Cold Weather, Warm Music

Another warm, happy evening at the Acoustic Showcase, as outside the snow subsided and the cold breezes blew. 

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We began with Arl-Lex Five and Dime, the "two town super group" that often graces our humble venue. They were in particularly fine form, with tight five part harmonies, sweet guitar, mandolin and fiddle lines, and (as usual) a satisfying set list featuring American folk/country/pop favorites. For example, they rocked out on "Oh Boy!" (Buddy Holly) then shifted to a tender version of "Oh Susanna" (Stephen Foster, go figure!).  

Mike Barrett, Jack Donahue, Peggy Rose, Paul Hatem, Quinn Eastburn, Chris Eastburn

That's the band in full swing. As always, special mention goes to 6 year old fiddler Quinn, who was featured on a rip-tearing instrumental blues number. The kid can rock out!

Arl-Lex always brings out a good crowd, bopping along to the tunes.

Sam Berman, collaborator and lead singer on the original "Charlie On The MTA"

An excellent set came to a deeply satisfying close with an audience sing-along of "Charlie On The MTA" -- the campaign/protest song created right here in Boston. Introducing the tune was Lexington's own Sam Berman, the original singer on the original recording (he's holding it!). Here's a link to more on Sam: http://www.wickedlocal.com/lexington/news/opinions/x1519716986/Scene-Herd-Sam-Berman-and-Charlie#axzz1kBn2Zwvb

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Next, we brought on Laughing Boy. (We call them the "house band" because playing once a month is how David Keevil rewards himself for organizing and presenting the Acoustic Showcase.) These jovial lads had a lot of fun trotting out some new songs, both covers and originals. Highlights included a bouncy rendition of CCR's "Lodi," and an appealingly louche "Little Red Riding Hood" by Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs. They closed with two originals -- "Happy When The Wall Comes Down" and "I Need A Rock" -- that brought to mind the high energy of a revival meeting (or maybe just a really good cup of coffee).

photo by Griffin Keevil

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And finally we welcomed Diane Taraz. Elsewhere in this blog I've waxed rhapsodic about Diane's lovely voice and affecting instrumental work. Despite this being her second performance of the day, her voice was as appealing as ever.

Diane has a gift for setting new words to old melodies, drawing from a rich compendium of French, French-Canadian, and Scottish tunes. She's got a wonderful combination of serious craft and playful delivery.

The coffee shop quieted down, and we were lifted and carried by Diane's beautiful, lilting songs. 

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And that does it for another rendition of the Acoustic Showcase. Back out into the cold, still warm inside from the joys of music.

See you next time!

In Good Hands

I know I say this every time, but we really did have tremendous fun last night at the Acoustic Showcase! Three excellent, experienced musicians, joined by various other excellent musicians -- lots of warm camaraderie and musical harmony. And the smell of coffee in the air! 

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We began with Ken Selcer (filling in for Patti DeRosa, who was called away at the last minute). 

Ken's such a pleasing musician. He's got an easy, smooth voice, which he employs to great effect. And his guitar work is smooth and flexible as well, as he shifts deftly over the fingerboard, jazzing chords and trickling fills, then stepping away to tease out a lyrical, spiraling solo.

He did a sweet combination of Little Feat's "Willing" and Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry." Really strong originals too, with a particular favorite of mine: the reggae flavored "It's All Around You." 

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Ken stepped aside, and we brought on one of our very favorite musicians, Rob Carlson. Elsewhere in this blog I've used multiple superlatives to describe Rob's music -- what can I say, they're all true. Rob's so quick, tuneful, passionate, and intelligent in his guitar playing; I've always got a smile when I'm listening to him. And his high, powerful tenor is a treat as well.

Rob was backed by Ted Millen on djembe, with Jeff Trout ever facile on bass, making for a lovely interplay of lines and harmonies. 

photo by Griffin Keevil

The music had elements of folk, blues, and jazz, with a syncopated Brazilian flair at times.






Rob's happy to share the stage, and he brought in Ken Selcer to provide color commentary on a number of songs, and David Keevil to harp it up on some blues numbers.

It was a hot time on the old town, as Rob finished the set with "Highway to Hell" -- you haven't really enjoyed that song until you've heard the acoustic, dobro version at your local coffee shop!

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And then we welcomed Christiana Gerstner to the Acoustic Showcase. She's an accomplished singer/songwriter with one of the nicest voices we've heard in quite some time. Her songs run the gamut, from soulful ballads to an up-tempo blues number. Particularly affecting was her opening song, told from the point of view of a young man going into battle; and later we heard another beautiful song inspired by her grandmother, about seeking work during the Great Depression.

John Zaia provided a steady bass foundation. And here came Ken Selcer again, inflecting Christiana's songs with his supple solo fills.

Good music! We'll hope to hear from Christiana again soon. 

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And thus ends another Acoustic Showcase. Let's hear it for harmonious collaborations from old friends and new. What pleasures will the next performance bring? Stop by and find out!

Singing in the Holidays

Many harmonious voices were raised last night at the Acoustic Showcase, and everybody went home happy. Not bad for a holiday get-together! 

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We began the evening inauspiciously, as David Keevil could only sing "I really can't stay, baby I've got a cold inside." Bad puns and song paraphrases aside, David had to scratch, due to having a cold and sounding like a frog (at best).

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So we kicked it off with familiar friends Random Chants, the all-female a cappella group we've often enjoyed at the Showcase. They were in rare form last night, with sparkling renditions of holiday favorites from "Santa Baby" all the way to "Dona Nobis Pacem". Supposedly a few of the Chants were suffering from colds of their own, but you couldn't hear it; quite the contrary: their harmonies were strong and sure, their lyrics were distinct (every word of Silver Bells!), and the holiday mood was cheery and warm. Very nice performance!


Unfortunately, the photographer's automatic focus was turned off for the evening, so we didn't get a clear photo of Random Chants' performance! The management apologizes dejectedly. 

Random Chants, in the holiday fog.

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Random Chants exited the stage (rug), and we welcomed Arl-Lex Five & Dime, who entertained us with their all-holiday set. (By this time the photographer had fixed the focus problem.)

Jack Donahue, Mike Barrett, Peggy Rose, Paul Hatem, Chris and Quinn Eastburn

The two town supergroup did a bang-up job with a range of excellent selections, from the traditional to the somewhat off-beat. We enjoyed "The Dreidle Song" presented as a shuffle, and "Jingle Bell Rock" with Quinn tearing it up on the fiddle. As usual, the vocal harmonies were strong and true, and the instruments meshed and twined appealingly. Multi-instrumentalist Jack Donahue deserves special mention for his stable bass, his expressive harmonica, and his clear, melodic penny whistle on "Caledonia." 

We didn't get a picture of the audience, but there were a lot of 'em! And with lyrics to all songs handed out, we could sing along with abandon. Lots of fun!

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And that's about it for another Acoustic Showcase. This is our third holiday season together (by my count), and it keeps getting better. Some people had colds, some photos were blurry, but everybody got together and sang, and everybody had a good time!

See you in the new year!