The Weekend's Setlist: 2/10/17 Club Café, Pgh., Pa. (Bluegrass show)

'Old train each time you pass you're older than the last,

And it seems I'm too old for runnin'...'

When we started doing our bluegrass thang, Trish was a little hesitant about jumping in with an additional harmony part. But she found her groove, and it makes all the difference. When you're singing bluegrass, that third, high part is what gives things the "high, lonesome sound" that characterizes the best of the genre.

Judging by the whoop and holler that follow the first burst of harmony in "Roving Gambler," I'd say we're gettin' there pretty quickly!

Thanks to Corey Kurtz & Dave Marley, and Hollow Oaks for sharing the bill with us. We had a great time!

Click here to download/stream the set courtesy of Archive.org!

One set:

Old Train (T. Rice)

Dark Hollow (B. Browning)

Streetlight Mama

Mystery Train (J. Parker)

My Sisters and Brothers (J. Garcia)

Midnight Moonlight (P. Rowan)

I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome Too (B. Monroe)

No Expectation (Stones) >

Roving Gambler (Stanley Bros.)

Junko Partner (J. Waynes)

Mother's Meth Head Blues

Loser (Dead)

Cherokee Shuffle (Trad.) >

You Better Get Right (Stanley Bros.)

Last Night's Setlist: 10/30/15 Club Café, Pgh., Pa.

'Now the Eiffel Tower's holdin' up a flower,

I gave it to a Texas cat — can you picture that?'

It was another excellent Halloween as Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem from "The Muppet Show," and this year it was even topical since they brought the show back!

This time we had "Zoot" — our buddy Kyle Lawson — sit in for the entire second set, which saw us expand our horizons with a funky detour through some Bill Withers and J.J. Cale tunes.

Click here to download/stream the set, courtesy of Archive.org.

Early set:

Mystery Train (J. Parker)

Strange Moon

Dauphine

That's It >

Jam >

Queen Cobra

Can You Picture That? (D. Teeth) >

Jam >

Blackjack Molly

Midnight Rambler (Stones)

Late set*:

Werewolves of London (W. Zevon)

After Midnight (J.J. Cale)

Craney Crow (M. Rebennack) >

Stone Soup >

Use Me (B. Withers)

Spooky (Rascals) >

Equinox (Coltrane) >

Les Brers in A Minor (D. Betts) >

All Along the Watchtower (Dylan)

Fire on the Mountain (Dead)

*Full set w. Kyle Lawson, guitar/vocals

Last Night's Setlist: 10/31/14 Club Café, Pgh., Pa.

'Can you picture that?'

Best costume idea we've ever had. Easily.

[In case you're under the age of about 28 or so, that's Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem, the house band from "The Muppet Show" back in the day.]

Our drummer and his fiancee literally put 10 hours of work into what is a Jim-Henson-Creature-Workshop-quality Animal head. We even had the Swedish Chef and Camilla the Chicken to introduce us during the second set, which is regrettably the only one we got on tape (and the quality is not fantastic). But we're starting to really crank up a new Allman Bros. cover, "Les Brers in A Minor," mixing a Coltrane tune into the jam and, in honor of the season, a "Spooky" jam!

Click here to stream/download the late set, courtesy of Archive.org:

Early set:

Sympathy for the Devil (Stones)

New Mexican Shuffle*

Mother's Meth Head Blues*

Friend of the Devil (Dead) >

Run Through the Jungle (CCR) >

Friend of the Devil

Good Mornin' Lil' Schoolgirl** (J. Lee Williamson) >

Jam** >

Spoonful** (C. Patton) >

Schoolgirl Reprise**

Quite a Night*

Rain (Lennon/McCartney) >

China Cat Sunflower (Dead) >

Feelin' Blue (CCR)

Late set:

Can You Picture That? (D. Teeth/F. Pepper)

Gris-Gris Gumbo Ya Ya (M. Rebennack)

Slow Train (T. Bruno) >

Les Brers in A Minor (Allman/Betts) >

Equinox (Coltrane) >

'Spooky' Jam >

Les Brers Reprise

Dock of the Bay** (O. Redding) >

Werewolves of London** (W. Zevon) >

Viola Lee Blues** (N. Cannon, Dead arr.)

*Original

**with Kyle Lawson as Zoot

Charlie Hustle Live! 11/8/13 Club Café, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Come check us out Nov. 8 at a 21+ show at Club Cafe, 56 S. 12th St. in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood. Good food, great beer and better tunes! Tickets are $7 at the door or online at Club Cafe's website. Grab yer dancin' shoes and come get your Hustle on!

VIDEO: 'Meet Me in the Morning'

Here's some more stills from our 12/7 show, with our cover of Dylan's "Meet Me in the Morning," from the Blood on the Tracks album, performed at our 1/12/13 late set at St. James Place in Pittsburgh's South Side neighborhood.

Tonight's Setlist: Charlie Hustle & the Grifters, 1/12/13, St. James Place, Pittsburgh, Pa.

"Meet me in the morning, 56th and Wabasha..."

We had to play the game down a man tonight, but we made due. Our third guitarist and vocalist couldn't make it, but we still managed the shake the walls a little at The James. Thanks to everyone who came out to help us celebrate our boy Shady's birthday in fine style — particularly to Tim Bruno from Erie's North Town Station, who opened with a typically excellent acoustic set. Be sure to like North Town Station (and Charlie Hustle & the Grifters!) on Facebook and catch a set if you're in northwest PA.

Click here to download/stream the set, courtesy of Archive.org.

Opening set (Tim Bruno):

Setlist forthcoming

Early set:

New Mexican Shuffle*

Stealin' (A. Guthrie)

Cold Rain & Snow (Trad., Dead arr.)

You Ain't Goin' Nowhere (Dylan)

Cumberland Blues (Dead)

Third Street Woman (J. Reynolds)

Nobody Knows (L. Armstrong)

Althea (Dead)

Deep Elem Blues (Dead)

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

Late set:

Meet Me in the Morning (Dylan)

Gentleman of Leisure (J. Winchester)

Franklin's Tower (Dead) >

Rosin the Bow (Trad., Varine arr.) > Franklin's Tower

Big River (J. Cash)

Magnolia (J.J. Cale) >

Jam >

Garden of Eden (New Riders of the Purple Sage)

Lil' Red Rooster (C. Burnett)

Junco Partner (Professor Longhair) >

Not Fade Away (B. Holly) > Junco Partner

Fire on the Mountain# (Dead)

*Original

#Tim Bruno on lead vocals, Pat on electric guitar

VIDEO: 'Jam > Stone Soup > Jam'

Just a quick few stills from the 12/7 show overtop the jam in and out of "Stone Soup," an original made up on the spot by guitarist/vocalist Kyle Lawson.

Tonight's Setlist: Charlie Hustle & the Grifters, 12/7/12, Club Café, Pittsburgh, Pa.

"Always bet on Charlie Hustle..."

The first Charlie Hustle show was a gas. This one was a BLAST. We were having so much fun that Kyle straight made up a song in the middle of the late-set jam!

Click here to stream/download the set, courtesy of Archive.org — I also recorded the Grifters' opening set, it will be up soon as well!

One set (Grifters opened):

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Nobody Knows (the Way I Feel This Morning) (L. Armstrong)

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

New Mexican Shuffle*

Don't Look No Further (B.B. King)

Dock of the Bay (O. Redding)

Gentleman of Leisure (J. Winchester)

Shoot Me Down#

Third Street Woman (J. Reynolds)

Warrior with a Bottle#

Mystery Train (J. Parker)

Magnolia (J.J. Cale) >

All Along the Watchtower (Dylan) >

Jam > Stone Soup# > Jam >

Soul Serenade Jam >

Good Morning Lil' Schoolgirl (J. Williamson)

*P. Varine

#K. Lawson

Charlie Hustle & the Grifters are:

Kyle Lawson, electric guitar, vocals

Peter Flynn, electric guitar, vocals

Trish Imbrogno, bass

Dave Varasse, drums

Patrick Varine, acoustic/slide guitar, vocals

Tonight's Setlist: 8/2/12, Club Café, Pittsburgh, Pa. with The Grifters

Great time.

Co-headlined a great evening at Club Café with The Grifters. Thanks to everyone who came out. The recording link will be up shortly, including a couple Grifters tunes I caught before running out of memory!

Tonight was only the second time I've covered a Hendrix song — obviously, you have to choose those carefully. "Belly-Button Window" is a good one, mostly because it's not all that Hendrix-y. It's just a straight blues shuffle. A fitting precursor to my son, who will be "coming down into this world, daddy" in October.

Click here to download/stream the set, courtesy of Archive.org.

Setlist:

You Can Keep It*

Dauphine*

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

Rain Song No. 3*

Quite a Night*

Bird Song (Dead) >

5:55 AM* >

Southwest Sky* >

Brown-Eyed Women (Dead)

Strange Moon*

Magnolia (J.J. Cale) >

Statesboro Blues (Blind Willie McTell) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Blackbird (McCartney) > The Other One >

Belly-Button Window (Hendrix) >

Jack Straw (Dead)

--

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry^ (Dylan)

Pig in a Pen^ (R. Skaggs)

Floating Bridge^ (J. Estes)

Deep Elem Blues^ (Dead) >

Malted Milk^

Angel Band^ (Stanley Bros.)

*Original

^with The Grifters

COMING UP! — 8/2/12, Club Café, Pittsburgh with THE GRIFTERS

It's gonna be a goooood time.

The Grifters are one of the first members of the local Pittsburgh music scene I connected with after moving back home. We jammed at my buddy's birthday party and have played together a few times since then. Their home base is American roots music and the blues, which meshes perfectly with my mix of the same stuff along with Dead, originals and random singer-songwriters.

Club Cafe is a great venue, a nice intimate place for a show, and you can't beat the price for two acts and several hours of acoustic music.

The plan is to play one set each, and a short third set together to round out the evening. Click here to purchase tickets through Club Cafe's website.

See you there!

Click here for a little taste of what the evening may have in store, from the Riverside Music Festival in April up in Cambridge Springs, Pa.