a moment of thought before these July summer updates.

(photo by Shannon Helton)

Greetings, my friends and foes. The midwest tour with Porterwas a resounding success and the shows all went off without a hitch. Thanks to everyone in every single town we performed in for all of your love and support. By stitching together these stories we spun, we'll have words to share for years to come.

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Alas, on this tour, a devastating event occured at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, when a deranged and hateful young man opened fire on a group of innocent church patrons and staff. Without a shadow of a doubt, this crime was fueled by the terminal, generational disease of racism. The ancient, outdated flag of the failed Confederacy still flies in South Carolina amongst other places. This flag stood beside slavery less than a century and a half ago. I see musicians, artists, athletes, and even politicians who mourn the folks lost in SC that day are also aware of the sick symbolism the flag holds. For those who still fly that flag, take it down for the sake of humanity, for the sake of love, and for the sake of those who were lost on the holy grounds of the Emanuel AME church.

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Hold onto your hats and swimsuits, Poolboy is getting back together for a few shows this summer! Come see Poolboy at Norman's one and only Guestroom Records on Friday, July 10, at 7pm. We will be performing alongside fellow garage-rockers The Pizza Thieves.

I am honored to say I'll be performing at Woody Guthrie Folk Festival this year. Each year, the festival is held in Woody's hometown, Okemah, amongst the July heat, the love of folk music, and the historic Dust Bowl lore the city holds. I will be at the Brick Street Tavern, on Saturday, July 11, spinning my own songs and surely some traditionals.

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In December of last year, I assissted Samantha Crain in making her new record "Under Branch, Thorn, and Tree" at Tiny Telephones in San Francisco, CA. We worked with excellent folks, including mastermind tape king John Vanderslice and modular orchestra extraordinaires Magik*Magik Orchestra. The record is being released on two dates before Samantha's release tour. Come check out these beautifully written songs at: July 16 at The OPOLIS, Norman, OK (w/ Tallows) July 17 at Woody Guthrie Center, Tulsa, OK (w/ Desi and Cody)

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I will be going on two tours in coming months, one with my dear friend M. Lockwood Porter and the other tour with my charming brother Levi Parham. Will definitely keep you updated here. Take care and be kind.

love,

john calvin abney

June Tour Dates with Porter.

Hey, folks of the midwest and almost-northeast US.

Chris Porter, alt-country singer from Austin, TX, released a killer record called "This Red Mountain" (produced by Centro-Matic's Will Johnson) this spring. In support of both his record and mine, we have plotted a duo tour across some states in order to raise hell, sing songs, and learn some new stories.

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6/17/15 : Austin, TX : Strange Brew 6/18/15 : Ft. Worth, TX : Fred's Texas Cafe w/ Daniel Markham 6/19/15 : St. Louis, MO : Off Broadway w/ John Moreland (Tickets) 6/20/15 : Louisville, KY : Shaker Village House Concert 6/21/15 : TBA 6/22/15 : Columbus, OH : Tree Bar 6/23/15 : New York, NY : Rockwood Music Hall (Tickets) 6/24/15 : Baltimore, MD : Club 603 House Concert w/ Caleb Caudle (Tickets) 6/25/15 : Knoxville, TN : Center For Creative Minds 6/26/15 : Nashville, TN : BB King's Blues Club w/ Aaron Lee Tasjan 6/27/15 : Tupelo, MS : Blue Canoe 6/28/15 : OKC, OK : Blue Door (Tickets) 6/30/15 Austin, Texas : The FINAL Last Tuesday Warehouse series w/ Ben Ballinger

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(poster by Shannon "Pax" Helton)

More shows coming soon.

-cheers, john

When a song ends, the stories remain, and memory serves to hold tight the times we share.

(photo by Erin Margaret Rambo)

Hello, folks, and good afternoon from Central Standard Time Zone, Oklahoma, USA.

One of Oklahoma's finest publications in history, This Land Press, is launching a stunning quarterly magazaine in lieu of the newsprint edition. The wonderful people at TLP asked me to play songs at their launch party in Oklahoma City on Thursday, April 23 at Full Circle Books. Come celebrate from 7-9pm, I'll be singing at 7:30 after the editor has a Q&A.

Norman Music Festival is this weekend in Norman, Oklahoma, and I will be performing on the Depot Main Stage on Saturday, April 25, 3:30pm. Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires, Steve Pryor, Michael Hosty, and Paper Bird, amongst other bands will be performing on the same stage through out the day. Check out the festival websitefor additional information. I will be pulling the aces from my sleeves and committing some act of wild magic.

It is festival season indeed, and Oklahoma is hosting more than one in coming months. On May 1st, The Queen of the Prairie Festival is going to be taking place, and I will be accompanying Samantha Crain as a part of her band with a whole set of great musicians. Check it out and grab tickets before they sell out.

I will be making my way to Illinois and the upper midwest to perform with the folk songbird wordcrafter Heather Styka as a duo for a set of house shows, a live in-studio on WDCB, and a couple other performances. We will both be performing our own songs and some pieces we have worked on together. You can get more information on the showdate section of the site, or at Heather Styka's site.

Currently working on an east coast tour and will be posting updates on the endeavors ahead. Until then, everybody, take care and keep moving.

with everything,

john