I give up… Click on one with a date…

Our snow boots sit patiently in the closet. It’s February and our fair state has seen no lasting snow yet this winter. I’ve never known this to happen in the Northeast, and while we wonder what it portends globally, we give thanks that every time we’ve returned from a tour, the driveway has been clear.

Revenants has been released and sent to some 440 radio stations; it’s charted as the #2 album on the Folk DJ list for January 2007; we’ve done our whirlwind Florida tour and are gearing up for a stint in West Virginia, then a longer trip to Georgia and Memphis for the National Folk Alliance. In the midst of all this we landed a plum gig in England for this summer. That ramped up the activity quite a bit as we set about booking a rather last-minute tour in the UK — and as of yesterday we’ve found a wonderful agent (Jacey Bedford Tour Management) to take over that job. We love her already and can’t WAIT to go to England. It’s been such a dream of ours ever since, um… we were born, really, and we feel like the sky has opened up and graced us with rubies.

One of the things we talk about is that, when we’re in England, all of our material will be new again. It’s giving us a fresh perspective on all our songs. Somehow it makes us feel very rich, having this great body of work to draw from. Mad Agnes will be six years old this summer!

Still, we feel we want to fatten up our repertoire with a few more a cappellas before we go. We want to be prepared to sing at a moment’s notice, anywhere.

Stay tuned for information about our planned “No Visible Means of Support” fundraising effort towards the UK tour. Better yet, go to our mailing list and sign up. You’ll read it all in our monthly newsletter.

Cheers,

Adrienne (and Margo and Mark)

Just came across some photos I took in Texas last March. We went on a spectacular hike with our dear friends from Neverlandia, and ended up picking up a lot of other people’s trash along the way. In a found bucket, no less.

 Ack! This is what comes of developing a recycling program for schoolkids. We used to be untroubled by awareness. Then we didn’t have to think about the problem — but lift the veil with a little research and suddenly there is garbage everywhere!

After our good deed we had time to explore the rocks and rivers.

Kay and Adrienne…

 …and Talbot

more Austin sights…

We like to mark every Texas tour with some bizarre health issue, so this year we all came down with bronchitis. In an attempt to help Margo heal faster, we consulted a chinese herbalist who suggested a mashed garlic poultice for her feet. In the morning, not only was her cough the same, but her feet were covered with gigantic blisters. We did take fascinating photos of them but trust me, they’re too gross to put here. It was several days before she could even put her shoes back on, and meanwhile Mark was carrying her in and out of buildings. Gigs went on as scheduled, and I must say she was remarkably cheerful throughout the whole, strange ordeal.

We’ve been hither and yon since then, and are preparing in countless ways for our England tour. I’m working on another poetry book (as well as “Raising My Mother”), we’re bringing our school show around, and M&M decided they weren’t quite busy enough, so they’re moving this summer as well.

We’ve passed the halfway mark in our fundraising drive and are very grateful to everyone who has donated their hard-earned dollars to help us get across the ocean in August. One of our favorite venues in Annapolis, the 333 coffeehouse, passed the hat at one concert for a “Send Mad Agnes Packing!” collection, and then matched the amount. Thank you, thank you. We’re humbled by the response, and we know we wouldn’t be doing this without our fans and loved ones.

As inspiration (like we need more), we’re going out to the Iron Horse in Northampton, MA this Sunday to hear the three-person version of Fairport Convention. It’s a great, fun show at a wonderful venue, so if you’re in the area, think about coming out for dinner and music. I’ve seen the likes of Dougie MacLean there in past years, and Pentangle — speaking of which, I might have to go catch Bert Jansch at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston on June 6th. That’ll be two concerts in two weeks, more than I usually get out to in a year.

Speaking of getting out, the woods are calling and so is the laundromat, so it’s time to sign off. Step away from the computer!

Cheers,
Adrienne (&Mg&Mk)

Bead sculpture by Talbot — installed at the Austin Int’l Airport

Happy belated Memorial Day, everyone. I awoke laughing at 6am yesterday from a dream. The neighborhood was so quiet I wondered if I’d been transported to another planet in the night. (If you knew my neighborhood you’d know what I mean.) I had to go out for a walk just to make sure I was still in Willimantic. Everyone was sleeping off their pre-Memorial Day parties, apparently, except for a few birds. It was lovely.

And we’re pinching ourselves still, because last night we went to see Fairport Convention and they were so amazing. The acoustic trio version they bring to the States is Simon Nicol, Ric Sanders and Chris Leslie. Among them they play guitar, fiddle(s), mandolin and bouzouki. We sat or stood in line for half an hour with some very hardcore fans who traded trivia and memories about the band. Mark managed to squeeze in towards the front (that thing he does) and got us the table right in front of the stage, so we could slobber practically on their feet. Two single gentlemen were seated with us, and we decided it would be easier for everyone if we all just called each other Agnes. The concert kicked butt and they were very personable afterwards, suffering all our questions and compliments with their unwavering English charm. They even gave us a plug from stage when they were talking about Cropredy! We felt all ticklish and awestruck.

So what did we do today, to balance out all that thrill? I worked for 8 hours on our PowerPoint presentation for the school show we’re doing this weekend. Mark got up at 4am and spent 3 hours researching direct-flight tickets for us to the Midwest, and trying to use some certificates he got from the airline which gave him some trouble. He then spent the rest of the day untying various other knots in our business. Margo had Feldenkrais clients, visitors, errands, booking and house stuff to attend to. Ah, the glamour, I’m telling you.

Finally: We’re happy to report that we’ve raised over $3,000 towards the England tour! Thank you, everyone who has donated! We love you.

Back to work!

A, M & M

Thank you for taking all the Mad Agnes 2007 UK Tour shirts off our hands! We’ll have more next year.

Women’s

Men’s

Pictures from our first England Tour in 2007!

Mad Agnes in Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria   (Acoustic Bistro photos by Barry Stacey)
A wonderful restaurant and music cafe (with the best Moussaka we’ve ever had) and a curio shop attached. The Acoustic Bistro is also a B&B. On arrival we learned that “Kirkby” is pronounced “Kirby.” We kept mispronouncing it anyway, and one lady came up after the show and said, “You may be in ‘Kirk-bee Stephen,’ but you’re from ‘CONNEKticut!’ “

Grocery Shopping

Cropredy was sold out — 25,000 tickets

Backstage wristbands Dave Pegg, Fairport’s esteemed bass player

We’ll have pics of our set soon — coming from someone else’s camera. Check back!

York’s Minster 

Our home in a former life

The priory ruins on Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island — destination for many a pilgrimage. Aidan founded the original monastery in 635; Vikings ransacked the island for about 80 years between 793 and 875. Cuthbert, a successor to Bishop Aidan, remained incorrupt after his death and was declared a saint. His relics were eventually moved to Durham. 

Meanwhile the priory was built on the site of the monastery in the 12th Century, and was finally dissolved by that Shunworship, Henry VIII, in 1537. After a brief term as a military stronghold, the priory was partially dismantled to provide stones for the castle on the promontory. The castle wasn’t involved in any battles, except perhaps with the sea — the island is inaccessible, except by boat, whenever the tide comes in. Visitors have to make sure the causeway isn’t flooded when they plan to come, or leave.

Yorkshire barley… 

Cumbria roads…

We stopped in heaven on our way to Reeth…

Our beloved agent, Jacey Bedford! On a windy hilltop in Yorkshire.

Those are the basics. We only have about 300 other pictures. Now that we’re back we’re gearing up for all our Fall shows, which include the Midwest and Texas (we got a formal showcase at the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance in Austin!), as well as the Minstrel Coffeehouse in Morristown, NJ, and various things close to home. We left the bass in England so we wouldn’t have to fly it each year — and that means that next week I’ll be bass-shopping (as opposed to bass-shipping).

THANK YOU, everyone who signed up on our email list in England. We can’t wait to see you again next year.

And just belabored and redundant thanks to Simon Nicol, of Fairport Convention, who advocated to get us into Cropredy.

New songs coming!  Cheers,  A, M&M

At this time, we stopped using this format for updates, but kept fans posted through our monthly newsletter. 
We continued to tour up until sometime in 2011. We completed 3 more UK tours, lasting up to 6 weeks each. 

I will add to these postings in the future… – Mark