IT’S THE LITTLE JACK MELODY AND HIS YOUNG TURKS INAUGURAL GIG IN THE YEAR 2025, A SATURNALIAN REVEL OF EXTRAVAGANT AFTERNOON PROPORTIONS, OPENING AS WE ARE FOR SHIBBOLETH, ONE OF THE TRULY GREAT BANDS OF THE LAND!
SATURDAY, JANUARY 25th, 3:00 PM,
AT DAN’S SILVERLEAF IN DENTON!
DATELINE: Denton, TX
Well, well, well, what’s all this, then? Ms. Merriam? Mr. Webster? Er, Shibboleth?
Shibboleth noun
shib·bo·leth shi-bə-ləth & also -leth
1 a: a word or saying used by adherents of a party, sect, or belief and usually regarded by others as empty of real meaning
the old shibboleths come rolling off their lips
- Joseph Epstein
b: a widely held belief
today this book publishing shibboleth is a myth
- L. A. Wood
c: TRUISM, PLATITUDE
some truth in the shibboleth that crime does not pay
- Lee Rogow
2 a: a use of language regarded as distinctive of a particular group
accent was … a shibboleth of social class
- Vivian Ducat
b: a custom or usage regarded as distinguishing one group from others
for most of the well-to-do in the town, dinner was a shibboleth, its hour dividing mankind
- Osbert Sitwell
NO, NO, NO, ALL WRONG!
Shibboleth proper noun
shib·bo·leth shi-bə-ləth & also -leth
1 a: A largely indescribable band with origins in Dallas, Texas. Comprising Rich Martin (electric keyboards), Don Cento (electric guitars), James Driscoll (electric basses), and Norm “Chopper” Bergeron (eclectic drumset), they’ve been touted as “Instrumental Rock that will pin you to your chair and re-style your hair,” while other pundits have advanced this illustration: “For just a moment, you’re stranded in an elevator with the least-popular members of T-Rex, The Carpenters and The Kinks, along with George Jones’s hairpiece. The elevator shudders somewhere between the mezzanine and rooftop grotto, and suddenly you’re rocketed skyward by the excruciatingly serene tones of Shibboleth. Eventually, the bell dings and you’re on your way back to the lobby.”
That’s right. That Shibboleth returns to Denton, and it’s been way too long. I’ll cut to a chase here and say that I absolutely love this band. When my buddy/LJM keyboard player Brad Williams enticed me to go hear them for the first time many years ago, he described them as “It’s all original instrumentals that sound like they might’ve been theme songs for an 80s teenage sit-com that was never actually produced.” Or words very much to that effect. I went, I saw, I heard, and they conquered. Shibboleth fan for life.
Over the years we’ve done occasional double bills with them, and it’s always been a splendid time for all. This time we’re opening for them, with an elegantly succinct 45-minute set, and then Shibboleth takes control, and it’ll be a quick changeover, in no small part because our bands share a drummer, Norm “Chopper” Bergeron, incarnate.
As an added Shib-bonus, the Shibbs have invited me to sing a couple of songs with them, and they’ve also invited the superpower that is Paul Slavens to sing a couple as well. (Even instrumental combos yearn for the human voice, or some attempt at its imitation, from time to time. Call it a weak moment, rather than a revelation or a flaw.)
Any questions? Have them all answered when you come see LITTLE JACK MELODY AND HIS YOUNG TURKS (LJM, Brad Williams, Chopper Bergeron, Carl Kleinsteuber) opening for SHIBBOLETH (Rich Martin, Don Cento, James Driscoll, Chopper Bergeron) at
Dan’s Silverleaf, 123 Industrial, Denton, 76201
Saturday, January 25, 2025, 3:00 pm
More info here:
and
What am I forgetting? Hell if I know.
Seeya,
and Happy New Year!,
LITTLE JACK MELODY
Denton, TX
