Tonight’s Summer Concert Series features singers/songwriters Mike Hearne, pictured, Shake Russell and Jimmy Stadler at 7 p.m. at Ashley Pond Park. Courtesy photoTonight’s Los Alamos County Summer Concert Series features Taos/Austin singer/songwriter Mike Hearne, his Texas buddy singer/songwriter Shake Russell, and theirs, mine and Los Alamos’ good time buddy Taos singer/songwriter Jimmy Stadler. The show starts at 7 p.m. at Ashley Pond Park.
Hearne lives both in Texas and Taos. He’s been playing solo, with Shake and with Jimmy and/or his great band NM dance band, South By Southwest in northern New Mexico for a lotta years. I first booked Michael, Jimmy and South By Southwest in 1990, the first year of the Gordons’ Summer Concert Series. Michael, Jimmy and often, So. X SW have each played here at least 20 times. They’re all or individually, great acts, musicians and play wonderful songs. They play Texas/ New Mexican country, Americana and rock. I remember my sixteen year old son, Abe asking the band to play some Grateful Dead. I think that, since that night, the Dead have been a part of their repertoire.
This band knows how to please their audience. Tonight they’ll play plenty of country swing, waltzes, rock by the Dead, the Stones, the Beatles, the Neville Brothers, Michael Martin Murphey plus a lot of other music including many of which you’re probably familiar with and enjoy, written by all three, Hearne, Russell & Stadler. You might know the song sung by Bill & Bonnie Hearne, (Mike’s aunt and uncle from Santa Fe), “New Mexico Rain”, “The Girl Just Loves to Dance”, “New Boots” and “Acadian Angel.”
Michael Hearne’s Annual Big Barn Dance in Taos is celebrating 15 years this year. This year the Fest is Sept. 7-9 at Kit Carson Park. Starring this year will be Stadler, Russell, South By Southwest, Bill Hearne, the Rifters plus Dale Watson, Joe Ely, Lloyd Maines, and Trout Fishing In America.”
Hearne is the only person that I know of who has won the “Singer/Songwriter Award” from New Mexico and Texas. Please check out our musicians at www.gordonssummerconcerts.com, www.michaelhearne.com and at www.jimmystadler.com. For some reason, I couldn’t find a website for Shake Russell but you can listen to all three together and individually on www.youtube.com. By the way, Shake Russell has been a big musical star in Texas for many years, just as Michael and Jimmy have been here in New Mexico for years.
Next Friday, at the Pond, we have both Eddy & the Nomads and DK & the Affordables playing their classic rock and roots rock. All of the shows are free of charge and start at 7 p.m. at Ashley Pond Park. Great times!!
