Photo by Bob Block
The summer 2015 I moved my sewing shop from my home to Monterey Court on Miracle Mile in Tucson, Arizona. I was also still working at Arizona Department of Public Safety. It was a few months of driving from Casa Grande to 19th Ave and Encanto to the Phoenix DPS compound for work, then heading back to my home to eat, change clothes and head to Tucson to open my shop for the evening, that I had to make a decision as to whether I was going to keep working in two places, or pick one. I had signed a lease at Monterey Court and really wanted to sew full time, so, the “Monty” won out.
Monterey Court is a 1938 motor court that has been vocationally rehabilitated by Greg Haver and Kelly McClear into a concert venue with dining and music six nights a week. All of those cozy little casitas where you and your family would have stayed while visiting Tucson, and probably Tucson Rodeo, are now artisan galleries.
Early in 2016 I noticed that there was not much going on in the courtyard on Sunday mornings. Weekdays, a lot of folks came for lunch and the courtyard was comfortably busy. But, Sundays were quiet until the evening concerts. So, I asked Greg what he thought about starting a Sunday Brunch and Music series and he was all in.
We started right away, Greg creating his brunch menu and me inviting local and some touring artists to participate. Lots of folks were eager to get in the weekly lineup. The plan of action was that I would open the show, allowing that initial rattle and clatter of orders taken and delivered to diminish before the guest artist took the stage. We swapped out back to back forty fine minute sets, so the music never stopped for three hours. Brunch and Music became the Sunday morning destination for people near and far, often local performers coming out to enjoy getting to hear their friends play before heading off to their own gigs later that day.
Some of the touring artists were Bernice Lewis, Keeter Stewart, Steve Spurgin, Silver Screen Cowboys, Journey West and Sentimental Journey, Mary Kaye Holt, Stewart MacDougall and Myran Shozz. Local artists were Ted Ramirez, Ismael Barajas, Joel Eliot, Dan McCorison, Lee Robert, Mae Camp, Way Out West, and I know I am forgetting some names here, so if you were there, remind me who I have missed.
Joel Eliot and myself at Sunday Brunch and Music. Photographer unknown
Especially enjoyable was pulling a band member away from their group and letting them fly free. Brian Fate, Don Armstrong from The Whiskeypalians, Earl Edmonson from Titan Valley Warheads, Peter McGlaughlin from The Sonoran Dogs. Every month that had four Sundays, Virginia Cannon brought her youth in training out to show us their skills, and it was always fun to see how the kids had grown those performance skills.
The photo above is Peter and I on the Sunday he performed for brunch. While we were setting up the stage, we stepped together for a moment to discuss the game plan and suddenly we heard from the already arriving audience, “Look over here!” “Hey, look over here!”
There were so many people trying to get photos, I looked at Peter and said, “Where do we look first?”
He put his arm across my shoulder and said, “Okay, look left.” Click, click, click. “Now look right.” We were both laughing and so were the photographers.
After I played the first set and Peter was walking up to get on stage, he stopped me and said, “You were telling stories about your songs. Can I do that, too?”
“That’s exactly why I invited you, Peter. You tell all the stories you want.”
What a show that was! To get to hear directly from this consummate songwriter the stories behind his songs.
I’m telling you this because Peter is performing solo at the Arizona Folklore Preserve on December 6th and 7th, and you will not want to miss him. If you have not been to the preserve, it is a small room holding about fifty people. So, this is a house concert atmosphere, and the perfect place to see Peter solo. Tickets are $10 to $20 and you need to secure them right away. Visit the Arizona Folklore Preserve website to do that.
Where to find me
Thursday, November 20th at Monterey Court, 505 W Miracle Mile, Tucson for Songwriter Central hosted by Jonathan Frahm. I will be in the first round, and Syndenn Sweet is also in the first round. So, if you have heard her amazing harmony vocals on my Tall Tree album, you will get to hear them live this Thursday night.
Saturday, November 22nd I am at the Laveen Folk Festival on the Hidden Hollow Stage at 10am. The Laveen Folk Festival runs from 9am to 6pm with many stages and many performers to see and hear, and is located at 2800 W Dobbins Road, Laveen, AZ 85339. They also have a Facebook page with lots of information and a performer schedule.
Sunday, November 23rd, I am back at Monterey Court in Tucson for a pop up booth for my book, Autumn’s On Its Way, and then after the Sunday Brunch, I present a Meet the Author session where I perform the songs and poem from the book, read a short portion of the book for you and answer any questions you have about the process of writing Autumn’s On Its Way. Of course, copies of the book and the music will be available for sale any place you find me.
I am looking forward to seeing you soon somewhere, and until then, may you and yours bless and be blessed,
Nancy