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Big night at the Hurdy Gurdy this Saturday (December 2)!! The Hurdy Gurdy will present TRACY GRAMMER and special guest LITTLE TOBY WALKER. The show will begin promptly at 8pm!

Tracy will be performing with singer-songwriter Jim Henry. Jim has toured with Tracy that year or two and he has taught her some fine tunes on the fiddle! Tracy released her first solo CD last year, the critically acclaimed “Flowers of Avalon”. This year, she completed the final Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer recording ,”Seven is the Number”, which has been receiving substantial airplay on folk radio stations around the country.

Tracy is a consumate artist. A classically trained violinist, she became enamored with American roots music. Tracy has toured with Joan Baez, who remarked “Tracy Grammer is a brilliant artist and unique individual. Her voice is distinctive, as is her mastery over the instruments she plays.”

Of her recent CD, Mary Chapin Carpenter has said that “[Dave Carter & Tracy Grammer have] become a treasured part of my music collection… Flower of Avalon presents more songs by Dave Carter, with Tracy at the helm as artist, interpreter, co-producer and the beating heart at the center of it all. Her pure voice conveys the simple truths of these songs; her gifts as a musician are like that of a painter who is a master of chiaroscuro, offering light and shadow at every turn…. I was honored and humbled by the invitation to sing on this record.”

It will be a real honor to hear Tracy make her debut at the Hurdy Gurdy, in our intimate assembly room that allows everyone a good seat and an opportunity to watch this incredible artist at work.

I am also very pleased that the Hurdy Gurdy will be offering a “special guest” at this concert! Over the years, the Hurdy Gurdy stopped having opening acts for a variety of reasons. After much discussion and requests, we will be including opening acts for selected shows. I think it makes for a great evening of music – and this month’s opening act is a person who you have you mesmerized!

Little Toby Walker has been creating a real “buzz” in folk circles. Recently he gave a jaw-dropping performance at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference – an “industry” gathering of promoters, media and musicians. I guarantee you will be hearing more from Toby! This Saturday will be a wonderful opportunity for you to see Toby Walker, a fingerstyle guitar virtuoso. His passion for country blues, folk, ragtime and other American musical classics can be found in his outstanding performances. Be sure to get to the Hurdy Gurdy early so you won’t miss a note! In years to come you will be saying “I remember first seeing Toby…”

Tickets for the evening are $25 ($23 for members, and you can join at the door!). The Hurdy Gurdy is located in the Central Unitarian Church at 156 Forest Avenue in Paramus, NJ. The Hurdy Gurdy is just a few minutes drive off of Route 4 and it is easily accessible from a number of New Jersey highways. Check out the Hurdy Gurdy website at www.hurdygurdyfolk.org .

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The New York Times has reported that Jim Longhi, a longtime friend of Woody Guthrie, passed away last week at the age of 90. Hopefully you have had an opportunity to read his book “Woody, Cisco and Me“.

He was born Vincent Longhi, but started calling himself “Jim” because he did not like the sound of “Vinny”. Longhi led a varied an interesting life. During World War II he was in the Merchant Marines with Woody Guthrie and Cisco Houston and their dramatic stories can be found in Longhi’s book.

Longhi was also a prizefighter, a playwright, a lawyer, and an activist. He was a lawyer for the Brooklyn longshoreman, trying to fight the corrupt gangsters that were infiltrating the union. It has been said that Longhi provided the inspiration that led to the film “On the Waterfont”. Longhi’s story attracted the attention of Arthur Miller who worked with Elia Kazan on the idea, but after Kazan’s testimony to the House on UnAmerican Activities Miller stopped working with Kazan. Miller would write about Longhi’s experience in “Timebends” and Longhi himself would write a play about the experience.

The experience that Longhi shared with Woody and Ciso led Woody to write a song called “Seamen Three”. On the CD “That’s Why We’re Marching: World War II and the American Folksong Movement” you can hear Longhi talking about their WWII experiences. Longhi has also appeared in several documentaries about Woody Guthrie and shared his experiences with other Guthrie biographers.

Be sure to read Nora Guthrie’s thoughts about Jim Longhi at the Woody Guthrie Foundation website – click here .

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OnWFDU-FM’s TRADITIONS this Sunday, Bill Hahn welcomes Kate Campbell back to the studio to discuss her new CD “For the Living of These Days”.

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One of my favorites will be in the area this weekend! Joe Jencks will be performing on Friday December 1 at the Puffin Foundation in Teaneck. Then on Sunday December 3, Joe will perform with bassist Calvin Hill and the Teaneck Community Chorus in a presentation called “Voices of Liberation: Labor Songs, Songs of Struggle, Liberation and Bright Promise” The performance takes place at 4 pm in the Teaneck Presbyterian Church, 1 Church St., Teaneck, New Jersey. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for Seniors, and $5 students.

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Congratulations to the Folk Music Society of New York (New York Pinewoods Folk Music Club) and all their partners for the exceptionally well produced Eisteddfod – NY Festival. Held in the very cozy Renaissance Charter School in Queens, the weekend long festival offered a wide variety of styles and traditions presented by some of the finest authorities and voices in the traditional field. It was a humbling experience to have the opportunity to serve as an emcee for the festival closing concert last Sunday. (Other emcees were Oscar Brand and Mary Cliff – two radio icons.)

My definition of “folk” music is very broad, but this weekend really reminded me of how important it is to preserve and perpetuate “traditional” folk music. Being in the room with collectors like Howard Glasser, John Cohen, Margaret Bennett and others made me realize how much work has been done by previous generations to give us such a treasure. While I admire singer-songwriters, I do hope that many will do their homework and learn from the source. In my definition, folk music is music that comes from the people. We learn their culture, their joys, their sorrows, their history. Weekends like Eisteddfod are important to celebrate and inspire, and I hope that there will be many more outstanding festivals in the years to come. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of it.

Ron Olesko