Alberta, Let Your Hair Hang Down

In prepping for our set at the Jewel City Jamboree this weekend down by the riverside, we’re dusty off some of our older songs. Here’s one we’ve not done in about a decade, but Jim Rumbaugh, sitting in with us on bass for this gig, inspired us bring it out again. With tasty solos by Jim, Paul, Sam and Doug, here’s “Alberta, Let Your Hair Hang Down.” Remember, it’s Jewel City Jamboree this Friday and Saturday at Huntington’s Harris Riverfront Park. The Flood’s contribution will be at 5:30 Saturday evening.

Somebody Been Using That Thing .... Jim...

Jim Rumbaugh first started coming around the weekly Flood sessions about a decade ago, and he quickly became such a dear friend. We knew him first as an excellent harmonica player and we watched as he nurtured and grew the beloved Huntington Harmonica Club, which nowadays has a public jam session every week. It was only later that we learned Jim also is a first-rate bass player, that in fact he has been playing bass longer than his harps. Well, it was only natural when we found out that Flood bassist Randy Hamilton can’t make an upcoming gig that we asked Jim to sit in with us and he has graciously agreed. Last night he brought his big, beautiful Rickenbacker to a session to start working on some tunes for the show and we just had a ball. Mark you calendar! Jim Rumbaugh will be using that thing with us down on the riverfront Saturday, April 27, as The Flood does its part at the the fifth annual Jewel City Jamboree.

Hello, Chuck. Bye Bye, Blues!

It’s been a couple of years since Floodster Emeritus Chuck Romine dropped in to jam with us — he and Phyllis have been pretty busy lately with the general business of living the good life — but when he refurbished yet another great old tenor banjo, he just had to swing by last night and share it with us. And of course, whenever Dr. Jazz is in the room, we’ve got to revisit some of tunes that were Flood standards back when Chuck was with the band in the early years of this century. Here Chuck and Doug trade musical ideas on a great Michelle Lewis standard, “Bye Bye Blues.”

We're Still Sittin' On Top of the World

To warm up for an evening’s rehearsal, we often dig deep into our long, collective memory. Here is a tune that’s been on The Flood’s playlist for decades. In fact, 10 years ago — in the first months of this then-new weekly podcast — we offered up a version of this song, that one featuring our youngest and oldest Floodsters at the time, Jacob Scarr and Joe Dobbs. Now here, from last night’s get-together, is our 2019 version of this great old Mississippi Sheiks composition, with tasty solos by Doug, Paul and Randy. Yep, the facts are in: We’re still “Sittin’ on Top of the World.”