10/26/09
The Listen/watch page has been updated with a song from our "all-XTC" becahelor party gig in September.


The Mad Men are back!

It's a new season, and another opportunity for the men of Leisure to serenade the patrons of O'Bryonville's delightfully eclectic Madison Rd. shopping district. Mike, Dave, Mark and Jude will be working their way around "the strip" from 1 to 4 pm this Saturday, July 11th. So, continue the spirit of independence an extra week by supporting your local merchants and musicians!


Believe it or not, we have gigs!

(Now, pick your jaws up off the floor...) Yes, we're once again cementing our claim to the title of THE premiere charity band in the tri-state area: the men of Leisure will be playing 2nd as part of a 3-band line up/benefit for the Safe Haven spay/neuter voucher program at Stanley 's Pub on Friday, April 17th. We will be performing all originals - including four brand new songs, and a couple of "deep album cuts" that have rarely - or in one case, never - been played live! You won't want to miss this one.

The show starts at 9:30 p.m. with performances in this order (hopefully we should hit the stage around 10:30 pm):

The AmpFibians (www.reverbnation.com/theampfibians)
Leisure (www.leisureband.com - but you're already here!?!)
Shake It Loose (www.myspace.com/shakeitloose)


21+, $5 at the door. All proceeds will go to the Safe Haven spay/neuter voucher program.

Friday, April 17th
Stanley 's Pub (website)
323 Stanley Avenue - Near Columbia Parkway
Cincinnati, OH 45226
Get Directions
(513) 871-6249


The second show of the month will be another of our famous wandering minstrel shows along the main drag of Madison Rd. In O'Bryonville. The excitement (and hopefully good weather to match the tunes) happens on Sunday April 26th from 1-4 in the p.m.


See you there!

Dave, Jude, Mark and Mike



The men of Leisure are enjoying the holidays with friends and family, but are gearing up for an exciting and action-packed 2009. Will there be website updates? New songs? More public appearances to satisfy the insatiable demands of our listening audience?

We hope the answer to all these will be "yes."

In the meantime, we've uploaded some photos taken by our friend Sean P. Hafer during our annual O'Bryonville Holiday Walk in November. You'll note that Dave was not present that afternoon; he made it for our repeat performance on December 18th, though, sadly, no pics were snapped. (Sorry, Dave).

Happy holidays, and have a merry new year!

Jude, Mike, Dave, and Mark



Leisure stokes the fire of your holiday season - twice!!!

OK, so there probably won't be any actual flame involved, but you can catch your favorite pop/rock luminaries, Leisure, during the Annual Holiday Walk Weekend in O'Bryonville this Saturday, November 22. Jude, Mark, and Mike will be walking off those extra holiday pounds ahead of time on Madison Road's Eclectic Mile. Look for us playing seasonal tunes and favorites near or inside one of the many local shops between 1 and 4 PM (cute Dave is doing daddy work that day, sorry).

We'll also be back on Thursday, Dec 18th from 5 to 8 PM - this time with Dave in tow! So, all those glorious 3 part harmonies that you've come to expect from us will be in full effect.

Gratuitous retail plug from Mike (whose wife owns Indigenous, a handcrafted gallery): If you haven't shopped O'Bryonville, it's a great place to start to your holiday season. Shops are stocked with wonderful gifts, and as a bonus this year, participating businesses will offer a free ornament with purchase throughout the weekend. "Every dollar you spend at a locally-owned business generates approximately three times more economic activity than a dollar spent at the typical 'big-box.' By choosing to shop locally-owned for just one day, we can help to improve Cincinnati's economy."--BuyCincy.com

Retail mode OFF--rock on!

*** the men of Leisure ***



The Listen/Watch page has been updated with videos of "Everyday Orange" (yes, it's a real Music Video™; go figure) and "Suffragette City" from our first Bowie show, as well as recent audio additions of band rehearsal tracks, abandoned 3rd Bees album recordings, and the 2 tracks we performed for the Jacksons tribute at the Southgate House in mid-October.

And, in lieu of means to purchase our CDs directly off this site (a feature which may eventually spring into being), see the Discography page for pricing and instructions (a series of runic challenges, each more fiendish than the last).


This Saturday, April 26th, you can catch the men of Leisure as they perform their semi-annual acoustic in O'Bryonville gig! We'll be all around the main drag of Madison Road as it runs through O'Bryonville between 12-3pm. Eat, shop, and nod your head to our usual eclectic and wildly entertaining assortment of pop and/or rock ditties.

(If you don't see us playing on the street, check the bars!)


February 2008: We're on YouTube! Click here to see the video for Everyday Orange!


Fall has arrived with little fanfare, until now...

We're back-to-back! New Leisure appearances in October!

Acoustic in O'Bryonville - Thursday, October 18th, 2007
Leisure will be reprising their roles as the wandering minstrels of O'Bryonville. From 5-8 pm, catch us at various spots on the main drag of Madison through the heart of this happening little 'burg.

Blood On The Ballroom Floor: A Jacksons Tribute - Friday, October 19th, 2007
The following night, Leisure will be performing in a multi-band tribute to the Jacksons (as in Michael, Jermaine, Tito, LaToya, Janet, etc.) at the Southgate House in Newport. You won't want to miss a minute of the jheri-curled action! Click here for more info.


The dog days of summer are drawing to a close, and we Leisure boys are taking our band name seriously, as far as music goes. We'll be sure to let you know when we collectively get the itch to do something, or when a show falls in our laps; whichever comes first.

A new Leisurely kid arrives!

Congrats to Dave and Kathy, who welcomed a lovely daughter to the world on June 14th! Our plan to take over the world, ever so slowly, is well underway.

Another Album Cover???

After the thrills, chills and spills of the Bowie tribute shows, we Leisure boys are thinking that our collective arm might be twisted into doing another album/group tribute show. But which album? Which band? These are tough questions, indeed; so if you have any suggestions, please drop them in our suggestion box (i.e. our Guestbook).

Some contenders on the table at the moment include Depeche Mode, R.E.M., Talking Heads, the Smiths, the Beatles... Oh, what the heck - we'll just do every album that we own.

Wags & Whiskers Benefit: March 2, 2007

Thanks for coming out to this benefit for the Wags & Whiskers low-cost spay/neuter/animal rescue program; over $500 was raised to defray the costs of neutering local pets/strays. Plus, we got to play with the Libertines, which rocks.

Independent Exposé

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Southgate House for this woxy.com benefit though, sadly, it was too little, too late... the station's announced its last day on the air will be September 15, 2006. The $1,500 raised at the show will instead be donated to charity. Thanks, woxy, for 23 years of the best music anywhere; you'll be missed.
[EDIT: WOXY.com has since been resurrected, and is now rosy-cheeked and asking for something more substantial than broth. Huzzah!]


Ziggy Stardust Reprise!

Well, due to 'popular demand' we've decided to do an encore performance of the Ziggy Stardust show!  But this is the last time. It's slated for August 11, 2006 at the Southgate House. Here's what local music writer Mike Breen has to say in Cincinnati CityBeat:

"Earlier this year the local band Leisure slathered on glitter and eye-makeup, donned boas and other shiny thrift-store duds and took the stage of Newport's Southgate House for what turned into a couple of solid hours worth of immaculately played David Bowie tunes, including the entirety of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars. It was a jaw-dropping performance that nailed practically every nuance and vocal inflection from Bowie's masterpiece."

We're adding 5 new songs to the non-album song list and we've got a lot more time to troll the women's section at Goodwill than last time, so there'll be something new to experience for those who saw the show last January. Come love the alien before he's whisked back into the stars. Also, we're thrilled to have Jason Arbenz (Goose) and Wake the Bear opening for this final Ziggy event. Doors at 8:30, $5, 21+.

WOXY "Re-Prom" - March 4

We had a great time playing a mix of ol- and nu-skool alternative for this party thrown by fans of Cincinnati-based WOXY, the world's finest online modern-rock radio station! Kudos to those attendees who came from far and wide; to Barb, Shiv and Bryan for coming out; to those fans who put it all together; and to everyone who gives something back to this station that gives us so much. Thanks also to our own Dave, who soldiered through despite apparently being doped out of his gourd on cold medication.

That's Right... I Did the Iggy

Thanks to everyone who helped and/or came out to witness our recreation of David Bowie's classic Ziggy Stardust album at Newport, KY's Southgate House on January 28, 2006! It was the largest and most receptive audience we've ever played to, and we hope you enjoyed the show as much as we enjoyed presenting it. Biggest thanks must go to Mssrs. Alan Masters (keyboards) and Jim Gallagher (sax/flute), who helped us take the instrumentation far beyond what two-guitars/bass/drums can accomplish on their own. Check the Photos and Listen/Watch pages for more excerpts of this memorable evening.

Renegade Garage Players Musicfest

Thanks also to those who came to this fundraiser for the Renegade Garage Players, Cincinnati's inclusive arts organization, on February 25, 2006. We helped raise some needed funds for a great cause!