Blue Monday Band

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July 2010

“Oh! `darkly, deeply, beautifully BLUE, / As someone somewhere sings about the sky.”
~Lord Byron

Let the SUMMER OF RODS 30th ANNIVERSARY SHOWS continue!!

Some people say we are never the same band twice. And those people just might be correct, but does it really matter? We're having a BLAST! Hope all of you are, too!

As you may have heard, we rocked 'em at The Haunt last month, and we had SO much fun with Billy Golicki that we asked him to join the band. Now we all know that Billy is somewhat the "free spirit" musically...but the good news is that he has agreed to play shows with us, so...we are going to enjoy that while it lasts. That being said, Billy AND Julie will be back (on and off), as the madness continues. Thanks to all the fans who came to The Haunt show to support us, and special thanks to those who took some spectacular pix and videos for us: Rose Sharpe, Linda Contento Schmidt, Pam Hinshaw, Lisa Burdick, Jeff Endler, Teresa Smith-Dennis (a/k/a "Terr-i"), and Rob Romano (from Caught In The Act Productions). We will be posting the fruits of their labor on the Blue Monday web site's Multimedia page as soon as Terry gets off her duff and works on that!

Our next musical endeavor will take place on Friday, July 23rd when we open for THE RODS at Cortland's own MAIN STREET MUSIC SERIES. The festivities start at 6pm when we take the stage (Billy will kick things off), followed by the raw power of THE RODS! Don't forget that THE RODS are still letting the fans author their "RODS RABID FANS SET LIST" - so, submit your requests to them here: http://www.therods.com/RodsRequestForm.html - do it soon, as they are working on requests now!!

Then get ready, because Blue Monday shows are being planned/booked for this Fall, as are a few acoustic-ky, side-project-y things that various members are putting together on the side. Watch for the band and the band members....we'll be out and about very soon. UNTIL THEN...ENJOY YOUR SUMMER!!

We'll see ya' around....

June 2010

Nothing but BLUE skies....do I see...

SUMMERTIME!! Outdoor shows, BBQ, ice-cold beverages.....AAAAaaaahhhh!!! But yet....somehow it just feels like something is missing from that lineup. Hmm. Whatever could it be?

Hey, I know.....RODS SHOWS!!!!!!!

Yep, we'll be opening for them not once this summer, but (at least) TWICE. Even better, these will be special RODS shows, because it's their 30th Anniversary. These shows will be unique, one-of-a-kind shows, tailored especially for true RODS fans. One half of each special show will feature brand new, original songs from THE RODS' forthcoming album, "Vengeance" as well as songs from guitarist David "Rock" Feinstein's fantastic new CD "Bitten by the Beast". AND, they're letting fans author their "RODS RABID FANS SET LIST" - submit your requests to them here: http://www.therods.com/RodsRequestForm.html

Saturday, June 19th at The Haunt in Ithaca, NY will mark the kickoff of the official RODS 30th Anniversary shows. Blue Monday will be opening at around 6:00pm that evening, with SPECIAL GUEST Billy Golicki on bass and vocals.

Then, on Friday, July 23rd we will once again be opening for THE RODS - this time for Cortland's own MAIN STREET MUSIC SERIES. We'll hit the stage around 6:00 or 6:30pm, and then THE RODS will take the stage shortly thereafter, soooooo.....MARK YOUR CALENDARS, INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS, AND SPREAD THE WORD!

We're also gearing up for Blue Monday shows for this coming Fall, too...so get ready, because we're chomping at the bit to get back out there and play for ya'.

We'll see ya' soon....

March 2010

Between the devil and the deep BLUE sea...

Whaddaya' gonna do when ya' have to let a really great bandmate go? Well, first you get totally bummed out that they are leaving....but then you pick yourself up off the ground and call up a really great OLD bandmate and see what they're up to. And that is what we did. In all honesty, it actually took the passing of a very dear mutual friend to draw us all back together. ***RIP Mr. Steven Barnes***

In any case, the cryptic message here is.....Don Hinshaw is back, complete with his [magic?] hat.

No, no, no, no, no...Kenny's not gone. But, we ARE extremely sad to report that Ms. Julie has had to leave us. She is very talented, and a TON of fun, and we miss her a lot. The GOOD news is she's not COMPLETELY gone - she's just crazy busy....so don't be surprised if she turns up now and again to sit in. We're giving her honorary band member status and leaving the door wide open in hopes that someday her work schedule will calm down and she can come back to jam with us. As you can see, many people have left, and many people have returned. Have we ever been the SAME band twice? Ha ha ha ha ha!

All that aside, in case you are wondering what the rest of us have been up to since the last show back in November.....here's the scoop. We've been letting Kenny rest (some of you may have heard he had a heart attack last August)...and so he is getting stronger every day, and is planning to make his return to the stage on Friday, July 23 when we will once again be opening for THE RODS - this time for Cortland's own MAIN STREET MUSIC SERIES. We'll hit the stage around 6:00 or 6:30pm, and then THE RODS will take the stage around 7:30 or 8:00pm, soooooo.....MARK YOUR CALENDARS, INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS, AND SPREAD THE WORD!

We'll see you there.

November 2009

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something BLUE!!

Something old....well, that would be old school ROCK....(and, sadly, most of US...haha).

Something new....that would be Ms. JULIE, our latest addition to the band!

Something borrowed....um, that's reserved for our lead guitarist for this show, Tim (Flynn) Hylton!

....and....something BLUE.....that's self-explanatory, or so I would hope!

We're emailing a newsletter to all of you today because in exactly ONE week, we will be hitting the stage at THE HAUNT in Ithaca, to open for our good friends THE RODS! You will not want to miss this show, it's going to RAWWWWWK! Tickets are $10 and the doors open at 6pm. If you listen to Kat Walters on I-100 this week, you might win a free pass! So, tune in to her show mornings on I-100 (99.9FM)! You can listen online, too...just visit: http://www.i100rocks.com/ - I don't know if WVBR is giving away tickets too...but you could listen to Peter Knight and find out: http://www.wvbr.com/

So, back to the details. We'll hit the stage first, probably around 6:30ish or so, and play for an hour to an hour.5 and then THE RODS will blow you away with their raw, vintage metal power! All of this will be followed by The Haunt's Sat. night DANCE party.

Many of you are asking, so I will report to you that (sadly) Kenny will not be playing this show with us, as he is still on medical leave from Blue Monday. The good news is that he is recovering nicely from his heart attack (thank you for your emails, cards, and letters)...so we will see if we can get him to return sometime in 2010. We do plan to book a debut show for the new lineup at LUCKY'S in Cortland as soon as we're ready....and we will keep you posted on that idea.

So for now, mark your calendars for Saturday, Nov. 28....because THE NIGHT LIVES TO ROCK! INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS AND SPREAD THE WORD!

Book your motel rooms, hire your designated drivers, and pack yer bags NOW, because you don't want to miss this show!

August 2009

And so another page has turned in the book of Blue Monday, and a new chapter is beginning. But this time we had to go back to go forward. Let us 'splain.......

When we formed Blue Monday a few years back, some of you may recall that we were pretty excited to be adding a SECOND CHICK ROCKER to the lineup. Then...due to circumstances beyond the control of any of us, she was unable to participate.

But guess what....THE TIME IS NOW....her name is JULIANNA LYRIC, she is here, and she's ready to get crackin'! Julie's info is up on the Blue Monday web site, and our first band rehearsal is this week. We are assembling the game plan now, and as soon as the summer festivities wind down we plan to get down to business and learn a whole show's worth of songs to deliver to all of you.

Speaking of shows, for those of you who came out to Inner Harbor in Syracuse for our opener on August 5th, THANK YOU - we hope you had a great time there - we sure did, and a big thanks to Bill Hatch for sitting in with us. We loved rockin' out with THE RODS and SKID ROW, and rumor has it that an attendance record was broken that day with over 10,000 fans attending! Our pix are on the web site if you want to see 'em!

In any case, everyone had SUCH a good time that we have once again have been invited to open for THE RODS! So, mark down November 28th (a/k/a the Saturday after Thanksgiving) on your calendars, as we will all be returning to The Haunt for a command performance! Joining us on stage once again will be guest guitarist Tim (Flynn) Hylton, so DON'T MISS IT!

Stay cool, and we will see you soon - we cant wait for you to meet Julie - we know you're gonna love her just as much as we do!

July 2009

Yeah, I know, we've been taking a break over the summer...you know, camping, racing....yada, yada, yada. We'll be out and about again in the Fall. But.....here's a quick UPCOMING GIG newsflash for ya'!

In case ya' haven't heard, we're slated to open for THE RODS and SKID ROW next Wednesday, August 5th, at Inner Harbor in Syracuse. It's part of the TK99 Hump Day Concert Series, we're on first, and from what I am told, the music runs from 5:15pm to 10:00pm. Soooo, get your butts up to Inner Harbor early and have some fun!

Show details: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=82301111738&ref=ts

OR

http://www.tk99.net

Inner Harbor is just off of Van Rensselaer Street in Syracuse. Google map it, use Tom Tom, do whatever you've gotta do, just get up there! It's an outdoor venue, and pretty cool. For a pic, see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inner_Harbor,_Syracuse

If that weren't enough (and don'tcha' think it oughta' be?)....on lead guitar will be Syracuse-area guitarist BILL HATCH, and Bill has promised to rock the socks off everyone there, so don't miss it!

On that note, we'll see YOU there!

May 2009

Hey there folks, how has spring been treating ya' so far? Good? ...GOOD! We don't know about all of you, but the Blue Monday band members are just a'buzzing around doing a zillion things. Besides practicing diligently, we've also been busy with fine-tuning race cars, cleaning up camp sites, and working like dogs!

Speaking of dogs (OK yeah, cheesy segue here, but it freakin' works, so go with it).....all you "WILD DOGS" should make plans now...because less than two weeks away is our show with our good friends THE RODS! The show date is Saturday, May 16th at The Haunt in Ithaca, and joining us onstage for that show will be another former band mate of Terry and Tommy's, Tim (Flynn) Hylton! Tim is traveling from his new hometown of Staten Island, back to his former hometown of Cortland to play some kick-ass rock with us. Tickets for the show are $10 at the door, and doors open at 6pm. It's an EARLY show, so don't be late! And it's bound to be a packed house, so again...our advice is to get there early!

For more info about the show and also about the DVD that will be filmed that night, visit:

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.Net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=119015

We sure hope you can make it, because this will be Blue Monday's LAST show for a little while. Summer is a horrendously busy time for the four of us, so there is absolutely NO way we will get a chance to work up a regular show for you until sometime later this year - maybe around October or so (if then)! So get your cute little hiney-ho's out to see us on May 16, and be ready to rock, because THE RODS are going to blow the doors off the place!

On that note, we'll see YOU at The Haunt!

March 2009

Well folks, Don has decided to leave us, due to personal commitments. It is an unfortunate turn of events, but we wish him well, and hope that someday he is able to find the blues band of his dreams.

OK, that was the sad news. The GOOD news is that we are welcoming back a good friend, and former bandmate, KENNY ROMER! Kenny will be stepping in as Blue Monday's new lead guitarist, effective immediately.

We will probably have to get back to the basement for a little while, but we assure you that we will be out and about again in no time. As a matter of fact, we have FINALLY booked a show with THE RODS! The show date is Saturday, May 16th at The Haunt in Ithaca, and joining us onstage for that show will be another former bandmate, Tim (Flynn) Hylton! Tim is traveling from his new hometown of Staten Island, back to his former hometown of Cortland to practice with us and to play some kick-ass rock for you.

And, that's the news for now. Stay tuned for the next episode of "As The Drum Rolls...." (also known as NEVER A DULL MOMENT IN LOCAL ROCK AND ROLL)!!

IMPORTANT NOTE: PLEASE CHECK OUR WEB SITE's GIGS PAGE FOR UPDATES....with the exception of the show with The Rods (which Don was not planning to play for anyway) we will obviously have to regroup, so we may have to cancel or postpone some shows over the next month or so, but....we will post that info on the web site, so be sure to check before heading out to a venue.

We'd like to thank our partners, iGuitar and Coffee Mania for their continued support (and great products) - we hope that all our Blue Monday fans will help us to support both businesses, since THEY help support local bands and music!!

On that note, we'll see you as soon as we get ourselves reorganized!