travelling musician based temporarily in Portland wondering (aside from Kell's and Alberta Pub) where the tunes are. taken aback by the seeming lack of any sessions run by and/or including advanced/professional players.
No snobbery intended! If the Alberta Pub sesh wasn't so late and far from my temp home, I'd give it more of a go... But it would be great to get some tunes in while I'm here...
Any advice welcome! Happy to "audition" and/or provide references for invitation-only circles.
To find Portland's true professionals only session you'll need to take Exit 12 off I-205 in Clackamas. Drive east on highway 224 about 44 miles through Estacada to the end of the highway. Just beyond Ripplebrook Ranger Station the road becomes Forest Service Road 46. Continue on Road 46 about 3.5 miles, then turn right on to Forest Service Road 63. After about 3 miles on this road, you'll turn right on Road 70 and drive 5.5 miles until you come to a parking lot. You’ll find a trailhead to the left and you'll want to hike up the trail following the Collawash river for about a mile and a half until you come to a series of rustic bathhouses. The tunes are generally held in the lower "community" cabin on the open deck next to the large tub. This session is clothing optional so be prepared to find these "advanced/professional" musicians playing their tunes comfortably nude. Despite your obvious status as an established high-level player, the normal rules of etiquette do apply (i.e ask before you just launch into tunes, try to be respectful of the already established feel, tune to the other players, etc). As with all sessions you'll want to watch out for the bears, drug crazed crazed hippies, Indian curses, and drunk rednecks who for some reason just don't appreciate what it is we do. To find out when the next session will take place you need to go to the burrito cart on the corner of 92nd and Flavel, ask the guy with the tears tattooed down his cheek for a hot salty dog and wink three times. Sorry for the trouble, but we like to keep this session small. I’m sure you understand.
Sorry man, we've nothing better to do -- it rains a lot here. Give the regular sessions another chance, you'll find lots of good players and genuinely decent people.
And if you follow those above directions I think you really will come to a pretty sweet (and clothing optional!) natural hot springs, so rest assured no one was intentionally leading you to a pit of vipers (or not the bad sort of vipers anyhow).
It's not just in Oregon where you have to watch out for bears, drug crazed hippies, Indian curses, and drunk rednecks. We've been having a bear and drunk redneck problem in Glasgow for months.
Yeah and then some a**hole gave the Sasquatch a bodhran and now we've got to contend with the members of the megafauna cryptid ceili band showing up at the sessions, tuning to b-flat, and grunting at the women while eating all our food.
Cripes. Y'all need some serious session police up there. Call out the trad militia. Ring up yer Sergeant-at-Arms. Freaking Sasquatches.
We used to have a problem with Skunk Apes, but we ran them all out of our session years ago. Eejits couldn't tell a jig from a reel, and they always wanted to sing some piffle about being a hairy rover.
bc, if you happen across a sesh that allows poor feeble timid-minded beginners (namely, myself) in without demandin' a pound of skin, or if you hear of anybody who just wants to have some other folk(s) to play a bit with, let me know. I'm in the portland area myself after moving up from s.or. a few years ago.
tunes in portland oregon??
tunes in portland oregon??
travelling musician based temporarily in Portland wondering (aside from Kell's and Alberta Pub) where the tunes are. taken aback by the seeming lack of any sessions run by and/or including advanced/professional players.
No snobbery intended! If the Alberta Pub sesh wasn't so late and far from my temp home, I'd give it more of a go... But it would be great to get some tunes in while I'm here...
Any advice welcome! Happy to "audition" and/or provide references for invitation-only circles.
# Posted on April 18th 2010 by bestcraic
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
To find Portland's true professionals only session you'll need to take Exit 12 off I-205 in Clackamas. Drive east on highway 224 about 44 miles through Estacada to the end of the highway. Just beyond Ripplebrook Ranger Station the road becomes Forest Service Road 46. Continue on Road 46 about 3.5 miles, then turn right on to Forest Service Road 63. After about 3 miles on this road, you'll turn right on Road 70 and drive 5.5 miles until you come to a parking lot. You’ll find a trailhead to the left and you'll want to hike up the trail following the Collawash river for about a mile and a half until you come to a series of rustic bathhouses. The tunes are generally held in the lower "community" cabin on the open deck next to the large tub. This session is clothing optional so be prepared to find these "advanced/professional" musicians playing their tunes comfortably nude. Despite your obvious status as an established high-level player, the normal rules of etiquette do apply (i.e ask before you just launch into tunes, try to be respectful of the already established feel, tune to the other players, etc). As with all sessions you'll want to watch out for the bears, drug crazed crazed hippies, Indian curses, and drunk rednecks who for some reason just don't appreciate what it is we do. To find out when the next session will take place you need to go to the burrito cart on the corner of 92nd and Flavel, ask the guy with the tears tattooed down his cheek for a hot salty dog and wink three times. Sorry for the trouble, but we like to keep this session small. I’m sure you understand.
# Posted on April 19th 2010 by PDX advanced pro
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Hilarious.
# Posted on April 19th 2010 by Jreidy
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Well thanks for taking the time to take the p*ss anyway. sigh.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by bestcraic
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by rapidbackpeddler
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
And if you follow those above directions I think you really will come to a pretty sweet (and clothing optional!) natural hot springs, so rest assured no one was intentionally leading you to a pit of vipers (or not the bad sort of vipers anyhow).
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by rapidbackpeddler
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
I LOVE the Alberta Street sesh! I go there whenever I visit family in Salem, and they have my favorite beer on tap and I can't find it anywhere else.
It's worth the drive. Don't be a wuss.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by jwvansteenwyk
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
ROFL. That was one of the funniest p*ss-takes I have ever seen on this site.
Not sure where you are from, bestcraic, but you did kinda have that one coming.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by DrSilverSpear
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
It's not just in Oregon where you have to watch out for bears, drug crazed hippies, Indian curses, and drunk rednecks. We've been having a bear and drunk redneck problem in Glasgow for months.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by DrSilverSpear
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Yeah and then some a**hole gave the Sasquatch a bodhran and now we've got to contend with the members of the megafauna cryptid ceili band showing up at the sessions, tuning to b-flat, and grunting at the women while eating all our food.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by PDX advanced pro
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Cripes. Y'all need some serious session police up there. Call out the trad militia. Ring up yer Sergeant-at-Arms. Freaking Sasquatches.
We used to have a problem with Skunk Apes, but we ran them all out of our session years ago. Eejits couldn't tell a jig from a reel, and they always wanted to sing some piffle about being a hairy rover.
http://www.floridaskunkape.com/
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Thank heavens the banjo wielding nutria mostly stick to old time.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by PDX advanced pro
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
I dunno... I heard a nutria in the Reed wetlands the other day trying to pick out Colonel Frasers on the tenor banjo.... shiver...
Right-o folks. Thanks for the input. And the dubiously deserved comeuppance. See you at the hotsprings!
I am changing addresses to a more local (less Milwaukian) locale and will be more able to make it out to the two extant sessions in town....
Would appreciate any other local trad scene tips that may come to mind...
Thanks a mil!!
Cheers,
bc
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by bestcraic
Re: tunes in portland oregon??
Jaypers. Now THAT's a p*sstake. ROFL.
bc, if you happen across a sesh that allows poor feeble timid-minded beginners (namely, myself) in without demandin' a pound of skin, or if you hear of anybody who just wants to have some other folk(s) to play a bit with, let me know. I'm in the portland area myself after moving up from s.or. a few years ago.
Oh, and its the fiddle I murder.
# Posted on April 20th 2010 by Pádraig