Live Oak Post 3 : Alabaster Stone

Music inspires me so incredibly much.

And this is especially true when it's my family and friends playing.

I've been fans of Alabaster Stone since I first saw them play at the Clubhouse, a while back.

At the time, and up until just recently, 

Alabaster Stone consisted of Ryan Johnson and Michele Kubacki.

Singing original music as well as covers, they are always a fun time.

And then there was their performance at Stage Too at Live Oak...

And they blew everyone away!

Adding 3 more players to the group, their sound filled the oak grove and got people dancing!

Ryan Johnson on vocals and acoustic guitar

Michele Kubacki on vocals, acoustic guitar, and banjo

Robby Hart on electric guitar

Tasha Powers on stand up bass and Brian Monzel on the drums

Grant Leonard doing some hoop dance

Thanks for the music, friends!

Alabaster Stone plays around SLO county...

Keep your eye out for them and if you are in the mood for some fun music, check them out!

Live Oak Post 2: Red Skunk Jipzee Swing Band

Saturday night was a special treat for all of us Live Oakers... 

And another one of my highlights of the weekend.

The Red Skunk Jipzee Swing Band played on Stage Too and damn, they played it well!

The RSJSB members are young (all under 21, I think!) and are local SLO county kids.

Talk about inspiring!

I've seen them play a few times and I am always so impressed.

They are young, fun, excited, and amazing musicians!

Molly Reeves is on vocals and guitar...

She is amazingly talented, has a great voice, and is a true entertainer.

And the red curly hair really wraps her up as the whole darn awesome package!

 Jamie Mather is on stand-up bass.

 He is truly adorable and can really play!

 Next up is Pamela Sheffler.

As a violinist myself, I am completely blown away by Pamela.

She is petite, and from what I have seen, the quietest one in the group.

But she plays that violin hard. So good!

Kenneth Davis is on drums and percussion.

He is so much fun to watch- always with a huge grin on his face!

Justin Au is the trumpet player.

His flight was delayed in Puerto Rico and the band was uncertain whether or not 

he'd make it to Live Oak. But here he came on stage, half way through the set, trumpet in hand!

And finally there is Sam Boorman.

Don't let his long hair fool you into thinking he belongs in a grunge rock band!
His guitar riffs fit in perfectly to the gypsy swing music!

Keep an eye out for these guys!

They play a lot around SLO and should be taking on the world sometime soon, 

if the world knew what was good for it!

 They're also on facebook.

So check them out!
You'll be glad you did.

I also want to note that my brother Tyson was working sound for this gig.

And my brother Grant was creating the light show!
Excellent work guys!

Live Oak Music Festival!!!

This past weekend, I took humanKind Fair Trade on the road

to the Live Oak Music Festival!

The festival is among the oaks near Lake Cachuma in the Santa Ynez Valley.

I won't go into it much now, but I will say that I had a really amazing time.

And as you might expect, I took a bagillion photos.

And I will of course be sharing them with you.

But for now, here's me and my partner in crime at the festival, Fiona, in front of our booth.

I had fun taking my new fisheye lens out for a spin.

PS22 Chorus

The other day I stumbled on a link for a PS22 Chorus video.
And I found myself watching video after video of these AMAZING 5th Graders and their teacher, Mr. B, from Staten Island's Public School 22.

To say I am inspired by these kids and this teacher is an understatement.
I got tears in my eyes more than once while watching their videos.
What Mr. B does every year with the school's 5th graders is so spectacular and it really makes me want to make a difference in others' lives.

They sing popular songs from artists Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Owl City, Journey, Coldplay, Bjork, Jay-Z, Matisyahu, and so many more!

But enough from me.
Please check their videos out.
They have many videos on YouTube and they are always adding new ones.
Check out the videos I have posted and definitely go to their YouTube channel: agreggofsociety and see more!

Here is PS22 Chorus doing Bjork:



And PS22 Chorus doing MGMT: