I hate the Poosta Ramblers because they are so damned good that I do not want to risk going to the toilet and missing anything. It becomes painful, but it is all for a good cause. Saturday's concert at Gondozo was no different. Following the departure from Budapest of Sugar Rae Hammond, Fiona Stewart stepped in with some lead vocals and her fiddle. Unfortunately (for us), Fiona is also leaving the country (as Mookie commented, "for the right reasons") and the 23rd marked her last (foreseeable) show in Budapest. However, if you are in Toronto on July 26th you can catch her and Mookie Brando at The Cloak and Dagger. The band planned around the European Cup quarter-finals, with the first set followed by a 2-hour football watching break, and then the second set. Gondozo "constructed" a screening room in an adjoining garage through the cso-cso room. It was uncomfortable, but convenient. Funnily, any time someone opened the door, a 6th of the screen disappeared as the game was being projected on the wall. I soon wandered back into the pub and discovered that I was not the only one that preferred the music to the football. Much to my delight, Mookie, Bob and Greg were playing during the intermission after all. Mike, Fiona and later Andor on pedal steel guitar rejoined after the game. Given the busy schedules of 7 band members, it was obvious that they had not practiced together often lately. While not as tight musically as in the past, the harmonies were true and the vibe was great. Moreover, as is their habit, the Poostas added a few new songs to their repertoire. So many songs were played, I am having trouble remembering the ones I particularly enjoyed. Ones that immediately come to mind include: "I Don’t Feel Like Loving You Today" (Gretchen Wilson), "Up on Cripple Creek" (The Band), "Love, Truth and Other Myths" (Mookie Brando), "Downtown Came Uptown" (David Wilcox), "Come On up to the House" (Tom Waits), and "Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down" (Merle Haggard) which I sang riding home on my bike. Read Mookie's blog about the show here.

Best of luck Fiona, and thanks for the great music while you were here!

Pre-Game Set

• White Freight Liner - Townes Van Zandt
• Carved in Stone - The Subdudes
• Our Town - Iris Dement
• Old Old House - George Jones
• Feel the Blues Movin’ In - Del McCoury
• Wayfaring Stranger - trad
• I Don’t Feel Like Loving You Today - Gretchen Wilson
• Something About What Happens… - Lucinda Williams
• Deportee - Woodie Guthrie
• Up on Cripple Creek – The Band

Halftime Show

• Angelina - Mookie Brando
• Angel Tonight - Mookie Brando
• Love, Truth and Other Myths - Mookie Brando
• Stormy Monday - T-Bone Walker
• To Love Somebody - The Bee Gees
• Downtown Came Uptown - David Wilcox
• Next Teardrop Falls - Freddie Fender

Post-Game Set

• Friend of the Devil - The Grateful Dead
• Tennessee Waltz - Patti Page
• Make Me Down a Pallet – Mississippi John Hurt
• Down the Road - Michael Kentish
• Don’t Come Home a’ Drinkin - Loretta Lynn
• Fallin and Flyin - Jeff Bridges
• Blue Kentucky Girl – Loretta Lynn
• Jambalaya - Hank Williams
• One More Time - Ray Price
• Brand New Angel - Jeff Bridges
• Good Year For the Roses - George Jones
• Subtract One Love - George Jones
• Come On up to the House - Tom Waits
• You Ain’t Going Nowhere - Bob Dylan
• One Light Left in Heaven - Blue Rodeo
• Where the Stars Go Blue – Ryan Adams
• This Day - Michael Kentish
• More Pretty Girls - Senator Robert Byrd
• You’ll Get No More of Me - Hazel Dickens

• Happy Trails - Roy Rogers
• Long Long Long Time Ago - The Tea Thieves
• Redneck Mother - Jerry Jeff Walker
• Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down – Merle Haggard