Nothin' But Trouble: Press

LIFE & STYLE
SEPTEMBER 27, 2008
Hail to the Candidates
The presidential election has inspired an outpouring of original songs, from calypso to country music.

By JOHN JURGENSEN
The Wall Street Journal

While many election officials expect voters to turn out in record numbers this November, Americans have already produced many recorded numbers about the candidates.

The 2008 presidential campaign has generated a range of original songs, from a country paean to John McCain to a bluesy tribute to Joe Biden. The soundtrack to the race includes songs that are celebratory or satirical, by amateurs or high-profile professionals, including the Obama-baiting "He Will Barack You" ("You think you're an ace, you got no case") and "I Picked a Girl," which borrows a recent pop hit to skewer Sarah Palin ("It felt so wrong, she leaned so right"). The outpouring is being fueled in part by technology and cultural phenomena that didn't exist when the country last picked a president. Since then, YouTube and other Web sites for user-generated content have made it possible for any creative impulse to be widely seen or heard. That's encouraging today's musicians to emulate political troubadours of generations past, whose fight songs (often written to the tune of familiar folk songs) were handed out as sheet music at rallies.

Tune In

Listen to song clips of:

"Barack Obama"
"Joe Biden Blues"
"Raising McCain"
"This is an old American tradition, revived with D.I.Y. flair for the 2008 cycle," says James Miller, a former rock critic and current professor of political science at the New School for Social Research in New York.

Barack Obama is ahead by a big margin in the song count, based on the offerings from YouTube, iTunes and other online sources. CD Baby, a Web store where any musician can sell CDs or downloads, lists more than 20 releases that endorse Sen. Obama; there appear to be none for John McCain.

"Obama's demographic is young and liberal; the profile of the entertainment industry is young and liberal," says Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. This past week, the Obama campaign began selling a $30 compilation CD through its Web site that includes songs from Stevie Wonder and John Legend.

Oscar Brand, a folk musician who recorded an album of historical presidential campaign songs, says he's working on a song about John McCain. It's his answer to the 50 or so pro-Obama songs that have been submitted to his folk music show on a New York public radio station. "I try to make my audience aware that there are songs from both sides," he says. An undecided voter, Mr. Brand is leaning toward Sen. McCain.

The campaigns still mostly piggyback on the messages and moods of songs that are already familiar to their bases. At rallies, Sen. McCain has played "Only in America" by country group Brooks & Dunn, a song that closed Sen. Obama's convention address. It was used during George W. Bush's run, too.

Here is a look at the some of original songs composed during the 2008 presidential race.

Fiddling for McCain
With a few exceptions, such as a song that rejiggers Eric Clapton's "Cocaine" (sample verse: "Until the war is done, he won't pack up and run: McCain"), the Arizona senator has mostly inspired satirists online. But in the music industry he has the support of country singer John Rich, best known as half of the country duo Big & Rich. To fill what he saw as a need for a McCain rally cry, Mr. Rich wrote a song called "Raising McCain" that highlighted the former Navy pilot's years in a Vietnam prison camp.

Mr. Rich made a video, offered the song on his Web site and even performed it at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul. With its aggressive twang, fiddle solo and repeated play on the phrase "raising Cain," "Raising McCain" seems effortlessly on message, says Ms. Jamieson of the Annenberg School. "What you get is an effective piece of campaign communication."

A Catchy Name
A search on YouTube for songs about Barack Obama yields thousands of results, including Obama Girl's famous love song, attack raps ("The Audacity for Nope"), riffs on the Illinois senator's name and the biggest viral hit of the campaign so far, "Yes We Can," produced by will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas, which has been viewed nearly 9.9 million times on YouTube alone.

Of the most earnest songs celebrating the candidate, a surprising number come from Caribbean singers -- many of whom won't be eligible to vote for him. Jamaican reggae singer Cocoa Tea says, "For me it was the issues that he was articulating. For other people in this part of the world it's the power of knowing that there's going to be a black man in the White House." As for the chorus of his "Barack Obama," the singer says, "It's more catchy than saying 'John McCain.' " The Mighty Sparrow, the Grenada-born singer known as "the calypso king of the world," has also been prolific. His "Barack the Magnificent" has a laid-back vibe, but drops references to the Jack Abramoff scandal and the Foreign Relations Committee.

Moose-Shootin' Mama
Though she was named Sen. McCain's running mate only about a month ago, the Alaska governor is on track to rival Sen. Obama as the subject of song. Dozens of tunes have been posted to the Web so far -- most of them parodies. For country singer and supporter Pat Garrett of Strausstown, Pa., musical inspiration struck three weeks ago via email. When a doctored photo of Gov. Palin posing with a rifle made the rounds online, Mr. Garrett's webmaster (an Obama supporter) wrote, "That's a moose shootin' mama." Mr. Garrett seized the line, dashed off some lyrics and sang the results on the voicemail of a Nashville record executive. A few days later, he was in Tennessee cutting the track. Featuring the lines "Drill, baby, drill, 'cause we're paying way too much. Maybe what this country needs is a woman's touch," the track was rushed out to radio stations and posted for sale online.

Over the years, Mr. Garrett has had more success selling sheepskin coats from his headquarters on Interstate 78 than scoring hit songs. Now, the McCain/Palin team is talking with Mr. Garrett about a "Moose Shootin' Mama" ringtone and streaming the song on an official Web site. "I've been wanting to hit a good lick for many years," Mr. Garrett says, "and we may have hit one."

Biden's Blues
Except for an unflattering parody called "Fightin' Joe Biden," posted by an online comedy team called Red State Update during the Democratic primaries, the Delaware senator hadn't inspired much music until a band from his home state tuned up. Nothin' But Trouble, a bar band that gigs regularly around Dover and Baltimore, has released a song called "Joe Biden Blues" online. The lyrics celebrate Sen. Biden's political pedigree while poking fun at his admitted tendency to grandstand. "Give him a Georgia, Iraq or Iran/You can bet that the man got a plan/Give him a problem that no one can solve/And he'll fix it on C-SPAN," sings bass player Greg Haughey.

Write to John Jurgensen at john.jurgensen@wsj.com
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Blues challenge winners
4.28.08
Monday, April 28, 2008
By Jim White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

It only took 9 1/2 hours to sort through the 18 contestants in the Pittsburgh blues challenge Saturday, but the Blues Society of Western Pa. finally got two winners who will go on the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in February.

The winner in the solo/duo category was Pittsburgh's blues singer/songwriter Bubs McKeg, and in the band category it was Nothin' But Trouble, a rousing, hard-swinging band out of Magnolia, Del.

Each group got 20 minutes to put on its best blues face, with judging based on standards set by the Blues Foundation.

The fans who came to Cefalo's Restaurant in Carnegie for the day-long show got ballots of their own, and they made the Ian Arthur Band of Pittsburgh their choice.

Since I had the pleasure (I think!) of being one of the six judges, I got an up-close look at the process, and, of course, saw all the acts perform.

It wasn't an easy job, because there were so many excellent musicians, with fine lines between the talent levels.

The Blues Society officers and volunteers who ran the event deserve a lot of praise for bring it off so efficiently, The only real glitch occurred when one of the bands coming from Albany, N.Y., had a hard time getting through traffic on the Parkway East (bad luck and trouble for a blues band?), and had its spot shifted to later in the afternoon.

Cefalo's provided an excellent venue, and for most of the day, it was hard to find an empty seat in the house.

BlueNotes is also grateful for the chance to gather material for two or three more posts this week. So in upcoming days, I'll have some thoughts about the bands, how they performed, the judging, and a new CD released by the BSWPA, "Blues from the Burgh."

Meanwhile, I've included pictures of all the winners, courtesy of Dusty and Val Scott, of dustyblues.com

First published on April 28, 2008 at 12:00 am

A look at the challenges in the blues challenge
4.29.08
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
By Jim White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Yesterday I wrote about the results of the blues challenge held Saturday by the Blues Society of Western Pa., to send a couple of acts to the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in February.

The winners were Pittsburgh's Bubs McKeg (solo act) and Nothin' But Trouble, (band act) out of Delaware.

I served as one of six judges, and spent the day watching the contestants cranking out bluesy 20-minute sets to try and win the Memphis gig.

Naturally, BlueNotes -- besides being honored to be a judge -- accumulated a few observations and opinions, and is ready to share. (I know, I know, it's a tough job, etc, etc.)

First, the talent level.

It was very high. Despite the thought that the blues are hard to keep alive, there seems to be a healthy number of musicians who are working very hard to achieve the opposite.

Of the 18 acts entered, most could have easily been a worthy representative of the BSWPA. (Here's a post that lists all the players.)

That said, Bubs McKeg was a great choice for the solo/duo category. His world-weary songwriting and playing is quintessential blues with a contemporary twist. And BlueNotes is an easy mark for lyrics like Bubs' "How in the world did the world get away from me...." Bubs' real name is Bob, of course, lest you think less of him for that. It's worth noting that Bubs went to Finland last year for an international songwriting competition in the blues category, and placed fourth.

There was more competition in the band category (13 bands vs. 5 solo/duo acts), and there were some tough choices.

The winner, Nothin' But Trouble, from Magnolia, Del., rocked and swung effortlessly with obvious enthusiasm for their work. They reminded me a little of Roomful of Blues without the horns. They wound up an already stirring set with an electric a cappella version of the traditional "John the Revelator."

The band includes guitarists Chris McAfee and Greg Haughey, Joe Fulkerson on bass, and drummer Bill Meyers. Haughey graduated from McKeesport High School (Go Tigers!). He played in local bands, including Tempo Tantrum and Raoul & the Passions.

And, according to the band's Web site, they plan to come back to the area for some shows. From what I saw Saturday night, they would be a welcome addition to the local scene.

Just to make sure you know that BlueNotes didn't make all these decisions by himself, the other judges were: Mike and Nancy Longo, members of BSWPA from Toronto, Ohio; John Delo, guitarist for Atomic Blues; Val Scott, writer and photographer for Dustyblues.com; and Kevin Gregory, president of the Columbus Blues Alliance. Don Vecchio of the BSWPA had to do all the addition and multiplication and come up with the final numbers. And he notes that it was "the best we ever did financially for any event in our history."

I might add that the event was very well organized and efficiently run. The BSWPA reorganized itself a year or so ago, and has been doing a great job of promoting blues in the area, sponsoring blues show and events, and just generally trying to make sure the music never dies. Haven't joined yet? You probably should.

Still, not everybody was happy.

I got this e-mail from Eric Spaulding, Burgh saxman, who played in the Jimmy Adler band in the competition Saturday.

Just wanted to drop you a line and see if you'd heard about the IBC results. They got up and announced, "We're proud to announce that the band representing Pittsburgh in the IBC's will be ... Nothing but Trouble from Maryland!" What a sad day for the music scene in this city. The society put together an outstanding event, but as a non-member, I can guarantee you I'd never pay to be a member after this. So dues paying members from Western PA paid to have a band from Maryland go to the IBC's on their dime? What a shame. The bands from Western PA played well and would have represented their city quite well. Oh well, I guess that's just one more nail in the coffin for us local musicians. -- Eric "The Captain" Spaulding

Any more thoughts? We'll print them here.

Meanwhile, we'll be back tomorrow with some BlueNotes picks from the playoffs, and a look at the "Blues from the Burgh" CD from the BSWPA.

First published on April 29, 2008 at 12:00 am

Defending the blues challenge
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
By Jim White, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

In a post earlier today, I included an e-mail from Eric Spaulding, a Pittsburgh musician who was a little dismayed about the fact that a band from outside the region (Nothin' But Trouble, from Delaware) will represent the Blues Society of Western Pa. in the International Blues Challenge.

This morning I got a response from Jim Franciscus, BSWPA vice president, who disagrees with Eric, and who explains how the selection process worked:

This is in response to Eric Spaulding's comments on your blog concerning the 2008 BSWPA IBC Winners, Nothin But Trouble.

This was the 1st year that the BSWPA opened up our IBC competition to bands from outside the Pa./WV area. Our intention had always been to keep the IBC a local competition. We had been asking local bands to enter the 2008 IBC since January and had gotten little or no response from most of them. That includes many of the artists/bands who had played at BSWPA sponsored events in the past and had always supported us.

We had promised the venue owner, Lenny Cefalo, and our members that we were going to give them a great blues show and that this year's competition would be our best ever. But 1 month prior to our event, we had only a handful of local bands that had sent in their registrations for the competition. It was in danger of being canceled, which would have been a very negative happening for the BSWPA as well as for the local blues scene.

It was then, and only then, after much consideration by members of the BSWPA Board of Directors that we decided to open our competition to bands from outside the area. We invited bands that our members had seen perform at other IBC competitions that they had attended in Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia, and other surrounding states. These bands had stood out among their competitors.

Bringing in the acts from outside the area saved our competition and gave local blues fans an event that they will remember for a long time. The BSWPA feels that taking this action has only encouraged more people to join because they know now of the quality of the entertainment that they will see at a BSWPA-sponsored event.

It is a common practice for most Blues Societies across the country to invite bands from outside their local area to compete in their IBC. Billy the Kid and the Regulators from Aliquippa represented the West Virginia Blues Society in Memphis this past February. Zach Tyler and Blu Razor from Bridgeville has represented the Marietta, Oh. Blues Society in Memphis in the past. Many other local bands like Jill West and Blues Attack, Mahajibee, and Angel Blue and the Prophets have gone to other regions' IBC competitions to compete in recent years.

It does nothing to diminish the talent of the bands in this region. It actually should serve to encourage local bands to work even harder for the opportunity to do their hometown proud by representing the BSWPA in Memphis in next year's competition. It's not "one more nail in the coffin for local musicians" as Eric has suggested. It's an incentive for them to raise their game.

Nothin' But Trouble is exactly the caliber of band that any local band would have to compete against in Memphis. Our local bands played well this past Saturday at Cefalo's. They are all outstanding representatives of the tremendous talent that we have on our local blues scene.

But you'd be hard-pressed to get any of them to admit that the best band there didn't win. The out-of-town bands paid the same $45.00 entry fee that local acts did and traveled long distances to compete. The $1000.00 prize money probably didn't amount to much after they paid their hotel bills, food, and gas expenses that they racked up just to get here. The rest of that money will be long gone before they even set foot in Memphis next February.

And what about the acts that came in from out of town and didn't win? They could easily have taken paying gigs in their local areas rather than traveling to our town to compete. They were willing to sacrifice all of that simply for the opportunity to represent the BSWPA in Memphis at next year's IBC. Adding that title of 2008 BSWPA IBC winner to their resume' meant a lot to them. And it means a lot to the BSWPA as well.

Nothin But Trouble are ecstatic about representing the BSWPA. They want to come back to this area and continue to entertain our blues fans. I spoke to them about doing a show at a local blues club like Moondog's or Thunderbird Cafe. and they would be thrilled to come back to town to do that. They had actually gone on line and had checked out the web sites of both clubs before I had even mentioned it to them. They even planned to visit Moondog's later on that evening. They suggested having a local band do the show with them as an opening act in order to give the show some local flavor.

I don't see why the members of the BSWPA would object to supporting such a class act no matter where they're from. Adding a band like Nothin But Trouble to our local blues scene couldn't possibly do anything but make it better for venue owners, fans (especially BSWPA members), and local musicians. -- Sincerely, Jim Franciscus

Thanks Jim. I think you were right in deciding to bring in more bands. It never hurts to bring in fresh talent, and expose us to them, and them to us. It seems like just about everybody benefits.

And the bands from out of town did add an exciting dimension to the show at Cefalo's on Saturday. I'm sure most local fans had not seen many of them. Every "import" put on a great show. And that's not to take anything away from the fine local blues bands that competed.

I plan to run down the list in the next couple of days, to try and give readers a sense of who participated, especially bands that are not too familiar to local blues fans.

First published on April 29, 2008 at 11:38 am

Nick,
Thanks to you and Nothin' But Trouble for helping make Blues Night memorable! The band was nothin' but professional and the fans seemed to enjoy the tunes as they entered the stadium... Thanks again!

Kyle W. Love
Marketing Assistant

Nothin’ But Trouble has been playing the blues together since last spring, but the band is already gearing up to take on about 100 other blues groups at an international competition.

Band members Joey Fulkerson, Bill Meyers, Chris McAfee and Greg Haughey will play on Memphis’ famed Beale Street this weekend in hopes of winning the 2008 International Blues Challenge. Winning the Baltimore Blues Society endorsement was the first step, but now the band has to wow audiences and judges in Memphis.

The four longtime musicians have all played for years with other bands, according to Meyers. They were free last year to actually combine their talents and they jumped at the chance. The combined experience and talent of the band is what has gotten them this far this fast, he said.

“Experience plays a big role into it, but also there’s a certain kind of magic,” he said.

Meyers has been to the competition before and said playing on Beale Street, commonly referred to as the home of the blues, is a treat in itself.

To Fulkerson, playing on the street against the best in the world is part of what makes the experience fulfilling.

“It’s the cream of the crop of the world, really, in the blues field,” he said.

The group could win cash, recording time, a consultation with an artist management group, a publicity and radio promotion campaign and other perks. The winning band also gets booked at prominent blues festivals and the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Caribbean Cruise.

Meyers has been on the cruise, but not to play, and said jam sessions can go on from noon to 3 a.m. This year’s cruise will feature Etta James, Dr. John, Los Lobos and approximately 15 other groups. The heavy blues hitters, the atmosphere, the fun – they’re all part of the appeal to Meyers.

“It’s just a steady floating party out in the Caribbean,” Meyers said. “Need I say more?”

The cruise and prizes would be great, but the band hopes to get exposure out of the competition, too, Fulkerson said.

“If you win the competition you get thrust into the national blues touring scene, which is our goal,” he said.

There is a vibrant blues scene in nearly every major city, according to Fulkerson. He said Nothin’ But Trouble would love to play in some blues hot spots and have its music appreciated by those in the know.

“The thing about this music that we play, if you try to play it in a club that has dance music or modern rock, it just doesn’t work,” he said.

It takes just seconds for your disc to turn a regular music fan into guitar geek – the sound of Joey’s guitar is as adventurous as the one by Hollywood Fats! Speaking of Fats, your take on the blues is really enjoyable bringing to my mind West Coast blues but played with both imagination and grit. A tight band with strong, confident vocals, that’s what I like. From up-tempo rockers to slow blues of “This Time Around”, blues fans will find much to savor here!

It will be my pleasure to play your stuff in my shows!

De oplossing "Nothin' But Trouble" is misschien niet voor de handliggend maar wel erg origineel en de noeste arbeid van het viertal resulteerde in een fraai debuutalbum dat hen meteen als "Winners of the Baltimore Blues Society 2007 International Blues Challenge Competition" bekroonde.

Maar of alle problemen met het vinden van een groepsnaam opgelost zijn is nog een ander paar mouwen voor het viertal uit Magnolia, Delaware want in deze "World Of Hurt" al onmiddelijk geconfronteerd worden met het "Ain't Got A Clue... why my baby left me" is natuurlijk niet van de poes. Of het dametje in kwestie zich als "Marsha" of "Helen" door het leventje van sex, drugs & alcohol begeeft is één ? maar wat wel duidelijk is dat je met scheurende gitaartjes en een leuk meezingrefreintje bijna niet traditioneler van start kan gaan in het blueswereldje. Het feestje of "The Turnaround" blijkt precies 54 minuten en 45 seconden in beslag te nemen en wanneer David Raynor (sax) & Dave Kirschner (trumpet) de gelederen nog komen versterken laten "Pink Pumps" en de instrumental "Troublemaker Stomp" weinig aan de verbeelding over ..it's party time. Aangezien de meeste blues / roots liefhebbers een respectabele leeftijd bereikt hebben zijn de frisse senioren blij dat het bandje met " 2.69 a Gallon" en "I'm Tellin Helen" (CCR gitaarrifje en mondharmonica) eventjes tijd maakt voor een glaasje en praatje met de locale schoonheden.

Eind goed al goed al blijkt het klassieke bluesdilemma ook hier weer op de duiken ...."Smile" .....or ..."Missing You" ..... and nothin' but trouble ? Prima bandje ! (SWA)