The Big Ak and Zuie Topic

All about Steve Jay, Jon "Bermuda" Schwartz, Rubén Valtierra, and Jim West.

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catanddogdoctor
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Post by catanddogdoctor »

Back to the original subject, I got to see Ak & Zuie last Saturday night, and they were awesome! Jim West was also there, and played guitar for a few songs. I can't repeat this enough: DON'T miss the chance to see these guys live! You can hear samples of their music on StephenJay.com, or better yet, send for some of his cds!

Here's a photo of the guys taken 5/3/03. (Thank you Scottidog for your editing!) Vikki

[ http://home.bendcable.com/bjordan735/AZ02.jpg ]


That picture is so cool! Thanks for sharing!!!



Maria
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erkman27
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:)

Post by erkman27 »

Ok..please don't berrate me too much...just wanted to say Stupidhippie is very attractive 8) (again...please no tomatoes or twinkies thrown..thanks)



-Erik
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Glenville Ak & Zuie review

Post by MilesJayClubPres »

The Glenville show was GREAT!!!!! I had a blast. The show started around 12:30, so I tried to rush there as much as we could. I think I had about the shortest trip ever made from venue to venue. LOL It took the guys about 40-45 minutes to get there, but we made it in about 25. El (ejfan) went with me, I encouraged people to go, and they did. It was a small, but very mighty crowd. :) They were all thoroughly digging it. Set list as follows:

Go Like This

Cool Dry Place

People Will Be Tired

Be Like That

She Was the One

(didn't write the next one down)

Sloopy

All of the Above

Medley (Whatever It Is, Who Can, Big Shoes - Steve asked me if I had any requests, and when I said Big Shoes he said they'd do it as part of this medley. loved it!)

So It Go

Can't Wait Long

Circle of the Sun

You Can Tell

You Are Alive

(forgot to write this down, too. It was a "Zuie song" :) )



Great show! After they were done playing, Steve said he had a bunch of cds that he'd give everyone who was there (so nice of him!). I asked about the new shirts (I was wearing the one I already had- thanks Cinnamon!), and Pete sold me one. :) They're cool- they have Ak & Zuie written on the front in the middle, and the definition on the back. I got a few pictures, and a guy who I persuaded to come got some nice ones, so those should be up on the Ak & Zuie yahoo group fairly soon. :) I have my pictures up there now.

GO SEE AK & ZUIE! YOU'LL LOVE IT! If anyone wants a flyer, please let me know and I'll e-mail it to you.

Can't wait for Sunday and Monday!

:) Moonbeam

*Ak & Zuie promoter!* :choon:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ak_n_zuie_group
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scottidog
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Post by scottidog »

Definition of Ak and Zuie?



And what is Miles holding in your avatar? I need details please!
MilesJayClubPres
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Post by MilesJayClubPres »

Ak means bass and Zuie means drums. They have a whole definition thing on the flyers and on the new t-shirts. :) In my avatar, Miles is holding a sign that says "Hi, Moonbeam" :biggrin:
catanddogdoctor
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Post by catanddogdoctor »

Definition of Ak and Zuie?

And what is Miles holding in your avatar? I need details please!


You can find some info on how Ak & Zuie came to be here...



http://www.stephenjay.com/akandzuiebio.html



Maria
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Post by CatraDhtem »

Sounds like the show was a blast, Moonbeam. I really hope some more shows get scheduled for the fall.....I'm gonna be in that "anywhere in a 100-mile radius" mentality to see them perform.
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richegreen
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Ak & Zuie Reviews (was at BB Kings...)

Post by richegreen »

By personal request from Steve, here is my review of the show:



On July 21, 2003 at B.B. King's in New York City, I attended my first ever Ak & Zuie show.....and it blew away my expectations!! I attended the show with my friends Rachael and Blaine, and also saw a bunch of familiar faces in the audience, some of which I haven't had a chance to talk to since the Scissors tour, and some of which I have never had the opportunity to meet face to face before. BB King's is a small basement club/restaurant, although there is no required cover. Rachael had already gotten a great table right in front of the stage, which worked out great for me as I rushed there right from work and the place was almost full when I arrived.



The performance started at 8PM, with Steve Jay on 8 string bass and vocals, and Pete Gallagher on a very wood-looking drum kit and vocals. They performed for about an hour and 15 minutes, playing tracks from Steve's solo albums (in very interesting drum & bass arrangements) as well as some other (new?) stuff. I didn't write down or memorize the exact setlist, so I'll leave it to someone else to post that. I must say, I was impressed from the very first song. Although I was familiar with Steve's solo albums and very aware of his talent, this is the first time I have ever seen it showcased in this way. I've seen Weird Al 15 times in concert (14 of those with Steve playing bass), and although Steve always put on a fabulous performance, Al's style of music really doesn't allow him to show off his full talent, and is too tightly scripted for any form of improvization (I mean c'mon...a 3 note bass solo? It's funny stuff, but...) and I was just amazed at how talented he was in a more serious, open format. I was also pleasently surprised with how musical a bass and drum duet show could be. These are usually thought of as the rhythm section of a band, but these instruments really led the melody (along with occasional vocals from Steve and Pete) and kept it going. I didn't get bored for one minute of the entire set.



After closing the set with a cover of Hang On Sloopy, the band took a half hour intermission. I used this time to chat with some of my friends I saw in the audience and catch up with them. They then re-took this stage, this time with Weird Al guitarist Jim West. Remember what I was saying about Steve's complete musicianship being held back in a way when he plays with Al? ... well, Jim proved that he could hold his own just as well. I've seen both Mike McCready and Kirk Hamlet perform within the last month, and Jim blew both of them away with his performance during the second set! Jim was playing with chord sheets for most of the songs, but he could have fooled me into thinking that he'd been playing with Ak & Zuie for years. The second set was about 45 minutes long, and was more material from Steve's albums, including some LOOOONG solo jams during the middle of some of the songs. They threw a cover of Wild Thing into the middle, which was good enough to fool me into thinking that they wrote it. Maybe it was just me, but they seemed to get louder and louder in the last 20 minutes, to the point where it was starting to get uncomfortable, but otherwise the performance was wonderful.



After the second set ended, the band left the stage and immediately went into the audience to greet us. I sat down with Steve at Jay Levey's table for a couple of minutes and chatted with them. Steve agreed with me that the New Hampshire show last weekend was one of the best ones that they've done. Since I was just about the only person in the audience who WASN'T going to the Westbury shows, a conversation started up about them. Steve said that although that's a neat place, it's one of the more annoying venues for him, due to the rotating stage. He said that he tends to lose his sense of gravity, which throws him off. Before I left, Steve asked if I was going to be writing a nice positive review for the internet audience to read....is this good enough for ya, Steve ;) ?



Ever since I first heard Sea Never Dry, I have been interested in seeing Steve/Ak & Zuie perform. Up until last night, they have only been performing in California, so I was SO happy when I found out they would be doing a NYC show, and I am VERY happy that I was able to attend it. If by chance they ever get to perform in the New York area again (or if they're in town wherever I happen to be), I will not hesitate to see them perform again.
catanddogdoctor
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Re: Ak & Zuie at BB King's, NYC

Post by catanddogdoctor »

Thanks so much for the review!!!! It sounds like you guys had a wonderful time!



Maria :onfire:






By personal request from Steve, here is my review of the show: <snipped>
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TMBJon
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Post by TMBJon »

great review, rich. sounds like maybe Jon, Jim, Steve, and Ruben should go record a serious CD. hehe.
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