Roxanne Tellier – Is It That Time Again?

Three weeks from today is Christmas Day. We’ll have gotten past all the rushing about, the frantic shopping, and the boozy parties, and hopefully be lounging about in our new flannel pjs, sipping on liquored up egg nog, and looking forward to a feast of turkey and all the trimmings.

Hopefully.

 

If I could come up with one good thing to say about the President elect, it’s that he’s certainly taken our minds off a lot of other everyday annoyances. The man sucks out all the air in all the rooms, leaving no space for anything but his incredibly fragile ego.

Well, forget about Trump for a minute, and let’s focus on me .. it’s my birthday! Huzzah! I am mumblety mumble years old, which is odd, because a) I swore I’d die before I got old and b) I had no idea that this is what this age would feel or look like. You really do live and learn.

So, how does this woman of indeterminate age celebrate in the days before the not so momentous event? Despite this cold-from-hell hanging in for far too long, I managed to get out and about, cajoled and coaxed by the ever energetic Barbette, Queen Bee of Kensington Market. We did lunch at the Last Temptation, a low-priced, high-enjoyment resto that does a for real bacon cheeseburger for less than $7 that hit all the right hunger spots in the most delightful of ways.  Beer’s cheap too. Good spot.

While there, we ran into up and coming chanteuse, Lacey Hill, whom Barbette has known for ages.  She was in town for a gig that night at The Hole in the Wall. Lacey has a new CD coming out quite soon,  and a video she’s excited about, also soon to be released, that features a renowned indigenous dancer.

On Saturday, it was time for a little Christmas shopping, and much drooling over the beautiful crafts on offer at the Sunday Indigenous Market Place, at the Native Centre at 16 Spadina Road.  The market is on today, and for the next two Sundays, and you’ll want everything on offer .. beautiful jewellery, musical instruments, soft and cozy moccasins, and so much more. They also offer a tasty Indian Taco lunch, with salad, that will keep your energy high for those busy December shopping forays.

Then it was time to dash off to The Vinyl Sessions Presents The Blue & Lonesome Brunch, at the Hard Rock Cafe, a Rolling Stones afternoon jam hosted by Greg Godovitz & friends AND a gallery of Rolling Stones fine art featuring works by Ron Wood, John Rowlands, Bob Gruen & Lynn Goldsmith.

The usual suspects, including John Rowlands himself, were in attendance, and we were treated to some fine covers of classic Stones tunes. (Unfortunately we had just missed Mark Ripp‘s performance – Mark’s a good friend whose new CD, Under the Circumstances, released last Sunday, is another solid offering from a fine singer-songwriter.)

I haven’t any current footage of Mark’s new CD to share, but I’m still loving this one of his from a few years back.

But there was still fun to be had, on this birthday eve, so it was home for a quick nap before heading out to the Duke of York for a rare appearance by a long time fave, Carole Pope.

 

I’ve spoken about my Carole Pope addiction before – her music and stage presence intrigued me from the first time I saw her with Rough Trade in 1976.  .

A few words about Carole, from her website: “Carole Pope is an agent provocateur pushing the boundaries of sexuality, sexual politics, and the status quo, making you think and dance at the same time. Her work has been recognized with three Juno Awards, multiple independent music awards, a Genie Award. 4 gold, 1 platinum and 1 double platinum album. Her latest EP Music For Lesbians Squirtgun eOne explores the funny tragic things about being a lesbian. Contributors include Peaches, Alain Johannes and Rob Preuss. Her latest video Vagina Wolf is available  on Youtube.  A film based on Pope’s autobiography Anti Diva published by Random House is in preproduction. … Her seminal band “Rough Trade” was inducted into the Indy Hall of Fame during Canadian Music Week. ” 

So, tickets to this show were a must.

The room was packed, shoulder to shoulder. The opening act, Clara Venice,  whet the crowd’s appetite with her JPop styled songs and background video, as she worked her magic on the Theremin.  What’s a Theremin, you say? Here’s Clara to explain …

Next up were 9 Lives and Counting, a quartet that almost defies genre. While their stage presence says hard rock, the vocals are melodic, and the harmonies lush. Kudos to the sound person at the Duke for keeping the sound crisp and clean without assaulting ear drums.

Here’s a clip from an Indie Week performance …

And then it was time for that most awesome of Popes … Carole.

Her set was light on classic Rough Trade material, relying heavily on her more current solo work, but she did treat the cheering audience to a few of the staples (and yes, I did see her co-writer and long time friend, Kevin Staples in the audience,) including the crowd-pleasing classic, “High School Confidential.”

Birthday Eve done and dusted, it was great to say a quick ‘hi!’ and get a sweaty hug from Tim Welch, Carole’s awesome guitarist. Tim brought me backstage to shake Carole’s hand and compliment her on her performance, and then it was time to head for home in the chilly night.

Which brings us back to where we began … the anniversary of my birth, on December 4th, at 4:50 pm.  Nothing big planned for today, although I have a jones on for a brunch of steak and eggs, to which I may have to succumb.

And I have a present to for YOU, faithful readers, and enjoyers of that rockin’ bunch of reprobates, the heymacs … a new video, featuring the dance stylings of our faithful leader, Bob Segarini. Enjoy!

=RT=

Roxanne’s column appears here every Sunday 

Contact us at dbawis@rogers.com

Roxanne Tellier has been singing since she was 10 months old … no, really. Not like she’s telling anyone else how to live their lives, because she’s not judgmental, and most 10 month olds need a little more time to figure out how to hold a microphone. She has also been a vocalist with many acts, including Tangents, Lady, Performer, Mambo Jimi, and Delta Tango. In 2013 she co-hosted Bob Segarini’s podcast, The Bobcast, and, along with Bobert, will continue to seek out and destroy the people who cancelled ‘Bunheads’.