Blonde Furniture

Blonde Furniture began as a studio project in 1983 when singer-songwriter Bill Dumas got together with guitarist Tim Stawarz (Roger C. Reale, The Toneshifters), bass player Bill Quinn, and special guests Hugh Birdsall (The Reducers, Dogbite) and Ken Nash (New Johnny 5). All were rockers based in New London, CT, who had been playing local clubs for years, with occasional forays into New York, Boston, and other large cities. They figured they would put down some original songs on vinyl before leaving rock & roll music behind and heading for new adventures in jazz, Americana, and roots rock.

The first part of the plan worked out pretty well, resulting in their debut EP, “Blonde Furniture Has More Fun.” However, most of the original band members never really left, others wound up coming back, new artists kept sitting in, and their repertoire slowly expanded, even though they would not play live for nearly a quarter century. Bill expanded the first record release into a full blown record label: Vinyl Siding Records. Over the next several years VSR produced and released The Towers of New London Vol. I&II compilations. A total of nine releases filled the catalogue including John Cale-produced, Made For TV, The Whales, Stark Weather, Free World and Another Day.

As for Blonde Furniture, they remained a studio project until 2007 when the live band officially debuted at the Bank St. Cafe in New London. However, the band had been showcasing or doing open mics since at least 2006, performing in a multitude of configurations from solo to power trio to acoustic ensemble. Bill Quinn and Tim Stawarz were joined by percussionist/singer Chris MacKay and Sue MacKay on accordion. More recently Ludent Tremmel (Stark Weather, Gno, Enos Eros) 'replaced' Tim Stawarz on guitar, though he never really left, either-- Tim still joins the band for shows whenever his schedule permits.

Blonde Furniture currently performs at New London venues including Hygienic Art Park, 33 Golden St.. Oasis Cafe, Bank St. Cafe and the Bean & Leaf. Bill also performs the Blonde Furniture repertoire in Los Angeles, usually accompanied by guitarist Ruben Ramos or Matt Jansky (The Clothespins). Blonde Furniture performed with Ruben at the Whisky a Go Go as a full band, and as a duo with Matt at the Rainbow Bar and Grill, Pig ‘n’ Whistle, Kulak’s Woodshed and Sabor y Cultura. The last few years, Matt has also returned to New London to join the full lineup for several shows in the summer, including Daddy Jack's in 2020, Sprague River Park in 2021, and RD86 in June of 2023.

Their show at Rockwood on 8/2/23 will be Blonde Furniture Duo's debut in New York. Dan Robbins, currently a regular on New York's Old Time jam scene, and who last played with Jansky in 1988 at the Knitting Factory and CBGBs, will be joining them as a special guest.