Jazz and country, around the county:
– The one-of-a-kind sounds of jazz group Quasimofo will play at North Hudson’s Season’s Tavern in a return engagement on Saturday, March 23. Keyboard player Chris Ashwood describes the band “as a power jazz trio, with a big band sound in a little combo. Our influences are rock, blues and R and B, with a little bit of punk rock attitude.” The group, which are Hudsonites and feature Ashwood’s dad, Paul, on the drums, will most likely play the jazz fest in St. Paul later in the year and they are getting a lot of gigs in the Twin Cities, Chris Ashwood said. Be sure to get to Seasons early, as music starts around 8 p.m.
– A multi-faceted Night of Country is being presented by St Croix Animal Friends on Saturday, March 23 at the Valley House, 1237 Highway 35, Hudson. Social hour starts at 5 p.m., dinner at 6, contests and activities at 7:30 and dancing at 9 to midnight. There will be raffles, a silent auction, contests and a photographer will make a record the evening’s activities for guests. Music will be by The Ricks, a local country western band who will also offer line dancing lessons. Tickets are available online at the website, www.scafshelter.org, or by calling Diana at (715) 386-4004 or the Valley House. All proceeds go towards building a new home for St Croix Animal Friends, a local organization that is making its first priority to build a much needed shelter for housing domestic animals.
– The Wolf River Band will bring their brand of country to the Willow River Inn in Burkhardt on Friday, March 22. The band has opened for stars like Loretta Lynn and George Jones, to name a couple, and has been nominated for Native American Music Awards and Wisconsin Area Music Industry Awards. They had a No. 1 hit in Europe for their rendition of Honky Tonkin’ by Hank Williams. The band members range in age from the early 20s to the mid 50s, and it shows in the diversity of their song mix, which includes mostly traditional country, fiddle music and ’50s and ’60s rock. The Wolf River Band does songs by Brooks & Dunn, Ernest Tubb, Willie Nelson, Box Car Willie and Elvis, to name a few.
– Then on Saturday night, it’s the idea of luck be a lady tonight, mixed with a bit of black leather to go with lace, as a beautiful and talented songstress with black locks leads the rock quartet Lady Luck when they play Willow River Inn. The versatile group plays a variety of tunes and tempos, but for the most part they really rock out ’80s style– as you might guess from their logo, an Ace of Spades that is set to the pattern of an actual playing card that’s handed out to patrons.