love letter 9/20/12

D forest

This week we want to send a shout out to bartender Kyle Dreas. Kyle has been with us for six years now and has been a rock, to use one metaphor, or a root, to use another, or roots rock reggae, to use yet another. Thanks, Kyle! We love and appreciate all you do.

This weekend,

21 No Cover Friday 5pm Josh Meyers [7:30p] Watertower (bluegrass) [9:30p] Useless objects (psychedelic bluegrass)	22 [10:30a] Zumba $8 [4:00p] Sentimental Sounds (big band). Free [7:00p] Private Party [9:30p] Stealth Hippo, Host Band $5
23 [10:00a] Free form yoga lead by Nicki Viera w/ live music by Melissa Ivey, Adam DeGraff and friends. Donations accepted for local charities. [2:00p] Baby Boogie, bring your kids into dance! [8:00p] Salsa Dancing (lesson at 8pm, Sabor de la Calle at 9pm) $8

What's that? You've been wanting to learn to salsa, but just haven't yet for whatever reason? Do it! Best time investment ever...


Yours,

D flower


Extra Credit: Here's a beautiful poem by our friend Truck Darling...




THE LONG GOODBYE

Puffing on Camels as we cut through
the wind, with valiant defeat, I
forsake a model of absolute control

for a model of absolute love. I am
a man who loves life & wants to live

in dignity, but I’m limping with spurs

in the midst of another declinist panic
while Hail Mary book sales bloom like
algae in the summertime. Holiness is

what unites us, not distinguishes us.
Our diversity as humans is what we hold
in common. Hold me, I’m crapping alone.

I’m ripe for the illusion of resolution
in this delicate social ecology where
I’m shy on testosterone-drenched

bleachers. My whole lyfe has been
performative until now. To embrace
my self portrait as victim is to deny

my agency. The Dorito dust settles &
I’m dirty rich in love, having rehearsed
what is right with me. Restore my vision

just enough to form a glowstick cortege
in the cruisy wooded district, a halo
at the mixer. Blanching & the needle

dances on justice’s plethysmograph. He wore
a camelhair wifebeater. He was a forebrother.
He won the Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence

when I was whiskered with blood. He ate locusts
& said, “Honey, we know.” Dorito-tan Brother,
sleepwalk with me tonight. God knows what

just happened to the other broken. You
cannot make it better with the lights
turned on. Fold your heart open again

like a suitcase of clothes. Stuffed
with pageantry & peacocking, the vast
ethical grey area stirs to life. It’s

a terrible love & I’m walking in starlight.
Because we live a dream anyway,
because this is New York.

D Note love letter 9/13/12

D livers,

Howdy and hello to one and all. We were just thinking, just now as we were writing this sentence, that we hope you are exceedingly well.

We want to shout out to big Phil at the door. Phil pretty much dropped out of heaven to take the gig at the D Note 7 years ago and he's been the best possible doorman ever since. He's the biggest flirt we know and, strangely, no one ever seems to mind it. He's that smooth. He's also the most huggable person we know. Hard to imagine a more welcoming presence at the door. Phil is also our unofficial archivist. He's been collecting everything D Note and must have quite a stack of posters and recordings by now. Thanks Phil, we love you! Give him and extra hug next time you see him.

This weekend

14

No Cover Friday

5pm Sawmill Joe

7pm The Storm Cellars (awesome folk harmony hipster band)
9:30pm Sound Rabbit (very VERY fine pop rock band)

15

4pm Dalton and the Straight Up G Strings (bluegrass, free)

7pm 39 North (dance rock covers) $5
9pm Gipsy Moon. (killer bluegrass w/ children of the great Vince Hermann) $5

Also, note, next Tuesday we'll be closed for a company party

Hope to see you soon!

Yours,

D tour guide


Extra Credit: Bob Dylan came out with a new album this week called Tempest. Some great stuff on it, as usual, including a song for John Lennon. Here are the lyrics to the titular song, an allegory about the sinking of the Titanic. There are many levels to these lyrics and yet they tell a good story. And we love how Dylan so casually samples so many poets here. He's still got it...




Tempest


The pale moon rose in it's glory
Out on the Western town
She told a sad, sad story
Of the great ship that went down

T'was the fourteenth day of April
Over the waves she rode
Sailing into tomorrow
To a golden age foretold

The night was black with starlight
The seas were sharp and clear
Moving through the shadows
The promised hour was near

Lights were holding steady
Gliding over the foam
All the lords and ladies
Heading for their eternal home

The chandeliers were swaying
From the balustrades above
The orchestra was playing
Songs of faded love

The watchman, he lay dreaming
As the ballroom dancers twirled
He dreamed the Titanic was sinking
Into the underworld

Leo took his sketchbook
He was often so inclined
He closed his eyes and painted
The scenery in his mind

Cupid struck his bosom
And broke it with a snap
The closest woman to him
He fell into her lap

He heard a loud commotion
Something sounded wrong
His inner spirit was saying
That he couldn't stand here long

He staggered to the quarterdeck
No time now to sleep
Water on the quarterdeck
Already three foot deep

Smokestack was leaning sideways
Heavy feet began to pound
He walked into the whirlwind
Sky splitting all around

The ship was going under
The universe had opened wide
The roll was called up yonder
The angels turned aside

Lights down in the hallway
Flickering dim and dull
Dead bodies already floating
In the double bottom hull

The engines then exploded
Propellers they failed to start
The boilers overloaded
The ship's bow split apart

Passengers were flying
Backward, forward, far and fast
They mumbled, fumbled, and tumbled
Each one more weary than the last

The veil was torn asunder
'Tween the hours of twelve and one
No change, no sudden wonder
Could undo what had been done

The watchman lay there dreaming
At fourtyfive degrees
He dreamed that the Titanic was sinking
Dropping to her knees

Wellington he was sleeping
His bed began to slide
His valiant heart was beating
He pushed the tables aside

Glass of shattered crystal
Lay scattered roundabout
He strapped on both his pistols
How long could he hold out?

His men and his companions
Were nowhere to be seen
In silence there he waited for
Time and space to intervene

The passageway was narrow
There was blackness in the air
He saw every kind of sorrow
Heard voices everywhere

Alarm-bells were ringing
To hold back the swelling tide
Friends and lovers clinging
To each other side by side

Mothers and their daughters
Descending down the stairs
Jumped into the icy waters
Love and pity sent their prayers

The rich man, Mister Astor
Kissed his darling wife
He had no way of knowing
It'd be the last trip of his life

Calvin, Blake and Wilson
Gambled in the dark
Not one of them would ever live to
Tell the tale on the disembark

Brother rose up 'gainst brother
In every circumstance
They fought and slaughtered each other
In a deadly dance

They lowered down the lifeboats
From the sinking wreck
There were traitors, there were turncoats
Broken backs and broken necks

The bishop left his cabin
To help others in need
Turned his eyes up to the heavens
Said, "The poor are yours to feed"

Davey the brothel-keeper
Came out dismissed his girls
Saw the water getting deeper
Saw the changing of his world

Jim Dandy smiled
He never learned to swim
Saw the little crippled child
And he gave his seat to him

He saw the starlight shining
Streaming from the East
Death was on the rampage
But his heart was now at peace

The battened down the hatches
But the hatches wouldn't hold
They drowned upon the staircase
Of brass and polished gold

Leo said to Cleo
I think I'm going mad
But he'd lost his mind already
Whatever mind he had

He tried to block the doorway
To save all those from harm
Blood from an open wound
Pouring down his arm

Petals fell from flowers
'Til all of them were gone
In the long and dreadful hours
The wizard's curse played on

The host was pouring brandy
He was going down slow
He stayed right to the end and he
Was the last to go

There were many, many others
Nameless here forever more
They never sailed the ocean
Or left their homes before

The watchman, he lay dreaming
The damage had been done
He dreamed the Titanic was sinking
And he tried to tell someone

The captain, barely breathing
Kneeling at the wheel
Above him and beneath him
Fifty thousand tons of steel

He looked over at his compass
And he gazed into its face
Needle pointing downward
He knew he lost the race

In the dark illumination
He remembered bygone years
He read the Book of Revelation
And he filled his cup with tears

When the Reaper's task had ended
Sixteen hundred had gone to rest
The good, the bad, the rich, the poor
The loveliest and the best

They waited at the landing
And they tried to understand
But there is no understanding
On the judgement of God's hand

The news came over the wires
And struck with deadly force
Love had lost its fires
All things had run their course

The watchman he lay dreaming
Of all the things that can be
He dreamed the Titanic was sinking
Into the deep blue sea

D Note love letter 9/6/12

D tangled,

This week we'd like to send out a special shout out to Diandra. Not only does Diandra mix fabulous drinks at the bar, but she brings more heart and warmth to the D Note than just about anybody else, a real matron. And she has the best laugh. Plus her initials are D.D. just for good measure. One of the many great things about Diandra is she dresses up the D Note every year for halloween. Last year the D Note turned into a giant UFO, the year before that it was a bat cave, the year before that it was a giant spider web, the year it was a giant pumpkin. We are looking forward to seeing what she comes up with THIS year. We love you Diandra. Thanks for everything!

This weekend is Arvada's Harvest Festival. We've always thought of the Harvest Festival in metaphoric terms. We may not be growing actual crops, but we are growing...something. As Tommy Knox from the Clam Daddys likes to say, "you can't get the fruits without the roots." And indeed the D Note is in full flower right now, from the beautiful art up on the walls to the amazing staff to the delicious pizza to the fantastic music.

Here's the line up for the weekend

7 No Cover All Night [7:00p] Sweet Radish (bluegrass) [8:30p] Ed McGee & Ward Scott [10:0p] Goldensole	8 Harvest Festival [10:30a] Zumba $8 [2:00p] Mark Hutchison & Jax Delaguerre [4:00p] The Bottom Line (w/ Alejandro Castano) [6:00p] Wonderlic (w/ Adam DeGraff) [8:30p] The Jake Leg Shakers. (original rock and roll) $5 [10p] Banned In Japan (dance covers 70's to present) $5
9 [10:00a] Free form yoga lead by Nicki Viera w/ live music by Melissa Ivey, Adam DeGraff. Donations accepted for local charities. HARVEST FESTIVAL 1pm The Jelly Band (acoustic [8:00p] >Salsa Dancing (lesson at 8pm, Conjuntos Colores at 9pm) $8

And that's the weekend! Happy Harvest Festival!

Also, we have a very cool surf/ska band from California coming through the D Note on October 13 called The Originalites and they are looking for lodging. (www.originalites.com) If you have space for 4 chill guys, then let us know and we'll make the connection.

Yours,

D flower

Extra Credit: Adam DeGraff will be performing the song I Feel Tractor with Wonderlic this weekend at 7pm in honor of Harvest Festival. The title of this song comes from Adam's mom. On a drive to Yosemite she was a having a conversation with Adam about poetry. She asked Adam why he insisted on breaking the rules of grammar in poetry. Adam said it was because he felt that he could sometimes get closer to the truth when he broke the rules. Pam looked out the window of the car at the fields rolling by and said, "I mean... you can't just say... 'I Feel Tractor'." She thus proved Adam's point. This was a good line of poetry; both breaking the rules of grammar and getting closer to the truth of the moment. A song using this line as a title came about several years later when Adam and Jeremy were jamming around a campfire. It goes...


I Feel Tractor


I feel tractor
over the fields I go
I feel tractor
seed by seed I sow
I feel tractor
row by row I hoe
I feel tractor
watch the garden grow
I feel tractor
watch out! Scarecrow!

D Note love letter 8/30/12

D Tales

This week let us point the staff spotlight on our man Taj in the kitchen. Not sure how long Taj has been with us, but we're guessing 6-7 years? In the meantime he has cooked many many pizzas for you and a more than a few of those pizzas have been the best pizza you have ever eaten. We love Taj and are grateful for all of his help. Thanks Taj! Taj Trivia: Taj is in the punk band The Hacks. (great band name, don't you think?) We had the Hacks at the D Note 8 years ago, before Taj was in either the band or the D Note. More Taj trivia: Our popular vegetarian hummus pizza The Taj Mahal, was invented and named by Taj, which is kinda ironic considering Taj is a rabid meat eater.

This weekend we start a new thing at the D Note; no covers on Friday nights! We're concentrating on just bringing terrific music. We're starting this weekend with great music starting at 5pm with our friend Melissa Ivey, a songster that will give you chills. Then we have the beautiful urban bluegrass of Birds Of A Feather and end the night with the charming pop of Fiction Is Fun.

31
[5:00p]
Melissa Ivey

[7:00p]
Sarah Angela, Mac Williams, Birds Of A Feather, Fiction Is Fun. Free.

1

[10:30a]
Zumba $8

[1:00p]
Bellydance Swap and Extravaganza. Shopping and performances. Free

[7:00p]
Ryan Macpherson and The Dirty Gospel. $5

[9:00p]
In 2 Wishin (rock and dance covers from 70's to present). $5

And that's the weekend (not to mention yoga, baby baby boogie and salsa on Sunday!)

Yours in the field,

D tractor

Extra credit: Here's some nonsense composed by yours truly...

Nonsense Poem

Moving forward I will back up and tell you what
I am going to keep to myself. To begin with there will be

an ending, and further? I don't know if there is anything further
and one more thing, I don't know if there is anything more.

Exactly what to expect is not clear at the present moment,
but soon we shall see what the future has in store. Later.

What everyone wants now is for you to be yourself,
so forget about yourself and give the people what they want.

Outside of us all there is a lonely person inside
and inside of them is a big, wide open sky.

Adam DeGraff copingsaw@gmail.com	1:10 PM (1 minute ago)
to events-accept-.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Adam DeGraff <copingsaw@gmail.com>
To: events@dnote.us
Cc:
Date: Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:08:38 -0600
Subject: D Note love letter 8/30/12
D Tales

This week let us point the staff spotlight on our man Taj in the kitchen. Not sure how long Taj has been with us, but we're guessing 6-7 years? In the meantime he has cooked many many pizzas for you and a more than a few of those pizzas have been the best pizza you have ever eaten. We love Taj and are grateful for all of his help. Thanks Taj! Taj Trivia: Taj is in the punk band The Hacks. (great band name, don't you think?) We had the Hacks at the D Note 8 years ago, before Taj was in either the band or the D Note. More Taj trivia: Our popular vegetarian hummus pizza The Taj Mahal, was invented and named by Taj, which is kinda ironic considering Taj is a rabid meat eater.

This weekend we start a new thing at the D Note; no covers on Friday nights! We're concentrating on just bringing terrific music. We're starting this weekend with great music starting at 5pm with our friend Melissa Ivey, a songster that will give you chills. Then we have the beautiful urban bluegrass of Birds Of A Feather and end the night with the charming pop of Fiction Is Fun.

31
[5:00p]
Melissa Ivey

[7:00p]
Sarah Angela, Mac Williams, Birds Of A Feather, Fiction Is Fun. Free.

1

[10:30a]
Zumba $8

[1:00p]
Bellydance Swap and Extravaganza. Shopping and performances. Free

[7:00p]
Ryan Macpherson and The Dirty Gospel. $5

[9:00p]
In 2 Wishin (rock and dance covers from 70's to present). $5

And that's the weekend (not to mention yoga, baby baby boogie and salsa on Sunday!)

Yours in the field,

D tractor

Extra credit: Here's some nonsense composed by yours truly...

Nonsense Poem

Moving forward I will back up and tell you what
I am going to keep to myself. To begin with there will be

an ending, and further? I don't know if there is anything further
and one more thing, I don't know if there is anything more.

Exactly what to expect is not clear at the present moment,
but soon we shall see what the future has in store. Later.

What everyone wants now is for you to be yourself,
so forget about yourself and give the people what they want.

Outside of us all there is a lonely person inside
and inside of them is a big, wide open sky.

D Note love letter 8/23/12

D rails,

We trust you are well and good, even awesome, or at least on your way to getting there.

This week we want to give a shout out to Kevin Shultz who has been doing an amazing job running the operations over the last few months. When our last manager resigned Kevin showed great initiative and has really taken on taking care of the place, which the place truly appreciates. Thanks Kevin. Next time you see him at the D Note, give him proper props.

Here's the line up of the weekend.

24 [5:00p] Trout Unlimited Benefit w/ Rough Satin (jazz) 5pm and Big Universe (cover dance) 7pm. $5-10 donation [9:30p] Dikki Du and The Zydeco Crew $10

25 [10:30a] Zumba $8 [12:00p] Mushroom Mountain Band Reunion [4:00p] Sentimental Sounds Big Band $5 [7:30p] Current Youth (and friends) $5 (funk, rock and roll)

Trout Unlimited does a great job of helping keep the rivers of Colorado clean, so come help support those guys. Then after Big Universe plays for Trout Unlimited we have Dikki Du, son of late Zydeco legend Roy Carrier, and he is always super fun for dancing. Serenade In Blue Big band on Saturday (I know we have some fans of Big Band out there.) Then Current Youth is also a really fun band. Last time they were at the D Note they opened for Bop Skizzum and were great.

Next Tuesday we have a band sitting in for Farm Jazz. They are an R&B horn band called Doug Jackson and The Chosen Few and "they are pretty good!" says our inside man, Jax Delaguerre. Then next Tuesday at 7p we have Henrikson's Amp Presents Great Jazz Guitar. Free, followed by Trevor Christianson on Piano and Discount Cinema (garage rock).

There's the news in a nutshell,

D squirrel

Extra Credit: Here's a Rilke poem that will certainly speak to at least one of you.

Onto A Vast Plain

You are not surprised at the force of the storm—
you have seen it growing.
The trees flee. Their flight
sets the boulevards streaming. And you know:
he whom they flee is the one
you move toward. All your senses
sing him, as you stand at the window.

The weeks stood still in summer.
The trees' blood rose. Now you feel
it wants to sink back
into the source of everything. You thought
you could trust that power
when you plucked the fruit:
now it becomes a riddle again
and you again a stranger.

Summer was like your house: you know
where each thing stood.
Now you must go out into your heart
as onto a vast plain. Now
the immense loneliness begins.

The days go numb, the wind
sucks the world from your senses like withered leaves.

Through the empty branches the sky remains.
It is what you have.
Be earth now, and evensong.
Be the ground lying under that sky.
Be modest now, like a thing
ripened until it is real,
so that he who began it all
can feel you when he reaches for you.

Book of Hours, II 1

D Note love letter 8/16/12

D notables,


We hope you are singing today, or dancing, or making art, or making some kind of true expression of yourself, if only for the briefest moment.

And speaking of true expressions of self, this week we want to give a shout out to Adam Ferrill, our ninja bartender, a true blessing. Adam's been at the D Note pretty much from the beginning and has probably put more hard work into the place than any one else. It has been a pure pleasure having him around, like hanging out with Bill Murray's even funnier younger brother. Thanks for everything, Adam. We love you.

Here's the weekend in semi-table form. Friday night, Aug 17, the password to the D-mail crowd for free admittance is... "purple paisley pompadour"

17 [6:30p] The 10:39s The Real Folk Blues $5 [9:30p] Zzyzzyx Road Band $5	18 [10:30a] Zumba $8 [4:00p] The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) FREE [7:00p] The Moses Jones Band $10
19 [10:00a] Free form yoga lead by Nicki Viera w/ live music by Melissa Ivey, Adam DeGraff and friends. Donations accepted for local charities. [2:00p] Baby Boogie, bring your kids into dance! [8:00p] Salsa Dancing (lesson at 8pm, Orquestra La Brava at 9pm) $8

Friday night we have a band called 10:39s that play a song called "Shakespeare". Then on Saturday we have a Shakespeare performance. Coincidence?

The performance on Saturday is FREE! We're excited for a little a drama at the D. Here's the press release...

"Can three girls really cover thirty-seven Shakespeare plays in less than two hours? This fast-firing comedy does just that as it parodies all of the Shakespeare plays (plus the sonnets!) with only three performers in two acts. This play is full of energy as the characters run across the stage and keep you guessing how they will pull off the next play. Clever use of some interesting costumes also adds to the fun.

The play starts with an eccentric version of Romeo and Juliet, followed by a parody of Titus Andronicus (which is portrayed as a cooking show). Next is Othello, which is done as a rap song (the infamous "Othello Rap"). The members of the trio compete in a hilarious football game which summarizes the histories (King John, Richard II, Richard III, Henry IV etc), complete with commentary and details of each character's rise and fall from power.

As the characters are about to come to the end of the first act, they realize they forgot to perform Hamlet. One of the actors becomes nervous and runs out of the theatre with another actor chasing him. The final actor is left to entertain the audience by himself, which he does by telling jokes and calling for the intermission.

After the intermission, the missing two actors return and save their companion from reciting all of the sonnets. All three actors then perform their very abbreviated version of Hamlet (with a little help from the audience), thus "completing" the canon in only an hour and a half!

The play stars Tracy Dykeman, Deletta Laes and Tara Casanova and is directed by Ed Sellmann."

Love and stuff,

D barge

Extra credit: Considering all the Shakespeariness this weekend we should probably leave you with a Shakespeare poem. But instead we'll give you an anecdote. We believe Shakespeare helped to translate the King James Bible. The proof? Shakespeare was a favorite of King James and even wrote a play or two for him. So when Will was 46 years old he got the summons from the king to help translate the Psalms. Because if you are the king, you're going to put your greatest poet on Psalms, right? Shakespeare was too controversial to get any credit for the translation, so instead he found a way to sign his translation as a hidden easter egg in the Bible. If you go to Psalms 46 and count 46 words down from the top and 46 words up from the bottom you get "Shake" and "Spear". Good one!

D Note love letter 8/9/12

D activators,

We've had many amazing folks working at the D Note over the years. This week we want to give a special shout out to our first sound engineer, Greg Rendon. Greg used to be a regular at our open stage night years ago and was interested in learning about sound engineering. We needed some help in a pinch and he stepped in and did such a good job that he eventually became our main guy. The dynamics at the D Note can be difficult as all the wood and brick make the room very live. And of course every band has their own needs. But Greg has it down. Not only has Greg handled the sound well, but he has also been able to beautifully handle the interpersonal dynamics with the bands, a part of the job at which many sound engineers famously fail. It is amazing how often bands praise Greg and, in his own humble way, he has really begun to develop his own reputation as an engineer. Say hi to him and thanks next time you see him up in the booth. Shout out to our second sound engineer, Erick Crumb, who also does a great job.

This weekend.

Aug 10

[5:00p]
Jeff Mohler. Free. Jeff is someone we met through Tom Peters, the poet and owner of the Beat Bookshop in Boulder. His songs are beautiful.

[7:30p]
Julian Velard $8 Pre-Sale Tickets This guy is great. He came our way because he is patron's favorite performer and so his daughter paid to have him come out. Spend some time on his website and then try NOT to come hear him in person.

[10:00p]
The Amendment $5

Aug 11

[10:30a]
Zumba $8

[7:00p]
Hafla: Belly Dance Variety Show. $8 adults/$5 kids. With Yallah. Hafla has been going on for awhile now at the D Note and we hope it will last forever.

[10:00p]
Matic (rock, jam) $5. Very good jam band...


There you go. Things to remember: Baby boogie Sun afternoons, salsa Sunday nights. Free pizza for kids on Mondays and Open Stage (6:30p sign up). Great swing lessons ($5) and music (Farm Jazz) on Wed nights. Geeks Who Drink Trivia Thurs at 6:30p followed by SIN (service industry night) with great local DJs.

We hope to see you sooner than later,

D V8

Extra Credit: We found a book of children's poetry anthology called "My Song Is Beautiful" at the discount sales bin at King Soopers for $1. Money well spent as there were several good children's poems therein. We liked this one, by Mary Ann Hoberman.

You and I

Only one I in the whole wide world

And millions and millions of you,

But every you is an I to itself

And I am a you to you, too!

But if I am a you and you are an I

And the opposite also is true,

It makes us both the same somehow

Yet splits us each in two.

It's more and more mysterious,

The more I think it through:

Every you everywhere in the world is an I;

Every I in the world is a you!

--