RESCUED BY RIEFLIN and ROKY RULES !

Just back from South By South West (Austin Tx)
Highlights :
Night number one , my piano player , Micah Hulscher calls ,"I'm on my way to see Roky Erickson and Kris Kristofferson at the Austin Music Hall , are you coming ?"
"HELL YES"
Roky sang 'You're Gonna Miss Me' with the same spirit and conviction that he did over 30 years ago , I was amazed ! Chills rushed through my body as I recalled all the times the Screaming Trees must have listened to the original recordings of his songs , I wish my old friends (Lanegan,Conner and Conner)could have been with me to stand in Roky's presence! I'm so happy for his triumphant return to rock !

Day Two:
My drummer missed his flight to Austin , horror fills my mind as I imagine having to take the stage with a full band and no drummer !
I spent most of my day with a cell phone glued to my ear fielding phone calls from friends like Ian Moore who rallied around trying to find a replacement , just when I had given up on the search for a drummer the call came in from Jim Sangster! "Bill Rieflin from R.E.M./Minus 5 said he'd do it!" Finally I breathe again !
Rieflin went on to play one of the most spirited and flawless performances I've ever heard from a drummer , especially considering that he'd never heard my songs before ! Thanks , Bill , I hope it won't be the last time we share the stage together.

Day Three:
One more show to play , still no drummer (Rieflin had to hit the road with The Minus 5)
My friend,Sara Bennett (who's already done way too many favors for me) calls , "Do you still need a drummer?"
"Not as much as I need a drink,are you holding?"
"I can't help with that drink but I do have Ken Coomer (ex-Wilco) standing here and he's demanding that he play drums with you today!"
Holly shit ! Another lucky hand , two in one weekend !
Ken played with the same finesse and command as Rieflin did the night before!
Thank you , Ken . It was great to share the stage with you again , I think the last time we stood on the same stage together was around 1988 when I was only 16 and you were 32!

Day Four:
Ian Moore performs at YardDog .... Amazing ! I finally caught Ian with a full band and they were even better than he'd described them to me! Great show ,Ian !
Weary Boys perform at Continental Club , I LOVE THE WEARY BOYS ! If you haven't checked them out yet do it now , don't even finish reading my self-indulgent diary , go directly to your nearest Google search and enter their name and find their site and listen to their greatness! In a matter of minutes you will also be a Weary Boys fan !
Other highlights of day four included a great set by Andre Williams and Wanda Jackson.

Back to Seattle and back to reality !

Morning Rotation:
Karl Blau 'Beneath Waves' (K) CD
Sparks 'A Woofer In Tweeter's Clothing' (Great Cd , belongs next to your collection of Queen , T-Rex, Bowie )
Sparks 'Kimono My House' (Island CD , Re-Issue)(See above)
Kraftwerk 'Man-Machine' LP
Randy Newman 'Good Old Boys' Lp

Love,
MP

DRUMMER EXTRAORDINAIRE

Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands are proud to announce the addition of drummer John Hollis to their line-up.
After years of searching Seattle's pool of musicians through classified adds , recommendations and talent contests we finally discovered this talent at what should have been the first place we looked , a bar ! After all you can't be part of any band if you can't drink with them and thank god this guy can play drums as well as he drinks !!
Mister Hollis will be joining us in Austin as well as upcoming shows here in Seattle.
Just added are shows at the Tractor with Jon Langford and Sally Timms as well as a show at a favorite drinking hole,The Comet(Where Anie and I met,speaking of meeting "the right one" at bars) This show is sure to be full of laughs and thrills as it will also be featuring Steve Turner and His Bad Ideas and a new favorite 'The Withholders'
If my site does not have current listings , please visit our MYSPACE page.
Still waiting to hear back from our contacts in France to see if we'll be playing French dates after our dates in England.

Morning Rotation:
Belle and Sebastian "The Life Pursuit by" My favorite so far.

Sam Cooke "Night Beat" It doesn't get any better than Sam , even Rod Stewart(who I just ran into recently) said that there would not be a Rod Stewart without a Sam Cooke.

Cat Power "The Greatest" (and it really is) Too bad about the tour cancellation , I hope my pop princess is ok.

Al Green "Greatest Hits"

Nao Wave (Brazilian post punk collection) Really great !!!!

Kaleidoscope "Tangerine Dream" recommended by Michael at Wall Of Sound as the ultimate Psychedelic album and it just might be!

MP

Here's one without the personality !

Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands have been asked to perform at the prestigious 'All Tomorrow's Parties' festival in England on May 12 , we will be joining the stage with Mudhoney , Dave Dondero , Comets On Fire , The Scientist and The Fleasheaters . More UK dates are being discussed but it's too early to mention anything solid at this point.
We'll also be performing at SXSW(Austin TX) on March 16 at the Club Deville with The Waco Brothers , Cordero , Bobby Bare Jr. and other Bloodshot royalty.
Back here at home Mark will be playing a few solo shows (See performance calendar or MY SPACE page) and also playing drums with 'The Hope' and 'The Tripwires' at several locations around the city.
Pickerel will also be rehearsing with Truly in preparation for a new studio CD.
Talks are underway for Mark to play drums on the new Carrie Akre CD with Steve Fisk producing.
In other 'Praying Hands' news ... Both the Sangster brothers are involved in various projects around the city including playing shows and recording a new record with Steve Turner and His Bad Ideas. Jim just finished recording guitar parts for a new Roy Loney CD to be released soon with a tour of Spain to follow.
The new CD by MP&HPH is called 'Snake In The Radio' and will be available in late April or early May.

UPDATE FROM INMATE # 812

Sick as a dog !
At least it's slowed me down , I can finally write a new "blog".

Let's see , it's been awhile since I attempted this , how about I start with :
WHAT I GOT FOR CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR :
#1 : A really cute Smokey The Bear salt&pepper shaker(circa1960's) From my mom .
#2 : My girlfriend got me a membership to Triple A , she knows that I'll be touring this Spring and that I have zero mechanical skills , very cool !
#3 :She also bought me about 20 DVDs , almost all music related , early blues footage , the Klaus Nomi Doc. , best of Town Hall shows from the 1950's featuring Johnny Cash , The Collins Kids , Wanda Jackson , Mel Travis , needless to say , It Rocks !
#4 A gift certificate to my favorite drinking hole (The Hunt Club)
#5 A Tom Pickerel original painting !
the list could go on and on ....

I found out over Christmas (while visiting family in Spokane) that my mom and her sisters (who performed as singers together in the early 1960's) not only shared the stage with the 3 Stooges from time to time(I have the photos to prove it) but they were also backed up by THEE BILLY TIPTON TRIO when they played in Spokane !!!
It turns out that he(she) also served as one of my aunts booking agents! This is fascinating to me as I've been becoming more and more interested in Billy's life and career. My sister, Julie loaned me the Billy Tipton Biography entitled 'Suits Me' , I'm half way through it and loving it . If you're not familiar with who Billy Tipton is , I suggest that you go online and do a "google" search , you won't be wasting your time !

The Dusty45's show on New Years at the Fenix was a great time , our best show in months.
The Hope show at the HighDive was also great , it was cool to see my hometown boys (Half Acre Day) they rule !

Upcoming .... playing with the Hope at the Tractor this Friday(Jan7) we'll be sharing the stage with The Withholders!
Later this month I'll be sharing drum credits with Bill Reiflin on the new cd by The Tripwires , I feel so honored to share credits with a drummer of his caliber !

In March I'll be heading to Austin to play at SXSW as a solo act , I'll be playing two of the Bloodshot bills (joining me will be the Sangster Bros. and Micah Hulscher), more info soon , I'm also waiting to hear about playing the 'All Tomorrow's Parties' festival in England.

More Soon , I Promise !
MP

FINE'

It's done , it's in the bag , complete , finished , mastered , ready for mass consumption !
CD en route to Chicago where the folks at Bloodshot will be putting on their white-scientist suits to dissect , study , scrutinize , analyze and figure out a way to best mass produce and mass market their latest invention ! I'm just glad that it's out of my hands and that I can't be held responsible for any harm it may cause to the larger population !
Artwork will also be handed over to them shortly , I'm putting the final touches on a cover design that features my father's artwork .

Spent the weekend driving pop stars around , Backstreet Boys , Lifehouse , Pussycat Dolls as well as Chris Brown and others , unfortunately I can not discuss the nature of my time spent with the said royalty , at least not here but that does not mean that if you were to approach me with a free drink at a "shady" bar that I couldn't reveal a couple of "interesting" stories .

Both solo shows last week were memorable , especially the Townes Van Zandt night , what great performances from everyone , it was an honor to share the stage with so many talented people , I wish it could be a monthly engagement .

The Dusty 45's show , auction and fundraiser in Ellensburg a couple of weeks back was another highlight of the year , we're proud to have helped raise over $5,000 to go towards the medical expenses of a victim of a "random act of senseless violence"
An autographed Screaming Trees record fetched $475.00 !! Sometimes us musicians wonder if there's any purpose in what we do ,I realize that music can help people through their day and even keep people like myself interested in life through it's beauty but it's nice when playing music can contribute to something so helpful and "tangible" .

This Saturday I'll be playing drums with John Ramberg's new band at the Sunset in Ballard , Ramberg is a great song writer reminding me of Nick Lowe , Costello , Paul Weller and occasionally of artists like T.Rex , Badfinger and early Jeff Lynn/ELO/Move etc .. Great Stuff ! Should have recorded for Stiff !!

Just watched a really great documentary about Joe Meek that the BBC produced , what an interesting but troubled talent THAT man was !! I've been wanting to buy the box set but have not had a chance , Fisk played me several cuts while working on the new record , his production definitely stands up to the test of time , still has an edge that is difficult to replicate ... Although we all try and try again !

Morning Rotation : Elvis Costello , Nick Lowe , Charlie Parker (with strings , my fav) Night Train To Nashville Vol.2(Comp) Judee Sill , John Rauhouse .

Off to buy more art supplies ....
Mark

THE FINISH LINE ...

Steve Fisk and I are just hours if not minutes away from completion on my new cd (god willing)I'll be spending the next couple of weeks working on art work for the release as well as preparing for several shows (solo and otherwise)

For those of you who have never recorded music before , it can be an incredibly rewarding and intense experience , sometimes you might feel as though you're recording something truly unique and beautiful , just minutes later you might hear things differently and go in to an instant depression , thinking that you have nothing new or original to offer , a fraud perhaps ! In this situation your only defense is to keep working , trust your ears and your instincts . Eventually this wish to die rather than hear another second of your own caterwauling will pass and you might just find yourself back in a place where you can enjoy your own songs again .

I find that the less I listen to my own music , the more I can enjoy it .

It looks like I'll be playing in Austin at SXSW this year , most likely a Bloodshot showcase or two . It will be such an honor to share the stage with such an impressive roster ! I wish Trailer Bride were still around and on Bloodshot , they were always my favorite ! If you haven't checked them out , you really should .
They were such an incredible band to see live , music that could literally make me feel as though my soul could be vulnerable to a "take-over" , a "coup d' etat" of the soul !
I miss them and their music , we had some great times touring together with Neko .

For fans of Townes Van Zandt : I'll be joining Ian Moore and Mike Johnson for a tribute night at the Tractor on Dec 1 , hope you can make it !

Have To Run .... More rambling soon .
M

BLOODSHOT BOUND !

GOOD THINGS COME IN 3s!
Sometimes , just when I think there's no reason to go on ...
Great things develop , for instance one of the only people I despise in this world gets arrested for assault ! It's about time ! "Thank you" to all of the friends who emailed me and kept me abreast of all the latest developments that are making headlines in Ellensburg over the arrest of one of the most evil and pathetic men I have ever known!

It just gets better ... The "Scooter" goes down ! Justice WILL finally be served !

And as if all of this wasn't enough to make this one of the best weeks in some time , I finally received word from Bloodshot Records of Chicago that they want to put out my new CD ! Finally a home for my 'Praying Hands' !
After several discussions, negotiations and after much begging and pleading on my part they finally caved ! SUCKERS !!
I can't wait to be part of one of my favorite rosters in America !
"Thank you" for trusting you ears , Nan ! (A rarity in this business)

Some bad news ..... I joined "my space" and life will never be as I knew it again !
From this point forward my self esteem and self image will be ruled only by how many "friends" I have , the caliber of "friends" on my page and by how many sexy pictures are submitted for my approval ! Yes , it's true , I have become ... "one of them" ! At least I can finally monitor my girlfriends social life !!

Morning Rotation :

Townes Van Zandt 'Nashville Sessions"

Link Wray 'Slinky'

Bob Marley and the Wailers 'Soul Rebels'

The Specials 'More Specials'

Blind Willie Johnson 'Praise God I'm Satisfied'

Check Out , on My Space : Crispin , Gun Club , kexp .
Mark