While most of us are busy trying to come to terms with a world without Dolly Parton, a world without Tim Curry, great music continues. Last night at the Maui Sugar Mill Saloon, Karman Jeanne hosted her Deep Valley Roots music series, the night including performances by Buddy Greenbloom & Friends, Zachary Ross, Karman Jeanne And The Fish, Ted Russell Kamp, and RJ Chesney. Quite a lineup, right? And, yes, there were a couple of tributes to Dolly Parton over the course of the night.
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| Buddy Greenbloom & Friends |
The night started with a set by Buddy Greenbloom & Friends, who opened with "Rodeo Grounds," delivering some wonderful old-time sounds. There was an especially nice lead on fiddle by Andrew Frankel. That was followed by "Whiskey And Tears" and then a cover of Merle Haggard's "Mama Tried," Buddy Greenbloom giving us a good rendition. Andrew Frankel provided another wonderful fiddle lead on "(Better Off) I Remember Those Times." "
I remember when the world was mine/I could play in the street and not get a fine." Afterward, Buddy told the crowd, "
That was my first single I recorded," adding that it was recorded here in Los Angeles. And he mentioned his vinyl release. His record release party is tonight, at Desert 5 Spot in Hollywood. His set also included "Wild Woman Of The West," a cover of Faron Young's "Alone With You" and "Gothic Cowboy."
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| Zachary Ross |
Zachary Ross was up next, performing solo. This was a treat. I'd seen him play with Ted Russell Kamp, with Amilia K. Spicer, with others (and of course you know him as a member of Rose's Pawn Shop), but never solo, playing his own material. "
It's been a long time since I've been playing my own stuff," he mentioned at the start of his set. He introduced the first song as a "
story that takes place in the middle of nowhere, Kansas." Interestingly, there was a subtle shift from the first song's introduction into the body of the song, as that first number was delivered as spoken word. He followed that with a murder ballad, which he described as really being about missing his wife when she's on tour. "
But I disguised it as a murder ballad," he said. The whole set was excellent, captivating, but for me the highlight was the song about a friend who had died. It was a compelling song, one that was also about regrets. Even the song's introduction was heartbreaking. At the end of it, he mentioned that he'd never performed the song in public before. That was followed by a breakup song, the first of two, in which he sang, "
Why don't you let me let you down easy." The second breakup song was from the woman's perspective, and it featured some great guitar work. That was followed by "Kiss Your Blues Away," a cool song with a strong vocal performance, and featuring some more good stuff on guitar. Ted Russell Kamp joined him on bass for the final song of the set, a cover of "Rainy Night In Georgia," Zachary again delivering excellent work on guitar.
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| Karman Jeanne And The Fish |
Karman Jeanne And The Fish took the stage just after 9:30 p.m., joined by Ally Corbett on fiddle. This was the first time Ally had performed with the duo, but no one would have guessed that had Karman not revealed it, for she sounded right at home with them. They opened with "Free Rocks For Sale," which featured some nice work on fiddle and some especially good vocals. That was followed by a beautiful rendition of "Strange Time," the violin sounding perfect, and Karman playing a couple of percussion instruments. A highlight of the set. Ally then left the stage, and the duo performed "Tell Me Tomorrow," the song featuring some nice harmonies. The line "
Only gravity could make us stay" grabs me every time. For anyone outside of Los Angeles, we've been experiencing a heat wave for more than a month. It's not really a wave at this point, though that word is still being used by certain people. In introducing "Come October," Karman asked the crowd who else was looking forward to the cooler weather, when folks can wear sweaters. It seems like a dream at this point. After "Come October," Ted Russell Kamp joined the duo for the rest of the set, starting with "Talking About You" and then a fun rendition of The Everly Brothers' "Gone, Gone, Gone," on which he delivered some nice stuff on bass. Ally Corbett rejoined the group on violin for "Empty Bed," a song featuring a particularly good vocal performance. "
I never said I was an angel/And I meant the words I said." This was another of the set's highlights. Ally left the stage again, and the duo wrapped up the set with "What If I Said" and a wonderful rendition of "Take."
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| Ted Russell Kamp |
"
We lost one of the greats," Ted Russell Kamp said as he began his set. I was surprised we had gone that far into the night before someone mentioned Dolly Parton. He kicked off the set with a passionate rendition of her "Old Flames Can't Hold A Candle To You." Her light is going to be missed, no question about it, but it felt good hearing a song of hers. Ted played it solo on acoustic guitar. He followed that with a delicious rendition of his own "Hobo Nickel," and then "This Old Guitar," that one featuring an especially strong vocal performance. He then switched from guitar to bass for "Hangin' On Blues," a song from his 2024 album
California Son. And when he sang "
Trying to make sense of it all," he spoke for all of us. Is there any sense to be made of the world today? Well, that delicious work on bass made plenty of sense to us. He then dedicated "Only A Broken Heart" to "
all of my musical friends here." That one too was performed solo on bass. Zachary Ross joined him on acoustic guitar for "Right Down To The Wire," and everything was feeling just right. He stayed for the rest of the set, and Ally Corbett joined Ted also for a really nice rendition of "Path Of Least Resistance." Zachary delivered a good lead on guitar, which was followed by some sweet work on violin. Ted sang just a bit of "Islands In The Stream," which was a big hit for Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in 1983, before he delivered a cool rendition of "Eye On The Horizon." He wrapped up the set with "The Good Part," a fun number. For this one, not only did Zachary Ross and Ally Corbett join him, but also Karman Jeanne on backing vocals. "
The best is yet to come," Ted sang, and we felt some of that optimism. There was some magic there, to be sure, and the song became a delicious jam.
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| RJ Chesney |
RJ Chesney closed out the night, joined on his set by Zachary Ross on acoustic guitar and Ted Russell Kamp on bass. His short set focused on music from his upcoming release,
A Southern Man, and specifically on songs he wrote with Zachary Ross. He kicked the set off with the album's lead track, "Unforgiving Heart," Zachary delivering a nice lead on guitar. After that song, RJ Chesney mentioned the new album coming out in September, and gave us a really good rendition of "Afraid Of The Ball." In introducing "My Heart Is My Home," RJ Chesney mentioned it was based on a poem written before he became a singer/songwriter. And what a beautiful rendition! It was a highlight of the night. That was followed by an excellent rendition of the album's title track, "A Southern Man." Ally Corbett joined him on violin partway through, adding to the song's great appeal. And she stayed for the final song of the set, the final song of the night, Dolly Parton's "Coat Of Many Colors." RJ said that it was the type of song that made him want to become a songwriter. It was a perfect way to wrap up a great night of music. The show ended just after midnight.
Maui Sugar Mill Saloon is located at 18389 Ventura Blvd. in Tarzana, California. The Deep Valley Roots music series is held there on the fourth Wednesday of every month.
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