Date: 2009-08-31 21:57 Subject: The Joe Trainor Trio needs your help!! Security: Public Mood: excited

Hello everyone...it's been too long,


I know I haven't had a chance to speak to you all as much as I like, but I was hoping you'd be willing to come and support a great cause.

As many of you know my daughter, Erin, suffers from Juvenile Diabetes. On Saturday, September 19 we are performing a benefit concert at The Baby Grand Theater to raise money for The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation of Delaware. Tickets are only $15 and all of the proceeds go directly to the charity.

This is a worthwhile cause for me and I really would like to see it succeed. But we're going to need your help.

For those who don't know, The Joe Trainor Trio is me (piano, vocals) with Kevin Niemi on bass (from The Wall and Hedwig), and Mike Doroff on drums (from our touring production of Hedwig). We're an original band and are currently supporting our debut album, "Drive". In addition to songs from this album, we'll be debuting new material, and are planning a few surprises, as well.

Opening the show will be our friends Jill Knapp and Matt Casarino (also from The Wall as well as numerous other productions). And the night is going to be recorded for an upcoming DVD release. How often do you get to be a part of a live album/DVD? While donating money to a great cause? On my birthday?

Some come celebrate with us!! We really hope you all can make it...

For tickets: www.ticketsatthegrand.org/PerformanceDetail.aspx?Perf_no=749

For more information: www.joetrainortrio.com

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Sincerely,
Joe

Date: 2008-09-14 07:26 Subject: Studio Log #4 Security: Public

So Ray, Shawn and I descended on The Grand Opera House yesterday to begin recording the piano tracks for the album. We used two really great mics to close-mic the strings, and another mic to pick up the vibe in the room.

Now we had set aside 8 hours on Saturday and anther 8 hours on Sunday to get it all done without stressing. But we actually managed to get the whole thing done. We started recording tracks by 2:00 and finished with everything at 10:25. Here's what got done:

Terms
A Face In The Crowd
Dicking Me Around
Red Moon
Right Here
The Rail
Hotel
Cant Believe My Eyes
Drift
Now
Broken Circle
For The Rest Of You

After they transfer the tracks off of the portble gear, we tackle bass parts....weeeeeeeee!

(I can't tell you how hard it is for me to even type right now......my hands are so sore....)

Date: 2008-09-08 06:40 Subject: Studio Log #3 Security: Public

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Well, Mike finished up the drum tracks as scheduled. He worked on Right Here, Dicking Me Around, Broken Circle, Now, Can't Believe My Eyes and For The Rest Of You. Everything sounds great. Best drum sound I've ever heard on a project I've been involved with.

This week I'll collect the drum tracks to transfer to the mobile unit, so we can record piano this weekend.

WooHoo....a whole weekend at The Grand..........should be worth it.

More to come...

Date: 2008-09-07 07:42 Subject: Studio Log #2 Security: Public

Got into the studio with Mike yesterday. After a couple of hours of Ray and Mike focusing on the overall sound of the set, we finally began cutting tracks.

Tracks completed yesterday:
A Face In The Crowd
Drift
Red Moon
The Rail
Terms

6 to go....we pick up his afternoon.

Date: 2008-09-03 21:47 Subject: Studio Log # 1 Security: Public

We kicked off the recording of the JT3 album tonight. Spent the evening with the producer and engineer Ray Gagliardi recording the click tracks and guide tracks for Mike to play to this Saturday. The tentative running order for the album is:

Terms
A Face In The Crowd
Dicking Me Around
Right Here
Red Moon
The Rail
Hotel
Now
Can't Believe My Eyes
Drift
Broken Circle
For The Rest Of You

We sat around listening to various recordings trying to find a direction for the drum sound, but the test will be Saturday when we get in there and start recording them.

I'm looking forward to it. If everything goes well, we'll have it in hand by mid-November.

Yea!
More to come...

Date: 2008-09-02 06:29 Subject: JT3 @ The Arden Fair Security: Public Location: the couch Mood: accomplished Music: morning joe Tags: arden, joe trainor trio, led zepellin, recording

Hey everyone. Just wanted to throw a quick update out there...

We had a great time at The Arden Fair on Saturday. The weather held up and we had a nice, sunny (and hot) day. Technically we were supposed to start at 4:45.....they had hoped we'd start at 4:30....we started at 5:00. Here's the list:

Terms
The Last Polka
For The Rest Of You
Whole Lotta Love
What Is And What Should Never Be
The Lemon Song
Thank You
Heartbreaker
Living Loving Maid
Ramble On
Moby Dick
Bring It On Home
Can't Believe My Eyes

Since we didn't start until 5:00 we didn't have much of a warm-ups set before the Zep (which we had to start by 5:15 in order to get it in by 6).

But I've got to say: From my perspective, it was amazing watching the audience just kick back and enjoy the performance. So many people singing along. Kevin was awesome during The Lemon Song, and Mike's stick-free solo in Moby Dick was really great. And when it was all done, a wonderfully warm reception.

And that's what it's all about.

Had Shawn come out and record the whole thing to multi-track and our friends at Mobius Media brought along 4 Hi-Def video cameras....so there should be a DVD of this available soon.

Next up: LOMA event in downtown Wilmington on November 1 (details to come)

In the meantime: We're recording an album....yea!!!

Date: 2008-08-10 20:04 Subject: JT3 @ Mojo 13 Security: Public Location: home Mood: accomplished Music: Final Fantasy IX Tags: arden fair, joe trainor trio, mojo 13

So Friday night we made our appearance at Mojo 13 for the Spark Summer Music Series. Jessica Bratton and Rob Kelesse were in attendance (and Jessica brought me a DVD of our photo shoot which was awesome. We had a pretty good crowd (including some friends from kickball and a pair of Rileys) which always gets us amped up. We played some new stuff and had fun with a couple of covers.

In particular we played a fun version of Under Pressure and brought Shawn up (my brother who sings for Cubane) to cover the Bowie parts. You can check out the last half of that by going to YouTube and searching Joe Trainor Trio (should be the first one to come up...sorry, not good with the whole 'linking' thing).

We had a lot of fun. Sorry if you missed it. Here's the list:

Terms (new song)
A Face In The Crowd
Wicked Little Town
Right Here
Three Is A Magic Number
Red Moon
Come Together
One Angry Dwarf
The Rail
Leave The Biker
Dicking Me Around
Under Pressure (with Shawn)
Can't Believe My Eyes
Prelude/Angry Young Man
Broken Circle
The Last Polka
For The Rest Of You

Next Up: Saturday, August 30th - The Arden Fair (yes, we're doing Led Zeppelin II...do not miss this). 4:30pm.

Arden will be our last gig for a while as we head right into the studio the next weekend to record our debut. We've got something tentatively scheduled for Nov 1st (details to come). See you soon

- joe

Date: 2008-08-03 07:38 Subject: JT3 @ Unicity Security: Public

So yesterday The Joe Trainor Trio participated in the Unicity Festival in Middletown, DE. Over a hundred performing arts acts (from bands, to comedians, theater and dance groups) participated and we were smack dab in the middle of the day.

One of the coolest aspects of the day was that my brothers (Allen & Shawn) were both participating with thier respective groups (Paul Lewis & Cubane). Cubane followed us on the Variety Stage, whereas Paul Lewis played on the main stage opening for The Fixx.

I spent the whole day at the festival and got to see a few bands. In addition to Paul Lewis, Cubane and The Fixx I also checked out Ian Walsh, The Crash Motive, Stefanie Jaye and Three Legged Dog.

Thd tent we performed in (the Variety Stage) started 20 minutes late due to power issues which were resolved by tapping in to the closet streetlight. So, of course, two-thirds of the way through our set....the power dies.

But they fixed it and we finished up our set. When Cubane started...they got 20 seconds into their set before the power died, so at least it wasn't just us.

Here's the set:
Terms (new song)
Dicking Me Around
A Face In The Crowd
Under Pressure
Can't Believe My Eyes
Broken Circle (incomplete due to power failure)
The Last Polka
For The Rest Of You

MVP goes to Mike this week. Mike really messed up his foot a couple of weeks ago and the swelling that ensued was unlike anything I'd ever seen. It's gone back to its usual size and shape, but needless to say, the guy was still hobbling around....and yesterday was the first time he'd played since it happened.

NEXT UP: Friday, August 8th, @ Mojo 13 for the Spark Summer Music Series. Time: TBD

OF NOTE: A reminder that we're headlining the Arden Fair on August 30th. We will be performing a small set of originals before lunching in to all of Led Zeppelin II. We're having this performance video taped so we sincerely hope that you can all make it out. We start at 4:30.

Peace,
trainor

Date: 2008-06-05 08:57 Subject: JT3 to headline The Arden Fair Security: Public

Mark August 30th on your calendar everyone, as The Joe Trainor Trio will be headlining the 101st Arden Fair.   Details to follow.

Hope to see everyone there.

Date: 2008-06-02 08:01 Subject: The Khyber Security: Public Location: The Citi Mood: sleepy Tags: joe trainor trio, spark, the khyber

So Sunday was a long day for the Trio.  At noon we gathered at 1100 for a rehearsal to work up a few new things.  At around 2, we were visited by Jessica Bratton from SPARK, for a photo shoot.  We're performing on August 8th at Mojo 13 for the Spark Summer Music Series, so we needed new pictures.  We cued up for a couple on the deck before heading up to Beaver Dam Road in an attempt to keep our pictures off of www.rocknrollconfidential.com.  (Essentially stearing away from the cliches of brick walls, fences and train tracks....I think we succeeded.)  Afterwards we loaded up the gear and made our way to Philly for our headlining slot at The Khyber.  The Khyber has long been a place I've wanted to play, but the 11:00 slot on a Sunday night is a tough sell.  Fortunately we had some great friends out to join us and we left a nice impression on the place.  Thanks to everyone who came out on a school night.  Troopers one and all.

So I write this through the bleary lense of my morning fog, feeling good about how we were received, but counting the minutes until 5:00 when I can make my way to the couch for a well deserved night of nothing.  Alright, here's the setlist:

Dicking Me Around
A Face In The Crowd
The Rail
Leave The Biker - Fountains Of Wayne
Right Here
Can't Believe My Eyes
Broken Circle
The Last Polka - Ben Folds
Under Pressure - Queen
For The Rest Of You

And for the first time we actually played an encore:

Come Together - The Beatles

I've been fighting a cold all weekend, so needless to say that by Under Pressure my voice had all but gone on vacation.  I'm still waiting it's return.

Next Up: August 8, Mojo 13 (Spark Summer Music Series)*

*Make a note....we're anticipating being asked to perform at the Unicity Festival (in Middletown) on August 2.  Put a note on the calendar and I'll let you know when it's confirmed.  It would be an all ages show.  Hope to see you all there.

Date: 2008-05-27 08:59 Subject: Party at 1100 Security: Public Tags: 1100 trio xtingu pie party

So, Sunday night we hosted a party at the house for Xtingu, and Kevin & Mike were in attendance.  So we took the opportunity to fire up the gear and play a few tunes.  Although it wasn’t an official gig I still wanted to post the setlist.  So here it is:

Can’t Believe My Eyes

Dicking Me Around

Broken Circle

Leave The Biker

What Is And What Should Never Be

The Last Polka

Moby Dick (complete with Bukkake Song)

For The Rest Of You

Always nice playing to a house of friendlies.  We’ll be making our Khyber debut this Sunday night.  Details to follow.  Hope to see some of our Philly friends there.

Rock!

Date: 2008-05-16 07:58 Subject: JT3 does LZII @ Mojo13 Security: Public Location: work Music: the hum of flourescent lighting Tags: joe trainor trio, led zeppelin, mojo 13

So last night The Joe Trainor Trio took part in Mojo's "Cover Series".  Our choice?  Led Zeppelin II.  Part of the appeal was performing an album so heavily based on guitar without having one.  It started off with everyone showing up on time (Mike was the first one there...whoda thought?  As we're standing out front we heard the second band (Athem) arrive in a hail of screeching brakes and broken headlights (no one got hurt, but the cars got a little banged up).  The soundguy was a little late so we didn't start until 9:30.  We did a short original set, then launched into the Zep.  Highlights for me were Can't Believe My Eyes, Heartbreaker, Kevin & Mike doing The Bukkake Song, and finally using the harmonium (hooter) in a live setting.  But the kicker was The Lemon Song....it just soared!!  (It was also nice to see how much Christine enjoyed Thank You)

The usual suspects were in attendance and we were joined by Joe del Tufo who was gracious enough to take some great shots of the night for us.  I was very pleased that we stuck to it, and it turned out much better than anyone ever imagined.  For the 15 or so who made it out, they saw something unexpected and weren't disappointed.  Here's the setlist:

SET 1 (Standard but reduced set)
Dicking Me Around
A Face In The Crowd
The Rail
Leave The Biker [fountains of wayne]
Can't Believe My Eyes
The Last Polka [ben folds five]
For The Rest Of You

SET 2 (Led Zeppelin II)
Whole Lotta Love
What Is And What Should Never Be
The Lemon Song
Thank You
Heartbreaker
Living Loving Maid (She's Just A Woman)
Ramble On
Moby Dick (with drum solo and The Bukkake Song)
Bring It On Home

Thanks to everyone who made it out.  See you soon.

Date: 2008-02-02 11:24 Subject: Kid Shelleen's - February 1, 2008 Security: Public

After a slew of gigs we touched down at Kid Shelleen's for our last gig before our  (hopefully brief) haitis.  Nothing new, but here's the list:

SET1
Getting Better (the beatles)
A Face In The Crowd (joe trainor trio)
Karma Police (radiohead)
Levon (elton john)
Red Moon (joe trainor trio)
Landed (ben folds)
Three Is A Magic Number (schoolhouse rock)
Wicked Little Town (hedwig & the angry inch)
Close The Distance (joe trainor trio)
Scenes From An Italian Restaurant (billy joel)

SET 2
Take Me To The Pilot (elton john)
The Rail (joe trainor trio)
Leave The Biker (fountains of wayne)
Can't Believe My Eyes (joe trainor trio)
Message In A Bottle (the police)
Dicking Me Around (joe trainor trio)
Broken Circle (joe trainor trio)
The Last Polka (ben folds)

SET 3
One Angry Dwarf (ben folds)
Prelude/Angry Young Man (billy joel)
Under Pressure (queen)
Peace, Love and Understanding (elvis costello)
Higher Ground (stevie wonder)
Spirit In The Night (bruce springsteen)

NEXT UP: Recording session begin on February 10th.  Looking at Dicking Me Around, Can't Belive My Eyes and For The Rest Of You.

Be back soon...

Date: 2008-01-30 08:53 Subject: The North Star Bar - January 29, 2008 Security: Public

OK.  I rolled into the Mighty North Star Bar last night with the band's gear at around 6pm.  The band would be along later, so I had been charged with taking care of the load-in.  Got all of the stuff in the building shortly after 6 and waited for everyone to arrive.  Slowly the other bands trickled in and Mike & Kevin showed up by 8:30 or so.  There were 4 other bands on the bill (Sensory Whore, Brackets & Arrows, Don't Ask and the headliner, The Kill Pride).  We sat through Sensory Whore (very Radiohead at their most experimental) and Brackets & Arrows (who performed the longest and most avant gard version of Tom Petty's 'Free Falling' I'd ever heard) then it was time for us to play.  Here's the break-down with anotation: 

SET1
Dicking Me Around (I still haven't been able to decide if this is the best thing to open up with, but it keeps getting better)
A Face In The Crowd (in hindsight, we probably should have done The Rail)
Broken Circle (put this a little earlier....this was very full sounding)
Can't Believe My Eyes (this was a little fast, but very energetic)
The Last Polka (I think we're finally where we need to be on this one)
For The Rest Of You (holy shit, this one was waaaaaay toooo fast.  But a nice way to end the set...but wait)

The sound guy said we had time for one more short one, so we busted out...

Leave The Biker (and it was good)

Thanks to Christine, Jeni, Mark, Matt, Lela, Barf (and friend) for showing up and to Andrew (from HeyDay) for giving us a chance to play.

NEXT UP: Kid Shelleen's this Friday (February 1st) .  This is our last gig before embarking on some recording.

Date: 2008-01-26 19:20 Subject: Setlist for Mojo 13 (January 24, 2008) Security: Public

We played a blistering set on Thursday night at Mojo 13.  We shared the bill with The Paul Lewis Band (really amazing songwriter whose band features my brother Allen on bass), and Burbon Armoury (a power trio from West Chester).  Here's the run-down of the setlist...no surprises, but since it's a short set, I'll provide a blow-by-blow:

SET1
Dicking Me Around [this one just gets stronger every time we play it]
A Face in The Crowd [very straight forward]
The Rail [holy shit...Kevin went for the high note...and nailed it...he got all the applause on that one]
Leave The Biker [this Fountains Of Wayne song has been officially adopted by us]
Can't Believe My Eyes [this one gets a lot of attention...gotta move it later in the set]
Right Here [this one slows things down, but I believe in this song...I think it delivers...just gotta find the right spot in the set for it]
Broken Circle [still finding its legs, but is nice and upbeat]
The Last Polka [probably the best we've ever played it]
For The Rest Of You [after Polka and this...my hands were killing me]

Thanks to everyone who came out.  See you all at the next one.

NEXT UP: The North Star Bar (Philadelphia), January 29th  [really, really need anyone who can make it to come support us that night]
 

Date: 2008-01-13 07:42 Subject: Setlist for Kid Shelleen's (January 11, 2008) Security: Public

We debuted 4 new songs (1 originala nd 2 covers).  Quick and dirty...here's what we played...

SET1
Peace, Love & Understanding (elvis costello)
A Face In The Crowd (joe trainor trio)
Karma Police (radiohead)
The Rail (joe trainor trio)
Levon (elton john)
Quiet Town (joe trainor trio...originally schwa) *new
Strawberry Fields Forever (the beatles)
Can't Believe My Eyes (joe trainor trio)
Leave The Biker (fountains of wayne)
Scenes From An Italian Restaurant (billy joel)

SET 2
Three Is A Magic Number (schoolhouse rock) *new
Take Me To The Pilot (elton john)
Right Here (joe trainor trio)
Landed (ben folds)
Red Moon (joe trainor trio)
Wicked Little Town (hedwig and the angry inch)
All Along The Watchtower (bob dylan)
Under Pressure (queen) *new
One Angry Dwarf (ben folds)

SET 3
Prelude/Angry Young Man (billy joel)
Message In A Bottle (the police) *new
Close The Distance (joe trainor trio)
Getting Better (the beatles)
Dance Around It (joe trainor trio)
Dicking Me Around (joe trainor trio)
Higher Ground (stevie wonder)
Broken Circle (joe trainor trio)
The Last Polka (ben folds)
For The Rest Of You (joe trainor trio)

Songs not played: Everybody Loves You Now, She's The One, More Than This, After Me, Your Love, Drift

NEXT UP: Mojo 13, January 24th

 

Date: 2008-01-07 09:03 Subject: Trio show #2 Security: Public Music: coheed Tags: deerpark, trio

Saturday night the Trio played a nice set at The Deer Park Tavern opening up for Long Walk Home.  It was weird getting used to the sound setup there, and the new environment found us rushing a few things.  But the dancing drunk dude made everything worthwhile.  Here's the setlist:

Dicking Me Around
A Face In The Crowd
The Rail
Leave The Biker
Can't Believe My Eyes
Right Here
Broken Circle
The Last Polka
For The Rest Of You

Got off to a late start, so we cut Quiet Town from the set.

See you at Kid Shelleen's on Friday the 11th.

Date: 2007-12-22 08:08 Subject: Joe Trainor Trio Security: Public

Hello everyone.  Hope you're all wall this holiday season.  The Trio that I put together the end of last year (with me on Piano & Vocals, Kevin Niemi on bass and Mike Doroff on drums) is plowing ahead into the new year with 4 opportunities to catch us in January.  As you can see from my last post, we're keeping it half original and half covers.  And we're mixing up the covers to be a little more diverse.  So hope you can catch us.  Here's where we'll be:

January 5 - The Deerpark Tavern (with Long Walk Home)
January 11 - Kid Shelleen's
January 24 - Mojo 13 (with Paul Lewis & Burbon Armoury)
January 29 - The North Star Bar (in Philadelphia...would love to see some of our Philly friends at this one)

Anyway.  Hope you all have a good holiday.

Date: 2007-11-18 09:48 Subject: The Joe Trainor Trio Security: Public Tags: jt3, kid shelleens

 Friday night was the debut of The Joe Trainor Trio (JT3) at Kid Shelleen's in Wilmington.  For the first time in almost ten years I had to perform three full sets of material.  We learned 2.5 hours of music in just about a month and did a fine job playing for the unreasonably packed crowd at the bar.  I was joined by Kevin Niemi on Bass (Schwa, The Wall, Hedwig) and Mike Doroff on Drums (touring production of Hedwig).  Here's the setlist:

SET 1
Memoir (joe trainor)
Peace, Love & Understanding (elvis costello)
A Face In The Crowd (joe trainor)
Karma Police (radiohead)
The Rail (joe trainor)
All Along The Watchtower (bob dylan)
Levon (elton john)
Everybody Loves You Now (billy joel)
Can't Believe My Eyes (joe trainor)
Leave The Biker (fountains of wayne)
One Angry Dwarf 200 Solumn Faces (ben folds five)

SET 2
Take Me To The Pilot (elton john)
Right Here (joe trainor)
Landed (ben folds)
Red Moon (joe trainor)
Strawberry Fields Forever (the beatles)
Drift (joe trainor)
She's The One (bruce springsteen)
Scenes From An Italian Restaurant (billy joel)

SET 3
Prelude/Angry Young Man (billy joel)
More Than This (peter gabriel)
After Me (marillion)
Wicked Little Town (hedwig and the angry inch)
Close The Distance (joe trainor)
Getting Better (the beatles)
Dance Around It (joe trainor)
Dicking Me Around (joe trainor)
Higher Ground (stevie wonder)
Broken Circle (joe trainor)
Spirit In The Night (bruce springsteen)
The Last Polka (ben folds five)
For The Rest Of You (joe trainor)

Date: 2007-01-28 20:01 Subject: Xfusion update #13 Security: Public

In attendence: Shawn Trainor, Joe Trainor, Jerry Dement, Jeff Dement

OK. So tonight Jerry showed up to get cracking on the bass...after a week of essentially being on injured reserve he dove in whole heartedly, tackling the beast first. Shawn cued up 'Shell SHock' and work began. Now, the tempos on these pieces are challenging, and 'Shell Shock' is probably the least rehearsed, but Jerry did a great job. We took some time to nail a few tricky parts in the middle solo sections, but the piece is really coming along. I can't wait to take a crack at the keyboards.

After a few hours of this he was ready to move on to another piece, so we cued up 'Waking Up' A couple of passes and he put that one right to bed. After that we called it a night, ready to resume on Tuesday.

For tracking the bass Shawn miked his bass cabinet as well as took a line directly from the bass amp. The cabinet mic picked up a lot of the thick low-end sound, while the direct out provided the crispness of the mids and high ranges, giving Jerry 6string a nice full tone.

Tech info: Tuesday night I'll post a run-doan of the guitar, amps, cabinets and miking information.

Next up: Tuesday night we resume bass tracks.

OF NOTE: All that's left to do on 'Waking up' is vocals.
OF NOTE 2: Shawn has so far recorded a few different webcams from the sessions. The high-speed time lapse of the drum session. Two videos from Chris' sessions and a nice clip of me recording a solo from 'Sand'. Jeff showed up tonight and brought us a couple of clips from our Arden gig, which Shawn copied and I'm sure will be posted. Some or all of these can be watched at http://www.myspace.com/lacrymologyst which is Shawn's MySpace account.

See you Tuesday.