Thursday evening – Tunes at Twilight – in the acoustically friendly confines of the Sun Inn Courtyard. As always, it’s a balance between chaos and control. I enjoy trying to juggle material for tonight’s family audience, kids, “normal” folks, dogs, C&W fanatics, old friends and Lehigh professors.

I passed out rhythm instruments early on to the kids and, at times, it got a little distracting. But, you know, it still comes down to letting the kids play as opposed to trying to get too artsy. So it goes.

It’s always good to return to Bethlehem for a gig like this, check in with folks from my ample past, and get to play for a bunch of new folks, old and young. It’s what I like to do. Thanks, folks.

Doubleheader tomorrow with RockRoots in NJ and then Tallarico’s Chocolate for First Friday back in Bethlehem. Phew…

Toddler concert at Pottery Barn for Kids in at the Roosevelt Fields Mall… some old faces (even if they’re two years old) and some new friends. Tomorrow – northside Bethlehem.

Phew… a lot of gigging and family-celebrating stuff – it happens this time of year. Schools like fun assemblies when the teachers get rammy. We help ’em out.
RockRoots has been hitting the highways recently, enjoying the new high gas prices. Middle schools in Vineland, Unionville and Stewartsville, elementary schools in Princeton Junction, Mountainside, and Stewartsville again. The middle school music teacher actually went home and got his trombone, shades and beret to sit in with us in the afternoon. Yes!

I played for a kindergarten graduation at Circle Nursery, not far from my old home in Madison. As usual, I worked up a sweat, and we celebrated in style. And, I returned to Cheston School in Easton for our annual celebration of Cougar Day. These folks are the best: tuna hoagie for lunch, two shows with kids who know the songs and are ready to boogie, teachers wearing vintage Cougar Day t-shirts (I got the newest Paw print -very stylish!) and they pay me a year ahead! Wow! I’m glad I show up!

My daughter Rosalie graduated in style, as well, from the Forman School in Litchfield this past weekend. It called for a gathering of the Wilson Frys extended families. Sister Janet, son Jaimie, Kim and her kin – parents, sister and brother and their families, and David and Susan, good friends from all the way from Emmaus! I do the cooking – I’m the butler of this situation. We all gathered at our house in Northford and carried on.

Rosalie has found a nice path in life, and has always endeared herself to her mentors, teachers and friends… and little kids, too. Especially little kids. Notice a similarity?

Rosalie sang several times at the Arts night on Friday, with a vocal quartet, and singing a song of her own (this one she wanted to, and succeeded in doing in a different and curious style – nice) with a small band behind here. She also sang in various other groups, and she took the hard part – the un-melody, something I’m not good at. (Playing solo makes it hard to do harmonies) I’m a proud papa. Yup.

Off to Long Island – crack o’ dawn. On the road again….

Tucked in a gorgeous part of CT in Lyme (not your Old Lyme..), Lyme Consolidated ES put on a party for the teachers (catered, no less) while I entertained the kids. I had a posse of moms riding herd with me, so no problem. It got dark outside and poured but we were having too good of a time to notice. Anyway, the teachers got some quality time with themselves and some good food. And, I got to go get some of the leftovers, too! How cool is that?

I returned to one of my favorite K-centers in Macungie. It was a wet, wet day – outside and inside – lots of sweat. Anyway, Theo returned to take some live shots – thanks, dude, for the pix. A few weeks ago, I mentioned a teacher coming up and mentioning her son’s first written sentence was, “The cat came back the very next day.” Today, Mathew, the kid, came up and introduced himself to me and made that connection. So, I got him up to sing the chorus with me and he knocked it out of the park. Thanks, Mathew! A day off on Saturday (I get to see Claudia Schmidt at Godfrey’s tomorrow night) and then off to Spring Gulch on Sunday.

PS I just got this email:

My name is Lori. I am the 5th grade teacher from Muhlenberg Elementary School you met a few weeks ago. I told you about my son’s first sentence being “The cat came back the very next day.” Yesterday you met my son Matthew at the Lower Macungie Kindergarten Center. We just wanted to thank you for acknowledging his accomplishment
and inviting him to sing on stage with you. What an awesome experience for him! You Rock!

Lori and Mathew

I came into Bethlehem a day early to meet with folks from the Lehigh University alumni magazine – seems they’re doing an article on somewhat alternative LU graduates. That’s me! Verna (Nick the Bass player’s woman) interviewed me, and took me back to those years long ago. Theo, noble photographer and LCCC radio personality caught some good photos that will show up soon on my web site.

Another Allentown school on the south end of town – again, a neighborhood school that I visited last month. Mrs. Asbeth’s third grade gave me home-made birthday cards, and I was serenaded by the 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. Lots of stairs in this place….. Then a drive back to CT.

I revisited Midway Manor – a kindercenter in Allentown – a yearly visit with the little kids, and then off to McKinley School for my first outdoor concert of the year. Simply a gorgeous day, and a great bunch of students. We raised a ruckus in the neighborhood for sure!

I traveled off to Hopewell, NJ for a private party at Brothers Moon Cafe. It was a post-christening and first communion affair, so I jammed with the kids. Struck up a good relationship with an eighteen-month old girl who showed us all how to dance. I also learned the Macarena, kinda… Grandma got to dance with all the little ones.

Back to Bethlehem. Open mike at Godfrey’s on Sunday.

I returned to Godfrey’s on Friday for an open house, free concert as part of the Southside’s First Friday. A nice, fluid crowd of folks and kids, so the mixture of songs was appropriate. We had the first boomwhacker/banjo fusion tune in history, as well as a fine, air-boomwhacker solo rendered by a young lad. A nice evening of music with friends.

I pay my debts, you know. I finally redeemed my freebe offer to Barb Francese, who “purchased” my services at a church auction four years ago. I played at Lauren’s (her granddaughter) school, Jackter IM for all the third grades and some fifth graders. Lots of kids in the music room! Lauren also treated us to some fine Irish step dancing. Mrs. Dostaler made the arrangements and it was a hoot.

Thanks to the New Haven Folk Society for a grant to help bring me up to Colchester. I plan on selling and signing some CD’s to help out the ole wallet, too. Staying alive in CT.

You know, I just want to play….

Saturday morning was an interesting gig – different than any I’ve done. It was take your dad to school for breakfast day, with French toast stix and has browns, a tour of the school, and me. One mom showed up (dad had to work) so the sing-alongs were quite basso profundo. Lots of door prizes and stuffed animals for everyone. A good time with dad – see? He does loosen up after a while.

I returned to a cozy little school tucked away in Short Hills where RockRoots and I have played before. The tulips were out and the weather is just right. Fifth grade was at the Museum of Modern Art, so we had the place to ourselves – K – 4. It was a hoot, and the kids really sounded good when I let them sing by themselves. Its a very cool thing to hear an audience’s voice on its own, and they acquitted themselves proud. A beautiful spring day in Jersey.

Tomorrow – Breakfast with Dad in Nazareth. Sounds like a whole buch of people are signed up. Oh, boy!

RockRoots did one of our more “prestigious” gigs in Trenton, at the NJ State Museum. YANJ and the museum brought us in for a ‘Take your kid to work’ day for state employees, as well as some city schools. What a nice mix of folks and a very nice stage with easy access and a professional stage crew. Wa-hoo!

300 folks per show with some special moments. I usually ask a teacher, this time a parent, to explain improvisation, and we got the response from, we can only assume a lawyer, something ad hoc. Don’t you love Latin? We usually get wing it, go with the flow, make it up… goes to show who you hang out with.

When we play Blue Suede Shoes (Elvis) I like to play with the audience – one for the money (me), two for the show (audience), three (me) and….
That’s where I usually get teachers up to ‘shake that thang’. As I surveyed the audience, I wondered who would be a fun substitute. What stuck out? (really, this artistic decision-making work is easy) Guys with Ties! or guys with jobs…. Anyway, the boys knocked it out of the park, and every one was connected, doubled over in laughter. Guys with Ties ROCK! ….even if it’s ad hoc.

Off to Short Hills tomorrow at Pingry.

RockRoots had another ‘crack ‘o dawn’ production in Moorestown, NJ – getting to be familiar with that area in Burlington Co. – at 8 and 9 AM. It turned out to be a gas and a half. RockRoots was their pre-testing gift from the PTO and school.

The school gave out shades (sunglasses) to everyone, including teachers and staff, with the theme Get Good Grades, something, something Shades. They prepared a Power Point show with pix of teachers, staff and kids with their shades on. Very cool.

We were “signed” by two wonderful signers. It’s a wonderful to have signers for the hearing impaired, but its also wonderful to witness the artistry and craft of this trade. Its was fun to work with them, off them and for them, and it all added to the show. Thanks.

Allen Middle School was a real treat and one of the best MS’s we’ve played.

Tuesday was a day off in PA so I thought I’d experiment with some playground recordings, so I prevailed upon Holy Infancy school down the block on 4th street. It didn’t quite work with the recorder, but the possibilities are great. Anyway, we had a great time with my 1st graders (they were my PASELA preschoolers), and a bunch of other classes and teachers. I must admit that I had Sister Joyce’s name wrong, but she nailed a “Super Star!” like we’ve never seen. Holy Infancy’s gym is the ultimate echo chamber – my music is still rebounding….

I had a fascinating day in New Brunswick at an Arts/Education gathering with plenty of administrators, teaching artists, and other artsy types. We were addressed by a real, genuine knight – Sir Ken Robinson, who talked about his concepts of “Out of our Minds – Creativity” He suggested a revolution in arts education, away from the “No Child Left Behind”, to a creativity-driven (and the sciences are ‘creative’, too), customization, as opposed to standardization.

Looks like I have some reading to do.

I also attended a great workshop on Urban SmArts – creativity in the inner city. Fabulous with great tools and philosophies. then, I did a financial workshop that gave me a headache – this is the stuff that hurts my brain – but helped me immeasurably to be more $$ literate. No small task for me.

I do these seminars cause they inspire me and let me know I’m on the right path in many ways. And, I get to see other fellow travelers and teaching artists, and take in some philosophy, as well.

My thanks to YANJ for helping make this available to me and other arts-educator explorers.

good stuff.

RockRoots played in Long Valley, NJ in a great rural section of NJ, with some fine old houses along the way. A fine drummer sat in for the first time, John Kimock, son of guitar wiz Stevie. John filled in for Kevin, and John, the young dud that he is did a fine job, and he was mobbed by a bunch of eighth grad girls at the end. Don’t ya love it?

I then motored down rt 31 and 202 to Warminster for my annual Pre-K school concert/art show that brought out some familiar faces, and some new ones, too. thanks to Jane for having me back all these years, and it continues to be a real family affair – kids dancing, parents singing, and cookies, too. Drive back to Bethlehem tonight, home to CT tomorrow, and the end of a long week away.

I have a day off today, so I followed my muse down a block to Holy Infancy School on the Southside of Bethlehem. I was working on my savage April tan and playing for the kids on the play ground. We sounded great and it make me think about an idea for my next album – The Play Ground Sessions! Stay tuned!

Another three assembly day in, this time in Allentown. The upper grades had just gone through 6 days of testing, so I was the antidote for the kids and teachers. I had a special session with the fifth grade, and, since it was a small group, I decided to bag the sound system/stage deal and play unplugged. The girls were quite mellow, and the boys rather raucous.

I always enjoy Muhlenberg’s kids because of their respect and their infectious laughter. Good job, Muhlenberg! Also, they get the Quietest Exit Award – unbelievable!

A fifth grade teacher came up afterwards and said that her 6 year old child had just written his first sentence, which was, “The cat came back the very next day.” Hmmm. I wonder where that came from? Powerful stuff, this folk music.