DON CONOSCENTI COMES HOME TO OKLAHOMA By David Schultz For the Transcript Singer/songwriter Don Conoscenti has lived in Oklahoma for more than five months, but has slept in his own bed for only a handful of nights since getting settled in. Since his arrival in January, he performed at the First Night Celebration in Oklahoma City, traveled thousands of miles playing concerts across the country, and recorded with Oklahoma-favorite Ellis Paul on Pauls' upcoming album and recorded his own album, One for the Road. So it is not surprising that he hasn't had time to play much in his new hometown since his arrival. On Saturday, June 6th, Conoscenti makes amends to his Oklahoma fans by hosting an album release party for One for the Road at the venerated Blue Door in Oklahoma City. Conoscenti is, in part, a modern day wayfarer. After growing up in Catholic school in Chicago, he followed his muse to Colorado and Vermont, the first of many locations he would later call home. His travels provide his listeners with an array of fascinating stories. One of his day jobs was dishing out ice cream at a newly opened store in Vermont, owned by a couple of men named Ben and Jerry. Bitten by the rock and roll bug, Conoscenti moved to Boston and started the first of many bands. The lead guitarist in that first band, Reeves Gabrels, would later go on to work with David Bowie in the band Tin Machine. Conoscenti taught himself most of the instruments that he now incorporates into his shows: acoustic guitar, recorder, tongue drum, harmonica, and ashiko drum. Living in Atlanta, he took a three-year break from music, before returning with a fury in 1991 with his ferocious touring schedule (400,000 miles on his truck named Sarah and stilll going), recording sessions, producing, and songwriting. On his own Cogtone label, he released four critically acclaimed CDs, featuring guest vocals by Emily Saliers (Indigo Girls), David Wilcox, Ellis Paul, Pierce Pettis, Kristen Hall, and many others. His 1997 release was named, tongue placed firmly in cheek, My Brilliant Masterpiece. Performing Songwriter magazine exclaimed, "Don Conoscenti is to the folk-acoustic world what Prince is to the pop-funk world. Both play a myriad of instruments and both just seem to be endless wellsprings of talent and songs. One of acoustic music's best just got better. . . . If 'Masterpiece' isn't just that, it's pretty damn close." Feeling the need for a change once again, he accepted an offer from a friend to move to Oklahoma, putting yet more emphasis on developing his musical career. One instrument that Conoscenti did not play, but thought would add a nice touch to some of his songs was a violin. Before recording One for the Road, Don called up old friend violinist David Ragsdale, formerly of the band Kansas, to appear on selected old tracks, as well as some of his newest creations. The album was recorded live one night after a two-night stand at the Twice Told Coffeehouse in Louisville, Kentucky in late March of this year. Ragsdale's electric violin adds a flavorful touch to Conoscenti's earlier work ("Hold On Arelia", and one of the hidden tracks "My Brilliant Masterpiece") and enhances the feeling behind such songs as "Last Time I Saw Maya" and "The Road We're On". The latter song features Ragsdale on violin and Conoscenti on harmonica weaving acoustic textures during their duet. "Shed No Tears" is another fine song that allows Conoscenti to showcase his skills on the acoustic guitar. "Carefully Taught" finds Conoscenti on the ashiko drums pounding out the reasons for the perpetuation of racism, sexism, and other social ills. Besides being an accomplished musician, Conoscenti is also an avid rock climber and feels Oklahoma's Witchita Mountains are one the best kept secrets that he's come across in his wide-ranging travels. Their influence is apparent on One for the Road. Photos of the mountains, taken by his hiking partner Jennifer Hoffman, appear in the CD booklet and the Witchitas also set the stage for "Red Man Sky", the opening track, in which Conoscenti imagines a conversation with the ghost of Geronimo. The live recording of One for the Road is a showcase for the type of show that Conoscenti puts on. As such, audience members at the album release party will have something to take home with them to remind them of the show for a long time to come. The album release party for One for the Road commences at 8 pm on Saturday June 6 at the Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley in Oklahoma City. Call 524-0738 for further information. -------------------------- More about Don Conoscenti including song clips can be found at his web sites: http://www.doncon.com or http://www.songs.com/donc. His CDs can be ordered from 1-800-BUY-MY-CD.
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