Odds and Ends
I apologize for not updating this site as frequently as I would like to over the past couple of weeks. I promise that new articles, reviews and recommendations will be coming! I have been hard at work on a few projects in addition to Hurdy Gurdy and WDFU business.
Bill Hahn and I will be hosting another showcase at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance(NERFA). Many of you may remember the 3 hour showcase special that we aired featuring highlights from the 2005 NERFA conference. That special aired this past New Year’s Day as well as an encore broadcast over the Sunday preceding July 4th. The program allowed us to share live showcase performances from some of the top names and emerging artists in the folk field. Last year we offered performances from Joel Mabus, Johnsmith, the Dreamsicles, Red Molly, Antje Duvekot, Modern Man and many others.
I am not at liberty to announce our showcase performers for 2006 just yet (twist my arm!!), but you will not be disappointed! Bill and I hope to announce the list within the next week or two.
There is another exciting event that I am planning, also based around NERFA. I am producing a recreation of the historic “Bound For Glory: A Musical Tribute to Woody Guthrie”. On March 17, 1956 over 1000 people gathered in Pythians Hall in NYC to see a performance that featured the words and music of Woody Guthrie. The late Millard Lampell wrote a script based on the writings of Guthrie. Woody’s words told the story surrounded by his incredible songs. This “revue” featured Lee Hays and Earl Robinson as narrators with performances from Pete Seeger, Ed McCurdy, Rev. Gary Davis, the Kossoy Sisters and other names from that era. At the end of the evening, Pete Seeger pointed to the balcony and a very frail Woody Guthrie stood to receive the adulation of the crowd. There is a very moving photograph of the moment that has been reproduced in numerous books about Guthrie.
The performance has been recognized as one of the pivotal moments of the folk revival, and author Joe Klein in his biography of Guthrie noted that the evening was the start of the “iconizations” of Woody. The Millard Lampell script has been performed on other occasions since the original concert, most notably at the memorial concerts that took place at Carnegie Hall and the Hollywood Bowl following Woody’s passin. So, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the original event I felt it would be a good idea to recreate the script for radio, using contemporary artists. My hope is to show that Woody’s legacy has been handed down and future generations will continue to be inspired by his story and work.
After receiving approval from the Woody Guthrie Archives, I started planning the event to take place at NERFA. This annual conference gathers together some of the finest performers in the field, and what better place to rekindle the spirit of Woody?
I am pleased to announce that actor/musician Ronny Cox will narrate this recreation. Ronny actually performed this script back in 1965 in Washington DC, and most of us remember Ronny’s performance as Woody’s friend in the movie “Bound For Glory”. Ronny also became close friends with the Guthrie family, including Woody’s first wife Mary.
The artists who will be performing the songs are some of the finest performers in folk music today. Bethany Yarrow, David Massengill, John Flynn (tentative), Laurie MacAllister and Abbie Gardner of Red Molly, Hope Machine, Carol Ponder will be among the performers. (There are a few more surprises added to the lineup that I can’t reveal just yet!!)
The recreation will take place at NERFA at noon on Friday November 10. Only registered attendees of the conference are invited to attend this event. The radio broadcast is scheduled for Sunday November 26th at 3pm!
More details to follow!! I hope you can join us!!!!
Okay, a few other tidbits before I close for today –
This coming Saturday, September 30th, there will be a celebration honoring John Langstaff sponsored by the Folk Music Society of NY, Inc. and New York Revels. The event is co-sponsored by the Country Dance and Song Society and Revels, Inc (Cambridge, MA).