I got sent these pix by Phil Butta:

Here's a couple of pics of me (Phil Butta) jamming with Joe and Dennis Dunaway with Jimmy on drums, for a benefit performance at Union Square Park, NYC, April this year.

Benefit was for ASPCA. American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

I was the owner/bartender/bottle-washer (along with Paul Orofino) of Mary's Pub and Music Room aka Ale Mary's in Millbrook, New York.

We had lots of great talent there: Golden Earring, Frank Carillo, Joe Bouchard( solo, X-Brothers, etc.), Dennis Dunaway, Tommy Byrnes (Billy Joel), Richie Scarlet (Mountain), Eddie Kramer (engineer), and many others. The Pub was a happening joint back in the old days!

I used to keep a microphone behind the bar and play harp with the bands.

Joe, Dennis and I became and still are good friends ... getting together socially and at gigs. Joe and Dennis frequently call me up to jam at their gigs and we usually do Road House Blues and Back Door Man ... Doors tunes. Always a great time. Joe's been to my house several times and we play guitars and piano ... Joe's a really fine pianist.

I have some other pics of Joe and will post them when I can find them.

Joe's posted this over on his blog:

Friday night (March 30) I played with the X Brothers at the Cutting Room. The show was super.

We had a full crowd and played a set filled with new songs from the CD including Beyond the Valley of the X, BOC chestnut Dr. Music and Money Machine. Burnin for You was next , followed by Astronomy followed by Andy song's Downtown.

Albert made another appearance and sang Cities on Flame with us and we ended the set with Godzilla. I have played with my "adopted" brothers for nearly two decades, and Jimmy and Andy never fail to put on a great show.

Dennis Dunaway's band played after us and I came back out at the end for the "super" encore. What a great night!

We will do it again!

See the full entry...

Joe's posted this on J&A's:

Seems like it's been a long winter in hibernation. It's time for some gigs. I've got two interesting ones coming up.

Thursday March 29th I'm playing solo acoustic at a "Feast of Friends" for Poptown Records, the same company that just released Ross and JP's "Thunderboss" CD. It's at the Sidewalk Cafe in NYC at 8 PM. It features an odd mix of urban eccentrics, and I hear this club is the best new "happenin'" spot in NYC.

The other really great gig is the double bill at the Cutting Room in NYC on Friday March 30th, The X Brothers with the Dennis Dunaway Project. This is the official release party for our new CDs. Expect a night of great rock 'n' roll with a combined jam with two bands at the end. Whoopee!

Finally, the long-awaited 2nd X Brothers CD "Beyond the Valley of the X" has been released at last on AHE and is currently available on CD Baby where you can also hear samples of all the tracks.

I've had "Beyond the Valley of the X" on repeat play for the best part of the last week and thought I'd share a few of my thoughts on what I think is a great album.

Here's Joe's latest news:

I've finished the X Brother CD, put up a website and now I'm helping spruce up the myspace/xbrothers spot. I've avoided the myspace craze, but there probably no better way to get your CD heard. There's always a lot to do. I took the summer off from teaching and it has been great. In between playing a little golf, I'm writing new songs and working on the edits for the Regal Tones live CD.

By the way - CD Baby is the best place to buy an X Brothers CD. In fact at the moment they are running a promotion that kicks off in November that features new releases. If we sell enough CDs we could be part of that promotion. CD Baby is a fantastic service for the indie artist. Their service is top notch. They send out checks every Monday night! With most other outlets you're lucky if you get paid every six months.

The X Brothers would be playing more if Andy wasn't jet setting to Paris to see the Stones, and St. Tropez for Kid Rock's wedding. Must be nice. He brought a big box of X Bros. CDs with him and promoted the album to Lars, who discussed BOC quite a bit. Also Keith, Ron Wood and Lenny Kravitz got encouraged to promote to X Brothers Mania. It can't hurt to get our name out.

Sometimes I feel like I'm on the wrong planet.

The X Brothers are playing a private party in the Hamptons on Long Island on August 19th. It is a benefit for the American Red Cross. It's a huge event that will be the biggest party of the summer for the island crowd. Last year I missed the X Brothers performance on Long Island on August 20, 2005. Taking my place on guitars in the band were John McEnroe, tennis guy, and Michael J. Fox, actor. (see photo) Nice to know that it took two guitar players to replace me. ;-)!

I was on a rare vacation so I missed the date. I hope we can mix it up again this summer on the August 19th. There's no telling that those two will be there, but the guest list is a lot of big celebrities. I'd love to jam with McEnroe's wife, singer Patty Smythe. I'll be taking photos. ;-)!

Joe's posted this note on J&A's:

"The new X Brothers CD is soon headed toward the pressing plant. I'm excited. They told me expect a 17 day turn around. You will love it."

Here's Joe's latest news:

Thought I'd give you a scoop on the X Brothers set list. The gig was fantastic. First class all the way, great sound and a crowd of about 800 at the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore Harbor. Andy and I flew down in Tommy's private jet (It was like the old days, like the inside cover of SEE).

The event was to celebrate the fifth leg of an around the world sailing race:

http://www.volvoextreme40.org/

Tommy Hilfiger is sponsoring one of the boats. I got to meet the sailing crew, and they were leading the race so far. The band played a great set and everyone had a great time. I've included a few photos.

Roadhouse Blues
Burnin' For You
(Wish I Could fly Like) Superman
Honky Tonk Woman (Andy vocal)
Jumpin' Jack Flash
Godzilla
Dead Flowers (Andy vocal)
Cinnamon Girl
Deadman Walkin
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap (Jimmy Cacala vocal, unknown drummer)
Reaper

Satisfaction (with Tommy Hilfiger guitar)
The Last Time (with Tommy Hilfiger guitar)

I hope we can do another one of these events.
Enjoy,
Joe

Here's Joe's latest news:

The X Brothers CD is close to being done. Andy is here on Tuesday for an overdub session. We not finished recording everything. Now it's 14 songs, 7 covers and 7 originals.

Joe's just sent this X Bros news:

"Here's the latest concerning the X Brothers. I just got my new computer (Power Mac G5 Dual 2.5 GHz) last Thursday so I've been slow in getting to my mail. I love the new computer. It's fast and real solid working with audio tracks. Now I have one less excuse to procrastinate on several projects

First item of news:
The X Brothers show at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in NYC Jan 19, 2006.

The X Brothers played a kickoff rally for Charlie King who is running for lieutenant governor for the state of New York. Charlie's wife Vanessa is a long time friend of Andy's so that was how we got involved with that event:

http://www.king2006.com/

It was a great gig. First of all, playing at the historic old hotel and location of the yearly Rock Hall party was exciting. The audience was mostly young businessmen and local politicians. I figured after the speeches, the crowd could have thinned out fast. But everyone stayed and really enjoyed the band.

The Set List:

Burnin' for You
Jumpin' Jack Flash
Wish I Could Fly Like Superman
Dr. Music
Last Days of May
Dead Flowers
2000 Light Years from Home
Honky Tonk Women (Jimmy Koons, guest vocal)
Godzilla
Don't Fear the Reaper (Ted Cox, guest cowbell)
Roadhouse Blues (Michael H, guest vocal)
Under My Thumb (Michael H, guest vocal)

The next coming up gig for the X Brothers is a benefit for John Hall on an as yet to be determined date in March 2006. John was the founder of the group Orleans and is now running for the US House of Representatives. (Are political rallies a growth market for distinguished [I won't say "over-the-hill"] classic bands?):

http://www.johnhallforcongress.com/index.html

After that we are playing the Watkins Glen Grand Prix on June 3, 2006.

Second item of business:
I'm working on a new CD for the X Brothers. I decided my new computer's maiden voyage would be this new recording with X Brothers. It was the fastest, most hassle free project I could imagine. Jimmy and Andy still play great and have not lost one ounce of their youthful enthusiasm. Plus they make me laugh 'til I split my sides.

Jan 17-18 2006 we recorded new tracks at Acme Recording Studio in Mamaroneck, NY, the same studio that the Spin Doctors used for their big hits. We hoped to get basic tracks for 12 songs in two days of recording. Out of the original 12 we dropped one, but did three more covers giving us a total of 14 tracks. I plan to spend one more day with basic tracks before we call it a wrap on the basics.

The songs: I can't give you any titles yet, as things may change drastically before we get to the final mix. One thing I can say is we recorded a lot of covers. My plan is to help publicize that the BOC song catalog has a lot more life to it than just the three songs you hear all the time!

Working album title: The Sign of the X

Anticipated availability: May 2006

Until next time - thanks,
Joe

Joe's posted this on J&A's:

"Another great set of shows in Elmira. The opening act was The Brainbell Janglers, a young blusey group from Corning NY."

"Interesting trivia, the Brainbell's bass player, Sean, is the son of Steve Monroe, one time roadie for BOC. Steve Monroe was with us way back in 1972 when there were on two only roadies, he and Eliott Krowe. Son Sean showed me a framed picture of his dad and Elliott loading our truck, nicknamed Sal's Trucking, with an old Marshall cabinet that I just freshly painted in our garage in Dix Hills. It was a real flashback!"

Joe's posted this on J&A's:

"Hi Friends,
Just want to let you know that the X Brothers are playing TWO nights in Elmira this week. Thursday night, which is Thanksgiving night, and Friday night. It is always a good time. Looking forward to seeing Jimmy and Andy. We will also have different guests sitting in with us. And plenty of COWBELL!
Happy Thanksgiving!"

Here's some news Joe just posted on J&A:

"We're working on some new BDS gigs, but in the meantime you all can see the X Brothers this Friday, Oct 14 2005, at Chat 19 in Larchmont NY. It's always a cool party. It's Andy's birthday and you never know who will pop in at those gigs."

Here are the setlists from the X Brothers Gigs in July. Both gigs featured local musicians sitting in. I had a great time.

X Brothers Set Lists The Haunt, Ithaca NY July 14, 2005

Set 1
Red and the Black
R. U. Ready 2 Rock?
Burnin' for You
ETI
Cities on Flame
Hot Time in Hell (with Kerry Wittig, vocal)
Last Days of May
Roadhouse Blues (with Kerry Wittig, vocal)
Astronomy

Set 2
Reaper
Walking the Dog (with Tom Trifoso, guitar)
I Need to Know (with Tom Trifoso, guitar)
Godzilla

X Brothers Set Lists The RoadHouse, Big Flats (Elmira), NY July 15, 2005

Set 1
Red and the Black
R. U. Ready 2 Rock?
Burnin' for You
ETI
Cities On Flame
Dead Flowers
Roadhouse Blues
Sweet Home Alabama

Set 2
Reaper
Walking the Dog (with Tom Trifoso, guitar)
I Need to Know (with Tom Trifoso, guitar)
Knockin' on Heaven's Door (with Danny Phillips, guitar & vocal)
Spider and The Fly (Jim Lovejoy, Trombone)
Honky Tonk Women (Jim Lovejoy, Trombone)
Godzilla

Here's Joe's latest news:

"CHAT 19 WITH X BROTHERS MAY 6 2005

No record of the actual set list.

Basically a good mix of BOC, X Brothers originals and Rolling Stones covers.

Dennis Dunaway and Neal Smith sit in with me playing Under My Wheels and School's Out to end the first set.

For the second set Richie Ranno of Starz sits in on All Along the Watchtower and Fallen Angel (not BOC song, but a Starz song)

ALE MARY'S PUB WITH X BROTHERS MAY 7 2005

Interesting night since it's the first time the X Brothers have played the pub. It's a very intimate setting for such a loud band, but the crowd loves the band and roars at Jimmy Cacala's intense drumming.

Patty G plays cowbell and percussion for the second set. She thanks me profusely for letting her sit in with a real "heavy" band

The set lists:

SET 1
Red & Black
Are U Ready 2 Rock? (Born to be Wild teaser)
Burnin for You
Hot Time in Hell
Dead Flowers
Last Days of May
Dr. Music
ETI
Break on Through (Paint It Black, Iron Man teasers)
Cities on Flame

SET 2
Reaper
All Over Now
Last Time
I'm 18 (with Ritchie Scarlet on lead guitar)
Boogie Jam "Help Me" (with Ritchie Scarlet on lead guitar)
Backdoor Man (with Ritchie Scarlet on lead guitar, Phil Butta on Harp)
Let It Bleed (with Ritchie Scarlet on lead guitar)
Break
(Acoustic numbers while the band breaks)
Jukebox in My Head
Which Road is Mine?

SET 3
Astronomy
Godzilla

Some X Brothers gig news:

"The X Brothers are playing two gigs the weekend of May 6-7. One is at the club we played last time, Chat 19 in Larchmont and May 7 is at Ale Mary's Pub in Millbrook. Joe Bouchard & Friends do really well there, so it will be nice to see how the X Brothers fair at the pub. We may have to do a set of acoustic material since it is suck an intimate place. But generally we will blow the roof off the place! Andy seems to want to play more and more gigs. They are a great band to play with and I'm glad they want to do more. I'll update you on how it all goes.

Here's Joe's report from the Yahoo BDS group on the recent Elmira gigs with the XBros:

"The X Brothers shows went great. The benefit we played went really well. It was great playing for a younger crowd since it was an all ages show. Andy gave away a ton of Jlo clothes that all especially the girls loved. The opening act was a young band called Ironcore. They rocked with that modern heavy metal sound."

"At the biker bar later that night we played two sets. It was a nice mix of tunes, lots of BOC. We also did On Fire with Love and Hot Time in Hell and a few covers. One of the highlights of the night was Last Days of May, a song Billy Hilfiger used to sing. We dedicated it to Billy and it was a real emotional moment."

Here's Joe's take on his recent gig in Larchmont with the X Brothers:

"The X Brothers show in Larchmont Mar. 4 was a two set affair. The club called Chat 19 is a nice suburban restaurant and it was packed to the rafters. I didn't get to set up the minidisc, because we were so rushed setting up. The sets were typical X Brothers sets. We started with RU Ready 2 Rock and ended with the Reaper, with a ton of Stones classics in the middle. The police came toward the end so we cut the night short. Andy's brother Tommy ended up playing the whole night with us. He's strictly an air guitarist with a guitar ( It must be plugged in, but we don't turn on his amp ;P) He sings backgrounds too. "

Joe's posted some details of some upcoming gigs on J&A's:

"I just want you to know that the X Brothers are playing at the Chat 19 American Grill in Larchmont, NY on March 4th. It's been almost 11 months since our last show (Florida April 2004). The Chat 19 Lounge is located at 19 Chatsworth Ave. Larchmont NY. The club phone is: 914-833-8871"