Cindy Grayson: News

My brother, Clyde, and I were a hit at the RackenSack Concert in Little Rock and I've been asked to come back as often as I can! YEAH! I had a blast too! I've been asked to come back and spend the weekend of the 18th of October when they do music all weekend. I promised I would so I'll post all the information as soon as I get it.

My brother, Clyde, called and said he had a really bad cold and didn't think he'd be able to sing but he could still back me up with his guitar or his upright bass so I've decided to leave Saturday morning and be there to play that evening at the Rac & Sac concert but I'll head back home after breakfast Sunday morning. I know it's a lot of driving but I'm really excited about finally being able to play music with my brother. It will be our first really planned performance ever. It's just a shame it's taken us this long to get around to playing music together. I wish I lived closer.

The second Saturday of every month, at the Unity Church, they've started having an open mic and this next month will be the third one. The first two were fun and I want to thank Lee for calling and reminding me as I have a tendancy to get distracted. My brain runs faster than I do and I forget things. I hope more and more people show up, bring a dish for the pot luck dinner they have tables set out for and add to the audience if not the show. It's been a lot of fun so far.I'm all for supporting it.

I'll be leaving Saturday morning for Little Rock. My brother, Clyde, called and said he had a bad cold and probably wouldn't be able to sing but I said I'd come, do my one song, The Blacksmith" and if he wanted to back me up on one of the other two we'd planned on doing ( Gypsy Rover & Old Marrow Bones) I'd be glad to but it all depends on what he feels up to. I enjoy playing the old folk songs but he's feeling awful so I'll play some that evening and then head home to Nacogdoches the next morning so he can go back to bed. I'm so glad I found out that he doesn't really live that far away. I don't get to see my brother too often.

I'm here at my cousin, Barbara's house and have been here for a couple of days. It's great!, It's beautiful and I'm seriously thinking about working on moving up here as soon as I can work out a few more things in Texas. The place is beautiful! It's a little piece of heaven.
I'll add some pictures when I get back home. At the moment, I haven't left yet and it's a 29 hour drive home so it may be next week before I add photos but I have some great ones!

I'm very glad to be a part of the rebirth of the Farmers Market in town. Last Saturday we had about 24 venders and it's going so well, we're also open on Wednesday now. Last Saturday, we had open mic and no one came up to the mic so, since I set up the P.A. and was there all morning to manage it, I took out my guitar and played most of the list I've been doing at the Cafe two nights a week, still had a lot of old folk songs I would have liked to do and only did a couple of the 49 original songs of my own and played 3 hours, nonstop! I think I could play close to 6 hours if I had to. It turns out that my playing fits the atmosphere and people even came and sat down in the chairs I had set out in front of me and stayed there the whole time. I guess my delivery is getting better. I especially love it when you can see them singing as they shop.
It will be almost the end of August before I get to slow down. Next weekend I'll be in Ithacca, New York visiting my family and playing music. The weekend of the 16th, I've sent off my registration to play in the annual Rac & Sac concert in Little Rock. My brother and I will play a couple of old folk songs together and I will sign up to play one by myself. The Rac & Sac group is a group who's purpose is to keep the old folk songs alive so I won't be doing any of my own but Clyde ( my brother) and I will be doing " Gypsy Rover" and " Marrow Bones" and I plan on doing" The Blacksmith" for my solo number. It will be only the second time in our lives Clyde & I have played together. I'll have to make sure I don't make any mistakes.
Clyde says " The Unicorn" song isn't old enough and I shouldn't put it on my Celtic CD I had planned on doing so I guess I'll save it for performances since most everyone else I've talked to who use to do it is tired of doing it but the audience isn't tired yet. It still leaves me with 10 chosen songs but I think production on that project is at a standstill due to a lack of funds. Without a financial sponcer, I can see the next three projects I had planned will not be happening for awhile. That's ok. It just means more time to perform and practice and so far, my audiences seem to like what I have to offer better and better every time I do it and it gets easier so I'm having fun - and I'll keep having fun.

I have no idea what I did but I'm back on my computer again.
I took the day off to putter around the house. The edges of Hurricane Dolly are suppose to touch down here today in the afternoon and I couldn't wake up this morning - even with my cats' new batch of kittens right undwer the head of my bed. The sky is clear at the moment and the temperature isn't too bad. The cover over my back deck is still only 2/3rd's done and when it heats up, I won't be going outside if I can help it. I'm due to leave for Ithacca, New York next friday and will be gone for about 6 days. The weekend after I get back I promised I'd go see my friend, Joe Vega, who plays music in Austin. His parents tried to get me to go the last time they went but Amie was finishing up her last day of school before the summer and I felt I really needed to be there. This time I'll go. Joe is a very talanted musician and very good friend.
After that, I promised my brother in Little Rock I'd come up for the annual Rac & Sac concert. I still have the registration papers to fill out so I can play. I just haven't figured out how we can each fill out a registration so we can play as much as possible. There are limits on how much a solo act or a group or duet can play. We'll figure it out.

I still can't get onto my computer. I have to calanders to design anmd lots of pictures to load onto my gallery here and an art show coming up at the Lamplight Player Theater here in Nac and I'm still locked out of my computer. Hopefully it will be fixed by next weekend. Hang in there. I've lots of music news to tell you about. Next month I'll be in Ithacca , New York, then back here and to Austin , Tx.and then back up to Little Rock, Arkansas. More to tell you about later on this week.

The entry for " Frankshaven" has been removed. I have been informed by email that although I've been conversing with Frank for quite awhile, it is another scam. Sorry. I have removed it.

I have several more pictures of Kerrville and several of the Rac & Sac Players in Little Rock to put on here but at the moment, I'm having to use my son's computer and since a friend helped him hook up to my computer connection, I'm having trouble getting my pictures to load so I'll do it later.. sorry.

I went up to Little Rock for this last 4th of July to visit with my brother and sister-in-law for the first time. They took me touristing around Little Rock and on the 7th, I went with my brother,Clyde, to listen and play with the Rac & Sac Players there that he's been playing music with for many years. They're a wonderful group of musicians and Clyde and I got to play and sing together for the first time. We did " The Blackest Crow", The Gypsy Rover" and " Somewhere Along The Road" and they must have liked it because I got invited back for their concert on the 16th of August,2008! Guess I haven't lost my touch!

I have more pictures but my dailey work in the flowerbeds is wearing me out. I'll put more in asap. This last weekend was the Blue Berry Festival here in town and I played for about an hour in the sweltering mugginess. There were lots of things to do and things to eat but I ended up at home in the afternoon asleep on the couch and haven't laft yet. Monday is back to work and I'm taking it easy until then.

I just got back from the Festival today. Boy! Do I wish I had the equipment to get the next two Cd's finished! I got some great ideas and met some really great people. Learned a lot - and plan on going back next year. It's late but I'll be back on here Monday and get as many of the pictures loaded as I can. I'm sorry I'm always behind the camera but I got lots of other people shots. Those who's names I don't remember, I'll find out and fill in as I get them. Check back in later on this week.

I just recieved tickets for 5 days at the Kerrville Festiville in Kerrville , Texas from my friend, Roland Brown. I'm very excited! I know a lot of people who have been a lot of times and it's probably old hat to them but I've always wanted to go and never been able to go so I'm thrilled! I'll be going from June 2nd until the 6th. I'll have to get my tent out of mothballs and dust off my camping gear. I'll let you know how it goes and take pictures!

I've been doing a lot of thinking about what I want out of life. I love my music and my art but I also love the solitude of my home and my 42 acres and the privacy it allows me to have in this present world of rush,rush,rush. I will always play and sing and I have lots of art projects I'd like to do ( like a childrens coloring book which doubles as a guide to plant and animal life). Lately though, with all the global warming information being fed to us , I'm very lucky to have the land that I have and a home, I'm enjoying being involved with the reviving of the local Farmers Market and I'm developing an interest in seeing if I can use what I have at my availaible resources to become as self supportiing as possible. I've started another garden this year for the first time in a couple of years, I've designed myself and bought the supplies to build an cover over my back deck so I can have sort of an outdoor livingroom which my son has promised to build for me. Next will be a greenhouse so I can start potting my own plants. I can sell the excess down at the Farmers Market when I'm not playing music there. I'm going to donate my two music moniters to help them to help them start collecting equipment for a small P.A. they can keep down at the Market. We want to start having music down there every Saturday morning.
Anyway, since I don't have a manager and can't afford one right now and I'm tired of being my own hornblower, I'll just go organic for awhile and encorporate music and art into it when I can. I still plan on doing the 2 Cd's I had planned on doing but it may be awhile. I'm disappointed because they're both full of love songs and I think you'd really enjoy them but they'll have to wait until I actually find some one willing to back me to do them or Stan can afford to replace his recorder and get some other equipment for his studio so we can do it right.
Stan, by the way, has recently gotten a job at Encore music store/studio here in Nacogdoches, Tx. and is loving it! If you're in the neighborhood, stop in and see what he's up to. I like going in there and playing in their guitar corner room. They'll even let you plug in.
Have a wonderful day! I'm off to play in the dirt - and get paid for it!

Well, I'm at a point to where I am having to research some spiritual additions to my sets. I'm not very fluent in the country music department but the local folks who frequent the Cafe where I play every week have made repeated requests for religious oriented music. The one's I'm most familiar with are the most common old spirituals so I guess I'll go and find some of those to add to my set. I also think I'll add some more of my own originals. I've been doing a lot of cover tunes because I've discovered that locally, that's what they'd rather listen to but it limits what I play. I can do about 4 hours without repeating myself but that includes my own stuff. We'll see how it goes.

I went to the Appleby Cafe tonight after my granddaughter's piano lesson and they were packed. Apparently they had a bunch of homemade pies, birdfeeders and a couple of rod&reels that they were auctioning off. The parking lot was packed. Paul Martinez was utilizing his auctioneer skills and rattleing away. I played for awhile and then a couple of girls got up and did some spirituals as well as " Crazy " and " After Midnight". I guess I need to learn more spirituals. I'm not very good at Country but I can do spirituals. If anyone has any favorites they can suggest , let me know. We ran thru Amazing Grace, Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, & Will The Cricle Be Unbroken and I'll Fly Away. Now I guess I'll have to look up the words.
We had fun anyway.

I really feel bad about not making the progress on getting my next two Cd's I had planned on getting out done. Studio's cost and the decision to produce at least the 2nd Classic Folk Cd " Celtic Seasoning" ourselves came to a screeching halt with the breaking of our digital recorder at Stan's Studio. The songs, however, haven't gone - they're just on hold. If I happen to find a generous soul to lending a financial helping hand, it will happen this year. As things go in reality, Stan and I will just have to work hard at our day jobs for awhile until we can afford to finance it ourselves. I know both Cd's will be better than the last and well worth the wait. I appreciate your patience.
In the meantime, I'll keep you up on what music I happen to be involved in at the time and keep posting photos.

I really enjoyed the birthday party of a long time friend last night. I saw people I haven't seen in what seems like forever. I got to play some music and there was a variety of guitars, a washtub bass, a harmonica, mandolin, saxaphone and flute. We all played and joined when the urge took us there. No one got thrown in the pool and everyone had a good time catching up and telling the birthday girl how much having her in our lives has been such an honor and a joy. I left late and slept late this morning.
Happy Birthday , Carolyn French.

For those who would like to be notified of where and when I play, please go to my " GuestBook" section and make sure I have your e-mail and I will try to get my act together and start sending out an up to date performance schedule. If you'd rather not, then keep on checking in because I'm getting better about listing what I'm doing.
Have a good April.

I decided it was about time for a change in my background colors & design. If there are any objections, feel free to say so.

It was a beautiful day for the festival and I must admit, it was better than last years turn out. The music was better and I got some great shots of kids running around, people just sitting and listening to the music and a wonderful variety of musicians including our own local Camino Real group with Charlie Jones , Jon Hall and friends who did a great variety of old traditionals and lively tunes we all enjoyed. As soon as I unload them off my camera, I'll get the best ones loaded on here so stay tuned.

when I was a teenager, the only young man who ever tried to sneak in my window was a young man by the name of " John Corbett ". I went on line to check out the actor by the same name just out of curiosity. Turns out he is a musician too and turned out his first Cd in 2005 just like I did. Now, I know he can't be the same young man who tried to crawl in my window ( and I got blamed for it by my father since the young man got away) but isn't it funny how things run paralell sometimes with no real conection at all? By the way - the " thejohncorbettband.com " really has some good tunes.

I opened for Pat and Rosie Maloney last night at Roland's Next Door in Jacksonville. Afterwards, we discussed the crisis of the dissapearing coffeehouse circut. These wonderful people who volunteer their time every month to provide us with wonderful talent are being let down in a bad way! At least 3 have quit recently and Mary Andrews in Tyler is talking about quitting because the last performance only drew about 12 people and the performers, The Therapy Sisters, drove a couple of hours to put on the show - which I enjoyed very much. Somebody has got to figure out a way to wake the public up! There's too much excellant talent out there to support and enjoy and we're going to lose the chance to spend wonderful evenings listening to great talent at a personal level you can't get anywhere else. By the way, Pat & Rosie Maloney were great! I hope to see them again.

Hey! I got my picture in the paper! I've been trying to help out downtown with the reawakening of the old Farmers Market where local farmers can bring their fresh and canned goods and flowers, herbs and fresh eggs. They started last summer and I go play everytime they ask but I plan on going on Saturdays more often just to chat and help out and visit.