Careless/free Love

Some nights you just don’t want it to end. You’ve been playing for an hour and a half, folk are standing up and stretching and looking at the door, and then someone says, “Aw, just one more,” and everybody grins and sits back down again. Last night’s just-one-more tune was this one, our upbeat version of that old traditional piece, “Careless Love,” though, truth be told, in The Flood’s hands, “Careless Love” always feels less careless and more carefree.

Doug Chaffin's Rockin' Roots

One of the of the many joys of being together each week is sharing our common musical memories, and when it comes to Doug Chaffin, well, the man’s got a lot to share. Doug started playing music some 60 years ago with his family and then with some of those great local rock bands. Old-timers around here remember a rockabilly band called The Montereys, named a rather nice Mercury automobile. A teen-aged Doug Chaffin played lead guitar with them. Anyway, it’s a treat for us that Doug revisits his rock ’n’ roll roots when we play things like Bruce Channel’s 1950s rock anthem “Hey, Baby.” But then Doug can turn on a dime and bring out his soulful side on on the very next tune. It’s like having another voice singing along with the harmonies. Listen to how he weaves together all of the music strands to wrap up the Bob Gibson-John D. Loudermilk classic, “Abilene.”

Route 60 Saturday Night Celebrates St. Patrick's Day!

The Flood is all fired up for the launch of the big second season of “Route 60 Saturday Night” at 7 p.m. THIS Saturday night at Route 60 Music Co., 60 Peyton St. in Barboursville. The guest artists for this big opening show are two great duets, Holly and the Guy and The Shadowshaker Band. We’ll also have another fine story by the resident storyteller, Dave Peyton, and all proceeds from this month’s show go to help the good folks at CONTACT of Huntington. Now, since this particular show falls on St. Patrick’s Day, you know the The Flood, as your house band, has gotta have a few Irish tunes in the lineup, like this great old sing-along from The Old Sod, “The Wild Rover.” Erin Go Bragh!

Songs from The Old Sod

We’re gearing up for the launch of the big second season of “Route 60 Saturday Night,” the new music variety show at Route 60 Music Co., where The Flood is the house band. The show is on the third Saturday night each month, meaning the next show will be on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17. And to celebrate in style, we want to dust off a few songs from The Old Sod. Now, “Down By the Salley Gardens,” with lyrics by William Butler Yeats, has been in The Flood repertoire for 25 or 30 years — in fact, it’s on our first CD released all the way back in 2001 — but the tune has had a beautiful rebirth with harmony that Michelle has brought to the verses. Just listen! And remember, mark your calendar. We’ll be at Route 60 Music Co., 60 Peyton St. in Barboursville on Saturday, March 17, 2018, for the start of the new season of “Route 60 Saturday Night!”