01 Llama

This is a demo I wrote for The Great Red Ball Adventure a puppet show created by Faye Dupras. The track was not right for the scene so here ya go world. 

Coming Home

On 8/15/2009 at the end of Porter Batiste Stoltz's sound check at the freshly named Nectar's MV in Edgartown on Martha's Vineyard I saw Russell Batiste, Jr. pick up George Porter, Jr.'s bass. I was a PBS crew member at the time and I siezed the opportunity to finally jam with Russ. I grabbed his sticks and hopped behind his kit.

While Russ plucked out a harmonic sequence on the bass I got loose with a DnB thing I like to play. You can hear his unmistakable laugh about 50 seconds in when he starts to dial in his riff.

Eventually it catches the ear of Brian Stoltz, who is still on stage and he joins in around the 2:20 mark and they push the idea around for a while and I just hold on for the ride.

Russ knew I was recording and the moment we were done he wanted to hear it back and get a copy. Listening back today I smiled when I heard him say at the end "oooh, 9 minutes, let's see what we got!"

That was over 14 years ago but when I heard the news today of Russell's passing lots of memories came flooding back that I hadn't thought about in quite some time. This memory and the riff haunted me all day and I had to find it. The look Russ had when he picked up GPJ's bass was unforgettable and I'm not sure who had more fun that afternoon.

Rest easy Russ.

BWS Jam

Brooklyn, NY -- Lettuce releases the bonus track “Star Children,” previously only available on the rare Japanese version of their 2008 album Rage!. Because of the limited release, “Star Children” has only been heard by the most devoted Lettuce fans. Lettuce's Adam “Shmeeans” Smirnoff had this to say about the release:

“The track was named "Star Children" to pay tribute to some of the great Funkateers like Bernie Worrell, Bootsy Collins, and George Clinton. Neal Evans absolutely crushes the Modular Synthesizer. This is a free track from everyone here at Lettuce, so turn it up Loud, Blast Off, and Enjoy the Ride.”

Lettuce has enjoyed a booming Spring 2013, consisting of main stage plays at Buku, Summer Camp, & Purple Hatter’s Ball Music Festivals, as well as sold-out club plays in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Denver, New York City, and New Orleans (Annual Royal Family Ball). The band will continue to build momentum leading into an electrifying summer, highlighted by their return to the legendary Fuji Rock festival in Japan, as well its primetime slots at Electric Forest, All Good, and the Catskill Chill music festivals.

BWS Jam

fUNKYbret

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