NEW RECORD!

Greetings, friends,

Hallelujah. It finally happened. That new record I've been talking about, for so long, is here. "Same Shift, Different Day" just came in the mail and is now available. It's my first record in seven years with new material on it and I'm very excited about it. (Pasta Man was a live recording of old songs).

You won't find this record in your local record store, as it'll only be available through this site and CDBaby. Send check, cash, money order or wampum for $15.00 to the address below. If you want a second disc for a friend, twenty bucks will get you two.

Hope this finds you well and may your days be filled with whatever you want them to be filled with.

Cheers,

Missouri Mule Music
PO Box 22456

Nashville TN 37202

Click Here for purchase information

NEW BOOK!

At last, a book written about The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, by one of its own, has been released. Written by bassist, Michael ‘Supe’ Granda, “It Shined – The Saga of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils” is an expose of the life and times of the band in and out of the spotlight, on and off of the stage, and from top of the charts to the bottom of the barrel. Not only will you find humorous anecdotes about the music (i.e. Jackie Blue’s sex change and Chicken Train’s acquisition of its chicken squawking solo), you will learn about the rigors of the road both here and abroad. Follow the path of the band from its beginnings onstage at the New Bijou Theater in 1971 to one of their last gigs on the stage of the Shrine Mosque in 2004. In between those dates you’ll find a cornucopia of stories - some good, some bad, some ugly, all entertaining. Though the band went through many personnel changes, the only member to remain a constant was Supe. While the others came and went, Supe stood center stage, leading the mayhem with musicianship and humor, both of which can be found in these pages.

We have the book in stock and you can order yours now. For more information and how to obtain your copy, click on the book cover below.

PS: Here is a list of Book Signings that Supe will be attending:

Sat., May 1, Gazebo Books, Eureka Springs, ARK 1-5PM book signing

Daredevils' Fans... Have you checked out the Official Ozark Mountain Daredevils' Homepage? Click Here to board the Chicken Train
Check out Supe's video, Making "Hippie Pesto" on YouTube at this link.

Got something you'd like to share with us? How about a photo, a story, or other items of interest?

Email Supe at: SupeduJour@aol.com

"Music is my main thing..."

"Even though I don't come from a musical family, there was always music going on at the house," says the Artist Formerly Known as Michael Granda in describing his upbringing in St. Louis, Missouri. "Because my folks weren't tuned into the Grand Ol' Opry, I couldn't tell you the difference between Tex Ritter and Hank Snow. But I could tell you the difference between Count Basie and Benny Goodman. As my musical tastes evolved I could tell you the difference between Hendrix and Clapton. This also shows in my music, which isn't as rooted in country as it is in rock and roll, big bands and anything with a swing to it. My affinity for country music came later as I entered adulthood."

A multi-instrumentalist, Supe and rock and roll entered adolescence at the same time-Supe describes himself as a 'sponge' in exploring the varied sounds of famed Gaslight Square in St. Louis-and out of the exposure to the vibrant music culture came a mind and soul dedicated to a wide variety of sounds and styles.

At the end of the 1960s, Supe aimed his car and his life in a southwesterly direction from his St. Louis home, and a couple hundred miles on I-44 later arrived in Springfield, Missouri, his home for the next twenty years. There he found a common vibe among a coterie of musicians who in 1971 formed the Ozark Mountain Daredevils. The group's self-titled debut on A&M Records was produced by Glyn Johns (The Who, Rolling Stones) and spawned a Top 30 hit in "If You Want to Get to Heaven." The Daredevils were conspicuously eclectic, the group bursting at the seams with invention: five of the members sang lead and contributed songs, Supe among them. The Dares were rootsy and adventurous, capable of digging into the naked heart of a lyric about spiritual renewal as they were in surreally getting lowdown on "Chicken Train."

The clucking and squawking you hear on "Chicken Train," the second most requested song in the Daredevils' catalog, have come out of Supe's mouth on record and in concert to the delight of fans ever since.

The Daredevils recorded their follow up, It'll Shine When It Shines, on a farm outside Springfield, with Johns again at the helm. The results were luminous, as nature's music literally blended with the singers and players of instruments. The album produced a #1 song in "Jackie Blue," still a staple of classic rock radio. The albums came annually in succession, the Dares exploring country-rock bohemia with a grace and verve that still attract fans new and old.

By the mid-1980s, Supe had regular solo work on the burners and cooking: The Dog People, represented on two albums (The Dog People and Profit Man: A Rock Opera), and Supe & the Sandwiches. The Sandwiches performed more widely and released Greatest Hits Volume III in 1988 and Meat the Sandwiches two years later.

Meanwhile, Supe has maintained a lasting spot and an ever-changing wardrobe in The Garbonzos, a merry-making troupe that performs psychedelic polkas at venues ranging from nightclubs to parades to riverbanks. In 1998 The Garbonzos at last burned onto compact disc the grooves that have been put to service for countless shows, including a supporting role for Tiny Tim, when they issued Eat Our Beans (Missouri Mule). "Producing the disc was a labor of love of the absurd," explains Supe.

Supe's latest solo outfit is Supe & the Sheetrockers, who debuted in Nashville on April 1, 1998.

"The Sheetrockers were assembled to play this avalanche of raucous songs I can't seem to stop writing," says Supe. "With their 'drywall of sound,' I can cop a groove big enough for everyone to climb into."

"...but not my only thing."

"To hell with a bunch of gold records on the wall. The greatest thrill of my life was when I delivered my own children. I realize it was a pretty primitive thing to do, but at the time, that's where my heart and soul resided. Then, after they were born, I built all their furniture. They're the brightest jewels in my crown." -Supe du Jour

SUPE DU JOUR-THE DISCOGRAPHY

w/ THE OZARK MOUNTAIN DAREDEVILS
Ozark Mountain Daredevils (A&M, 1973)
It'll Shine When It Shines (A&M, 1974)
The Car Over the Lake Album (A&M, 1975)
Men From Earth (A&M, 1976)
Don't Look Down (A&M, 1977)
It's Alive (A&M, 1978)
Ozark Mountain Daredevils (Columbia, 1980)
The Best (A&M, 1981)
The Lost Cabin Sessions (Legend, 1985)
Modern History (Conifer, 1989)
Now Hear This (self-produced cassette, 1990)
Archive Alive! (Archive Recordings, 1997)
13 (New Era, 1997)

THE SOLO STUFF
THE GARBONZOS
§ Eat Our Beans (Missouri Mule Music, 1998)

SUPE & THE SANDWICHES-
§ The Springfield Chronicles (Missouri Mule Music, 1997)
§ Meat the Sandwiches (self-produced cassette, 1990)
§ Greatest Hits Volume III (self-produced cassette, 1988)

THE DOG PEOPLE-
§ Profit Man: A Rock Opera (self-produced vinyl, 1987)
§ The Dog People (self-produced vinyl, 1986)

SUPE DU JOUR-
§ Makin' a Living, Not a Killing (Missouri Mule Music, 1998)
§ Smartest Man in the World (Missouri Mule Music, 1999)