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This October is shaping up to be a blast! Here are the public performances on the docket-
October 7-8
Mystic Folkways Festival at Mystic Seaport
I'll be hosting a stage from 12:30-4pm where some excellent old time musicians from the region will be jamming old time fiddle tunes, string band blues, swing and more, and there may be some appearances by musicians from the other stages who want to come throw down for a few.
October 13-15 all day and night
Jam Camp North: I'm on teaching staff at this annual event in Charlton, MA, where master Bluegrass, Old Time, Blues, and Celtic musicians from around the country will lead attendees in jams ranging from slow sessions for beginners to full on raging sessions not for the faint of heart.
October 14
Thames River Cruise/New London County Historical Society
Join us for a beautiful fall cruise up the Thames River from new London to Norwich, CT and back on a Block Island ferryboat, while Jerry Bryant, Jeff Davis and I regale you with chanteys, river songs, nineteenth century fiddle tunes, songs from the West Indies trade in the age of sail, ballads, and music from the days when Long island Sound was the highway to New York aboard steamboats and the entry to ocean paths to the wide world aboard sailing ships. (Yes, I got a leave of absence from Jam Camp to do this!)
October 22
First Old Time Jam: Roots Music Stomp at the United Theatre
First in a monthly series I'm hosting, this will showcase an astonishing range of guest musicians expert in styles including Old Time, Blues, Cajun, Irish, and Chanteys. Over the course of two hours you'll get a whirlwind tour of the American Roots Music styles that have shaped American vernacular music. Come prepared to sing, and if you don't want your feet to move bring your lead boots.
...and a preview of November:
November 2-5
Fiddle Hell
I'm teaching nine sessions of fiddle, banjo, and dance band at his immersive teaching camp, held in a big hotel in Westford, MA, that annually draws hundreds of fiddlers from all over the country and teaching staff from all over the world. Pretty much any style of fiddling you've ever heard of is taught by expert players, as well as other instruments, and there are concerts and jamming everywhere. If you're a fiddler or traditional musican, it's really Fiddle Heaven.
I'm also teaching regularly at the United Theatre in Westerly, RI where the Roots Music Stomp takes place- if you'r interested in lessons on fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, button accordion, or ukulele, I have some slots open.
BANDS
The Root Farmers- string band blues, old-time breakdowns, rags, stomps, ballads, rags, stomps, toddles, waltzes, heart songs, and reels.
A group of multi-instrumentalists and singers tilling the fertile fields of American music to produce a bumper crop of fine songs and tunes both familiar and obscure. With Craig Edwards on fiddle, guitar, banjo, and mandolin.
The Root Farmers- string band blues, old-time breakdowns, rags, stomps, ballads, rags, stomps, toddles, waltzes, heart songs, and reels.
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Sweet Mercy- a Stonington, CT-based band playing the original Americana music of singer/songwriter/guitarist/pianist/harmonica player John Speziale. John's rich, gravelly, expressive voice enlivens his superb songwriting, evoking the sounds of New Orleans barrelhouse music, folk, soul, zydeco, honky-tonk, circus music, blues, and rockabilly. With Craig Edwards on fiddle, button accordion, and mandolin, Sandy "Sandman" Allen on lap steel and mandolin, Jaime Duquette on upright and electric bass, and the expanded version with the addition of Jim Tarbox on guitar and Chris Gonsalves on drums and percussion. The band debuted at the famed Knickerbocker Cafe in Westerly and won the American Roots Music category in the New London CT' 2015 Whalie Awards, played the Block island Music Festival in 2016, 2017, and 2018 and we've honed our sound in a steady stream of local bar gigs. We're hunkering down for the recording right now, but keep looking here for postings about upcoming performances, or check out John's website: http://www.johnspeziale.com/bands/
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The Dead Sea Squirrels- old time string band music for contradancing.
Cathy Mason (fiddle), Craig Edwards (fiddle, mandolin, banjo), and Henry Yoshimura (guitar) play driving, danceable, music for contradancing. Check out our facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/deadseasquirrelsband/
