Flanfire

Did I ever mention my love for track and field? I spent Friday morning in the rain and Saturday afternoon in high sunshine at the Texas Relays, watching speedsters from LSU and Texas dominate in the university division and a few girls from California dominate in the high school division. I heartily endorse track and field as a great enterprise, and recommend to those who love the sport to but a ticket or two for the NCAA outdoor championships that will be here in Austin in June.

On Sunday, Nancy and I trotted down to Threadgill's for the Women in Rhythm concert that was a benefit for KOOP radio and the local food bank. The sponsors saved the best for first - as the show opened with blues belter DeDe Priest and her Altar Boyz band - featuring Leland Parks on bass. Folks - if you have not seen this woman who hails from Dallas but now lives and works in Austin - waste not a single moment before you find her next gig! She sang everything from a gospel tune or two to Janis Joplin with a zest that we have rarely seen even here in the Live Music Capital. DeDe also came highly recommended by our cruise mates Peggy and Mary katherine (the Lakeway lionesses) and by show headliner Miss Lavelle White - who was no slouch during her hot hot set that was backed by the Imperial Golden Crown Harmonizers (Papa Mali, Gurf Morlix, Sarah Brown, Nick Connelly, and Paul Bhudda Mills).

Both these women have awesome CD's for sale - and my wife now has them at her office along with her brand new CD from Floramay Holliday (another of the afternoon performers, along with fellow South Austin Soul Sister Shelley King). In fafact Nancy bought a CD player for her office just to hear Floramay's record when she needs a pick-me-up. We also stuck around to hear sets from Joanna Ramirez (with her new singing partner and slide guitarist Will Indian), super slide guitarist Donna Lynn Kay, and the boisterous Bonny Holmes, who was backed by a band featuring Eric Hisaw on guitar.

Later in the evening there were to be sets by Jane Bond and Sarah Brown (her Queen Trisquit Medicine Show one-woman band), but we had to go - and for all we know the rains may not have been favorable to performances. One not so great note was that this was a benefit for KOOP - and I had listened to KOOP for half an hour that morning and heard not a single promo for the show - which could have been better attended than it was. Still, the crowd that did gather got to dance and sing along and have a great time. But there should have been more people - even though it was also the day that Austin hosted a Cajun music show, an art festival featuring great performers, a major benefit concert on Town Lake, and a fabulous songwriter showcase at Ginger Leigh's LOVE venue - and more still. Why would anyone who is a music lover not want to live in Austin?

On Monday night, we met the kids at Artz and got to hear another wonderful set from Sarah Elizabeth Campbell and the Banned -- and I got to ask the "Banned" about the "banned CD", ads for which keep slipping by my e-mail spam detector and which I seriously doubt are related to Sarah's music. I urged them to sue - in hopes that these intruders into my life (the banned CD promoters) will be socked for a big fine for copyright infractions.