Woodstock Blog

Tag: Music

  • Mark Your Calendar (And Get One, TOO)

    What happened to summer?! I just looked at my calendar and it is already fall with Halloween just around the corner. In fact, we are planning to have two bands for a FREE concert on October 26th. The bands are Killing Aunt Grace (a cigar box band with handmade instruments made out of cigar boxes), and April Mae and the June Bugs. Not only will this be a free concert, but it will also be a costume event. It will be Halloween time. We want to make this fun for everyone. However, if you dress up like a hippie, we will not consider it a costume. As far as we are concerned, that is everyday attire. LOL!

    Discussing Halloween makes me realize that the holidays a just as close, especially for anyone wanting to have items shipped in time for gift giving. When someone asks me to suggest a special gift, I always think about giving something that will last all year long. The first thing that comes to mind is a wall calendar. Of course, it is a Grateful Dead calendar. This year’s 2014 Grateful Dead calendar features the artwork of Mike Dubois.
    2014NM14904GD2014Cal
    He has produced Grateful Dead artwork since the beginning of the band’s history. Most everyone has seen some of his work at various times of their lives. I have saved and cherished my personal Dead calendars from over the years. My only caveat for those who purchase a calendar from Woodstock is this; the calendar is not to have any bad notes. If you have a dentist appointment, buy another calendar. I jest, I jest. Or do I? Don’t forget that we have other 2014 wall calendars, too.

    Always remember to save the Dead calendar from each year and always say, “Thank you for a real good time!”

    Fondly,
    MOM

  • The Afterthoughts of the 2013 Garlic Festival

    Every year, I look forward to our Garlic Festival and this year was no exception. I would like to give a big THANK YOU to The Jugband for supplying the most wonderful live music and making a happy bed for the next year’s harvest. That is an important thing, singing and playing music for the planting bed and the garlic. Without that, we would get a lackluster crop. I would also like to thank all the local artists and craftsmen who came out to display their original works. It was so nice to meet all of you and to see your wonderful work. Finally, I would like to thank all of the great people who came out to Woodstock Trading Company. We had so many and are so thankful that you came out and had a wonderful.

    Preparing the garlic bed for the 2014 crop. That black stuff is manure. We let Jim do that.
    Preparing the garlic bed for the 2014 crop. That black stuff is manure. We let Jim do that.

    The Garlic Festival has been going on for so long now; the exact date has slipped my mind. It is a true Woodstock tradition, up there with the Maypole. As we have done for so many years, we distribute the garlic from last year’s crop, grown in front of the Woodstock building.

    Mom giving away the first bag of 2013 garlic.
    Mom giving away the first bag of 2013 garlic.

    The next planting will be the week of Columbus Day weekend. The most exciting thing for me is seeing the garlic grow during the cold weeks and months of winter. Many of the recipients of the Woodstock bulbs contact me via Facebook and send me pictures of their fledgling garlic as soon as they break through the Earth. This is one of my greatest joys! To see new life in the cold of winter and sharing the wealth with all those who used our 2013 garlic bulbs, it is just marvelous.
    The growing garlic
    The growing garlic

    Fondly,
    MOM

  • Who Is The Million Dollar Quartet?

    Hey Now! Jim from Woodstock Trading Company, here, and I want to tell you all about an awesome new item that Woodstock has in stock. The item that I speak of is “The Million Dollar Quartet” poster. Does the name ring any bells? If you are a fan of Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, or Carl Perkins, the name might mean something to you. If not, let me fill you in on the back-story.

    The Million Dollar Quartet Poster. From Left To Right- Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash.
    Click on the image to go to our website.

    Back in December of 1956, a 21-year-old Elvis decided to pay a visit to his old recording studio, Sun Records in Memphis, TN. Carl Perkins was already in the studio cutting some new material with is brothers, Jay and Clayton and drummer W.S. Holland. Studio owner, Sam Phillips, had brought in a then, unknown, Jerry Lee Lewis to play piano for the session. While the five musicians played away in the studio, Elvis and Phillips were having a chat in the engineering booth. The King of Rock n’ Roll approached Perkins and the gang after hearing the playback of the recording session and the jam began to start. A short time later, Johnny Cash walked into the studio and joined the jam session. This became the first documented “Super Group”. The rest is history.

    The “Million Dollar Quartet” poster is great for any music fan, young or old. It truly captures a great moment in music history. Without these four men, music might not be what it is today. If you are looking for an eye-catching image to add to your wall, look no further. This poster is just amazing. Stop by our website or click on the image above to check it out.

    Take care everyone and we hope to see you soon… Jim of Woodstock

  • MAY POLE CELEBRATION

    MAY POLE CELEBRATION

    People have asked me…why a May Pole celebration?

    In 1958, I was the beloved queen of The Estrella Triangle Daughters of the Eastern Star (a female branch of Masons)..I had regalia..I even wore a gown one year. I have always been the queen! When I was in kindergarten, we had a spring celebration and I was supposed to be queen of the May…the maypole. But, I got the chicken pox and couldn’t go! So now I get to be queen of the May each and every year.

    May Day was initially a pagan right of fertility and spring…now, it’s just
    a fun thing. There’s music and laughter and joy. Most people have never seen
    a maypole, but it used to be done all the time when I was young.

    When we decided to host the first May Day Celebration on the lawn here at
    Woodstock Trading Company many years ago, we had to put things together
    to create a maypole. We went to the hardware store and bought some PVC,
    later we used a galvanized pole realizing this would become a permanent
    annual event. We needed an additional couple of feet to make it
    proper…tall enough for length of ribbon, that we screw on to the top to
    attach the ribbons to it.

    Everyone gets a ribbon…we dance to music and you interweave with one
    another to form designs on the pole with the ribbons. It is particularly fun
    for the kids …and it’s free. Just come on out and enjoy spring…period!
    No worries that it takes me 2 weeks to untangle all the ribbons when you’re
    gone. LOL!

    Come on out and celebrate spring!

    SUNDAY MAY 1ST FROM 12-4PM. LIVE MUSIC: THE JUGBAND www.thejugband.com