What's a Mother to do on a Friday night?

Well the bad news is the boy is 17 and no longer wants to hang at home on the weekends with his mama when his daddy goes out on the road. If he is not playing guitar with Mr. H then he is somewhere out there doing whatever 17 year old kids do these days. Don't want to think too long on that one...
So Mother Hubbard has been spending a lot of time at home on the weekends all by my damn lonesome. Not sure what to do with myself when the house is empty. Choices are: A)organize Mr. Hubbard's sock drawer or B)work on answering or filing the 1,100 plus emails lurking in my inbox which seem to multiply faster than I can hit the delete button. Hint:There is no C. But damn I am the President of a record label...Clive Davis probaby isn't working on weekends. I bet Mr. Beyonce's daddy Knowles isn't agonizing over some P & L sheet on Friday night so I shouldn't have to work either. But I am bored. I tried gardening..killed everything. Bought more, killed it too. You have to be consistent with the watering thing. Tried sewing and well that went well till I sewed my finger last weekend cause I was driving the sewing machine thing to fast. Hurt like a sonofabitch. Plus it's boring to sit home like some Betsy Ross old lady and sew by myself. Before I settled down my wild ways many years ago I was thinking about joining the Convent and becoming a nun cuz I figured it would keep me out of trouble. But checked into it and realized solitude is not a virtue I do well with so I got a job selling and repoing cars instead. Well that is where I find myself again. At a crossroads. Not much for hanging in the honky tonks by myself...that is kinda creepy; so that is out. Well I am open to some suggestions...

Hey...here's a thought; how about if I become a professional designated driver! Since I don't drink any more but still like to go see a live show now and again and when Mr. H is home he isn't one to go to a honky tonk unless his name is on the marquis. I can understand that I guess. But every once in a while a girl wants to go out and smell stale cigarettes and watch a good band. I was diagnosed as a teenager with neon poisoning. That means when the neon lights go it is wired in your DNA to be in a honky tonk. Can't help yourself.   So I could put an ad maybe on Craigslist and be Mother Hubbard-Designated Driver or Mother Hubbard's Pub Crawl. I would be cheaper than a cab and know where all the good venues are...hell I even know how to go in the back door at most of them. I am old enough to be most peoples mom so I would not be mistaken for someone's date so wouldn't cramp the guys style if I was DD for guys. If I was driving a bunch of girls then I could teach them some of my old work the room "secrets". It sounds like a win, win situation for everyone. So let me know what you think!

But in the mean time until I get some Designated Driver gigs, I am going to go find some cool new music on a few of my favorite blogs and post it here so we can broaden our musical minds together.

Tonight we landed at Saving Country Music. I like the fact that Triggerman over there seems to find so many bands that I never heard of...meaning they aren't on every other blog or music biz online mag I read every day which could mean either they can't afford a high priced publicist to get them strategically placed in the viral outerspace of coveted ink which can be a good thing because it usually means they are new and there is something so organic about that. It gives me warm fuzzies to hear new music with grit and soul and don't give a shit if I ever get a beer commercial honesty. It makes Mother happy. So cruisin on Save Country Music I saw a name I have wanted to check out for a couple months and dove right in. Lucky Tubb. Now Lucky is a Texan and I know a lot of you out there probably think we are all cozy like bugs in a rug and know each other and go drink from the same koolaid fountain every night before bed but that is not entirely the case. Not sure where this kid has been hiding or how long he has been out there but I met him a couple of months ago over at Lone Star Music in Gruene when I was dropping off some CD's of Mr.H for them to sell. (Yea, I do that). Well I walked in and there was this kinda scraggly looking youngish darling guy dropping off merch to sell also and he kinda reminded me of a young Mr. Hubbard...ya know "total gun toting, cigarette smoking, cuban heel cowboy boot wearing, tequila drinking, bad boy; but with polite manners and a souther drawl and so cute I just wanted to take him down to the taxidermy and have him stuffed so I could put him on a shelf in my living room. Ya with me...? Well we introduced ourselves and hugged like long lost cousins because that is what Texans do and started telling road stories and laughing, cussin and entertaining the fine folks at Lone Star Music. Nothing calculated or branded about this one. He has gypsy traveling music man in his bones. So you would think with a intro like that I would have put his CD in the car and checked it out on the way home but the CD player in the jeep is broken and when I got home stuff starts pulling from 9 directions and I never followed up on it. Well all I gotta say is my bad. He is everything he looks like he is gonna be and doesn't disappoint one bit. But don't take my word for it go here and listen and decide for your own self. Would love to hear what you think once you do.

You can go straight to Lone Star Music or to his myspace page to check out his music and  while you are listening go back over to Saving Country Music and read all about him. I am digging Damn the Luck, Not At All, West, Lonesome Cowboy and Used Up Love. His music reminds me of the old Merle, kinda Conway country that makes you want to go down to the nearest VFW and grab one of those old leather faced cowboys with a frisbee sized belt buckle that doesn't talk except to say ma'am cause those are the ones that have been two stepping since they were ten and know their way around a dance floor.
 I'm feeling lucky finding this one.

XXX
Mother

How you supposed to compete with a dead guy?

Johnny Cash is putting out a record. Great. There goes our spot on the Americana Chart. Again. Now I certainly don't want to disrespect the departed nor do I have anything against Johnny Cash. Loved his music all my life. Met him once on Waylon's bus after a Highwaymen show. Listened to him and Willie talk about cooking rice recipes in the microwave on a tour bus. Pretty surreal...but anyway it seems that first Townes, now Johnny still come out with a new record every couple of years. The dilemma I see is that all the artists who are out here schlepping around amps from one city to the next and writing new songs are vying for the same spot on the ever so coveted Americana Chart not to mention the new Americana Grammy category.

Seems like there should be a sub-category in each genre for that. Like maybe: A.Living B. Not living (Hint: There is no C).
Just a thought.

What do you think you're doing?

Ask Mother Hubbard is the alter ego of me, Judy Hubbard, wife of singer/songwriter Ray Wylie Hubbard. It began in 2007 when Lone Star Music Magazine asked me to write a monthly column in their magazine. Not being the write a monthly column kind of gal I suggested that maybe an advice column would be more my style since I often seem to think I can manage everyone's life. (Mr. Hubbard told me once that I should just apply for the job of Queen.) Anyway, my alligator mouth once again overloaded my jaybird legs; they didn't realize I was just kidding and "Ask Mother Hubbard" was born. Since I have managed Mr. Hubbard's music career for over 20 years the majority of questions were regarding the music business. Then a few boyfriend dilemmas crept in, a roomate problem, loud dogs barking next door, and...well you get the idea.

Fast forward to 2010. The kind folks over at Dickson Productions (you know Steamboat MusicFest, CCR Cruise, Ski Jam) decided to expand their twice a year MusicFest Magazine to six issues a year and invited me to bring "Ask Mother Hubbard" on board. The new “MY” MusicFest Magazine which will launch in March 2010 will be dedicated exclusively to genuine music, the artists that create it, and the community that embraces it.
Issues of the publication will include feature articles written by artists, current CD releases and reviews, the latest news and updates from the genuine music community, and also industry reports, in-depth stories on your favorite songwriters and performers, plus festival and event reviews, information on classic venues, plus accolades.

"Ask Mother Hubbard" will answer your questions as well as include a recipe in each issue. I would love to hear from you so don't be shy. If I don't know the answer I'll find out or make up one. The only rule is that you know that I know that I am not an expert at anything. I do know that laughter is the best medicine and hope you find a chuckle or two while visiting.
XXX
Mother