An old friend Adrienne Redd asked me to come play for a block party/birthday celebration in Jenkintown, PA on Saturday night. Though, once again, it was for tips, I jumped at the chance to get out of town and play for real folks. It’s only an hour plus from Bethlehem so no sweat for me.

The small street was blocked off, and it opened to the back yards along the street. Various folks had set up tables with food, drinks and snacks available for people in the neighborhood to take in. There seemed to be a general friendliness as people came out in the early evening. I got there about 6:30 pm for a 7:30 start and I picked out a spot in front of a small garage to set up my amp and mike. Nothing fancy but comfortable.

Folks were masked, as was I, and, as I started in, I lowered my mask. A photographer, Alan Simpson, came by and started taking pix. As I began, I called to a group of kids across the street to come over and play maracas, tambourines and scarves, and it was a great way to create some energy on the street. Even as they took off after 15 minutes, the ice was broken and adults started to settle in, bringing in chairs, dancing in the street, etc.

It was a mixed audience but it was great to see all colors playing with scarves, dancing with their kids. Just what a block party should do. A good and long-time musician/friend Kenny Ulansey and his son showed up towards the end. We reminisced about the old Philly Folk Festival, now virtual this weekend, and I commented that, as I was driving down today, there was a definite seasonal feel to the trip that linked me to the Fest. Chance of rain, the length of the day, etc. Powerful stuff.

As usual I had to field requests, some of which, surprisingly I knew. One neighbor simply couldn’t believe I didn’t know a whole slew of his suggestions, prompting the inevitable, “What do you know?” But, I hit enough to placate him, and his young son had a great time in the process.

I gave away a few CDs, picked up about $90 in tips, played for a couple hours and helped create a comfortable scene for the neighborhood dealing with this pandemic. I felt safe, though I had some questions about my safety on the way home. So much uncertainty.

I guess this was the gig of the summer/year for me, my 37th Musikfest. It was strange to do it in the studio but it turned out pretty good for what it was. I was prepared.

Initially,  I was disappointed not to be one of the “band” acts (always in the shadow of Craig), but I was relieved to have any gig at all, since the cuts were brutal (so were the stipends). I immediately got Kris Kehr on board and it was a wise choice. He filled out the set nicely, added leads and it was simply great to play with my brother again.

I wondered what the layoff would do for the set, but, thankfully, I’ve been wood-shedding a lot these days so I found myself fairly confident that I could play with strength. Like I told the TV staff, I’ve been playing to a little white dot for three months now so I was practicing for this. Seemed I would be ready but I didn’t know until the moment.

This was all new for the TV crew being the first day of this Musikfest. There are two studios – the big bands go in the garage and the small fry go in the regular production studio. We were all primed to maintain distancing, masking, etc. but the spirit was warm and funny. Some of it spilled over into the show itself, which was very cool. We’re all just making this up as we go along.

The sound was not as good as it could have been, especially since high-quality acoustic production is not something these guys do regularly, and the sound engineer is in a separate room. I’m not sure I even met him. Sensing the moment, I decided to go simple and trust in the mix. The sound check proved that this was new ground for these guys. So it goes and you let it fly.

The host interviewed me before the set and he was set on the “perfect attendance” theme, something that, now that I think of it, is kind of a participation trophy. I’m proud of it, but there’s little mention of what it really takes to be able to do this – artistically. I’ll have to put some thought to this in another blog.

I tried something different today. I stood up for the whole show, perhaps for the first time in years. I’ve been working towards some fitness over the pandemic, I’ve lost some weight, curbed a few vices and feeling healthier than I’ve been in a while. This was going to be interesting. And, though I was tired at the end, I did it. Good.

Kris and I led off with an aggressive Don’t Call Me Early, one of my strong folk pieces and we landed it. A solid beginning. Giants was playful, and the sound crew added sound effects which really loosened up the whole situation. Again, it was the right song for this strange set.

Rosie is a Friend of Mine –  is a straight ahead country tune with a great ending (on the 4) and worked well with my meager picking but today I played it well, nothing fancy. Stan Rogers’ Giant reset the arc of the evening with its open tuning, druidic passages and a nice space for Kris’ improv in the middle. The tune has great dynamics, sounds unlike anything else in the repertoire. I could see the camera men eager to get shots of our interplay, which was quite genuine.

As a nod to tradition, I followed up with The Cat Came Back (similar chord progression to Giants…) but it was a good way to acknowledge my part in the history of the festival. I said that I had played it at every one. That’s the truth. The newer verses at the end help make it fresh and humorous.

Home stretch. I was given a strict 40 minutes so the crew put in a digital clock to keep me informed. At various times I was taking mental notes, deciding to tighten a song up, add a lead, etc. Part of the process.

How Legends are Made worked well. I introduced it as a salute to the traveling folk pros who have now lost their ability to tour, play small clubs like Godfrey’s. It’s these folks that came into town and gave me my folk performance lessons. I played it well, and the line “How do you get back to Rt. 22?” would resonate with this LV TV audience. I’m glad I did a rehearsal in the afternoon. The playing was strong and mumbled a line in the second verse. (Damn! There’s always one!) But it was the only screw up of the set, so I’m cool with that.

Lessons from Pete worked well, especially with Kris’s leads and the general dynamics (isn’t that a mega-company?), the song continues to feel good. It says what I need to say.

Watching the clock, I wanted to end with something short, folky, direct and with some funk. We Are Welcomed fit the bill and I could read the clock and adjust. I actually dropped the lead at one point, noticed that I still had a minute left, did a different ending and crossed the finish line with 10 seconds on the clock. Damn! I had planned Pay Bo Diddly as a rocker but I went with the folker.

As Kris and I wrapped up (covid protocol insisted that we re-mask and leave the premises quickly. As we packed up, we got to exchange some chat, but certainly not enough for months between meet-ups. I put my trust in Kris, as always, and he knows how to follow my set ups, take a creative leap with his bass leads, and give me the opportunity to focus on the “audience”. I couldn’t ask for more.

The crew thanked us, said we did a great job (I believed them) and helped us out the door. Kris and I set off on our separate ways, but, driving back the few miles back to the SouthSide, I felt good, knowing that I did my best, played another Musikfest and could now relax for the rest of the festival. It was good to do it early; maybe good to do it before Service Electric fatigue sets in. I’ll be curious to gather comments from those who saw it, especially those from outside my circle of folkie friends.

I needed a good gig this summer. This was it. …and I feel fine.

After a postponement on Thursday (it never really did rain), we went for it on Friday night. Billed as Songs of Resistance and Hope, it was an effort to premier the video Lehigh Valley Be Free, a monumental project by my friend Mike Duck and the Lehigh Valley Song Project, gathering many musicians from the LV to add their talents to the video. I added some mandolin to the effort. It came out quite nicely. They showed it at the end of the evening.

I was asked to play four or five songs during the evening which I gladly jumped in. I asked Kevin Soffera if he would join me, and, since he played drums on the video track, he was into it, as well.

Since an indoors production was out of the question, the Touchstone folks turned the back balcony into a stage with distanced seating in the back parking lot. As it turned out, it was a fine acoustic space looking out over the Greenway on a pleasant Friday evening.  A sliver of a moon appeared in the west after the sun went down.

Local poets, rappers and a dixieland trio provided entertainment and Kevin and I came on towards the end. It was a cool stage, even though removed from the audience. Nice lights and good sound.

I picked out I Can See Clearly Now, Here Comes the Sun, John Martyn’s May You Never, threw in Rosie is a Friend of Mine and finished with We Are Welcomed. I thought I was warmed up for the set, but, as usual, I was a little ham-handed on guitar and a little flat on on the vocals. The spotlight still affects me, but I played strong and it was great to have Kevin riding shotgun. It could have been better but we pulled it off by being strong on stage.

Kevin and I retired to the parking lot for the video, and, after a three song video from a young girl and futzing with the projector, they showed the video for the first time. It was a treat to see all these friends and new folks on the screen. Good sound and production. I was gratified.

The video is now making its rounds on social media:  http://touchstone.org/LVBFREE

I was pleased to be asked, I actually got paid for my set, and spent some time out in public again. My friend Mike Duck established himself in the arts scene, and I am so proud of him.

I’ve had a hard time with my monthly gigs here. This is my first winery gig and I worry about keeping the monthly gigs here, in spite of a generous proprietor. There has been low turnout, my difficulty in finding how to entertain an audience not familiar with my style/repertoire (Sweet Caroline, anybody?), and some hot weather, too. But tonight was an idyllic evening at the Hackett Winery, with perfect temperatures, picturesque PA skies and folks who wanted to listen. It made all the difference.

It was nice to get out of Bethlehem and the kerfuffle of Musikfest and simply play guitar for three hours. My old Lehigh professor Bob Lucas and his wonderful wife Joanne were a pleasant surprise. They pop up frequently at my kids gigs where the three of us instantly expand the mean age of the crowd exponentially. I had the chance to chat with them and Bob cracked me up with his comment about my blogging, that I’m using the arts part of my BA/BS degrees more than my engineering studies. This coming from an engineering prof.

The Goss’s and Marcie and Rick came out too, and gave me friends I could play for, and Rick came up to sit in on mandolin (not realizing he doesn’t play mandolin frequently – good job, Rick). There were a few other couples who were not familiar with me and my esoteric material who stuck around and enjoyed my commentary and music. That was gratifying in these days of hit and run entertainment. But, that’s what an evening at a winery is all about: good conversation with a spouse and friends, great weather, a beautiful rural setting and a chance to kick back. I’m glad I could be the sound track for the experience.

I was gifted the opening set at Liederplatz for Musikfest’s Opening Night (not the preview night…. that’s something else….). I was pleased to get the spot and also open up for my friend Dina Hall’s latest band. I decided to do the stripped down Dave and Kris Duo. It turned out to be a good play.

Liederplatz is in the Sun Inn Courtyard and one of the best stages I’ve played on. My friends Terry and Dave do great sound and the courtyard is a wonderful acoustic/social space. I think it’s the best stage at Musikfest.

I landed early for the 5:30 set so I could put some space between Das Awkscht Fest... and change some much needed strings. (Problems with the guitars this week…) It was a good thing to do and gave me some time to decompress for this gig, catch up with some good friends, take off my shoes and get centered. I knew I was flirting with danger by changing strings before this gig. Plus and minus situation.

Oh, my set and Dina’s set are going to be broadcast on Service Electric Cable TV. Well, surprise, surprise! I do recall trying to animate for the cable audience….. Whatever. I hope to hear about it down the line.

Surprisingly, there were a bunch of familiar and friendly faces in the audience and I felt ready (well, a little beat) to deal with this situation : the crowd, my preparation, the sound check, the heat, Kris as the band, hometown, new strings and more. It turns out that I was really pleased with remembering and delivering lyrics (it takes more work these days), playing strong and clean acoustic guitar sound/rhythm and doing a professional set of folk music.

I ended up doing a couple of kids tunes since there were with several families in the audience. I had to adapt, of course. We Gave Names to the Animals and Giants would have to suffice today. No Cat Came Back, though I should have.

Kris and I were solid and Kris played some nice leads on Giant and Lessons that caught people’s ear and helped change the sound of the set. I had some tuning pauses (again, never change strings before a gig), but was able to converse with the audience comfortably. Apparently my guitar sounded great out front. I thought I sang well. (that’s why good sound makes a difference.)

The Set: Don’t Call Me Early  (D), We Are Welcomed (D), July (F), We Gave Names (Cm), Mr. Bojangles (D), Rosie is a Friend of Mine (A), Giants (Cm), Louise (C), Giant (G), Lessons from Pete (Am)

I actually sold several CDs after the show. Glory Be!

I am beat after two challenging sets today. Tomorrow is a kids show at Das Awkscht Fest at 1 pm.  Low profile for Saturday and back on the griddle on Sunday with Steppin’ Out!

I would not have missed this one and was, as expected, worth the seven hours on the road. I figured the traffic would be smooth on the way up in the early afternoon. I had checked with Ron and Susie if I could stay the night, but later figured I’d rather deal with Sunday night traffic than Monday morning hassles. I was right.

Ron set up a stage and Bill brought his PA, so things were rolling already when I pulled in after 3 pm. The side yard has some big trees, lots of shade, a pool down the hill and a smorgasbord of food. There was also a slight breeze so things were very comfortable, bordering on the idyllic.

I got out my two folding chairs and sat down to catch Steve Rodgers set as the PA faded in and out. Seems the temperature was playing with the power. No surprise there. Ron had hoped that there would be some off stage jamming but it seemed that folks came to play their two or three songs, enjoy the other musicians and hang out for a while. That’s okay. Rick Johnson, Patch, Bill Morrell, Frank Pergola, Lou Audette, Chuck Koreiwo and their assorted soul mates.

My set was  pretty far down the list, but I was tickled to take the time to visit with some old friends, catch up with them and hear and meet some new folks as well. I love the surprises.

Eventually, Bill called out that I was up next so I hauled my folding chair (my trusty throne these days) up on stage, plugged in and launched into July, the perfect song for this moment. I screwed it up after mentioning “listening to Ron Anthony tunes” in the first verse, but only I knew it. I did We Are Welcomed next, a simple but effective folk tune which really sounds good on this Martin. I pulled out Giant next, and while I was playing, I had noticed a fellow who had a strange bowed and stringed hurdy gurdy type of instrument (apparently of Swedish descent) and invited him up to play on the open section of the song. He came up and hopped right on board, played a wonderful lead that expanded nicely. What a pleasant surprise but not totally unexpected at a close gathering of like-minded souls. I think folks really appreciated my spontaneity to embrace the moment.

Nyckelharpa

Bill gracefully offered me another song and I took time to comment that a summer gig in Ron and Susie’s backyard is recognized as one of the plum CT gigs, and certainly I was honored to check off  this notch on my bucket list.

I finished with Lessons from Pete, and it was sweet to have my friends listening to it. During the song, I decided to ask my new strange instrument player to join me in the ending jam. Again, he came up right away and we had a delightful excursion on that. It was a pleasure to play for old friends as well as some new faces, too. I played well and my guitar rocked.

I hung out a little bit more, caught up with the folks I needed to check in with, finally hit the food tables and decompress for the ride home. I thanked my very good friends Susie and Ron for their hospitality and love, hit the road home about 6:30, filled with some good memories of the day.

Surprisingly, the traffic was smooth going home and I got to listen to a pile of CDs that I get for potential airplay, as well as my friend Joey’s new Electric Farm album. I lost track of the time listening to his work (while being a good driver), and it was the perfect aperitif for a full day of music and friendship. I tossed most of the other CDs back into the pile and enjoyed random cuts from some of the more mature artists.

As I hit western NJ, there was an approaching storm in front of me, with lightening and great cloud formations. It was an auspicious welcome home for me and completed a magical Sunday.

I headed out to New Tripoli for my monthly gig at Hackett Winery. I was pretty skeptical that the gig was on, with the forecast for upper 90’s and the heat index in the 100’s. I actually emailed Bob, the proprietor of the winery, that if he wanted to cancel, I would agree to that. He replied in the afternoon that it was on.

When I got there around 4:30, surprisingly there were lots of cars on the grounds. There was a birthday party going on, with some pop-ups, food and a lot of 40-somethings socializing. That was my cue to set up and play for three hours. Mercifully, the shadows were starting to cover the stage area so I was out of the sun. There were a few other folks at tables, and my friend Carl Z., neighbor and old college chum stopped over. He was trying to round up some of his friends for later on.

I gamely tried to play tunes that would appeal to this scattered audience and, after an hour struggling with dead strings, I took a break. I took 15 minutes to change my strings, drink water, talk to Carl and reset for the rest of the evening. Folks came and went but the birthday party people kept coming out of the ‘shack’ with a bottle here and a bottle there. They were there for the duration. I got no recognition from them and was surprised that I got no tips the whole evening. Free music!!! I gave the birthday boy my CD.

I played well and was grateful that I had new strings for the last hour. But, I was beat after a three set gig the night before and the Pocono gig in the morning.

I limped to the finish line and pulled out I Heard It Through the Grapevine, and it struck me that this was the most appropriate song of the day. I chuckled to myself and commented to Carl’s group of friends that sometimes I even surprise myself.

Long day ahead on Sunday with Saucon Valley Farmers’ Market in the morning and a hike to CT for Ron’s pickin’ party. The Summer Tour rolls on.