Niles/Fremont, Mudpuddle Music, and Michael McNevin…

They are all inter-related.  And somehow I’m related, too, by recent past, and now, by present, so is Jane.  Let’s see if I can explain:

I met Michael McNevin in the mid-90s when he toured Chicago.  I liked his music, and he invited me to attend a house concert — a concert in someone’s home, something I’d never heard of before — the next night.  I did this, and from that night I found a whole new discovery of folk music, the house concert scene, new friends… a whole new world.

Eventually I hosted Michael in a house concert myself.  And eventually I  started writing songs myself.  So, it was especially meaningful to me when Michael agreed to host Jane and me at his Mudpuddle Music Shop in Niles/Fremont CA — our first show of the “Ya Just Never Know” Tour!

As we drove from Reno to Niles, Michael gave us a “back road” way to get there.  Unfortunately, he forgot to say “left” or “right” at an important juncture, and Jane made the mistake of listening to my gut feel (I’m directionally dyslexic!)  But the drive — both the wrong way and eventually the right way — was beautiful, it was a hot sunny day and soon we rolled into downtown Niles:

And soon we found the tiny, magical Mudpuddle shop:

 

We went for drinks and dinner at the back patio of The Vine, on the next block:

The top of these two photos is Michael hanging a poster for an upcoming show; the latter is Michael telling us about the history of Niles/Fremont.  There is some fascinating stuff, and I have to go over my notes before posting incorrectly.  But basically, Niles is a historic district of Fremont — it’s a separate unincorporated city.  Fremont is larger, and while the Mudpuddle shop has a Fremont address, it’s in Niles.   Again:  inter-related.  Michael told us about the silent movie industry, which used to be very big in Niles before moving to Hollywood, and other cool stuff too… which will have to be in a separate post because once again I’m talking too much. 🙂

Michael grew up in Niles, and appears to know everyone in town.  It was fun watching all the activity going on around us, listening to Michael talk about the town, reminiscing about his time touring in Chicago, and talking about keeping up with old friends.  And then:  time for the show!

It was fun, it was funky, it was warm and friendly… a GREAT way to begin our gigs!  Our friends Claudia Russell and Bruce Kaplan came to see us (as well as my friend Carol, who hosted us in SanFran, and Renee, a relation by my sister’s marriage, amongst others).    Here we are after the show:

In addition to all this, a videographer friend of Michael’s, Ken Bushman, happened to be there, and he not only shot footage from our show, but enhanced it in really cool ways, for example, interspersing my Damsel in Distress video by Mary Lewis with my performance of the song:  

After our sets, which were “audibles” — a football term we learned from Michael, which pretty much means to do things “on the fly” — there was a song circle, where many talented folks performed.  The whole night was absolutely magical.  If you’re in the area, check out Michael’s website to see what other performances he’s hosting at Mudpuddle, and around Niles.

So much more to say, but I think they’re about to kick us out of the coffee shop! 🙂  Thanks again, Michael McNevin!!