Photo: Julian Parker-Burns
Hi all,
Hope everybody is doing well.
Wanted to thank everybody who came out and filled The Parlor Room to capacity for two shows on First Night. What a blast. Here’s a video of one of the tunes from the second set. It’s a new song called “Keys To The Kingdom” and it’s gonna be on our next album which comes out 6/21/18.
Speaking of the new album, we’ve had a very productive bunch of days at Spirithouse Studios with engineering/production ace, Danny Bernini behind the board recording These Are The Days our third full length. Really looking forward to sharing the new music with you all. We are excited to have Chris Collingwood (Fountains of Wayne/Look Park) singing backups on two of the songs. We are honored, thrilled and blessed to have him be part of this new collection of songs.
Though the official release date for These Are The Days is 6/21/18 (the first day of summer) make sure to mark your calendars for Friday, June 22 as that’s when we will be having our album release party at Fort Hill Brewery in Easthampton. It’s going to be a great time! We’ll have more info on advance tickets and special guests soon.
You may have noticed a new band photo at the top of this email. That’s because one of the best photographers in the area came by while we were recording and took a bunch of great shots of us doing our thing. Julian Parker-Burns has been a part of my musical existence since moving to the valley in 1991. So happy he was willing to come in and work with us. You can see a bunch more of his pic right here. For anyone who may need photography done be sure to consider Julian. He loves what he does and it shows in his work.
As for live music, February gets off to a running start with a bunch of great shows.
This coming Friday, Feb 2 I’ll (Alex) be doing an early, two hour set at Fort Hill Brewery in Easthampton. The show runs 5-7pm and will be in the new music room that sounds sooo good! Come on out for a beer (or even a glass of the country’s best water) and hang out with me for a bit. Join the Facebook Event Page (and see who else is going) here.
Saturday, Feb 3 we will take the stage at Luthier’s Co-op, also in Easthampton (one of our favorite places to play) for a show at 8pm. We’ll be showcasing a bunch of tunes from the new record. Kicking off the evening at 7pm is an amazing singer/songwriter, Rachel Mann. She has wowed the crowd at the open mic at Brew Practitioners so many time and I’m thrilled to get to see a whole set of her music (originals and covers). She’ll be joined by guitar ace Larry Dunn (all the info below). FB Event Page Here.
Sunday we rest for Superbowl 52. 🙂
The second half of February sees Colorway head north to Greenfield on Thursday, February 15 to make our first appearance at the Hawks and Reed Performing Arts Center opening up for a fantastic band, rice: An American Band. Advance tickets for that show are only $5 and available here and check out the FB Event Page here.
Rice has been making amazing music for many years now and we are honored to be a part of this show.
Finally, on Saturday, February 17 I’ll be doing a solo show at Bread Euphoria in Haydenville, MA for part of their “Saturday Night Rise” series. Nice and early, once again, this show runs 5:30-7:30 and is absolutely free. I’m excited to play in Bread Euphoria’s new music room (nice to see so many new rooms for music!!). Come on out and get some amazing pizza (they have GF crust available) and a cup of Indigo Coffee and take it all in.
That’s pretty much it for the month, gang. We have a lot of shows in March, April, May and beyond. You can keep track of where we are playing right here.
And remember to share us with your friends and anyone who you think would dig what we do. We can’t do this without your help so thank you for forwarding our email and for inviting folks to our shows via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram subscribing to our YouTube channel or just coming on out to see us. We love you for it!!
Rock on and see you at the shows!!
~FAJ
www.colorwaymusic.com
Friday, February 2, Alex Performs At Fort Hill Brewery, Easthampton, MA (solo show)
When: Friday, Feburary 2
Where: Fort Hill Brewery
30 Fort Hill Rd, Easthampton, MA
Directions here
Fort Hill on Facebook
Phone: (413) 203-5754
What time: 5-7pm
Cost: FREE!! (tips appreciated)
This event is all ages!
Independent Music Award winner and Colorway guitarist, F Alex Johnson is back at one of the most unique places to see live music in the area: Fort Hill Brewery in Easthampton, Mass. On Friday, February 2, at 5pm come see Alex perform a full two hours of songs from his twenty-seven years of making music in the valley on the stage of Fort Hill’s new music room.
Since it’s inception in 2014 Fort Hill has carved out a niche for themselves hosting local legends like Ray Mason, Bruce Korona and Wildcat O’Halloran on a regular basis early and free (and all ages) every week. Alex has become a bit of a staple at the brewery over the past two years where he is fond of imbibing some of the nation’s top rated tap water while playing to both beer aficionados and the under 21 crowd alike.
Fort Hill Brewery is one of the areas best new places for fresh, craft beer made on premises.
From their website: Our goal is to provide the Pioneer Valley with the best traditional German-style lager for a clean, refreshing taste you’ll always come back to. All of our beers follow the German purity law of Reinheitsgebot, meaning that our beers contain only four ingredients: water, malt, hops, and yeast.
Not to mention they are the #2 thing to do in Easthampton according to Trip Advisor.
Saturday, February 3, Colorway Performs at Luthier’s Co-op, Easthampton, MA
Come join us as we play one of the best rooms for live music in the valley. Early and free!
When: Saturday, 2/3
Where: Luthier’s Co-op
108 Cottage St
Easthampton, MA
Directions.
What time: 8pm-9:30pm
Phone: (413) 527-6627
Email: info@luthiers-coop.com
How Much: Free (tips appreciated)
Kicking this special night off at 7pm will be Rachel Mann, Rachel is recent transplant from Portland, Oregon. She brings with her to the valley a special blend of classic country sounds, heartbreaking originals, and tear-in-your-beer tunes that will leave you asking for more. Uncle Larry will be accompanying her with his special blues-driven guitar stylings. This one is not to be missed! See you there!
Thursday, February 15, Colorway Performs at Hawks And Reed PAC Opening For Rice: An American Band
Extremely excited to be making our first appearance at Hawks and Reed in downtown Greenfield (formerly The Arts Block). Colorway will play a 75 minute set opening for Rice: An American Band.
When: Thu, 2/15
Where: Hawks And Reed Performing Arts Center
289 Main St. Greenfield, MA 01301
Directions
What time: Doors 8:30/Show 9pm
How much: $5.00 ADV/$8 DOS
Advance tickets here
All ages!!
Join the Facebook Event Page here!
About Rice: An American Band
Rice – an American Band was born in the summer of 2014 as a few friends got together to jam, and liked the results. A mutual admiration society developed and a love of performing music together was created.
The band has already played clubs in CT, MA, RI, and VT. Festival plays already include Strangecreek Campout, Wormtown Music Festival, Jerry Jam and the Redneck Olympics and ski areas already include Stratton and Mount Snow.
The band plays a combination of originals and covers including material from classic bands like Pink Floyd, the Grateful Dead, Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Ray Vaughn. But lesser known material from bands like Woodbox Gang and International Anthem will play to fans like originals though they are written by past indie bands.
See Rice: An American Band on Facebook.
Saturday, February 17, Alex Performs Solo at Bread Euphoria, Haydenville, MA
Alex plays two sets of tunes from his 25 years of creating music in the Pioneer Valley.
When: Sat. 2/17
Where: Bread Euphoria
206 Main St, Haydenville, MA
Directions here
What time: 5:30-7:30pm
Cost: FREE!! (tips/bread accepted)
This event is all ages!
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Remember, the new album is available at www.colorwaymusic.com on CD and 180gram vinyl, as well as at www.colorway.bandcamp.com for the digital download. And to celebrate a year of The Black Sky Sequined, through the month of May everything in the store is 20% off. But you can also pick it up an any one of these great Valley establishments. Support your local musician and support you local music store.
Turn it Up
5 Pleasant St
Northampton, MA
Platterpus Records
28 Cottage St
Easthampton, MA
Cup and Top Cafe (CD only)
1 North Maple St
Florence, MA
Electric Eye Records
52 Main St Suite 6
Florence, MA
Mystery Train Records
178A North Pleasant St
Amherst, MA
“No music, no life.”
