Posts Tagged ‘Markiss Blowfish’

The VOCAL Songwriter Showcase on September 15, 2025, at O’Toole’s Restaurant and Pub showed off the talents of two long-time members to a solid and appreciative group of stalwarts and guests.

Matthew Costello
VOCAL President Matthew Costello kicked us off with a work crafted in connection with a moment as the singer entered an “astral mystic plain” where “ripples in the river of time” brought his mind to “Three Days in the Summer of ’69.”

He followed with a highly rhythmic work that unleashed the “Storm of Love” where one could access the “wisdom of the soul.” “Walking Willie” came on the heels of the storm carrying us to a small town where Willie was a well-known wanderer on the streets and made us wonder “what’s your destination?” The storyteller led us through several encounters that concluded with perhaps a ghostly appearance – or was it? – of Willie.

“Shadows of September” was a beautiful impressionistic tune and the pop ballad was a pleasant homage to Matthew’s favorite season with nicely chosen chord patterns. “Ghosts of Center Hill” spoke of memories of a rumored haunted house where creaks, cold spots, wispy shades, “whispers on the stairs” and a “voice like the silent wind” was evidence enough of the spooky residents.

“Feel the Breeze” encapsulated feelings of peace and joy in a moment of reverie, a “perfect moment” with his only vista a view of his front yard. “Catch a Ride” was about inspiration, he said, and told the story of a time when he struggled getting his writing underway and had to be patient, asking his muse to jump on his thoughts to “catch a ride.”

Markiss Blowfish
Our second performer, Markiss Blowfish, had been long absent from our stage. Markiss and Matthew agreed that the last time the bluesman appeared at VOCAL might have been 2010! The absence only sharpened Markiss’s chops and he proceeded to demonstrate his command of the two-beat twelve-bar blues form by starting with “Come Alone,” a plea and command for his woman to appear by herself so that the singer could offer his affection. A thumping up-stroke rhythm accent on the guitar supported his strong baritone complementing the pleading story.

“Engine Number Nine” was a love lost blues tune, his girl has left the singer and he’s “waiting on that train” because “I’m going home” to Carolina where he “need(s) to walk that dog.” “Up and Down” was another tale of lost love but “my life’s not shattered, not today.” Still the singer comments “I’ve been up, I’ve been down, girl has left, walked away.” “Downtown” was also a sorrowful tale asking a woman “don’t go, baby, downtown” but the singer couldn’t stop this “girl gone to New Orleans.” The singer is finally all alone since “she took my dog, done moved it on” and now he’s going to “track her down.”

In “Alabama”, the singer mourns “my woman is gone, I’ll be moving on”, and he’s still trying to figure out the relationship they once had and why she’s left. Towards the end, the singer admits he “messed around” but he’s “not sorry about that.” Sounded to me like a reason for the breakup.  In “Bad News Blues”, the singer enumerated all the troubles of his extended family, sister, uncle, cousin, etc. “It’s all bad news” in this tale of family trouble.

Markiss followed with an invitation to “Ride That Train” where he encourages his lover to “whisper in my ear, call my name” because they will be “going to roll on down to Jacksonville.” The next tune claimed he “love[s] that woman pound for pound” and set a rural country scene with “country boys [who] sure don’t play with toys.” However, he tells us “they make a lot of noise.” The final tune of the evening had a cheery melody in the blues riff “Bring It Over Here” with the singer encouraging listeners to join him in a drink remembering “I don’t like that fancy stuff, give me one of them beers.”

We had a fine pair of artists lead us through familiar territory at the September showcase and everyone left with good memories and high spirits.

Showcase Photos

Click a photo for larger view

Photo Credits: Matthew Costello, John Ellis, Norman Roscher