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| notlob | Event Date: 28 March 2009 (Single Day Event) |
 Group: Members - Basic Posts: 33 Joined: May 27 08 From: Notlob, Ma Member No.: 23,879  |
NOTLOB CONCERTS is proud to present BOB FRANKE & MARTIN GROSSWENDT at the Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church, 155 Powderhouse Blvd, Somerville, MA 02144 on Saturday, March 28 at 8:00 pm (doors 7:30). Suggested door donation is $15.00 at the door & $10 for seniors and students with ID. Tickets are available in advance for $12.50 through Brown Paper Tickets - http://www.brownpapertickets.com. BOB FRANKE http://www.bobfranke.com Bob Franke (it rhymes with “Yankee”) is at the peak of his considerable craft; brimming with the wise and spiritually generous songs for which he is best known, along with wrenchingly convincing topical songs and sugared with the hilarious. His are the kind of songs that really do have the power to change the world by being taken into the lives of people. They come to you, these songs. As Tom Paxton says, "It's his integrity. I always think of Bob as if Emerson and Thoreau had picked up acoustic guitars and gotten into songwriting. There's touches of Mark Twain and Buddy Holly in there, too." Franke began his career as a singer-songwriter in 1965 while a student at the University of Michigan. He was one of the first people to perform at the now famous Ark Coffeehouse in Ann Arbor. Upon graduation in 1969 with an A.B. in English Literature, he moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has since made New England his home. Bob's songs are considered classics, fueled by his deep faith and the real-life lessons taught him by his 30-odd years of playing everywhere from concert halls to street corners. Bob has appeared in concert at coffeehouses, colleges, festivals, bars, streets, homes and churches in 33 states, four Canadian provinces and England. His concerts have appeared in lists of the top five musical events of the year chosen by critics in the Boston and San Francisco Bay areas. In 1990, he was nominated as an Outstanding Folk Act by the Boston Music Awards. Consider this list: Peter, Paul and Mary; David Wilcox; John McCutcheon; Sally Rogers; Lui Collins; Garnet Rogers; June Tabor. These well-known artists (and many more) all sing and record Bob's music. Seasoned veterans and novices alike are drawn to the complex, warm-hearted spirituality and captivatingly clear-cut melodies of Franke's songs. When he isn't writing or touring, Bob leads workshops in songwriting at music festivals and music camps, workshops described by the participants as "transcendent." He was the Artistic Director of the Singer-Songwriter Project of 1999's Bethlehem Steel Festival. In August of 1990 Bob wrote a set of songs for a ballet of "The Velveteen Rabbit," commissioned by the ODC Dance Company of San Francisco. He has composed three cantatas and a number of hymns for the Church of St. Andrew in Marblehead, MA. The Songs of Bob Franke, a songbook produced by the the Folk Project, was released in 1992. He wrote a Harvest Cantata for the Marblehead Eco-Farm in 1996. The song "Hard Love" figures prominently in Ellen Wittlinger’s young adult novel of the same name (Simon & Schuster, 1999). Among his live radio credits are A Prairie Home Companion, A Mountain Stage, Our Front Porch, Sandy Bradley's Potluck, Folk Scene, West Coast Weekend, and Bound for Glory. In addition, Bob has recorded a number of albums with much well-deserved critical acclaim (see Recordings). Two of his songs appear in the top ten of WERS-FM (Boston) 1988 poll of all-time favorite folk songs. Brief Histories was named one of the ten best albums of 1989 by Boston Globe critic Scott Alarik and was nominated as an Outstanding Folk Album by the 1990 Boston Music Awards. In This Night was named #1 Acoustic Recording of 1991 by WUMB-FM (Boston) and was nominated as Outstanding Folk Album by the 1992 Boston Music Awards. His first Daring release, The Heart of the Flower, was named one of the Boston Globe's top ten folk albums of 1995. His latest , Long Roads, Short Visits was released in September of 1997, becoming one of WUMB-FM Boston’s top ten recordings of that year. The Desert Questions (2001) is Bob's latest. A Night to Sing the Praises of Bob Franke by Scott Alarik, The Boston Globe, January 22, 1996 CAMBRIDGE--What makes a song a hit? These days, the only measures seem to be units sold, chart placement, number of recorded versions. In folk music, however, there is another kind of hit: songs that travel from person to person, often without knowledge of authorship; songs that are truly taken into the lives of people. Saturday, an impressive parade of gifted folk artists gathered at Sanders Theater to honor Bob Franke, a local songwriter they clearly feel writes hits like that, on the occasion of his 30th year in folk music. Each act did one Franke song, one original. Lorraine and Bennett Hammond set the stage wonderfully, explaining that what binds all Franke's songs is that they are all somehow about love, then offering their own reflective "Love Has a Life of Its Own." As the evening convincingly displayed, the love in Franke's songs moves far beyond the dating-and-mating love in so much of today's pop. Tom Paxton sang Franke's sublime meditation "Thanksgiving Eve:" "What can you do with each moment of your life/But love till you've loved it away?" More at http://www.bobfranke.com/reviews.htm Franke's Heavenly Lyrics Strike a Chord with Folk Brethren by Daniel Gewertz, The Boston Herald, January 17, 1996 Bob Franke came from a time when folk singers didn't make money, they made a difference. "Money and record sales didn't cloud the picture. We tended to honor the best among us," said the man respected as New England's finest philosophical songwriter. A dozen folk singers will honor Franke on his 30th anniversary in music at Sanders Theater on Saturday. The concert will include two troubadours far more famous than the evening's namesake: Tom Paxton and Noel Paul Stookey (of Peter Paul and Mary). "It's his integrity," Paxton said of Franke. "I always think of Bob as if Emerson and Thoreau had picked up acoustic guitars and gotten into songwriting. There's touches of Mark Twain and Buddy Holly in there, too." Though he's an unknown in wider circles, on the folk circuit Franke songs such as "Hard Love" and "For Real are considered classics. Instead of ending a concert with sing-alongs by Woody Guthrie, some area shows have closed with Franke's anthemic "The Great Storm Is Over" or his prayerful "Thanksgiving Eve." More at http://www.bobfranke.com/reviews.htm MARTIN GROSSWENDT Martin Grosswendt, once described by U. Utah Phillips as "a rumor in his own time," has been a presence on the folk and traditional music scene for nearly three decades. A multi-instrumentalist and singer long known for his skill as an interpreter of 1920s and '30s blues, he is equally at home playing the old-time country music of the Southern Appalachians or the Cajun and Creole music of Southwest Louisiana. A musician's musician and a powerful singer, he is proficient on guitar, five-string banjo, mandolin, fiddle, bass, Cajun accordion, and Dobro. His bottleneck guitar playing is especially highly regarded. Martin began his career at the age of 16 as a session musician at Vermont's Philo Records, supplying Dobro and guitar licks for artists such as Phillips, Tom Mitchell, Jim Ringer, and Mary McCaslin. After touring as an accompanist with various artists, he established a solo career playing at festivals and coffeehouses across the country and opening for musicians including Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee, Dave van Ronk, Taj Mahal, David Bromberg, NRBQ, and Sam and Dave. He recorded a solo album for Philo, Dog on a Dance Floor, which was released in 1980. His newest album, Call and Response, was released in 2004 to enthusiastic reviews. Over the years Martin has continued to delve into the roots music he loves. His eclectic performances might include bottleneck guitar pieces by Robert Johnson or Blind Willie McTell, finger-style blues from Reverend Gary Davis or Blind Blake, a haunting banjo tune by Dock Boggs, a number on fiddle from Creole master Canray Fontenot, and even an original piece or two. His musical understanding of the many genres he explores is complemented by his historical knowledge of singers and songs. Martin has performed and taught at festivals and at WUMB’s Summer Acoustic Music Week, Pinewoods Folk Music Week, Guitar Intensives in Bar Harbor, Maine, and served as a Master Artist’s assistant at the Augusta Heritage Workshops. He has also served as music director for and taught at Banjo Camp North, Old Time Music Camp North and Mandolin Camp North. Martin lives in Rhode Island with his wife and their twin daughters. More information about the concert series can be found at the Notlob website: http://notlobmusic.googlepages.com ARTIST WEBSITE: http://www.bobfranke.com In cooperation with Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church’s “Peace, Justice and Mission Committee”, representatives from RESPOND will be in attendance to share information Patrons may also bring items from RESPOND’s wish list, or donate funds directly through RESPOND’s website - http://www.respondinc.org/main.html RESPOND’s mission is to help women and their children create options for a safer life, free from domestic violence, and to further the efforts of the larger community to end domestic violence. At this time we seek to fulfill our mission by providing shelter, support, advocacy and education. |
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