Week 2 of "Allison Crowe August" Live

Woke this morning to the sounds of ‘The Friday Morning Markout’ on CHMR Radio – with genial show-host FanBoy Mark Jabroni ringing in “week 2 of ‪#‎AllisonCroweAugust‬!”

Hearing the DJ spin almost the entire two-night concert set of Allison – “Live at Wood Hall” – on the air’s a welcome reminder of how great is this release: http://music.allisoncrowe.com/album/live-at-wood-hall It’s an all-time fan fave, particularly in Europe where the sound of solo voice and piano is especially appreciated. Here’s a capsule description from when Rubenesque Records first posted this double-disc – dim the lights and enjoy the concerts:

Live at Wood Hall is an exciting journey through Allison Crowe's concert repertoire, recorded with a simple clarity in the converted chapel of Victoria (B.C.)'s Conservatory of Music. Alongside more than an album's worth of original songs of love and hope, social and political conscience, and real beauty, Allison covers cherished favourites - including Ani DiFranco ("Independence Day"), Counting Crows ("A Murder of One"), Tori Amos ("Playboy Mommy"), Janis Joplin ("Me and Bobby McGee"), and John Lennon ("Imagine"). Colours in the artist's musical palette range from roots & blues, through folk, pop/rock, jazz and Broadway. There's even a traditional Irish aire, "Believe Me If All (Those Endearing Young Charms)", sung acappella. Once again, Larry Anschell (Turtle Studios) captures the music on tape and Alix Whitmire designs the beautiful artwork/CD cover. " 'Music, man, that's where it's at'/ it is a religious line/ outside, the chimes rung/ an they/ are still ringin."

Full album credits, track-listing and all at the link below. And, to enjoy week 3 of “Allison Crowe August” upcoming - search "CHMR's RING RUST" on the Stitcher app, or listen live via http://www.chmr.ca/main.html 

rocktopi

Travelling from my home island of Salt Spring to Victoria, B.C. (Canada) this week - I discovered that the trip is just the right distance to enjoy the first disc of Allison's Live at Wood Hall double-album one-way, and to sing along through the second disc on the return to the ferry.

I have just recently found myself with a car that contains a CD player. Modern, I know. Highway cruising, singing out loud, with no one cautioning me to "leave it to the professionals", (as our loved driver Axel likes to say when we're on tour), is plenty of fun!

And this experience answered a question rolling in mind: what can you find on this particular blog that you can't find on Allison Crowe's website or her other online venues?

Well, for a start, a walking octopus.



Octopi, even.



It was in the Spring of 2005 that Allison performed a two-night stand at Victoria's Conservatory of Music - in the converted church sanctuary that now serves as the Robin & Winifred Wood Recital Hall. (It's recordings of these shows that form the 'Wood Hall' CD set.) Between the first night's encore and soundcheck the next afternoon, Christine L. Huffard, Farnis Boneka, and Robert J. Full, scientists in the U.S. and Indonesia, made public their studies on Underwater Bipedal Locomotion by Octopuses in Disguise, revealing:

"Two species of octopus walk on two alternating arms using a rolling gait and appear to use the remaining six arms for camouflage. Octopus marginatus resembles a coconut, and Octopus (Abdopus) aculeatus, a clump of floating algae. Using underwater video, we analyzed the kinematics of their strides. Each arm was on the sand for more than half of the stride, qualifying this behavior as a form of walking."

Naturally, Allison helped spread word of this amazing find that same evening in the song introduction to Secrets.

The 25 March 2005 issue of Science magazine contained full details. Fine folks at the non-profit Sea Studios Foundation, based in Monterey, California's legendary Cannery Row, made the delightful vids.