Mustards Retreat Trio

Col Mustard

Col Mustard

Ambassador of Perseverance
Country flag
What a long strange trip it's been...
We began in like 1974 when we were all young and hot... *laughs
1975 Retreat Trio.jpg
We played in bars in the 70s, and learned our craft the hard way.
1977 Retreat@Doubies.jpg
Lots of water passed under the bridge between then and now... Most of the years in between was
just Davie and me, playing as a duo.
Cover_273_5x@100.jpg
Played for years at coffee houses and festivals and had a decent career (in every way except monetarily) *laughs
COFF 2_Linda McDonald.jpg
But we've recently re-united and the music is better now than ever. We can't take Libby everywhere
we go, so we still do most of our gigs as a duo, but when there's something close by or when they offer
us enough to split three ways, we bring the Trio.
2016 Retreat Harsen's Island.jpg
Here we are at the Ark in Ann Arbor, earlier in 2016.
Libby points@100.jpg
and one more, when we had a chance to play the Flint Folk Festival, close to where we began
so long ago:
2015 Retreat@Flint FF 5.jpg
We did this opening set for Peter Yarrow and he called us back onstage for the finale
2015 Retreat@Flint FF 7@100.jpg
Here's some video highlights from the concert we did at the Ark in Ann Arbor Michigan earlier in 2016.
 
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THAT IS AMAZINGLY COOL!!! What a great kinship and amazing story the three of you have shared ----

YOu should invite them to join up here------ of course then they might not like you so much when they see the mental preverts and deviants you hang with online........er well no thats just me.

:)
 
Heket said:
Wow, what a story, thanks for sharing! And I do like to see ladies playing bass.
Click to expand...

ya, I thought you would. Libby is mostly a singer but has always been willing to pick up
my bass and add that part to the trio. This top image is from a night when it was raining so hard outside
the bar that the water was coming down inside the walls and ending up under the carpet in the Rathskeller where
we were playing. We were scared of getting shocked, but needed the money, so we got wooden chairs and sat
with our feet out of the water and played anyway. The show must go on.

The middle image is from a few years later, in some bar somewhere. We normally stand to play.
The bottom image is from practice in my living room, the summer of 2015 when we were just making up our minds that the Trio could
work again. We've practiced hard, and it's paid off.
Mustards 1975@100.jpg
Mustards Retreat ca 1977 @100.jpg
Mustards Retreat Practice.jpg
 
Great story. So good to see such great chemistry and long-lasting relationships.

In my 50 years bands broke up because of jealousy, resentment, adultery, misunderstandings, substance abuse, treachery....

My life is, um, interesting.

I envy the devotion and stability you seem to have found.
 
well, there's been plenty of stuff like that. *grins
Libby's gone through absolute hell... add a few more hazards to the ones you mention,
such as insane controlling men, armed and dangerous, depression, car accident and more.
It's a miracle any of us survived. When we got back together a few years ago, I asked her
how many of her nine lives she'd used up. Without hesitation, she said, "five...'

Me, I think I only used three, but there might be some close calls I never was aware of.
Davie and I seem to have figured out how to keep it going in the face of all that you mention.
That too seems like a miracle sometimes. We never got rich, we never got famous, we just
aimed ourselves at the folk circuit where they don't forget you so quickly... and that has made
all the difference. Also, we don't play at ear busting levels, so I can still hear high frequencies
and upper mids.

I always envy the amount of sound that a real band can create and put over.
Because we play with just two, or sometimes three... there's big holes in the music that we're
always scrambling to fill. But we manage to cover for each other. Since Libby's come back
and is healthy, the three part harmonies seem to knock people out. Having played so long with
just two, this gives me much joy. I'm very grateful.
 
Damn fine heartwarming story Col., outstanding!
The joy in your hearts from playing music may have contributed to your survival; like way they say cancer patients have better success rates with a positive attitude.
 
Amazing!!!

I enjoyed this!!!

Makes me wonder what happened to my high school band "Bash Alley???" Pretty much, we just played assemblies and engaged in typical rock star debauchery.

We were too young to buy booze, so we would get drunk on Scope mouthwash and play totally smashed...but our breath was minty fresh.
 
Thank you for sharing Col.....sharing your life ---not just a story.

Shame so many miles are between-----if the Trio tour the Florida area---I am IN!

My question however is do you still have those CLOGS???!!!!
 
ha ha... those were very seventies, weren't they. I thought you'd be jealous of the old coil cord on that vintage Orpheum I was playing.
If you were reading the blurb on it, you'll know that this was the dreaded Night of the Flooded Rathskeller
so I took off my normal boots and went and got those clogs from my car, because I could stand on the
soggy carpet and feel insulated by the thick wooden soles. My bass amp was up on a wooden chair too,
and our P.A. head was on top of the lame old Piano.

The audience was all splashing around in water a few inches deep... it was a very strange night.
The owner must have given a few drinks away, because there was no crybaby stuff. They were all
happy happy, and we played our normal sets and got paid. Bizarro.
 
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Col Mustard said:
What a long strange trip it's been...
We began in like 1974 when we were all young and hot... *laughs
View attachment 213
We played in bars in the 70s, and learned our craft the hard way.
View attachment 214
Lots of water passed under the bridge between then and now... Most of the years in between was
just Davie and me, playing as a duo.
View attachment 218
Played for years at coffee houses and festivals and had a decent career (in every way except monetarily) *laughs
View attachment 225
But we've recently re-united and the music is better now than ever. We can't take Libby everywhere
we go, so we still do most of our gigs as a duo, but when there's something close by or when they offer
us enough to split three ways, we bring the Trio.
View attachment 215
Here we are at the Ark in Ann Arbor, earlier in 2016.
View attachment 224
and one more, when we had a chance to play the Flint Folk Festival, close to where we began
so long ago:
View attachment 226
We did this opening set for Peter Yarrow and he called us back onstage for the finale
View attachment 227
Here's some video highlights from the concert we did at the Ark in Ann Arbor Michigan earlier in 2016.
Click to expand...



OMG, I heard the first few seconds of this video and then heard the Col join in singing on that first song. Then immediately my thoughts went to I could so hear them playing the Dead. Then he puts down that drum and picks up his Bass and they start singing Uncle John's Band. HOLY Moly, Am I psychic?
 
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Col Mustard said:
ha ha... those were very seventies, weren't they. I thought you'd be jealous of the old coil cord on that vintage Orpheum I was playing.
If you were reading the blurb on it, you'll know that this was the dreaded Night of the Flooded Rathskeller
so I took off my normal boots and went and got those clogs from my car, because I could stand on the
soggy carpet and feel insulated by the thick wooden soles. My bass amp was up on a wooden chair too,
and our P.A. head was on top of the lame old Piano.

The audience was all splashing around in water a few inches deep... it was a very strange night.
The owner must have given a few drinks away, because there was no crybaby stuff. They were all
happy happy, and we played our normal sets and got paid. Bizarro.
Click to expand...

Ah the things ya do for the the show to go on!!! I am also curious what that 12 string Epiphone is ---headstock in the foreground of the same pic.
 
Col Mustard said:
What a long strange trip it's been...
We began in like 1974 when we were all young and hot... *laughs
View attachment 213
We played in bars in the 70s, and learned our craft the hard way.
View attachment 214
Lots of water passed under the bridge between then and now... Most of the years in between was
just Davie and me, playing as a duo.
View attachment 218
Played for years at coffee houses and festivals and had a decent career (in every way except monetarily) *laughs
View attachment 225
But we've recently re-united and the music is better now than ever. We can't take Libby everywhere
we go, so we still do most of our gigs as a duo, but when there's something close by or when they offer
us enough to split three ways, we bring the Trio.
View attachment 215
Here we are at the Ark in Ann Arbor, earlier in 2016.
View attachment 224
and one more, when we had a chance to play the Flint Folk Festival, close to where we began
so long ago:
View attachment 226
We did this opening set for Peter Yarrow and he called us back onstage for the finale
View attachment 227
Here's some video highlights from the concert we did at the Ark in Ann Arbor Michigan earlier in 2016.
Click to expand...

That is just incredibly AWESOME! Thanks for sharing and welcome to the forum! Glad to see you here, your wisdom is a valuable commodity!
 
ESG said: "I am also curious what that 12 string Epiphone is ---headstock in the foreground of the same pic."

Kernel says: It might have been a Texan. It was David's first 12 string. i never thought
much of it (12 strings drive me crazy... always have) and apparently David didn't either because
he sold it soon and got an Ovation 12. I never liked that one either, but he did, so he played that one
for years. So that 12 string in the picture is likely one that was made in Kalamazoo near the end of
the Epiphany/Kalamazoo era. I'll ask him at practice tonight.

The little electric he's playing was also an Epiphone... it was the Epi version of the Melody maker with
one P-90 if I remember right. He sold that soon after and got a Kramer with aluminum neck. cool
guitar that sustained forever. Bu I liked that little Epi electric. Also Kalamazoo made.
 
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