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Kingston Chapter News
Volume 19, Issue 5: May & June 1999
Newsletter segments:
Kingston chapter news, Patterson chapter news, Poughkeepsie chapter news, and other articles.by Cheryl A. Rice
What a difference a month makes! With spring returning just when we'd given up all hope, crocuses crooning on every block, it's hard to believe that Kingston's March coffeehouse was snowed out! Remember - there's always Patterson and Poughkeepsie! No excuse for not getting a monthly folk fix somewhere in the Hudson Valley!
April 3rd was mild and bright, jacket weather. Many must have been preparing for Peter Rabbit's arrival the following day, because attendance was down a bit, but a good time was had by all who came. Opening was perennial MC Vince Sauter with his, "Magic of a Summer's Night," (soon, Vince, soon!). He was followed by Kimberly, who had actually made it to Kingston last month in that goofy blizzard, only to find the house dark. "Wendigo," her first tune, described a fascinating Canadian folk legend. "Got a Feeling About You," was one of Kimberly's own. With her strong, sweet voice and commanding presence, we look forward to her return.
May's feature, Bruce Ackerman, commandeered the mics next, filling the spring breeze with Chet Atkins' "Windy & Warm," then a lesser- known Sinatra tune, "Versatile Blues." Don't miss this fella in May! Yours truly followed with two poems, "Gazebo for Two Anarchists," and "When Children Die," the second a piece regarding the tragedy in Oklahoma City just a few Aprils ago.
Denise Finley and Joe Murray followed ("happily married - to other people" as they like to remind us) with two sibling-themed tunes, "I'm Gonna Tell" and "My Old Man," a Smothers Brothers number from their old Purple Onion days. Sauter returned to close the first half with another one of his haunting ballads, "Come to My Bedside."
After the break (cookies and teas available courtesy of the Unitarians - thank you!) Lazy River moseyed up to the mic. Comprised of John and Rebekah Martucci and Barbara Mahon (the "Beacon Nightingale"), the eclectic trio opened with Ledbetter's "Old Cotton Fields," then followed up with a tune about 15th-century English rabble-rousers, "The Diggers." Rebekah warned the crowd about her allergies, but her voice was soft and clear, firmly supported by Mahon's strong sounds and Mr. Martucci's charming bottom notes. 'River continued with a traditional round, "Dona Nobis Pacem," then a snappy '20s Bix number, "Blue Every Monday" (can't you just see these three on the radio?). A Shirelles hit followed, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" (Yes!) then Tom Chapin's "Family Tree." The a capella version of "River of Life" was a good showcase for this group's close harmonies. "Mr. Sandman" was next, then Bill Staines' "All God's Critters." Lazy River's version of "This Land Is Your Land (etc.)" will be hard to forget, as was their encore, Hoagy Carmichael's own "Lazy River." Wheww!
Time and attendance allowed each of the performers a second shot at first impressions. Sauter returned with Lyle Lovett's "Bear Song" (what's with the Folk Guild and bears, huh?). Kimberly, a Hyde Park resident, sang a song by her friends Lisa and Joel Sturrs, "Give Me the Wings," then Dylan's "Don't Think Twice." Ackerman did a great old train song, "Southbound," then a song he perfected, "at great personal sacrifice in the barrooms of Saugerties," "A Sailboat of Dreams." Yours truly returned with two more poems, followed by Finley and Murray (sound like a haberdashery, doesn't it?) with Gillian Welch's "Annabelle," and the saga of "Railroad Bill." Sauter's latest song, "Heart Don't Fail Me Now," closed the show.
May Day, May 1st, will be Kingston's next coffeehouse, cross my heart! I'll be looking for you!
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