Canal Street Tavern

Help Make “Mick Montgomery Way” A Reality!

March 30, 2014 By Dayton Most Metro 1 Comment

From 1981 to 2013, 1st. Street and Patterson Blvd. was an address we were as familiar with as that of our own. With the world around us changing, we will always identify with that corner, like a childhood home.

Efforts for an honorary street naming of “Mick Montgomery Way” began in December of 2013. Members of the City of Dayton Planning Dept., City Managers Office and Downtown Priority Board have been enthusiastic and generous with their time to make this a reality for the community. There are a few steps remaining to finalize this project. Paper work up to this point is finished. The business at hand is where the community comes in.
There is a fee involved for the physical materials and manufacturing and installation of the street signs. This fee accompanies the application and order for the sign. After the application and the fee are submitted to the City of Dayton, the Plan Board goes through the step of voting for the legislation (resolution) to be placed on the agenda for the City of Dayton Commission to vote on and approve. Once those steps are complete, the order goes to the Public Works (street department), the signs are printed and scheduled to be installed.

The fee for this work is $500.00. This is where you all come in.

As soon as we meet the goal of $500.00, the process continues. It is realistic to say this will be about a 2 month window from the time the application and fee is turned in to the time the Public Works department has an installation date for the signs.

The signs will hang under the regular street sign and will say “Mick Montgomery Way”. This will cover the area from the corner of Patterson Blvd. for the first 2 blocks of First Street, ending at Sears Street.

Two signs will be hung; one at First and Patterson and one at First and Sears. The third sign will be presented to Mick to keep. ( I’m not sure if they are going to be blue or brown but will resemble such signs as Erma Bombeck on Brown Street in UD)

Contributions to the “Mick Montgomery Way” honorary street sign can be made at Omega Music, located in the Oregon District. The address is 318 E 5th St, Dayton, OH 45402. You can contribute any amount. They will accept cash or (for a small charge) credit and debit card. Omega has also graciously offered to take charges over the phone for those of you out of the region who wish to participate. Call (937) 275-9949. A receipt will be issued for your donation. You do not need to give your name if you want to be anonymous.

There is no deadline for this amount.
As soon as the goal is met, this campaign will close and the fee will be submitted to the City of Dayton for the project to move forward.

The corner of 1st. Street and Patterson Blvd. in Dayton, Ohio was home to the iconic Canal Street Tavern for 32 years. Mick Montgomery will always be known for his place in Dayton history for being the founder and owner of this unique concert venue known around the world.

More than just a venue, Canal Street Tavern was home base for musicians and music lovers. With Mick’s guidance, countless performers found their voices, invented themselves and REinvented themselves many times over.

Not only was Canal Street Tavern responsible for the roots of the Dayton music family tree, many friendships and marriages were born there as well. Mick’s decades of mentoring and educating performers and fans turned into generations who called Canal Street their home.

A Dayton native, Mick was one of those “kids” who grew up in local venues, discovered his voice and took his music out in to the world. (He has amazing stories as you all know!) His love for Dayton kept pulling him back and, lucky for us, his commitment to the city kept him here. Long before the internet, iTunes and MTV, Mick was introducing us to music from around the world, as well as making sure the world knew about music from Dayton.

The contribution of Mick Montgomery to the music industry and the City of Dayton goes beyond business. Visitors came from around the world to attend Canal Street Tavern shows and left here feeling like family.
Beyond being a musician and business owner, he is one of Dayton, Ohio’s most valuable ambassadors.

Thanks in advance for your support!
Shelly

To Canal Street: With Love, Dayton

November 26, 2013 By Juliet Fromholt 20 Comments

photo courtesy of Shelly Hulce

On Saturday night, Shrug will take the stage at 308 East 1st Street and when they are finished, the space will no longer officially be called Canal Street Tavern as founder Mick Montgomery’s association with the venue he founded over 30 years ago will end. Right now reports say that the space will continue to host live music under its new ownership, and both fans and musicians will keep careful watch in the months to follow to see how this new reality for the space fits into our music community.

photo courtesy of Greg Simerlink/Grog

Like so many of us, Canal Street was the cornerstone of my musical education with side lessons in friendship and community. I learned to be a listener in that room whether I was jumping up and down screaming along to the Luxury Pushers or finding truth in Tod Weidner’s lyrics in a room paying such close attention, you could have heard a pin drop.

I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Mick tell the story of the founding of Canal Street a few times. Once, I even got to sit on a panel with he and Jerry Gillotti about the Dayton music scene, an honor I still question whether I deserved. Mick certainly succeed in his goal of creating a listening room, a place for music to be appreciated without pretense, but I wonder in those early days in 1981, if he knew that he was also creating a family as tight-knit and diverse and downright quirky as anything you’d see in a movie but a thousand times better. This family would celebrate weddings on stage, send some of our best and brightest out into the world with one last show and welcome newcomers from near and far with open arms.

It’s in this spirit that I’ve invited some of my musical family, individuals who I met either directly or indirectly because of Canal Street, to share their thoughts, their memories and to say thank you to Mick for the time and energy he’s given our community. It won’t be forgotten, and things we learned onstage and in the audience will carry on wherever we find ourselves playing or listening.

**UPDATE: an online fund has been set up to help with bills from Mick’s Montgomery’s recent hospital stays. More information on how to donation via the link.

photo by Juliet Fromholt

Eric Cassidy

I played my first Musician’s Co-op, when I was 15 years old. Brian Wells, Thadd Brittain, and I played a bunch of Velvet Underground, Smashing Pumpkins, and Pearl Jam covers. We were probably terrible. Regardless, we were on a real stage, with real lights, PA, sound tech, listening audience…it was unbelievably cool. With King Droopy, Shrug, Human Cannonball, and solo performances, I’ve since been on that stage more times than I can count. KD did the Dayton Band Playoffs a couple of times. We got more votes than we deserved, and got to play with some great bands that blew our minds, and taught us about etiquette and connecting with audiences. When we got knocked out of the competition, we started getting show offers from the guy who counted the ballots. Enter Mick Montgomery.

If you love Canal Street Tavern, you love Mick Montgomery…the man behind the curtain. He has channeled passion, charm, elbow grease, and unrivaled stubbornness into the improbable anachronism that is CST. As a result of this work, he provided the community with an incubator for young performers, a reliable source of gigs for local bands, and intimate access to some of the best acts in the world. I’m very grateful to have been in this time and place to enjoy the spoils of Mick’s labor. I have shared that stage with incredible performers, who have often become incredible friends. I can’t express how much joy CST has brought into my life.

You want to sit 10 feet from Arlo Guthrie? Done.
You want to see Glenn Tilbrook stand on your table with no PA, singing your favorite Squeeze song? Done.
You want to hear Jay Bennett dish about Jeff Tweedy pretending to be sick in the Wilco movie (whether that’s true or not)? Done.
I could name drop all day. Just as special to me are the many weddings, birthday parties, and unforgettable events that I got to see and be a part of. The memory of hearing the words “This is for Gregg Spence” still sends waves of emotion over me.

Mick has also provided a place for like-minded and not-so-like-minded music lovers to get around the normal bar nonsense, and focus on the music. It’s such a great place to be a fan or performer; there are no TVs, blenders, games, or anything else that makes noise. If it’s a quiet performance, loud talking is not tolerated. The patrons enforce the rules as often as the staff. It’s just the right thing to do. Would you have a conversation during a movie? My CST friends replaced most of my school friends. The club is at least partly responsible for my wife and I getting together. Maybe it was the right time. It was certainly the right place. How many happy relationships can draw a path back to this room?

In return for giving us this special place, Mick has received very little. He never made a fortune, sold out, or compromised (much) for anybody. I hope that he feels satisfaction of doing things his way, and the love of an obviously appreciative group of fans and friends. I can’t thank him enough.

photo courtesy of Greg Simerlink/Grog

Greg Simerlink/Grog

All Good Things…

Yeah, I know but still! I for one love change and really am not a fan of tradition, but Canal Street Tavern has been such a part of my life I have a hard time seeing it cease to exist as it has for so very long.

Among some of the most memorable moments for me:
– Playing my first show with The Oxymorons!
– Being the last place I played on stage (11/24/12)
– Having my first wedding & reception there (Mick gave away the bride!)
– Went on the first date there with my current wife
– Playing on stage to bring in the New Year
– Held several benefit shows there for my old zine Mutant Renegade
– Played my first sold out show

I’m sure I’ve played on that stage over 100 times and have seen hundreds of other bands there over the years. I’ve made countless friends with patrons, fans, employees & musicians at Canal Street. I have shared so many wonderful experiences there I cannot think anywhere else can ever replace it.

So, Mick it was great while it lasted. Thank you for doing so much for the Dayton music community. I for one really appreciated everything you did even if I didn’t always say it. Also thank you to all of the wonderful friends who have worked at Canal Street over the years.

R.I.P Canal Street Tavern…

Photo courtesy of Shelly Hulce

Tim Pritchard

Canal Street Tavern is where I cut my teeth as a musician, bought my first (legal) drink, played my first sold out show, and basically came of age. As a kid, it was the only place I wanted to hang out and my folks were gracious enough to make that happen once and a while. I may have even snuck in under the radar from time to time on my own. My teenage band landed a gig there when I was 17 and I accomplished what had perhaps been my most lofty goal to that point of my life.

I could go on and on about all the shows I’ve played and seen there since, but I’ll just mention a few of the moments that I’ll never forget.
-Playing Tod Weidner’s beat-to-hell Takamine for the first time at a Musician’s Co-Op, followed by “guess what I just got to do” type phone call to my best friend who’d moved to Nashville to go to school. We both kind of idolized Shrug at that time.
-Flyaway Minion’s EP release in 2006 to a sold out bar sponsored by Camel (what the fuck?). Crazy night. Incredible.
-Seeing Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson a few years ago. Still perhaps the best performance by a two-piece I’ve ever seen and completely enthralling as Hillman is a person hero of mine.
-Talking to Mick Montgomery for well over an hour, after closing time, about Donavan’s visit to Canal Street.

E. Ryan Roth

My fondest memory of Canal Street

I had been to my first show about a month earlier. I had snuck into a Velour/Shrug show. Shrug was just a 3 piece at the time, but I instantly was a fan. I liked the music, but the lyrics were pure poetry. Such playful use of language used to paint Hemmngway-esque verbal pictures. On my way out, an old hippy approached me. I figured I was busted, but instead he asked me if I liked what I heard. I of course said “yes”. The man then told me if I liked that, then I should tell my parents to bring me back the next week to see a “Songwriters in the Round”. I found a friend who was going the next weekend ( a member of Velour named Patrick Himes) who’s Dad would claim me as his own. The next Sunday I entered the club legit for the first time in my life. The first set of 3 songwriters wasn’t bad. One guy wrote joke songs that were mildly funny, the other two were country guys….not my cup of tea. At that point, I felt like the old hippy had steered me wrong. Then set 2 happened.

photo by Sara Lynne Walsh

The old hippy, now known to me as owner Mick Montgomery, introduced possibly the best set of music I have seen to date….and this includes Radiohead shows. A possible giant named Tod Weidner was to play first. I recognized him from the previous weekend. A quite petite lady sat next to him. Her name was Jayne Sachs. Next to her was a pretty exotic looking lady named Phyllis Turner.

The sounds and words I was exposed to for the next hour rival the thrill of a skydive. Tod played a song called “Drowsy” that instantly forced me to buy his album. Jayne followed with a song called “Waiting”. A beautiful melody and heartbreaking song that forced me to ask to buy her album as well. She gave me both of her CDs for the price of 1 instead. Phyllis lacked song titles that evening, but her voice cut through the other two like ginsu. “Disposable Soul”, “My Problem, “Special Neurotic Boy”, “On the Edge” and more followed. I talked with Tod, possibly the most intimidating experience of my life the same night. He and Mick told me about their musicians co-op on Tuesday nights if I liked what I heard that night. In the years to come I would play a hundred or so times on that stage. Some big shows, some for just a few people, some shows with bands, a ton of shows solo including a few dozen times getting to play a Songwriters in the Round, but like anything else in life, nothing burns brighter than the first time. Thanks to Mick realizing that the 16 year old kid that just snuck into his bar was there for the love of music and not to get drunk, he made a fan for life.

Thank you sir. The universe owes you at least three.

Chad Wells

photo by Ian Bonnett

You hear about those places… Magical musical venues where magical musical things happened – CBGB’s, The Fillmore, The Ritz, The Whisky A Go Go, The Troubador, First Avenue, The Bluebird Cafe, The 40 Watt Club and so many more – some still presenting music several nights a week – many fallen to history. Dayton, Ohio has Canal Street Tavern.

My first time stepping inside that building was around 1992 and I’ve played that wonderful little stage many times and whether the crowd was spilling over onto the stage and into the street or if we just played to a half dozen other singer songwriters at a Musician’s Co-Op, there has always been magic in that room. The historical location is likely beholden to some sort of energetic power spot or maybe it’s just the apparent amount of true love poured into that old wood through the years by Mick Montgomery and the myriad of musical spirits that have drifted up those steps and onto that stage.

There’s something about Canal Street that very few people understand – I had the awakening while attending a show at the Ryman in Nashville – all that old wood and organic material is, nightly, vibrated with the sounds that are pushed through the air and it retains an impression of that energy. Those old church pews and hard wood floor really are haunted by the songs that have been played there. If everything that exists is made of the same subatomic space stuff and the illusion of solidity is really just particles and waves acting and reacting at different frequencies then you have to imagine the intricate patterning inside that structure that we’ve come to know as Canal Street Tavern. Just like the graffiti and stickers that wallpapers the tiny backstage area, the sounds and spirit and love that has been shared and received at that particular longitude and latitude will be forever there. Whether the bank papers state the same name or even if that building eventually falls to the ages and some new, strange creature erupts from that corner… You will always be able to hear – or feel – the music that has been concentrated into that piece of ground. Thank you to Mick Montgomery and the countless staff members who made the room feel like home and kept the music playing.

photo courtesy of Shelly Huce

Tod Weidner

Memories of Canal Street: Can’t choose. Won’t choose. Here are some, though. Meeting and becoming good friends with Peter Mulvey. Iodine, any time they played there. Christopher Corn’s co-op set after Tim Taylor died. The 93 and 95 Playoffs. The Monster Hops. Bill Frisell. Opening for the Aquarium Rescue Unit. Meeting Sharon A. Lane within minutes of walking in there for the first time. Opening for Richard Lloyd and listening to him reminisce about roller skating with Cheetah Chrome to a star-struck me and Jamy Holliday. Bill Kirchen. Opening for Ronnie Dawson. James McMurtry. Filling in as a janitor for a week for Will Dalgard. Going to the Century Bar and helping put in the bench seats along the walls. Hammel On Trial. Brian Cates. Settling up with Mick Montgomery and having him call me an “old rounder” (the highest compliment one can get from him). Songwriters In The Round. Gregg Spence. Hosting Co-op. Flying by the seat of my pants onstage more times than I can count. Being so pissed off at my performance one night that I punched a hole in the dressing room wall (it’s still there- I can show you). Hell, THE DRESSING ROOM WALL (and trying to remember where the perfectly-camouflaged electrical outlet is on it). Meeting girls. Meeting my wife. Weddings. Wakes. Learning how to be a musician and person over the course of 22 years and literally thousands of gigs on that stage.

photo courtesy of Shelly Hulce

Gladgirl Shelly Hulce

I invented myself there, many times over. And I witnessed the same of others.

It was my life in my early 20’s, then I dropped out of the scene to do the pregnancy/parenting thing. When I was released from “baby jail,” I started revisiting my old identity to see if it was in tact. Not long after re-entry, a band I was in entered the band playoffs. One night after a playoff session, Mick pulled me in the office saying, “Good to see you back, kid. You look happy.” I said “Yeah, I guess I’ve come full circle Mick.” Mick, as usual, put things in perspective with one sentence “ Life isn’t one big circle Shell, it’s lots and lots of circles. You have lot’s of circles ahead.” Mick is one of a few “gurus’ in my life. He and the late Greg Savage (Dingleberries founder) have big notches on the timeline of my life.

CST is home base for me. I was there watching the birth of GBV. I was there watching the birth of The Breeders. Had we only known what that would mean to the rest of the world….!

That room was everyone’s living room. The transition is like having your parents move out of your childhood home. I always went there for comfort. I always felt safe, and there was never any trouble. It was my home. Not a lot of people have that luxury in their towns, a safe place you can go and be with your “family”. A very forgiving place where, if you fail, people help you back up. When you succeed, they lift you on their shoulders. This is where we got our news, and where we “made” our news.

Canal Street is a state of mind, a culture. It’s in Dayton’s DNA. (And most of Dayton’s DNA is in there as well.) I witnessed many couple meet there for the first time. I’ve attended weddings there, and witnessed some break-ups and the awkward re-entry after those break-ups. That goes for bands too, not just couples.

From the outside, the place might not look like much, but for those who live and breath Dayton music, it’s romantic and gritty and real. It’s to Dayton what CBGB was to New York. I have many heroes locally, and in my mind they will always be bathed in the red glow of the CST stage. Some have aged and dropped out, others moved on to international fame, some are from the more current circle. I watched my heroes grow up there too: Tod Weidner, Jesse Remnant, Eric Cassidy, Dan Stahl. We, as a family, celebrated the birth of many new voices, and clung to one another as some of our favorites fell silent.

If you’ve ever seen CST in the day time, or with all the lights on, it’s a real shocker. It’s like seeing your favorite performers at the pool or something. It messes with my perception. I like the dreamy mind set it created for me. I got most of my hug therapy there! For me, the most beautiful and iconic piece of Dayton art is the dressing room of CST. The saying “If these walls could talk…” is fitting to say the least.

One personal favorite memory of mine is being in the Playoffs in 2003 ( I could be wrong on the year) .The band I was in, Ruetschley, advanced a few rounds and it was fun. We decided that I would transfer over to synth, and I was scared to death, having never played keys in a band before. So I took clear tape and wrote the chord on the keys and had a cheat sheet for which patch numbers to dial in for which songs. We had in ear monitors too (looking back, that was insane for that stage). So the first night I am to play keys in this band, during Playoffs, I put the monitors in my ears and I could hear my heart racing and every breath I took. This made me even more nervous, like I was ready to walk on the moon or something. Knowing I had all these notes and keys written was my safety net and my only source of comfort…..THEN they turned the house down and the red stage lights on. I couldn’t read a damn thing. I was terrified, but I faked my way through the first song. When it hit me that all the people in front of me were on my side, I was okay.

The biggest surprise to me when it came to playoffs was how supportive the bands were, at least the year I was in it. When we would beat a band in a round, they would rally their fans to come support us, and we did the same when we got beat. It was then that I realized that Mick was a leader in building community.

As an events promoter, Mick taught me a lot too. I cut my teeth there by throwing shows. He knew I was there to learn. He has a lot of grace for people who care to keep learning. Must be the old school teacher in him. I appreciated his love for antiques and whimsical things too. The styles of handwritten signs, the file they are kept in, the boards of THIS WEEK and COMING UP that flank the stage…. I love those. Sharon’s piano, Rev. Cool’s big head, Woody Guthrie big as life, the crows nest with chairs that always ruined your pants, the creaky floor….. I love it all. It’s home.

I love it that I could stand inches away from a guitar player and watch every pedal being used, read every note and setlist they had on the floor and feel the breeze come out of their amps. It’s magic and church and love and sex one song at a time. I can truly say I have had a religious experience there many times over, especially with the Buffalo Killers. Those shows were every bit as Pentecostal as any alter call I experienced as a child raised in the church. The stained glass windows were no accident if you ask me!

photo courtesy of Shelly Hulce

Steven Gullett

November 30th is the last show at Canal Street Tavern. I worked there for 10 years and played onstage in 7 different bands, I grew up in that bar. It will always be a major part of who I am as a person musically and otherwise. I hope it gets a great sendoff. Thanks for everything Mick.

Angelle Haney Gullett

I knew about Canal Street as soon as I was old enough to read. The weekly ad in the newspaper seemed like a window into a rarefied and exotic world where people made lives around the most important thing in the world – music. I used to clip those ads, even though I didn’t know any of the bands, and paste them into a scrap book. It was the world I desperately wanted to be a part of.

When I was in grade school, my friend’s mom was a jazz and blues artist. I thought Sharon Lane was just about the most glamorous, amazing woman I had ever seen, and she worked at Canal Street Tavern.

When I finally got my job at Canal Street, I was neither glamorous nor amazing. I was 19, an unemployed high school drop out, and scared beyond belief because I had no idea what I was going to do with my life.

Canal Street Tavern had all my answers, even if I didn’t know it.

I watched my friends enter, lose, and eventually win the Dayton Band Playoffs. I got my high heels stuck in those hundred-year-old floorboards. I learned how to say no. I learned how to say yes. I met the man who would become my husband and the people who are my lifelong friends. I made the decision to get my GED. I started college. I waited tables, worked the day bar, remembered people by the drinks they ordered and saw hands-down the greatest live music of my entire life, night after night.

And I mean, I saw everything. Because Mick booked live, original music six nights a week, I found myself listening to everything from folk to alt-country to zydeco to Hawiaan slack-key guitar, all against the never-ending thrum of local punk, metal, and rock n’ roll. I only worked there for three years, but I kept coming back to see music, several nights a week, until I finally moved away. When I wanted to make my first movie, of course it was about Canal Street’s Musician’s Co-Op and how special it was.

Today, I live, work and see music in Los Angeles. I would like to say that I didn’t know how special Canal Street, and by extension the Dayton music scene was until I got away, but that would be a lie.

It was obvious to me that I was part of something very special the first time I stepped through those doors. I knew that bands like Iodine and Braniac and Shrug and Real Lulu and The Mystery Addicts were giving me the best nights of my life, even as it was happening.

And I owe that to Mick Montgomery, who always allowed 18 year olds in, because that’s the age when music matters to you so much you can’t survive without it. Who never let a blender, a pool table or a television screen through the door. Who always cared about the music first, the bar second, and the business third. Who made it very clear that, even though I was a cocktail waitress, I did not have to take a drunk’s disrespect, and neither did the people on stage.

Mick’s children are all grown now, and like them, I grew up in Canal Street Tavern. It made me who I am. It showed me what was possible, if people cared enough to make it happen. Whatever happens to the building and the bar, that’s a legacy that will grow and live on.

That’s Mick’s gift to all of us. And I will be forever in his debt.

Angelle Haney Gullett
Canal Street Tavern, Class of ‘94

This is for Mick, Sharon, Steven, Jamy, Amy, Heather, Rob, Cates, Stacy, Melissa, Elizabeth, Katy, Liz, Sandra, Doug, and Kimberly.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGkN2pjKGWw’]

Davis Rogan Band Comes Marching in to Canal Street Ticket Contest

August 12, 2013 By Dayton Most Metro 5 Comments

If you take the enthusiasm and playfulness of early New Orleans rhythm and blues, add to that the cynical wit of Randy Newman, the rock meets jazz sensibilities of early Steely Dan, and the mocking humor that runs through the works of Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, Frank Zappa, and Earl King, you begin to describe the music of “The Real Davis,” Davis Rogan.

Davis Rogan grew up in New Orleans, and even though he can cook a mean gumbo, he doesn’t sweat red beans and rice nor does he indulge in neon red drinks in glasses named for storms. He DJ’ed on both Tulane’s station WTUL and the New Orleans community radio WWOZ, and hustled for gigs in the early 1990s. In his head, he had an idea to start a band with “a blend of hip-hop sensibility and New Orleans brass band with some classic New Orleans funk,” as he said in an Offbeat article in 2002. “That, and a big ass horn section.” That band became the first and foremost funk/rap/New Orleans band, All That. The band was signed to roots music powerhouse Rounder Records and put out two great albums, Eponymous Debut and the Whop Boom Bam.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esw7KyekL5g’]

Later he emerged with a bunch of songs that became his first solo record, The Once and Future D.J. The record was lost to the floodwaters of the Katrina levee failures, but another copy surfaced. And in the first issue that New Orleans music magazine Offbeat put out after the flood, critic John Swenson gave it a deservedly great review. Now here’s the twist in this story. Producer David Simon, head honcho of the rightly revered HBO series The Wire. reads the review and hears the record as he is researching a new series about post-Katrina New Orleans that he is going to pitch to HBO. He loves the record enough to base a character on Davis Rogan. That’s how we get to The Real Davis, in contrast to the “The Cable Davis” played by the great Steve Zahn on Treme.

Davis makes New Orleans tradition true to today, yesterday, and at least two weeks from today. But even if you don’t know that, you’ll still dig the record. It’s got that inimitable, indescribable thing that could be called heart. Or soul.

Davis Rogan performs at Canal Street Tavern on Friday, Aug 16th at 8pm as part of the “NOLA Summer in Dayton” Concert Series sponsored by Abita Brewing Company and presented by Yeah You Right Music Inc. Tickets can be purchased online or by contacting [email protected].

MostMetro.com will be sending a lucky reader and a guest to the show. To register just leave a comment on why you should win the tickets and register below. Winner will be randomly selected this Wed, Aug 1th.

Our contest has ended.

New Orleans Musicians Invade Canal Street Ticket Contest

July 6, 2013 By Dayton Most Metro 6 Comments

This Wed night at Canal Street Tavern it’s gonna sound a whole lot like being in New Orleans. Singer, songwriter, producer and actor Paul Sanchez will be in town for a one night stand. Joining him on stage will be special guest Davis Rogan, from HBO’s Treme.

Paul has released 16 CDs as a solo artist and 11 CDs as a founding member of the New Orleans rock band Cowboy Mouth. For the last few years Paul has been writing, recording and performing a musical
adaptation of a New York Times Best Seller by Dan Baum, Nine Lives.

Primarily a songwriter, Sanchez has written over 200 songs, and has collaborated with Darius Rucker, Hootie and The Blowfish, John Boutte, Galactic, Irma Thomas, Vance DeGeneres, Kevin Griffin of Better Then Ezra, John Thomas Griffith of Cowboy Mouth, Tony Award winning actor Michael Cerveris and Bryan Batt of AMC’s hit television show Mad Men.

Paul Sanchez is part of the “NOLA Summer in Dayton” Concert Series sponsored by Abita Brewing Company and presented by Yeah You Right Music Inc. The 2nd show in the series, on Thurs, July 18th features the funk and blues of Soul Project NOLA and on Fri, Aug 16th Davis Rogan and his band will appear. Tickets to all three Summer Series Concerts may be purchased online or by contacting [email protected]

DaytonMostMetro wants to send a lucky reader and friend to see this show. Just like and share this article and fill out the form below for your chance to win. Winner will be announced Monday night. Good Luck!

Our ticket contest is over. Congratulations to our winner: Stephanie Miller of Vandalia.

New Orleans Music Series Coming To Canal Street Tavern

June 1, 2013 By Dayton Most Metro Leave a Comment

Yeah You Right Music, Inc., along with the Abita Brewing Company is proud to announce their upcoming concert series, NOLA Summer in Dayton. All concerts in the series will be hosted by Canal Street Tavern, a venerated music venue in downtown Dayton and home to great music over the past 30+ years. Other series sponsors include: TASK Hospitality Group/Rue Dumaine and Dayton Most Metro.

The three concert NOLA Summer in Dayton series will begin on Wednesday, July 10 with a return appearance by Paul Sanchez with special guest Davis Rogan. Paul and Davis are two of the best singer/songwriters in New Orleans, and both have had integral roles in the HBO series, Treme.

Thursday, July 18 brings Soul Project NOLA in a return visit to Dayton, and first trip to Canal Street Tavern. Jon Cristian Duque (guitar/vocals) and the myriad incarnations of the band have continued to contribute to the tradition of great New Orleans music bringing their own take on the jazz, funk, blues and soul of the Crescent City.

Closing out the NOLA Summer in Dayton series on Friday, August 16 will be a return visit by Davis Rogan along with his long-time band. Along with Davis’ take on life, you’ll be treated to a great night of stories and songs that you’ll remember long after the end of the evening.

Tom Perlic, President of Yeah You Right Music, Inc. stated, “I’m thrilled to bring all of these wonderful NOLA musicians back to Dayton, and especially excited to partner with Canal Street Tavern for all of the shows. Abita Brewing Company is a great addition as a sponsor, too, and we’ll be highlighting some great Abita beers for each of the concerts.”

Tickets are available on-line through www.yeahyourightmusic.com, and are $12 in advance, $20 for reserved seating, and $15 for purchase on the day of each show. Each show will start at 8pm. Purchase tickets for all 3 shows at once for extra savings. You may also purchase tickets at Canal Street Tavern, Rue Dumaine Restaurant, Omega Records, and Fifth Street Wine and Deli.

Yeah You Right Music, Inc. was incorporated in 2011 in Dayton to “Bring the best of New Orleans to YOUR town!“ Our goal is to bring great New Orleans/Louisiana (NOLA) artists to Dayton and the Midwest and create new markets for those artists while building audiences for these talented NOLA musicians throughout the region.

Two More Venues To Begin Your Open Mic Night Journey: Canal Street Tavern and Tumbleweed Connection

March 14, 2013 By Dayton Most Metro 1 Comment

Back in the beginning of January, I wrote about my experiences diving into the world of open mic nights. I had been going around the Dayton area scoping out the hidden gems that are playing in town. At these open mic nights, I have noticed some great music being played by artists and bands that have been playing for some time; they are just fine-tuning their music. I have also seen music played by people who are just starting to get their feet on stage. I wrote about the RnR PlayDate, which is on Sundays at One Eyed Jacks in Fairborn. I also talked about the open mic night that is held on Wednesdays at South Park Tavern on Wayne Avenue in Dayton. There are open mic nights that take place at Blind Bob’s Bar and Trolley Stop, both located at the Oregon District. These four events have given many people opportunities to highlight playing music as a way to let yourself get lost in playing, or a chance to start your journey into the music scene in town. However, there are a couple more weekly open mic events that need to be spotlit as well.

Tuesday nights are owned by The Musicians Co-Op, which is held at Canal Street Tavern. To me and many others, Canal Street is a local crown jewel. I look at Canal Street as Dayton’s version of the legendary CBGB, a concert venue Manhattan that was around from 1973 to 2006. The building hosted great acts from Blondie to The B-52’s to The Ramones. Canal Street, like CBGB, is a place that purely and strictly dedicated to music. The lights are always low, giving the venue a laid-back, intimate atmosphere. The walls are bursting with stories of the music that has been played throughout the years. The unpolished wooden floors have that vintage look and sound to them that others only dare to try to replicate. The Musicians Co-Op is one of the oldest open mics in town, giving many the opportunity to chance to show their talent.

Victoria Baumgardner onstage at Canal Street Tavern

On a recent blisteringly cold Tuesday night, I ventured to the hollow grounds of Canal Street to witness the talent taking the stage that evening. The whole evening felt like an episode of ‘Storytellers’, with each act telling the stories behind their music. Each performer poured emotion into each note that they played. The first act I saw was Kettering native and teacher Colleen Badenhop. Her piano play was airy and beautiful, with an old soul flowing from the keys. The lyrics were about hardships. It was emotional to sit there and hear lyrics of broken hearts, and hardships that people face. Badenhop even did a stunning version of Extreme’s “More Than Words”. The next act was the host of the night E. Ryan Roth. Roth’s singing was very Alice In Chain’s Layne Staley-dense, moody vocals with haunting harmonies. He had a song that dove into the addiction of caffeine that was simply lasting. The music had a psychedelic echo to it. It was a performance that will keep me thinking about it for a while. The next performance was from the petite, Southern belle Victoria Bumgardner. She started to change the pace of the evening with her folk/country hymns that got the crowd participating throughout her set, singing classic songs ‘Evangeline’, ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’ and ‘Ophelia’. Bumgardener’s vocals were very Loretta Lynn-like. Amazingly talented, Bumgardner played bigger than her height reaches (which isn’t even close to 5 feet). She gave the crowd the chance to see her impeccable personality, which is playful, open and free. The last performer that I saw at the Co-Op was Trey Stone. Stone brought a bassist and drummer for his set, which was different from what everyone else was doing. He mentioned that he has been currently working on an album (a Kickstarter project that met its goal) for the past 6 months. He played some songs from the album, which had a jazz feel to them. The crowd was glued to Stone’s band- with the fierce piano play, the double bass being strummed with looseness, and the snare drum and cymbals adding a touch of slickness. Fans of Ben Folds Five would have enjoyed this performance. After the set from Stone, I can’t wait to see how the finished album will sound.

Performers at the Tumbleweed Connection’s Open Mic Night

Another great open mic that is starting to find its footing in the Dayton area is happening at Tumbleweed Connection in the Oregon District. Tumbleweed Connection’s bar situated in the middle of our building and there is another bar upstairs on the balcony that looks over 5th Street and all its beautifulness. The structure of the building is very much has a resemblance of one of the fantastic venues that wait on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Tumbleweed Connection just adds another flavor to the Oregon District.

On Wednesday nights, Tumbleweed Connection, along with hosts Barefoot Dan and Dana Farley, gives people the opportunity to come up the stage and grace everyone with their musical abilities. Dan and Dana provide drums and a bass. The hosts provide a guitar amp. All you have to do is come to the venue and play. Tumbleweed Connection is a great place to play for any music genre. The bar patrons always give their undivided attention and will give support for all performers. You never know who will be coming to this open mic. When the musical Shrek was in town recently, some of the musicians from the show came and played a little, and hung out with everyone.

The Musicians Co-Op at Canal Street and Tumbleweed Connection are just two more open mics that you can expand your desire to play music to a crowd if you are beginning, or for the veteran musicians a chance to get out in town and continue perfected their craft. No matter which one you go to, just remember one thing-have fun.

For a list of all upcoming Open Mic Nights in Dayton, just click the link.

2013 Dayton Does Dayton: 5 Bands To Watch For

February 1, 2013 By Dayton Most Metro 1 Comment

Of all the concerts and shows that people have attended at time or another, there has usually been a cover a song that the act performs. The artist or band will put their spin on it, either by playing a different riff on the guitar, or by singing it a different way. A lot of artists will even go as far as recording the cover and releasing their version. It’s the sincerest form of flattery to be able to have people care that much about the original artist/band’s song to go on stage and perform it live to an audience.

One of Dayton’s rising events focuses primary on this concept, and presents bands from all over town and come play live. The event is called Dayton Does Dayton, and the two day event will be going on this weekend, Friday and Saturday at the legendary Canal Street Tavern. The event will be entering its third year by local promoter Louie Wood Jr. Each band will perform songs from Dayton bands past and present, along with their own material. With over 25 local bands scheduled to take the stage over 2 days, it would be difficult for most to see all every single one. Here are 5 bands that you should at least get a chance to check out.

City of Kings

City of Kings is an up and coming band that you should be keeping your eyes on. The 5 piece group got their start in the small town of Marion, Ohio. Dalton Sipes, Matt Woodrum, Drew Mosley, and Kevin Hardy all played in different groups in town, playing in battle of the bands shows. Eventually the guys are synched up and soon realized that their small town wasn’t going to be able to give them the chance to showcase their talent. So, the guys all packed up and moved to Dayton. They met lead singer Jake Rose at a wedding of one of the band member’s family. The group’s unreal psychedelic sound mixed with garage rock flair is unreal, and the lyrics to the songs are simply mystifying. City of Kings is a tour de force that is only slated to become stronger over time. Be prepared to fall into a trance when listening to these guys. Their debut album, The Foundation is simply a music lover’s delight.

Jah Soul

Reggae is extremely popular throughout the world, with the great Bob Marley giving us music that has become a staple of our lives. The up-tempo, funky beats along with the loose play of the guitar makes anyone and everyone stand up and just to become unrestricting and free from all the problems that they have. It’s all about having fun with reggae music, we have a band that offers it-Jah Soul. With their combination of not only reggae, but soul, funk and disco, Jah Soul will be supplying the good times with their music. The eight member band gets the party going and has the positivity flood the club in the only way the can. Jah Soul will be bringing a different flair to the weekend that will be anything but boring.

The New Old-Fashioned

The Midwest is considered to many to be viewed as a hardworking, blue collar area of the United States. The New Old-Fashioned conveys that feeling in their music. With the influences of Tom Petty and The Old 97s, The New Old-Fashioned is slowly building a rapport with their fans with incorporating rock and roll with country music. The lyrics of the band represent the life of living in the lush, beautiful Americana land. When listening to the band, you instantly notice the band’s outstanding harmonies. The New-Old Fashioned recently released their self-titled debut in 2012. If you haven’t had the pleasure of seeing The New Old-Fashioned, do yourself a favor and go see them live this weekend.

Cinder Home

If you have ever listened to Old Crow Medicine Show, Mumford and Sons, and Fleet Foxes know that each of these bands have a folk sound that stands about apart from most. These bands have seen their popularity rise as of yet because of the low-key vibe and beautiful instrumental play. Cinder Home belongs with these bands in the picture as well. The band began with two of the band members hanging around playing music. They both realized that they had something amazing, and decided to add a couple of members. Cinder Home not only brings a new age folk sound, but also add elements of bluegrass roots. The passion of the band playing live is nothing but astonishing. The crowds that will fill Canal Street are going to be treated to a band that will bring they got, and will without question give everyone something to talk about for days to come after their set.

William The Accountant

William The Accountant’s sound is anything but ordinary, and that is why they are a band that can’t be missed. The band brings all types of instruments into their music, including a didgeridoo. Don’t be surprised if William The Accountant brings a saxophone and some ukulele to their shows. As far as their sound?! Try one moment hearing alternative rock to jazz to Caribbean music. Each of their songs brings an emotional aspect to the front. Don’t be shocked if the band’s performance stretches beyond the five members.

Dayton Does Dayton will be celebrating its third this year with no plans of stopping. It has become yet another reason to celebrate the amazing music that continues to be played each and every night. To check out these bands, and to see the others lined up, Dayton Does Dayton will taking place tonight and tomorrow night, starting at 7pm at the hollow grounds of the great Canal Street Tavern.

Buffalo Killers Celebrating Dig Sow Love Grow, Looking Ahead to the Fall

August 10, 2012 By Juliet Fromholt 1 Comment

A little over a year ago the Buffalo Killers were celebrating the release of their third full-length album, simply titled “3.” But the three piece band hasn’t let the last 12 months go by quietly. In addition to a steady schedule of touring, the Buffalo Killers spent some time at Candyland Studios in Cincinnati working with engineer Mike Montgomery on what would become their fourth full-length.

Dig Sow Love Grow was released nationally on Tuesday via Alive Records and is available at local record stores and digitally. The Buffalo Killers will celebrate the release locally with a show this Saturday (August 11^th) at Canal Street Tavern. Joining them onstage is Goodbye, a new band featuring M Ross Perkins, Ian Kaplan, Nick Eddy and Chris Green.

Following Saturday’s show, the Buffalo Killers will begin touring in the support of the album. Your next local opportunity to see them live will be at the Downtown Dayton Revival Music Festival in September. The festival is two days and features 3 stages with over 30 bands including Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Rusted Root, Burnt Sugar and many more. The Buffalo Killers are scheduled to perform on Sunday, September 9^th at 4:45pm on the Monster Stage.

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(“Circle Day” – from the Buffalo Killers “3” album)

Guggenheim Grotto Comes to Canal Street Tavern

April 11, 2012 By Juliet Fromholt Leave a Comment

The Guggenheim Grotto (Photo by Deborah Lopez)

Originally compared with Simon & Garfunkle, Dublin alt-folk duo The Guggenheim Grotto has been hard at work prepping a new album while touring in support of their third album, The Universe Is Laughing. The album was largely written and recorded in hotel rooms and living rooms while the duo toured the United States. They’ve been praised by NPR’s World Cafe and KCRW for their folk tunes mixed with a bit of electro-pop.

You can see Guggenheim Grotto tomorrow night (April 12th) at Canal Street Tavern along with Dayton’s own BJSR. This will be BJSR’s last local show until August as Ben Rivet is heading out on the road in promotion of his Go W/The Flow project with local yoga instructor Tori Reynolds.

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A Quick Taste of Dayton Does Dayton

February 13, 2012 By Dayton Most Metro Leave a Comment

Canal Street Tavern is well known in the Dayton music scene for its great sound, up-close atmosphere, and excellent shows. Nearly every night, one can find all kinds of local acts putting on a show on the Tavern’s stage. Outside of regular shows, Canal Street also enjoys putting on different kinds of specialty shows, such as the well-known Dayton Band Playoffs. One of these shows took to the stage this past weekend, stretching over two evenings: Dayton Does Dayton.

Wheels performing at Dayton Does Dayton (photo by Jay Madewell)

Only in its second year, Dayton Does Dayton invites a number of local bands from many different genres to take to the stage and, alongside their own songs, cover tracks from other local bands. None of the bands that play the show are “cover bands” per se, they’re just there to put their own spin on other local acts that they enjoy, that have influenced them, or any other reason at all.

The sheer number of bands interested in the show this year caused the event to be spread out across a full weekend…or rather, the important part of the weekend (Friday and Saturday). The great thing is that this much time allows more bands to come out and play. The difficult thing is that it causes busy people (such as myself) to only be able to catch a part of the entire show. As excited as I was for the show, it landed on a terrible weekend for me, so I was only able to see the first few bands on Saturday night. So, rather than a whole review, here is just a taste of what you may have missed this past weekend.

I arrived much too early for the show on Saturday night, so I was one of the first ones in the door. This gave me a chance to chat quickly with one of the staff at Canal Street, who told me that nearly 280 people came in for the show the night before. Considering the size of the venue, this is a rather fantastic number, and soon enough, people began flooding through the door and filling the floor. By the time the first band went on, Canal Street was nearly standing room only.

The first to play this evening, out of Yellow Springs, was the band Wheels. A five-piece mostly-acoustic act, Wheels decided to focus on covering one specific band this evening alongside their own songs. Their band of choice, also out of Yellow Springs, was Sport Fishing USA, whose tracks they stripped down to fit the style they were playing: acoustic guitars, light percussion, mandolin, and upright bass. The instruments, though, played as more of background noise to the vocals, the focus of the band. The four-part harmonies were the star of the show, filling out the sound left behind by the sparse instrumentation.

Good English performing at Dayton Does Dayton (photo by Jay Madewell)

The second band of the evening, straight out of Dayton itself, was Charge Scenic. This band’s sound was a complete turn-around from Wheels’ acoustic style: alternative rock with some electronic and synth elements. That, though, can only describe their original songs. The covers that Charge Scenic chose ran through a number of other genres, touching on pop rock and a bit of funk. They chose to cover a number of different bands: Guided by Voices, Zapp and Roger, and The Pure Plastic Tree. Throughout their set, Charge Scenic seemed to have a strong focus on the rhythm section, with the bass holding much of the band together, and the drummer getting a few solos between songs.

Up next, and unfortunately the last band I got to see, was Good English. This all-female, mostly-siblings band out of Oakwood has a chord- and riff-driven rock sound, with a feel similar to Foo Fighters. Good English chose to cover tracks close to their own sound by two bands: The Breeders and Southeast Engine. Almost every member of the band played multiple instruments, which each song prompting a stage switch. All around, these girls pulled together a number of basic melodies into some supremely catchy tracks.

The rest of the evening, and the night before, had sets from both well-known and less-well-known acts, including Gathering Mercury, Red Hot Rebellion, Dark Backward, and My Latex Brain. This is one of those times where I’m kicking myself for missing out on so many acts, but sometimes there’s not much that can be done! To those that went out to the show for one or both nights, I’m sure you could fill in some blanks for us! Feel free to leave opinions of the show and/or bands in the comments section. To those that didn’t make it out, hopefully this shows you what you missed and you’ll be able to catch Dayton Does Dayton the next time it comes to town!