Hey folks,
These are a few things that are happening or are going to be in the next two months:
1. The Wilders live DVD is finally finished. I worked on it for the entire month of December and finished it just in time for the Christmas holiday. My wife and I watched it on Christmas Eve and she tapped her toes and laughed out loud for the entire show. Although we recorded it almost a year ago, I think it is an excellent representation of our live show. I also included a special surprise at the end that many of you will be very eager to see. I will take the final master to the manufacturer tomorrow morning and I'd expect it to available (hopefully) by mid February. The cost will be $20.00. Stay tuned to the website for ordering information.
2. We have been invited to travel to Louisiana to record with Dirk Powell at the end of January. Betse and Nate both got a chance to meet Mr. Powell at the Gray Fox Festival in Ancramdale New York last summer. He immediately impressed both of them with his laid back, hip southerness. At the IBMA conference this last October, he candidly told our booking agent, Mary, that The Wilders had, "raw beauty man, raw bea-Uty". We know we are lucky to have this opportunity and are taking it very seriously with multiple practices to get our new material up to snuff. For a nice one-page biography of Dirk go to the following link:
http://www.folkloreproductions.com/Html/dirkp.html
3. Some of you who dig deep in the comments of these blogs know that, for the first time, we are working on original material for our new album. As of now, we have 10 original songs/fiddle tunes with a few more on the back burner. Betse has written some fantastic barn burning fiddle tunes that are quickly becoming my favorite tunes in her repetoire. Nate has written two fabulous honky tonk tunes that are a blast to play (the kid has really got a way of setting that old country hook!). And Ike and I have both dug into our old song archives to resurrect some of our old songs that we always believed in, but just never had a band to flesh them out, until now. So we are all pretty excited. The hardest part will be figuring out what will work best for the album. Regardless, it will be our best sounding record yet.
4. I gave 30 days notice to the Art Institute on December 17th. I will be a full time Wilder by the time we go to Louisiana to record. I'm looking forward to focusing on just one job for the first time in 9 years.
5. Finally, I'm not supposed to talk about this so please heed this cryptic hint...
Watch the reality show, "Trading Spouses" on Fox in January and February. The reason why will be evident when you catch the right episode. That is all. Happy New Year everybody!
Well, now I'm going to sound like cranky boy...
ReplyDeleteBut here it is:
WATCH A REALITY TV SHOW? I won't go into the tirade about what reality television has done to the entertainment industry at large... so I'll just fall back on how tacky it is. I'm going to need a specific date. There's no way I can watch that much reality TV and not hurl.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteWhoa cranky boy!
ReplyDeleteHave you ever WATCHED Trading Spouses? Or are you just prejudging it and lumping it together with all the other reality crap TV out there? I have watched at least 5 episodes and have learned a great deal about the human condition from each. It's like watching Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (the cartoon, not the current movie). You laugh while watching it, but at the end you might just learn something if you're not careful. The premise of the show is simple- take two completely different families and switch out their mothers, then roll tape for a week to see what happens. Usually, within a few days, the participants forget they are being filmed, stop acting, and start behaving normally (which at times is pretty hard to watch). Then, before returning each mom to their homes, they ask each of them to decide how the other family will get to spend $50,000. It might sound like the usual reality crap, but I assure you that it is worth a look. I have found the behavior exhibited on the show to be both horrifying and reassuring which, I think, is a nice mix as we plummet into 2005.
Sorry, but I don't have a date to give you, EyeRytStuf. I guess you'll have to risk hurling or miss out.
Well, I knew I was being cranky when I wrote it, so I should have just counted to 10 or not posted or something.
ReplyDeleteI know, I pre-judge reality television. I'll leave it at that.
Really I just got on to post a Happy Birthday message to Ike... as I'm not sure if he's getting e-mail at the moment, and I hope he's not in town for Ice Storm 2005.
Happy Birthday, Ike!
(There, do I sound less cranky? And this with the flu or whatever this is I have...)
Oh, and I figured out what I'm going to do. I'm going to have a friend PVR all the Trading Spouses, that way I can fast-forward through them or wait until someone posts and says, "I know what you were talking about" or whatnot.
Uh-oh... loud noise on the roof. I hope a tree didn't just fall on the house.
Later, everyone!
Trading Spouses update:
ReplyDeleteYeah, I looked on their website and don't see any new episodes posted. There's a possibility that it might have been cancelled BUT I would imagine that Fox is just trying out some new shows during the holiday season to try to get us hooked on reality shows where we see who can lose the most weight, have the most fat sucked out of our bellies, have the most extreme nose job, who can turn a perfectly good old farm house into a designer's horror show, etc. etc. etc. EyeRytStuf was right! Reality shows are really horrible. I just found a little pearl in a sea of sludge with Trading Spouses. It probably WAS cancelled. My luck!
Yeah, happy birthday to Ikester too. He's not the OLDEST. I am, by one whole year. I guess when I get my first social security check, I'll buy him a canned ham or something.
Brophil, when you get your first SS check, a quart of prune juice will be more appropriate for Ike than a ham. When I first met you guys, you were young. Now you're damn near as old as I am. (Except for Nate of course, and I hear stories that he is actually 61 and maintains the appearance of youth through a strict regimen of yoga, blood sacrifice of poultry, and surgical implanting of kangaroo glands.) I guess I shouldn't say stuff like that, what with the current "suck up to youth" culture. Might hurt your marketability. Course if the youths are acting like I did, they are too busy raising hell to read this far down in the blog comments.
ReplyDeleteI have to correct Vieta, as I turn the same age as Ike at the end of this month. He just turned 29.
ReplyDeleteBut enough about how youthful I am...
I hope I didn't curse Trading Spouses by talking bad about it. I know that's not likely, but I like to pretend as it gives me a feeling of power and control over things around me. Humor me, would you?
On the up side: No school today! So instead I'm going to try to figure out activites to help the kids understand number theory and fraction basics. Wish me luck!
CONTEST ANNOUNCEMENT:
ReplyDeleteQuiet Vieta!
Since Peggy brought it up, let's see who can guess Ike's middle name. It will give everybody something to think about besides ice and snow and reality shows and social security...
The person who guesses correctly gets my own personal advance copy of the new Wilders DVD. (No artwork, just the DVD).
Good Luck!
I'll go with Oliver, seems to fit. Also there is that green tractor shaped birthmark on his .... Never mind.
ReplyDeleteSo far, no one is close to guessing Ike's middle name. I will let the contest continue until Monday, January 10th at 6pm. If it's not guessed by that time, I will consult Vieta and award the DVD to the person she feels has either guessed closest OR most ridiculously.
ReplyDeleteTimmer, I will send you out a DVD tomorrow. It is NOT the finished product- just a burned copy without artwork, but when they are back from the manufacturer, I'll send you a real one free ok? This is an offer only for Timmer though, ok? I have two copies and one is for the winner of the contest. They really will be available via our website by mid February. The rest of y'all's just gonna have to wait 'til they are done alright?
Good luck all contest entrants. 5 days left for guessing...
Hello all. I am the ghost or voyeur groupie, with occasional appearances, I guess. This is the only blog I have ever paid any attention to, but I hit it about 5 daze a week. I'm here often, but don't have much to contribute to the blog, since I'm not nearly as close to The Wilders as ya'll are. Would someone fill me in on the relationships of the current blog members to the band members? If my memory serves me correctly from watching this blog for so many, many months now, I think I've gathered that SweetPea is Ike's wife, correct? And Vieta, you're Ike's Mom, correct?
ReplyDeleteIn all fairness, I guess I should introduce myself so that I might be properly introduced to ya'll. I am simply a big fan of The Wilders. I saw them in the fall of 2003 while on a personal mission to regain my childhood at Silver Dollar City's Festival of American Music & Craftmanship. I was there for a couple daze, following their schedule closely. I saw them 3 or 4 times, bought a couple cds, and just enjoyed the hell out of them. I was just getting into the bluegrass thang, and wanted exposure to the genre. And wow, I heard some awesome music those daze. I kept in contact with Beste regarding live performances. When the time was right, I talked my partner into driving all the way to Kansas City to see The Wilders at The Grand Emporium. He was a good sport about it, but slightly reluctant. We had an awesome time. Seeing The Wilders in the presence of alcohol (unlike SDC) was incredible, to say the least. Amazing. Now, my partner is into bluegrass as well, and actively seeks out bands to see and hear. I can't seem to pry The Wilders' cds out of the changer in his truck! He's hooked.
We've since traveled to KC two other times to see them, once in nasty weather, and we've seen them twice here in St. Louis as well. I think that it's safe to say that I've seen The Wilders perform more times than I've seen any other band in my life. Scary. I hope only the best for The Wilders, and look forward to their upcoming work.
Has anyone guessed Odelia for Ike's middle name?
Take care all. Stay warm. I hear it's nasty over on your side of the state.
tt4n.
Okay, the contest is to GUESS it, right? So is it cheating if I already KNOW it? If not, I would like this to count as my official entry, which I won't post in case it IS cheating.
ReplyDeleteRead it a few times. I think repetition will increase clarity in the case of that paragraph.
Anyway, let me know, because I KNOW I know. I think. I know what Ike told me in college, anyway...
If Ike told you his middle name in college, that automatically disqualifies you don't you think? Yes, I think so. That's why you didn't post your answer. You already knew it was wrong to do so. You, good sir, have morals. I applaud your restraint in this matter. Send me your mailing address at brotherphilontheroad@earthlink.net and I will reward you with a small gift. If you didn't already guess, this is called "hush money"...
ReplyDeleteTHE CONTEST CONTINUES!
I wasn't trying to take the moral high road, honestly. I would hate for that sort of untruthful rumor to get out about me.
ReplyDeleteI just figured it would be ALMOST like guessing, since it was about 20 years ago when he told me his middle name (for those of you who read my other comment regarding Ike's and my age, we were both geniuses who went to college at age 9...)
But I sent you my mailing address anyway, just in case the little something isn't something I'd feel uncomfortable taking as hush money... which really there's very little that would fall in the category of what would make me uncomfortable taking as hush money, since I'm trying to establish a lack of morals here...
Since that question about everyone's relationship to the Wilders was posted, I have heard from all 4 of them. 3 rather vigorous and graphic threats, one bribe offer, all suggesting that it would not be prudent for me to reveal my relationship with them.
ReplyDeleteI'm 50/50 on the hotel gig at present.
My father in law was named Ora, pronounced Or' ee. Also understand that the Ike's delivering physician commented "Oh my God" upon first viewing. Neither of these is an official entry.
Ms. V, I don't know if I'd say I'm one of those types of people... I think I come off as more of 24/7 Cranky Guy--I think the kids at school would disagree with you, also, but maybe I'm just kidding myself.
ReplyDeleteAs I've said on here before, I met Ike in college. There's a weird story of serendipty... or maybe just freaky coincidence about a song Ike and a friend (or two) recorded before college. It made it to some radio show's "Shower Tapes". It played on the air and everything. And guess what, I happened to be driving through Southern MO on the day it originally played!
So Ike and I are working in the theatre one day, and I decide to mention that show and the song I heard (or maybe Ike mentioned the radio station and then I mentioned the show... I don't know, it's not important), and Ike and I were both floored! What a kwinky-dink!
But enough about that. I first heard The Wilders at a benefit they did in Liberty last year. I knew Ike was with The Wilders for some time, but didn't know much more than the name and the neighborhood of the musical style. There's another lengthy strange story where Ike was shopping for insurance for the Chief and wound up talking to a mutual friend I'm in contact with regularly, and that's how I got in contact with Ike most recently. Maybe he's in my karass? But what the heck is it we're supposed to be accomplishing? Maybe I'm just meant to expose middle school kids to this music. Or maybe it's just a granfalloon sorta thing.
ANYWAY... (sorry for the long post), the band before The Wilders featured my boss from my last temp job before I landed the teaching job 6 years ago (my life is sounding very "guided by external forces"-y, isn't it?), and then The Wilders came out.
The energy blew me away... and on top of that whirlwind of--I don't know, joy or whatever... I don't think I recognize joy easily when I feel it, being a cranky guy and all--there was also the fact that seeing Ike again and seeing him not that different from the Ike I knew in the late 80s made me feel like I was 18 all over again, and life had marvelous potential.
Plus the song (which is still unconfirmed, but believed to be the Rabbit Up A Gump Stump one that I heard recently and am not as sure was the one I originally heard) was the PERFECT introduction to the group. I was sold immediately.
Blah blah blah. Short version: Wilders good. Me like.
Yes, it was "Gory Days"! I remember some of the lyrics and started to type them here (the chorus, if you remember it), but then decided it might not be for those with weak stomachs.
ReplyDeleteI think I heard it the first week it was on, beating out "Raspberries for Brains" (in the style of "Raspberry Beret") for first place. I could be wrong about that.
Now, about the middle initial/name thing: is it true Ike's sister was to have the middle name "K", but somehow it got switched at the last minute to "Kaye" or "Kay"? I am remembering a story, but I don't know if it's real or if I dreamt it and liked it enough to convince myself it's real...
And yes, how is Betse? I hope she's at least reading this and looking forward to the mob of groupies that hopefully will be at the thing in Lawrence (I'm debating going myself, as leaving the house always sounds less fun than it ends up being--thus taking a while to convince myself it's worth the effort--but it's The Wilders, so surely I'll win the argument).
ReplyDeleteAnd does Nate ever post? Is there news of him?
Also, any idea when one of those Monday-night-gigs is going to happen?
I had to post anonymously since it's been so long I don't remember my login info. This is sweetpea, yes Ike's wife, for whoever asked earlier.
ReplyDeleteWell, I was going to get on here and say that the Ike middle name contest is misleading, but I think a winner has emerged nonetheless. I believe Ike was getting quite uncomfortable with the attention and the tricky nature of the contest. This conclusion will bring him peace...Ike is quite the performer on stage, but in off stage life he humbly moves amonst others...hurray this contest has ended for him! Peggy, Ike thought I invented the name"Orlie" until you posted---I'm busted---guess I can't ever name a kid that name anyway, because being a teacher of kids I know how mean they can be and someone would eventually call the child "Oily" instead. Do you think adults are just as mean or are we just less bold, obvious, and candid in our tactics then kids?
How can I reply to all of this blogging? Timmer, thanks for asking about the Ph.D. work. My summary for you is that anyone who ever gets through it deserves either a stiff drink, a year vacation, or some small blessing in life. On the other hand, the journey is a totally selfish, self-driven act, and its complettion leads to facing the world outside of self which can be view as a gift or punishment. Timmer, I so enjoyed hearing about your life and other groupies. I try to imagine all of you when I hear Ike speak of all you fans. I look forward to meeting many of you after the Ph.D. journey.
A few things on reality TV...I once taped a Trading Spouces for Ike because it included a old-time, bluegrass family who prescribed to some non-mainstream Eastern philosophies. Although I don't have much time for TV these days, I could see an episode like this being very eye opening towards gaining tolerance about ways of life. I am very attracted to sociology and how humans treat each other and interact and this is offered in some of tese reality shows. My main complaint is how this TV trend is weighing on our youth. EyeRytStf probably can realted to this; I have had middle school students, especially girls, believe they need to meet their true love through such manners as modeled in "The Bachelorette" show. How sad. I would love to see a reality show that demonstrates quality documentary film work ...maybe showing people and kids in service/volunteer societal work as oppose to cut throat tatcis to win money. Nervertheless, this cut human behavior is educational. Too bad many parents don't have conversations about the human choices kids are seeing on TV (you can here my bias nature, sorry). For anyone intersted in looking at the stats of how media and poop culture (oops, I meant to type "pop"- I think I will leave it) is afffecting our youth check out this new book out called Born to Buy, Juliet B. Schor. It's easy to read and you will be amazed at the politics and powers behind some much of our everyday existence, especially the pressures on kids.
Sorry, I'm getting passionate. I'll pull back and share how I first met Ike which ultimately leads to the Wilders. I worked with Phil Wade years ago and at that time I had loved experiencing Betse and Phils as duet. The flavor of music was quite different, yet the same beautiful performing dialogue between the two as musicians existed. At work Phil had been going on and on about a quirky pop band called "The Young Johnny Carson Story", a band of Ike Sheldon, Tom Livesey, and Jeff (Clayton) Brown. I believe Phil remarked this was the best band ever, unlike anything that will ever be. How could I not see/hear such sounds? Thus, I met Ike after a Phil and Betse show where they had these Young Johnies, as I called them, play within their concert. I really didn't want to know Ike, because I thought knowing him could change my interpretation of the bands songs. I so worried that meeting these real Young Johnies would alter my artist relationship to the music that I adored. I wanted to see the Johnies on a Public TV program one night rather than going to an invite to meet and talk with the band at the coffee shop...I was trick into the "live" meeting at the coffee shop. Ike never said a word to me and we worked really hard at ignoring each other while observing each other. Long story short, at our wedding, Tom sang a secret song that Ike wrote, Jeff was my man-of-honor (no maid-of-honor), Beste fiddled my way down the isle of the chapel AND Phil is credited as the matchmaker and enduring friend that we will always cherish. Ike eventually hooked up with Betse and Phil and later Nate...quite a match. It's amazing that anyone ever hooks up the way the should.
I believe we live for people, so I wish you all great 'hook up's with others in the new year!- Sweetpea
Congratulations LVJ!
ReplyDeleteYou are the winner of my personal copy of the new Wilders DVD. I'm sorry that my little contest caused so much stress to Ike though. I've always been fascinated by that "O" middle name. He's the most unique person I've ever known in so many ways. That is a really polite way of saying that he is completely weird in so many ways...
Anyway, LVJ, please send your address to:
brotherphilontheroad@earthlink.net
I'll get it out to you on Monday.
As for the health of Betse, I think she's getting better but I'm not sure. And Nate is in the finishing stages of moving and I'm not sure he has access to a computer on a regular basis. He tells me that he does look in on the blog occasionally so y'all should be careful about what you say about him.
And I'll try to to dream up another contest and will announce it soon. This is fun for me. Besides absolutely NOTHING is going on that is worth reporting other than we are going to practice this week. So if dumb contests keep people coming back, then more dumb contests will be held...
Thanks for you guesses.
Yes, LVJ Ike's first name is just "Ike". Congrats winner!
ReplyDeleteVieta, what was Gary thinking with the O? If I remember right Gary wanted Ike's first name to just be "O". Is my recollection correct? Be sure to thank Gary for giving us some fun with this intriguing "O" thing. Phil, I think Ike would be glad so many people received entertainment out of this contest.
Tell Betse to eat so much garlic that she stinks and that old flu bug will leave with the stench. Get well, girl.
Phil, thanks for all the times you helped me at KCAI. I'm proud of your energy and trust to go Wilders full time. ----Sweetpea