Cliffs Riffs - Stuph n Nonsense

This was originally published in the Lowell Ledger 3.8.23 In addition to his wife and three children, Alto resident and musician extraordinaire Kyle Rasche loves a bunch of things. Among them are writing and performing music, musical theatre, Michigan, the Great Lakes, and lighthouses. If you appreciate one or more items on that list, then you should probably secure a ticket for an event Sunday March 12 th at 4 pm at the Sound Check in Lowell. Sound Check is a great little music venue located at the Lowell United Methodist Church at 621 East Main Street. The event provides a unique opportunity for lovers of music, musical theatre and the Great Lakes to participate in a workshop for “The Keeper”, a brand new musical written by Kyle Rasche in collaboration with Annie Bacon, a singer songwriter based in Ann Arbor. When artists “workshop” a production like “The Keeper”, they perform it without a full cast, set changes or costumes in front of an audience. Think of it as a Focus Group...

This op-ed piece was originally published in the March 2023 edition of InStore magazine.  InStore is a trade magazine directed at the jewelry industry for over 20 years. Click here to read it on their website: Click Here I WOULD LIKE TO poke a bear: The alleged “investment value” of jewelry and/or diamonds. Over 27 years in this business, I have always told customers that with the exception of Rolex watches, vintage designer pieces or something with provenance linked to someone famous, the jewelry regular people purchase is just like anything else that is used: The value decreases. I am convinced that we as an industry have done a disservice to people if we even imply that some piece of jewelry we sell will hold or increase in value. To all of the jewelers out there planting the idea that mined diamonds “hold their value” compared to lab-grown: Suppose someone buys a $7,000 engagement ring from you today with a mined diamond. After the divorce 11 months later, how much are you goin...

Originally Published in The Lowell Ledger It has been said in the best of circles that you meet the coolest people at Lowell Arts. This truth was driven home in a delightful fashion to a near capacity crowd at the latest Gallery Concert: Love and Other Songs last Saturday night. The evening was a songwriter showcase put together by local musician Josh Rose (speaking of cool people yours truly met at Lowell Arts). Josh Rose When he isn’t teaching Chemistry and AP Chemistry to his students at Lowell High School, Josh is perfecting his songwriting and performing skills. Well, according to him, he is always composing songs in his head. “Writing songs is what I do. Constantly. When I am teaching classes, there are songs running though my head. No matter what I am doing, there are songs being worked on in my head,” Rose told the audience. Annie Bacon Josh gathered three of his songwriting friends and treated the audience to a rotating selection of their work in the style of a songwriters in ...

 Betsy Davidson Embodies the True Spirit of Lowell Originally published in the Lowell Ledger After collecting comments, stories, impressions, and anecdotes about a true gem in Lowell, it might be easy to assume that Betsy Davidson is more than human and is just visiting us from somewhere in the DC or Marvel universe of super heroes. However, we have checked all the records and have come to the conclusion that Betsy is indeed a member of the family of humans. She just happens to be a shining example of many of the best parts of what makes us human beings. Betsy loved to "borrow" Tru and take him for boat rides. Consider some of what helps the Community of Lowell really shine and you will find a list of non-profit organizations that are powered by volunteers who give of their time, talents, finances and other resources. Some of those organizations that come to find might include the Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, Lowell Rotary Club, our Historical Museum, Relay for Life, the ...

This was written as part of the Lowell Arts Featured Artist of the Month You can learn more here:  Lowell Arts Featured Artist Like a badly needed day of full-on sunshine, our featured artist this month is just what we need to battle back against the excessively gray winter we are having. Feeling those mid-winter blahs? Missing a Spring in your step? Want to get some pain-free, no-subscription-needed, and guaranteed side effect free healing from all of this cold, wet nonsense? The cure for what ails you is a heaping high-as-you-can-handle decibel helping of “What I Got” by Serita’s Black Rose . The beat is bouncing, the funky bass line should make you get out of your chair. If the hot harmonica licks, funky guitar, and syncopated organ chords don’t do the trick, then Serita Crowley’s commanding vocals will be sure to effect a cure and have you dancing in the snow. Photo by Tim Warren Serita Crowley has been singing her heart out since she had her start at about four years old in ch...

The Music Of Detroit - Part Three This was originally published in the Lowell Ledger Holy smokes, the more time one spends digging into all the music, musicians, and musical talent emanating from Detroit the better it gets. Up until a couple of days ago, my confidence in my knowledge of such things was fairly high, but the more I look, the more I see and the more I uncover, the realization of what I don’t know becomes stronger. We kicked off this series with a fly over of Motown, the first Michigan musical magic that comes to most of our minds when it comes to Detroit. There were so many musicians, singers, and writers who contributed to the Motown catalog it was impossible to mention all of them in one article. When one examines other genres or music, the sheer volume of artists from Detroit is almost overwhelming. It is easy to celebrate top of mind musicians like Bob Seger. He tickled our ears and hearts for many decades with massive album sales, sold out concerts, and tunes that ...

  The opening guitar chords of “Seven Nation Army” is easily one of the most well-known guitar riffs to ever kick off a song. Chanted and sung at sports stadia all over the world, those licks are the product of one of the most impactful musicians to ever be born in Detroit: John Anthony Gillis (aka Jack White) was born there in July of 1975 and it is safe to say that Detroit has a special place in Jack White’s heart. Full disclosure; this writer is a giant fan of Mister White for a plethora of reasons. Some of his songs are a constant on my personal play lists, but there are many of his musical efforts that have zero appeal to me. My fandom is not based on loving every lyric and chord, but my admiration is directed at a fellow Michigander who charts his own course artistically and who, in spite of traveling the world and now living in Nashville, remembers his roots in Detroit and has done a lot to keep the Motor City moving along in spite of all the challenges it has faced over t...