Roots Review 45

Back in April of '06 my brother from another mother, Mike Caruso, asked me if he could bring his 19 year old daughter to perform at American Roots Live saying, she's really good and would like to sing in front of an audience - my answer was a no-brainer - yes, of course, I said.

This is what American Roots Live is all about - involving young people with roots music.

Well, 19 year old Kelly Caruso came to our show with her dad and knocked us all out with her powerful, surprisingly disciplined voice, singing some old-school R&B. Everybody loved her and she came back again - and then again and very quickly became a crowd favorite. In the process, Kelly Caruso became an American Roots Live All Star!

The rest is history.

We salute Kelly Caruso - now known as American Idol's Kelly Caruso - for passing three American Idol auditions and hearing those coveted five words from Paula, Randy and Simon, "you're going to Hollywood, baby!".

Back from Hollywood, American Roots Live 45 welcomed Kelly Caruso back to The Rail and once again she knocked us out! Come and hear for yourself!

We now produce two American Roots Live shows at The Rail in Bound Brook, NJ - one on Thursdays at 9pm and one on Sundays starting a little earlier at 7pm. If you haven't been to one of our ARL shows... what are you waiting for?

Pick a night - or both - bring some friends and enjoy a fantastic night of live entertainment, great food and exciting prize give-aways. There's no other show like it anywhere. And if you play an instrument or sing, you are welcomed to join us on stage.

Just come on down to the station, (The Rail is located inside the historic Bound Brook train station where the trains still rumble in just 15 feet from our stage) see me to get on the play list; and maybe you will be on your way to becoming an American Roots Live All Star, too.

Props to all who performed at ARL 45: John Powers, Keith McGonigle, Josh Gebhardt, JR Bradfield, Ed Pampani, Kelly Caruso, Mike Caruso, Ryan Caruso, Tyler Penn, Bobby Malavenda, Walter Foot, Bones Sanford, Chris Porto from Exit Zero, Big Daddy and some of his Wild Cats; Jaimo Flynn, Brian Becklin; Len DePiano, ARL PA Ambassador Billy K, Grady Fletcher, Roy MacNamara, Robert Zee, Mimi Nowak, Bob DelRosso and more.

Special thanks to Rail ownership, management and staff, our sponsors, volunteers and supporters, Elmore Magazine and publisher Suzanne Cadgenne and especially you!

See you soon.

Keeping it real,

Ned

Roots Review 43 & 44

Thursday nights at American Roots Live at The Rail have been a blast. Lots of great music, awesome performances, lots of smiling faces, winning raffle ticket recpients and tons of fabulous food.

Ol' Nasty Ned is hurricane busy as usual - and now with production for American Roots TV in full swing (yes, we'll be on the air soon)- we're still playing catch up here.

Between ARL 43 and 44 we held a fun and very successful American Roots Live All Stars Benefit Concert for Harry Okie that raised $1,500 for him and his kids who lost everything when their home burned down just before this past Christmas - and the fund raising continues as Bobby Malavenda of Manville Music donated a guitar to be raffled off in hopes of raising even more money for Harry and kids.

The guitar is being signed by ARL All Stars and the raffle tickets can be had at every American Roots Live show - twice a week now - Thursdays at 9 and Sundays at 7 at The Rail as ARL is so much fun we now need two nights to enjoy it all.

Please stop in and join the all this fun and get in on the raffle. The ARL All Star autographed guitar will be awarded to one lucky winner at ARL 52, Sunday April 1st - that's our one year anniversary show. You must be in attendance to win.

Thanks go to all the wonderful Bands who participated in the benefit concert: The Country Westernaires, Tommy Fuller, The Wiliamzboy, Joe Cassady & West End Sound, Kate Weber & Bassboards Blues Band, The Congregation, John Powers Band, Big Daddy & the Wild Cats, Bad Monkey w/ Mimi Nowak, Tweed Schade & the Sugar Daddies, Nasty Ned & the Noo Dogs, Johnny Charles & Straight 8 Blues, Jimbeau & the Retrocasters and
Wiser Time.

Thanks go out to all musicians who have taken part in the regular open mic celebrations of American Roots Music, that's ARL 43 and 44: John Powers, Keith McGonnagle, Josh Gebhardt, Jr Bradfield, Len Depiano, Robert Zee, Ed PAmpani, Mimi Nowak, Bob Del Rosso, Mike Flynn, Dave Ambrosy, Lee Fink, NYC Firefighter; Brian Zaleski, Rotten Robert, Bob Giglio, The Doctor, Walter Foot, Bones Sanford, Mike Carrol, Roy MacNamara, Bobby Malavenda and more.

Kudos to The Rail's ownership; Mike and Lynn Ruane, management and staff; Byron, Sarah, Evan, phtographers Win and Ed Pampani, webmaster Eddie Ray, Elmore Magazine and pulisher Suzanne Cadgene, and all the ambassadors, sponsors, volunteers and supporters.

See you all soon down at the station on Thursdays and Sundays.

Keeping it real,

Ned