Star & Micey is a swirled out Memphis-based soulful folk pop band.
SURPRISE!!!!! We’re going craZY , we’ve recorded a bunch of songs over the past year. We realized, we want you to listen. The first FOUR SONGS were recorded in a historical concrete fort 6 months ago…we’ll share one song every other day up until christmas. Happy CHRISTMAS!!! HERE WE GO…
Anything To Keep You by Nick Redmond
Curry Weber aka "Ol Man Baressi"
Hello everyone out there. Sorry it has taken so long for us to get back on track with our home site. We have been busy with many things, and we hope you are still out there waiting. We are about to release some free songs to download for the holiday season, so keep in touch. We have been having a blast playing music with our new pal Jack O’blivian, who we have been backing on some of his songs, amd who has helped us on drums in a pinch. We have some new shows coming up so check out our show page for more details. We are backing up our own Adam Woodard for the Rock N Roll Recovery show at the Hi Tone on 11/26th so come out for that. We also plan on getting in the studio soon and continue to work on more recorded material. Until then come catch us in town, cause you never know what kind of tricks we will pull out for ya. We will try from now on to keep the website updated, that’s a promise. Stay tuned and see ya around.
Wow. What a week and a half it was.
After staying in the most luxurious of motels Baton Rouge had to offer, the Baressi crew made their way to the Big Easy. We parked Uncle P on the outskirts of the French Quarter, and plunged into New Orleans. After an afternoon of Bourbon St. and Beignets, as the sun was beginning to set, we returned to the van’s trailer to procure our instruments. What happened next is known as “busking.” To those not familiar with the term, it means simply to walk around an urban area with instruments and play for anyone willing to listen. And that’s exactly what we did. We had a blast with it. A mobile Star & Micey is a dangerous one, taking over street corner after street corner. After the sun went down – and Adam broken his accordion strap – we convened back at Uncle P, who toted us up to the Garden District for our laid back gig at Neutral Ground Coffeehouse. There we were greeted with many members of our Bay St. Louis family – an always-welcome sight. We left New Orleans stamped with Star & Micey’s unique and unforgettable seal.
The next day, we headed north towards Lafayette and its Blue Moon Saloon. The venue was one of the best we encountered on the whole tour. Situated on a gigantic outdoor patio, the stage area was filled with great, enthusiastic folks and the tones of a fantastic sound system. Star & Micey opened for two renowned local Lafayette bands: Feufollet and Pine Leaf Boys. We had the opportunity of setting the energetic mood that these bands continued during their sets. It may have been the swirliest evening of the whole tour. None of us could have thought of better circumstances on which to end our stint in the Gulf Coast.
On Sunday, ten days after we had left for the Gulf, we were headed home. We made a lifetime of memories that seemed to go by in the blink of an eye. Against all odds, Uncle P’s rusty joints returned us safely to Midtown, Memphis – a bittersweet moment for us all.
This was my first tour with Star & Micey, and pray it is not my last. Everyone involved said it was the most fun and successful one they had ever been on. It has been an absolute honor, privilege, and delight to be part of this outstanding and thoroughly enriching experience. I cannot thank everyone enough – Josh, Geoff, Nick, Jeremy, Adam, Jessie, Aron, Steve and the family, the people of Bay St. Louis, and everyone at Ardent.
Now hear this – after having lived, breathed, slept, and coexisted with these people for the past ten days, I have witnessed such undying passion, desire, determination, and talent that I have never seen elsewhere. Star & Micey are at their best, and only continue to get better. The wheels are in motion, folks. The Baressi Crew is going places, and going there fast.
As always, swirl on…
Eternal love from Star & Micey
-Connor Crawford
The home stretch! Days are starting to run together, sunrise has come to mean bedtime, instead of breakfast time, Steve’s home has become our home away from home, and we’re loving every minute of it. The past two days we’ve been in and around Ocean Springs, Mississippi. I’m pretty sure we played the Julep Room on Tuesday night…maybe. Then on Wednesday, we took a band field trip to the Walter Inglis Anderson museum where we learned all about the famed Gulf artist. We spent the afternoon admiring his life and work. That night we treated the Porter Avenue Bistro to a four-hour set. The long timeslot allowed for some performance freedom, and, as a result, the swanky bar was presented a set from the original Star & Micey three-piece, which proved very nostalgic, in that, the original trio had not performed by themselves in quite a long time and they broke out a number of songs they had kept in the vault for a while. Next up was Aron Shiers, then a Big Star tribute featuring J.B. with the guys, then Jeremy Stanfill with White Lightning, then came this tour’s wonderful incarnation of Star & Micey. The show was an outstanding display of the immense talent in this remarkable group of musicians.
The night was even further augmented by the kind people of the Lazy Magnolia Beer Company. They provided discounted brew for the band, as well as the guarantee that for every beer we consumed, they would let us keep the glass in which it came (see picture). We played until about 2:30 in the morning, and then made our way back to Dewittland for one last night. The following morning and afternoon were extremely bittersweet. I cannot emphasize enough how hospitable and phenomenal Steve and his family were. It was an absolute treat and privilege to stay with such a kind group of people. Thinking about how we could possibly pay them back for their compassion, we decided that there existed nothing materialistic that we could purchase that could demonstrate the immense amount of compassion that we felt, so instead, we decided to write the Dewitts a song.
As I type, Uncle P is leaving Baton Rouge after we were attacked by the sound system at the North Gate Tavern last night. Tonight The Baressi Crew plays Neutral Ground Coffehouse in The Big Easy. There is no telling what kind of swirly nonsense we’ll come across. Stay tuned.
Love as always.
-Connor
Some stats on the tour thus far (all figures are approximate)…
890 – Number of miles Geoff has driven Uncle P
12 – Number of guitar strings Nick has broken, and number of shirts he has sweat through
44 – Number of hugs Josh has given
23 – Number of times Jessie has offered everyone “girly” deodorant
1 – Number of times I have smashed Aron’s fingers in Uncle P’s door
37 – Number of songs Adam has turned into accordion ballads
19 – Number of female hearts Jeremy has fluttered
Saturday found us in Fairhope, Alabama. Star & Micey played an afternoon set at The Windmill Market, an open-air artisan and farmer’s market, and then made their way to the Fly Creek Café. They lit up the place with a firecracker performance, with an especially noteworthy appearance by The White Chocolate Drops, which is the Aron Shiers nickname-inspired moniker for the round robin soul revue that has begun to take place after the initial Star & Micey show. It’s always a crowd-pleaser.
After leaving our mark on Alabama, we made it over to the Sunshine State on Sunday. In Pensacola, Florida the band rocked the patio of the Mellow Mushroom. A few of Jeremy’s boyhood compadres that live in the area came to support him, and one of them, Marty, even sang a few songs with him. Witnessing the reunion was great. After the show, we made the trek back to Steve’s place for some general tomfoolery. Some outstanding pool games were invented.
Today, Monday, is our day off, so we’re all enjoying some much needed and deserved R & R. Right now, Josh, Geoff, Nick, and Aron are lounging in and around the pool, and Jessie just went to join them, while Adam is off fishing with Jeep, Steve’s firstborn son. Tonight we’ve got plans (and a permit) for a super swirly beach bonfire.
That’s all for now. We’ll be in Ocean Springs Tuesday and Wednesday, and then off to Louisiana. A quick note on the live streaming: we know the audio has been less than desirable, but by tomorrow’s show, we’ll have a MUCH better microphone so tune in to actually hear us!
Until then.
-Connor
First things first. Let’s get acquainted.
You know Josh, Geoff, and Nick…but do you know…
…Jeremy Stanfill
- Jack-of-all-trades, ultra-cool opening act and tour drummer for Star & Micey.
…Jessie Munson
- The tour’s only member without a Y chromosome – she’s the cute, unassuming violin player in the background.
…Adam Woodard
- Wordly, energy-filled accordion virtuoso that’s gotta be dragged out of the venue because he’s playing “Wheels on the Bus” or “The Final Countdown” to an enamored bunch.
…Aron Shiers
- Calm, cool, and collected tech-genie and talented songwriter. He’s in charge of changing Nick’s guitar strings after every other song.
Alright, so Day One of this Gulf Coast extravaganza was a rousing success. The van ride in Uncle P proved hot, entertaining, enriching, raunchy, and anecdote-filled. Similar was the case in Bay St. Louis and the Mockingbird Café. The folks here treat us as family. I stepped out of Uncle P, walked in to the Mockingbird, and was greeted by a slew of people that made me feel as if I had been a regular there all my life. The guys put on a fantastic show to an exceptional crowd on a beautiful outdoor space. Everyone here is so carefree, hospitable, selfless, and genuine – one in particular: Steve Dewitt. I cannot sing this man’s praises enough. He has been kind enough to provide a homebase for us. By that, I mean comfortable beds for everyone, hot showers, cold drinks, outstanding food (including fresh, hand-rolled sushi and delicious made-to-order omelets), a glorious swimming pool (complete with waterslide), and a wonderful, warm, homelike atmosphere. A thousand thanks to him and his family.
Today, we’re going to see what kind of swirltastic hijinks we can conjure up in Fairhope, Alabama. As I type, we’re en route to the Windmill Market for a day show, and tonight we’re headed to the Fly Creek Café! Check out the live streams of both!
More soon.
-Connor
Hey Star & Micey fans! Connor here.
As you may or may not know, the band is currently getting geared up for their string of dates on the Gulf Coast. Tonight, they’re having a free, donation-driven kick-off show at Café Eclectic at 7pm, so be sure to stop by! As their semi-glorified roadie/intern, I’ll be joining them on tour and lending them a hand with a few things of which you might want to be aware. They are as follows:
-This blog! Check back here frequently for updates from the road. These could include photos, videos, or just my general musings on the Baressi crew.
-Live Concert Streaming! At every venue that has internet access, I will be streaming each Star & Micey show LIVE. So be sure to tune in at this link – http://www.ustream.tv/user/starandmiceylive – to watch the guys live! Specific times and broadcast links can be found here, on facebook, and on twitter.
It’s just like you’ll be in that crammed van with us, right? Until tonight, and the next post, swirl on…
-Connor
PARTAY!!!!!!!!!! News from the underground base of Star & Micey. First off, we would like to thank everyone in our beautiful city for supporting us and being a part of our growth. Our live shows have gotten stronger, better, and much more fun thanks to all of you. We hope that it continues to grow, and we hope to bring it on the road soon. We are gearing up for our summer/fall tours as we speak. We are trying to put together something different and new for these upcoming dates, in town and abroad. We will have our cohort/partner in crime/best friend, Jeremy Stanfill coming on the road with us in July, and he will be opening our shows, and playing drums with us as well. We also hope to have some other special guests coming along for the ride as well. We are also gearing up to go back into the studio to record some more songs, so we can release them as singles(hopefully on 45s). We also have a European tour we will start getting in the works for next spring/summer. Please keep checking back with us frequently for new tour dates, local shows, blogs, and new music/videos. We will also have new shirts+stickers coming soon so be sure to get them while we have them. Until next time, swirl on…
-Geoff
Here’s a free download of a new song called Cold Hard Truth that was written on the road with Jeremy Stanfill and recorded live to tape at Nick Redmond’s house. And if you missed the video, check it out below. It was done by The Commercial Appeal for their Hotel Memphis series.
Josh at Fort Morgan
Well we just got back a few days ago from a pilgrimage we set out on to record new songs/demos. With us was our producer/engineer Curry Weber (AKA Tommy Baressi), and our longtime friend and videographer Ryan Munson, and a new friend Kelly Tippett, who was also our film and camera guy the entire time. Our first stop was the Princess Theatre in Columbus, MS, where we were to play the very same night. This grand old theatre had a huge room with a big sound. We recorded everything to an old Tascam 388 8 track tape machine, AKA Leroy Jones. We recorded in Bathrooms and n other cooky places at this theatre. We would like to thank Brian, the owner of the Princess for giving us the opportunity for recording and playing in a real cool place. After staying in Ryan and Katherine’s awesome big new house, meeting a real southern bell of a woman, and having awkward moments at the YMCA, it was time to make our descent down to Gulf Shores. Uncle P was pulling 6 people, along with a trailer full of everything we owned as we plowed through the remnants of the horrible rain storm that plagued most of our home state. We made it to the Gulf House, a utopian getaway that the Weber family owns on the lagoon/ocean. It was like an oasis to be at this great place. The next few days were filled with recording more songs with all the doors and windows open, jumping off the pier into the lagoon, relaxing in hammocks, making crazy videos, and recoding every minute of the experience on film. Luckily where we were at the oil spill in the gulf never made it to us thank god. But the best part of the trip was to come when we did some on site recording in Fort Morgan, an old Civil War fort and WW2 fort. We recorded in the same place where the video of Josh Cosby and Jeremy Stanfill sang Jeremy’s song “Seasons.” What was to ensue was an experience one could only get if they were actually there. Infinite reverb and a scary, yet a humbling and amazing vibe that I can’t describe. We ran an extension cord from a DC to Ac power inverter that was hooked up to Uncle P, who was parked 150-200 feet away. All of it was captured on film. Well it was starting to become apparent that we would have to leave this dream world and come back to reality, so as a final salute to our stay in Gulf Shores, everyone swam out to the sandbar and enjoyed the beach sun. Even Kelly, our camera guy, swam out there with a camera to get pictures! Anything for the shot. As we made our ascent back up to Columbus/Memphis, we had a blow out on the side of Hwy 45. Unfortunately it was our spare, since our other tire went flat a few days prior. As we were stranded, we made more crazy videos and jumped around like mad men until Triple A picked up the van. Unfortunately we had to leave the trailer behind, due to extra money and only an X amount of people could go with the tow truck. Needless to say, even after having to abandon the trailer on the side of the highway overnight and going through even more madness, we got the tire fixed, went and got our trailer back, and bee lined it back home. So there you have it. There will be video up soon hopefully. We have recorded I think over 15 hours of video footage, so there will be plenty to see believe me. Thanks for reading this long rant. It was an incredible experience, and we wish we could do what we did, and play shows during the same time, ALL THE TIME! So keep checking out the website, so we can keep you updated on everything we do. Thanks again and until next time, swirl on…