Sorry that there hasn’t been a new episode of Coffeshop Conversations at Artichoke Music for a few weeks. I’ve been looking at the four walls of a hospital room and then recovery at home, but most of that is behind me and here we go again, just in time for this year’s Montavilla Jazz Festival.With me is guitarist, composer, teacher and PJCE Records…

I wonder if you know that Lee Dorsey, the great New Orleans Soul and R&B singer, famous for songs like Ya Ya, Workin In a Coal Mine, and many others, was also known as the best body and fender man in New Orleans.We have an equivalent in Oregon. Kenny Goldstein has been a part of the music scene in Oregon for decades, a bass player in multiple genre…

In A Summer full of music festivals, one of the loveliest, happiest of them all is the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival.It happens Friday through Sunday, July 19-21.This is the 44th annual festival. It has gone through a lot of changes, some good and some not so good. These days it’s run by the Jazz Society of Oregon and one of the directors is Yvonne …

Hi. Tom D’Antoni back in The Artichoke for another OMN Coffeeshop Conversation.Next time our guest will be Yvonne Lerch, director of the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival which is coming up soon.Also upcoming right here will be bass player Kenny Goldstein, who is also an ace car mechanic.And you’ll be happy to hear that OMN National Editor Art Levine ha…

Hi. Tom D’Antoni back in The Artichoke for another OMN Coffeeshop Conversation.Next time our guest will be Yvonne Lerch, director of the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival which is coming up soon.Also upcoming right here will be bass player Kenny Goldstein, who is also an ace car mechanic.And you’ll be happy to hear that OMN National Editor Art Levine ha…

In the coming weeks, Amanda Gresham of United By Music will be here.Yvonne Lerch will stop by to talk about curating the Cathedral Park Festival.Art Levine, our National Editor hasn’t finished his 5 thousand word piece yet…and it isn’t even for us.And you’ll meet Kenny Goldstein a bass player and mobile car mechanic.Today Tim DuRoche pays us anothe…

Springtime at the Artichoke.Coming up soon on Coffeeshop Conversations…Yvonne Lerch will us about curating my favorite music festival of the summer…Cathedral Park.Also, an interesting person who combines the life of a Blues musician with a car mechanic. And I promise our National Editor, Art Levine will finish his five or six thousand word piece on…

Hi, Tom D’Antoni, as always, with another Coffeeshop Conversation from Artichoke Music.Coming up soon we’ll have OMN’s National Editor Art Levine with a conversation on UFO’s and music, not that they have anything to do with each other.Also upcoming, Ticket Tomato’s Amy Maxwell on the Live Nation controversy, Yvonne Lerch on booking the Cathedral P…

Six years ago, the last time David Monette was our guest on Coffeeshop Conversations, we called him “Portland’s Stradivari” because the trumpets he designs and builds are the equivalent of a Stradivarius violin…and he makes them for some of the world’s greatest musicians at his shop out near the airport in Portland.He's back because he has a new bo…

Back in the Artichoke today with singer/actor Lo Steele, daughter of Portland’s LaRhonda and Mark Steele.Coming up soon…trumpet genius David Monette with his new book on transcendence, our National Editor Art Levine on UFO’s and (maybe) music, plus Adam East the talent buyer from the Alberta Rose Theater.But right now Lo Steele is sitting across fr…

I hardly know what to say. Eddie Martinez, one of the best known session guitarists in history just left the Café at Artichoke Music after nearly an hour of inspired conversation.Now look. I don’t mean to disparage the over four hundred other guests we’ve had on in ten years of OMN’s Coffeeshop Conversations but this one is at or near the top.It’s …

Every year at this time, we get together with Peter Dammann, Artistic Director of the Waterfront Blues Festival and ace guitar slinger to find out who’s in the festival lineup.He's joining me in the Artichoke Music Café. Next week Lo Steele will be here and coming up guitarist Eddie Martinez and also OMN’s National Editor Art Levine will be talking…

As promised, with me in the Café at Artichoke Music is Jennifer Carrizo, Senior Talent Buyer for the Crystal Ballroom, the Mission Theater and the Spanish Ballroom in Tacoma, all part of McMenamin’s wonderfully funky empire.It’s hard to believe we haven’t had many from the venue management side of de bizz eh nezz. But here we are.What does a talent…

I’m happy we’re back here in the café at Artichoke Music..Next week, Jennifer Carrizo from McMenamin’s will be here to talk about what’s going on at the Mission Theater…the answer is a lot!But this week a new conversation from a couple of months ago (and I apologize for the delay) with one of our best singers and songwriters, Anandi. She has a lot …

We’ll be back at the Artichoke Music Café next time but this episode had to be recorded today, before a fund raiser to help complete a documentary on the life and death of one of Oregon’s favorite musicians, percussionist and multi-instrumentalist member of Pink Martini and Lions of Batucada among others; Derek Reith who committed suicide in August…

We’re not at the Café at Artichoke Music this time. We’re in Seaside Oregon at the Seaside Jazz and Blues Festival on March 16rh for a very special occasion .We told composer/pianist Gordon Lee that we wanted to talk to him onstage about the set he was about to play and also his new album.In reality we were going to present to him the first annual …

Well this is getting as regular as a rainy February in Oregon. Grammy time rolls around and Cheryl Pawelski gets handed one.She won one for It’s Such a Good Feeling: The Best of Mister Rogers. She’s also won for The Garden Spot Programs, 1950.She was the compilation producer on Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (20th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition), w…

The last time Lisa Lipton sat here in the Artichoke Music Cafe was in August of 2020. I noted at the time what a busy person she was with multiple artistic and executive directorships, plus teaching and a full schedule of her clarinet playing.She still does all that but recently she was brought on as Executive Director of 45th Parallel Universe in …

Returning for another episode of Coffeeshop Conversations is Lisa Marcicek, known to one and all as Miz Kitty that saucy character who has a major basis in real life as hostess of Miz Kitty’s Parlour, a vaudeville show that has been in our lives for twenty-two years at various locations in Portland.She was back this year at the Mission Theater, a f…

Guitarist/composer/teacher Dan Balmer is in the Artichoke Café this time around. He always has a lot to say. I’ve been looking forward to sitting down with him again.Coming up soon on Coffeeshop Conversations, the new executive director of 45th Parallel Universe Lisa Lipton and a visit with Lisa Marcicek also known as Miz Kitty.Dan Balmer has a new…

The Biamp Portland Jazz Festival is rapidly approaching. It runs from February 16 to March 2.As we like to do when our major festivals come around, we ask the folks who are responsible for bringing them to us to fill us in.And as he has been for the past few years, actually since he got the gig, Executive Director Chris Doss is in the Artichoke Caf…

I hope you have been watching the development of OMN’s young Photographer Sydney Lewis. She started shooting for us at seven years of age, under the watchful eye of her father Mike, who also takes photos for us.Her specialty is Metal bands. Seriously. Her first shoot was at the 2019 Waterfront Blues Festival but she has shot almost exclusively Meta…

We’re going to wind up 2023 with a couple of Best Of’s but next time, that precocious 11 year old OMN photographer Sydney Lewis will be here with her dad to tell us about shooting Metal bands for the past 4 years.Today I’ve got one person who is in several of the most eclectic bands in Oregon, Galen Clark of Trio Subtonic, Outer Orbit…and others. H…

Sometimes we have fresh new faces on the scene come to the Artichoke Music Café, and sometimes we welcome musicians who have been around the block a time or two. People who have long-time fans but who have never stopped evolving and discovering new music within them.Steve Wilkinson was in Gravelpit and Mission 5 and his current band Wilkinson Blade…

I think this is the first time we’ve ever run two Coffeeshop Conversations in one week. It’s because of the concerts both Ben Darwish and Jeremy Wilson are doing this week and weekend.Jeremy Wilson is, of course, known for his music. He was a member of the Dharma Bums and others. But he is also known and loved for starting the Jeremy Wilson Foundat…

Nearly ten years ago we got the news that Ben Darwish, composer, producer and keyboardist was moving from his Portland birthplace to Los Angeles.He had been a part of a flowering of young Jazz musicians, coming out of college in the early two thousands. The other part of the news was that he was going to be playing with a Pop band.He is with me now…

There are various signposts by which we mark the beginning of the holiday season. My favorite is John Waters’ return to Portland for his annual “A John Waters Christmas” show at the Aladdin Theater.It always sells out, and has again this year. Nevertheless, it’s a chance to talk with John about the show and all of the exciting things he’s been up t…

Arietta Ward: Looking forward to another 400 episodes of Coffeeshop Conversations @ Artichoke Music by Oregon Music NewsDi Oregon Music News

This is the four hundredth episode of Coffeeshop Conversations. Next week will be four hundred and one.There are times in our lives that call for courage and inspiration. Our guest today, pianist Dave Fleschner is fresh out of rehab. His story is full of both. Our guest next week is Arietta Ward who is known and loved for bringing the light of insp…

One of my favorite Coffeeshop Conversations guests is here again. She’s Sarah Tiedemann, Third Angle New Music’s Artistic Director, and also a flutist.Third Angle’s exciting new season is already underway and Sarah will tell us all about it.Our next two episodes are special…this one is too, but we’re marking episodes 400 and 401 with a very persona…

It has been three years since composer/pianist/educator Darrell Grantvisited the Café at Artichoke Music. He’s so busy and prolific it seems like we could have him on once a month.Of course he is still a tenured professor of Jazz Studies and Associate Director of the School of Music at Portland State University, but I also like to think of him in t…

We’re not in the Artichoke Café this time because although our guest Doug MacLeod will be performing there on Saturday, October 7, he’s not rolling into town until the day of the gig. Such is life on the road.So instead, when we talked, he was in Memphis and I was right here in Portland.Doug is a legendary Blues singer, guitar picker and storytelle…

I was doing a bit of rummaging and in one of those boxes were audio cassettes of a show I used to do on the American Radio Network. In the past I have found one show with Max Roach and one with Leon Redbone.Today the tape that somewhat magically appeared in my hand was the time I spent on the air with composer/pianst Carla Bley.It aired live on Mar…

Regular Coffeeshop Conversations followers know that every once in a while we like to bring in one of the folks who help bring you OMN.Today photographer Anthony Pidgeon is in the Artichoke Café with me.Performance photos are a major part of OMN’s coverage of Oregon’s music makers. We have several excellent photographers who brave photo pits to cap…

There’s a new addition to Coffeeshop Conversations this time. I asked Saxophonist/Tap Dancer Shoehorn aka Michael Conley to sit in my chair and lead the conversation with someone he wanted to talk to.He’s an entertaining guy and I wanted to hear what he did with one of these things. He chose Blues singer/guitarist Tevis Hodge, Jr. who in the past f…

It’s ironic that even though in order to make a living at playing music in Oregon, you have to be able to play in diverse styles, there are many loyal groups of people who are fans of strictly one particular genre or another.There are Metal heads, Blues fans and Tango lovers to name a few. One of those groups is the folks who love Swing Dancing. Th…

EXCLUSIVE! At the end of our conversation, listen to a new tune just recorded on July 19! It will release at The Cello Goodbye show on Sunday.Cellist Skip vonKuske is in the Artichoke Music Café, not his first time here but it’s a special occasion. Skip is moving out of Oregon after a long run as one of the founders of the Portland Cello Project, a…

First of all, don’t miss the next Coffeeshop Conversation. It’s with Skip VonKuske Oregon’s beloved cellist who will be moving to Massachusetts in a couple of weeks.But this weekend is the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival, under that magnificent bridge in St. Johns. It’s the forty-third annual and it’s presented by the Jazz Society of Oregon. From the …

If you thought Soul singer Andy Stokes has been missing since the clubs and concerts returned, you’re right. We’re going to find out why.Andy, no stranger to Coffeeshop Conversations is back with us and in the midst of a flurry of concerts.He’ll be singing with Soul Vaccination at the Waterfront Blues Festival on Tuesday July 4 on the South Stage. …

It’s a special edition of OMN’s Coffeeshop Conversations this time. At the other end of the Skype box is Jack Heyrman, an ex-label owner and producer and an old friend of mine.His label was called Clean Cuts and it is most famous for Dr. John’s first solo album called Dr. John Plays Mac Rebennack, recorded in1981. Jack also produced the follow-up T…

It’s not every day that we have a new music venue open up. Especially one like SoundsTruck Northwest, a brand new mobile stage, complete with concerts, begins its inaugural season on Sunday, June 18 at Cathedral Park. Other offerings in their Summer Series include concerts at the Japanese Garden, Mt. Tabor and Lewis and Clark College. More details …

A couple of weeks ago composer/guitarist Ryan Meagher was here to talk about his latest recording, AftEarth a collaboration with artist Tina Granzo. If you heard it you realize that it had a profound impact on me.It is such a close collaboration that I felt we had to hear from the other half of the creators.So with me in the Café at Artichoke Music…

Ever wonder what a music publicist does all day? Or even what one is?With me in the Artichoke Music Café is Nicole Lane who has much experience doing that.I know publicists. I get a hundred emails a day from them. I chose Nicole because she’s so good at it, as you will see.She works for Chamber Music Northwest but she’s done work for multiple genre…

Ryan Meagher is in the Artichoke Café with me today. He is a very busy man. Besides his career as guitarist and composer, he is also the Artistic Director of the Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble where he also runs their PJCE label. He also programs the Montavilla Jazz Festival, does a lot of teaching and I will run out of intro time if I continued …

This is the three hundred and eighty-fifth episode of Coffeeshop Conversations. That’s a lot of talking and not all of it by me.Next week KMHD’s head honcho Matt Fleeger will be here and the following week Nicole Lane, ace publicist will visit the Café.Today writer Larry Colton is sitting across from me. He has authored six books, was the founder o…

This is going to be fun.I’ve been looking forward to this one. Next time writer Larry Colton will be here and the following week Matt Fleeger, the head honcho and my boss at KMHD.But today across from me is ace bassist, all around smart guy, fellow Orioles fan and East-coast compare Dennis Caiazza.He’s generally not the headliner in the band but he…

From the Artichoke Music Café….next week bassist Dennis Caiazza will be here, the following week, writer Larry Colton and the week after that, KMHD’s Matt Fleeger, my boss over there.Today, however one of my favorite people, saxophonist, teacher and bee person Mieke Bruggeman.She is one of the founding members of the Quadraphonnes, playing baritone…

It isn’t quite time for the 2023 Waterfront Blues Festival but it is time for OMN’s annual preview from the lips of festival Artistic Director and ace guitarist Peter Dammann.The festival is back at full strength after weathering covid. The same old beautiful grass-covered park alongside the Willamette July firsr to fourth.There will be some old fa…

In the Artichoke Café again. Coming up in the next couple of weeks, Peter Dammann to tell us all about the lineup for the Waterfront Blues Fesival, Terry Robb, famed guitar slinger, and Jazz bassist Dennis Caizza.Today I’m very happy to welcome China Forbes of Pink Martini but not only Pink Martini, she has a new album of her own in the works and w…

Next week on the pod, China Forbes pays a visit to Café Artichoke. Can’t wait for that one. Also coming up are Coffeeshop Conversations with Terry Robb and also Peter Dammann is coming in to tell us about the Waterfront Blues Festival lineup.Today Jazz pianist/composer Gordon Lee is here. He’s just as busy as ever. He’s a part of a memorial tribute…