The Song Parlor with John Patterson: Recent Episodes
John Patterson
Lumbering Seasons to Celtic Journeys & Memories: This week, a lumbering-season excursion carries us along until we meet a banjo-picking girl -- among various engaging others -- and eventually finish off with a couple of Celtic-tinged journeys and memories.
Gatherings, Memories & Thanks as the Season Turns -This week we bring together a wide array of pieces old and new that involve musical gatherings of families and friends to share hopes and memories to seek light and give thanks as the season turns -- and we offer a brief set to honor Vermont musician Pete Sutherland, who died at the end of November.
From Autumn Crossroads to Scottish Dreams: This week we start out at the crossroads, move on to songs to remind ourselves that election day draws near, stir in a few pieces about attitudes folks do (or could) bring with them every day, and finish off with several dreams about life in Scotland.
Mostly New: Some Voices of This Summer & a Few Voyages - A few recent musical responses to some of the challenges of our times and several journeys out on the water are front and center on this week’s edition of the Song Parlor.
Then & Now, Old & New: From Hard Times to Travels on Freedom’s Road - This week, a few older pieces exploring 20th century hard times carry us on to some recent songs and tunes, and, finally, several classic pieces related to ongoing efforts to keep moving forward along freedom road.
Climbing Into May This week’s show brings together an assortment of pieces that explore the idea of climbing (sometimes through challenging times) and/or traveling deeper into May and Springtime.
Navigating Seasons & Change + the Life Cycle of a Bold Outlaw - This week, as the season turns, we bring together a few pieces about navigating changes – seasonal and more – as well as several chronicles of encounters with Robin Hood.
International Journeys & Three Memorials: This week we begin with several pieces with Ukrainian connections, move on to a set that samples a few recent releases to take us on an international journey, and wrap up with three brief musical memorials.
Winter Scenes, Heart(land) Voices, Voyages This week: Wintry scenes old and new, advice from the heartlands, songs about the power of song, and several voyages.
Coming into a New Year & Finding Hope in Challenging Times: This week’s show brings together some songs and tunes to help steer us into a challenging new year -- as well as a couple of retrospective sets that also involve forward-looking visions.
Another Turning of the Year - This week in the Song Parlor we bring together some songs and tunes to carry us through late December and on into the New Year.
Taking Flight and Seeking Light in Challenging Times: This week’s show centers around songs and tunes that involve finding ways to come together, to seek light, to dance, sing and soar – even in difficult times.
Remembering Mother Earth – and Veterans - This week, as the Glasgow Climate Change conference continues and Veterans Day comes around, the Song Parlor features an assortment of songs and tunes that explore environmental issues as well as several that offer tributes and remembrances for veterans.
Halloween Spookiness – & Old & New Encounters Across Great Divides This week: Eerie tales for late October, a few ballads that chronicle old battles along the St. Lawrence and Champlain Valley corridor, and several recent pieces that explore the challenges and possibilities of surmounting our cultural and political Great Divide.
Indigenous People’s Day, a Ride on the Railroad, Staying Upbeat in Challenging Times, and Moving (Musically) into Autumn
As we ease into October, this week’s show begins with several songs for Indigenous People’s Day, then takes us on a memory-laden musical excursion on the railroad. After that, we sample several recent releases that explore ways to find happiness and a sense of well-being, before finishing off with a few pieces to carry us deeper into autumn.
Growing Old, Shades of Blue, & Unraveling a Few Riddles: Some songs and tunes about aging, a few shades of the blues, & a number of riddling pieces are front and center in the Song Parlor this week.
Little Critters -- & Some Recent Songs for Our Times As we move into September after a long and challenging summer, in this week’s Song Parlor we check in with some little backyard critters, check out some recent releases, and briefly remember 9/11 as its 20th anniversary approaches.
Summertime & Two July Birthdays This week: Songs for summer times (and our times) & celebrating two July birthdays.
Three Special June Days: Juneteenth, Father’s Day, & Yeats’ Birthday This week’s show features songs and tunes to commemorate three special days in June: Juneteenth, Father’s Day, and the birthday of William Butler Yeats.
Memories – and Dialogues on the Golden Door This week songs and tunes that involve a varied assortment of precious memories – and the hopes, dreams, and challenges associated with them – are on parade in the Song Parlor.
May Scenes . . . and Some Trees & Traditions Songs and tunes that involve opportunities for getting out and about in springtime – among the trees, to an assortment of eateries, and so on – and that celebrate the importance of honoring and passing along traditions are at the center of things in the Song Parlor this week.
Working Toward Getting Out & About -- & Off to the Dance As we slip into May and get shots in the arm we’re eager to head outside and move on into post-pandemic times, so that’s what we’re doing in the Song Parlor this week – with an assortment of songs and tunes, old and new, that will eventually carry us off to the dance.
Celebrating Two Birthdays (Pete Seeger & John Muir) & Earth Day! Musical birthday cards frame our Song Parlor podcast this week – one is for Pete Seeger (b, May 3, 1919) and the other honors John Muir (b. April 21,1838). Considering the pivotal roles these two creative visionaries played in championing environmental causes, it seems only fitting that in between we should bring together a few songs and tunes to mark the 51st anniversary of Earth Day on April 22nd.
We Were There: Some Women’s Places & Voices As we race through March – Women’s History Month – it seems appropriate that women’s voice predominate in the Song Parlor this week. Along the way we’ll hear from some old time gals, listen to a few songs about women at work, sample several recent recordings, and meet a number of talented sisters.
Changing Times & Some Arrivals This week we begin with sets that involve Great Changes and Time Changes before moving along to songs and tunes that explore Asian-American, Mexican-American and Irish-American experience and traditions, challenges and artistry – through pieces that carry us from California to New York island and beyond.
Struggling to Rise & Be Free -- & Heading Out to Sea This week, as we move deeper into Mid-February, songs and tunes that involve the struggle for freedom -- and the impediments to achieving it -- will occupy much of our attention before we embark on a musical journey that will take us out to sea.
Winter Weather & Coming Together – in Community & in Love This week’s show begins with wintery weather and then moves on to songs and tunes that involve coming together in community and (as Valentine’s Day draws near) in love.
Old Scenes & Ceremonies, Fresh Starts, and Two Birthdays This week our opening set carries us from the world of George Washington to the inauguration of Theodore Roosevelt with various stops along the way, and we follow that with several songs and tunes that in one way or another seem to offer fitting post-2020 election perspectives and hopes. Then, in the second half of the show we offer musical birthday cards for Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Burns.
Into ’21: Moving Forward (and Looking Back) Turning the calendar page to a new year provides an irresistible moment for moving ahead (and looking back). On this week’s show we do that through songs and tunes – some new and a few from the distant past -- that in various ways consider the delights and challenges of change and being on the move. We also save some time in the second half of our show for a set of old and new animal songs as well as an assortment of pieces about season’s turning celebrations from Scotland and England.
Seasonal Celebrations: Finding the Light Through Long Dark Nights As we approach the longest night of the year, move through the holiday season, and head on toward the dawn of a new year, in this week’s Song Parlor we’ve assembled a cornucopia of seasonal songs and tunes old and new!
Moving From November to December in Pandemic Post-Election Times + A Bite to Eat & a Jog Around Scotland for St. Andrews Day This week’s show begins with three sets of songs and tunes – many from new or recent releases – that in one way or another seem appropriate as November slides into December in this drawn-out pandemic and post-election season. Then, later on, we’ll take time for a bit of food-related stuff, including a new (old) recipe and some gravy, before heading off for a jog around Scotland in honor of St. Andrews Day.
Some Conversations in November After a long and tumultuous election season, this week’s show brings together a bunch of songs and tunes that might be thought of as an extended musical November conversation – a number of pieces that seem to offer opportunities for oblique commentary on the events taking place around us, a few songs about our dreams of freedom and justice and the challenges we face, several songs for the season (as days grow short and birds take flight), and, finally, several bits of advice -- including a call for the music of healing.
Deeper Into Autumn – Toward Halloween & Election Day As the calendar inexorably leads us deeper into autumn and Halloween draws near, this week in the Song Parlor we start out with a few spooky encounters (old and new), follow up with some songs and tunes that come to mind as Election Day approaches (including reminders to vote), and finish off with more music for the fall season as we move on into late October and November.
Our Times (Old & New) -- & Some Moon Songs This week our opening sets feature recent songs and tunes (with a few older pieces stirred in along the way) that address issues with which we wrestle in 2020 – the ongoing struggle for social and racial justice in America, trying to navigate our way through various pandemic problems, managing environmental and political challenges, and so on. Then, later on, since this October opened with a Harvest Moon and will end with the arrival of the Hunter Moon, it seemed only fitting to save a little time for some Moon songs.
Mail, Flames, Hopes & Dreams This week we start out with a musical visit with Uncle Sam’s Postman (a tempting topic with the challenges of mail-in voting so much in the news these days). Later on, we move on to several sets of songs and tunes that explore other contemporary issues (and their background), many of them centering around the environmental challenges that are so apparent as fires rage through the American West.
Late Summer Issues & Memories . . . & Going Fishing This week we start out with a few mostly new or recent songs that speak to aspects of our season as we head into September 2020. After that, a few late-Summer memories – and then we’re off to go fishing (and we’ll encounter several mermaids along the way).
From Dog Days of August to Thoughts of Flowers This week’s show carries us from the Dog Days of August to some Thoughts About Flowers (mainly from the British Isles) with stops in between to hear a number of pieces, many from new and recent releases that somehow seem to speak to this extraordinary summer season. Along the way, we save a few minutes for several songs by Michael Smith, the great songwriter who died early in August.
Summer Scenes & Songs This week’s show features a varied assortment of songs and tunes involving summertime thoughts and activities – starting with a few memories and dreams, then moving on to encounters with some pesky critters that tend to make their appearance in the summertime. Later on, after a couple of sets that sample several new and recent releases, we’ll finish off with a few summertime rambles through England and Scotland.
Singing Our Times, Celebrating a Birthday, Off to a Dance This week’s show begins with several recent releases that in various ways speak to the challenges and hopes of our times. Then we move on to a couple of sets honoring Woody Guthrie, the great chronicler of American life who was born on July 14, 1912. After that, a quick musical excursion that with help from several new releases carries us around much of the world, before we finish off with a few pieces that take us to dances in Wales and England.
Down the River/To Waterloo & Beyond
In late June, it really seems like time to get outdoors, so this week in the Song Parlor we’re spending much of our time with songs and tunes that take us out on a river -- before finishing off with a few pieces than in one way or another evoke thoughts of Napoleon Bonaparte and carry us on to Waterloo and beyond.
Free & Equal Blues, Our Times, & Some Family Connections In the wake of the anguish, turmoil, and waves of protest that have followed the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota, this week’s show begins with two sets of songs that seek to offer musical perspective on racial injustice and the struggle for civil rights, justice, and equality over the past 80 years or so. Then we move on to a set of new releases that in one way or another seem right for the times and season, before finishing off with several pieces that showcase strong family connections.
Old Dreams. New Visions and Getting Through Hard Times in the Spring In this week’s mini-edition of the Song Parlor, we start out with a set drawn from new releases that offer an assortment of old dreams, new visions, and community-building affirmations. After that, a few songs, old and new, that explore some challenges and possible responses to hard times and unemployment. And, finally, we finish off with several songs and tunes that feature springtime thoughts and memories.
Getting Out? . . . Planting Seeds . . . Sailing With (& Remembering) Pete This week’s mini edition of the Song Parlor begins with a set that features pieces to help us move from self-isolation indoors to reentry into the world outside and then on to Springtime planting. After that, a set to honor and remember Pete Seeger, a great sower of the seeds of peace and justice – and a creative champion of generations of sailors singing out for clean and golden rivers.
Getting Exercise in Home Sweet Home – and Riding the (Fantasy) Range With millions of families spending their time working from home and sheltering in place, keeping physically active can definitely be a challenge – and imagining being somewhere else might often seem appealing. So this week’s mini-edition of the Song Parlor brings together several songs and tunes that offer opportunities for getting exercise in Home Sweet Home -- and we follow that with a set that involves riding the (fantasy) range.
Climbing Up Through Trials, Imagined Rambles, & Journeys Home As we all try to move as gracefully as we can through this extraordinary time and hang together in spite of the ongoing necessity of “social distancing,” here’s another mini-edition of the Song Parlor to encourage us along the way, one step at a time. . . . Now for a little walk and a couple of other tasks, then on to the audio. . . .
A Few Songs & Thoughts for This April Here’s a new Song Parlor mini-session that brings together a few songs and tunes and thoughts to help us through this extraordinary April.
Hope you guys have managed to get outside on this genuinely Spring-like day!
Here’s a Song Parlor mini-session to help us through social distancing and difficult Coronavirus times.
Flu? + Stepping into March & Looking Toward St. Patrick’s Day Since the spread of the coronavirus has been so much on our minds, it seemed only fitting to start this week’s show with a few pieces about the flu and various other health-related conditions. Then, as we move on into March, several new and recent releases that include songs and tunes for the season seemed irresistible. Later on, in the second half of the show, we’ll celebrate the approach of St. Patrick’s Day with several sets of pieces with Irish connections.
Mid-February Feelings + Ballads Old & New This week we begin with a couple of sets of songs and tunes – mainly from new or recent releases – that in one way or another seem to capture this year’s mid-February mood. Then we move on to a bunch of big ballads – including several versions of a classic American tale, plus a number of pieces (some comic, some tragic) that offer variants of stories from long ago that are included in Francis James Child’s monumental collection, The English and Scottish Popular Ballads -- along with one recent ballad that unfolds a powerful contemporary tale.
Groundhogs, Trials & Love This week, as we head into February, we begin with a few groundhog-related pieces + a couple more involving controversies surrounding the current occupant of the oval office -- along with several songs about moving on in challenging times. After that, with Valentine’s Day looming on the horizon, we focus mainly on songs and tunes related to courtship, love and constancy – taking us eventually on a musical journey with brief stops in Sweden, Scotland & England.
On the Journey Towards Freedom + A Few Celtic (Festival) Connections
In mid-January, as Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday comes around, our thoughts turn to the arduous and ongoing journey toward freedom in which Dr. King was so centrally involved. So songs and tunes related to the long and still-continuing struggles for freedom, equality, social justice, and the dream of working to fashion a more harmonious and inclusive world will be at the center of our show this week – with a little time reserved at the end for making a few Celtic Connections.
Remembering Farms, Transcending Borders Early every January, the Pennsylvania Farm show comes to Harrisburg, and that always makes it feel like a good time for music about farms and farmers. We’ll feature a number of farm-related songs in this week’s show -- along with a bunch of pieces, mainly from releases that recently turned up in the Song Parlor mailbox, that will take us on two Southern journeys and celebrate the possibility of transcending borders.
Long Nights, Holidays, & the Turning of the Year
As we reach December holidays and the longest night of the year, songs for the season feature largely in the Song Parlor this week, starting with “The World Is Old” and carrying us along on a musical journey that eventually leads us on to an assortment of anthems, carols, wassails, and more.
Into December with Food, Wassails and More This week in the Song Parlor, as we slide into December, we bring together some songs and tunes that offer suggestions about navigating our way through snow and darkness and controversy – including a bunch of pieces that involve food and a couple of wassails for the season.
An Autumn Calendar: Sliding Toward an Early Winter
Up here in the North Country, early snow has recently given us a vivid reminder that the season can change quickly and early – and that thought shapes much of the music we hear in the Song Parlor this week. We’ve assembled something of an autumn to early winter calendar with songs suitable for the season, a couple of musical previews and a chance to sample several recent releases – including some music from Bulgaria -- before finishing off with a few songs and tunes from Scotland.
Coming Into November in Our Times This week in the Song Parlor our show features a number of songs and tunes (mainly from new and recent releases) about coming into November in our time – and we take a brief musical journey through the British Isles, as the ongoing Brexit saga continues.
On the Move
This week’s show features songs and tunes about being on the move in one way or another -- walking, drifting down the road or river, putting out to sea. . . . It’s a theme that seems especially fitting for us at the moment, since the studio where we record the Song Parlor is about to move. While that move is happening we’ll be busy, so the next show won’t be along until we’ve arrived at the new place – and that should be in early November
Some Schools, Teachers & Celtic Colours
This week’s show features songs and tunes about schools, teachers, and education (both inside and outside of the classroom) as well as a varied array of Celtic Colours (with a couple of autumn festivals in mind).
Into September, Meeting Geezers, & Some Long Views of England
This week in the Song Parlor we begin with a few pieces to ease us to the end of summer and toward the first signs of autumn. After that, we’ll feature musical portraits of a charming gallery of old geezers, before finishing off with songs that take us across several centuries of English social and political history.
August’s End, Labor Day + Heading to the Fair
As we move into late August and head toward September, this week we’ll hear some songs and tunes that explore late-summer thoughts and gatherings and Labor Day issues and activities. Then, toward the end of the show, we’ll head off to a few English Fairs.
Ramblers, Rovers & Questers
This week in the Song Parlor we meet some ramblers, rovers and questers, encounters that are likely to trigger thoughts about how, when, and why they get around – and where they might want to go if they’re able. . . .
Some Lies, the Ladder to “This Land,” & A Couple of Summer Events
This week in the Song Parlor we begin with several songs and tunes that involve lies and deceptions (some public some personal) and then move on to pieces that call on us to live up to our American ideals of welcoming newcomers and championing social justice. After that, a few songs will take us through broad swaths of immigration history before we finish up with brief musical previews of two tempting summer festivals.
Summertime Scenes & Events On tap this week in the Song Parlor – songs and tunes that offer melodious sketches of some summertime scenes, a birthday card featuring the songs of Woody Guthrie (who was born on July 14, 1912), and musical previews of a couple of upcoming summer festivals in Québec and Pennsylvania.
The Spirit of Independence
This week in the Song Parlor, as the 4th of July draws near, the time seems right for an all-American show featuring songs and tunes that celebrate freedom and the spirit of independence – and we’ll add in a few new pieces that offer varied perspectives on where we seem to stand in the US as we move into July 2019.
June Days & Dads, Circuses & Travellers
What’s up in the Song Parlor this week? A little music for a sunny day in June will lead us on to some pieces about dads, as Father’s Day draws near. Then we’ll take a musical excursion to various circuses and carnivals, before finishing off with some songs and tunes of the travelling people.
Old (and New) Songs & Stories This week a bunch of old (and new) songs, tunes, and tales are front and center in the Song Parlor. We frame the show with pieces about singing or tunes that tell a tale – but we’ll also take some time to hear from a number of performers who are scheduled to take part in the Old Songs Festival that comes along at the end of June.
Memories, Communities, Commitments
With Memorial Day just around the corner, this week in the Song Parlor we focus on songs and tunes that involve memories, communities, and commitments of various kinds.
Celebrating Pete Seeger’s Centennial -- & Acknowledging Some Moms
In the month of Pete Seeger’s 100th birthday – May 3rd was the day – this week we feature songs and tunes to celebrate his life and legacy of singing out for peace and justice! And, since Mother’s Day is just around the corner – this year it falls on Sunday, May 12th – we also save a bit of time for some pieces that, in one way or another, honor and remember moms.
$ & Mother Earth
With the April 15th Tax Filing deadline looming and Earth Day coming along soon after (April 22nd is the day), most of our time in the Song Parlor this week is devoted to songs and tunes about money and environmental issues.
Springing Toward April
As we move from March towards April and begin to contemplate the idea of banishing wintry weather, the time seems right for some songs about the changing season. This week’s show includes a couple of bird sightings, a little maple sugar, quite a bit of mud – and several new or recent songs and tunes that in various ways reflect the temperature of our time.
Some Irish Connections
With St. Patrick’s Day once again upon us, this week our two-hour show will be entirely devoted to a celebration of music old and new with various kinds of Irish connections.
Marching Into Women’s History Month (& Changing Times)
This week, as we roll into March – and Women’s History Month – we’ll devote much of our time in the parlor to songs and tunes about women’s lives, hopes, work and play. And, as a reminder that, happily, the days are growing longer and that 2 AM on Sunday March 10th will mark the moment for leaping forward into Daylight Savings Time, we’ll also have a few time-related pieces.
From the Moon to the Music Hall (and Back)
Moon-related songs and tunes are at the center of this week’s musical excursion in the Song Parlor (we might think of it as an exploration of some phases of the moon). Then, later on, we’ll save time for a few songs and tales that evoke the heyday of the old British music halls (all the recent Brexit turmoil somehow makes the time seem ripe for that).
Winter Chills + Warmth from Pets and Valentines
With the deep-freeze temps of a polar inversion in the headlines and Valentine’s day on the way, winter storms and a flowery bouquet will provide the musical frame for this week’s show – which also includes some songs about love as well as several that focus on the charms and challenges (and distinctive personalities) of pets.
Striving for Freedom As the national holiday that honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. draws near, this week’s show brings together some songs and tunes related to the challenges and opportunities associated with our striving for freedom on both a national and personal level. And it finishes off with several pieces that offer a birthday remembrance of the great Scots bard Robert Burns, another notable champion of freedom.
To the Farm (Show) and Beyond
This week’s show features a bunch of songs and tunes that relate to farms and country life. Why country life when we’re deep in the winter? It’s an oblique nod in the direction of the PA Farm Show, a weeklong extravaganza that comes around every January. Years ago, when I lived in central PA, I thought it was something not to be missed – and even now, from a distance, its approach sets me thinking about farms and farmers and the way things have changed over the years.
The Last Days of December This week’s show features songs and tunes that seem right for the last days of December – a time that brings us to the longest nights of the year, to Christmas, and, finally to New Year’s celebrations of memory and renewal.
Entering December, Crossing Borders, Celebrating Traditions
This week’s show features music for moving deeper into December, some songs and tunes for Chanukah, several recent recordings that involve crossing borders of various kinds, and a bit of Reveling as Winter Solstice draws near.
“Victory Rag” (a Long View), a Bit More Turkey & St. Andrews Day
This week, in the wake of our recent and sometimes drawn-out elections, we’ll begin with songs and tunes that offer longer-term glimpses of American political leaders, campaigns, and appeals for support. Then we’ll go on to a couple of turkey tunes (a little post-Thanksgiving celebration) before heading off to Scotland for some music in honor of St. Andrews Day, which comes around on November 30th.
From Mourning & Memories to Gathering the Family & Getting Through
As Veterans Day approaches, this week’s show includes several songs that focus on the memories and treatment of old soldiers as well as a bunch of pieces about inclusive gatherings of family and friends as Thanksgiving draws near. And, in the wake of a number of appalling recent violent incidents we’ll also include a set of songs and tunes about wading through challenging times.
Spooky Encounters, Votes, & Late Night Changes
Three events that loom just over the horizon shape the Song Parlor this week: Of course Halloween lies just ahead; then, in the wee hours of the morning on Sunday, November 4th,, it will be time for us to Fall back to standard time; and, finally, a couple of days after that a momentous Tuesday election day rolls around. So this week, we’ll give a nod to all of these upcoming events by including a bunch of songs and tunes about spooky encounters (sometimes late at night) as well as a piece or two about the importance and power of voting.
Climate Challenges & Conversations, Western Lands & Sea Scenes
This week we begin with some songs and tunes related to environmental challenges and responses before moving along to a set that (perhaps in response to our noisy and often uncivil and negative present) explores several modes of conversation and communication from long ago to recent times. And then we finish up with several musical scenes and landscapes that take us into the west and out to sea.
Fall Comes In: Birds in Flight, New Arrivals, and Endurance
This week in the Song Parlor, as we get ready to flip the calendar page from September to October, birds are on the wing and songs and tunes about endurance, memories and our times are in the air.
Summer’s End – On the Move + Some Celtic Colours
This week’s show begins with a few pieces for the end of summer, as the official end of the season draws near. Then we’re on to some songs and tunes about moving on – sometimes on foot, sometimes by train, and sometimes by putting out to sea. And we’ll save a bit of time for celebrating some Celtic Colours, as the time for the great festival on Cape Breton again approaches.
Celebrating Labor (and Leisure) As Labor Day comes around, on this week’s show we feature songs and tunes that explore some labor history – as well as several clusters of pieces that celebrate relaxation or seem well suited for end of summer (or work week) gatherings.
Summer Rolls On As August rolls quickly by, this week in the Song Parlor we feature songs and tunes related to a bunch of summertime activities – we’ll get out on the road, do a bit of bird watching, spend a little time with a varied assortment of animals, and check in with a musical preview of a tempting one-day festival in Vermont.
True or False? Lies, Truths & Other Matters This week in the Song Parlor we focus on songs and tunes that explore various kinds of truth stretching (and sometimes outright lying) – and on pieces that emphasize the importance of speaking (and singing) out clearly and truly.
Some Summertime Activities
This week’s show features songs and tunes that focus on summertime activities – digging in a couple of gardens, getting out on the river, singing a song of protest, previewing a new festival, enjoying an excursion or a game, taking a trip to a fair – and, finally, rolling home.
A Birthday + Some Borders & Divisions (Or Not)
Woody Guthrie turns 106 on July 14, and as his birthday approaches we celebrate both by hearing from Woody and some of his friends and by listening to more recent versions of some of his songs – as well as other recent recordings that explore the kinds of issues about borders, boundaries and divisions – and the possibility of building positive social connections – that were always close to the heart of his creative vision.
Independence Day – Old Style & New +
As July draws near, this week’s show features a bunch of songs and tunes that seem appropriate for an old Independence Day gathering – as well as a bunch of recent pieces that reflect present day concerns or showcase some of the kinds of picking and singing one might anticipate at a sunny early July festival.
A Tip of the Hat to Dad and Some New & Old Songs
This week’s show features a musical tip of the hat to dads (as Father’s Day approaches) as well as several clusters of new and old songs that celebrate the power (and delight) of singing out.
Memories & Moving On
This week we begin with some songs and tunes for Memorial Day. Then we move on to explore memories of various other kinds – of childhood and people, of oddly memorable places and things – and there’ll even be a song or two about the possibility of not remembering.
Moms, Horse Races & Soaring Sounds
This week’s show is framed with songs of, by, or about Moms; in between we’re off to the racetrack and lifted up by several recent recordings of songs and tunes that soar.
Springing into May
This week’s show features music to help make the leap from April into May. There’ll be a bit of sunshine, some seeds and a touch of greenery as well as a bunch of pieces to celebrate International Worker’s Day. And we’ll hear some songs and tunes about a bird that (according to one version “never hollers cuckoo ‘til the spring of the year”).
April Issues: $, Worth, & Earth
As the Tax filing deadline and Earth Day draw near, this week’s show focuses mainly on songs and tunes that relate to money, measures of worth, and the environment.
Sugaring Off, Crossing A March Ditch to April, Some Women Sing Out
This week we begin with a few pieces for Maple Sugar season, then move on to more songs and tunes to carry us from March into April. We’ll also take a little journey in time, with help from some powerful women’s voices, and we’ll include a set featuring performances of songs drawn from the collections of three pioneering women folksong collectors in Vermont and Upstate New York. Finally, we’ll finish off with more songs and tunes to encourage the arrival of Spring.
Honoring the “Lady of the Harbor” + Some Irish Songs & Memories
This week, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, the second hour of our show will be entirely devoted to music with various Irish connections. But in the first hour, we’ll listen to some songs and tunes that in one way or another explore the hopes and challenges of sustaining a welcoming and inclusive American community.
Journeys, Time – and Changes
This week’s show features old and new songs about journeys – some by rail and some on foot – as well as several pieces about time and change (as Daylight Savings time draws near).
Navigating Phone & Other Circuits and Remembering St. David’s Day
This week we spend much of our time on music related to various kinds of circuits – starting with a set featuring pieces that cover more than a century of telephone history. Then we move on to hear music from a few performers who will be out on the concert circuit in the next couple of weeks. And, finally, we finish off with music from Wales in honor of St. David’s Day, which is celebrated on March 1st.
Love In This “Crazy Old Life”
As Valentine’s Day draws near, this week’s show features songs and tunes about love. Some chronicle romantic attachments – but there are also pieces, old and new, that involve love of family, friends, place, country . . . and just plain fun.
Winter Scenes, Remembering Dr. King, & Making Some Celtic Connections
This week’s show begins with a few pieces to acknowledge our amazingly wintery weather and then moves on to sets honoring Dr. Martin Luther King and conjuring up several notable scenes and characters that come to mind as Black History Month draws near. Later on, after a few brief musical previews of coming events, we finish up with some Celtic Connections, including a few songs to celebrate the birthday of Robert Burns.
Welcoming the New Year & Singing Out the Old
This week (in a show pushed back a week by freeezzzing weather), after welcoming in the New Year, we listen back to some songs and tunes that turned up in the Song Parlor in 2017.
Darkness Into Light – And Some Songs for the Holiday Season As winter solstice and Christmas draw near and we near the end of this year’s Hanukkah celebration, this week’s show features songs and tunes for the season to help carry us from darkness into light.
December, Reveling, & Friends This week’s show features songs and tunes that seem appropriate as we move into December. Several pieces acknowledge challenges – and opportunities -- we face this year as winter draws near, a couple of sets offer musical testimonials to the support of wonderful friends, and we finish up with a bit of December reveling.
From Chilly Winds to Thanksgiving (and other) Gatherings
As the days grow shorter and colder – and as Thanksgiving draws near – on this week’s show we listen to some songs that seem appropriate for the season, many of which seem to transport us to (or call on us to encourage) warming gatherings of friends – around the dinner table, or in the parlor, or halfway around the world.
Time & Encounters (Eerie & Otherwise) on the Road
On this week’s show, as we move past Halloween into November, as the days grow shorter and the Clocks Fall Back, we feature songs and tunes about encounters along the way (several of them eerie) as well as some pieces about time and changes.
Dollars, Declarations & Dreams The songs and tunes on this week’s show carry us into the varied realms of money & banking, relaxation & activism, and give us a chance to meet some notable questers & dreamers.
This week: Some songs and tunes to carry us into a change of season (including, among other things, a little tribute to the weed/wildflower called “Joe Pye”). Our show also recalls several September and October events that mark key moments in the ongoing journey from slavery to freedom – and we take some time to appreciate more Celtic colors.
This week’s show features songs and tunes that invite a look up into space, as well as several pieces that urge us to look around This Old Earth to consider environmental challenges in our rapidly changing world. And, in anticipation of the Celtic Colours Festival that comes along in Cape Breton in October, we finish up with a few pieces with a distinctly Celtic flavor.
Laboring (or Not) This week we’ll take a musical excursion through some songs and tunes from (and about) American workers and a few folks who’ve tried to help workers organize; we’ll save a bit of time for a side trip to England and Scotland for some songs about the work of the weavers; and we’ll squeeze in a few pieces about lazing round – or being laid off. Happy Labor Day!
This week in the Song Parlor we feature songs suitable for a summer night around a campfire . . . or for a demonstration . . . or for an August commemoration – and we offer a brief musical preview of Vermont’s New World Festival.
This week in the Song Parlor we feature a bunch of pieces about birds, pesky insects, and facts (alt and otherwise)
Around the 4th & Into July This week on The Song Parlor we help turn the calendar page into July with some music for a fourth of July weekend (and after); we hear a couple of pieces from Woody Guthrie (whose birthday is on July 14th); and we listen to several songs and tunes from performers scheduled to appear at this year’s New Bedford Folk Festival.
With Father’s Day again upon us, this week’s show is almost all about Dads – though there are a few songs from or about England tucked in at the end.
Happy Father’s Day!
On this week’s show: some songs and tunes about the urge to fly, and a few pieces that suggest the range and power of old (and new) songs
Now (New Releases), Then (Memories) & Soon This week’s musical journey takes us into the past, the present, and the future. As Memorial Day draws near, we feature a number of songs and tunes for the occasion; we sample several new releases, focusing on pieces that involve making it through challenging times; we hear from several performers scheduled to take part in an upcoming festival featuring music of the sea; and, as we swing into June, and growing season, we include a few songs that explore the lives and work of farm workers in Scotland.
This week’s show features a number of pieces (mainly from new and recent releases) that offer advice of one kind or another (it’s amazing how much advice is floating around out there in song!); and, as Mother’s Day draws near we’ll celebrate with help from several recordings in which talented moms make music with their kids.
As we head from April (and Earth Day) toward May, this week in the Song Parlor we feature songs and tunes with an environmental connection, a birthday set for Pete Seeger (who was born on May 3rd), a little trip to Concord (to visit Emerson, Thoreau, and Walden Pond), and a few pieces that involve May Day celebrations.
Some April Activities & Issues: Money & More
As the Income Tax filing deadline draws near, on this week’s show we feature a bunch of songs about money – and we’ll also turn our attention to other, perhaps more pleasurable, April activities, including a musical preview of a tempting festival in Québec.
This week’s show features a number of recent recordings (plus a few older ones) that celebrate community-building inclusiveness while acknowledging the struggles that work may involve – as well as a few songs and tunes to help carry us on from March into April.
This week’s show takes us from Mud Season and Maple Syrup to World Music (which can leap high walls) to a journey through some Irish-American musical connections and traditions (including a 1941 recording of my grandfather singing “Bridget Donahue,” a song he probably learned in the 1880s.
This week, we’ve dipped into the Song Parlor archives for a show titled “On the Move” that originally aired in 2015. That seemed fitting, since travels have affected our schedule this time around — but it’s also a reminder that in the archives you can find shows going back for years to enjoy whenever the mood seems right. And we’ll be back in two weeks with a new edition of the Song Parlor.
As we move deeper into February, chilly winds and frost and snow are likely to be on our minds and in our neighborhoods – but so, too, are thoughts of love and romance as Valentine’s Day draws near . . . and songs and tunes related to all of these subjects are front and center in this week’s edition of the Song Parlor.
This week in the Song Parlor we feature some blues (from new and recent recordings), some greens (through songs and tunes that, broadly speaking, relate to Mother Earth), and a few Flurries and Celtic Connections (in honor of two terrific festivals).
This weeks show features music that in one way or another seems appropriate for Birthday celebrations honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Australia (Australia day is January 26), and Robert Burns.
With the 101st PA Farm Show just around the corner (it’s scheduled to run between January 7 and 14 in Harrisburg), much of this week’s Song Parlor show is related to music about farms and farm animals — though we’ve also saved a little time to consider the elephants.
Relatively new CDs — Jim Kweskin & Geoff Muldaur, Lisa Null, Dan Schatz, Dave Gunning, the Bills, Evie Laden, the ARC CD with John Kirkpatrick on it, Sver . . . .
Among the relatively recent: Pete, the Yellow Room Gang, Dana [!] & Susan Robinson, Charm City Junction. . .
Seasonal scenes and sounds fill the Song Parlor this week as we move deeper into December and closer to the Winter Solstice, Christmas, Hanukkah, and the New Year.
Into December & Around the World
First up: some songs and tunes about the challenges and opportunities of the chilly days and long nights of early December. Then: a warming musical journey around much of the world and a mosaic fashioned from earlier Revels performances, a reminder that this December there will again be restorative and community-enhancing Reveling in nine cities across the US.
Keeping On (and Remembering) In November -
On this week’s musical journey in the Song Parlor, we’ll hear a few pieces from the US, Scandinavia, and the British Isles about getting through and moving on as we head into the colder and darker days of November; we’ll offer a brief musical remembrance of Leonard Cohen; and we’ll add a few short musical previews featuring a few performers who are scheduled to appear in New England, Upstate New York, and Central Pennsylvania in the next couple of weeks.
Rags, Wraiths & Nags On this week’s show we’ll start out with a brief journey through a century of ragtime and then we’ll encounter a few (not too spooky) skeletons, wraiths and eerie creatures. After that we’ll hear from several performers who are scheduled to appear in Central PA, Northern NY, or Vermont in the next couple of weeks, and take a musical turn around the track with some horses in the British Isles — or admire them at work in various other places and ways.