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Poughkeepsie Chapter News
Volume 20, Issue 3: January & February 2000
Newsletter segments:
Kingston chapter news, Patterson chapter news, Poughkeepsie chapter news, and other articles.November 1999
It was a lively evening at the November coffeehouse with something for everyone. Steve Rhodes opened with "Junk Car Blues" in a funky blues style that made his already humorous song even more so. Loraine Klara warmed the spirits of the crowd with her perky accordian playing. Candace Coates treated us to the mystical charm of her Celtic harp. Raggedy Crew explained the origin of their name-- a phrase from a Malvina Reynolds song about how she'd rather hang out with a raggedy crew than rub elbows with rich snobs-- or something like that. Anyway, they sang 2 socially significant songs, "Deportee" (Woody Guthrie) and "Common Thread" (Pat Humphries). The Hamburger Brothers were up to their usual musical antics, with "Skater's Waltz" and " Nuttin' For Xmas". Dionne Graff sang "My Heart Will Go On" in Italian (!) and an ancient European piece that I didn't catch the name of .
Our feature was Linda Breithaupt who, wearing a Lucille Ball tie, gave us a varied and well-performed set, beginning with an unaccompanied solo singing of "Sisters of Mercy". As the set progressed (good pacing), she brought in other talents to play and/or sing along with her, including Linda Bresnahan, Elliot "Hamburger" Zucker, Arlene Dawber and her own mother, Catherine Breithaupt. It was a fun-filled set.
Ron Gluck sang "Every Night When the Sun Goes In", and his own "Empty Pocket Blues". Blair Shepard followed with a perfect song for the weather, "Hot Buttered Rum". Lauren Rose sang " The Cruel War" and "Get Together" in a clear, sweet voice. Mario Zecca and Mark Bernardini teamed for a bluesy version of "9 to 5". Kevin and Carol Becker wrapped up the evening with their usual beautiful harmony in "We Are Grateful".
December 1999
By Michael Clarke
The December Poughkeepsie Coffee House was a night of celebration and collaboration. We went with the "No Feature" format, or at least we think we did because no one showed up to do it. The open mike format is a welcome change from time to time, especially around the holidays. Rose DeSiena served as collaborator, celebrator, and commentator (MC).
Melissa Holland opened things up with two of her own original tunes "Heaven is Mine" and "Am I Dreaming." Her piano playing and singing were rich and melodious. Then, a newcomer joined us, Mark Sherman a retired psychology professor from New Paltz. Many of us were in need of his expertise. Mark entertained us with two Dylanesque numbers, "Country Dreams" and Firecrackers." It should be noted that Mark also writes a humor column in the "Herald." Look for it!
Next, the collaboration began. Rose DeSiena and Jay Williams were joined by John and Rebekah Martucci to perform "Lo, How a Rose Ere Blooming" in four part harmony. They also sang "The Holly and the Ivy." Rose and Rebekah remained on stage and were soon joined by Steve and Debbie Otlowski, Bill Wemmerus, Melissa Holland and Barbara Mahon, all wearing green sleeves and asking the musical question "What Child Is This?" Harmoniously done, once again.
When the silver-throated collaborators sat down, Steve Otlowski remained standing (there's something to be said there, but I'm not sure what). Steve challenged us with a contemplative, woodsy poem written several years ago, but found recently. Rich in imagery and descriptive language it had been untitled. With the passing of folk hero Rick Danko of the Band however, it had new meaning for Steve and now bears Rick's name as its title. Bill Wemmerus then joined Steve for a joyous, banjoless, mandolined version of "Old Lang Syne," which begs the musical question "What the heck does lang and syne mean anyway?" I sort of get the old part.
Anyway, Blair Shepherd, accompanied by Mike Clarke, was next with "Christmas in the Trenches," the haunting John McCutcheon ballad of a WWI soldier struggling with the horrors of war during the Christmas season. Blair also gave us another welcome dose of "The Twentieth Century is Almost Over."
After all that collaborating and celebrating, we needed a break. So we took one (By the looks of things, so did Les Herring who was doing a terrific job with the sound). Rebekah Martucci (aka Rose DeSiena with black hair and a different outfit) brought us back to our seats and took over as MC for the second half of the show. Rose had to attend to her sugar plums, hopefully tucked in their sacks for a long winter's nap.
The second half began with Dionne Graff on the piano singing "Greensleeeves" and Kansas' "Dust in the Wind" to the delight of the re-assembled mass of folkies. Mike and Emmy Clarke were next singing one of his own songs about one of his favorite parts of becoming a teacher, "Snow Days."
Not willing to leave well enough alone, Mike sought the assistance of Steve Otlowski, still wandering around aimlessly looking through his pockets for other forgotten poems and tin whistles in various obscure keys, and Blair Shepherd, a man truly ready for the twentieth century. Together, they cleared out the bats, cobwebs and anything else that had accumulated in the hall with a rousing version of the sad and joyous Irish/Newfy traditional "The Night That Paddy Murphy Died."
Luckily, Colleen Garrity was next to restore sanity to the place. A songwriter herself, she decided to perform a beautiful traditional Scottish ballad entitled "The Leaves of Life." Well done, Colleen. Next was Barbara Mahon and Emmy Clarke, sounding terrific together, singing John Lennon's "Happy Christmas." Barbara then called on Bill Wemmerus to perform "Shalom," a well-received song about the Jewish holiday.
Steve Rhodes joined us next, precariously perched on a transparent ice-flow. He told us the entertaining story of "Captain Nemo," his boyhood brush with the icy Hudson River. Next, Steve delighted us with his guitar playing and Plan B verses of "San Francisco Bay Blues."
Our last open mike entertainer of the evening was Chris DePalma, who ventured out to find an acoustic guitar (hooray - another convert) and treated us to one of his own songs "I Want You" and one of his personal favorites, "What a Wonderful World," made popular years ago by Louis Armstrong.
Still not sure what lang and syne meant and inspired by the evening of collaboration, we had an audience request for all the performers to get up and sing a group version of "Old Lang Syne" and "Let There Be Peace on Earth." What a great request and a beautiful way to bring closure to our last Coffee House of the millennium.
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