NEWS
OES Closes Out the Outdoor Music Season at Otium Cellars
On Easy Street closed out the fall outdoor performance season with a fun Saturday at Otium Cellars in Purcellville, VA. Visitors young and old enjoyed themselves, like these two new band members holding down the percussion section for a few tunes.
OES Performs at Leesburg First Friday.
10.01.2021
OES performed at Leesburg's monthly event which filled the downtown area with entertainment of all kinds. We shared our music on the lower level of Market Station, where customers of many different businesses could relax on a beautiful evening and enjoy some fun music.
OES is back!
04.14.2021
After a year-long break from performing due to COVID restrictions, On Easy Street is back! Our return performance will be on Saturday, May 22 from 2 to 5 pm at Maggie Malick Wine Caves on Harpers Ferry Road in Purcellville, VA. We are returning with two talented new band members: guitarist Jackson Valad, and bassist Chris Thompson. The whole band is looking forward to seeing fans old and new in about a month.
OES Plays at Benefit Function
02.28.2020
OES was excited to partner with Bethel Presbyterian Church to hold a free concert to benefit Tree of Life Ministries. OES contributed their time and talent, the church provided the venue, and the church and community corporate sponsors are supplying refreshments. This event was lots of fun, drew a great crowd, and supported a worthy cause. Tree of Life helps those in need in our community with food, lifeskills, shelter, healthcare and relief.
OES Plays at Benefit Function
09.14.2019
OES was pleased to donate their time and music to the Rotary club of Leesburg for the second year, providing the featured entertainment for their Perry Winston Scholarship fundraising banquet. The Club gives three yearly scholarships of $10,000 to college-bound students in need from any of Leesburg’s three high schools. People were dancing and singing along; it was a fun evening.
Donations for Hurricane Victims
10.28.2018
On Easy Street had it's hat out on October 20 when we played at Maggie Malick Wine Caves in support of the victims of Hurricane Michael. $100 was collected that chilly afternoon, and 100% of those gifts will go directly to the support and assistance of those affected by the storm.
Rotary Club of Leesburg Fundraising Dinner
9.29.2018
On Easy Street was the featured entertainment when the Rotary Club of Leesburg held a fund-raising banquet for their Perry Winston Scholarship on September 29, 2018. The Club gives three yearly scholarships of $10,000 to college-bound students from any of Leesburg’s three high schools. Catering was provided by Wined and Dined, and the band made a new good friend in Chef Katie. On Easy Street was a huge hit with guests, and the event was an unqualified success.
Restoration of the Ludwig Super Classic drum kit
9.04.2018
Chip, OES's drummer, has been working on a special project. Here's the story.
In 1964 Mick Lione bought a new Ludwig Super Classic drum set in red sparkle from Village Music in Newark, NJ. Right after the Beatles hit the U.S., the music scene was big. Mick was gigging several nights a week in the NY metro area. His band had some standing engagements, and his drums became the back-line kit for some big names that would frequent the larger clubs.
The drum set has been played by Michael Hossack (the Doobie Brothers), Steven Bladd (J. Geils band), and by the session drummers who were backing up Chubby Checker, Johnny Maistro, Joey Dee, Sha Na Na, Clarence Clemons, Gary U.S. Bonds, the Drifters, Michael Bruce, the Coasters, and it has shared the stage with members of Cactus and Vanilla Fudge.
Lione later augmented the set, adding a second bass drum and second mounted tom tom. The only physical modifications he made was the addition of a Gretsch cymbal mount to the bass drum and the removal of the original rail consolete (tom tom mount).
Lione sold the drum set to our drummer, Chip, in 1975. Over the course of the next six years Chip modified the original set by drilling the original bass drum for a mount to add two concert toms, and made other physical alterations to make gigging easier.
After Chip went to college he packed the drums away. When he got back into playing his interests had turned to jazz and he obtained a Gretsch set because the Ludwigs were not suitable for jazz. Or so he thought. As he began to realize what he had stored away in the closet his attention turned toward restoring those drums. He sold off the concert toms and the drums from the 70s and began to work toward restoring the set to its original condition.
The project took more than five years, but it's now complete and the drums are restored to their near-pristine 1964 configuration.
Watch for Chip to be playing the 1964 red sparkle Ludwig Super Classic at our outdoor gigs!
Before, circa 1980
After, back to its glory days
On Easy Street featured in artist showcase
7.22.2018
Round Hill's landmark bank building will be the site of an evening of art and entertainment on July 26. The event includes art exhibits, tastings by local breweries and wineries, tours of the historic building, and music by On Easy Street. Stop in between 5 and 8 pm.
On Easy Street coming to Trinity House Cafe
7.12.2018
On East Street has played shows at THC many times; what makes this one different? The new patio! The old stage, uneven grass and picnic tables have been replaced with a beautiful patio area with cafe tables and a brand new stage. Come see OES on July 21 and enjoy the beautiful changes to the venue.
On Easy Street welcomes Dan Duffy.
6.7.2018
We are pleased to introduce our new bass player, Dan Duffy. Dan works in IT, but has certificates from Berklee College of Music in jazz guitar and jazz bass. We're really putting him though his paces, but he's a quick study.
Wonderful afternoon at Heritage Hall.
6.2.2018
Great day playing for the residents of Heritage Hall with one of the interested bass players (he did great). As our music is mostly vocal jazz from the 20s-50s, it was a joy to see those dear folks singing along to the songs with their eyes closed, tapping their feet and swinging to the grooves. Some of them cried as they relived memories from long ago. Among the best comments: "Thanks so much for coming! I felt like a little girl again." "That was the best music ever written." "I wish I had a nickel for every time I danced to one of those songs" "That was great! See you tomorrow!"
Before we started playing we were talking to some of the residents, and one older gentleman, blind and in a wheel chair, said to our singer, "I sing a little too." He starting singing in the most beautiful crooning voice, and she sat with him and held his hands, singing harmony to what he was singing. It was a great day!