This will be a busy Friday and Saturday!
On the evening of Friday June 14
th
I’ll be sitting in with some friends in the band
Scalaheen to play Irish tunes
as part of the
Petersburg Area Art
League’s monthly
Friday for the Arts series.
That should be both fun and
challenging.
Some of those same friends
and I, plus a few more, will be at
Midnight
Brewery the very next day,
Saturday June 15th from 2-5pm, to
“perform” in an open jam under the name
The Accidental Purists.
(This is in
addition to the regularly scheduled Ashland Jam from 10am-1pm at Ashland Coffee
and Tea, which I will also attend).
This will be my 4th time hosting
a session at Midnight Brewery. I’m
fortunate to have gotten to know several oldtime, Irish, folk and bluegrass
musicians in the Richmond/Ashland/Petersburg area over the last few years, so
whenever I am asked to assemble an informal group to play at Midnight Brewery I try
and invite some of my favorite people to play with – all of whom happen to be better
musicians than myself! On tap this time we expect to have…
Kathleen Stover
Whittle – A classically trained musician and teacher, Kathy is now diving
head first into Celtic music.
She plays Irish flute and tin whistle in Scalaheen and co-hosts the Hiram Haines Irish Session every 2nd
Saturday in Petersburg.
 |
| Kathy Whittle |
Lee Owens is one of the regulars at our Ashland Jam. A long-time guitar player, Lee might not know
the names of many tunes but he can sure pick them up! You can count on Lee to keep a steady rhythm, but
he will sometimes surprise you with his flatpicking skills.
 |
| Lee Owens |
Harlan Williams - mandolin, guitar, fiddle, vocals. Harlan is one of my favorite people to play
music with. His enthusiasm is
infectious. When I had gotten frustrated
and gave up playing in 2010, Harlan was the one who motivated me to take it up
again. Harlan hosts a monthly oldtime
jam at Rockwood Nature Center.
 |
| Harlan Williams |
Stephen Rockenbach - 5-string banjo, bouzouki, vocals. Stephen is a former professional honky-tonk musician now enjoying a career in academia. A versatile performer, whenever Stephen takes part in a jam it is going to run more smoothly, have a higher
quality, and most important, be more fun! Maybe Stephen will sing a couple for us.
 |
| Stephen Rockenbach |
John Ely – guitar. John is
another guitarist that I have gotten to know through the Ashland Jam. John is always one of the first to arrive and
one of the last to leave. I admire
John’s adaptability and willingness to take on various types of tunes and
songs. I’m looking forward to having him
with us at Midnight.
 |
| John Ely |
Ken Hall – bodhran, bones and song.
Ken is a drummer extraordinaire, who honed his skills through years of
playing along with Dervish and De Dannan recordings, before finally moving to
an area where he could participate in sessions. We are fortunate to have an open-minded bodhran player of his skill level
joining us. Ken seems to have a never
ending repertoire of fantastic pub songs that he sings very well! Ken also performs in the band Scalaheen.
 |
| Ken Hall |
Margaret Graham – fiddle.
Margaret is one of those teenage phenoms that either makes you want to
hang up your instrument forever, or practice like crazy so you can try and keep
up with her. The scary thing is she
keeps getting better each time I hear her play. Hopefully Margaret will take pity on us mere mortals who can’t always play
at Liz Carroll and Ricky Skaggs speed! Margaret
also fiddles in Scalaheen.
 |
| Margaret Emily Graham |
Laura Fields - bodhran, baritone ukulele. My wife Laura holds the rare distinction of
being one of the only bodhran players to whom people say “could you please play
louder?”. Like me, Laura took up playing
music recently as an adult and can sympathize with what a struggle it can be at times,
albeit a rewarding one. In addition to
bodhran, Laura likes to play baritone ukulele on oldtime tunes, and, unlike me,
started learning to play by ear from the start, so she is well on her way to
being a very competent player after less than a year in the saddle.
 |
| Laura Fields |
Paul Willson – guitar. Paul
is a singer-songwriter and accomplished musician with a jazz background who I
have gotten to know a little bit through the Rosie Connolly’s Irish
session. He is also damn good at
traditional music. Having Paul will add
another element of professionalism to our very talented, Accidental ensemble.
 |
| Paul Willson |
Finally, down as a “maybe” I
have Andy Cleveland on fiddle. Andy joined us last time at Midnight and
instantly lifted the music to a higher-level.
A member of the band Handsome Molly, Andy is one of the best all-around
musicians I have ever played with, and I feel like we all take a leap forward
when he's around. Andy’s
playing is a reflection of his equally witty, snarky personality. I hope Andy can be there
if he’s not busy doing chores. Who knows, we might even have a few other special guests as well.
 |
| maybe Andy Cleveland |
What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon…enjoying
excellent craft beer and pleasant music on the day before Father’s Day!
Let these fine players take care of the tunes as you taste a
pint or two of that awesome Midnight beer!
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