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Tricks Trio /KaRTunes Blog - 2023

Tricks Trio September Blog -  2023
• Sep 22 - Tricks Trio at Cowboy Dinner 2023, Oak Grove Tavern, Irons



This is the 38th annual Cowboy Weekend in Irons. Thursday through Sunday has lots of horse activities, from contests to rides. Friday night is the Cowboy Dinner on the patio at the Oak Grove Tavern. For Tricks Trio, this the 6th or 7th time that we played for the Cowboy Weekend activities. It's hard to figure, because 2020 was canceled because of Covid, and two other times we played with the big band (including Steve) at the Cowboy Wagon Ride on Saturday. Those horse people, er I mean "cowboys and cowgirls" really like to party all day long. Rick the owner at Oak Grove Tavern is one of the organizers of the Cowboy weekend, so he goes all out to do a good job feeding the crowds who jam pack the Oak Grove, especially on Friday and Saturday night. They also have a "Survivors Breakfast" on Monday morning at the Oak Grove.
We are more than honored to be part of these "Up North" activities, where family and friends come together to make memories.Thanks to Rick and Wayne and everyone involved in the Cowboy Weekend. We appreciate what a lot of work it is to make everyone happy. May you have many more.

• Sep 16 - Tricks Trio at Scouts' Mackinac Rendezvous 2023, Mill Creek Campground, Mackinaw City


Tricks Trio returns to play a Saturday night show for the Scouts at "Mackinac Rendezvous 2023". The 1400 scouts had a busy couple of days, especially the 75 older scouts who went on the "Island Adventure", which included a short plane trip over the Mighty Mac (they chartered 9 planes to make this happen) and a short sailboat ride under the Mighty Mac. And then they brought their bicycles to the Island and went on some special trails that aren't normally open to the public. Rick & Steve's cousin Bruce Emaus is the Scout leader of the counties at the top of the Mitten, and Bruce is the one who was asked to put together a two-day "Mackinac Island Adventure". This year was Island Adventure IV. Bruce also got the idea of having live music at the Saturday night wrap-up party. The band had a small group of die-hard rockers, maybe a couple dozen total, who were up there cheering and dancing. Although it looks like we're being ignored by the larger group, while we were packing up we had a continuous line of both leaders and scouts coming up and telling us that they appreciated our music, even though they were back in the tents. They said they heard lots of people saying, "I Love This Song" and even some dancing back in the tents that we never saw from our vantage point onstage.
Thanks to Bruce for having us, thanks to the Scouts and leaders for everything you do to teach kids about values, virtues, goals, and responsibility. It looks like Bruce is getting drafted into doing the next Rendezvous in 2025, so it's likely that the Tricks Trio will be back. We are hoping to talk Steve into coming along to show off his drumming to these kids - they would be in heaven with a live drummer. Fingers crossed!

Tricks Trio August Blog -  2023

• Aug 27 - Tricks Trio at Ginjah Knuth's Celebration of Life

 

Ginjah Knuth was a longtime friend and fan of the Tricks band. When her and her husband Dan showed up for a Tricks show, they were there to dance. Ginjah kicked off her shoes and swirled around the dance floor. Ginjah was more than your average hippy music and art-lover. She taught meditation and yoga. Ginjah's daughter Geneviève asked for Tricks to play at Ginjah's Celebraton of Life. She wanted the entire big band with drums and everything, but we told her that the Tricks Trio would be a better fit for space and volume level in the noisy Griswald basement dining hall. We've played there a few times before, and it is very difficult to keep the volume down so that people can socialize. Everyone said that the Tricks Trio was a perfect fit for the occasion. There were plenty of dancers and we even organized a drum circle at the end of the event. Tons of potluck food! Lots of Allegan area hippies. It was a beautiful memorial for Ginjah. Geneviève brought five songs that Ginjah wrote and sang, and we played those songs during our band break. Hearing Ginjah's voice was a bit of a tear-jerker, but we all feel honored to have her as a friend.

• Aug 11 - Tricks Trio at Allegan Grill House 24th Anniversary


Tricks Trio in the Courtyard, and no rain. We've been watching storms in the forecast all week long. If it rained, we were going down to the "Rock Bottom Bar" downstairs, where tile floors and brick walls make a horrendous sound. Instead, we had a beautiful evening with a whole bunch of party people drinking and dining in the Grill House back yard courtyard. Lots of what we call "Tricks Virgins" who end up giving us a whole lotta love and appreciation when they see our fun rocking show. At this time of year, we are always super tight and practiced up, so we're firing on all 8 cylinders. Tricks (yes, with Steve) played one time in the back yard, way before they had the swinging tables and brick paths. Rick and Krys have also done some acoustic shows here, but not in the past 3 years or so. The Grill House is one of Allegan's "Claims to Fame", with award-winning appearances on the Food Network, for their do-it-yourself steakk dinners. It's kind of a dress-up place, borderline hoity-toity. I recall a very drunken Rick & Krys show in the Rock Bottom Bar, when we played very late and Krystal got pretty loose, along with lots of the bar customers. We didn't get called back very soon after that one, but Marsha the owner is a friend of our friends, so we always end up back here every now and then. This anniversary evening was very very nice, with drink and dinner specials and bounce houses for the kiddies. We even had dancing in the grass!

Tricks Trio June Blog -  2023

• July 16 - Tricks Trio at Cogdal Winery 9th Anniversary Celebration


Tons of fun! And on a Sunday afternoon! A SUNNY and breezy July Sunday afternoon! This was such a treat for us. We love playing outdoors and we love the wine-tasting party crowd. Although, we had a constant 20mph breeze going, so we had to get out the microphone windscreens to avoid a constant "whooosh" sound. We were supposed to debut here at Cogdal Winery late last year, but we got stormed out. We ended up getting booked for their very first music Wednesday for 2023, and we were surprised how many people come out to the countryside to sip wine and eat food-truck dinner.
Cogdal Winery is just a few miles north of the city of South Haven, following the scenic Blue Star Highway. A quarter mile down 107th Ave, and then they have a long gravel driveway, past the grapevines. You can barely see their building from the road. So, we're talking quiet and secluded countryside. The perfect setting for a bit of live rock music from Ozzy, Krystal, & Doogie. We were well-liked at that first Wednesday show, so they immediately called us back to fill in their Sunday Anniversary party celebrating 9 years in the winery business. Krystal was gone camping up north all week, so we booked the job as the "Doogie & Ozzy Show". Krystal unexpectedly came home from up north on Saturday, so we happily added her to the show. We always have a good time when Krystal is onstage with the boys, even though we know we have to share her with her gal pals for camping / hiking / kayaking trips.
• Jun 25 - KaR Tunes, Allegan Events


In the face of a stormy forecast, we set up our little Krys & Rick "KaR Tunes" sound system at the Allegan Events Center patio stage. Just as we were ready to do some songs, the manager came running out, pointing at her watch, "my watch says that it's going to rain here in four minutes. Thankfully, we had Rick's son Jeremy and his wife Gerah to help us quickly drag everything inside. The food trucks BBQ folks brought in hot food to the indoor deli, and we were ready to go. Too bad we only had a dozen people there. We enjoyed playing for those dozen people, but we always like it if we get enough people to make us worth our pay to the venue. They were losing money this day. It sprinkled on and off for the three hours that we played, and we had a nice little intimate show.
Sorry, no other pics.

• Jun 14, Wed - Tricks Trio, Cogdal Winery
Fantastic Evening, no pics. Ozzy & Doogie Show will be here for Cogdal's 9th Anniversary celebration on Sunday July 16. See the Cogdal Winery website for their story.

• Jun 10 - Tricks Trio Party
Nick B-day party, Diamond Lake


Tee is one of Kim and Duane's good friends. You know, the Kim and Duane who (long story) we play their Labor Day weekend party every year for Duane's birthday. The Tricks Trio played here at Diamond Lake a few years ago for Tee's 60th birthday party. Many of the party attendees are people who we see at Kim and Duane's parties. Fun for all ages here at the lake. We love playing for "family & friends" milestone events, especially outdoor parties like this one.

• Jun 2 - TRICKS Trio, Allegan Eagles
No really, we played at the Eagles on Friday night, then Steve came in on Saturday for a "real" Tricks show. No pictures either night. Great crowds of drinkers and dancers both nights. Really! (We'll be back on Halloween weekend. Really!)


KaRTunes Blog - May 2023

• May 28, Sun - Doogie & Ozzy, Allegan Event Center 3pm to 6pm

The Allegan Events Center came to town a few years ago. Their biggest eye-catcher was the Zipline over the Kalamazoo River in downtown Allegan. Then they bought a large building just north of downtown Allegan. That building has a fantastic indoor ropes course, with a lower level course where tiny kids can do a course with mom or dad hanging on to them. Everyone has safety harnesses and the employees know what they are doing. There also are a dozen Rock-Climbing wall units, with some that have digital timers for those aggressive kids who want to beat their Personal Best. They have added a deli with sandwiches and adult beverages. Now they are taking it out onto a large patio, where they made a stage. And where food trucks can come in the supplement the Events Center deli.
The Doogie and Ozzy Show was their first trial run for music on the patio. We had a blast with quite a few people sitting on the patio with us. Some dropped the kids off indoors to go crazy on the ropes course.
Sorry, no other photos. Check out the Allegan Events Center website for their story.

 to K&RBlog 2022 (Jan- Dec)