Soul Legend Melvin Davis @ Mark Leddy’s Birthday Bash January 16th

Soul Man Melvin Davis @ Beachland January 16

Looking for some hot tunes on a crummily cold Cleveland day? LOOK NO FURTHER, we say.  Ditch the shovel and grab your headphones, True Believers. Dilligent Beachland archivists, fresh from their rejuvenating Christmas vacation, have brought you tunes perfect for an Epiphany: we present to you soul singer Mr. Melvin Davis.  Listen up!

The story of this lanky soul survivor is told by writer Michael Hurtt for MetroTimes.com, Detroit:

The song, pressed on the local Wheel City label, is one of the most obscure in the history of recorded Detroit soul music. Yet when the band breaks into its intro, the packed house of testifying dancers erupts, and when Melvin Davis sings that first line, they’re right there with him. They know every word. It’s uplifting. It’s soulful. It’s downright spiritual.

Thirty-seven years after its 500-copy run sank without a trace in 1965, 5,000 — yes, 5,000 — Melvin Davis fans are flipping Wales’ Prestatyn Soul Weekender on its collective ear. To this throng of music fanatics, DJs and record collectors, the song in question, “Find a Quiet Place (and be Lonely),” is an anthem, and its rarity has only amplified its legend. 

As Hurtt notes, Davis is regarded as a legend in the vaunted UK Northern Soul scene.  Periodically, the small but proud and lovely beach city of Cleethorpes hosts soul music festivals; festival-goers were treated to songs by none other than Mr. Davis himself:

Melvin Davis will perform on Saturday, January 16th, headlining an annual Beachland tradition: co-owner Mark Leddy’s Birthday Bash.  We’ll not only have Davis (backed by Detroit band The Party Stompers), but a rare set by groundbreaking soul-punk duo, The Bassholes.  Unlike rock duos that sport White and Black in their name, Don Howland (now residing in Asheville, NC) and Bim Thomas (from This Moment In Black History) offer face-slapping, cranky blues for binging:

Order your tickets now from the Beachland website, or call 216-383-1124.  Don’t forget to sign up for our mailing list, if you’ve been too frozen and snowblind to do so already.

EAS

New Year’s Eve Responses

In preparation for the Beachland’s upcoming TEN YEAR ANNIVERSARY in March, we’ve posted a variety of thoughts, comments, and thank you just in time for the dawn of 2010.  If you’ve got anything else you’d like to add to the following, email cindy@beachlandballroom.com!

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 ”Congratulations on a decade of great music! Had to respond to your blog post, because the Beachland has become a mainstay of my musical life, bringing one great concert after another, out of an eclectic mix of acts that perfectly matches my musical tastes. Although remembering beyond the last two weeks is pretty hard, there are some shows of the many great Beachland nights that stand out. Here’s a few:

Los Lobos — Had wanted to see them in a small venue for a long time. They sauntered on stage in their unassuming, unpretentious way, then picked up their instruments and blew the roof off the place. EVERYBODY danced at this show.

Tony Levin Band — Saw Tony play with Peter Gabriel at an arena show a few weeks before this performance. It illustrated why we love music at the Beachland. Strip away the stagey crap, the 19,000 people who aren’t listening and put the show in a room where you can hear the music and feel like you’re there. Drummer Jerry Marotta had a bunch of relatives at the show cheering for him, and Tony brought him out from behind the kit to play sax on “Tequila.”

Project/Object — What a great way to end the decade! Ike and Andre laughing and joking with the crowd like they were playing in someone’s rec room. Great performances of Zappa’s music, especially some obscure instrumentals from Grand Wazoo and Waka/Jawaka.

Karl Denson Trio — After enjoying a few Tiny Universe performances, I loved seeing Karl perform a pure jazz set with just a Hammond B-3 and drums backing him.

Thanks for saving, because Music Saves!

Dan Goldberg”

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“Wow Cindy
where to start. I have seen so many incredible shows at your place. My first show was Dave Davies of the Kinks. I will list my top ten of too many shows to count. I wish I lived closer than 70 miles south; you would see me there numerous times a week. Please don’t let 2010 be the last year for the place I find has the best shows of anywhere I have ever spent my time and money!!!

These are NOT in order of my faves:
Love- Arthur Lee was tremendous and I was grateful to get to see him before his death.
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings- Wow, what a groove she sest
The Black Keys- from their first gig in the Tavern with maybe 30 people to all their other gigs there. Was fun to see a band since their beginning to the big break thru.
Luna-saw them at the end of their run and they were a big surprise for me. I didn’t expect to like them as I usually like my music alittle “dirtier” but they blew me away.
Ian McLaugin (spelling?) and the Bump Band; 60’s rock like it should be played. I saw them in the Tavern with Mark Andes (swoon…..) on bass and they reminded me why rock in the 60’s rules.
SoundTrack of Our Lives-another surprise for me. I went with a friend who raved about them for ages and I did not expect to like them as well as I did. I am still listening to them on my Ipod on a weekly basis.
James Gang- Joe and the Gang still had it and it brought back those days like it was yesterday.
The Irrationals-Scott Morgan has the pipes still that made the Rationals a hit around Ohio back in the 60’s. Here’s a cat who should have had a bigger career.
Wanda Jackson-in the Tavern also was a great show up close and personal. So cool to see one of the pioneers in such a small room.
and No 10- wow so hard to just pick 10-I would have to say Cleveland’s own The Alarm Clocks who opened for the Choir in 2006. They have a great story from the 60’s hits to today and man can Mike nail those screams.
Thanks for putting up with all the hassles, bumps in the roads, assholes, and drunks……..and me. I will celebrate being 60 in January and have been a rock n roll junkie since I first heard the Stones in 1964. I have frequented many clubs, bars and venues and your’s is the one I love the most!!! Cheers, Nancy Wasen”

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“I hope the Boys from the County Hell will join us at the Beachland again in years to come. Also great that you booked classic acts from my youth like the Church and the Proclaimers.
Happy New Year!”

Mike McGraw

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More on the Beachland’s Facebook page, which you can access (and join) HERE!

EAS

A Word from Beachland Co-Owner, Cindy Barber

from Esquire Magazine's review - click to read

(reposted from the Beachland Mailing List. Sign up for it HERE and get weekly updates on our shows!)

“So it’s the end of ‘09, the end of the first decade of the new century, and the Beachland is looking at its 10th anniversary in March. It’s hard to believe we’ve been doing this for an entire decade!

This year has been particularly tough. The Cleveland economy is not making it easy for independent stores, restaurants or venues like ours. Job cutbacks and forced furloughs make it harder for our longtime supporters to come out as often to see live music. But to all of you who have been so loyal, we thank you for every dollar you have spent at our establishment. There were a few times these past few months when we thought, “let’s just do our 10th anniversary shows and call it quits, this is too hard.” However, there seems to be a greater force at work, whispering in our ears that we will find a way. People have been coming out of the woodwork with both financial and emotional support (though we could always use more)! And we, like many of you, still believe in the healing and inspirational power of music.

Even though the music industry today is in deep trouble, there are so many redeeming points and we certainly had many this year. Highlights included Paul Thorn with his band transforming the tavern into a rapture, Brave Combo creating a frenzy of dancers and energy in the ballroom, St. Vincent pulling us all into her fascinating artsy musical world and the upbeat and generous Bootsy Collins sitting in with the Crop Bistro band when we hosted the Cleveland Food Rocks benefit in our parking lot this past summer.

We were proud to see acts we have watched from their musical infancy like Josh Ritter, Dr. Dog, Eli Paperboy Reed, and Trampled by Turtles, grow into major acts at the Beachland. We got to host old friends this year like Neko Case, the Bellrays, Jack Oblivian, Bonnie Prince Billy, Jon Spencer’s Heavy Trash (which was amazing by the way), both Black Keys’ side projects, Cadillac Sky (which now features Northeast Ohio’s talented David Mayfield) plus an almost instantly soldout Sufjan Stevens show (thanks Sufjan and Ali for that). We were able to present truly special concerts by elder statemen like Van der Graaf Generator, Os Mutantes, Hugh Cornwell, Magic Christian, Lonnie Brooks, Jimmy Webb, Big Brother and the Holding Company, Jonathan Edwards, and old school Detroit performers like Scott Morgan, Death and Rodriguez (who IS a musical shaman).

We were inspired by newer acts like Dent May, Phosphorescent, and Shilpa Ray. And got to see alot of personal friends of the Beachland like Glenn Tilbrook and the Fluffers (who even wrote a song about the Beachland!), the Sadies and the Waco Brothers, Fred Eaglesmith, Roger Clyne, Asylum Street Spankers, Holly Golightly, Raul Malo, Katy Moffatt, Lucy Kaplansky, Ronnie Baker Brooks, Chuck Prophet, Reigning Sound, Bill Kirchen, Southern Culture on the Skids, The Hi Risers, Joe Buck, The Hold Steady, Dale Watson, and Los Straitjackets (who were one of the first bands to start telling other performers about the Beachland in 2000).

And then there is all the wonderful local bands we’ve gotten to watch and support like Mr. Gnome, The Numbers Band, The Schwartz Brothers, Unsparing Sea, Afternoon Naps, This Moment in Black History, Bill Fox, Lighthouse and the Whaler, HotChaCha, Mystery of Two, Whiskey Daredevils, Uncle Scratch, Chuck Mosley, Hot Rails, Beaten Awake, and on and on…All in all it was a great musical year.

Since we’re facing a decade, we’d like to hear from you about a favorite show you saw in the last 10 years or a band you discovered at the Beachland…. send your tale to cindy@beachlandballroom.com and we’ll start putting your testimonials up on our blog as we move toward March and the anniversary. As we enter 2010, remember Music Saves is more than the name of our favorite indie record store! For that reason we hope to keep the Beachland going for another decade.”

Beachland Video Retrospective, 2009

Because you really don’t want to be working today–mere days before New Year’s Eve–here’s a Beachland video retrospective from 2009. Many thanks to the kind souls who labored to create these works: westsalemcongress, Lou Muenz, karmakelly, kingofthecastle7, and others. If you like these vids, make sure to cross-post them and thank the proprietors of these fine artifacts!

And make sure to spend a good chunk of your expendable income at the Beachland in 2010. Go to the Beachland’s website to find out more.

The Hold Steady (song title unknown)

Dan Auerbach, Heartbroken, in Disrepair

Os Mutantes, “Bat Macumba”

Jonathan Richman “No One Was Like Vermeer”

Asylum Street Spankers “It Ain’t Necessarily So”

They Might Be Giants “Letterbox”

Those Darlins “DUI or Die”

Marshall Crenshaw “Someday, Someway”

Nicole Atkins and the Black Sea “Hotel Plaster”

Vic Chesnutt (RIP) “Flirted With You All My Life”

EAS