Flanfire

Bonnie and Blythe made their debut at MoMo's tonight - in a 2-hour set before giving way to Warren Hood and his "hoodlums." Smart women, they took full advantage of the fact that Eddie Warren was at the club getting organized for his midnight show and live recording and persuaded him to join them on stage to play some tasteful lead guitar licks. Later, they got extra help from a bass player friend who jumped on stage for two of their songs.

Miss Bonnie Whitmore had been in New York City (playing at the legendary Bitter End and other such stuff) for several weeks, but the dynamic duo had already played one gig (at Freddie's) earlier in the day. The set started slowly, or rather, routinely, with well-known B&B fare (Jamie Blythe's "The Next Lonely Love Song" and Bonnie's "Girl of Seventeen" wrapped around their sexy version of Jenny Reynolds' "Was It You?" These women are both songwriters - but their forte is their powerful voices and the harmonies they are so good at.

That's precisely why the energy level jumped way up when Jamie reached back and laid down her rendition of the classic, "Stormy Monday," and Bonnie followed with "Summertime." Then it was "Leaving on a Jet Plane" and the Jamie original "Fireflies," and by that time the audience was wide awake and alert. Better yet, the crowd had about doubled at that very moment. Both women took on a Patti Griffin tune, each did another original or two, and it was clear that this debut would be a building block for future shows at which the gals promise to stretch themselves every week.

MoMo's is that kind of club - you just don't do your pat standard set and leave happy. Something about the room forces musicians to reach back and let it go and in the process grow out of their old clothes into brand new renditions of themselves. Don't be surprised if "special guests," both invited and drop-in, show up on upcoming Sundays - that's what makes MoMo's the kind of club it is (and of course there are other Austin venues equally known for the unexpected, too - it's what makes Austin the live music capital).

Saturday night we were over at a private party held to welcome Canadian singer-songwriter Heidi Little to Austin. Well, her aged vehicle had broken down here, and strangers (now good friends) took her in - along with dog and son - and got their own huge blessings in return. Long story short - we ran into this tribe at the grand opening of a new strip center in nosebleed country (MOPAC and Gracy Farms at Burnet) while listening to Chelle Murray's band and scarfing Mangia pizza and Ben and Jerry's ice cream and other goodies.

Heidi was joined on stage during the evening by four guy singer-songwriters - Jimmie Joe who runs the stage at the farmer's market on Saturdays, Steve Syxx, Ray O'Hara, and the amazing (Michael John) Jackson, who had already done a set at Alice's Restaurant on what turned out to be the hottest day of the year so far. The makeshift stage was set up on a hillside on the property (you have to cross a creek to get there, and with the fullish moon it was like Kerrville without the drive but with amenities and an outdoor pool), and even after the officer came and the sound system was turned off the music was flowing through the night air into people's listening ears.

Jackson sat in a chair with folks leaning out of their seats to catch his every word, and he auditioned several songs from his forthcoming CD, "Grow Up To Be a Childhood Genius" plus the title track of his earlier CD, "Changes." The guy is Austin's version of Bob Dylan when he sings solo - both in the quality of his voice and the poetry of his lyrics. But Jackson's lyrics typically lift us and stretch us into looking in the mirror at ourselves and how we deal with our day to day encounters with others, while Dylan's focus at the time was typically more societal. Of course, he is also a better guitarist than the legend and has less hair.

Lyrics include "Blind - like a cat who's lost his eyes, like a bat that flies, like you and I," from a song that speaks of a relationship in which the author was "believing you would choose to be mine - in time." In another song, Jackson makes a tough commitment - "I have to clean my conscience like it's never been stained, Learn to trust again like I've never been betrayed, And my my dues no matter the cost so I can love you like I've never lost." And it's like that song after song - that is, unless Jackson is reaching into the cavernous vault of R&B and Rolling Stones covers he does so well and makes us smile and relax.

Heidi, now that's a different story. Like her Saskatchewan predecessor Joni Mitchell (in more ways than one), the tallish Ms. Little has a voice and her own poetry that gets people hooked on her music. Her own mission statement is simply "to promote beauty, love and truth to the masses," and she is systematically going about doing just that. Heidi had hoped to have copies of her brand-new CD, "Dreams of Grandeur" available for the show, but it could be that border guards held up the shipment just as they have held up Heidi (once locking her in a cage and her son in a separate cage for hours) on her way to gigs in the US and Mexico (including at Nashville's fabled Blue Bird Cafe).

Heidi will be playing soon at the Nashville Songwriters Festival, and her recording of the Judy Collins penned, Joni Mitchell hit "Both Sides Now," will be featured on a Saskatchewan Centennial celebration release later this year. This ambitious, lovely woman is also putting together a band here in Austin with plans to go on the road later this year with even newer music. Well, what else would one choose to do after landing here with a broken-down RV and meeting people who are making her feel super welcome and loved? Check out her earlier music at her website ' www.heidilittle.com ' and keep an eye out for her upcoming shows.

O'Hara's new CD is 45 South, on which he has help from the likes of Jimmy LaFave and Will Landin, Rachel Loy, Chris Maresh, and many others, is already getting airplay all over Europe. The Chicaco boy turned front man for jamband the Orange Hunters is putting out rooks rock that reminds one of the Jayhawks and Wilco at times. He's opening for the South Austin Jug Band at Threadgill's on June 18 and following Bob Schneider at the Saxon Pub on June 27 before leaving for a European tour to avoid the hot hot summer.

So what if it was hot during the day? After the sun went down, it cooled off a little, and those who had braved the heat got huge rewards - and a lot of love. That's Austin for you.