OPEN MIC NIGHT

The Tradition continues, Stop by to listen or join in. Sign up on site with the host for your 15 min or three songs. Storytellers also welcome!

BOMBADILS

For over five years, rising folk-stars The Bombadils have been enchanting audiences around the world with their unique fusion of traditional, world and progressive folk.

Endearingly described as “chamber folk,” the group of cinematic storytellers have intertwined their musical chops rooted in classical and jazz music (all trained at Montreal’s esteemed McGill University) around an approachable performance style that takes listeners on a journey through history and towards the future of Canadian folk.

Each hailing from their own unique corner of Canada, group members Sarah Frank (fiddle, banjo, vocals), Luke Fraser (guitar, mandolin, vocals), Alan Mackie (bass, vocals) and Anh Phung (flutes, harmonica, vocals), first bonded over a shared curiosity and love of traditional music – but have since solidified their friendship with over 50,000 kilometers of touring and countless performances together.

“The Bombadils have all the elements of a great band – a high level of musical proficiency, deep respect for the traditional roots of their material and an engaging repertoire which holds the attention of the listener from beginning to end.”
- Amy Gajadhar, Canadian Folk Music magazine

SHAWNA CASPI

“The power of one person and one instrument – engaging and exciting in itself. I believe that’s the root of folk music”.

With her third album, Apartments For Lovers, Shawna Caspi taps right into those folk roots, stripping away the session musicians and elaborate arrangements of her previous records in favour of a simple, authentic sound – her solo guitar and voice. The result is a collection of songs that is close-up and honest, showcasing her warm vocals, classically-trained fingerstyle guitar playing, and intimate songwriting in a genuine, powerful way.

On Apartments For Lovers, Shawna creates delicate, quiet moments that are vulnerable and accessible even when she’s writing about someone else. Her songs are snapshots – moments that may appear small, but which subtly carry weight and offer greater depth thanks to her well-crafted lyrics.

“Some musicians make songwriting sound less of a craft and more of a life affirming obsession. Caspi’s compositions stand out as beautiful, complex and intricate…” – NOW Magazine, NXNE preview

For 15 years, Shawna has been playing the guitar she bought at the Ottawa Folklore Centre, one of Canada’s best loved music stores. This cherished instrument has accompanied her on tour throughout Canada and the United States, where she has played festivals including the Blue Skies Music Festival, the Summerfolk Festival, the Deep Roots Music Festival, and the Ottawa Grassroots Festival. It was also her constant companion as she played on the long haul trains between Montreal and Halifax and between Vancouver and Toronto as part of the VIA Rail On Board Entertainment Program.

Shawna’s Canadian folk roots are an intrinsic part of who she is. In fact, Shawna as a solo musician is exactly who she is as a person – warm, inviting, a storyteller, a traveller, an authentic artist. “And at the heart of everything”, she says, “I’m just a really big music fan”.

HARVEY REID

Songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Harvey Reid is most widely known for his peerless acoustic fingerstyle guitar work, but is also a former bluegrass picker, a versatile and engaging singer, a powerful lyricist, a solid mandolin and bouzouki player, and a seasoned performer and entertainer. His 6-string banjo work is unmatched, and he is certainly among the best autoharp players ever. Reid has honed his craft over the last 40 years in countless clubs, festivals, streetcorners, cafes, coffeehouses and concert halls across the nation, and absorbed a vast repertoire of American music and woven it into his own colorful, personal and distinctive style. He has released 25 highly- acclaimed independent albums on Woodpecker Records that showcase his mastery of many instruments and styles of acoustic music, from hip-folk to country, slashing slide guitar blues to bluegrass, old-time, Celtic, ragtime and even classical.

Reid’s skills and versatility on the guitar alone mark him as an important voice in acoustic music. He won the 1981 National Fingerpicking Guitar Competition and the 1982 International Autoharp Contest. He recorded the first album ever of 6 & 12-string banjo music, and his 1990 album Steel Drivin' Man, was chosen by Acoustic Guitar Magazine as one of 10 Essential Folk CD’s of all time, along with Woody Guthrie and other hallowed names. His music was included in the blockbuster BBC TV show Musical Tour of Scotland, and Reid was featured in the Rhino Records Acoustic Music of the 90’s collection, along with a “who’s who” line-up of artists including Richard Thompson, Jerry Garcia & Leo Kottke.

Reid has never ventured into the mainstream, and has operated“below the radar” of the music business, but his reputation as a musician’s musician is widespread. He has been a featured act at many of America's premier concert clubs and festivals. Radio DJ’s and critics nationwide are discovering his remarkable recordings, and they regularly show up on radio playlists and end-of-the year favorites lists. Music fans coast-to-coast flock to catch his exciting performances.

You’ll find elements of the traditional troubadour, the modern poet-songwriter, the American back-porch picker, the classical virtuoso, and a bit of Will Rogers style dry humor and satire. Reid has a vast repertoire of traditional and contemporary songs, and weaves them seamlessly together with his own compositions and wry humor.

ATTILA VURAL

“NOT WITHOUT MY GUITAR”

His baggage tells it all:
while others wouldn’t ever travel without taking their umbrella – as you never know what the weather may be like – and while many wouldn’t break up without a suitable evening dress – as you never know, which party you will involved in – you will never see Attila Vural leaving home without his guitar: as you never know which melody is going to cross your path.

No need to say that his music sounds like a big suitcase full of lovely holiday memories – yet those are no fancy city day-trips, nor are they sailing adventures giving illusions of a pink painted moon-shine romance. The 1972 born guitarist, currently living in Zurich, Switzerland, rather tells us about journeys undertaken with eyes and hearts wide open, during which the musician is inspired by a touch of Latin American rhythm, tonalities from good old Jazz, and sober melodies close to straightforward Pop.

Since his very first arrangements, dating back to the early nineties, a creative mixture of influences characterizes the music written by Attila Vural. This mixture inspired both Vural’s own interpretations and the style of the various formations that played his compositions (Saf-Inütill, Approaches). Furthermore, Vural’s percussive mode of guitar playing is inspired very particularly by the German guitarist Claus Boesser-Ferrari. Other important inputs came from the experimental pieces by Andy Summers (Police).

In 1997, it was Dominic Miller’s CD “First Touch” that led him to focus increasingly on his solo guitar endeavor. Ten years ago, he decided to consecrate his passion entirely to the single guitar. He plays six- and twelve-string instruments and counts since recently on the support of a special edition 14-string mixture between Mandolin and Dobro guitar (guitar facture: Mitgel Noldin).

THE TWANGTOWN PARAMOURS

The music of The Twangtown Paramours has been called “Sophisticated Americana”, and is a hybrid of the Nashville and Austin music scenes. This husband ‘n wife acoustic duo is known for their well-crafted and award-winning songs, top-notch lead singing, and fine harmonies. They have performed at nationally recognized venues such as Uncle Calvin’s in Dallas, Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs, and the Bluebird Café in Nashville. They have opened for Joe Ely, Claire Lynch, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Carrie Newcomer, and Kim & Reggie Harris, amongst others.

The Twangtown Paramours were chosen three times (2011, 2013, and 2016) to be finalists in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk contest and were winners of the Michael Terry People’s Choice Award in the Wildflower Music Festival Songwriter Contest in 2012. In February, 2011,the Twangers were named Artists on the Verge for 2011 by the Bluegrass Special Magazine.

The Twangtown Paramours are currently working on their third album. Their last record was released to radio in 2012 and reached #2 on the Folk DJ Chart. John Platt of WFUV in New York City listed the album in his top 10 for the year; Lilli Kuzma of WDCB in Chicago listed the album in her top 5 for the year; and Deep Roots Magazine listed the album at #7 for the year. All the recorded music of the Twangtown Paramours can be heard on over 100 Folk, Americana, and independent country station world-wide.

The duo is looking forward to performing at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire commemoration in NYC in March of 2017. Their song, “Chains” was written to bring attention to the circumstances of that fire and of others like it. One of their newest songs, “Stars Without a Heaven” has not yet been released to the public, but a demo version of the song is already being played in a few holocaust museums, including Yadvashem in Israel.

KATE MACLEOD

Her voice has been said to sound as pure as water from a mountain stream. And while singing from the Wasatch Mountains in Utah, her highly acclaimed songs often precede her as other artists sing them on stages across the country. Her songs compel music publications such as Sing Out! Magazine to claim that Kate MacLeod "channels the spirit of the great Carter Family classics." She has opened for artists such as Rosanne Cash, Dan Fogelberg and Greg Brown, but performs winning concerts of her own across the country. Her songwriting style and live performances display an unbreakable link between traditional music and cutting-edge contemporary songwriting. Kate has written music based on historic events and personalities, a collection of songs based on books, and some commissioned for cultural projects. Whether in a song or on her violin, she captures our history, our landscapes, and our lives in the varied music that she creates. This is no more obvious than in current projects she is developing. 2016 marks the release of her songbook, including music notation, chords, and lyrics, of a large collection of her original songs, many of them inspired by people and places that she has come across while traveling. Kate is also compiling a book of original violin/fiddle pieces.

CLICK HORNING TRIO

The Lake Sunapee, NH region has always had more than its share of musicians. Maybe it's the mountain air or maybe it's the scenery, but something keeps them coming back. Just ask Click Horning, New London's singer songwriter who left when he was seventeen for the Big Apple. Twelve years, a record contract and an album later it was time to come back. Early influences were Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Peter Paul & Mary, as well as rock and roll and R&B that he listened to growing up.

Click's music has taken him across the country several times, to the Rockies and to the deep south . Click has produced two more solo albums and two albums with his band Night Kitchen , a "get up and dance" band composed of Click on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Gerry Putnam on lead guitar, Dinty Child on electric rhythm guitar and keyboards, Dana Flewelling on drums and Dave Doran on bass.

Click began playing guitar at boarding school, influenced by other guitar playing students, one in particular being Gram Parsons. Click persuaded his grandmother to finance a bottom-of-the-line Gibson guitar (a combination birthday and Christmas gift). "I had been spending all my spare time practicing on a friends guitar, but soon found I had to have my own."

He began playing folk songs, but after hearing Gram and writers like Bob Dylan, he decided to try his hand at writing songs. "It was the perfect blending of poems and music that intrigued me. I've always loved lyrics that tell a story."

The Click Horning Trio is: Click on acoustic guitar and vocals, Joanie Horning on bass, Justin Ferren on lead guitar, and an occasional gig with Harley Walker on Drums

LINDSAY STRAW

Lindsay Straw "Hearken(s) back to more innocent times, of Greenwich Village and pure folk." (The Living Tradition)

Lindsay Straw is a singer, guitarist, and Irish bouzouki player who performs traditional songs and tunes from the British Isles. Originally from Montana, she began to explore Boston’s Irish and folk music scenes while studying film scoring at Berklee College of Music. Her debut solo album My Mind From Love Being Free was released on May 1, 2015. She is a 2015 recipient of Club Passim’s Iguana Fund Grant, which will enable her to make her second album in 2016.

Lindsay has impressed with her tender singing voice and an extensive repertoire that is rooted in the Scottish and Northern Irish traditions, but which also delves into contemporary songwriters like Richard Thompson and Bob Dylan. She has also drawn praise for her sensitive, agile accompaniment on bouzouki and guitar at many a local session and in concert as a member of the Irish quartet The Ivy Leaf, with piper Joey Abarta, and with fellow guitar & bouzouki player Owen Marshall.

OPEN MIC NIGHT

The Tradition continues, Stop by to listen or join in. Sign up on site with the host for your 15 min or three songs. Storytellers also welcome!

 

NO COFFEEHOUSE

 

CHURCH PIE SALE

NO COFFEEHOUSE

Thanksgiving Aftermath
&
Recovery

CRAIG WERTH

After two decades of performing part-time and regionally, Craig served as the full-time accompanist/co-arranger for three-time Juno Award winner David Francey, starting in the fall of 2006. He co-produced Francey's "Right of Passage" which won a best album Juno. He toured heavily for nearly 5 years, showcased by David for his own writing and performance skills. With the release of his folk-DJ charting album of original songs, "The Spokes Man," Craig returned to the stage much more as a solo artist. He has also toured internationally with the highly and widely acclaimed Gaelic-Americana artist, Kyle Carey.

"In concert, Werth shines as a natural story-teller, humorous and poignant, with a keen eye for all our foibles and passions. His instrumental accompaniment is as brilliant as his songwriting. He is a true performer, a captivating player and singer, not to be missed." - David Francey

CHRISTMAS OPEN MIC

&

SING-ALONG

TBD

Its a mystery!

We're working on it. Stay tuned.