Upcoming Shows

  • March 17: Laughing Boy; Nathan Thompson; Kyle Davis
  • April 7: Ashley Jordan; Rebecca Lynch et al; Robert Cedrone and friends
  • April 21: Laughing Boy; Chris Nauman; Bethel Steele
  • May 5: Arl-Lex Five & Dime; Lenny Solomon; Gary Backstrom
  • May 19: Laughing Boy; Ann & Tom O'Donnell; Howie Newman
  • June 2: Alyssa Zahka; Patti DeRosa; Arl-Lex Five & Dime
  • July 7: Laughing Boy; Ken Selcer; Christiana Gerstner
  • August 4: Stefilia's Stone; Patty Keough; Arl-Lex Five & Dime
  • September 8: Mark Stepakoff; Chuck Clough; Rob Carlson
  • September 22: Laughing Boy; Brent Clark; Becky & David DesRoches; split set: Carter Hochman and Monica Whitlock

Times

Through September 8th, each performer begins on the hour, at 5, 6, and 7pm, in the order listed. Beginning September 22nd, performers play at 5:00, 5:45, 6:30, and 7:15.
ALL SHOWS ARE FREE.

Location

Many thanks to our hosts at Starbucks, 60 Bedford Rd. in Lexington Massachusetts ~
just outside the town center near the fire station. Their number is 781-863-1189.


Sunday, April 3, 2011

House Blend

We like a good mix of musical styles and performers at the Acoustic Showcase, and last night we achieved just that, without even breaking a sweat!


photo: Ron Chancey
We began the evening enjoying Ashley Jordan's beautiful voice. She's got a kind of folk-country thing going on, with a characteristic break that conveys great feeling. A nice mix of covers and originals, backed by some convincing guitar work. 


Two particular high points: the first, an anthem from her upcoming CD (her second!) titled Liquid Words. Great song.  The second, a cover of Brandi Carlile's The Story (requested by Ashley's mom) that had me fighting back tears. Really beautiful.  Ashley's part of the Acoustic Showcase youth movement; another very talented high school student we're catching early in what could easily be a great career. We'll have her back as soon as we can!


Next we brought on Lexington's own Robert Cedrone, accompanied by Noah Mendelsohn on bass, and Ron Chancey on lead guitar.  
These guys really know how to rock. Excellent energy, song selection, and musicianship. Real pros. Robert's ringing voice, Noah's striding bass, and Ron's [fabulous] evocative solos -- it makes for really good music.




To add to the excitement, the band brought up two different guest vocalists: Ann O'Donnell, then Sarah Shaw. Two exciting vocalists with distinctive styles.  Here's Sarah giving us a rousing Me And Bobby McGee.

Finally, we welcomed back Julian Baptista. A laid back stage presence, a nice blend of delicate and ringing guitar work, a pleasing mix of originals and covers, and a tremendous tenor voice.
Any performer who has (A) the nerve, and (B) the pipes to pull off Roy Orbison's Anything At All is OK in my book! Julian recently finished college and is hitting the road as a gigging musician. We wish him all the best, and we hope to see him back soon.


And that about does it for another Acoustic Showcase. How many of these have we done? We're in our third year -- I'll have to count them up. In the meantime, stop by next time and get it while it's hot!