TULSA, OKLAHOMA HAS
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THAT'S RIGHT, JUST ONE
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ALL FB EVENTS PG. CONCERTS
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AND ONLY FOUND
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Every Local Musician Wants You
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But This Is Where
It Starts
Because You Can't
Support Them
If You Don't Know
Where They're Playing
Now Can You?
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Curt's List
Tulsa, OK
United States
curtfill
I moved this info from the
About Curt's List pg.
to It's own page here & changed formats
cmf/120420
Here's A Brief Bio
of some of the more
unusual, yet interesting
events in my life
I was an adopted child
One of four siblings
that I grew up
never knowing about
So everything in my life
has been a true blessing
And, of course, I have
no other place
to leave this stuff
- - - ---- ---- ---- • ---- ---- ---- - - -
I threw a runner out at home plate
from deep center field one day
while playing my normal position
in little league baseball
(age 8 - 10 or 11 maybe?)
and because of a very smart
& insightful coach
plus a lot of practice
I went on to become my team's
most reliable pitcher
often pitching shut-outs
& no-hitters from that day forward
I pitched a shut-out one night
striking out 11 batters in a row
Final Score: 21 to 0
I was awarded the game ball from that game
I attended one awesome, grade school
through my entire youth called
Riley Elementary
From Kindergarten through 6th grade
West of downtown Tulsa around
58th W. Ave & Charles Page Blvd.
which most people know as
"The Sand Springs Line"
because of:
1: The Train that ran from Downtown Tulsa to Sand Springs
2: The Trolley that my parents grew up riding to see movies in Tulsa...
The InterUrban Trolley
that utilized
the same train tracks that ran
parallel to Charles Page Blvd.
(When I was of drinking age
& working downtown I used
to frequent a bar/restaurant
called the Interurban w/
a main bar constructed
entirely out of an actual
trolly car and w/ train tracks
throughout the bar
embedded in the floor)
I walked to & from grade school
(Riley) every day, as a latchkey kid
for at least 5 years
which was only 1/2 mile from the
house I grew up in down 8th Street
Riley Elementary isn't there any more
but I believe it may have been one of
the only grade schools in all of Tulsa,
if not Oklahoma, that had a playground
entirely constructed of concrete.
Yes, concrete.
Surrounded by a 10 ft. chainlink fence,
as it was right next to a busy highway
on one side: Charles Page Blvd.
We had regular recess every day
and played on jungle gyms, and a variety
of bars & goal posts that were anchored
in concrete. We played soccer, tetherball,
and four square too, just as any grade schooler did back in the '60's
except when we fell we knew it!!
...And boy did we keep our school nurse busy with hamburger knees & scrapes!!
I was running into the school building
one afternoon, following a rousing recess, through the double side doors which, on this particular day, was being held open by a cute red haired girl on one side & her equally cute blonde haired best friend on the other
I can't remember which one had my attention that day,
but I ran, forehead first,
into the center vertical bar
that latched & anchored the two doors
I didn't discover that my head was split open until I was in the restroom and swiped away, what I thought was sweat, from all of the previous activities, and saw that my entire hand
was covered in shiny, red blood
The school nurse administered a simple
butterfly band aid until mom arrived
to take me to the hospital
which resulted in 10 stitches
right down the middle of my forehead
During my final, 7th year
at Riley Elementary
(grades 1-6 + kindergarten),
classmate Julie Clemens
& I were voted on
& elected by the entire school
as the annual
"King & Queen of Riley"!!
There was a school crowning
& an annual dance/carnival
that we were honored at
and, I guess, precided over.
I sure miss Riley.
And Those carnivals were amazing
Can you believe I still remember my
First Grade Teacher?
Pretty, blonde, Miss Edwards
The awesome Mrs Moran taught music
I also remember we had a hot art teacher (a Linda Ronstadt looker)
who we all thought was
knockin' boots with the hunky
Gym teacher!
LOL!!
What great memories I have
from back then.
I taught myself how to play guitar around the age of 12 or so, & have never had a lesson. I don't know how to read music or even how to make a proper chord. I created my own technique of making the same sounding notes as the proper ones. I taught myself just like Kenny Wayne Shepherd; by playing along to every type/genre of music on vinyl albums that I could find, often practicing for entire weekends.
Rock Music during the 70's & 80's
HAS to represent one of the
Greatest Contributions of
Unbelievable Music
to have ever been created
in a single era
I'm mostly a guitar picker
that plays rhythm parts as well.
When I started playing guitar
I played Jeff Healey style on
my lap, as it was sooo much easier.
I went to Madison Jr. High School
with Tulsa Blues legend
Bill Davis' son; Greg Davis,
a drummer in our school band class
We often jammed together
in his back yard storage shed
and Bill's recording studio,
and every now & then
Bill would come out,
give us a listen and a thumbs up
before continuing on his way.
Those jam sessions
provided a lot of motivation to get
better & better, as well as
basic, practical technique.
I eventually learned to play,
practically every type of music
out there; rock/hard rock, country,
pop, jazz, blues, R&B, & bluegrass, standing up, of course, and have
gone on to host my own jams and perform with many of the
musicians that play around
Tulsa every week within Curt's List.
(There's quite a list below...)
My Guitars
And Especially
MUSIC
Have Been
The Very Best
True Friends
I've Ever Known
I try to play guitar,
for at least an hour,
every single night
I currently enjoy the
guitar styles of
Keith Urban, Mike Zito
Storyville, & Eric Clapton
the most
Mainly because their music is
completely filled with guitar
Followed by
Vince Gill, Stevie Ray Vaughan,
Alison Krauss & Union Station,
Jonny Lang, Buddy Guy
& Joe Bonamassa
I try to mix in jazz, funk & r&b
whenever possible as well.
I don't know exactly what
my gift of music is called,
but I'm very fortunate
to be able to receive
a new Cd, of guitar driven music
that I might be interested in,
unwrap it, &/or download it,
& immediately be able
to jam right along with it
as if I helped write the
music myself,
complete with all the
rhythm parts & all the solos
I'm lucky to be able to say
Because of the way I play
& all of the practice I maintain
with all kinds of music genres,
I can pretty much jam with anyone
at any time whether I know
the music or not
and that is
by far
my favorite thing of all
Jammimg with other
bands & musicians!
- c.f.
I taught myself entirely
how to play tennis
by watching Jimmy Connors
win Wimbledon on Tv
In one weekend so I could
ask a pretty, young lady that I
worked with out on a tennis date
that following Monday as I saw her
carrying a tennis raquet the previous
Fri. morning to work.
I had never played tennis before,
but learned everything
I needed to know
by paying close attention to how
the players held the racquet,
moved, kept score, served,
& when to switch sides,
from that one weekend
of watching Wimbledon on Tv
Even though she played tennis
all through college she never
won a game from me and we
played almost every single night
for three months
I also regularly played the
President of Texaco's son
whom took professional,
country club lessons,
and after a few matches
I started to
beat him regularly as well
(He was a very sore loser
& threw horrible fits)
I've been reunited, through quite unusual circumstances, with a brother (Ed Abrusely of Bristow, Ok) that I never knew about - during my 25th & 26th year. We were written about in all of the papers, on local news programs, & radio which led to another reunion, a year later, with a Sister; Miss Kathy Long
(now Disney) of Garber, Ok
Which Ed & I didn't know existed
This resulted in
national news attention
The three of us were flown
out to Hollywood for a paid week
to do "Hour Magazine"
A very popular Tv Talk Show
at the time
with host: Gary Collins
The three of us did everything
you can think of in Hollywood
on a week's paid vacation!!
The Tonight Show w/ Johnny Carson, The Comedy Store where
I met Gary Shandling,
Jerry Seinfeld, & Richard Belzer
...Andrew Dice Clay
was actually parking cars
for them then before he hit it big
We toured the Hollywood Bowl,
spent a night bar-hopping on
The Sunset Strip, Met Ted Knight,
James Bullock, & Johnny Mathis.
Toured the La Brea Tar Pits,
& Venice Beach...we had a blast
getting to know one another!!
A Year Later the three of us
were, again, reunited with
yet another sister;
Miss Betty Boggs of Haskell, Ok
none of us, again, knew existed
making four reunited
siblings total
There was a lot of stigma back in the 60's concerning single, Hispanic mothers
and having four children eventually must have become too difficult. I have no idea how our mother even supported herself, not to mention - the neighbors HAD to have complained. So human services finally came & took us.
The four of us, only one year apart, were all separated as toddlers & babies, sent to foster homes and, thankfully, all adopted
I was adopted at age 2
and have no memory of
foster homes or anything
like that
I don't remember anything up to the point of the ride home with my new adopted parents and my dad's mother Bess (grandma) whom joined them on their trip to Oklahoma City to meet me and bring me home for the first time
All adopted by different,
awesome parents
They say our Cherokee father only showed up long enough to get our mother pregnant
What a great human
he seems to have been
Doubtful, as well, the dick
ever left her with any resources
what-so-ever to get by
The original neighbors where
we lived, remember Kathy; the oldest, often going door to door asking neighbors for food so the four
of us would have something to eat
And most people only knew of
two little girls; because,
apparently, me & my brother;
being the youngest,
were hidden in a
back room,
in makeshift cribs,
I guess
Hidden so much from our
mothers friends & close neighbors
Most people that knew our mother
only knew of Two Little Girls
because they Never saw
the other two baby boys - Ever
They said they were shocked
when they found out
there were actually
four little ones living there
that whole time
Now, I don't know about
my brother, or our sisters,
but I do know that I'm
pretty jak'd up because of it.
How could we not be?
Neglected, abandoned,
and then separated
& forced into
unknown environments
with complete strangers
So we didn't bond with
our mother like we should have, probably were'nt breast-fed like we should have been.
Probably never got any
exercise or sunlight either.
I believe being neglected
so often as a baby
also, obviously, resulted
in jak'd up perceptions
concerning trust issues
within social & relationship
type situations.
And the constant lying
in a prone position
during important
growing years
f'd up my feet
I had to have corrective shoes
when my parents adopted me
to try to straighten my
pigeon-toed feet
so I could walk correctly
And I continue to suffer
from constant foot pain
This pic was taken when Ed & I drove out to Garber, Ok to meet the sister we never knew we had - Kathy - for the very first time. (L-R: Me, Kathy Long (Disney), & Ed Abrusely - Around 1986)
Thanks to the wonderful parents who adopted us we've all grown into
well-adjusted adults.
Betty was in the military
for some time
She & Kathy have been
in lasting marriages
for decades
Kathy, Betty, & Ed have
all had one child each & all boys
I think Betty, unfortunately,
has pretty significant
health issues & can't work
Kathy & Ed both work in the health industry, I believe
I'm a computer drafter
working in the
Electrical Substation Industry.
And an artist, writer
live music blogger
motorcycle rider
& guitar player
living alone since 2013
Our Birth Parents
have never reached out
to any of us that I know of
I was adopted at age 2 by the most amazing & loving parents any kid
could ever hope to have
Don Ed & Retha Mae Fillmore
of Tulsa, Oklahoma
I had an amazing childhood as well.
My childhood was so awesome
it seems almost magical
Mom & Dad were always
supportive & loving and
took special care of me
& my adopted younger brother
I found out years later that
my adopted brother was actually
adopted from my
Mom's Sister Living in Texas
We didn't have a wole lot
of money growing up but Mom & Dad never treated me like
I was not their flesh & blood
& I never thought of them differently either and we never had a
"want" for anything. We always
did things, shared things, had fun & loved each other. We went on lots of vacations and I had lots of friends.
Thinking back to my kid years
there was nothing Mom & Dad
wouldn't & couldn't do to
make me & my brother happy
My Dad was a machinist and
spent a lot of time on his feet
Because of an unauthorized
accident in the Army
He suffered from severe
back problems, yet he would
come home every night
and squatt down to catch
for me; when I pitched
in little league baseball,
for hours
He would have done anything
to help me get better
at little league
He always did anything
he could to help me
regardless of what it required
of him and never complained
about it
If I had only known then
how much he & Mom
really loved me...
Things you don't see
or understand
when you're just a kid
They were truly
incredible parents.
Sadly, I lost my Dad to open heart surgery in 1993 and my Mom to heart complications, as well, in 2003
I miss them & think of them
every single day
My dad was a machinist for McDonald Douglas when I was little and I remember them going on strike
& having layoffs in which
my dad would lose his job
from time to time and
we would have to pinch penny's
I remember going to the
McDonald Douglas Christmas
party a couple of Christmases
and how wonderful everyone was
Santa was always there handing out gifts to everyone and there
was always a big amazing meal.
My mom
worked for DVIS which meant
I was what was called
a latch-key kid.
I would get home from grade school
and let myself in and watch Tv or do chores until they got home from work
I remember on several ocassions how my mom & dad would take me shopping with them for several bags of groceries. And then we would deliver them to a family that my mom knew
was struggling.
What a feeling that was
helping people that needed help
but were too proud to ask
for help but received
help anyway because
my mom & dad believed
in helping others.
Those people, usually a
single mom with several kids,
whose husband may have
abanded them
or may have been sent to jail,
were usually black because
my mom's area of work
was on the North side
But ohh how thankful they were,
often crying and
thanking my mom & dad
over & over again.
It always made me cry too
and extremely proud
that my mom & dad did
things like that.
They taught me to always
say thank you for any gift,
regardless how small or trivial.
And to always say you're welcome.
And to hold the door for
ladies or anyone that
needs it.
And to never make fun
of the less fortunate
or those that might
be different than you or me
They taught me to clean up
after myself no matter where
I'm at and to wait my turn,
ask permission for things
that belong to others, be patient,
& to never waste food or litter
As a child I also learned how to
do my own laundry, iron,
& always make my bed.
That's how awesome my
mom & dad were...
they taught me things
that I still rely on & do
THAT, to me, is what sets
kind & caring people apart
from those that haven't
been raised this way.
Hardly anyone says
'Thank You' these days
especially the younger generation
And instead of 'You're Welcome' everyone now says 'No Problem'
And I absolutely hate it
when people begin a sentence
or answer a question with
'I mean...'
I urge all of the parents
reading this to start
annual traditions,
and annual movies
like the one my Mom
loved so much:
"The Sound Of Music"
And annual visits to certain areas
that you all love too
Because these are the things
your kids will remember
& cherish when you have
to leave them some day
I learned how to two-step thanks to a cute co-worker, (who drove a vette !!) back during the Duke's Country years; '80-'83 or so, when the 'Urban Cowboy' craze was everywhere. Learned to two step here in Tulsa, while listening to a couple of brand new country music artists at the time:
George Strait & Reba McIntire - Live.
While promoting their very first albums. And only 5 bux cover.
Man, If I Had Only Known...
I was a bouncer
at one of Tulsa's greatest
Honky-tonk, Dancehall,
& Concert Venues
Tulsa City Limits
For the entire last year
that they were open.
I got to hear some fantastic concerts, Toby Keith & Shania Twain
were just getting their
start there, as well as Terry Clark, Ricochet, Steve Wariner, David Lee Murphy, Tracy Lawrence
& a long list of others
Charlie Daniels Band packed
the place on several ocassions
I got to party with a lot of
great bands and traded shots with Lone Star, Montgomery Gentry, & Mark Chesnutt whom filmed his famous "Bubba Shot The Jukebox"
video there...
'Red' whom played the
'Bubba' character was
a friend of mine
Ronnie Dunn also got his start there. Ronnie's band was the house band at TCL for many years before he hooked up with Kix Brooks. It's where he got sick of singing "My Maria" every night !! It's also where 'Brooks & Dunn' filmed the famous video for "Boot Scootin' Boogie"
The Only existing floor plans for the Pythian Building - 423 S. Boulder - Downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma - have my name on them. I was contracted by the new owner of that bldg. at the time - Kent Miller, JD Young's grandson - to measure the entire bldg. and draw it by hand and at home on my own drafting board; Pre-AutoCad, so the plans could be used by contractors to transform the bldg. which had been gutted by fire; taking the original plans with it - into a two million dollar office complex, which it is now. I even discovered a couple of rooms no one knew about !! It was my very first drafting assignment as I was still in drafting school. It's also how I purchased my first 1980 Ovation acoustic/electric guitar - which I still have & still avidly play !!
I joined The Blues Society of Tulsa around the same time that I started CurtsList.Com which was a few months after I went to the Fur Shop to hear Dustin Pittsley for the first time, because of a girl I was dating at the time; whom was a big Dustin Pittsley fan. Thanks to Debra, I met and chatted with the band & met Dustin's father-in-law Bill Martin; President of The Blues Society of Tulsa.
The air conditioning was broke in that old 3 story train depot and not too many people showed up in the middle of summer, but Dustin, Doug & Donnie played like they were at a packed house in Austin. It was truly amazing!! Dustin Pittsley IS a true Triple Threat - a gifted guitar slinger, singer & songwriter!! So I've been a Dustin Pittsley Fan & have been writing Cd Reviews & the occassional Big Front Page Article On The Current Hot Blues Band in Town contained within their bi-weekly newsletter "Blues News" Ever Since !!
I've also been invited to Judge 7 or 8 different Tulsa IBC Blues Challenges here in town & one in Oklahoma City for their Blues Society IBC Blues Challenge over the years. I'm also the BST E-mail Newsletter Creator & Distributor.
I've been trimming my own hair since July 2013, Old school; by feel, w/ barber scissors & a hand held mirror.
Any monkey can shave his head with a trimmer...
I figure I save at least
250 bux a year!!
.I received a great pleasure one afternoon & a cherished compliment....by getting to play lead guitar with a brand new hot rodded Fender Strat that Bill Guinn from Buster's Guitars in Bixby brought by what was The Most Wonderful Jam In Tulsa which used to be held at..."Lori's Par-T Lounge" back in the hey-day when Troll (Lori's husband & co-bartender) would welcome local musicians & bands that played some original music like The Wanda Watson Band, Hurricane Mason, & The Terry Quiett Band from Wichita, as well as the very best orig. artists from other states that you'd ever hear! (Troll had a real knack of snaggin' bands that were passing through, between out of state gigs, to play Lori's for one night who could always use extra gas money!) Local band Ol' School asked me to sit in with them after Big Daddy's mini-set. Big Daddy was an awesome singer and incredible guitar player. Big Daddy, suprisingly, handed me that brand new hot rodded strat - after he was through with it. This was the Orig. Ol' School with Sheri Booth, Wiley Widner, & Bill Guinn, & a couple of other great musicians. When I took the stage in front of a packed house, I was very nervous, not only because I had never performed with this band, & didn't even know what songs they were going to play, AND I was the only electric musician, but also because tonight's packed house included my friend Rocky Frisco whom I had just previously shared a Jager shot with, right there in the front row.
We performed at least two or three songs, including an Ol' School favorite; Little Feat's 'Dixie Chicken'. After we were through I took off the guitar to hand back to Bill with many thanks and was about to join the crowd for the next jam set when Rocky came over to me, leaned in close to my ear, & said "That was one of the finest sets I've heard in years."
I'll cherish that sweet compliment to my grave.
Thank You Rocky
HE WAS ALWAYS SUCH A CLASS ACT
RIP - MY FRIEND
Check Out Rocky - At The Top Of His Game - In This Beautiful Video:
= = = = =
I started this weekly list around April of 2006, by just keeping my closest friends and workmates informed, with e-mail blasts, as the leading source of printed information out there (The Urban Tulsa; Closed late 2013) was both inferior & inaccurate and I intended to create a "better" list that my friends could rely on.
Plus Curt's List is the ONLY Tulsa source that is continuously updated within a moments notice AND I obtain all of my information from the bands and venues themselves.
.Curt's List became a little more than just a hobby that I enjoy & grew into this website around the first of August, 2009.
I AM extremely passionate about music and have been playing guitar - both acoustic & electric & ALL types of styles - since age 12. The Blues are definitely my favorite but I also enjoy playing country, rock, bluegrass & jazz as well. I occasionally try to get out and play the jams around Tulsa whenever possible. I especially enjoy the occasional opportunity to sit in & play guitar with some of our local musicians & bands,...like former Tulsan Sherry Booth/Sherry Booth & Ol' School, Monty Postoak & The Monty Postoak Band w/ Johnny Paul, Big Daddy, Scott Walker & Kevin Flint, The Kevin Phariss Blues Band w/ Rocky Frisco, The Wanda Watson Band, Hammer Down, Luke West, Dave Sandkuhl & III'rd Degree, Randy 'Randini' Cook, Hurricane Mason, The Ricky Paul & Lorri Williams Band, The Pat Quinn Band, Danny (Brooks & Dunn) McBride, Queen Bee, Under The Gun's; Pwe - Scotty & Randall, Dane Trout, Adam Lopez, The David Dover Band, Little Joe, Nate Hull & Mark Bormann (Mister Pistol, Madfly), Brian Wallace (Firstryke) & Kent Swepston of the Blues Dogs, The Sellouts - & The Dustin Pittsley Band w/ Saxman; Mike Winebrenner, plus many that I can't remember. It's ALWAYS an
un-be-freakin'-lievable rush !!
I hosted a couple of Jams during 2010. A Sat. Jam at Blues City for a few months during which I had the pleasure of playing with Monte Postoak and hosted a memorable concert of biblical proportions - when IIIrd Degree decided to kick their rehearsal - up a notch & packed up the trailer and dropped in and played all night for my jam & several big birthdays that happened to be booked that night. One of which was for a young lady that had at least 40 friends & avid fans of Tulsa Speedway drag racing ...I was told Blues City went through 5 gallons of Crown Royal that night!!
Yes, 5 Gallons !!
The other Jam I hosted was at Utopia Club Downtown every Wednesday Night for around 3 months...Oh what a time !!
Phil is the only venue operator that has actually EVER sponsored CurtsList.Com
Phil had an unbelievable soundstage set up w/ everything a musician or band would need - without bringing anything but their instruments...and even that wasn't entirely necessary, as Phil & the attending musicians had drums & guitars available. (I even had an amp and two Fender Strats with me) ...As well as monitors, lights, mixers & recorders, a massive P.A., mics & mic stands & even cables & picks.
Sometimes the room was almost a quarter full - w/ guitars & amps lying around - all over the place. I was fortunate to jam with quite a few incredibly talented musicians and also had a hand in the birth of several bands that are doing quite nicely - still.
The new Liquid Static band dropped in from time to time and tore the place UP!! They always had a great time at my Utopia Jams.
The Sellouts were a new band then as well. We knew we were dealing with true talent every single time The Sellouts performed for us,...lead singer; Jacob Dement can make ANY song sound better & Sky's bass playing is like nothing you've ever seen or heard
Throw in Kash's guitar playing & you've got a band like none-other - in Tulsa
Mark Bormann & Nate Hull from Mister Pistol jammed on the Utopia stage from time to time.
Pwe, Randall & Scotty (of the band 'Under The Gun') were with Tex still as 'Hired Guns'and actually got fired one night (By Tex) while playing a gig there. They called themselves 'Fired Guns' for a little while after that...they were a staple at my jams as well, and went on to form the awesome U.T.G. band that packs every venue they play at.
Adam Lopez was always a treat, as was Dane Trout, Jester & the female 'Demon Hammer' bassist Sondra Casey, Mr. Eric Tarr, The Ransom James boys, Brian Wallace (The Blues Dogs, Firstryke) Ryan Ball, Miles Williams & Hammer Down, Kraven Morehead, Flamenco Guitarist; Lon de Ada, James Clem, The Chasers, Jeff Allen & Sybil's Machine
We were once even treated to an icey night of music w/ an extraordinary quintet: Steve Pryor, Kevin Flint, Little Joe, Jimmy Markham & Dustin Pittsley whom just dropped in and asked to perform - all on the same stage - for an amazing set no one there will ever forget
And so many more that
I can no longer remember
but will Live On & Rock On
in my heart.
Phil Hernandez & The Utopia Club.
Lord - the Jager we went through!!
Chuck Norris' Cat ?.
.
.
.
.
..
ORU's PRAYING HANDS
THE GOLDEN DRILLER
Tulsa Fairgrounds
A Tulsa Staple Since 1926
Fender Strat
Copyright 2009 Curt's List. All rights reserved.
Curt's List
Tulsa, OK
United States
curtfill