The Bull City Cosmic Hoedown

Down Home Traditional/Roots music.
Purveyors of Twangy music from all over the country and all over the world since 1989.
Western Swing / Bluegrass / Oldtime / Honky-Tonk / Folk / Blues / R&B / Cajun / Celtic / African
Broadcast every Sunday Evening from 7-10pm on WXDU, Durham 88.7 FM.

Fall House-Concert Series...

These concerts take place in a friend of mine's living room in Durham. It is a wonderful room with a high ceiling, great acoustics, and holds about 70 people sitting down. The shows are all acoustic - we don't use a sound system, so there are no speakers or PA system - nothing between you and the musicians. Tickets must be reserved in advance, and go on sale via e-mail and phone about two weeks before each show. Once you've reserved tickets, you will recieve directions to the show (located near Ninth Street in Durham). All shows begin at 7:30pm, and you are welcome to bring food and drink for yourself or to share with others. If you'd like to get on the Cosmic Hoedown Mailing List and receive early notification of these shows, just drop me a line at <dave@hoedown.org> or call (919)-834-8667. Also, please let me know about your favorite performers who deserve more attention, and we'll try to bring them to town for a show.

Thurs Sept 30

Michael "Doc Snock" Hurley

Tickets go on sale Tues Sept 21 at 8:30pm - $10/head

"Michael Hurley is the last unreconstructed folkie-shaman in America. His songs are primordial tales of the hunt for good cheer and satisfying sex, etched like cave paintings on city walls and farmland silos. Like many characters in his songs, his voice seems to have been run over by the dump truck of life, but it marries human mystery to forthright music like no other." --Milo Miles

When Townes Van Zandt died last year, Michael Hurley suddenly stood alone as the last great unsung hero of American folk music. He hadn't managed to fly under the cultural radar completely unnoticed -- astute critics seized upon his few performances to laud him as a lost master of incomparable songwriting skills. But to this day, there's no tribute album, no major-label reissue program and no groundswell of popular recognition for the man also known as Doc Snock. So who is Michael Hurley? Long considered a pioneer of "Acid-Folk" along with friends/co-conspirators "The Holy Modal Roudners" (Peter Stampel and Steve Webber), since recording his debut for Folkways in 1965, the twisted troubadour has released about a dozen albums of unwavering quality, sauntering through a distinctive pastiche of blues, country and folk styles and singing undiluted odes to Southern cookin', lovely ladies and animated critters. Hurley is also an eccentric painter/cartoonist, with his drawings and watercolors frequently showing up on his album covers. His newest recording, Weatherhole, is to be released in October on the New York based Field Recordings record label.

Dave Moore

Thurs Oct 14 -- 8:00pm
Special show at Skylight Exchange

Tickets available at Schoolkids and Roots Records -- $6 in advance/$8 at the door

Dave Moore’s haunting songs, whether originals or reworked traditional classics, combine soulful edge and grit with an introspective nature that is all his own. His voice bears the imprints of a lifetime of travels through the Southwest (both sides of the border), an abiding love for the blues, and a deep inner restlessness. Originally known as a virtuoso harmonica player, Dave expanded his horizons over a decade ago when he received a grant to study with Texan norteña button-accordion master Fred Zimmerle. He then surprised even close friends when he started singing and performing his own songs with guitar. Today, the lanky Iowan is among the finest and most stirring singer/songwriters in the American Midwest.

You may recognize his guitar and harmonica playing from several early Greg Brown recordings and also from his many appearances on "A Prarie Home Companion".

Dave Moore's newest (and third) recording, "Breaking Down To Three" is on the Red House label, and has just been released to critical acclaim and is recieving lots of attention from music critics and radio stations throughout the USA and Europe. He was just interviewed last week on "All Things Considered" from National Public Radio, on Sept 24th. You can listen to his interview with Noah Adams by clicking here

"Dave Moore's new cd 'Breaking Down To Three' is a sublime, moving tour-de-force...Moore conjures up some heaven-sent intersection of Don Williams, Harlan Howard, and Johnny Cash...Straight up, tight on the rail...no excuses."
-- NO DEPRESSION 7/99

"The truth is that Dave Moore is one of America's finest songwriters. He is someone who can pull memories from a battered Gibson like wrinkled shirts from a road-worn suitcase. He blows harp like he was born with it between his lips. And he works the mic as if he was letting us in on the secrets of the world." -- Dirty Linen

Wed Oct 20

Jennifer and Hazel Wrigley

Tickets go on sale Tues Oct 12 at 8:30pm - $10/head

Scottish twin sisters Jennifer and Hazel Wrigley hail from the Orkney Islands off the northeast coast of Scotland. Orkney consists of 70 islands, the nearest of which is located only 10 miles from John O' Groats, the northeast tip of Scotland. The islands were part of Norway up until 1469, andthe music from Orkney contains more Norwegian influence and less Gaelic influence than that found elsewhere in Scotland. Jennifer is an extraordinary fiddler of many styles and is winner of the prestiguous 1996 Young Tradition award. Hazel plays both guitar and piano providing terrific accompaniment with some swing/jazz influences worked in, and also writes many of the tunes. The Wrigleys are also part of a great young group known as Seelyhoo, based in Edinburgh. You may remember the Wrigleys from their live-on-air performance on The Bull City Cosmic Hoedown about two years ago, after a Triangle Music International sponsored show. We're excited about having Jennifer and Hazel back in town, and hope you'll come out to see this exciting young duo while they're on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.

Ray Wylie Hubbard

Wed Nov 3

Tickets go on sale Tue Oct 26 at 8:30pm - $10/head

Up until this past decade, Ray Wylie Hubbard was more rumor than reality to most folks outside of his native Texas. Long regarded as an esteemed peer by such Lone Star State notables as Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Billy Joe Shaver, Lyle Lovett and Willie Nelson, Ray Wylie spent nearly 20 years working the backroads; knockin' 'em dead at honky-tonks and roadhouses while rending and mending his personal fences. Following a private, internal dragon-slaying 11 years ago, though, Hubbard has made short order of breathing rich, vibrant life into his legend. With Crusades of the Restless Knights, the deep, far-reaching follow-up to his remarkable 1997 Philo / Rounder debut Dangerous Spirits, Hubbard continues to stretch his ambitious musical canvas even as the soulful spirituality of his lyrics (generously laced with wry humor) continues to explore darkly fertile soil. Add to those two gems 1992's self-released Lost Train of Thought and 1994's Loco Gringo's Lament on Dejadisc, and the ol' boy has racked up four straight wall-to-wall winners which deliver in spades on his long, lofty promise.

Ray Wylie's sense of humor and sly witt serves him well along with his deadpan delivery, deep resonant vocals, entergetic harmonica playing, and hot fingerpicking guitar style. Texas Outlaw Music at it's finest! Don't miss this rare chance to see Ray Wylie Hubbard live in Durham in an intimate acoustic environment.

The TimeHoppers Western Swing Band

Thur Dec 2

Tickets go on sale Wed Nov 24 8:30pm - $7/head

The Bull City Cosmic Hoedown is pleased to present one of the debut appearances by one of The Triangle's newest and most exciting bands: The TimeHoppers Western Swing Band...a hot 7-piece band playing their own creative blend of Western Swing music featuring new tunes as well as old classics from such artists as Milton Brown, Bob Wills, Bill Boyd, Spade Cooley and others.

Concieved by leader Jon Kemppainen (fiddler for $2 Pistols and former member of The Squirrel Nut Zippers), this band features an all-star lineup of some of the area's most seasoned players of American Roots Music:

Jon Kemppainen (from $2 Pistols) -- Fiddle, Vocals, Leader
Clay Buckner (from Red Clay Ramblers / Fiddle-X) -- Fiddle, Vocals
John Worthington (from Dixie Cups / Bill Newton's BBQ) -- Guitar
John Soady ( from Delta Rays / Kickbacks) -- Guitar
Cliff Swanson (of the Ultraviolets) -- Pedal Steel Guitar
Jeff Elliott (numerous jazz groups) -- Upright Bass
Mark Simonsen (Flyin' Mice / Sideshow Freaks) -- Drums

Fiddle and vocal duties are shared by Jon Kemppainen of the Two Dollar Pistols and, from the Red Clay Ramblers and Fiddle-X, Clay Buckner. Area veteran John Worthington has played bluegrass, old-time, blues and jump with everyone from Alice Gerrard to the Dixie Cups, and is joined on guitar by r&b-jazz master John Soady from the Delta Rays and the Kickbacks. Cliff Swanson of the Ultraviolets gets his inspired steel guitar and pedal steel sound from the work of Buddy Cage and Rusty Young as well as thirty five years of playing country and rock and roll. Holding down the rhythm section is the unshakeable combination of jazz bassist Jeff Elliott and drummer Mark Simonsen, formerly of the Flying Mice and lately with the Last of the Great Sideshow Freaks.

Thanks for visiting the Bull City Cosmic Hoedown's Web Site...

Please be patient while we whoop our web pages into shape. This site is under construction, and likely will be for a while. Thanks for the many suggestions and requests for information. Hopefully within the month we'll be able to have more background information about the radio program, playlists, and top-30 reports each month. Please e-mail any suggestions you have to me at <dave@hoedown.org>, and we'll try to incorporate them into the site as we have time. Until then, tune in on Sunday nights 7-10pm for the best in Traditional and Roots Music, and we'll see you out on the town for some live music...

-Washboard Dave