I should have known that a visit to Russ Wilson’s home on New Year’s day would provide plenty of inspiration for my first post to this blog. Russ is a dear friend, a musical genius, and an avid collector of all things vintage; albums, bar-ware, and musical memorabilia. Frugally hip, Russ’ tikki lounge throws you right into the 1950′s with a salvaged free-standing bar from a little substation post office that was located in an old drug store in Hendersonville. Russ used to work in that post office. When the store closed he took the counter and the rest is history. The atmosphere is full of swizzle sticks, hula chicks, and walls adorned in album covers with a definite theme… saucy bombshells. See if you can spot Mary Tyler Moore! Russ is a master mixologist, and his cocktail concoctions are divine. I’ll have to get the recipe for the Monkey’s Behind, but it involved a banana liqueur I’d never seen before, and was delish. His “Russ Tea” was also exceptional, though I can’t divulge the secret ingredients, they are stored perfectly in a mason jar. Coasters made from the centers of old albums covered the bar, and Russ’ friend and band-mate Hank Bones filled me in on some of the finer details of the room, giving me lots of “A-Ha!” moments. Russ’ dad’s portable bar case is perfect to bring along your own libations to any party… I’ll be looking for one of those.
When the record player wasn’t spinning big band numbers, music bounced from every corner of the house with an eclectic group of musicians. A bass and violin player filled the kitchen with Gypsy jazz, and were dubbed “Too Hot for the Kitchen”… good band name? Combined with the Jambalaya & pot-luck offerings, Russ’ kitchen was hot! The jam in the living room, including my favorite dobro player Ben Scales, was hopping.
Russ definitely has the right idea of how to throw a bash & also how to show off his wonderful collections; display like groups of items together, use your collections or lose them, and organize the overflow in storage. Russ has, I’m guessing, several thousand albums from a variety of eras. He let me have a peek at the vault, and it was impressive.
Russ is lining up his orchestra, The ART DECO REVUE, to perform at Eleven on Grove in Asheville sometime this Spring.
Follow Russ on Facebook: Russ Wilson’s Art Deco Revue… and don’t miss this performance… I plan to be there ready to dance!
As my guru Nate Berkus always says, “Every space should have something from nature and found objects.” I agree.
