Diamond in my Backyard

    Near my cottage in East Texas are the Sam Houston National Forest and the Davy Crockett National Forest. Together, their 320,000 acres provide miles of piney woods trails, pleasant only during the winter months in my opinion. The trails are multi-use for horses, people, bicycles and ATVs.

     And between these two wonderlands is a musical diamond, the Camp Street Café located downtown Crockett, Texas; population 6,950. The photo below was copied from their website.

     The Camp Street Café has an interesting history going back to the early twentieth century.  Legendary Texas bluesman Sam “Lightnin’” Hopkins, Frankie Lee Sims and other musicians played there for tips during the Forties. But the café became run-down and neglected. Fortunately the café owner's grandsons Guy and Pip Gillette (musicians and fiddlers) decided to leave the East Coast and return to their roots in East Texas. In 1998, they transformed the café into a music lover's Nirvana. Click here for their upcoming performers.

     Yesterday, neighbor Chef Jim (in photo above) and I arrived an hour early to get a front table. We brought our own drinks and snack food. For three glorious hours, I stomped my feet to Austin's The Here and Now . . . .

. . . . and Louisiana's Celjun (combination of Celtic and Cajun music). Click here to hear their performance.

Click here for the two-band combo final performance last night, a masterpiece!

     Update - February 11, 2017 performance at Camp Street Cafe was the Michot-Courville Band (Cajun), click here to listen.  March 18, 2017 performance was The Here And Now, returning for another great evening, click here to listen.