John Colvert

I Don’t Know at Live on WSCA

johncolvert — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 20:36:19 +0000

I visited my friend Shawn Henderson at WSCA a couple of weeks ago with Jon Aanestad, Patrick Coman, and Sam Otis Hill. Thought I’d give this new tune a try! – John

December 21st and 22nd! – Boston and Cambridge!

johncolvert — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 08:08:57 +0000

2 great shows coming up!

First, on December 21st we’ll be celebrating The Band’s 1968 debut album “Music From Big Pink” by teaming up with Patrick Coman and the Lo-Fi Angels, Sam Otis Hill and Co., and others. The extra cool part is that we will be PLAYING THE ALBUM FROM COVER TO COVER! This is a once and a lifetime show and I’m thrilled to pay homage to one of my greatest influences.

December 21st
For the Sake of the Song: Music From Big Pink
Great Scott
1222 Commonwealth Ave.
Alston, MA
9:00pm
Tickets

Then, we’ll keep the party going the next night, across the river at one of our favorite clubs, Toad! This show is FREE and we’ll be joined by some of our favorite special guests (TBA)

December 22nd
TOAD
1912 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA
10:00pm
FREE!

Hope to see you out there!

- John

Happy Thanksgiving, the news, gyros, and… Yanni?

johncolvert — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 07:23:00 +0000

First off, Happy Thanksgiving! I am so thankful for my friends (current and future), girlfriend, family, and bandmates. I think picking up an instrument has always been a perfect storm for me. I would never be doing what I am without all of your continued love and support. Thank you.

Now, to the bazaar stuff.

I only read the news before bed. I also fear that I’m going crazy. Both are true. It was about 2 years ago that we moved into our little palace over the dentist’s office. When we moved in we quickly decided to go without cable. All that I would miss were Bruin’s games (which I’ve found a way around… shhh) and the Discover Channel (Mythbusters to be exact).

Before I moved to where I am now, I made a conscious effort to be mindful of my daily news intake (other than Colbert and The Daily show… I guess I forgot Comedy Central). Honestly… it’s just so damn depressing. But now, working from home and without TV in the house I’ve found myself waiting until just before bed to sit and read the news on my phone. Apparently the only time of day that I am willing to sacrifice for police brutality and more Michele Bachmann bullshit is my sleep. What I find even more crazy is that it’s kind of addicting… in a pretty ef’ed up sort of way. One article after another about how all of us are going to hell in a hand basket… I have got to stop and I don’t understand why I can’t.

I know, that sounds bad. Being up on current events is important, so perhaps I just need to change my intake method. As of now, I get sucked into the news for an hour or two every night before bed, then when I finally muster the courage, or when my phone dies, I put it away and try to sleep. But I’m still stuck awake mulling everything over for another hour or two before I finally pass out.

This is where the crazy comes in. Not only am I stuck awake, but I’m usually exhausted and borderline delirious by this point, so at first I’ll be pondering Greece’s financial crisis, then I’ll find myself actually panicking as I drift in and out of sleep about having never had a gyro in Greece before everyone just packs up and (grape) leaves!

But fear not. In my dream that night I was actually attending Yanni at the Acropolis 2 (God, I hope it was in 3D) where Yanni himself (in a tux) handed me a gyro… that had a pound of french fries sticking out of the top… because someone told me recently that Greek gyros have french fries in them… go figure.

Currently it’s 1:30am the morning after Thanksgiving. My goal tonight is simple. Take a night off from reading the news. They say that the last thing you are thinking of before sleep makes its way into your dreams. So here is my concern: if I typically start with the Greek financial meltdown and end with Yanni 2… what happens tonight when I start with Yanni?

Be well,
John

Recovery

johncolvert — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 21:47:07 +0000

I had surgery on Monday… nothing serious, but I’ll spare you the details. I’ve broken plenty of bones and have gotten plenty of stiches in my 25 years (most of which were simple acts of stupidity), but I was 4 or 5 the last time I had surgery and was put under… I don’t remember much of that at all.
I’ve always done what most folks do with health issues. Ignore them. Still haven’t gotten my wisdom teeth out, and probably wont until I have a real problem. But I’ve been in a good deal of pain and discomfort since November, and it was time to man-up and take care of things.

The surgery itself was a cinch (minus waking up during it, but I was so stoned I wouldn’t have cared if they chopped my legs off). Next I know, I’m in the recovery room. The surgeon and nurse we talking to me and asking questions, but I was completely fixated on a black and white sign across hallway. Immediately I was frustrated. I could tell that the letters were BIG AS SHIT, but I couldn’t read them. Everything was blury and there was a voice in the back of my head whispering “whatever he is saying is probably important. Pay attention or you’re going to die”. I couldn’t. Instead I decided that this sign must be an eye chart and the doctor was just telling me to read line 6… that’s when I started to freak myself out a bit. I couldn’t find the giant E! That’s when I fell asleep again.

I woke up about 10 minutes later a bit more sober, asked the nurse to pass me my phone, and sent out a few texts letting folks know I was doing well and to my ride telling them that I was ready.

So here I am a couple of days later with a couple of percocets in my system, BORED AS HELL. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been so immobile and it’s driving me mad. I’ve tried to watch movies, but I pass out during the opening credits. I have a stack of books that I’ve been wanting to get through, but I’m out cold by the first page. I’ve tried playing guitar, but I’m only comfortable laying on my stomach. My friend suggested I lay down on an ironing board and hang the guitar underneath. It’s frustrating.

I was told to chill out and write a newsletter… I wish I had thought of this yesterday. So here we are, and let me tell you that it’s nice to do something!

In music land, we got our first mix finalized! We’ve got a long road ahead and lots of recording left, but it’s nice to have a shiny reward along the way. I’ll be sharing the track with ya’ll soon! We have also been working out a handful of new tunes for the stage that we’re excited to show you! We’ve got a Cambridge show coming up in a couple of weeks (more on that below).

Thanks to all for the well wishes. Looking forward to getting back to work on the album real soon!

Be well,
John