six, playing bass and singing, but he didn't perform in public on guitar until 1965. Beard befriended classic blues guitarist Son House, who was a neighbor in Rochester, and played a concert for students at the University of Rochester in 1968. Beard worked as an electrician by day and would occasionally play out at night and on weekends for most of the '60s on through to the '80s. He has a reputation as one of the best local players around, and though he may not be a household name in other parts of the U.S., he toured Europe in 1983 and did studio and stage work with Buster Benton, Lafayette Leake, and Memphis Slim. At the famed BK Lounge, Beard and his backing bands opened for Bobby Bland, Albert King, and others. More recently, Beard performed at President George H.W. Bush's inaugural gala. In 1990, he recorded an album for Kingsnake Records, No More Cherry Rose, which was well received by the blues radio community.

Blues UnionBeard recorded an album with Ronnie Earl's band for the California-based AudioQuest label, Blues Union (1996). Accompanying him are Hammond B-3 organist Bruce Katz and tenor saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman. The album was a critical success, winning Offbeat Magazine's Blues Album of the Year award. He followed it up with 1998's For Real and 2000's Dealin', both records featuring Duke Robillard.

https://www.facebook.com/joebeardblues/
https://www.campbellbrothers.us/

Special thanks to our friends, Doug Camp and Cicero Ryland Jr., true music fans.

Cover: $5

Doors 3pm, Music 9:30pm

The Hi-Risers celebrate the release of the new Greg Townson instrumental record More Travelin' Guitar!

“The Hi-Risers make their own kind of fun”

By City Newspaper’s Frank Deblase

Rochester's rock 'n' roll roustabouts The Hi-Risers' new album kicks off with that snap, crackle, and pop the band has become known for. Album number nine, "My Kind of Fun," is pure Hi-Risers, full of clever licks and hooks. You can dance to it, too.

The tenacious trio has become its own thing over the band's near two-decade history, according to guitarist Greg Townson. It's where he wants to be.

"We're not stylized into one particular genre," Townson says. "It just sounds like the band. And that's what you want." The Hi-Risers sound like, well, The Hi-Risers.

When descriptive language, flowery comparisons, or lazy adjectives — "Stones-y, Beatles-esque," for example — fall short, that's when a band can be what it is and truly be called unique unto itself.

"You have to be difficult to describe," says bassist Todd Bradley. "I think the new songs sound like us. Over the years we haven't stuck to one thing. We've wanted to branch out and still sound like us and have our personality come through. And the new one fits in that idea quite well."

The Hi-Risers have been extremely busy, and not just as The Hi-Risers. Townson tours extensively, playing guitar with luchador-masked, instrumental sensation Los Straitjackets, while Bradley swings with the sensuously cool Bossa Nova Bradley Brothers and occasionally with The Lustre Kings. And the newest member, drummer Trevor Lake does time, or rather keeps it, in several other outfits, including Dangerbyrd, The Shine, and Patrick and the Swayzes.

Up until drafting Lake into the ranks, The Hi-Risers had been on a five-year hiatus, other than playing an occasional reunion gig or a show overseas. Then the phone rang.

"Last summer a festival in Spain asked us to come over and celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the album 'Trans-Atlantic Dynamite,'" says Townson, "an album that we had put out with Kaiser George. We headlined one of the days of the festival. While we were there, there was a lot of interest in having us come back over and tour. It was nice to know there was interest over there."

But Townson didn't want to wax nostalgic or play "remember-when."

"I only wanted to do it if we had a new record to bring to the fans," he says, "to keep it fresh. I'm of the mindset that nostalgia is a dead end. Once you're nostalgic, you're toast."

facebook.com/hirisers

https://www.facebook.com/greg.townson.3

Cover: $5

Doors 7:00pm • Music 9:00pm

Abilene Bar and Lounge and Bop Shop Records Present..
Yep Roc Records Recording Artists...
DADDY LONG LEGS!

Lowdown Ways DADDY LONG LEGS new album available 10 May on Yep Roc Records. Produced by Jimmy Sutton and engineered by Alex Hall (JD McPherson, Pokey LaFarge, Jake La Botz) at Hi-Fi Studios in Chicago, the album features 12 original compositions with songwriting contributions from JD McPherson and Sutton. A new direction from their first two studio albums (released by Norton Records), Lowdown Ways sees the boys widen their sonic horizons with field hollers, gospel, Cajun, and Mississippi Hill Music, coupled with their renowned supercharged, harp-driven R&B bangers.
The first single, “Mornin’ Noon & Nite,” premiered at WFMU. The track is now available at all streaming services.

New York City's most beloved blues bashers have been huffing and puffing and blowing houses down on a nightly basis on their infinite world tour and always bring an elevated level of rough and ready intensity to contemporary lo-fi blues with their explosive fire ceremony.

A Daddy Long Legs show is equal parts roots rock, blues and guttural soul; stripping down old standards and making them shiny and new again. Some of the originals are like an all-out spiritual revival, while others are hauntingly beautiful.

https://www.facebook.com/officialdaddylonglegs/

Cover: Special Low-Dough Show - $10 at the Door!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Singer/songwriter Jake La Botz plays roots-drenched music that reflects his time performing in streets, bars, churches, and even tattoo parlors. You can also hear the various places La Botz has lived in his music — including his time in New Orleans, the Mississippi Delta, and his native Chicago where, as a young man, he found kinship with some of the last of the pre-war era bluesmen: David “Honeyboy” Edwards, “Homesick” James, and “Maxwell Street” Jimmy Davis. In 2017 Jake released his studio album Sunnyside on Hi-Style Records to critical acclaim. Produced by Jimmy Sutton, the album won two Independent Music Awards. Jake has toured extensively in the U.S. and Europe and has shared the stage with Ray Charles, Etta James, Dr. John, Mavis Staples, JD McPherson, Buddy Guy and Junior Wells, Tony Joe White, Low Cut Connie and a host of other greats.

Jake opened for JD McPherson at the Harro East Ballroom...and has played Abilene Bar and Lounge a couple of times as a solo act..Needless to say, we're super psyched to hear Jake and his full band!!!

https://www.jakelabotz.com

Super Low-Dough Show–$10 at the door!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 9:00pm

NIKKI HILL!!!

Independence has always come easy for vocalist/lyricist/bandleader Nikki Hill, raised by a single mother and two older sisters in close quarters throughout Durham, North Carolina. This inspired not only her confidence at a young age, but a self-reliance and strong curiosity, which informed Hill’s interest in art, reading and writing. The moment she could break free from the long Sunday sermons and weekday choir practices, Nikki traded the pews for barstools, sneaking into venues when necessary, and was soon immersed in North Carolina’s roots scene. She felt oddly comfortable, finding a direct connection between the energy she saw at local shows in Chapel Hill, and the intense praise dancing, gospel shouting church services she attended and sang with up until she was a teen. Seeing everything from Dexter Romweber to Carolina Chocolate Drops, Bo Diddley to Motorhead, her new sermons came from rockers and bartenders, cowpunks and starving artists. Everyone had a story, and very soon, Nikki was in the mix herself, immersed in music, getting into trouble, and making stories of her own.

Hill was always happy to lend her harmonies to bands around town but not much more. But when meeting Matt Hill in 2005, they both found a young friend in each other who could talk just as much about Lightnin’ Hopkins as they could Bon Scott era AC/DC. Nikki and Matt eventually married in 2011. For the pair, it was a friendship turned loving relationship that encouraged both to pursue all life could offer. Nikki also gained a partner who musically understood and supported her ideas. She learned quickly, putting her thoughts into action, and piecing together writing she had saved over the years. Moving to St. Louis after they married to help boost Matt’s own touring career and supporting his solo albums, the pair performed as a duo between Matt’s tours, making money where they could, and giving Nikki a chance to practice and write in between her jobs. Landing a local venue show with other musicians, Hill’s voice quickly rang across St. Louis and she shifted to performing with a full band, asking Matt to play guitar. Nikki’s live shows became quickly known in St. Louis and Chicago for their energy, unique sound, the loving vibe of her and Matt’s interactions, and for her charisma, already highly developed from her pentecostal roots and studying the greats.

By the time Hill released Here’s Nikki Hill in 2013, word had spread, for better or worse. The reputation of the live show preceded itself, and heavily. Still, all of this did not translate immediately. With the rarity of modern young black rock ‘n roll singers/entertainers without a long standing career like powerhouses Barrence Whitfield or Lisa Kekaula or Fishbone, Hill found herself in an odd spot, shuffling often between confused local audiences, who had clearly come to see the woman on the poster, wearing a headwrap or natural hairstyle with quasi-retro leanings, and shockingly receiving an unbridled, electric guitar driven performance. But, instead of frustrating, it encouraged Nikki to push herself to the limit in commanding the stage, and showing people that rock n’ roll didn’t have one look or sound. The strong public curiosity allowed Hill the chance to open for a range of artists from Billy Boy Arnold, to Eileen Jewel, to Nelly, before she even had music released. Labels came calling, but were looking for stylings of the more well-known Hill, or of a more boxed in retro feel that could be fully embraced by the purists Nikki had come to abhor from her former years of teen rebellion. Nikki’s DIY upbringing deflected this path, and moved forward to continue developing her sound, where there is a pulpit in the garage; where the girl group turns up the guitar, where southern twang cuts through heavy soul groove.

Hill, with Matt on guitar and a changing rhythm section, played over 20 festivals and close to 200 venue shows in 2013, building audiences across the US and Europe. She also recorded with Deke Dickerson and The Bo-Keys in Memphis, TN, lending her voice to the “Soul Meets Country” EP, expressing yet another side of her limitless enthusiasm for all things roots. Nikki and Matt also moved to New Orleans, LA, returning to the south, and picking up influence through the Gulf Coast. The momentum continued through the release of her second album “Heavy Hearts Hard Fists” in 2015. With fiery soul and heavy R&B with rock n’ roll boogie and tons of attitude to match, the album was received with many accolades from press and fans and kept Hill touring in the US and Europe, adding Australia and India and Morocco to an already impressive tour schedule, and over 30 festivals a year, including Montreux Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, Byron Bay Blues Festival and more.

Nikki’s new record, Feline Roots will be independently released again on house label Deep Fryed Records. Out November 16, Hill lets her soul rip on this new collection of songs, displaying her now well-known stance to champion for the pioneers of roots and rock n’ roll, while remaining in perpetual forward motion, inviting anyone who wants to come along for the journey. Johnny Thunders straddling guitar, Bad Brains’ rock meets reggae, Stonesy groove, Sister Rosetta Tharpe rave up rockin’ gospel power, all receive nods of recognition. Hill is unafraid of her past or experiences, and puts it out there for the sake of the song. The songs imagine the southern soul rocker at times waving her flag in surrender, then in the next moment finding her way back into the climb, bending through supercharged blues, punk soul, revival tent gospel, rockabilly shouts, whatever it takes to get there. It’s her version of rock n’ roll that can only come from her stories. Nikki has never been afraid to take the road less traveled, and it’s clear with “Feline Roots” that she’s living every word.

https://nikkihillrocks.com

Tickets: $22 advance, $28 day of show, on sale now at Abilene Bar and Lounge, Bop Shop Records, Record Archive and online at https://abilene.showare.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=255

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

From Nashville, Tennessee...
The Hi-Jivers

If you’re a fan of JD McPherson, Big Sandy & HIs Fly-Rite Boys and Deke Dickerson, you’re gonna love this band!!

The Hi-Jiver are Dawna Zahn - Vocals, Austin John - Guitar and
Hank Miles - Upright Bass.

In September 2014, Austin John of the Austin John Band moved to Nashville, TN with his girlfriend Dawna Zahn to pursue their music career. The Austin John Band made a great impact on the blues scene in Syracuse, quickly gaining fans where ever they went.
Auburn, NY native Dawna Zahn had spent the last few years singing in the rock n' roll, blues and honky tonk band Silver Queen Casket Company, which Austin joined in late 2014. Dawna's unique vocal style developed through her love of the raw, swampy sounds of early blues and rock n' roll.

Bassist Hank Miles is from Seattle. Some of his former bands include Redneck Girlfriend, Go Like Hell, and Shivering Denizens.
After rambling off influences such as Howlin' Wolf, Etta James, Bo Diddley, Big Maybelle, Wynonie Harris, and Nick Curran, the group decided to form an early Rhythm & Blues, Rock N' Roll combo... And thus, the Hi-Jivers were born.

https://www.thehijivers.com/

Cover: $7

Doors 3pm, Music 5:30pm

Happy Hour with great drink specials including $1 off well drinks and craft draft pints from 3pm till 7pm, free munchies and the return to Abilene of Megan Flechaus and Band!

Megan is a multi-award winning jazz, blues, and folk-influenced singer-songwriter. She began writing and playing music when she was 15 years old. She expresses thought provoking lyrics through soulful tone and eccentric chord voicings. Her song, “Moon Mansion,” off and early EP, appeared in the indie film, “King’s Faith,” filmed in her home city of Rochester, NY. She released her first full-length album, “New,” in October 2014. Her band FlecHaus won Best Group Single and Fan Favorite in the early 2017 LA Music Critic Awards for her original song, “What We’ve Got.”

https://meganflechaus.com/

Doors 3pm, Music 9:30pm

****SPECIAL SHOW****
The Dirty Grass Players
Hailing from Baltimore, Md The Dirty Grass Players have established themselves with one toe-tappin’ foot in traditional bluegrass and blazing musicianship that pushes boundaries. Comprised of Josh Ballard on Bass, Alex Berman on Banjo, Ben Kolakowski with the guitar, and Ryan Rogers on mandolin, this four piece is successfully bringing their growing fan base a down, dirty and heated performance. Their ability to seamlessly transition from down home bluegrass to spirited improvisation makes each performance unique. Throw in some Allman Brothers, Pink Floyd or a dash of southern rock and you’ll quickly understand what they mean by Dirty Grass. Their self-titled debut CD The Dirty Grass Players captures this energy and as 2017 winner of Charm City Bluegrass & Folk Festival Band Competition clearly indicates, this is just the beginning. Successfully touring the Mid-Atlantic and festival appearances, this year finds the group expanding along the East Coast and building on this momentum. For anyone that enjoys a musical throw down by skilled musicians its time to get your grass dirty.

The last 2 years have consisted of a busy touring schedule that has kept The Dirty Grass Players from releasing new music, but in 2019 they are excited to get new tunes out into the world. Their first single “Grand Voyager” - released in April of 2019 - is a fast-pickin’ tune that pays homage to their humble beginnings. Reminding their fan base why they love them, this tune will also help any non-bluegrass-lover transition into becoming an appreciative consumer of bluegrass music, or should we say “Dirty Grass”. Stay tuned for the full album dropping in the fall.

https://thedirtygrassplayers.com/

Special Low-Dough Show- Ten Bucks at the Door

Doors 7:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Thrilled to announce the return of...
Mikaela Davis and Southern Star
with special guests

Last summer's biggest and most talked about show was our August show with Mikaela Davis....Get your tickets soon for what will certainly be another memorable night!

https://www.mikaeladavis.com

Tickets: $20 advance $25 day of show, on sale now at Abilene, Record Archive, Bop Shop Records and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

****Special Show****
Doors 4:00pm • Music 7:30pm

Sarah & Austin are Chatham Rabbits

Sarah Osborne McCombie and Austin McCombie met because of music, and today they play old-time music together full-time as Chatham Rabbits. This husband-and-wife duo lives in a mill house in Bynum on the banks of the Haw River, the same house where a mill working family once lived and played music, and the husband from that family played as part of a mill-sponsored stringband that was known as The Chatham Rabbits. Sarah and Austin met in 2013 when he spotted her onstage at the Cat's Cradle opening for Mandolin Orange. He didn't know much about old-time music, and she didn't know much about him, but they figured it out. This past summer, they decided to leave their corporate careers to take Chatham Rabbits full-time. Together they've played smoky bars and summer festivals; busked on the streets of Nashville 'til their voices wore out; put a tune to the love at their best friends' wedding; and led churches in old-time hymns way past it was time for Sunday lunch. They are working with Robust Records (Mipso; Hank, Pattie and the Current) and will release their debut album in 2019.

Sarah Osborne McCombie grew up in the Piedmont of North Carolina. At age 18, her voice landed her onstage at Prissy Polly's BBQ with her favorite band, the iconic old-time trio The South Carolina Broadcasters. After that night, they offered her a banjo and a job. As banjo player and vocalist for the band, Sarah played countless concerts while earning her degree from Peace College in Raleigh. She has garnered tremendous experience and exposure to the wide expanse of American roots music. Post Broadcasters, Sarah served as the music teacher at the Friends School of Wilmington and at Montessori Community School of Durham where where she created and implemented programs based upon North Carolina music and African American roots music. Austin McCombie always loved the music his family played, but he didn’t know it had a name. His relatives in Southwest Virginia played bluegrass and his parents in Wilmington, NC, immersed him in '90s country classics and beach music standards. Somewhere in the middle, he found the name for his favorite sound: old-time. Although he eventually came around to the good stuff, Austin spent a fair amount of time on the dark side, playing guitar and keys in his super hipster electronic band DASH. Austin attended NC State University and in his former life was a financial advisor with Northwestern Mutual.

https://www.chathamrabbits.com/

Special Low-Dough Show--Ten Dollars at the Door!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 7:30pm

Chaz Hearne

Chaz Hearne is a folk musician based out of Rochester, New York who thrives in extremes. From intricate fingerpicked acoustic numbers to all-out rock anthems, everything is topped off with thoughtful melodies and a barely restrained enthusiasm. Though the banjo may be his weapon of choice, he has also been known to wield the guitar, piano, violin and singing saw; all while singing with a voice of fragile honey. When he's not playing solo, Chaz plays with his new five piece band under the moniker Chaz and The Dazzlers. You're gonna love the music of Chaz Hearne, Hannah Weidner, Reily Taylor-Cook, Susanna Rose,Katie Knudsvig, Nick Lord, John Delmonico, and Emily Dipaola They will be releasing their new album, Intelligence is Rising summer 2019 at Abilene on July 24.

http://www.chazhearne.com/
https://www.facebook.com/chazhearnemusic
http://chazhearne.bandcamp.com/

Cover: $7

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

The Coffin Daggers
plus special guests

The Coffin Daggers deliver an all out attack on the senses. Comprised of Viktor Venom on guitar, The Coffin Daggers deliver an all out attack on the senses drawing from diverse influences, ranging from Dick Dale, Henry Mancini, Link Wray, and the Cramps. Viktor Venom, one of the founders of Nausea, started the group early in 1999. Vik's punk influences (he has also worked with Reagan Youth and Chaos UK) give the band's music a unique melodic sensibility. Guitar Player observed that he "moves proceedings beyond mere era emulation by unleashing a rude and vicious riff that would have made Link Wray smile" Their performances have floored both European and American audiences from start to finish, prompting Chart magazine to declare "no one comes close to The Coffin Daggers when it comes to all-out intensity...they will stomp a mudhole into your fragile minds."

The Coffin Daggers are currently promoting their latest release, Aggravatin' Rhythms on Cleopatra Records.

https://www.facebook.com/coffindagger
https://coffindaggers.com

Cover: Low-Dough Show--Ten Bucks at the Door!

Doors 3:00pm • Music 5:30pm

Happy Hour with great drink specials including $1 off well drinks and craft draft pints, free munchies and the return to Abilene of….

“LEFTY!”

They’re a strange but fulfilling mix of bluegrass and rock. They’re rough on the eyes but easy on the ears!

Featuring Jeff Liles, Tim Morris, Ben Pero, Jim Barbero and Andre.

You’ll like their interpretation of Americana music.

We really are looking forward to having them play our saloon again.

https://www.facebook.com/LeftyRochester6/

Doors 3:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Rochester fave...
Brendan MacNaughton and The Inbetweens
Don't miss this special reunion of the original members!!!
With Special Guests: Old Souls

https://www.facebook.com/yobmac

Cover: $7

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Don't miss Australian guitar phenom
JOE ROBINSON!

Joe Robinson is a world-class virtuoso guitarist and singer/songwriter with a unique musical sensibility, injecting a unique fusion of rock, soul, blues, R&B and jazz into a fresh sound that is entirely his own. Displaying his virtuosity on electric as well as acoustic guitar, Robinson was voted “Best New Talent” in the Guitar Player Readers’ Poll and landed a coveted spot as one of Australian Guitar Magazine’s Top 50 Best Guitarists.
Robinson’s talents were further recognized by Guitar Player magazine as part of a cover story entitled “Youthquake 2017: Ten Mind-Blowing Young Guitarists.” In the article, Guitar Player observes Robinson is “equally mind-blowing as an acoustic fingerpicker and electric soloist…his YouTube videos display an astounding combination of taste, speed, cagey phrasing, and a clear, articulate, and sparking tone."

Robinson started playing guitar at age nine and when he quickly outpaced his guitar instructor, began educating himself via the internet. At age 11, he was a touring guitarist and at just 13 years old, he won the Australian National Songwriting Competition. Within a couple of years he was touring regularly and sharing stages with artists such as Tommy and Phil Emmanuel, both of whom served as mentors. When a 16-year-old Robinson burned through a Chet-inflected medley of “Day Tripper” and “Lady Madonna” in 2008 at the opening round of the nationally broadcast Australia’s Got Talent television series competition, the entire house—including the judges—gave him a standing ovation. He went on to win $250k with his take on Tommy Emmanuel’s arrangement of “Classical Gas.”
Robinson has toured North America and abroad (China, Japan, Europe, and Australia) playing numerous festivals, including Bonnaroo, and has headlined clubs, which has enabled him to define himself as a budding world visionary. In his solo show, there are a few moments where he physically has two guitars — one acoustic and one electric — strapped over his shoulder and is playing them expertly at the same time.

In addition to extensive touring on his own, Robinson toured with Guitar Army featuring fellow master guitarists/singers/songwriters Robben Ford and Lee Roy Parnell in 2016, and in 2017, Robinson joined guitar greats John Jorgenson and Lee Roy Parnell in Guitar Army on the road and in the studio.

Robinson is currently recording his highly-awaited fourth solo album (a follow-up to his acclaimed Gemini, Vol. 1 and Gemini, Vol. 2 EP’s). He has also keeps a busy schedule on the road with solo dates and shows with Tommy Emmanuel, Rodney Crowell (opening shows and as a member of Crowell’s acoustic trio), and Edwin McCain, among others.

“It’s not hard to imagine him rivaling the popularity of, say, John Mayer in coming years.” - Washington Post

www.joerobinson.com

Cover: Super Low-Dough Show–Ten Bucks at the Door!

Doors 4pm, Music 7:30pm

****SPECIAL SHOW****

Julia Nunes Album Release Party

Singer/songwriter Julia Nunes is relentlessly personal. That, plus her powerhouse cello-like voice and thought-provoking lyricism is how she garnered a loyal and long-standing following that has carried her from playing the ukulele on YouTube to dropping an album on Conan. From YouTube covers to sold-out house shows, Julia has captured the hearts of countless fans worldwide, who have been patiently awaiting her new release, UGHWOW.

In Julia’s own words: UGHWOW is a consistent line in my internal monolog, it’s frustration or exhilaration or contentment or sorrow or surprise depending on the day. The last few years have been very UGHWOW and this record is a pretty good encapsulation.

She’s toured with Ben Folds, A Great Big World, The Mowgli’s, Ben Kweller, performed with Weezer at Bonnaroo, and spoken at major music conferences MIDEM, SXSW, and FORM Arcosanti on her modern approach to independent artistry.

Julia’s much anticipated album “UGHWOW” is due out June 21st. She strums the ukulele a total of 3 times on this record and still evokes the extreme tenderness of her acoustic beginnings.

http://www.julianunes.com/

Tickets: $10 advance, $15 day of show

On sale now at Abilene, Record Archive, Bop Shop Records and online at www.abilenebarandlounge.com

****SPECIAL SHOW!!!***
Doors 6:00pm • Music 9:00pm

DALE WATSON!

Dale Watson, keeper of the true country music flame, latest album Call Me Insane, was recorded in Austin with veteran producer Lloyd Maines (Robert Earl Keen, Jerry Jeff Walker, etc.). The Austin-based honky-tonker carries on in the tradition of Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson with his “Ameripolitan” brand of American roots music.

Album highlights include “Jonesin’ For Jones,” a love song to the music of the legendary George Jones, “A Day At A Time,” about “getting by by barely getting by;” “Call Me Insane,” the album’s moody title track; “Bug Ya For Love,” a fun warning to all the single ladies, and “Mamas Don’t Let Your Cowboys Grow Up To Be Babies.” (Yes, it is an answer song to the Waylon Jennings/Willie Nelson hit.) “Crocodile Tears” is a tear-in-your-beer country song that sounds like an instant classic and “Burden Of The Cross” reveals Watson’s serious side.

Call Me Insane was recorded in Austin by Watson and his ace touring band, “His Lone Stars”: Don Pawlak (pedal steel), Mike Bernal (drums & percussion), and Chris Crepps (upright bass & background vocals). Dale plays electric guitar throughout and Lloyd Maines added acoustic guitar. They were joined in the studio by Danny Levin on piano and the Honky Tonk Horns: Jon Blondell (trombone), Joey Colarusso (saxophone), and Ricky White (trumpet).

“Having known Lloyd over 20 years and worked with him as a musician, I knew he was a great guy and picker," Watson says. "But having Lloyd produce your record is like letting your mom in your kitchen. You know you’re gonna like what comes out and it's amazing how such basic ingredients can be made even better. He is an artists' artist.

The admiration is mutual. "I've been a Dale Watson fan since I played steel guitar on some of his early records," Maines says of the sessions. "My early musical influences are the same as Dale's. We both grew up playing real country music. Dale is one of a very short list of today's artists who still keeps it real country. I'm honored that he asked me to produce his new record. I think he knew that I would maintain the integrity of his passion for the music."

Dubbed "the silver pompadoured, baritone beltin', Lone Star beer drinkin', honky-tonk hellraiser" by The Austin Chronicle, Watson sat in with Jimmy Kimmel’s house band as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC) from SXSW 2015. He also emceed the first ever SXSW “Ameripolitan” showcase featuring the best of Honky-tonk, Outlaw Country, Rockabilly and Texas Swing music.

Since the release of El Rancho Azul in 2013, Watson’s profile has risen considerably via appearances on The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS), Austin City Limits and The Sun Sessions (PBS) and as a guest on NPR’s Wait Wait... Don’t Tell Me. A veteran touring artist and consummate entertainer, he is on the road more than 300 days a year. He also put his money where his heart is and took over ownership of two struggling Texas honky-tonks, the Little Longhorn Saloon in Austin (home of Chicken $#!+ Bingo) and The Big T Roadhouse in St. Hedwigs (outside San Antonio). If not on the road, he and His Lone Stars perform at one of them each Sunday.

Dale has flown the flag for classic honky-tonk for over two decades. He’s christened his brand of American roots “Ameripolitan” to differentiate it from current crop of Nashville-based pop country. The Alabama-born, Texas-raised Watson may be the hardest working entertainer today and is rapidly approaching legendary status. He is a country music maverick, a true outlaw who stands alongside Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and George Strait as one of the finest country singers and songwriters from the Lone Star State.

"I'm one of Dale's biggest fans"
- Willie Nelson

https://www.dalewatson.com

Tickets: $25 advance, $30 day of show, on sale now at Abilene Bar and Lounge, Bop Shop Records, Record Archive and online at https://abilene.showare.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=256

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Do NOT miss...
FolkenPhünk!

FolkenPhünk is an acoustic trio formed by Dave Brumberg (The Brummy Brothers) on upright bass, guitar and vocals and Lowell Neumann Nickey on guitar and vocals in 2016. In late 2017 they were joined by Edwin Lightner (Fennarios Wolf) on Mandolin. Together they play a variety of original music and covers drawing upon influences from American and Irish Folk Music, Psychedelic Rock and Roll, Bluegrass, Blues and even modern rock and pop music. Hailing from Frenctown, NJ, Philadelphia, PA and Annapolis, MD, respectively they are willing to play anywhere and anything. FolkenPhünk have already put down many miles of pavement up and down the Mid-Atlantic and Appalachia, playing shows in all their home regions and then some.

You never know exactly what you'll get at a FolkenPhünk show, from mashups of familiar rock, pop, and bluegrass tunes to special guests including Russell Gottlieb (Deadgrass, The Brummy Brothers) on banjo, Vincent Pierce Smith (Natural Breakdown) on percussion, or Chris Blauciak (Hambone) on percussion. No matter what they play or who shows up, good music is guaranteed!

https://www.facebook.com/folkenphunk/

Cover: $7

***SPECIAL SHOW!!!***
Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Abilene Bar and Lounge and Bop Shop Records present...

JONTAVIOUS WILLIS

Every generation or so a young bluesman bursts onto the scene. Someone who sends a jolt through blues lovers. Someone who has mastered the craft for sure, but who also has the blues deep down in his heart and soul. At the age of 22, bluesman Jontavious Willis may be the one. “That’s my Wonderboy, the Wunderkind,” Taj Mahal said after inviting Jontavious to play on stage in 2015. “He’s a great new voice of the twenty-first century in the acoustic blues. I just love the way he plays.”

And four years later he was playing on Taj Mahal’s stage.
"When I heard him play I said to myself: this is how the blues, as I know it, is going to stay alive,” said Paul Oscher. "Only a few like him emerge every decade or so, when even the most hard core blues fans realize immediately that this is the real deal,” writes Frank Matheis in Living Blues Magazine.

Hailing from Greenville, Ga., Jontavious grew up singing gospel music at the Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church with his grandfather. At the age of 14, he came across a YouTube video of Muddy Waters playing “Hoochie Coochie Man” and was hooked. That’s when he set his course on the blues. All types -- Delta, Piedmont, Texas, gospel. As a fingerpicker, flat-picker and slide player. On guitar, harmonica, banjo and cigar box.

Currently Jontavious is finishing his studies at Columbus State University, majoring in sociology. But on most weekends you can find him playing a small house show, up on the main stage or posting music videos for his friends and fans around the world.

http://jontaviouswillis.com/

Tickets: $15 advance, $20 day of show, on sale now at Abilene, Bop Shop Records and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

An night of awesome, funky music with one of the bands that were legends at Rochester’s Red Creek!!!

Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound bring forth a funky, lyrically charged racket that is explosive, yet intimate.

Taking cues from the dance bands of western Louisiana (and his native Midwest,), the streets (and 45's) of New Orleans, touring African and Caribbean combos and the soul, funk & blues of his youth, Paul Cebar is a masterful synthesist of rhythmic culture. His time spent in his second home of New Orleans, as a musicologist in Florida, and as a journeyman wanderer in Cuba, is reflected in his musical worldview.

At the core is gifted songwriting, and the company Paul keeps bears it out: Bonnie Raitt, Nick Lowe, Chris Smither, John Hiatt and Cesar Rosas are among his friends and admirers.

Tomorrow Sound are an elite crew. Drummer Reggie Bordeaux, New Orleans native percussionist Mac Perkins, and bassist Mike Fredrickson, throw down some of the best dance grooves in the business. Multi-instrumentalist Bob Jennings adds the luxury of implying a much larger ensemble with his multi-hued contributions on keys and reeds.

Paul Cebar Tomorrow Sound's latest album, “Fine Rude Thing” is out now. The songs, Baby Shake and “You Owe it to Me” feature Cebar's unique mixture of R&B, Caribbean and New Orleans style.

http://paulcebar.com/

Special Low Dough Show---Ten Bucks at the Door!

****SPECIAL SHOW****
Doors 4:00pm • Music 7:30pm

Amy LaVere & Will Sexton

Amy LaVere is an established artist from Memphis, TN renowned worldwide for her songwriting, bass playing, and vocals. She’s an inventive, thoughtful singer-songwriter who has crowds throughout the US and Europe smitten. Currently, Amy is working on her 7th studio album, slated for release in the Summer of 2019. She tours tirelessly. She’ll be performing all around the US this spring and touring in Italy this summer.

Music fans first discovered this “sweet soprano” on This World is Not My Home in 2005, but it was her Jim Dickinson-produced breakout album Anchors & Anvils two years later that put Amy LaVere on the map.

The success of Anchors & Anvils drew the attention of the UK market, and soon Amy was invited to perform on the BBC’s Later with Jools Holland – the appearance introduced her to an international audience, and to Craig Silvey (Arcade Fire, Jamie Cullum), who she’d later team with to produce Stranger Me (Archer Records).

Spin called the 2011 release “the break-up album of the year,” Paste said it was “among the year’s best,” and it earned a first listen feature from NPR’s All Things Considered. She followed it in 2014 with another critical smash: Runaway’s Diary, a concept album based on her own experience as a teenage runaway, produced by Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars). American Songwriter called it “boundary pushing… heartfelt, reflective, challenging and consistently compelling.” NPR Music’s Robert Christgau said it was her best yet.

Hallelujah I’m A Dreamer (Archer Records, 2015), was a surprise for fans just nine months after Runaway’s Diary, recorded with LaVere’s husband and noted guitarist Will Sexton. On Hallelujah, Amy and Will capture the immediacy of the live show they developed on the road together, reveling in a more stripped-down sound and celebrating the freedoms and limitations that come with it in stunning form. No Depression said simply: “pure bliss.”

In addition to her solo records and a tireless touring schedule, Amy enjoys collaborating with other artists. In 2012 she joined an all-star collaboration called The Wandering, composed of Amy, Luther Dickinson, Shannon McNally, Sharde Thomas and Valerie June. They released Go On Now, You Can’t Stay Here (Songs Of The South, 2012) to critical acclaim and sold out shows.

In the afterglow of The Wandering, Amy and Shannon McNally hit the road together and released an EP titled Chasing the Ghost, The Rehearsal Sessions (Archer Records, 2012) which featured songs from both artists recorded live during rehearsals for the tour.

Amy next paired up with noted rocker John Paul Keith to create Motel Mirrors. Their styles clearly complemented one another, which made for magic on stage and in the recording studio. Their eponymous vinyl EP release was named one of the “10 Essential Albums of 2013” by No Depression.

In 2017 Motel Mirrors released a full length record In the Meantime. This record has the addition of Will Sexton contributing several songs.

In early 2018 two records were released that Amy collaborated on. Luther Dickinson and the Sisters of the Strawberry Moon released their debut recording, Solstice. Amy contributed 3 songs for the project. Amy Helm, Allison Russell, Sharde Thomas and The Como Mammas also contributed songs to the project. Motel Mirrors also released a live recording Gotta Lotta Rhythmon Italian label Wild Honey

Although she’s a singer and songwriter first, Amy is also an actress. In 2005 she was cast in the role of Wanda Jackson in the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line (Twentieth Century Fox). Since she has appeared in a variety of independent and studio productions: Black Snake Moan (Paramount, 2006), $5 Cover (MTV, 2009), Woman’s Picture (2011) The Romance of Loneliness (2012) and most recently with Grace Zabriski in Only Child (2015). Dig That Zeebo (2017)

http://amylavere.com/

Tickets: $12 advance, $15 day of show, on sale now at Abilene, Bop Shop Records, Record Archive and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

Doors 3:00pm • Music 9:30pm

Hipnosis - Tragically Hip Tribute Night!

What happens when you get 5 young American gents that enjoy some jams from up North? You get Hipnotized… Well, actually, you get Hipnosis.

Beginning in 2011 as nothing more than an idea, a group of friends set out to the Great White North for a road trip that would end up being a concert for the ages, The Big Music Fest in Bobcaygeon, Ontario. Five members of this friend group just happened to also play music of their own, so this was a real treat. Looking up at the stage that day, seeing The Trews, Sam Roberts and most importantly, The Tragically Hip, an idea was born. “People should see and hear this music back home in the States, so let’s bring it to them.”

Andy Simpson (Vocals), Stephen Frankosky (Guitar/ Vocals), Mike Heilemann (Lead Guitar/Vocals), Ryan Horab (Bass) and Chris Graf (Drums) had plenty of experience already playing across Western New York in previous local bands, the plan was ready to roll.

After a few years of life getting in the way, the guys were finally able to make their Canadian Rock dreams a reality, forming Hipnosis officially in the Summer of 2016. Since then, you no longer have to tune the FM radio to 102.1, or 97.7 to hear “yer favourite” Tragically Hip tunes.

https://www.facebook.com/hipnosis716

Cover: $10

Doors 4pm, Music 5pm

Tammi Savoy and The Chris Casello Combo
Music-Food Trucks-Drink Specials

Chicago vocalist and The Ameripolitan Awards “2019 Rockabilly Female of the Year” Tammi Savoy and award winning guitarist Chris Casello lay down Original 40's, 50s & 60s inspired Music, Early Roots Rhythm and Blues, Jump Blues, Rockabilly, Classic Country, Roots Jazz, Blues and Swing. It is Mid-Century Rockin’ R&B.

Pure Rhythm & Roll.

Rhythm & Roll best describes the music of Tammi Savoy and The Chris Casello Combo. Tammi with her beautiful, strong and resonant voice combined with Chris’s dynamic “wild” guitar and steel playing perform their Original music as well as the music that continues to inspire the passion in their performances. Tammi’s influences include songs from Ruth Brown, Annisteen Allen, Lavern Baker, Esther Phillips, Varetta Dillard, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan and so many others.

Get ready to reminisce a little, bob your head and smile to familiar tunes, then get out of your seats, dance, and have a rockin' good time.

Lead Vocals: Tammi Savoy • Guitar & Vocals: Chris Casello • Electric & Upright Bass & Vocals: Jesse Woelfel • Drums & Vocals: Russ Deluca

https://www.misstammisavoy.com/tammi-savoy-and-the-chris-casello-combo

“Super Low-Dough Show”—Only $10 at the door

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

Lorenzo "Surfer Joe" Valdambrini and Band
with Special Guests: Televisionaries

Surfer Joe is truly one of the key figures in modern surf music as well as one of the top touring artists for the genre. Participating to any world surf music event as artist or organizer, Surfer Joe has collected an experience of thousands of concerts since the late 90s. Constantly on tour worldwide, he had the honor to play on guitar or drums with several surf legends and to share the stage with many surf bands.

The music of Surfer Joe - Reverb, high rhythms and great energy! It is a concert that looks back to the origins of the genre, but shows its evolution and variety, going from the heavy Dick Dale sound to lounge and progressive atmospheres, always keeping an eye on the melody and the quality of the arrangements.

Highlights - Co-organizer of the yearly Surfer Joe Summer Festival, the most important, prestigious and awaited surf music event in then world. Several times in the line up of the Surf Guitar 101 Convention and Tiki Oasis in California, USA. One of the headliners of Surf-O-Rama (Spain), North Sea Surf Festival (Holland) and Asbury Park Surf Music Festival (New Jersey, USA). Mentioned or interviewed in movies like Reverb Junkies and Sound Of The Surf or in books about surf music's history like Surf Beat by Kent Crowley or the scientific paper Surfing About Music by Tim Cooley. Some of his music, like the album SEÑOR SURF (2013), is considered among the best modern surf music.

Co-owner of the only restaurants dedicated to surf music, the Surfer Joe Diner, which periodically host concerts and international events.

https://www.surfmusic.net/

Cover: Super Low-dough Show---Ten Bucks at the Door !

Doors 4:00pm • Music 5:30pm

Happy Hour with great drink specials including $1 off well drinks and craft draft pints from 3pm till 7pm, free munchies and the return to Abilene of The Toby Village House Band!

Tobey Village House Band plays a delicious blend of rock, soul, blues, funk, & pop…from The Band and Smokey Robinson to Bonnie Raitt and Marvin Gaye…and much, much more!

Doors 4:00pm • Music 8:00pm

The Abilene debut of Lily Herne!

Lily Herne is Athens, Georgia's DreamRock Trio. Herne is a Celtic Stag deity who guards what is natural and wild. Lily is a flower held between his antlers. Some protection is inherently risky.

https://www.facebook.com/events/346621426021082/

https://www.lilyherne.com/

https://www.instagram.com/lilyherne/

https://www.facebook.com/dreamrockmusic/

https://twitter.com/LilyHerne

Cover: $5

Doors 3:00pm • Music 9:00pm

The Western Centuries

When did country music start to sound the same?
The first generation of country artists borrowed from everything around them: Appalachian stringband music, Texas fiddle traditions, cowboy songs, Delta blues. In an era of unprecedented access to our musical pasts, shouldn’t country music be even more diverse than it was in its infancy? Honky-tonk supergroup Western Centuries, back their latest album in 2018,, surely understands this. They aren’t bound by any dictum to write songs in a modern country, or even a retro country style; instead they’re taking their own personal influences as three very different songwriters and fusing it into a sound that moves beyond the constraints of country. Part of the reason they can make music with this range of influences is because of their roots in city life. Both Cahalen Morrison and Ethan Lawton, two of the three principal songwriters, live in Seattle’s diverse South end, and the third songwriter, Jim Miller, spends most of his time in and around New York City. The urban landscape is rarely mentioned in country music, but it makes for a refreshing sound that draws as easily from modern R&B as it does George Jones. It helps too that the album was recorded and co-produced by acclaimed musician and Grammy-winning producer Joel Savoy in Eunice, Louisiana, where local Cajun and Creole artists have always been adept at marrying old country sounds with R&B and rock n roll.

With Songs from the Deluge, on Free Dirt Records, Western Centuries brings three songwriting voices together into a more unified sound than ever before. Over the past year of heavy touring (since the release of their last album), they’ve pushed each other hard as songwriters. But with a band this well tested on the road, it’s the sonic and lyrical places where each artist’s styles depart that’s most interesting.

Ethan Lawton, known for his earlier work in Zoe Muth and the Lost High Rollers, loves to pen imaginative parables about people living at extremes. "Wild You Run" by Lawton tells the story of watching someone you love deteriorate with a crippling addiction. The subject chases his temptation, but loses his soul as Lawton cries out helplessly "I won't tell mama what you done, go have your fun....” Lawton's "My Own Private Honky Tonk" is a rambunctious new take on the drinkin' alone narrative which finds Lawton dancing and playing music until the downstairs neighbors call. It's a boogie-woogie flavored tune à la Fats Domino that highlights the upright bass work of Nokosee Fields, the band's newest member. With the opening track, “Far From Home,” Lawton wails "mother, dear mother, won't you spin a yarn about the way things were.” It's about the dark days that young men found abroad in Vietnam and the personal wars they had to fight when they returned back home.

Cahalen Morrison, known for his earlier duo work with Eli West, is the country boy to Lawton's urban cowboy, inspired by his love for cowboy poetry and the New Mexican desert where he grew up. He's got a knack for bending words around stories until they're as funny as they are tragic, as fantastic as they are real. His songs grow like mesquite in the desert; they twist and turn. On "Earthly Justice," Morrison sings of barflys and their troubles, remarking sardonically "if earthly justice just don't get them in the end, there's always a heavenly trial on its way" as vocal harmonies and pedal steel two step all around him. On Morrison’s album closer "Warm Guns,” he waxes quixotic about loss in love, singing in Spanish about being a victim of his own flaws.

Jim Miller, known for his earlier work with Donna the Buffalo, is the resident psychedelic poet. Like the best country songwriters, Miller's sense of communion with nature turns his songs into works of magical realism. On "Wild Birds", a song about a road-bound band, he consults the moss, befriends the tide, and survives fire all while asking for prayers to guide his band home to the end of their migration. "Borrow Time" features Louisiana accordion legend Roddie Romero, and the album's best harmonies between the three lead singers. Some of his most beautiful lines happen on "Time Does The Rest" as he sings "Your heart knows what’s best / Hold her close, the lips will confess / Let it rise let it fall, time does the rest”.

Western Centuries’ music crosses vastly differing geographies–the city, the southwest, the metaphysical. And their musical influences are equally as diverse. Together, they weave a tapestry of western music, without sacrificing their hard-earned country dancehall sound. Songs from the Deluge will levitate heavy hearts, turn spilled beer into ballads, and bring country music home as literate, epic odysseys from parts unknown.

Tickets: $10 on sale this Friday, June 21 at Abilene Bar & Lounge, and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

****Special Saturday Afternoon Show****
Doors 7:00pm • Music 9:00pm

DURHAM COUNTY POETS!

Durham County Poets are from the Chateauguay valley located in Quebec, Canada. Their influences are varied, from blues to folk, from jazz to gospel, with elements of the Band, James Taylor, Jimmy Reed, even some Leon Redbone. Each member brings a different musical background to the band that marries into a sound that has been labeled as soulful folk.

“This group plays bluesy country/folk with a lot of verve. The lead singer sits in his wheelchair and just kills every vocal. The recording on “River” has mostly an ambient sound with very little reverb. It gives the listener a sense of sitting in a living room somewhere, listening to the band crank out one great tune after another.”- Acoustic Live in New York City, album review.

Here’s the deal, they tore it up at the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival and as part of the Little Theatre Concert Series…don’t miss them in the intimate setting that is Abilene!

www.durhamcountypoets.com

Tickets: $10 advance, $15 day of show, on sale now at Abilene and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

Doors 4pm, Music 8pm

****SPECIAL SHOW****
David Gans

A David Gans "solo electric" performance is likely to consist of several elements: country-blues-style fingerpicking; loop-based improvisations created live in the moment; sweetly-sung ballads, original or borrowed; Grateful Dead songs reinterpreted to suit his voice and guitar; wry observations of the music-festival subculture and the larger world; soulful and passionate political commentary; favorites from the folk-rock canon of the last 50 years. Mix and match - it's never the same show twice, but it's always worth a listen.


https://www.dgans.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Into-the-Now-268609769874090

Tickets: $8 advance, $12 day of show...and on sale beginning Friday, June 21 at Abilene and online at www.abilenebarandlounge.com

Abilene on the Road and Record Archive present
Los Straitjackets

Historic German House, 315 Gregory Street, Rochester, NY 14620

Los Straitjackets are the leading practitioners of the lost art of the guitar instrumental. Using the music of the Ventures, The Shadows, and with Link Wray and Dick Dale as a jumping off point, the band has taken their unique, high-energy brand of original rock & roll around the world.

Clad in their trademark Lucha Libre Mexican wrestling masks, the “Jackets” have delivered their trademark guitar licks to 16 albums, thousands of concerts and dozens of films and TV shows. Viva Los Straitjackets!

https://www.straitjackets.com/

Tickets: $20 advance, $25 day of show, on sale at Bop Shop Records, Abilene Bar and Lounge, Record Archive and online at https://abilene.showare.com/

****SPECIAL SHOW!****
Doors 4pm, Music 8pm

Spend Election Night with…

Big Sandy & HIs Fly-Rite Boys!

Over the last three decades, Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys have kept up a constant cycle of traveling back and forth across the lower 48, then hopping across the pond to Europe and beyond. They bring with them a brand of American music that has earned them an induction into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame, several national television appearances, guest spots on The Grand Ole Opry, and a slew of adoring fans.

 "I truly love being out on the road, and I feel blessed to have the opportunity to sing my songs all over the world," said Sandy. "But when I'm away from the U.S. for too long, it's like I need a recharge... like I need a solid dose of everything Americana. Give me a Chuck Berry song while rolling down the interstate, or a truck stop conversation with a waitress who once danced with Lefty Frizzell, and I'm good for another three thousand miles”.

https://www.bigsandy.net/

Tickets: $20 advance, $23 day of show, on sale at Abilene and online at https://abilene.showare.com/