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It's been a busy summer in the offices of Johnson's Crossroad, Inc. Our departmental staff have been hard at work conducting field demonstrations, market research, idea screening, strategic re-branding, interactive marketing, public relations, product engineering, personnel recruitment, vocational training, structural renovations, new product development and planning for the future.

At least, that's what I tell my folks. It sounds professional.

What I really mean is that we've spent a lot of time on the road playing shows, on the phone and computer booking new ones, trying out new songs upon unsuspecting crowds, creating new designs for posters and merchandise, building a new website and extending our social network, searching for media reviews/airplay/studio performances, writing new material, finding new members (like me), teaching those foolish greenhorns (like me) a thing or two about the "biz," maintaining and repairing the Town & Country, recording in the studio and hashing out a solid plan for 2011.

See also: old friends, new memories (including a few experiences we'd rather forget), cribbage, cornhole, diners, dive bars, gorgeous views and gourmet food, hotels, motels, beaches and beers, traffic jams, tow trucks, billboards and thrift stores, Merlefest, Floyfest, weddings and windmills. The list goes on and on. Yes, we even made paper from combat uniforms.

I don't know what sounds good next to "combat uniforms." So I'll stop there with the cutesy rhymes and alliteration (I mean, consonance - grammar, people).

Suffice to say, Summer 2010 has been a wild ride. And fall in the mountains could not come soon enough. In the meantime, we've been enjoying a few weeks of R&R and R. That being, rest, relaxation and rehearsal. Just a few quiet weeks at home in Asheville, punctuated by short weekend trips on the road for good measure. It's been terrific. We'll see how rehearsal goes tonight.

But we're getting the itch again to retire from this short-lived sabbatical, get out on the highway, into the studio, and back on the market with some fresh tunes. And we're kicking it off with one more quick trip to West Virginia (Gauley season starts this weekend, for crying out loud) and as for the next weekend...

...wait for it...

...we'll be playing two sets at the Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion. I haven't been this excited since Christmas Eve, 1993 - the year Legos unveiled their Black Knights Collection. And then it's "to the North, to the North" (Frank Turner, anyone?) for another couple weeks on the road with shows in Jersey, Boston, Brooklyn, Montpelier and many more.

As for last weekend, well, we played a couple great shows (The Mountain State Brewery and Songer Whitewater), the Mountaineers won and Keith skunked me twice in a row at cribbage. There, I said it. Now give a man a break!

Cheers,

Chris "Bubby" Weller

The money is pretty good. But the perks are priceless.

There's something incredibly satisfying about spending your weekends inspiring people to get up and dance. Making pretty girls dance is even better. Especially on a Friday night, in your favorite bar. The only thing better than that, as far as playing music is concerned, is watching a lovely bride and groom have the time of their lives as you hammer away at the strings in your Sunday's best. And then any show that follows any good wedding is generally low-key and a whole lot of fun. You work with what you've got left. That is how we spent last weekend, in a nutshell.

All in a day's work, as they say. Well, three.

We kicked it off with a couple days of solid rehearsal at Paul's place. Arranging new covers, tightening the screws on a few originals, and of course, a little jamming. PBR's and Big Lebowski quotes included. "Nice sesh," as Paul would say. "I'll punch you later," follows Keith, as I mention something about packing it up to meet a friend downtown. "I'll punch you later," is my only response. I'll be seeing them both again tomorrow evening for the gig, though I highly doubt any punches will be thrown. Empty threats and terrible comebacks. It's how I roll.

Friday night was spent at Jack of the Wood, in downtown Asheville. And by "spent," I mean something along the lines of "tearing the place apart." I had a good time, anyway. Which makes me wonder - do beer goggles work for making girls look prettier and making entire audiences look fuller, happier and more receptive? Hm. No way. Those folks were having a genuinely good time. Besides, I'm pretty sure Ben drank half of each beer I ordered. Drummers - "percussionists" as they like to say - are sneaky like that, especially when it comes to pillaging unattended pints between songs. Jason, Jack of the Wood's esteemed sound tech, had a good time too. Add him to the list of extremely professional and extremely talented sound guys we've had the opportunity to work with this summer. I'm really looking forward to rockin' that house again soon. Special thanks to Corey Lee McQuade for making it down for the show.

If only every night was as easy as making an honest dollar ten minutes from home and sleeping it off in your own bed. But hey, if the biz was that easy we'd still be dealing with bands like Crash Test Dummies and REO Speedwagon. I know, I know. "That's like, you know, your opinion, man." Keep it to yourself. Well, on Saturday morning we hit the road for The Mountain State.

"Why do all the trees in West Virginia lean toward Ohio? Because Ohio sucks."

I think of that joke every time we roll into wild, wonderful West Virginia. I also think about making an honest pact with myself to keep it together, and not get too rowdy. Something about those West Virginian trees reminds you of how other places just can't quite compare - be it Ohio or wherever - as well as reminding you of a particular need resting deep inside your soul. That being, of course, the need to party like there's no tomorrow. Enter Amy and J-Bird's wedding.

"Folks, I have an announcement. I know this looks like a festival," says J-Bird in earnest, as a donkey hee-haws in the distance, "but please remember, this is our wedding. Be courteous." I study the congregation as he steps away from the mic. First a respectful nod, then a muted chuckle, and finally a wave of laughter rolls over the crowd. The party's on. And there's nothing he or his beautiful bride can do about it. I now fall in step with the other guests in the general direction of those three glorious kegs. Don't get me started on the baked beans or the stuffing. Or Sneed. Suffice to say, I enjoyed every last bit of my role as part of the evening's entertainment. Congratulations to the happy couple. We were honored to be a part of it. And as for good times in West Virginia - til death do us part.

We found our way to Cantrell's on Sunday evening. Paul navigated through three sets, and we hung on for the ride. A great way to wrap up the weekend, with all five pieces intact.

A brief stop in Lewisburg for shakes and fried pickles with an old friend, and then it was time to pile back into the Town & Country, en route for Asheville. After three long days at the "office," we were ready for a little relaxation back home. Goodness I love my job.

Cheers,

Chris "Bubby" Weller

For me, personally, this trip was one chock full of losses and gains.

I'll summarize it here:

This leg kicked off with a gain. That being a gently-used pair of brown cowboy boots, just before leaving Asheville. Though it wasn't long before I lost my dinner, my drinks and nearly my dignity in the van after our show in Fayetteville, WV. I almost lost my new western too, but I had gained enough sense to tie it to the roof racks of the Town & Country instead of tossing it in the gravel along some wild and wonderful rural highway. And then I somehow managed to lose my belt a few hours later. But I did gain a massive rash on my chest, thanks to spending the rest of the night passed out shirtless on someone's front lawn. Upon waking I had also gained a hangover, and later a couple more hours sleep and a heaping plate of bacon, eggs and biscuits in Lewisburg, WV. It just so happened to be Keith's birthday, so we also gained a pan of delicious brownies that evening at The Brier, thanks to the lovely Jeanne Sizemore. In keeping with our recent tradition of gaining new fans who also happen to be sports enthusiasts, we were very pleased to sell a t-shirt and few albums to the Marshall University Women's Volleyball team. Gas money.

I had already lost my appetite for liquor by the time we played at The Brier in Lewisburg, although I gained it back in Manhattan the next day (but only after two delicious meals in Jersey at Suzy's). I also gained a sizable appetite for "cowboy kisses" at The Rodeo Bar, and hey, don't knock 'em before you try 'em. This victory was short-lived, however, as I soon realized that we had lost our roll of JXR stickers four or five states back. That night after the show I lost a few hours of sleep trying to share a bed with a bandmate (who tosses and turns, both endlessly and recklessly, throughout the night) in some swanky downtown hotel that we gained from a good friend. I was about to lose my temper the next morning at The Cook Room on Long Island, but eventually our food came and I regained my composure (many thanks to the delicious corned beef hash). A couple hours later, I gained a killer vest and jacket at a Goodwill down the road, as well as Michael Bolton's Classics and Dan Fogelberg's Greatest Hits on cassette (which I would soon lose to a faulty cassette player upon returning home). Ben gained the Star Wars Trilogy on VHS that day, which I also count as a gain for myself, as we watched Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, respectively, over the next two nights.

I lost several hundred calories during a seven or eight mile run around the remarkably beautiful Shelter Island on Friday, which I would later gain back at Two Edwards that evening while enjoying some of the best seafood and fudge pecan pie I've ever had the pleasure of stuffing into my mouth. It was my first time trying Swordfish or Mako Shark, so I'll count that as a gain, too. The next morning over breakfast I gained an international perspective on the recent French displacement of the Roma, the pros and cons of foreign assimilation into American culture and the fury of Russian ballet instructors, thanks to two of our lovely B&B co-inhabitants (both with outrageous accents). And then I spent the afternoon with Paul on the front porch of the Two South Ferry Bed & Breakfast arranging covers of The Cure, The Talking Heads, The Rolling Stones and The Cars, which I suppose most definitely counts as a gain as well. And we almost lost track of time rehearsing those new arrangements with Keith and Ben, upon their return from setting up equipment.

That evening we found ourselves gainfully employed as the musical entertainment at the reception of a very fine wedding at the Ram's Head Inn on Ram Island. We nearly lost control while playing "Hava Nagila" for what felt like hours, although we gained a healthy respect for chair dances and singing in foreign languages. We also gained an incredible fillet mignon dinner and a sampling of a couple local breweries. It's safe to say that we definitely gained a few more fans that night, too. Though it wasn't long before we were hit by the harshest loss of the trip - our power amp. And a broken power amp means we had to cancel our show at The Riverview Inn the next day back in Jersey. Fail. That night I lost my Guitar Hero "V card" on PS3, and gained a few victories on Tekken 5. I also gained a massive bruise that covered my entire bicep, thanks to a couple wrestling matches nearly gone awry.

On the drive back to The Mountain State, we lost three hours in Staunton, VA because of a blown tire. But we gained a helpful bit of knowledge - don't drive on the shoulder of the highway, even if you're stuck in a hellacious traffic jam and the exit is only a quarter-mile up the road. As we waited on the wrecker, we were stranded long enough for me to learn how to play cribbage, so I guess that must count as a gain as well. The four of us stuffed into the tiny cab of a tow truck, I gained a newfound appreciation for a little thing I like to call "personal space." There's a sunny side to everything, I suppose.

And on the drive back to Asheville I gained a newfound appreciation for Aretha Franklin, Willie Nelson, and MGMT. So I've got that going for me.

Now you've lost a few minutes reading about it.

Cheers,

Chris "Bubby" Weller

We've just returned from four days in the deep south and I feel like several nooks and crannies of my body are still sweating. At least I'm not wearing blue jeans anymore, as I type this blog from the relative comfort of my very own dining room in the mountains. And my bass seems happy enough to be in the house and out of that sweltering hot van. I'll bet Paul's Martin is in hog heaven right now to be out of that humidity. It was almost comical watching him re-tune that thing after just about every song.

But the trip wasn't all pain and perspiration. Aside from the gruelling temperatures, we actually had a great time. Good food, good friends, good times. It's how we roll in the Town & Country.

We kicked off this leg of our schedule with a show at Home Team BBQ on Sullivan's Island. The food was stellar and crowd was responsive. Our sound tech, Gary Payne, has been around the block a time or two and knew exactly what he was doing. We even sold a few albums and the first of our brand new shipment of JXR tshirts. What more can you ask for? Ok, yeah the bartenders were gorgeous.

We spent the next day soaking it up at Folly Beach and cruising the city, performing our own interpretation of Goodwill Hunting. I lucked out with a killer vintage western that Keith picked up for me while Paul and I waited for the oil change. The second performance was again at Home Team BBQ, this time at the Charleston West Ashley location. We were pleased to spend another evening with Gary running sound. And I was personally very pleased with a little contraption of his that mic'd my bass with precision and technical genius. The turnout for the evening was decent and I'm pretty sure we made a great first impression with the local kickball enthusiasts. So we've got that going for us.

A very special thanks to Ken Septor for giving us a place to stay while we were rockin' in the Holy City. Air conditioning, fresh beds, good company and homemade breakfast is always the way to a band's heart. Check our Facebook page for an impromptu video recording he took of "Left Behind," performed in his living room the morning we left for Savannah - but not before we made a stop at the lovely Early Bird Diner for some incredible independent breakfast fare. Be sure to make a visit next time you're in Charleston, and look for the JXR sticker on the kitchen door!

Not much has changed since the last time I rolled into Savannah. The city was ridiculously hot and ridiculously beautiful. First manner of business - find a hotel with cool air and a cool shower. Check. Enter the Thunderbird Inn - the very first hotel we've booked in all my ramblings with Johnson's Crossroad - a little piece of Vegas in the South. Suffice to say, this was a real treat. We took a stroll down Broughton Street, and I had the great fortune of stumbling upon a terrific vintage clothing shop called Civvies. I splurged on a great western cut for seventeen bucks, and then it was back to the hotel for a little R&R. I took a nice jog down Bull Street, through the shady squares with all the tourists and quaint establishments, a couple laps around scenic Forsyth Park and back to the Thunderbird. I'm happy to report that I did not succumb to heat exhaustion! We played that night at The Sentient Bean to a small but receptive crowd and sold a handful of albums. Special thanks to Liz Carr for getting out the good word. And a limited thanks to the Mayor of Pinkie Masters for not noticing as we pilfered a few morsels from your birthday buffet (though in all honesty, I must confess that the trail mix was a bit soggy). Happy Birthday, nonetheless.

We spent much of the next day with yet another esteemed civil servant, that being none other than the Reverend of Snuggleville - also known as Jason Waller. Unfortunately we missed out on his grand performance at The Mustard Day Extravaganza and Pool Party Celebration (because we had to make our way towards the Java Monkey in Decatur), but we did not miss out on the finger foods or the keg of Magic Hat. On the plus side, we caught up with our man and all his friends later that night when they made an appearance at our show. We even caught a tiny performance - as his band, Waller, played a couple songs during our set break. We're definitely looking forward to playing some shows together in the near future.

Then it was time to roll on back to Asheville. Paul took the late hours like a true road warrior and we were back home in our very own beds by 4 am. We're hitting the road again tomorrow. Check our schedule for details. And let's hope that it cools down a bit in the Lowcountry before we head back down in October!

We made our debut appearance at Floydfest this weekend, with performances on Thursday and Friday nights. From my vantage point onstage, it appeared as though the audience was having a really good time - but let me tell you, the pleasure was all mine. It doesn't get much better than playing outdoors upon a timber stage all lit up in beautiful Floyd, Virginia, with friendly, knowledgeable stage crew to support you, brews from Starr Hill to refresh you, a terrific audience to applaud you and incredible acts to entertain you before and after the set. To say that we had a blast at the Garden Stage is a bit of an understatement.

The power went out in the middle of our set on Friday night, but that didn't stop us from having a good time. After all, playing acoustic is what string bands do best. Our solution? Jump off the stage with the instruments, get really cozy with the crowd and switch to rowdy, raucous trad tunes mixed in with a little Tom Waits, John Hartford and Utah Phillips. Chase that with some liquid enlightenment and several high fives, and you've got yourself a quality Floydfest experience. A fresh shirt is always a pretty good idea, too.

The rest of the weekend was spent reconnecting with old friends, stumbling upon several new ones (no pun intended), and soaking up the vibrant, electric energy hovering in the air, circulating from stage to stage. The lineup was loaded with remarkable talent all four days, from dusk til dawn and beyond, and to me it seemed sheer lunacy to sit in one place for too long. Highlights included watching the audience stomp the dust out of the ground for Holy Ghost Tent Revival, getting a little too wild with Boulder Acoustic Society, supporting the home team at Galen Kipar Project and Town Mountain and Big Daddy Love (all from Asheville), dancing my arse off with JP Harris and the Tough Choices in the Dance Tent, chilling out with The Low Anthem at Hill Holler, seeing the crowd crash the stage with Deer Tick, marveling at The Hackensaw Boys' ability to bring it home and remain standing on three separate sets, witnessing the talented and exotic act that is Rising Appalachia, being there as Grace Potter tore it up as usual, and of course it's always a pleasure to see Bearfoot. Last but certainly, positively, absolutely not least was Levon Helm on Saturday, with Old Crow Medicine Show there to fluff the stage for him. It was an honor to be included on the bill for such a stellar weekend of incredible music.

As Paul would say:

"Now I've had the time of my life, no I never felt like this before, yes I swear it's the truth and I owe it all to you."

We hope to be invited back to Floydfest next year for the big 10th Anniversary, though I have a feeling that we'll be there having the time of our lives either way. Until then I'll spend a little time recovering and scrubbing all the dirt from my feet (and all those other places where I didn't know I had places). Keep an eye out for a great JXR Floydfest photoshoot by our good friend, the lovely Polly from Palmyra, VA.

Next festival stop for Johnson's Crossroad - Bristol Rhythm and Roots Reunion!

Cheers,

Chris "Bubby" Weller
Johnson's Crossroad

Here at Johnson's Crossroad inc, we truly care about how you look. Not in the exclusive, "my jeans are tighter than yours, my tattoos are cooler than yours, and my mustache looks way better than yours" kind of way - but more like a genuine, compassionate, feeling of  "we want our fans to look and feel awesome." And how might we go about displaying in earnest our sincere desire for massive crowds of people who feel both stylish and comfortable? By designing a tshirt that seriously kicks ass. After several painstaking hours spent brainstorming and reviewing our options, we've finally settled upon a tshirt that we know you'll love. Quality design, printed on quality fabric. We promise this one won't end up in the "sleepwear only" drawer.

We're headed to West Virginia this weeked, and will place the order immediately upon our return. Once we receive the shipment, the new shirts will be available via our online store as well as any upcoming JXR shows that you might attend.

So purchase a JXR shirt, and experience the warm glow of delight and jealousy on the faces of those around you.

Welcome to the virtually brand spankin new online home of Johnson's Crossroad. The year of the tiger, that being 2010, has been good to us - but it's only half over. Or perhaps there's half of it left, depending on how you look at it. We'll take the "glass is half-full approach" (contrary to the themes of loss and heartache found in some of Paul's lyricism) and run with it. That means we have several months ahead of us to spend marking our territory, traveling and performing, meeting and reconnecting with so many beautiful people scattered about this great nation of ours. But a man can only spend so many days on the road before the van begins to stink, his sleeping bag begins to punish, and his blue jeans begin to fall apart. And that is why we have them internets. To reach out and keep in touch with all those folks that we can't meet with in person. Our plan? Update the website. Give our Myspace page a facelift. Get way too personal on Facebook. Leave you so addicted to us on Twitter that you'll feel like Sting singing "Every Breathe You Take." Ok, perhaps that's an overstatement. Nonetheless, we're amping up our online presence, and the more the merrier. Share us with your friends, your enemies, and all those folks that usually only get the casual head nod - as you walk by, pretending to mind your own business. Because nothing says I love you like a "Hey, have you heard about that band from Asheville called Johnson's Crossroad? You should check out their new and improved website."

Johnson's Crossroad - improving your social life (or at least making it less awkward).

Sharing your love for "Appalachian Soul" with the world is simple - with a JXR sticker. They're great for instrument cases, car bumpers, laptops, water bottles, highly-trafficked bathroom stalls, helmets, kitchen appliances, your neighbor's RV, and pretty much any non-porous surface with 4"x2.875" of space to spare. We were very excited to receive them in the mail, and now you can recieve one for yourself. Come see us at any Johnson's Crossroad show and we'll give you one for free, as our way of saying thanks for the support. If you buy the album, we'll give you a sticker AND a spirited high five (adjusted to your personal enthusiasm and height) at no extra cost. We guarantee the new JXR sticker will make you look better, feel better, run faster and jump higher (results may vary).