An American Songline

Journeys in Vintage Music with Cecelia Otto

Grassroots

Cece’s First Visit to New Jersey

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I can’t honestly believe I’ve now been on the road with this tour for about ten days now. Some things feel like they happened weeks ago, other things seconds ago. No matter what the feelings I’ve had the last several days, the common denominator is this:

I have never been to New Jersey before. Ever.

This part of the trip is completely unfamiliar to me. Which makes everything that much more exciting and nerve-wracking all at the same time.

I’d like to say that New Jersey doesn’t fulfill all of the stereotypes I’ve seen on TV all these years, but there’s a little truth to everything isn’t there? There’s both good and bad in everywhere you go, and no place is perfect. In my roughly 45 mile drive from Weehawken (right across from Manhattan) to Princeton, I saw a lot of things that fell into that nasty stereotype.  I’ve driven in a lot of places around the world, and I can honestly say that I’ve seen more aggressive driving here than anywhere else I’ve ever driven-hands down. Those first 20 miles in New Jersey right outside of New York City were incredibly depressing and bleak. But on the other hand, Princeton, New Jersey is a beautiful college town. Lovely people and picturesque places make this well worth a stop if you venture out this way. I was lucky to be here when the all of the trees were flowering, and it just elevated the experience to a whole other level.

Driving this part of the Lincoln is not easy-you now have fair warning if you didn’t know it already. Compared to other states, it’s not as well marked. I relied on Jerry’s paper guide (see the previous New York post) and my GPS to tell me where I was. What dawned on me while I was getting lost in Newark was that 100 years ago, this would have been the main route for people to follow of just a handful of routes that existed. On some levels, it might have been easier to follow the road a century ago (that’s if you car didn’t break down).

On that note, I did have a minor emergency while in Princeton with my car. My trunk latch broke (eek), but luckily I was able to get it fixed right away (no rope needed). I guess everyone has a car story for their cross country road trip, let’s hope I got mine out of the way.

I finished driving through New Jersey yesterday afternoon, and am now in the Philadelphia area for the next week. Here’s some of my New Jersey pictures I wanted to share with you all. Enjoy, and keep finding the songs and roads wherever they take you!

View of Manhattan from Weehawken, New Jersey.

 

Picture of downtown Newark, on the 1913 route.
Phonograph collection at the Edison museum, Edison NJ. All of the records played too!
This Uncle Sam would tap dance while the 78 played-pretty cool!
Me, Andrew Sotomayor (my accompanist for both the NY and NJ shows), and Albert Einstein at the Bainbridge House in Princeton, New Jersey.
For all of the hardcore buffs out there, the Historical Society let me take a look at the Department of Interior’s Lincoln Highway Book.
The only surviving Lincoln Highway marker in New Jersey is in Princeton, right across from the street by Carnegie Lake.
Front view of the LH marker.
This graffiti was on a shed right on Carnegie Lake. I thought it was quote that had to be shared.
Front of the Bainbridge House in Princeton, a house that has been standing since 1766. This is the building where I performed my concert on the 19th-what a great space to sing in!
Flowering tree path. I found these trees while spending an afternoon walking around Princeton University.
Interesting building along the route in Trenton, NJ.
View of the Capitol building in Trenton NJ from the PA side.
Built in 1884, the Calhoun Street Bridge truly takes you back in time as you go across it. That 15 mph speed limit is definitely enforced-it’s one of the most narrow bridges I’ve been across in a car.
Signs posted when entering the bridge-all for good reason. I would definitely not want to bring a horse on this bridge, ha ha!
Lincoln Highway Sign on the PA side of the Calhoun Street Bridge.

Pre-Depature Thoughts

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At this time next week, I’ll be standing in New York City. My rehearsal for the inaugural performance at the Duplex Cabaret will be finished, and then I’ll have some down time before I perform my first show on the 13th. I can’t call it the “calm before the storm” because it won’t be that negative. It will be be more of a “pause before the whirlwind”. But I know it will be a great whirlwind – it will all go so fast.

I’ve been researching this travelogue as well as rehearsing/living with this the music for years, and there’s a part of me that honestly can’t believe I’ll be actually be doing this tour. I’ve been corresponding with people in New York and New Jersey for months who are now writing “See you soon-literally!” My mind is definitely blown on so many levels to read these words and know it will actually be true very soon.

There will be amazing and not-so-amazing points on this journey, but I know that’s what this is all about. I look forward to this road ahead of me, and I’m so grateful for all of your wonderful wishes and thoughts for this project.

Have a great weekend-and I hope to see you on the road!

We did it! Success on Kickstarter, Podcast interview, plus more updates

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It’s been one month since I last posted. Thanks to many you, all funds have been raised on my Kickstarter campaign which means I do not have charge admission to any of my historic concerts on this tour. Again, I thank you all for making this project a big success.

In the last month, the awareness has grown about the project by leaps and bounds which is wonderful! I’ve been featured in a few places this month online, and I wanted to share all of those links with you.

1) My podcast interview with Jon Grayson with Ovenight America is now available online for your listening pleasure. Our 20 minute conversation about this project as well as early 20th Century American Music is definitely worth a listen when you have time.

2) Roadside Author Brian Butko featured my project in a blog post on his Lincoln Highway News website. If you are interested in anything related to this road, you should definitely follow his blog too.

3) Last but not least, Jamie from My Lincoln Highway has been mentioning the project on her website since day one of the campaign. Another great website dedicated to “The Father Road”, Jamie walks different sections of the highway taking beautiful photo essays of what she sees.

I’ll be featured in more media as time goes on, so check back on my website Press page to see it all.

Thank you again for being a part of history, and I hope to see you on the road this year!

New Year, New website!

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Hello everyone,

Hope everyone’s 2013 has got off to a great start! I’ve been running full speed the last few weeks trying to finalize the tour and get out the word to everyone about what I’m doing this year.

There’s been a lot of great changes to the website in preparation for this tour, including a Press page with photos and a press release, Audio and Video samples of me performing, a Frequently Asked Questions page, and an online store where you can buy the preview CD (you can also make donations to help with the project as well). Stay tuned for the tour page, where I will be listing all of the concerts shortly.

Again, this project is a grassroots effort. The more you and your communities participate with this endeavor, the better the project will be. If you would still like to help me, it’s not too late! I still need to find venues to perform along the route, musicians to accompany me and lodging, please contact me via email or through the contact page on the website.

Thank you all for your support this year, and I look forward to meeting you all very soon!