Banjitar

Tuesday night I was convinced that I should check out a chick singer at the somewhat local Irish Pub (there’s many… are any of them REALLY Irish?). Pub schmub… it’s just a bar. I hate bars! But I agreed because… well… chick singers! So A took me to O’Brien’s to listen to Janet Robin (whom I’d never heard of prior but who has a hardcore rockin’ style like a proper student of Melissa Etheridge).

I adored the four singers (the “Songwriter’s on Tap”) and it was a bonus that it was a “no cover” Tuesday evening (which means – free entry & low attendance… so Erin is properly comfortable and not annoyed). I did feel it necessary to offer their establishment SOME money so I purchased a Midori Sour… my new “old standby” for when any given joint is tapped out of pear cider. (Really… there’s like 2 places that I know of that actually have my hard cider drinks on tap. I don’t expect it… BUT IT WOULD BE NICE, BAR GODS!) So that cost me 8 bucks (including tip).

My two favorites of the evening was a shy, long-haired Italian dude named Clarence (something, goddamnit! Can’t figure it out!!) who sounded like a soulful black man when he sang his tunes and Libbie Schrader (http://www.myspace.com/libbieschrader) who pumped her keyboard with a playing/writing/singing style a la Sarah Mc/Tori/Michelle Branch.

And my other new favorite is the Banjitar!

Two Big Kudos for the frikkin’ Banjitar!




What, pray tell, is a Banjitar? Well, my good pupil, a Banjitar is a cross-between a banjo and a guitar!! Janet Robin played this heavenly instrument for mine own ears!

Since I’m a pseudo-country girl with a newer sort of love for the bluegrass sound – it was awesome to hear a twangy-rocky mix all bundled into one instrument. I think I will now seek out Banjitar music. Or better yet – teach myself the Banjitar!!

I’ll have to schedule that right after my 5-10 year stint in Ireland acting as an apprentice Uilleann Pipe maker (as I hear that’s the only proper way to get one/learn to play one).

(Uilleann Pipe = the Irish bagpipe, played with a hand-pumped bellows instead of blowing into a bag…. Sounds like your soul ripping apart from sorrow… I heart the Uilleann Pipe most of all, Toto!)