7 April - Retirement

Crazy, right? As of this month, I will begin receiving Retirement Benefits from the Social Security Administration. Please bear in mind that I may have left the full-time rat race behind, but I'm not retiring from writing, recording, or performing Music. I might have scaled back the public events, but have no plans to quit the business entirely.

In fact, I'm currently involved with a full-band reboot of The Mistress Miriam Show, featuring three of the original members plus a new bassist. I'll post our bookings in the sidebar once we get to that point.

31 December - A Look Back

Time to share some pleasant memories from this past year, all mostly local. There were no visits to far-off exotic destinations (unless we count a splendid week spent on the coast of Maine), but there's usually enough going on close by to keep us entertained, and 2023 was no different. Some fun was definitely had, and enough music was made to keep the voice and fingers in shape. Not very many public performances, but I did a lot of studio work, and have projects underway that will take me well into 2024. I'm not able to list everything that went on in these past twelve months (four shows with Mistress Miriam, for example, and me with no photos), but here are a few images.

The Group DeVille Trio played our yearly concert at Williamsburg's Angel Park.

Photos by Henning Ohlenbush (above) and Steve Smith (below)

My friend Chris and I had a lovely dinner out with our dear friend Thomas, (aka the man behind Pugwash), who was over from Ireland for a short tour, promoting his wonderful new album The Rest is History. It was great to see him again. We had fun pointing at each other, something musicians do a lot. And yes, Thomas and I have a pillow on our heads.

Photos by Linda Stevenson

The annual Performance fundraiser for the arts at the Pines Theater in Northampton's Look Park saw me joining Bigger Stars as "Brad Whitford" for a killer portrayal of Aerosmith. This is always a fun show, with upwards of 1000 area residents in the audience, and dozens of musician pals hanging backstage. Like a family reunion, only no arguments with that one difficult uncle. Yes. We totally rocked.

Band photos courtesy of Bigger Stars

It was a sad year too, some of it. But I don't need to elaborate on the dark side. We're past the Winter Solstice. The days are lengthening again, and a new year begins tomorrow. So I'll close this post with a collage of some simple beauty captured on my phone while out and about in 2023.

My best wishes to all of you for tomorrow and beyond.

30 September - Today

It's the last day in September, and once again I'm posting something on the day of the event. I could tell you that all this online promotional stuff got away from me because we've been practicing like mad, but that would be a fib. Anyway – good cause, honored to play. We're closing the show, hitting the stage around 7pm. Early night.

Image: courtesy of Meat for Tea

23 September - Autumn

Hey, look. It's the equinox.

In other news, we've finally chosen a permanent name for the duo. The Story Hour was okay for our trial run back in July, but after further discussion and refinement, we will henceforth be known as Mistress Miriam's Two Cent Revue.

I know this post is ridiculously last minute, but if you're in Easthampton tonight, come and see the show.

5 July - Three Things

1: The Story Hour had a wonderful first gig, and we're looking forward to further developing the act. We already have new music and stories to rehearse, and a photo shoot coming up soon so that fresh promotional material can be created. Fun stuff. Our next show will be at Luthiers Co-Op (Easthampton MA) on September 23rd. Mark your calendars!

2: I'm down to only one Telecaster now, because I traded the two cheap non-Fender ones in and have a new (to me) guitar in the lineup instead. It's a 2022 Epiphone Les Paul Studio model. Alpine White. It plays, as they say, "like buttah."

3: I deleted all my Twitter apps.

31 May - Gigs

1 May - Springing Back to Life

On my Bandcamp page today, I've released a collection of original recordings from the four Group DeVille albums that we put out between 2001 and 2010. A representative sample, if you will, of what I was writing for the band during the years we were most active.

Some of you know that three of us still get together from time to time and run through the old GDV tunes for fun. Occasionally we play a public gig, and we are invariably asked if our music is available for purchase. The CDs have been out of print for ages, but I decided that a sampling of some faves from the GDV catalog would be a good addition to what I have up on Bandcamp as a solo artist.

So here you go: Rick Murnane - The Group DeVille Years.

Longtime fans will recall that Fred and Steve wrote a few GDV songs as well, but of course I do not have the rights to them. The only songs included in this release are Rick Murnane compositions. Those guys can start their own Bandcamp pages!

1 January - Rabbit, Rabbit

Here we go, kids. It's a new year. Let's hope it's a good one.

31 October - Happy Hallo'anniversary

Last year on this date I permanently deleted my Facebook account. Do I miss it? Nope. And I don't expect that I'll bother posting about it every year after this, either. But the first anniversary seems like something to acknowledge.

19 October - All Things Must Pass

Yes, it's a George Harrison album. But it is also sometimes a sad fact of life that applies to one's musical pursuits. The Mistress Miriam Show, a project I've been involved with since May of 2021, has run its course.

Thanks to everyone who cheered us on over the last couple of years, and especially those of you who got up and danced.