Author Archives: jamiebobamie

About jamiebobamie

Musician - teacher - writer - gets bored easily. I write an almost-weekly blog that includes true stories gathered from 20-plus years of touring, how-to articles for musicians and profiles of performers. Also, I love dark chocolate, I can play "Brown Eyed Girl" behind my head, and I twirl the baton badly.

Drive All Day is out! Read a sample chapter here.

Posted on June 14, 2022 by jamiebobamie

I’m way beyond excited to announce the release of my third book. It’s a collection of true-life stories from a musician, moi, who’s toured and taught for over 30 years. I tell you about my visit to New York City … Continue reading →

Posted in comedy, Folk music, LGBT music, music, Music business, music lessons, Playing the guitar, Playing the ukulele, Stories from the road, Women's Music | Leave a comment

Now it’s time to drive all day

Posted on March 6, 2021 by jamiebobamie

I won’t pretend this Pandemic has been good. However, for writers, it’s meant more time to, well, write. I used to have weekends crowded with gigs and social activities. Now I have two clear days to do some of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Performing in a Pandemic

Posted on August 28, 2020 by jamiebobamie

I lost months of gigs during the pandemic. Stuck at home I did what many artists did – I created. No nasty virus was going to keep me from making music. I got busy setting up concerts on Facebook and … Continue reading →

Posted in Folk music, music, Playing the guitar, Playing the ukulele | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Funny songs for strange times

Posted on April 11, 2020 by jamiebobamie

I hope everyone is staying safe. Comedy shows have been cancelled but it doesn’t mean you can’t laugh while you’re sequestered at home. Here are some songs about toilet paper, Purell (to the tune of “Jolene,” of course) and trying … Continue reading →

Posted in comedy, music | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

An Army of Lovers Saves Me from a Nightmare on Commercial Street

Posted on October 27, 2019 by jamiebobamie

First things first. MY SECOND BOOK IS OUT! I am the proud mama of An Army of Lovers: Women’s Music of the ‘70s and ‘80s. A fan described the book well; she also pumped up my already-substantial musician’s ego: “I … Continue reading →

Posted in LGBT music, music, Music business, Women's Music | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Open mikes: they’re more than lousy guitar players

Posted on September 15, 2019 by jamiebobamie

A wanna-be rock star mashes through chords he can barely play while singing notes unknown to humankind as you sit, patiently waiting your turn to perform. Many of us have been there. There’s an open mike in my town that … Continue reading →

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Hallelujah

Posted on September 6, 2019 by jamiebobamie

When I first got the day hospice gig, I envisioned beds filled with weak looking people, surrounded by solemn loved ones, my soothing music helping them rest. Turns out they’d rather hear “Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da” or “Wagon Wheel.” I play in … Continue reading →

Posted in music, Playing the guitar, Playing the ukulele | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Getting started with the ukulele

Posted on July 30, 2019 by jamiebobamie

You’ve purchased this cool little instrument, now what? In this post I’ll show you how to hold it plus a simple strum and a few chords.

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Guitar fingerpicking made easy

Posted on July 16, 2019 by jamiebobamie

You’ve got a few strums under your guitar strap and now you’re ready to move on. If you want to play songs like “House of the Rising Sun,” “Blackbird” or “Hallelujah” you need to know how to fingerpick. Like anything … Continue reading →

Posted in Music instruction, music lessons, Playing the guitar | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

He played real good for free: live music in New York City

Posted on April 2, 2019 by jamiebobamie

This is a travelogue of my recent trip to the Big Apple. I promise it’ll be more interesting than your Aunt Edna’s slide show of her trip to Boca. I discovered lots of great music, much of it for free … Continue reading →

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