The Dog Days Are Here

DUKES FANS: THE RETURN OF THE DOG DAYS! A couple of weeks ago I wrote a newsletter talking about the joys of summer outdoor music. Festivals, summer park concerts, and street parties have long been a part of my musical inspiration and playing career. I got to see some of my favorite musicians of all genres at the Philly Folk Festival, Be-Ins in Fairmount Park and summer park concerts in the 1960’s and 70’s. As a working musician I have been privileged to have played The Philly Folk Festival, Chestnut Hill Spring and Fall concerts, Narberth street concerts, Bryan Mawr’s Twilight Series, Kahn Park concerts, and many, many more. I love playing these gigs because the crowds are very diverse in age and music interest, and there is a special sense of unity that outdoor music seems to bring to people. There is a special sense of being together that inspires us musicians, and we reflect that back to the crowd. It is magical and powerful. This year it has been challenging for outdoor gigs. The unpredictability and intensity of this summer’s weather has made it hard for concert planners, audiences, and musicians. There have been several postponements of shows and several cancellations. This got me thinking about a newsletter piece I wrote way back in 2020 on “The Dog Days’, and I thought I would reprint part of it, slightly modified, again: THE DOG DAYS AT HOME It is hot and rainy again, and the weather has been a big part of our lives these last few weeks. There were most notably downpours, thunderstorms, and tornadoes, and floods of the last few weeks. Power was knocked out, roads, farmlands, and basements were flooded, and trees were felled throughout much of the country-indeed, much of the world. Those events were both preceded by, and then followed by, intense heat and humidity. We are spending a lot of time inside these days in front of fans, in air-conditioned environments, or trying to grab a little shade and a stray breeze on our porches or in our backyards. This can often be a time of two-three showers a day. The “Dog Days” of summer are definitely here, and they have announced their presence in very dramatic fashion. The Dog Days are traditionally cited as falling between July 3 and August 17th-18th. In the Southern and mid-Atlantic regions of the US it is a time of intense heat, high humidity, torrential downpours, thunderstorms and windstorms, and increasingly, floods. When I was young, I thought this time was called the “Dog Days’ because so often dogs would be seen on the streets with their tongues hanging out and panting, as if struggling to breathe. I had friends who said, “No, it is because dogs get driven mad by the heat in this weather, and they go around biting and attacking you.” I did not grow up in a house that had a dog, so this made me a little wary and afraid of dogs for a good long while. I did not want to be seen as a potential meal for a canine. Neither of those stories are true; “The Dog Days” refer to the period of time when there is the visible appearance of a super-bright star in the morning sky in a southeastern position. That star is now called, Sirius,” and its sunrise appearance was first noted and recorded yearly by the Egyptians thousands of years ago. They noted that when that star appeared, the Nile River would begin its period of flooding, and that was vital information. The Egyptians needed to know that for their agricultural output depended on the regular flooding of the Nile. The height and length of time of the flood season was the key to knowing when to plant crops, and when to trade items up and down the Nile. Knowing that was, therefore, the key to Egypt’s success as a civilization. Sirius was literally a watchdog for that event. Greece and Rome got a lot of their celestial knowledge from the Egyptians, and they eventually put Sirius into a constellation-Camus Majoris or Great Dog. The name of the constellation shows how important the star’s arrival was to them. And like so much of Egyptian, Greek and Roman cultures, that knowledge made its way to us. So we are in the Dog Days and trying to do that human thing; accept, adjust and apply. The Dukes and Brother John both have several outdoor gigs this summer, and my hope is that the weather pauses to allow those gigs to happen: as I said before, these gigs are very special to me. And if you are planning to come to any of them, I do hope you contact concert organizers before the scheduled event, particularly if there is rain in the forecast the day or night before to see if there is a postponement, cancellation, or change of venue. And if you come to these concerts, please bring plenty of water and insect repellent. The Dog Days are here, but we can still have the joy and connectedness of outdoor music in a crowd. Looking forward to sharing those joys with many of you this summer. Dukes of Destiny gigs (www.dukesofdestiny.com ) 1) Friday, July 18; CANCELED!! Mermaid Inn-corner of Germantown Ave and Mermaid Lane;8-11PM; THIS SHOW HAS BEEN CANCELED! 2)Saturday, August 9; Kennett Square Blues Fest: Anson Nixon Park; 405 N. Walnut St; Kennett Square PA; fest starts at noon; 3:45- 5PM is Brother John then The Dukes; $27.50; featured acts include Brother John, The Dukes of Destiny, Mikey Jr, Stevie and The Bluescasters, and more https://www.eventbrite.com/e/anson-b-nixon-park-roots-blues-festival-tickets-1450774318039 3)Tuesday, August 19: Seger Playground 1002 Lombard St; Phila. PA; 5:30PM-7:30PM; https://segerpark.org/ 4)Wednesday August 20 Kahn Park 11th and Pine Sts. Phila PA (rain date August 21st);7:30-9PM; https://kahnpark.org/events Outdoor fun for the Dukes for the month of August. This is our first time at the Kennett Roots and Blues Fest, and readers of this newsletter know tat I love Chester County and Kennett Square in particular. This is a wonderfully shaded park with a couple of great stages, good food vendors, and a great lineup of performers. A wonderful afternoon of blues fun in a great place. Seger Playground and Kahn Park have become regular gigs for the Dukes in my old neighborhood. These are beautiful urban parks-Seger has pickleball courts, dog runs, basketball courts and climbing things for kids. Kahn Park has lovely plantings, easy access to good restaurants, comfortable seats, and like Seger, great crowds of all ages. We love both of these places and look forward to seeing you there. BROTHER JOHN-JOHNNY NEVER & JOHN COLGAN-DAVIS Brother John gigs; www.johnnynver.com 1)Wednesday, July 16 Pastorius Park Summer Concert Series; Pastorious Park, Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia PA. https://www.chestnuthill.org/pastorius_park_summer_concerts.php 2) July 19. Black Crow CD pre-release party; Steel City Coffeehouse and Brewery; 203 Bridge Street, Phoenixville PA 19460; 484-925-8425 TICKETS $20 in advance $25 at the Door. Tickets available at www.steelcitybrews.com The Pastorious Park Summer Concert Series is one of the longest running summer concert series in Philadelphia. It is in a big, beautiful park with fountains, and nice sloping grass and trees. Bring a picnic, lawn chair and/or blanket, and bring the whole family. Beverages and snacks are available for sale. Steel City is a great listening room with good views of the stage, a great sound system and a great coffeehouse vibe. We love playing here, and we are happy to be having our CD release party in the wonderful town of Phoenixville. In recognition of the similarities of our first name and our tightness and intimate interaction of our music we are taking the occasion of the release of our New CD, Black Crow, to change our name and officially become Brother John. We are excited about this as it marks the continued evolution of our music and our sound. Advanced tickets are on sale now, and there is a link above to that gig. A gentle reminder: We are proud of the CD, but it is and was an expensive process. We had to pay for studio time, mastering the CD, making the actual physical copies of the CD, distributing it, and promoting it. To that end, we have established a Go Fund Me campaign to help cover the production costs. Following the link below will take you to the donation page where you can see a video that allows you to hear some clips from the CD and see a breakdown of our costs. And if you listen to Jonny Meister’s Blues show on WXPN, you can also hear cuts from Black Crow most Saturday nights. Anything you can give will be greatly appreciated. Welcome to the unveiling of Brother John. Thanks https://gofund.me/c62805b7 The Sunday Blues Jam at Jamey’s House of Music; 32 S. Landsdowne, Ave; Lansdowne, PA; jamey@jameyshouseofmusic.com Blues lovers and players have made Jamey's Sunday Blues Jam the place for great blues jamming, inexpensive and tasty eats, craft brews on tap, fresh brewed coffee, a great waitstaff, and friendly people who love the blues.  Each Sunday features an hour long set by a different house band, and then there is an open jam until 3PM. This month the jam features The Philly Blues Kings with various guitarists and singers. The 2nd Sunday of each month features The Roger Girke-John Colgan-Davis Project as the house band, and our next gig there is Sunday, August 10th. Got an instrument? Sing? Just want to listen to some exciting blues and have some good food? Come on out and take part in this great blues jam with great food and liquid refreshments. $5 minimum to be spent.