Country Reeds Take Me Home on WORT - A history of Clarinet Country 3/12/25

Howdy Friends, I'll be hosting Back to the Country on WORT FM tomorrow morning from 9am-noon (CST) and this week's show is called "Country Reeds Take Me Home." We all know the importance of the clarinet in jazz, symphony, klezmer, and rock music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Tr-Uqqn9tk), but I feel like the ol' licorice stick gets short shrift in country music circles.

Sure, there's some great western swing clarinet. And some stellar whiz-bang novelties and even dixieland-inspired country tunes, too. But the well goes deep and tomorrow morning we're jumping in! Tune in for three hours of my very favorite Country Clarinet tunes spanning every decade from the last 100 years. Available in southern WI at 89.9FM or streaming at wortfm.org and the WORT app.

Nate Gibson w/ Jerry Miller and Matt Murphy at the Stoughton Opera House TONIGHT 3/6/25!

Howdy Friends, the plan for tonight's gig at the Stoughton Opera House has changed at the last minute, but it is still going to be a very special occasion. I'll be opening the Ghost Light Lounge before the big Eilen Jewell show from 5:50-7:00pm and I'll be joined by some very special guests: Jerry Miller and Matt Murphy--both Boston music LEGENDS!

Jerry played in the Spurs, the Coachmen, the Sacred Shakers, Jack Smith and the Rockabilly Planet, the Fathoms, and of course, Eilen Jewell, and every single show was a CAN'T MISS show! He's also an honorary member of Los Straitjackets and his guitar playing just blows me away every. single. time. We got to play music together a few times (including a show with Rex Trailer) in Boston and when I moved away to Bloomington, IN, I was elated to find out that Jerry was moving to Bloomington as well! We played shows together for many more years and even made a few records together and I consider myself insanely lucky for every one of those opportunities.

My pal Matt was a founding member of the iconic New England rockabilly group the Raging Teens--one of my very favorite bands. When my good friend and Gashouse Gang bass player Jon Johnson passed away unexpectedly, Matt was the first upright player to fill-in and we had some great times playing the Cow Island Music CD release party with Rex Trailer. Many years later I even got to be labelmates with the Raging Teens when Swelltune Records released our 7-inch singles back to back (many thanks again, Beck Rustic, for the honor!).

Tonight, I get to reunite and play some tunes with both Matt and Jerry before their big show with Eilen and it'll be fun to see how many of those tunes from 10-20 years ago I still recall without any rehearsal! At the very least, I'm sure we'll play at least a couple Rex Trailer tunes! And be sure to stick around for their show with Eilen, as that too, is a CAN'T MISS show! Hope to see y'all there!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihyDAobHZFU&t=1s 

(video of Jerry Miller (guitar), Tim Moore (drums), Nate Gibson (guitar), and Mike Lee (upright bass)

Steve Toebes (piano), Nate Gibson (with Sean Mencher's guitar), Rex Trailer, Tom Long (drums), and Matt Murphy on upright bass

Nate Gibson & the Stardazers and Eilen Jewell at the Stoughton Opera House 3/3/25

Man, Rachel and I saw one of the most AMAZING concerts last night at the High Noon Saloon! Jesse Welles tore the sold-out house all the way down w/ his mighty pickin', harmonica blowin' and killer tunes.

Jesse Welles at High Noon Saloon 3/3/25. Photo by Nate Gibson.

And what's even more exciting is that another incredible songwriter is coming to town later this week--the great Eilen Jewell and her most rockin' band will be playing this Thursday at the Stoughton Opera House. My dear friend and long-time musical collaborator Jerry Miller will be slinging his six-string with 'em at this Can't-Miss show.

Jerry Miller and I at the Stoughton Opera House. 2019.

And what's even more exciting than that? Nate Gibson and the Stardazers will be opening up the Ghost Light Lounge before Eilen and the Gang's show from 5:50-7:10. Full band on hand! Sadly, it'll be one of our last two shows with "Spider" Mike before he heads to East Lansing for a new job at MSU.

I hear Jerry may even sit in with us for a few tunes. My friend Yvette will be there with her delicious Take Two Bakery treats. And it will surely be an amazing night for everyone present. And what's more exciting than that? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Hope to see you all Thursday night at the Stoughton Opera House!! We're on at 5:50...

Eilen Jewell Midwest 2025 Tour