name was bojangles and he danced for me...Charlotte...

The car stinks. It’s awesome. Jeremy and Colin I think have now become full time smokers. The air conditioning shot out 2 days back and we have developed a sincere fetish for the Bojangle’s Chicken & Biscuit Company. Strangest thing about this is we haven’t even tasted this highly regarded food chain’s chicken or biscuits. I am unsure if we as a collective even know a sole being that has, but they are everywhere in the great state of North Carolina! I wonder if the Shoney’s of Kentucky and the Bojangle’s of NC have family BBQ’s on Sunday to celebrate their state’s devotion towards food that doesn’t make consumers last for long.

 

 

Charlotte -like our beautiful river town- is called “the queen city”. Cincy skyline kicks its ass. We stay with my old friend J.R. who, lucky for us, has his fiancé out of town (I love you Sara and it would have been great to see you, but us five grizzly men would have startled you) so it is nice to not worry. Arriving at the Common Market is standard: butterflies in stomach, exuberance, anxious. New things are always exciting and this sandwich shop/bar/ convenience store is a rare bird that deserves the local love it receives. We begin to load in and are greeted by the booking agent known to man. Sara is small and cute and helpful tattooed and…is a fire dancer. How bad-to-the-bone is that! She is excited to see us and points us to the outdoor where we will be playing. The stage is made for midgets but we pull off the set up and grasp our handles and mouths towards our PBR tall boys. Mingling in this spot is easy and fancy-free. It is still early and the twinkle in people’s eyes showing the eagerness to get to fun that is to be had on this Saturday evening/night. Have I mentioned the weather? Hot! The hottest day so far this year in Charlotte!

 

Collin hands out buttons and really does a great job each and every moment he has been with us. So thankful we befriended this cat. 

 

The Harvest City goes on at 9 and we open up with “Silver Locket”. A song that has tick tocked around the clock with many different meanings throughout it’s lifetime and at this point in time it feels good not to over analyze things. Just feel. Don’t think and just feel. A line in the song I have always had so personal: “I will ring the bell from the highest red rock / if you’ll ever catch me when I’m standing”. By the end of the tune I look at the other three guys and the crowed that is smiling and still curious and staring and clapping. “I’m no longer falling on my ass all the time...” I think afterwards. “Only standing taller.” Music can save a life, ya know.

 

What a show. What a neat town. We are ever grateful.

 

 

 

 

    

Peanut Butter Fairy...New Friends...Town Pump

Asheville, North Carolina is tough to leave. Blue Ridge Mountains how could we live without thee?! It reminds me of San Francisco but much cleaner, no golden gate but golden What are these happy pills that people ‘round here take? I must know. Everyone is “quite a guy” or “what a gal” and falling into a ravishing love with these gregarious people and their finely tuned city is an every moment happening. A shout out to our friends Lisa and Jamie for letting The Harvest City raid your humble home!

 

The show at The Town Pump Tavern (this is actually just east of Asheville) was the best yet! Dancing bears, olde cincy friends, local organic beers, slip and slide invitations (yellow plastic on black-top with no water mixes like oil and water) we played for hours laughing our faces numb and rolling through our set with comfortable confidence. After our set I went outside to mingle and meet. “Is that Chuck Berry on stage?” someone asked me. “Sure sounds like ‘Johnny B Good’, to me.” I responded with no surprise at all. Tommy had taken the spirit of rock and roll to new heights with the epic crowed pleaser. I watched with my fist pumping into the air, proud and elated with the surprise tune. I stood as a spectator watching my 3 fellow band mates and thinking to myself of how blessed I was to have found such a talented group of guys. What great friends to share a uniform devout passion with. We shall return Black Mountain! We keep you in a heart-shaped box Town Pump Tavern and will be back with new songs and stronger, withered hands.

 

On Friday, Josh Eagle and The Harvest City had the day /night off…. or so we thought! In our attempt to find flowing waterfalls and liquid holes to cool off in, we lost our way into the sticks. Being lost is With all riders remaining calm and patient, we eased our way into Warren Wilson College and by shear luck….a fairy…Green dust bursting from her peanut butter Jar…a smile of a saint. She give us directions to the trail and watering hole where we ran into a beautiful Utah Green and her violin player/comrade AnnaBelle.      “A HOY!....Anything exciting happening today?” I asked “Music tonight….we play ‘bout 30 minutes from here in Madison County.” … “Neat. Do you need an opener? No preasure… we are not creepy dudes…” Later that evening I was doing a solo thing in Madison County. The Bridges are nice. The air is cool in the nighttimes.

Onward to Charlotte! 

Flat Tires, Shoney's, Laughter, Knoxville

Day two of The Harvest City tour released wild men. All five of us - Tommy, Mark, Jeremy, Colin (our road assistant/go-to man), and myself – have officially become dirty ole’ men with dirty ole’ potty mouths. To go into detail would be too much for anyone to bare and I would have to place an “Explicit” sticker upon this blog. Let’s just be vague and say that our mothers (and now that I think of it, most of our friends) would not approve.

            “Our tire just popped.” Drummer Mark says casually. “Our fender is also gone.” I joke you not, mi amigos. Markie says this as if it actually wasn’t happening or if he were to be highly sedated on perks and snoss berries >(fictitious). Killer! Good thing that the fine folks of southern KY feel the need to put a Shoney’s Restaurant chain every 2 miles apart. With the abundance of Shoney demand, they wouldn’t put 5 of their star stud eateries directly next to each other. That would be stupid and bad business-like. Any who…we were lucky to have an exit to change our busted tired. Changed. Fun. Story to tell, etc. One avid Shoney consumer even informed us that it was Karma that brought us this misfortune: “Maybe if you boys weren’t playin’ that rap music, you wouldn’t be in this mess.” Thanks to you fine sir, for you tickle our bellies.

 

ONWARD! Tennessee!

 

Market Square in downtown Knoxville has changed a bit over the last five years when I was here watching Wilco at Tennessee Theatre. The streets are now packed with lunch goers, friendly day drinkers and street musicians.  I play acoustically for a few hours before the storm takes over and the 2^nd coffee of the day making me cracker-jacked out of my mind….onward to our Black Mountain show tonight! TBC

 

Cheers. Hug and kiss someone today.

 

 

Harvest City Tales of First Days

“Vegas Baby, Vegas”. These words from the classic flick “Swingers” come to mind as we cruise at an unshakeable 5mph crossing the Ohio River.  Outside, it is raining tricks and ponies and the once fatty bag of chocolate chip cookies are down to crumbs.

            Pure. Natural. Real. ALIVE! These are the feelings we have as we head towards our first gig on tour in Lexington, KY, but the excitement is pressed tightly due to the sickly weather and rush hour fender benders. No need to worry! F-that! People watching is fun. This stagnant highway is filled with “Guess Who” characters on this day! I think I caught the heavier set bearded man smoking a pipe and the majestic balding man with glasses, brown-baggin’ it.Goodbye Queen City! We shall miss you and sing to the South about your fresh renaissance.

What kind people live in Lexington.  The southern hospitality is lit up as the security guy greets us with sincerity, smiles and handshakes. EXAMPLE: I don’t know many door men that smile like reading rainbow kids, but this one is proud to have our little rock band on this night at Busters. Three bands are on the bill and Josh Eagle and The Harvest City plays in the two spot.  Killer set, great response. Onward for a whiskey, a wine and warm bed to sleep in (it’s good to know kind, hospitable people).

We awake at 8a.m. so that we can get to Knoxville, TN for a lunchtime acoustic show. We are like giddy loudmouths kids eating banana breakfasts and famous Kris Becknell zucchini bread as the teasing of my freshly trimmed moustage chimes on.

 

 All is great fun.

The car smells like it should and the music sounds so good! Sorry about the ramble, friends!

See you all tomorrow!

 

 

Running With The Bulls, Broken Ribs and Annie Hall

I think last night was Josh Eagle and The Harvest City's greatest show. Seriously, no doubt in my tiny, yet spongy brain. An audience can certainly make or break a show for the band. What a glorious exchange! It was hot and sweaty, loud, stinky, lights dimmed just right...A sense of courage was handed out to us from that audience. Jeremy was playing injured with a displaced rib and for a moment we strongly considered the idea of him sitting down for the sets entirety. No no! Once that room filled up and we struck the first notes, it was clear that there would be no sitting. Adrenaline is paramount. There is no fighting it even if it induces excruciating pain and delivers bloody tears to a man's eyes. I love adrenaline so much that I think I actually LERVE it. Yup, I feel so strongly about this I actually tremble when saying the word to make it become a new one. Now, that I think about this, I believe I've stolen this from Woody Allen in "Annie Hall". I would "Lerve"  Diane Keaton too, especially during that time spent next to the Brooklyn Bridge (Cincinnati connect/fact: the majestic Roebling Bridge we are blessed with was built by the same man, John Roebling). I think I have gotten off track here. Cheers to my beautiful minded good friend, and untouchable talented guitar player, Jeremy Smart. He runs with bulls. 

Josh Eagle and The Harvest City will not return to the Cincy stages for a while. Last night at Mayday was our last show as a full band until Sept. 17th at Northside Tavern. On this night we are lucky to be playing alongside a two stellar acts: The Hiders, (my favorite local band), and Scotty Anderson and his crew (Cincy guitar legend).  Fuck yeah for the Cincy music scene! It is like a wild dog right now. What now Austin? What now Minneapolis? Nashville can suck a....nevermind. Sorry, I just can't get over the overwhelming musicianship in this town.

So we are off. On the road headed South through KY, TN, N.C. and later on IN...

We will keep things posted here so stay tuned! 

Smooth high fives to 89.7 WNKU. Those cats have been spinning our disc a friendly amount. This to me is the only local radio station that one should ever listen to. They are the epitome of Fuck-Off Clear Channel and if that isn't cool enough for you then I am flabbergasted and confused by your coolness judgement. 

So it goes. So I ramble. 

Peace to you. Listen to Warren Zevon.  and almost more importantly, listen to yourself and be patient and diligent with whatever is going on in your world. 

Love,

    Josh Eagle and The Harvest City