April 17, 1999

Look up Texas Troubadour according to Webster…n. Shake Russell. Few have made contributions to Texas music comparable to Shake. Winsome melodies, heartfelt lyrics, and a truly Texas spirit are the signature of Shake’s unmatched style. Most of us cut our musical teeth in the early 70’s with Shake Russell showing us what Texas music could be. Like a fine wine, Shake has aged, mellowed, and improved over the past three decades culminating in his latest, and arguably greatest, releases. “Let Love Be True” was recorded last year in Nashville with Clint Black Band, followed by the recent release of his latest collaboration with Dana Cooper titled “Love’s Bright Campaign”. Both CD’s are vintage Shake…the saga continues. Now is the time to hear Shake perform at his finest under the Texas stars at the Houston area’s most intimate venue.

Anni Clark
Anni’s name has appeared at or near the top of newspaper’s polls in Maine and New Hampshire as one of the area’s favorite female performers year after year. Since 1981, she has shared stages with the likes of Shawn Colvin, Richie Havens, Patty Larkin, Leo Kottke, Cheryl Wheeler, John Gorka, Leon Russell, and many, many more. She has twice been selected to perform at the Kerrville Folk Festival as one of the select group of NewFolk Emerging Songwriters. She has toured extensively in Texas and Louisiana performing at both the Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans and the Wine and Music Festival in Kerrville. With the release of her new CD, “A Light for Liza”, Anni has issued the most cohesive and vital collection of her career and has further solidified her place among New England’s premier original folk artists. We are proud to present Anni Clark on the TNHC stage during her 1999 Texas tour. A new name for most Texas music lovers, Anni will touch a chord and emerge as one of your favorite finds of the year!

Two fantastic artists…one old friend & one new. Don’t miss a note! 

Concert Review

April 17, 1999, will go down in our books as one of our most memorable evenings. Shake and Anni produced magic under the cool Texas stars. Our guests included 120 wonderful friends sharing the experience. This was our best turnout to date and was proof that TNHC is growing as the word spreads among music lovers and supporters throughout the Houston area. Thank you for your generous support and encouragement.

We would like to express our sincere thanks to Anni Clark for squeezing us in to her whirlwind 1999 Texas tour. After two weeks on non-stop performances in Spring, Houston, New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Dallas, Austin, Waco, and Belton, Anni and Merry Ellen arrived at our home Saturday afternoon obviously dazed by the grueling schedule. Their fatigue was only foreshadowed by their enthusiasm to keep the momentum going. Other than my own faux pas of messin’ with Anni’s CD’s (I’ll never do that again!), the afternoon was a delightful experience getting to know them a little better and trying to make them feel welcome in our home. By showtime, Anni was ready to demonstrate that the joy of sharing her music drives her beyond the physical and into the spiritual. As the sun set, Anni began hanging the stars for us one by one.

The evening could have ended right there, after Anni’s first set, but there was so much more to come. We’ve experienced an honor few can claim by having the privilege of introducing Shake Russell from our deck. After years of following Shake’s contributions to Texas music, it was such a pleasure to be able to welcome him in our home, and in some small way try to return some of the joy he has given us. The connection made between Shake and our guests was unmistakable. Song after song, you could feel the memories welling up as we all thought of where we were the first time we heard that one and how the next tune had etched our collective Texan soul. Shake, thank you so much for gracing the TNHC stage.

As if that wasn’t enough, the evening’s climax brought Shake and Anni together for a final priceless moment. It’s rare to see two performers so wonderfully matched drawing energy from a supportive audience to produce the magic we had here last night. These two belong with each other and we can only hope that this was just the first of many collaborative works we’ll be blessed with from them. Our sincere appreciation goes out to Merry Ellen Featherstone for bringing Shake and Anni together and to us. Merry Ellen is one of the most delightful people we’ve had the pleasure to meet through our passion for music. With Merry Ellen sitting in the second row, we know we had at least one angel in our presence last night.

We are so grateful for all the many acts of kindness we experienced from our guests last night also. Gary and Margo were able to capture some wonderful video to add to the documentary. We wish them great success with the final product and hope it can be used to spread the word about the joy of experiencing music the way it has always been meant to be shared. Thanks also to Gary, Paul, and Bob for all the help providing the sound system that allowed us to enjoy the music so much more. Big Leg Bob also treated us to more of his bodacious BBQ bird parts. Jean, you knocked yourself out again helping with the cleanup. You’re welcome in our home anytime! We could go on and on, but the fact is that we had 120 friends here making it another special Texas Night. We hope you’ll all come back with more friends to share music in our backyard many times to come.

Those of you new to our mailing list may be realizing at this point that our shows are a moving experience for us. We don’t know how much longer we’ll be able to continue these day after reviews (cob webs being so hard to see through), or if we’ll ever be able to stop. So many of you have expressed kind words of appreciation to us for what we’re doing. But, let us assure you that the pleasure is all ours. To be able to bring such exceptional artists and a few special friends together at our home to share in the music we love is something we never dreamed possible. With all your help it has been possible. Please don’t wake us up…we like this dream!

Now, we’ll take one more break in May before launching into the marathon to the end of 1999. It’s hardly a break for us…Melanie graduates from college, we celebrate our 25^th anniversary, we make our first sojourn to Kerrville, and Melanie and Alan get married. So much to do and so little time. 

Don’t miss our Wylie Lama ’99, Sunday afternoon, June 13^th. The announcement and reservation form will be following this e-mail. We’ll also be sending the announcement for the Chris Buhalis show in our backyard scheduled for June 26^th. Two fantastic shows in one month to start the summer off right. We’ll see you on down the road.

For the love of the song,
Barney & Beverly

Visit Shake Russel’s website
https://www.shakerussell.com