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!

Lots To Like

We had a varied and exciting time at the Acoustic Showcase last night. Of the four acts, three were new to us. A broad range of styles and experience made for an entertaining time.

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We started off with Wild Maple. This excellent duo features Gary Dolinsky on guitar and Trish DeCaprio on violin. Both sing, trading off lead vocals and joining for sensational harmonies.

Gary's a flatpicking guitar whiz, and Trish is an expressive violinist, both flexible and incisive. The result is an appealingly polished sound.


Their set list included a number of excellent originals, with some pleasing covers as well.  

I liked their version of the Beatles' "I Will," with a contrapuntal byplay of guitar runs and pizzicato violin figures. Great fun. A minute later they had me tearing up with a plaintive ballad, then tapping toes along with a twangy number. Make no mistake, these folks are good. We'll try to get them back, I promise!

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Next we shifted to a couple of mini-sets by comparative new-comers. First we heard from Leo Bohigian. He played a number of originals, shifting between playful insouciance and more serious shades of pensiveness. 

Leo's rangy baritone brought to mind Townes van Zandt, with more than a hint of Jonathan Richman, especially when he serenaded us about his new beard, or his blue sweater. Quirky, with a downbeat appeal.

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The next mini-set was brought to us by Steve Southard and Andrew Southworth. In addition to alliterative last names, this duo has energy and musical appeal.

Steve's guitar playing is emphatic and assured, while Andrew's tenor has a kind of husky clarity (if that's not a contradiction in terms). They presented a nice set of cover tunes -- some familiar, some pleasantly obscure.

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And then, WOW! We welcomed Gary Backstrom to our humble carpet. Gary's new to the Showcase, but familiar to area audiences from his work with Jiggle The Handle and The Gary Backstrom Band. 

What a musician -- some of the very best guitar playing we've had the pleasure to hear anywhere, coupled with a strong, flexible, playful, evocative tenor voice. Lots of funk and soul influences, with a healthy dose of Todd Rundgren (say what?).

What a treat to hear someone move around an acoustic guitar neck with such facility. He had bass, percussion, rhythm and lead all bursting forth from four fingers on six strings.

Music's not really a visual medium, and I'm not an accomplished photographer, so it's difficult to convey just how dynamic and approachable Gary was in performance, and just how appreciative and involved his audience was. Let's just say he had people dancing in the aisles -- he really did!

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So, last night we had another dose of what I love about the Acoustic Showcase: musicians, family, friends, fans, and coffee-seeking passersby, all enjoying the music. Pretty sweet. 

See you next time!