2007 Roots on the Rails: Tom Russell's Tarahumara Train On board the Sierra Madre Express from Tucson, Arizona to the Copper Canyon of Mexico and return September 13-20, 2007 SOLD OUT - now accepting waitlist names DAVE ALVIN TOM RUSSELL LAURIE LEWIS & TOM ROZUM BUTCH HANCOCK TERRY ALLEN This is the stuff of legend. Some of the rawest, roughest, toughest and most authentic voices in American music, together on a vintage streamline train, heading South across the border - to the heart of Mexico; through the Sonoran desert and into the storied Sierra Madre. By twisting rail, deep into the legendary Barrancas del Cobre - the Copper Canyon region - a land of enormous scope and vista with a network of canyons larger, deeper and far wilder than the Grand Canyon, a land so remote that few Americans have ever seen it. They call it "the world's most exciting train ride" but we call it something else - it's a trip to another place and time. A week-long journey to the Sierra Madre Occidental, to the land of the Tarahumara Indians, whose name in their indigenous language means "light feet." Rarimuri, the people who run - run for hours, for days; who run in the thin, clear air of 7,000 feet, who run the narrow footpaths that trace the rugged canyon walls, who run the paths their forefathers ran before them. The thread that ties the journey together is music. Tom Russell; rail adventurer, darker than leather troubadour and his spiritual partner in song, Grammy winning guitarist and songwriter nonpareil Dave Alvin, "The King of California." Butch Hancock, one-third of the Flatlanders (along with Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Joe Ely), and fellow West Texan, the eccentric dry-as-dust songwriter and sculptor Terry Allen whose "Lubbock on Everything" is hailed as one of lost masterpieces of Americana music. Rounding out the bill is Bay-area bluegrass fiddle maven Laurie Lewis and her phenomenal sideman Tom Rozum. It's the trip of a lifetime, and you're invited. Be a guest on board - there will be no more than 65 of us at maximum - and at our remote yet luxurious hotels, one built of native materials on the canyon's rim, the other an historic ranch less than a mile away. Every day brings themed musical workshops, round-robins and evening concerts by our featured artists, not to mention open mics and relaxed, daily happy hours. There's no wall separating performer and audience, no concert stage, no barrier. We are one group, traveling together, sharing the wonder of this adventure. All meals the entire trip, save for one dinner, are included. Food and beverages are freshly prepared. There are daily happy hours and, on the train, wines with dinner plus complimentary drink tickets. Accommodations on board feature enclosed rooms with cozy bunks, dome dining car, round-end observation car and open air lounge, with plenty of room to roam. We spend three nights in the Canyon region, giving us time to hike, horseback ride or simply relax. One day offers a side trip to to the market town of Creel, where local guides conduct a tour to Cusarare, an old Tarahumara village. There is plenty of time to shop for the exquisite baskets, for which the Tarahumara are famous. Roots on the Rails trips bring folks back again and again. Here are just two comments from 06 Tarahumara Train travelers: "Thanks again for a great trip! Everything was just fantastic!" "What an amazing experience - our friends are already tired of hearing about it. It was one of those rare experiences that was even better than we had expected. We hope to see everyone again on the next train!" To join us, call Charlie Hunter , 866-484-3669 toll free (or 802-463-3669, 802-463-3677 fax), email flyradar@sover.net. Visit www.myspace.com/flyingunderradar for more information, video clips, etc. Schedule Thursday, Sept 13 - Arrive Tucson. Registration and welcome reception, kickoff concert, hotel Westward Look Resort. Fri. Sept. 14 - Motorcoach to Nogales, board train, on-board welcome, live music performances overnight on train through Sonoran desert. Sat. Sept. 15 - Arrive Sufragio (at sea level) in morning, then travel all day to Divisadero at 8,000 feet during day. Breakfast and lunch on board. Late afternoon arrival at hotel. Happy hour and dinner at hotel. Evening music programs. Sun. Sept. 16 - Day is free to hike, horseback, etc. Afternoon workshops, open mic, happy hour, evening concert. Mon. Sept. 17 - Train to Creel (market town for the Copper Canyon region). Visit Tarahumara caves. Evening concert at hotel. Tues. Sept. 18 - After lunch, board train, overnight on train. Wed. Sept. 19 - Arrive Nogales early afternoon, motorcoach to Tucson, final night at Westward Look (dinner 9/19 not included). Thur. Sept. 20 - Breakfast, followed by individual departures. Peformers DAVE ALVIN www.davealvin.net Dave Alvin's music is a braid of different American musics-blues, country, rock'n'roll, pop, folk and R&B-and in each strand, he favors the California accent. Born in Los Angeles, he grew up in the blue-collar inner suburb of Downey. Dave's brother Phil, older by two years, was a blues fanatic and together they formed the Blasters in 1979. The Blasters released four of the best rock'n'roll albums of the '80s with Phil singing the lead vocals and Dave writing the songs and playing the lead guitar. Later, Dave joined X and The Knitters, two bands led by his L.A. pal John Doe. Dave's solo albums have ranged from twangy roots-rock to storytelling country-folk to muscular blues. He won the Best Traditional Folk Grammy Award for his 2000 album, Public Domain: Songs from the Wild Land. Dave's ability to draw from so many sources and to work in so many contexts reflects his home state's jumble of cultures. "I'm a fourth generation Californian," Dave declares. "I grew up here and wouldn't want to live anywhere else, but it's not blemish free. Woody Guthrie wrote about looking for the promised land but he also wrote about the migrant camps. When people outside the state think of California, they don't think of migrant camps and hard times, but that's what Haggard is singing about in many of his California songs. The best songs come from the intersection where hopes and reality collide." TOM RUSSELL www.tomrussell.com "Russell's work is among the most moving and literary of the past thirty years, an antidote to the recent trajectory of self-absorption in American singer-songwriting . . . his story-songs are unlike any others." - Andrew Marcus, East Bay Express. Tom Russell was born in Los Angeles and now makes his home on the border in El Paso, Texas. He has recorded eighteen albums of original material and has written such classics as "Navajo Rug," "Gallo del Cielo," "Blue Wing," "Walking on the Moon," "St. Olav's Gate," and "Outbound Plane." Russell's songs have been recorded by Johnny Cash, Nanci Griffith, Guy Clark, Doug Sahm, Dave Alvin, Joe Ely, Ian Tyson, Suzy Bogguss, Iris DeMent, Peter Case, k.d. lang, Bob Neuwirth, Sylvia Tyson, Katy Moffatt and many others. Russell's acclaimed tribute to Merle Haggard, "Tulare Dust," co-produced with Dave Alvin, was responsible for creating what came to be known as the "Americana" radio format. Rolling Stone stated of Russell's THE MAN FROM GOD KNOWS WHERE, "Russell is one of America's greatest songwriters... as close to a Homeric treatment of American history as we're ever likely to see." LAURIE LEWIS & TOM ROZUM www.laurielewis.com You can't measure Laurie Lewis's career with the usual commercial yardsticks. She has won a Grammy and twice been named Female Vocalist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Music Association. "Laurie is one of the pre-eminent bluegrass and Americana artists of our time," says the IBMA's Dan Hays. "She spreads her talent over several genres - bluegrass, folk, country - and with the recognition she has within all those fields, I would certainly say she's one of the top five female artists of the last 30 years." Her songs helped shape the template for the modern bluegrass-pop style. Lewis's performing companion is ace mandolinist-singer Tom Rozum. Their 1996 CD, "The Oak and the Laurel," was nominated for a Grammy. "I love to have a partner to sing with, crave it deep down inside," Lewis says. "And Tom's the same way. He's a very conversational mandolin player, always responding to what's going on at the moment." Since joining forces with Laurie in 1986, Tom's versatility and diverse musical influences come to the fore every night on stage. He plays primarily mandolin, but is also an accomplished fiddle, mandola, and guitar player. Tom's critically-acclaimed solo album, "Jubilee" features help from such luminaries as Mike Marshall, Rob Ickes, Darol Anger and Herb Pedersen. BUTCH HANCOCK Butch Hancock Site Singer/songwriter Butch Hancock helped kick-start the progressive country movement of the '70s. His lyrics are meaningful and memorable, his delivery uses some of the gliding style of Dylan, and he plays both harmonica and guitar to accompany himself. His albums are hard-to-find treasures, zealously guarded by their owners, and praised to the skies by critics. Butch Hancock has received rapturous critical acclaim, with songs such as "If I Were A Bluebird" (Emmylou Harris), "Boxcars" (Texas Tornadoes) and "She Never Spoke Spanish to Me" (Joe Ely) and as one-third of the Flatlanders, a long-running if intermittent collaboration with Lubbock-bred childhood pals Joe Ely and Jimmie Dale Gilmore. Rolling Stone magazine describes Hancock as "a raspy-voiced West Texas mystic with an equal affinity for romantic border balladry and Zen paradox." TERRY ALLEN www.sugarhillrecords.com Over the course of 11 albums, Terry Allen has recorded with the likes of David Byrne, Lucinda Williams, Guy Clark and Marcia Ball. Along the way, he has had songs recorded by Little Feat, Bobby Bare and Robert Earl Keen and featured in the Byrne film True Stories along with composing music for other film soundtracks and theater and dance pieces. "Nobody else does country music like Terry Allen. But then, what other country singer-songwriter is also an established visual artist and playwright? Those talents are eminently apparent in the Texan's exquisitely crafted, image-rich songs, in which he applies words and instrumental textures with the skill of a master painter - dabbing, brushing or smearing for the most powerful effect. There's not a wasted word or extraneous musical lick." - LOS ANGELES TIMES Price Solo travelers - six payments of $798 USD. Two persons traveling together - ten payments of $898 USD. 2% discount on total price if entire payment made at time of sign-up. Payments outside of non-refundable $250 US per person deposit are refundable until 60 days prior to departure. Reservations are transferrable. The Fine Print: The payment of a deposit or any part or full payment for a reservation shall constitute consent to all the provisions contained herein. Flying Under Radar, LLC shall not be held responsible for for property loss or damage and/or any damages resulting from illness, personal injuries or death which may be sustained by reason of, or while engaged on, any trip or tour whether due to the ownership, maintenance, use, operation or control of any vehicle, hotel, common carrier or any other conveyance used in carrying out these tours. We can assume no liability due to any cause whatsoever whether caused by failure or delay or other irregularity, acts or omissions occurring during a tour under which the means of transportation or other service thereby is offered or supplied by owners, operators or public carriers for whom Flying Under Radar, LLC acts only as agent. Flying Under Radar, LLC reserves the right (at its discretion) to alter or omit any part of the itinerary, or change any reservation, feature and/or means of conveyance without notice or for any reason whatsoever and without allowance or refund and with extra costs, if any, resulting therefrom paid by the passengers. Lineup subject to change. We reserve the right to cancel any tour prior to departure, in which case payment will be refunded without further obligation on our part. Flying Under Radar, LLC shall not be responsible for any injury to person (whether or not resulting in death) or damage to property. Flying Under Radar, LLC strongly urges individual passengers to obtain appropriate insurance coverage. Baggage is at the owner's risk entirely. The transportation companies concerned are not to be held responsible for any act, omission or event during the time passengers are not aboard their carriers or conveyances. The passenger contract in use by the carriers concerned (when issued) shall constitute the sole contract between the transportation companies and the purchaser of these tours and/or passage. By accepting the ticket the passenger also agrees to its terms and conditions. By forwarding of deposit, the passenger certifies that he/she does not have any mental, physical or other condition or disability that would create a hazard for him/herself or other passengers. Flying Under Radar, LLC reserves the right to cancel or withdraw any person as a member of the tour at any time. 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