May 12
Greetings from Europe
Howdy my friends! I write this to you from Helsinki Finland in the middle of
a European tour with Jason and the Scorchers. It has been a great tour, and
the band is playing at its peak. I honestly think the version of JATS is as
good as any to date.

Driving to Newcastle we stopped at Hadrian's Wall. It was built by the
Romans across northern England to keep out the Picts, Scotts, and Celts.
Originally it was 10-12 feet tall and ran all the way across England with
forts and garrisons all along the way. I had never seen it and as luck would
have it, we drove right by it en route to Newcastle. So I begged the fellows
to stop and see it, explaining how cool it would be to see this giant Roman
wall.  However, when we got there, it was a bit disappointing.  Over the
centuries, farmers had taken those perfect square stones and used them to
build houses and barns. The remaining "wall" was only 3 or 4 feet high...
That wouldn't even keep out sheep! Farmer Jason did not approve of his
historic farmer colleagues taking those stones!!

Thank you for all the inquiries and prayers about the Nashville flood. Our
family was not affected, but so many were. I was here in Europe all during
it, but sounds like it was a once in a millennium kind of flood.  

Once again I was blessed to be able to play shows in my old home area in
North Illinois this April in Milan and Kewanee.  The Milan show was the
farewell event for the Coyne Learning Center, since it is closing after this
year. I am honored that they chose me for this event, although saddened as
well. It is a great school, and will be missed by the families it has
served.

The Kewanee show was so poignant, given that I was born there.  Many old
friends, relatives, and teachers attended.  There were so many surprises.
Some of those folks I hadn't seen since high school.  I come from good folk.

There are lots of Farmer Jason and some solo dates coming this summer. I
look forward to seeing you at those shows.

May 12
Farmer Jason visits Illinois
Farmer Jason returned to his home area of Bureau/Henry County in
Northern Illinois April 16 and 17 to play several shows.  The Milan show at
the Coyne Preschool was the last public event at the school. It will be
closed after this year. They chose Farmer Jason for this farewell event. At
Kewanee, Jason did three events. First he met with theater and music high
school students to discuss careers in the performance world, and then did
two Farmer Jason concerts at the Peterson Auditorium.  Here are some links
about the events. -

www.starcourier.com/education

www.starcourier.com/feature

March 24
Belcourt Theater Fun
Here's a nice photo of Farmer Jason with Emma Grace and Mae Elaine Petty modeling their cool t-shirts at the recent sold out Nashville show. For more photo's from the show why not take a peak at our revamped gallery pages here. Thanks go out to Frank Keesee for the Belcourt Theatre photos.

March 24
Belcourt Theater Show Sold Out
The March 27, Belcourt Theatre show in Nashville has now sold out. That's good news for Nashville Public Television March Pledge Drive as a portion of the net proceeds will be contributed to that worthy cause.

March 12
FJ's Little Helpers
Here is a great shot of Libby Eubanks's grandchildren and friends with Farmer Jason at the recent Tir Na Nog show in Raleigh. They look better than Farmer Jason in those overalls!

March 2
Halcyon Times in USA TODAY
Halcyon Times is the Pick of the Week in today's USA TODAY (page 5D). You can see the piece online here.

March 2
Halcyon Times and the Passing of Ed Hodges
So we now release Halcyon Times, the first Jason and the Scorchers record of new material since 1996. Yikes, that was 14 years ago! How did that happen??!! Almost everyone who hears the cd is calling it one of our finest efforts to date. I do agree, and I am not the kind of artist who says every record I am involved with is "our best one yet." (I always wonder how artist who say that with every release can claim any credibility...)

No one is more surprised than me that this release even happened, let alone that it is a career record. I was quite reticent about the whole idea, but Warner kept after me. Certainly bringing Al Collins and Pontus Snibb on as the new rhythm section was a huge step in the right direction. That is truly a rhythm section for the ages. They nail it. Warner of course is playing at the top of his game, and I feel like I have learned a lot as a singer since the last JATS record. Honestly, being Farmer Jason the past 6 years has focused my singing considerably. I have learned to concentrate and enunciate more clearly, and to completely go into character.

Another huge advantage we had on this release was the impressive team of folks who threw in. As always, manager Deb was there every step of the way, and the Farmer Jason/ Jason Ringenberg designer and website manager Paul Needham brought his full support and impressive array of skills to the party. Dan Baird and Ginger Wildheart offered their services in whatever way they could help, free of charge. They both were an amazing asset to us. Ginger flew in for a week in February and co-wrote 9 of the songs, and then demoed them all for us! Dan offered to produce the record. When we went with Brad Jones instead, he then unselfishly jumped in help write the cd, and to play rhythm guitar during the sessions. I still can't believe he gave us the Days of Wine and Roses idea. Imagine Homemade Sin doing that song... All in all, you put Warner Hodges, me, Al Collins, Pontus Snibb, Brad Jones, Ginger Wildheart, Tommy Womack, and Dan Baird together and you do have a rock 'n' roll dream team. It was a marvelous experience working with such talent, and one that I will not forget.

As most of you know, Warner's father Ed Hodges passed away February 16. Many JATS fans have seen or met Ed, since he and Blanche made every show we ever played in Middle Tennessee, often joining us on stage to jam. Ed was often like a second father to me, and also a dear friend. Since he was a musician himself, he knew the language and the matrix. Even though he was not of our generation, he could hang out with us rockers on equal terms. At the end of the day he was one of us.

I have so many fond memories of him. In the early days of the band, he would sing Haggard's "Working Man Blues" with us, and I would play bass!!! My bass playing must have sounded atrocious, but he always invited me to do it, since he instinctively knew how much I enjoyed playing bass on a song. He was that kind of guy- rock solid and completely at ease in his own skin. He epitomized the term "Southern Hospitality", always first up to help anyone who needed it. I never knew him to say anything stupid or divisive. I never knew him to be flakey about anything. I never knew him to be anything but kind and courteous. On top of all that, he was one smart cat: an old country boy who started with nothing and made something of himself.

He was my friend, and I will always consider the experience of knowing him to be one of the great blessings of my life.

May he Rest in Peace.

March 2
Farmer Jason on NPT Pledge Month
Nashville Public Television has been a big supporter of Farmer Jason, producing and airing his Emmy winning videos and generally being there when needed. March is Pledge Month at NPT, and once again NPT will be airing several 30 minute Farmer Jason shows featuring the videos and talking to Farmer Jason while taking pledges. For those of you interested in helping NPT, please make your pledges during the Farmer Jason segments, since this shows NPT that Farmer Jason has broad support out there. Even though you call during to Farmer Jason Pledge Shows, you can still choose other Pledge thank you gifts very easily if you choose. Some of the shows have an opportunity to win tickets for the Belcourt March 27 show.

Here are the times of the FJ Pledge Shows. Again, please make your pledges at one of these times.

Mon Mar 8, 10am (with Belcourt show ticket offer)

Fri Mar 12, 11:30am (with Belcourt show ticket offer)

Sat Mar 13, 7:30am (without ticket offer)

Tue Mar 16, 1pm (without ticket offer)

Fri Mar 19, 2pm (without ticket offer)

The numbers to call for pledges are : Out of Nashville- 800 355 5310, in Nashville- 615 259 2100

March 2 - New
Farmer Jason takes part in "Read Me Day"
This shot is taken from behind the stage at Nashvilles "Read Me Day"
where Farmer Jason provided entertainment for the event. The kids are
jumping in the air during The Kitty Song.

"Read Me Day" is an nonprofit event where Nashville polititians and
celebreties go into local schools in underserved neighborhoods and read
to the kids. Farmer Jason shared his reading experience with Charles
Davis, a retired NBA star who has his own charity foundation.

February 22
Jason & The Scorchers hit Europe in May
Jason & The Scorchers 2010 European Tour kicks off in The Netherlands on April 29. The month long trip takes in Holland, the UK, Norway and Spain. For full details visit - www.jasonandthescorchers.com

February 12
Belcourt Tickets On Sale
Tickets for the Belcourt Farmer Jason show March 27 in Nashville are now on sale at www.belcourt.org Be sure to get tickets in advance for this one, as it likely will sell out.

February 1
Ira Sings The Doggie Dance
Here is a clip of two year old Ira from Nashville singing the Doggie Dance http://vimeo.com

January 20
New Jason Ringenberg and Farmer Jason radio interview online
Both Jason Ringenberg and Farmer Jason made an interview appearance on the legendary WSM AM 650 station in Nashville to promote the Music City Roots show January 13. WSM, known as the “Air Castle of the South” and “The Mother Church of Country Music” is still pumping out great classic country, bluegrass, and Americana. Jason appeared during the “Coffee, Country, and Cody” morning show with Bill Cody. It is one of Jason’s favorite radio shows, a true slice of Americana so rare in this formatted corporate era. To hear the interview go to: wsmradio