November 28, 2012
we have a new video for "rise up shepherd and follow" from our rerelease of christmas in concord. we made it over thanksgiving weekend so there's no snow on the ground but you'll see where i grew up (maybe it should be called thanksgiving in concord). and you can see suzan-lori play the washboard which is a rare treat, just one of the things she does when she's not writing plays and books. enjoy!
November 19, 2012
After many years of playing and touring with Dan Zanes & Friends and many requests from fans, drummer Colin Brooks is happy to announce he is now accepting beginning students for private drum lessons at the Festival Five studio. The lessons will focus on the basic fundamentals of drumming while having fun with various styles, ear-training, improvisation, and expressing oneself creatively through the drumset.
For further inquiry, feel free to email Colin directly at skrooby(at)gmail(dot)com. Subject - drum lessons.
About Colin: Colin Brooks was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He asked for and received his first drumset as a Christmas gift at the age of 7. He set about learning how to play by constant practice, jamming with his guitar playing father, and listening to and watching all of the drummers he saw on MTV back when they actually showed videos. He started his first proper band The Numbskulz at the age of 13 and turned professional by performing at all-ages local punk rock shows. He played in "too many different bands to remember" throughout high school in Little Rock, until shortly after graduating, he accepted touring jobs with the groups 2 Minutes Hate and Ho-Hum. After driving around the United States in a beat up vans for the better part of 5 years, he decided to move to Brooklyn in 1998 when a friend told him about an audition for a band called Skeleton Key. Since then, he has performed with many different local acts and singer-songwriters. He met Dan Zanes in 2004 and has been traveling the world drumming ever since.
November 15, 2012
Christmas in Concord, my EP of handmade holiday music as recalled from my New England childhood, has been reissued digitally this week. In addition to the five songs from the original release there are two new songs, collaborations with the Pulitzer prize-winning play write Suzan-Lori Parks. We wrote "Counting the Days (Until Christmas)" during a drive back from New Hampshire to New York. Talk of our fathers' military experiences became a song during the late night five hour trip. The other new song is our updated version of "Rise Up Shepard, and Follow" which Odetta and Pete Seeger have both recorded along the way. Suzan-Lori sings and plays washboard which I think makes our rendition just right for Holiday dance parties...
