Buda Treehouse

07/30/2024

I was digging through the Buda Treehouse archives and found this beaut. The "Good" Jim jones singing "Hand Me Down".

07/07/2024

Molly and I got a rare treat this morning. Two Red Shouldered Hawks found a delicacy in the rotting stump of a Chinese Tallow Tree we lost because of winter storm Uri.https://youtu.be/cGlJyOnU3eY

07/04/2024

This is what happens when your dog won't listen. Molly and I were sitting on the porch this morning when a skunk jogged across our south forty.

It was the first skunk I had ever seen in daylight. Bailey had never seen a skunk and sprinted out to do combat in spite of our shouts of NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

Bailey is fine after a hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, with a dash of dish soap bath. It really works. I bet she won't do that again.

This was the result of a full spray at nose to butt range. Bailey was 100 feet away from us and the smell was overwhelming. The video is of Bailey trying to dig her way to China to rub away that misery.

This was the aftermath of my dog Molly's first encounter with a skunk. We were a hundred feet downwind of her when I filmed this. The stank was thick. I bet...

06/11/2024

Have you ever seen a more flat affect on an audience in an extraordinary live jam performance? I haven't. I love this live taping because of that juxtaposition.

This some of the tastiest improvisation I have ever heard, filmed, and recorded!!! And the people on the stage look like they just received a death sentence. 🤣🤣🤣

This is a re-edit of George Henry Richardson's "Dance the Night Away" from Buda City Limits II. 2012 All rights reserved.

06/10/2024

Sound of the Pipes, written by Stewart Butler

I love this story.

Stewart Butler was a tall red-haired Scotsman. Stewart and Nancy, his wife, went to Scotland for a visit to the land of his ancestors. He met some of his relatives and visited a famous battlefield from the days of William Wallace.

He lay down on that battlefield to rest. He fell asleep and some of his ancestors came to visit. He could hear the sound of the pipes and the screaming and crying of battle in his dream.

He woke up and wrote this song in just a few minutes. The Celtic sounding violin licks just flowed out of me when I played with this song.

This was recorded at one of our practice sessions on a two channel cassette recorder, with one mic. It is the only recording of this song. I did the best I could to clean it up.

This is from a practice two-track cassette tape from a practice session with David Patterson (me) on the violin and Stewart Butler on vocals and guitar. This...

06/09/2024

Sunday 9 am

Here is a little bit of joy for your Sunday. This morning Molly and I watched the butterflies, hummingbirds, and purple martins from the shade of one of our Oaks. There was a light breeze. It was delightful. This is becoming our morning meditation every day.

The music under this short video is the intro to Stewart Butler’s song “Sunday Morning 9 am” I miss playing with Stewart, may he rest in peace. I think the intro fits the subject. We were out there at 9 am.

If you watch closely, you can see one of the baby purple martins open its mouth when the female lands on the porch. So far, Molly and I have seen two babies sticking their heads out.
We are so excited. We’re like expectant grandparents.

06/08/2024

Here is the last one for today.

I'm going to play a song with Trevor Zajac tonight at the inaugural Unity of Austin talent show. So I have to go wash up and put on some clean clothes.

I love this video because my stick up the ass perfectionist teachers are probably rolling over in their graves when they hear this.

If they had taught improvisation and music theory, I would never have quit the violin at my peak. I was set to be the first sophomore ever to be first chair, first violins in the Highland Park High School (Dallas) orchestra.

At that time I had to practiced an hour every morning before school, and two hours after school. Three hours a day seven days a week, plus an hour lesson from n**i teachers.

Because of my home life and the incredible pressure to be perfect at the competitions, I quit the violin in the Summer between my freshman and sophomore year at HP.

I didn't pick the violin back up until I was in the Navy. It was five years later and I was in Corps School in San Diego. I met a singer songwriter who found out I played violin in high school.

Dennis said get that violin out here and let's jam. I asked "what's a jam. "Oh you know, you just play what you think fits the song". You know improvise.

I said I didn't know how to improvise. Nobody taught me that. Do you have any sheet music to songs you want me to play with? No.

Long story short. My father shipped my $25 pawn shop violin to San Diego. Dennis and I went to one of the huge tile bathrooms at Corps School and jammed.

The first song I ever improvised with was "Stairway to Heaven". It was perfect for violin especially with the reverb from the huge tile bathroom.

And as they say. The rest is history. I took to improvising like a duck takes to water. I love talking through my violin to another musician as he/she talks to me with their chords and lyric.

I improvise on every song I play with. I love it, it is like being on a high wire with no net. It is an accident if I ever play the same accompaniment twice with a song.

I'm not half as good as I was when I was a kid. But I have real moments of joy because I don't practice music anymore, I play music. Now I play from muscle memory and my heart.

Here's to my two teachers. The first was the concert master of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. The second was Wilma Dean Howell, assistant concert mistress of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.

Music doesn't need to be absolutely perfect if the players and the audience are transported, even for a moment, by the music.

Live from Buda Treehouse Studios with David Patterson.

06/08/2024

This video is from our third taping of "Buda City Limits" in 2019. As I get older, this song resonates ever more clearly.

This was a live recording at Buda Treehouse Studios on March 22nd, 2019. Lee Pinion wrote "Limousine" Becca Pinion and Lee sing, David Patterson on violin, ...

06/08/2024

And now for one from my brother from another mother, Rory Don Moore. This is from the outdoor stage at very first taping of "Buda City Limits".

I miss you Rory.

Live audio/video recording of Rory Don Moore and his band Full Circle at the first annual Buda City Limits pickin' party and video shoot. "Buda City Limits"...

06/08/2024

I can't leave out the fabulous Patti Dixon. What a great a song writer.

06/08/2024

This one is a hoot. I bet Alan Stewart is picking in peace with Rory, Jim, Nathan, Stewart, and all of the pickers that have crossed over.

I love that once media is in ones and zeros, the great, great, great, great, grandchildren can see their ancestors having fun in the prime of their life.

I also love that I am able to showcase the amazing talent of musicians that you never heard of. All of the talent, "Flying Under the Radar"
https://youtu.be/XspSnRMSfkQ?si=E4R97rPcI-SAeNA7

By the way, Rich, the picker with the cowboy hat, had never heard this song before. Rich was an incredible improvisor.

06/08/2024

Here is one from the amazing Claudia Gibson Music.

06/08/2024

This one is from a house concert we did for "These Fine Moments" They asked me to play on this song when we were doing sound check. I didn't have time to change out of my work clothes before the concert started.

It takes a lot of work to set the camera angles and recording levels for a house concert. So I improvised on this song in my ugly work clothes...

06/08/2024

This one is from the talented Steve Brooks. I think everyone in the Austin can relate to this one.

This video and audio was edited,recorded mixed and mastered at Buda Treehouse Studios. bthstudios.com

06/08/2024

This one is from Jerry Buller with Lisa Fancher on vocals at a Buda Treehouse Studios' Buda City Limits taping on July 6th, 2019. Recorded live, with Jay Dee Hicks on percussion, and Eric Carreiro on lead guitar improvising.

Jerry Buller with Lisa Fancher on vocals at a Buda Treehouse Studios' taping on July 6th, 2019. Recorded live, with Jay Dee Hicks on percussion, and Eric Car...

06/08/2024

This one's from the amazing George Henry Richardson. George and Jerry were the only two that had rehearsed this song. All the other pickers were improvising.

This is a re-edit of George Henry Richardson's "Dance the Night Away" from Buda City Limits II. 2012 All rights reserved.

06/08/2024

This is from a house concert we did at Buda Treehouse, for Young and Rusty. I love this performance.

This video was filmed in the Buda Treehouse Band Hall for use in the Young and Rusty EPK.

06/08/2024

This is what happens when an old hobbit tries to keep up with the kids. It was almost midnight and I should have been in bed two hours ago.

Not my best playing, but I love the beauty of the setting and the quality of Trevor's performance.

Trevor and David cover Jason Isbell, Bradley Cooper, JJ Cale, and Lightnin' Hopkins on the eve of ACL 2022.

06/08/2024

I am going through the archives today.

Audio and Video by Buda Treehouse Studios

06/06/2024

Molly and I flew to Knoxville in early March to see our friends Rick and Ellen, and film this story:

"Coos Bay To Charleston in Twenty-six days."

I have been wanting to produce this documentary for 46 years. Now that I own a media company, I finally have the equipment and the skills.

I bought a high-dollar slide scanner for my Christmas present this year. Then I converted 240 slides from our cross-country ride into high-def. Jpegs. The scanner software sharpened the old slides and fixed most of the dust and scratches.

Completing this ride in 1978 gave me the confidence that I could do anything I set my mind to. That ride enabled this money-poor, Sisyphean, Hobbit to manifest the Buda Treehouse.

This is chapter one. Let me know if you want to see chapter two.

This is Chapter One of the story about a 3,400-mile bike ride. Rick Parsons and David Patterson, two HM2 Navy Corpsmen, sponsored by the USN, rode from Coos ...

06/04/2024

Tommy Byrd, I see your video, and raise you one.

06/02/2024

I was fortunate to play violin with Byrd and Street. Tommy Byrd wrote this song. "One Drop of Rain" is so relevant to today.

We need to stop fighting each other and work together on the issues we all share. "United we stand..."

Music can help heal our country. Please share far and wide.

It only works when we work together.

05/18/2024

Yes!!!

The Buda Juneteenth Jubilee is scheduled for Saturday, June 15 at the Buda City Park Pavilion.

Mark your calendar for this family-friendly event with music, food, dancing, and history!

Facebook Event Page: https://fb.me/e/4ZJ9d3XfQ

05/12/2024

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers everywhere!!!

So her daughter and husband could attend a concert in SA. Molly spent most of Saturday through Sunday morning with her granddaughters. They made a skirt!!! She gets a mother's gold star for that!

Now Molly is back at the shire, celebrating with me, on this glorious Sunday afternoon.

Molly gardens, therefore she is! You can see the beauty and light that Molly brings to the Buda Treehouse. All I have to do is make the beds and cages.

It is a hazy cool day at the Treehouse. I recline under the shade of a forty foot red oak that I planted and listen to the cardinals, wrens, jays, martins, and all the others in a beautiful disorganized chorus.

The purple martins chitter, sing, swoop, and flutter in the most pleasing manner. They are in and out of their martin house feeding their babies.

I hope that you and yours are having a blessed Mother's Day

Here's to the best mother I know, I love you Molly!!!

05/07/2024

Happy 30th birthday Trevor Zajac!!! You are the most talented and best COO we could have hoped for. Thank you for all you do for Buda Treehouse. May you make many more creative and happy circles around the sun.

04/29/2024

Champ always wanted to be a unicorn. (he had a swelling in his ear flap which was lanced today.) He is feeling much better now. Even though he is very embarrassed.