Song of the Soul: Recent Episodes
Northern Spirit Radio
Song of the Soul invites you to a soul-level encounter. Music has the ability to proclaim the soul's language beyond what mere words can speak. That's what we seek as we invite our guests to share their Song of the Soul. You will hear the music that has charted the steps of their spiritual journey, that has provided a touchstone in the soul's dark night, and sung the hearts awe and joy when come to the Light. As you listen to Song of the Soul, you are both witness and companion to our guest's spiritual path and sacred testimony.
Song of the Soul guests provide about 25 minutes of the music that speaks of their spiritual path, beliefs or journey, and Mark Helpsmeet explores with them the relevance and meaning of this music to their experience. Some guests are musicians, perhaps sharing their own music, but most guests are simply sharing music they've been impacted by, written and performed by others.
Will Fudeman (also on Bandcamp) joins us to share his second Song of the Soul, most of it based on music from his newly released album, What It Takes.
Part 3 of our tribute to Tom Prasada-Rao, this time through the stories and songs selected by 3 of the women in Tom's life: his sister, Patty Prasada-Rao, his ex-wife and musical partner in the Dreamsicles,
Part 2 of a tribute to Tom Prasada-Rao, who passed on 6/19/24. Today's stories & music are shared by the other members of The Sherpas, Michael Lille & Tom Kimmel.
Part 1 of a tribute to Tom Prasada-Rao, who passed on 6/19/24. Today's stories & music are shared by the other members of the Fox Run Five: Neale Eckstein, Matt Nakoa, Eric Schwartz, & Jagoda.
While James Spartz currently makes music with Dogtown Hollow, he has sometimes been onstage as part of Jim James & The Damn Shames and under other names.
Gretta Stone became a musician because she loved being part of all the folk music that many Quakers shared together when she became part of Doylestown Friends Meeting, and at one point was part of a band called Faith and Practice. Gretta's path led to various travels, including her evolution into instrumental music and sacred harp singing.
ISMAY is a musical experience wrapped around Avery Hellman. Without trying to limit ISMAY by any of the boxes we often put musicians in, their music is bluegrass, or country, or Americana, or folk, or something completely new.
Humbird is a musical experience with Siri Undlin at its center. Her music has been described with terms like contemplative folk musings and resigned tenacity, but I would simply call it heart and soul stirring combined with instrumental genius. Siri lives in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, while the rotating band membership of Humbird reaches further afield.
This is our 2nd visit with Earth Mama/Joyce Rouse and her rich assortment of musical influences, combined with great lyrics and a truly beautiful voice, all in service of the people and creatures of this planet. Joyce's 15 albums of fun, deep, joyful, and thought-provoking songs make Earth more stunning and hopeful.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Lutheran, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Quaker
Usually we have songwriters sharing their own songs, but today we have Chris David Westover-Muñoz, (and on Facebook) associate professor and director of bands at Denison University near Columbus, Ohio.
Bill Isles was into all kinds of music and several instruments back in his youth, but then there was a hiatus of around 25 years where he was focused elsewhere. It took a near-death experience, where he had no heartbeat for 2 minutes, to spur him back to his passion for music, now partnered with his wife, Kate. Deeply rooted in the soil and water of his homeland in Northern Minnesota, Bill tells the story of his life and his homeland through his music.
Back in 2020, early in the pandemic, I discovered the music of Raianne Richards and Mark Mandeville and instantly adored it, and had Mark as my Song of the Soul guest.
Kiran Ahluwalia was born in the Punjab, in India, but moved with her family to Canada when she was 7, well after she started training in the traditional music of her region. Kiran has continued her training, both deepening it and widening it. While her 8 albums are definitely rooted in the music and dance of her homeland, she has also enriched, extended, and diversified the songs she creates, most often carrying a message of connection and compassion.
Part 2 of a birthday celebration for Si Kahn on his 80th birthday, this week with John McCutcheon and Cathy Fink, sharing streams of music and meaning that flow from Si Kahn.
As a happy birthday to Si Kahn for his 80th birthday, this week and next week we are sharing songs and stories by & about Si as performed by the hand-chosen successors to Si's work and music. Today that means we are joined by Phoebe Rees & Joe Jencks.
Katie Dahl's music is spirit-laden, rooted in a religious past which no longer fits, but which Katie still copes with through new lenses. Katie has been described as “a songwriter and playwright whose work is as expansive as Lake Michigan and as deeply rooted as its rocky coastal bluffs”, and that fits her well.
Anne Heaton has lived widely, pursuing a wide range of interests, in Chicago (IL), Washington DC, New York, Ann Arbor (MI), and now in Milwaukee (WI). She has all the classical piano cred you could want, but has also performed as part of a Harlem gospel choir, while her songwriting has been inspired by the likes of the Indigo Girls and Tori Amos.
Back in 2020 and 2021 I discovered Christine Stay and Aidan Quinn who are known collectively as Friction Farm.
Kate Klim enchanted me from the first with her songwriting and vocals and a talent which also thrust her into prominence when she was a 2010 Kerrville New Folk Winner. Over 4 years she dazzled the world with 3 albums, but then, with the advent of 2 children and then COVID, her muse was quiescent. The dry spell finally passed last year, with musical storm clouds and rainbows again appearing, stirring our imaginations and passions and delivering to us Kim's fourth album, Something Green.
Tom Smith, known as the World's Fastest Filker, has been making and sharing music at science fiction and fantasy conventions since 1985. He's written in many musical genres, including folk, rock, jazz, gospel, and showtunes; and can write incredibly funny political commentary just as easily as heart-felt eulogy. Today Tom shares with us a few of the songs that mean the most to him.
Tim Grimm delivers moving music grown out of the soil of the Midwest, music that's flavored folk, country, and Americana, and by the end of this program you'll have songs lodged in your heart that you'll carry with you for the rest of your life.
Ana Egge combines a beautiful voice with seriously deep lyrics to make transformative music. With 12 albums under her belt, and with a menagerie of creatures, like roses, snakes, tigers, & the Divine Mother, brought to life in her songs, there is both breadth & depth of vision channeled to us. With roots extending back to Saskatchewan, North Dakota, New Mexico, & Texas, Ana currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.
Since Meg Hutchinson last joined us in 2012, she obtained her Masters of Divinity as the only Buddhist in her class, and has added work including as Osal Doula Services, still continuing
Cheryl Prashker is a talented musician with wide and deep skills, particularly on the drums, but she especially has a heart of gold and bestows endless blessings on all around her. Besides performing decades ago with a back called CC RailRoad, she performs currently with a Celtic-based band called Runa.
Ethan Eckert is a player of music in a wild variety of genres, including folk, jazz, hiphop, hard rock and just about whatever you can imagine. He's a drummer, keyboardist, guitarist, vocalist, and he writes songs on the creative edge. He will help raise you up, just as he does with his sourdough bread and his songs will answer your thirst, as does his mushroom tea. Ethan does all of this and more in Kansas City, Kansas.
Seven portions of seven Song of the Soul shows with seven great musicians back in the summer/fall of 2020, with songs linked by themes around old-timey music, old times, old folks, and new songs.
The music of Ben Bedford talks on on a trip through a wider lens to life, not only that of humans, but of the vibrant world around us, with all our relations. While Ben's words dance lyrically through images and poetry, his tunes dance magically through guitar strings and vibrations.
Enjoy the rich fruits of the 7th annual Songs for Social Change contest, sponsored by RAWA (Renaissance Artists and Writers Association). The main organizer, Dada Veda, shares 6 of the finalists in the 2022 contest, including winner Allan Licht.
Michael Johnathon is a farmer - a songfarmer - and he cultivates folk music from his log cabin just outside of Lexington, Kentucky, by his personal writing, playing and touring, through his 20 albums, but also via the radio and video show called WoodSongs that he's been broadcasting on hundreds of stations for the past 18 years.
Emily White is Memphis-raised, but Chicagoan as adult, self-describing as Southerner by heart, Midwestern by choice. While Emily's voice and music are beautiful and compelling, her lyrics elevate her to the top ranks of performers, touching the deep places and raising it all to golden heights. Her newest album is called Songs You Didn't Know I Wrote About You, and that's likely the truth you'll experience in Emily's music.
A sampling of the full 3-plus-hour collaborative concert held on February 11th, 2023 as part of the People's Music Network (PMN) Winter Convergence hosted at The People's Forum in New York City. Activism, humor, inspiration, justice, and more by 10 of the 25-plus performers at the concert.
Annie Capp's music has sometimes been called Midwest Urban Folk and it has also been called Folk Therapy, and the music that she shares today is from an especially deep and somewhat confessional project called How Can I Say This.
Randie O'Neil's music is magnetic, especially in the deeply honest feelings and aspirations of her songs. Randie has self-described as a Americana/Folk-Pop artist, but she is also standing on the shoulders of a number of heavy-rocking, strong-and-assertive-and-determined women who blazed a way in a mostly male-dominated rock world. Though her songs are largely solo artistry now, back in the day Randie was part of AMA (Against Medical Advice), though she is truly FMA (For Mental-health Advancement).
Erin Zindle and the Ragbirds play songs with a deep center, and with rhythms and melodies gathered broadly, from around the world. Erin is a multi-instrumentalist, playing her magic on the violin, keyboards, accordion, & many more instruments.
Chris Rosser moved to Asheville, NC, to be close to the folk music scene there, even as he performs as a jazz musician, and as part of the world-fusion trio, Free Planet Radio - and produces music for others.
Celebrating the winter holidays with 6 artists & songs, with very different glimpses & ideas about Christmas. Some are whimsical, some thought-provoking, some passionate.
Part one of a rich assortment of guests & original music of some Winter Holidays, like the Solstice, Hanukkah, Christmas, and the New Year.
A delightful retrospective of Song of the Soul guests from Summer 2020, ranging lighthearted to profoundhearted.
Audra Kubat is deeply connected to the Earth, and her rootedness grows, blossoms, and sometimes weeps through her beautiful music. She is a talented multi-instrumentalist, but there is exceptional power in her voice and in her profound and moving lyrics.
4 more artists from Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, & Wisconsin, with songs of welcoming, Dreamers, cages, & loving our neighbors.
Three artists share songs of compassion & connection, reaching across our borders. In this 1st installment, Randall Adams, Peter Alsop, & Anita Aysola sing of love for caged children, love of all children, and love of a new home, while facing off with fear, division, & disconnection.
Idris Phillips left this world in July 2022, and we remember him today with my interview with him from December 2017, although I also interviewed him again in person,
Minnesota's Twin Cities are teeming with musical talents, among them Curtis and Loretta. They've been making & performing fine mostly-folkish music for more than 3 decades. Loretta Simonet writes the lion's share of their songs, and her primary instrument is either the guitar or the folk harp, accompanied by Curtis' deep voice & rich instrumental skills.
A visit to a rich variety of musicians featured on Song of the Soul in the early days of the pandemic, highlighting themes of The Road, The Reason, The Destination, with songs by Spook Handy, Andi Renfree, Laura Marie, Ksenia Mack,
Joanna Clare started her violin quite young on rather standard Suzuki method fare, but along the way Irish music captured her, both as a dancer & as a fiddler. And along the way, new Irish tunes began flowing out of Joanna's fiddle. Though she is a Philadelphia-based material science/engineer by day, music is inextricably linked to her mind & soul.
6 songs from 6 finalists in the Songs for Social Change 2021 contest, sponsored by the Renaissance Artists and Writers Association, founded by Ananda Marga, presented by one of the judges, Arun/Ed Glassman.
Glimpses of 7 of our musical guests back in early 2020, before the pandemic became our country's focus, focusing on songs of each related to earth, air, water, fire, and other essential elements of creation.
Despite having spent 6 years in Nashville, Kirsten Manville's true home is in the Boston area of MA. Raised with important influences from old-time, classical, folk, & rock music, country music has been foremost in Kirsten's heart since she was 8.
Sage Leary has a gift & a passion for music that blossomed early and impressively, such that he released his first album of all-original music at the age of 14, his second at 16. He can rock it, he can blues it, and he can definitely acoustic Americana it. Raised in the outdoors and the woods, his music touches the Earth but reaches celestial heights, powered by a visible and almost symbiotic communion between Sage and his guitar, enhanced by his looping, vocal, and beat-boxing skills.
For 20 years Frank Dutsh (AKA François Duchesne) has been a top-notch competitor in strongman competitions, but he's turned to another discipline over the past 5 years. Having started on violin at 4 years old, adding piano after that, Frank gave a few decades to other work before coming back to music. Besides his physical strength & endurance, Frank is gifted linguistically & has written songs in 4 languages already.
Matthew French's singing & songs unlock hearts. An Ohio transplant to the Twin Cities of Minnesota, Matthew segged from a vibrant church music life to a musical passion stirred by personal trials & growth, finding deep community within the Twin Cities music scene. His voice & lyrics combine to find hope & strength out of our challenges and uplift us together.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Non-denominational Christian, Assembly of God
Giulia Millanta is the best Americana singer from Italy you could ever hope to encounter. She's been in the USA, in Austin, TX, for the past 10 years or so, and she seems to be producing endless riches of music, 8 albums to-date. While her talent & craft are impeccable, it is her heart-and-soul touching lyrics and voice that make her a memorable treat for all who are blessed to hear her perform.
Autumn Sky Hall is an amazing and astounding - and young - folk/Americana singer/songwriter hailing from Sacramento, CA, complete with an enchanting & versatile voice, dancing guitar fingers, and emotionally compelling lyrics. Autumn pours her inner experience and growth through her songs so that to hear her is to know her and the human condition better.
Leslie Smith has shined as part of all the great folk locales, the Newport, Kerrville, and South By Southwest music festivals, and her songs have been done by many folk-greats, like Lucy Kaplansky and Dar Williams, although I think they are best out of Leslie's own mouth and guitar. Along the way to now she did a stint as part of a New York bluegrass band called Arabesque, but then she headed back to Pittsburgh, back to her center.
Chris Haddox has played so many instruments, hiked & paddled so many hills & rivers, and worked in so many fields that it's hard to wrap your mind around it. And even though Chris wrote his first song in 2nd grade and played an astounding variety of instruments all through school and beyond, this past year, at 62, is the first time he's recorded his songs for the world.
Pat Humphries & Sandy O are the members of Emma's Revolution, an entity with its own soul & mission, beautiful music to call forth the deepest of emotions, both grief and joy, always with the aim of steering the world toward justice & healing. If only we could unite the world like Pat & Sandy blend & weave their voices & instruments, peace and justice would already be the norm.
Andrew Calhoun is the real deal, applying all the skill & integrity needed to faithfully channel folk songs & folk culture through his dancing, delightful guitar, but also his deep & evocative voice. With loads of recordings over the decades, he's distinguished himself through Scotch-Irish songs and his African-American spirituals. He lives just outside of Chicago, IL.
MG Bailey joins us today for SOS. MG is not only a One Man Band, playing simultaneously with hands and feet, while singing, he's a not-in-anyone's box kind of man. Authenticity & creativity mix fruitfully in MG's music, with ideas, stories, and images that stretch us out of our conventional expectations & storylines. There's beautiful guitar & other instruments, all played by MG, but mostly you can't listen to these songs without feeling you're glimpsing beyond the veil of your own reality.
Ann Reed is a rich & wonderful source of music, stories, and even a book now - check out Citizens of Campbell. She's been a mainstay of the women's and folk music scene in the Twin Cities of MN area for 40 years now, having produced some 24 albums.
We'll dive deep in the Afro-Colombian music of Lucas Silva, pioneer of Champeta. Founder of Palenque Records (or on Facebook) via today's guest-host Patricia Stansbury (AKA Sunny Gardener).
Erin Ivey is a french-speaking, Queen-of-the-Austin singer-songwriters artist who creates some of the best Folk-Americana music around.
Lydia Violet is an amazing musician, songwriter, educator, & community activist, combining fiddle, clawhammer banjo, & voice to change & heal the Earth. Mentored by Joanna Macy, Lydia got her degree in Philosophy, Cosmology, and Consciousness from the California Institute of Integral Studies, and weaves her music & Earthcare studies together in her Music Medicine program at her School for the Great Turning.
Darryl Purpose says he's never had a real job, earning his living either from blackjack or making music, but he's worth every cent and more. Determined to live outside the box, Darryl's music regales the listener with beauty, inspiration, & free-flowing spirituality.
Bryan Bielanski hails from Charlotte, North Carolina, though he's spending little enough time there as he takes his music almost everywhere in the US & in quite a few other countries as well.
Emma G brings together culture & family from all over the world, including Persia, Fiji, New Zealand, Iowa, and more. Her music is likewise expansive, including seeds of operatic voice training with a rock music emphasis.
Today is the second time we'll have Jim Phillips with us, and this is kind of a new-and-improved-music of Jim Phillips, with significant overlap of songs from the last time, but with dramatically enhanced versions of some of his tunes.
Susan Marie Gallion's song, The Woman In Me has won many a heart, and was even nominated for a Grammy Award. Though Susan wrote it, most folks got to know it through the voice of Crystal Gayle.
Ruth Wyand, of Kill Devil Hills, NC, is a wonderful songwriter and performer, with magic in her tunes and lyrics, though it was really her guitar work that first riveted our attention, complete with soul-captivating finger-picking and bottleneck slide flourishes. Though of a genre all her own, she channels elements of blues, jazz, & Americana - and much more. In addition to her own musical creations, she breathes new life and identity into the tunes of other musicians, making them all her own.
Starting in high school, Doug Alan Wilcox has been in a variety of bands, including names like Black Jack, Logix, So What Band, and Friends, transitioning from pop/rock/dance (and much more) music to a solo performing singer/songwriter career around 2000. Doug's influences are far and wide, including Bob Dylan, Robert Frost, and Buddha's Minivan. He hails from Haggarstown, MD.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Lutheran, Unity, Non-affiliated
Claudia Schmidt & Sally Rogers are a soul-deep musical combination. Sally is perhaps more closely associated with the folk music genre, and while Claudia has done a lot of folk, she's also well-known and loved for her expeditions into the jazz world. Whenever they combine their voices & music, there is an alchemy that transmutes music into magic. Both tell stories & capture images to rivet the heart & guide us on a better, more fulfilling, path.
Aaron Steinberg is Captain Danger, flanked by Keith “E-Day” Eaddy & Roger “Joose” Benford. Aaron has done so much with music, starting very young with bands like The Studmuffins, Wabbit, Uncle Dad, and was he and is part of The Televisionairies whose role in life is to make music out of television theme songs that is part Dr Demento meets Gilligan's Island.
Deborah Silverstein is a gem and a beacon. She started out musically in the heady early days of women's music, in the 1970s, as part of the Red Basement Singers, and the New Harmony Sisterhood Band.
Sofia Talvik self-describes as “Americana/Folk with Swedish Roots”, and it's so much better and wonderful than that can conjure. With the voice of an angel, she can play the strings of our hearts. Sofia has toured extensively in the US, though she lives mostly in Germany these days, where she makes music as part of the German/Swedish folk duo Hansan, combining Sofia and David Floer.
Joe Troop introduced a new form of music called Latingrass, a combination of music from Joe's homeland, in the lower Appalachian mountains, with the tones and tunes of the Andes in South America. He also refers to himself by another new word, artivist, a combination of his musical art and his activist passions. Joe Troop was born with bones that resonated with music, grew into a banjophile, and found delicious riches of culture and humanity while living in Spain, Japan, and most recently, Argentina.
Abigail Dowd's songs are rich deeply connected to both folk/Americana music, and to spirit-tinged lyrics, making her the perfect Song of the Soul guest. You'll also immediately hear Abigail Dowd's North Carolina accent, and you'll hear the voice of an angel poet in the same moment.
A rich mid-winter concert of songs of faith & hope by Annie Patterson & Peter Blood, the creators of the world-renowned group-singing songbooks Rise Up Singing, and Rise Again.
Michael R. J. Roth writes his songs on the deep end of the meaning pool, and his tone has the same depth, so that some have called him a cool dark troubadour. His voice ranges, sometimes recalling the tones of a Gordon Lightfoot or a Johnny Cash, and sometimes a bit of John Prine. But what's especially wonderful is how after retirement from a number of professions, including that of a diplomat, Michael launched into full-time music production around 65, and he's put out more than 9 albums to date.
Sally Rogers has been a fountain of folk music for 4 decades (check out her 40 Years, 40 Songs collection), now sung all around the country & world. Her classics include Lovely Agnes, Touch of the Master's Hand, & Circle of the Sun, and there are ever-more greats coming. Her last visit with us was 2007. In addition to her work as a music teacher in schools, she's been a long-time co-host for the 3rd Friday Song Swap at Vanilla Bean in Pomfret, CT.
Will Fudeman's musical muse is very strongly connected to his hopes, prayers, & vision for the world. Having worked as a social worker & therapist, he is currently doing healing work with Eastern arts including acupuncture & Qi Gong. Will completes his lifework with his music, which he performs on guitar & mandolin. Spiritually/philosophically fueled by both his Jewish Identity and Taoist leanings, he sings with meaning and a promise of hope. Will has performed with a number of artists, including Cayuga Klezmer Revival. Find Will's 3 CDs on CDBaby.
The incredible and influential folksinger, Bill Staines died this past week, bringing tears of fond memories to my eyes when I got the news. I've been singing his songs in our local song circles for 40 years now, so I decided to again share my 2015 Song of the Soul interview with you, today, in homage of a wonderful man and musician.
Tom Neilson is a folk singer's folk singer, using his songs to bring you all the news and issues that are of vital importance to the physical and ethical well-being of Americans but which get short-shrift in mainstream media. It's not a surprise at all that Just Plain Folks International gave Tom awards this year for best Traditional Folk Album & best Social Commentary album.
Phil Hoose writes songs that we all love and that other performers love to perform. His best-known, Hey, Little Ant, is a song, but also a book that has sold over 1 million copies in 10 languages. With a quirky eye for seeing the world differently, his songs intrigue, amuse, & enchant. An employee of The Nature Conservancy for decades, and the author of more than 10 books, including the inspirational Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice, Phil's awards include the John Newbery Medal, Sibert Medal, and the National Book Award for Young People's Literature.
Heather Pierson fell in love with music & the piano at a tender age, growing into singing in choirs & playing the guitar along the way. Music of all sorts of genres are her spirit & lifeblood. She was a part of Garajh Mahal, doing progressive rock, then with the country-leaning North Atlantic Band.
Steve Suffet has the heart & the pedigree of a 100% authentic old-fashioned folk singer. Growing up near ground zero of the folk music explosion of NYC in the early 1960's, Steve has witnessed & shared the music of many others, and added his share to the conversation. Though he waited a few decades to start recording his music, Steve has 7 CDs on CDBaby.
Joe Iadanza is an exceptional Common Man from Long Island, who, in addition to his music tinged with Harry Chapin and Bruce Springsteen flavors, has a serious spirituality and healing avocation, which you can access through his LivingRoomStudio.org site, for his meditation, yoga, podcast, & spiritual direction gifts. Joe performs solo, as part of Joe Iadanza & His Beautiful Band, and in a duo with Carolann Solebello.
Joy Zimmerman combines consummate instrumental skill, with moving lyrics, and with abundant Light & Love. Immersed in classical music & violin throughout her youth, it was later in life that she picked up a guitar and discovered her gift for songwriting. Joy shares deeply from her rich life and her passion for making a better world, and she does it with wonderful creativity, beauty, and her clear, ringing, passionate voice.
Kori Riesenweber sings sweetly, delightfully, and movingly. She used to perform with Beacon James, but currently performs most with Girl Band, but also solo, with Caleb Horne, as Thistledown, and in other configurations.
Whether it's supercharged indie rock, bittersweet pop, or something completely new, Brian Kelly/Oceanography will expose your heart. Brian can powerfully channel Roy Orbison and his song, Crying, and he can make you think you're with Neil Young, but mostly he's himself, and that's an excellent thing. Along the way he played and sang with the Butte County All Stars, Food, and with Silence The Bird. Brian is located in Oakland, CA, bringing music to the wider world.
Bonnie Koloc was a major presence in music, especially folk music, on the Chicago scene in the early 1970's, along with John Prine and Steve Goodman, one of the big 3 folk musicians there. She was a constant presence on the stage in those years, churning out 4 albums in 4 years, singing not only folk but jazz and blues. Eventually she wondered away from Chicago, including stints with other forms of art, like musical theater and visual art.
Jessica Smucker is today's SOS guest, and she believes the best way to change the world is to channel our pain into connection. Jessica is one very captivating person, both musically and otherwise. She worked on movies, is a published poet & a social justice warrior, came into music through a rock band called The Sleeping World, and she knows all the two-letter words in Scrabble, so don't even think of challenging her.
Kori Riesenweber has an angelic voice & a love for harmonies that has been lived out in many ways: in the bluegrass band of her extended families, in the intricate arrangements of her time as part of Beacon James (on Facebook and on Bandcamp), and currently with Girl Band. She also performs solo, and sings constantly with her newborn son.
Carrie Elkin brings to listeners a tear-jerking joy through her songs that seek to make the world better from the vulnerable places in each of our hearts. With a life, study, and career path including saxophone, Lutheran church music, pre-med studies, physiology, and environmental work using organic chemistry, it was a long road that led Carrie to her true home & profession as a singer/songwriter folk musician.
Alastair Moock has been playing music in the Philly area since 1995, with a specialty of family music added after the birth of his twins in 2006. He was first place in the 2020 Songs for Social Change, a project of RAWA, with his song Be A Pain.
John McCutcheon is classic & cutting-edge folk music. An amazing singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, he has now produced 40 albums, performed with all kinds of musical greats, like Pete Seeger, Tom Chapin, Tom Paxton, and Carrie Newcomer. He's witty, deep, creative, prolific, and he's in person for this interview on July 4th, 2019, at Grinnell College as part of the FGC Gathering.
Anita Aysola was a top finalist in the 2020 Songs for Social Change contest sponsored by Renaissance Artists and Writers Association (RAWA) with her beautiful & poignant song, Heartbeat.
Regla Garcia-Schmidt is half of The Hollywood Rockstarz. Regla's powerful voice & keyboards are born of Cuban immigrants, cultured in Connecticut, expanded in Los Angeles, and have reached full fruit in Ladysmith, WI. She will wow you with the depths of her passion & the extent of her talent.
The music of Niyonu Spann has depth of meaning thoroughly entwined with fine melodies and harmonies and musical acumen. We've seen her on Northern Spirit Radio once previously for Song of the Soul, and also once for Spirit In Action, focused on her work with Beyond Diversity 101.
Mike Ball of Dr. Mike & the Sea Monkeys and Founder/Executive Director of Lost Voices has an endless streak of creativity, and a passion for creating music that both amuses and changes people.
Jerry Hui is an amazing choral director, both composing and bringing out of singers intricate & moving performances. Jerry is Director of Choral Activities at UW-Stout, and directs a number of other groups, including Schola Cantorum of Eau Claire. Growing up in Hong Kong, headed for a livelihood working with computers, Jerry found magic in music, and unity in choir.
Together Ira Levin and Julia Bordenaro Levin (sometimes with other artists) are The Levins, a weaving of beautiful music, harmonies, & lyrics. Ira comes from rich Jewish ground and avidly draws on mysticism from around the world. Ira & Julia have performed children's music as Uncle Eye & Ms Melody, and Kirtan music with Mirabai Moon, among others. Their songs are joyful, reflective, entrancing, accessible and stunning, all the more so because of precious content. With broadway, classical, rock and roll, jazz, & baroque influences in their lives and music, you will be enriched, entertained, & uplifted.
Kora Feder paints the sky, beautifully, with her words and melodies. Drawing on years living around the world, notably in Asia, and nurtured by musically-gifted parents like Rita Hosking & Sean Feder, Kora creates her very own style and power of music, wrestling with life and meaning with heart, wisdom, & creativity.
Reggie Harris has always been full of music & inspiration, but never more so than as he finishes his 7th decade on the planet.
Prepare to have your heart stolen by today's guest, Jaspar Lepak. Jaspar did not really get into music till post-college, but she burst into it full-bore, including producing 5 CDs in a very short time, 4 of which you won't find among the 5 releases that do show up on her site.
On the website of Vanessa Lively you'll see noted that she creates folk & world music that beautifully joins heartfelt lyrics with soulful vocals. This is true - deeply true - and time with Vanessa is a rich, deep, and also uplifting experience.
Music is deep in Bob Reid's genetics, both from his father's record store and his mother's performing. The gift was also nurtured in him by the folk music community around San Francisco, including folks like Melvina Reynolds and Faith Petric.
Andy Douglas was a judge for the 2020 Songs for Social Change, Volume 5, a product of the Renaissance Artists & Writers Association.
Judi Jaeger grew up in Canada, but moved to the USA decades ago and became a US citizen. Considering her early passion for and proficiency in music, it's surprising that she completely abandoned that side of her soul for about 25 years, while studying and working as a lawyer, and as a parent.
Aidan Quinn is half of Friction Farm, and together with Christine Stay (listen to her Nov 2020 interview) they make beautiful, fun, and inspirational folk-Americana-roots music.
Cici Artemisia is always swimming on the deep side of the pool, even as she enchants & delights. In addition to the 2 decades she performed as part of Bordertown, she discovered a calling to music related to her personal healing journey after sexual abuse memories emerged. Her voice & lyrics shine & captivate, and the music of her guitar & other instruments pluck heart strings & percolate the spirit.
Tricia Alexander's songs are Music Medicine. She is also a poet, a minister, a mentor, a healing artist, and, on top of that, she is a wonderful, vivacious, captivating storyteller. With a spirituality spanning all peoples and all lands, she experienced particular transformation through an encounter with Meher Baba.
Jonathan Foster's music has magic, melody and even some mirth. He's got a deep connection with the Earth, grown out his origins in the shadow of the Adirondacks of the Eastern US, now thriving in the Rockies of Northern California. His alter ego/day job is as a wetland ecologist, glimpses of which peek through his great folk-country-rock lyrics and sounds. I may even get to see him in person, performing in Trempealeau, Wisconsin July 27, 2021, at the Trempealeau Hotel.
Who do you know who speaks at least 3 languages, has lived in several countries, performed between Renaissance Fairs year-round for 10 years, writes & sings profoundly deep & moving songs, and can play the harp & the 12-string guitar simultaneously? Ariane Lydon and no one else (to my knowlege)! Living in the Midwest for a couple decades now, Ariane brings a world of beautiful music to our land.
Peter Phippen is best known, perhaps, as a master of the flute - actually many different types of flutes, including those of Native American origin. That is, in fact, what earned him a Grammy nomination back in 2010. But Peter is all about allmusic, so you'll also frequently encounter him rocking out on his bass and whatever other form of music and instrumentation the moment calls for. In particular, his ability to improvise soul-deep on his flutes is known to transport listeners young and old.
For about 10 years Richard Paul Thomas (or on FB) made music around Milwaukee, WI, as part of The Counts, The Polaras, Ron & The Continentals, The Gamblers, The Too Young to Know Anything about Pain & Suffering Singers
Rolly Brown delivers quality, whether it's his 4x-a-week on-line Curve Flattening Concerts, his guitar instruction, his
David and Jenny Heitler-Klevans have been doing music together as Two of a Kind for around 3 decades. Rooted mostly in the Folk-Americana genre, they have focused on children & family music, 9 albums of it, in addition to a CD for grown-ups. They've garnered 6 Parents' Choice and 3 Creative Child Magazine awards, and a lot more.
Marci Geller can be sweet, has a gift of poetry & melody, sings and writes beautifully, but most of all she weaves a web of magic and inclusion through her music, taking us on a journey of both depth and elevation.
Lou & Peter Berryman are known for their unstoppable humor & wordplay, and for their distinctive guitar & accordion instrumentation. Based in Madison, WI, they've churned out many hundreds of songs on topics large & small, staving off the weight of the world with terminal laughter syndrome. There's no one like them as you will know by browsing their Lou & Peter's Big Songbook.
Laura Goetz shares the Saturday Singalong at 6 pm CDT. She shares a wide assortment of group singing tunes, leading with her wonderful voice and accompanying herself on uke, banjo, piano, and even an occasional lip trumpet. Watch, listen, and sing along weekly via Facebook. Laura is a shy Upper Midwesterner with a musical gift created for a wide, but inobtrusive, audience!
Ellis Torku is SEIZE FIRE, bringing powerful, peace-oriented Hip-Hop music from Ghana, in West Africa, to the world. From his High Fire Empire Music Production Company he delivers music with meaning.
Erin Incoherent's music comes straight out of the punk-rock world, though it maybe has drifted also into the folk-punk genre. Whatever the name, whatever the genre, the music is beautiful, the lyrics are moving, and Erin is, herself, a vibrant, deep soul and wonderful songwriter. With songs that capture pain & dysfunction, but also insight & healing, Erin leads the way to a more conscious & compassionate world.
A visit to this program the last 2 months before COVID-19, with brief selections from the 2019 interviews with Susan Salidor, The Fairest and Best, Particle Kid (J.
Ryan Summers started making music with a garage band in Chippewa Falls, WI, moved into DJ-ing and producing rave-style music under the name Plastic Portal.
Chris Wilhelm's 5-year journey of healing & growth has birthed his seventh album, This Too Shall Pass, a message & inspiration perfect for the year of COVID-19. Chris' teenage years were a journey mainly through Metal and Punk, but then he was drawn powerfully by the musical inspiration of folk artists like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, John Prine, and Woody Guthrie on an acoustic voyage of transformation and insight. Having explored the music scene of Boston, then having toured widely and fervently up-and-down the East coast, Chris found a home for his soles and soul in Asheville, NC.
A sampler of the fine Song of the Soul guests in the fall of 2019, before COVID-19 quarantines. With guests east, west, and from the Heartland, we share glimpses of our visits with Phil Hoose, Susan Urban (of February Sky), Joel Landy, Will Fudeman, Carrie Newcomer, and Justin Jay Arnold. There's humor & heart-wrenching, politics & passions, and great music.
Regular Song of the Soul listeners know how much I love singer-songwriter/folk & music, and it was some of that sort of music that first attracted me to Lisa Wildman, but that only scratches the surface of the music that Lisa makes. As you'll hear today, classical music played exquisitely on her flute is deep in her bones, and we won't even be hearing from the country, zydeco, and opera music she does. Besides playing and singing with orchestras, her collaborations include performing with the folk music-oriented Group W, and the children's music-oriented with Peanut Butter Jellyfish. She was on Song of the Soul in 2010.
Josh White Jr on Facebook has a 5-star musical pedigree, having performed competently at the age of 4, continuing to delight audiences across the entire country for another 76 years (so far).
Born in the 80s, Jeffrey Dallet draws deep energy & inspiration from the folk music of earlier generations, and faithfully harnesses the folk movement, embellishing, transmuting, & evolving it in symbiosis with the genres of the past 50 years, all from the heights of Denver, Colorado. Jeffrey channels genuine passion & compassion through his songs, viewing the light & the dark with equal honesty.
Joyann Parker was raised singing in church, became a rocker along the way, has done her share of country music, but came home to her consuming passion for the blues only 4 or 5 years ago, and the world is so much richer for it. She represented Minnesota at the 2015 International Blues Competition in Memphis and was nominated in the Costello Rising Star category of the 2018 Blues Blast Magazine awards. Also follow her on Facebook.
Jesse Palidofsky turned to writing & performing music later in life in spite of an early passion for the music. Along the way, Jesse ran folk coffeehouses and did radio shows of multiple genres of music, widening his own tastes & proclivities to include jazz, classical, soul, & other types of music.
Tim Purcell had been around the musical block a number of times, all the way from his first band, American Apple, and including (but not limited to) Lou's Blues Revue, Perfect World, The Riley Hawkins Band, and The Mustangs. But his latest & greatest is a combination of young & old folks called Foxes and Fossils.
David Arn is a story-teller, or, better yet, a verbal story-painter who came to songwriting late in life, but in time to produce 3 CDs of his music by the age of 70. He self-describes as making music of the Folk Rock, Americana, and Soft Rock varieties, but a very special attribute of his productions are the videos that he has engaged to go with his songs, allowing free rein to artists & video producers to create the videos in reaction to and synergy with David's songs.
She's never just one (musical) thing. As the co-creator of the immensely popular group-singing songbook, Rise Up Singing, and its sequel, Rise Again, Annie Patterson has one foot securely rooted in the folk music world. Annie must have several feet, because she also has feet well-planted in diverse musical genres, like blues, swing, and jazz.
Christine Stay & Aiden Quinn are the modern-folk duo known as Friction Farm. Starting, both, from science-geek jobs, they followed their hearts from work they were very competent at into work that they love and do exquisitely. Based from their sustainable home near Greenville, South Carolina, they make music with deep lyrics, beautiful vocals, and sumptuous instrumentals.
Kristin Lems is insightful, determined, compassionate, and talented, and sees our world with eyes honed by the experience of living in Iran, Algeria, & Mongolia, the last 2 as a Fulbright scholar. She's founder of the National Women’s Music Festival in Champaign-Urbana (this year in Middleton, WI), and got Dr Demento's attention with her music, including the very clever Mammary Glands. Kristin is a professor of ESL/Bilingual Education at National Louis University with their flagship campus in Chicago.
John Vento self-describes as making Americana Classic Rock with Indie Folk Pop surprises, which you can find when he performs solo, with Nied's Hotel Band, or, in the past, with Xposure and Bmen. He has sometimes been called the chameleon of Pittsburgh's music scene.
Tom Kimmel spent more than 3 decades in Nashville sharing his songs with folks like Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Linda Ronstadt, Nanci Griffith, Dolly Parton, Shawn Colvin, Art Garfunkel, and many, many other well-known performers, and performing them himself. Tom's songs expose his heart and move the hearts of others, both though the words & music, combining his gifts as a songwriter, poet, speaker, & teacher.
Clare Norelle is all about healing & wholeness, and that quality pours through her music. Her voice & lyrics are soothing, dancing, flowing, & beautiful. Clare also enchants the world with things like community yoga & story-telling, in Madison, WI. Her latest release is Islands of Possible Things.
So much to love about Ash Devine - her songs, her singing, her humanitarian clowning, her Magic Penny instrument gifting, her Earth connection, her social activism, & much more. Combining indie-folk and Appalachian music influences with her Theater & Community Arts for Social Change studies, Ash is a captivating performer, breathing spirit & joy through her vocals and a dance of the soul through her instruments.
Johnsmith includes exactly the right mix of heart, wonder, & whimsy in the songs he writes, combined with a flawless voice and impeccable guitar. He has produced 8 solo CDs, was a Kerrville New Folk winner, & has decades experience performing all across the USA.
Each year there's a contest sponsored by the Renaissance Artists and Writers Association called Songs for Social Change, and today we have here the winner of last year's contest. Mary Lou Fulton rated number one out of many hundreds of submissions with her song Not Going Back. What makes it all the more remarkable is that she did it with the very first song she ever released! But it was but first in a healthy line of wonderful music, as she transitioned from telling stories through journalism and newspaper, to singing stories for the world. Mary Lou Fulton joins us from Los Angeles.
A tribute to John Prine, with 6 guests, some singing songs by John, others singing songs about and inspired by John, all paying tribute to a great, truly unique, country-folk singer who died this past April. Carsie Blanton, Laura Farley, and Johnsmith will be singing originals, while Sammie Purcell of Foxes and Fossils, Tom Pirozolli, and Joe Jencks will be covering John Prine songs. Great originals & great renditions, seeded by John Prine.
Peter Alsop's latest release is Camping With Dads, and it includes all the fun & profundity you expect from Peter, providing learning about all kinds of stuff, from racism to listening to violence to gorillas.
Shawn Gallaway is a minstrel of health, wholeness, hope, & love, a message and mission that opened its stride to cover more of the Earth with his anthem, I Choose Love. His music is soul-deep, a power conveyed clearly through his crystal vocals and heart-opening lyrics. Shawn is a long-time resident of Nashville emanating his Transformational Music across the country and world. He was a top-ten finalist in the 2017 Songs For Social Change contest featured by RAWA.net.
Amanda Udis-Kessler is a music-creation fountain whose recent project is QueerSacredMusic.com, 60-plus songs beginning with sacred music relative to LGBTQ concerns, but enriched by the spiritual experiences relative to the arrival of COVID-19 and the nationwide uprising against racism and other injustices. Amanda's theology is open, accepting, and rooted in a universal love, and is enriched by the training and talents of her Ph.D. in Sociology, her time in seminary, and her wide and deep lyrical and musical creativity. Raised as a secular Jew, her never-ending spiritual pilgrimage has included sojourns and enrichment with the UU, Quakers, UCC, Buddhism, Bahá'í, and much more.
A look at some of the finalists of the Songs for Social Change contest in 2019, artists with a variety of styles & themes, all about change for the better. With reggae, electronica, rock, & folk, 6 different artists share their various soulful songs, working for a better world, with first prize going to Mary Lou Fulton for Not Going Back.
Sparky Rucker was introduced to the music of the civil rights movement when his mother took him to his first march at the age of 14, but he was already steeped in the music of the era in the black Pentecostal church of his youth and the distinctive Appalachian culture of Eastern Tennessee. Sparky Rucker has woven together music, activism, history and culture for more than 5 decades, raising and inspiring spirits everywhere.
Joe Newberry has a wonderful voice, and writes tunes & lyrics to enrich that wonderful voice to the point of sublime. Writing music that tends toward old-timey, bluegrass, spirtuals, torch songs, & more beyond that, Joe's songs draw deeply on the Missouri of his youth and the North Carolina of his adulthood. Renowned for his clawhammer banjo playing, Joe has won multiple awards from the IBMA, and was a frequent performer on A Prairie Home Companion.
Though Rick Ruskin has a voice sometimes reminiscent of James Taylor, with all the enchantment that implies, and though he's got a lot of wonderful lyrics & tunes, the way that Rick most distinctively shines is through his magic on the guitar.
Leslie Evers has been singing and writing songs forever, but she waited decades to release them to the world. With her beautiful voice, lyrical skill, and trusty guitar and banjo, she casts magical-musical spells. Located on the folk-jazz continuum, Leslie has also performed for years with The Gryphon Carolers. Home is Palo Alto, CA, and she will soon release her first hymn!
Robinlee Garber started out from New York, explored other cities & states while also exploring careers in creating art, stage production, and clinical art therapy, but she found home in Chicago, where she also found found fulfillment in adding music performance to her art therapy work. Her musical passions are life-long, centering around folk, blues, jazz, and what she calls torch-folk, although she only began performing music professionally in the last 15 years or so.
Laura Farley, along with her husband, Jym, are High and Rising, a duo from La Crosse, Wisconsin, getting ready to release their first CD. For some years now they, and up to 4 other people, are known as the Merry Weathers, playing folk/Americana, including bluegrass, folk, country, and rockin music, with a major emphasis on original tunes and including some long-loved covers.
Larry Heagle is an Eau Claire-centric, Midwest-roaming musician with a specially in comedy stand-up, who just published a memoir, of sorts, loaded with all the kinds of comedy & quirky world-view he's famous for. It's called Not Really Sane, Not Really Sorry: Tales of an Itinerant Performer and you better get ahold of Larry if you want a copy - not Amazon or anyone else.
Remembering the Gems & Jewels of Summer 2019 shows, with Jerry Hui (Voices United), Jennifer Evans (Just Folk in Boston), Randall Adams (Wind, Waves, Dreams, & Music), Regla Garcia-Schmidt (Sweet Angel Warrior), John McCutcheon In Person!, Joe Iadanza (Long Island's Exceptional Common Man), Ben Reel (Ireland's Darkness & Light), and Steve Suffet (Old-Fashioned Folk Singer).
Song of the Soul broadcast retrospective of a simpler, less COVID-19, time, one year ago, in 2019, with Victoria Shoemaker (Bewitching), Kora Feder (Painting the Sky with Music), Peter Phippen (Living Music, Sacred Flute), Ira Levin of The Levins (Harmonizing With Lamed Vavniks, Hafiz, & The Gita), Sally Rogers (Happy 100th Birthday Pete Seeger), Pat Humphries of Emma's Revolution (Pete Seeger's Last Songs), Charlie King (Pete Seeger's Last Songs), and Annie Patterson (Pete Seeger's Last Songs).
When Tom Pirozzoli isn't making or playing folk music, you can pretty much find him painting in his New Hampshire studio. Having rambled widely over many continents, Tom has gathered lots of "grist for the mill" in his song writing. His fingers dance the guitar strings, his voice dances the tunes, and his heart dances touching, fun, and insightful lyrics into our lives. Be sure to catch his video of This Is What Love Is Like on Tom's Facebook page.
Kirk Mann weaves so much together - passion for the guitar, deeply spiritual lyrics & tunes, a seeking, listening soul, and healing work via Chinese Medicine. Find him on Facebook, on Reverbnation, and via his YouTube channel.
Jude Johnstone touches hearts & souls with her songs, whether sung by her or by the likes of Johnny Cash, Bonnie Raitt, Stevie Nicks, Bette Midler, or so many others. From Maine, to LA to Nashville, Jude has found an enthusiastic reception for her music, and memorable companions on the path. In particular, her songs like "Wounded Heart" and "Unchained" powerfully evoke the stirrings of grief, sadness, compassion, and recovery in listeners.
Deidre McCalla showed a flair for the limelight even when she was 7, so it was no surprise to find her performing folk music with her high school trio, Friendship, which brought them to the edge of local fame. A university theater degree got overridden by the comparative ease of a life as a performing musician, although Deidre later realized that a couple years at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music would shore up and deepen her musical skills.
The musical genius gene came to Rita Hosking from her mother, and Rita has passed it faithfully on to her daughter, Kora Feder. Rita grew up in rural Shasta County, California, and caught the music bug as a teen, playing washboard as part of The Farmerettes. With detours to Religious Studies and Cultural Anthropology in college, time teaching History to 8th graders, and raising two daughters, Rita came back to her musical passion to release her 1st album in 2005. Self-described as creating country-folk music, Rita has released 7 albums filled with captivating story-telling and place-rooted music.
Mark Mandeville & Raianne Richards make beautiful, deep, real music, delivered with rich vocals supported & enhanced by a variety of instruments. Locally known for their annual Massachusetts Walking Tour, Mark & Raianne previously performed as 2/3's of The Accident That Led Me To The World, but have long performed as a duo. If COVID-19 permits, they will be married this August.
Ksenia Mack is great writing and performing on her own, but is part of a quintuple threat with the Porch Party Mamas. Her songs and music are evocative, warm, & touching, guiding the listener through complex landscapes & emotions, always in the company of beauty. The Porch Party Mamas are a Boston, MA, area group of women with deep talents and a great combined voice.
Laura Marie brings to her music exactly the talents & inspirations that make for exquisite, soul-moving, life-affirming, path-changing songs. With the honesty, vulnerability, clarity, and power of a person who has experienced daunting adversity, faced it squarely, and triumphed over the injuries, Laura Marie perfectly demonstrates how to make beautiful music, shining with soul.
Andi Renfree stormed into Nashville, scoring almost immediately with one of her songs recorded by Chris LeDoux. She's collaborated with a number of songwriter/performers, and has performed with several groups, for a number of years as one-third of 2-Bit Palomino, but now with her husband as The Renfrees. Andi touches hearts with her poetry & music of the soul.
Spook Handy saw 2 images in the mirror, did not choose the actuarial path, and it has made all the difference. Taking the stage with Pete Seeger more than 50 times didn't hurt his street cred, but mostly his upbeat, folky, deep and relatable songs, along with Spook's poise and talent make him a pleasure and a joy to listen to and sing along with. When not solo, catch him with The Seed Planters, though no longer with Things Between (fka Sofa Kingdom).
There is a power & depth, a vibrant, evocative rootedness in the music of Claudia Schmidt. Over the 24 recordings Claudia has created has run the reflection of the earth & water of the Midwest, but also the freedom & inspiration of the wind & the stars above our entire planet. With lyrics, music, and voice to charm us all, Claudia channels enthusiasm, inspiration, & healing.
Donna Lynn Caskey is a Banjo Gal on Facebook and in person. From a musical family, headed to art studies, she got hijacked by a banjo, and pays for her music addition by her job as a social worker. She appeared on the Banjo Babes 2015 Calendar, and on other years as well. A self-proclaimed recovering perfectionist, Donna releases her music with a deep heart, a stirring voice, and an open spirit. She calls Ventura, CA, home.
Kerry Patrick Clark in no way claims to be a perfect guy, but he aims his music to inspire the world in that direction. His folk-singer/songwriter pedigre is deep & long, and it overlaps seamlessly with the spirituality of his very part-time day job as Director of Contemporary Music at the Maumee United Methodist Church. His home stomping grounds are the Toledo region of Ohio.
Terry Kitchen has been making fine folk music since 1991, mostly solo, after his initial career as a rock star with Loose Ties. Terry's songs mostly emerge from the deep, introspective places, accompanied by beautiful acoustic guitar work. Terry hasn't always been Terry, because once he was Max, as you'll hear during our conversation. Occasionally you'll find him on stage with other folks, like the wonderful Mara Levine, but today he joins us solo, from Boston.
A collage of song & interview from first quarter 2019! Some of the rich tapestry of Song of the Soul leading up to 2019's spring weather, from the guests who graced our airwaves at that time, and which can hopefully inspire us through our own determined progress out of winter. Guests snapshots include: Stuart Stotts, Wendy Martin, Lou & Peter Berryman, Ali Handal, Xanthe Alexis, Katy Vernon, & Jennifer Levenhagen.
Terry Holder came to her career as a musician & performer relatively late in life, but the pay-off is well worth the wait. She writes songs of great emotional depth and they come to life through her evocative voice and beautiful instrumentation. She’s well and widely-loved, including at the Kerrville Festival in Texas where she has been selected 4 times as a Kerrville New Folk Finalist.
Patrice Webb brings music flavored with folk, swing, country, & the blues, marinaded in sunshine with a side of 4-footed critters. Influenced by music from pre-rock USA, Patrice's music is western in it's heart, while her voice & words are heavenly & Earthy all at once. At home in Sandpoint, Idaho, or at music festivals she'll teach you Western Swing Guitar, Finger Style Blues, as well as the tunes of the 1920s and 30s.
Richard Wiegel has spent a full lifetime earning a living through making music, which might be the dream, but seldom the actuality of the dreams of a small-town boy. Roots rock is his central thing, although sometimes his style of music might be called Americana, and he can definitely throw in a ragtime and a blues and all kinds of country. Though he's often a solo act, a fair amount of his music was recorded with a group called The Midwesterners. He's a talented guy, been with a couple dozen bands, out-lived them all!
Eljuri writes & performs music from a rich & diverse palette of musical & cultural influences. Born in Equador of a Lebanese pianist-composer mother & a Spanish actor father, and having grown up in Manhattan, NY, her music naturally draws on & fuses numerous styles & genres, powered by her evocative, mostly Spanish, lyrics & powerful guitar. Eljuri was the winner of the 2018 Songs for Social Change competition.
A deep dish of appetizing Blues from the Rev. Robert B. Jones, Sr. He's made music and shared the stage with many of the greats, like B.B. King, because he's a gifted musician, writer & storyteller. Robert also shares & writes many varieties of Americana music, like that which he performs with Matt Watroba and others. Also important is Robert's role as pastor of the Sweet Kingdom Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit.
Dean Stevens writes & shares the music of compassion & connection. Raised in Costa Rica, living in Boston, Dean's life is overflowingly rich with international & local roots & work. Check out his fairer-than-fair-trade coffee from El Salvador, visit the Community Church of Boston where he does music & administrative work, or travel with him to Central America, you'll be singing joyfully all the way.
Kitty Donohoe is of Irish extraction, genetically, and she sometimes writes & plays very Irish-sounding songs, including the Irish instruments she plays, but she is deeply & inspirationally Americana, touching the heart & soul with evocative tunes & magical lyrics. One of the founding members of The Yellow Room Gang, Kitty plays & has played in numerous variations on personel & style, including as part of Pub Domain and The Biddies.
Dean Stevens brought together recordings of Christmas-related songs which are well out of the US mainstream. He calls the collection Holiday Songs you Won’t Hear at the Mall, and they range from funny to serious, some are in Spanish, and many call to a deeper look at values and stories we should really be living out.
Sigrid Christiansen weaves a mystical spell with her music. Self-described on CDBaby as 'free folk' music, her voice, music, & lyrics are charming & enchanting. Animals, dreams, and whimsy feed her music, which she shares solo and with others, like the Taller Than They Appear quartet. For years she has produced the Stone House Concert Series.
Particle Kid (J. Micah Nelson) is a fountain of insight, creativity, vision, & inspiration - through music. The recipient of a wondrous musical muse passed from his father, Willie Nelson, and through his older brother, Lukas Nelson, Micah magically synthesizes light, sound, thought, & melody into songs to grow the soul. Micah is closely rooted in the sustainable Earth at the same he soars high in the sky, a creator of Window Rock.
Music by 6 of the top 13 finalists of the 2018 Songs of Social Change contest, rich in world-changing energy and genres, with influences from Canada, Equador, Japan, New Mexico, and everywhere. December 1, 2019 is deadline for the this year's contest.. Songs of Social Change is a project of the Renaissance Artists and Writers Association (RAWA.net), led by Dada Veda, part of Ananda Marga.
Susan Salidor is a voice you will not forget. Starting in musical theater, progressing through activist music with Voices, having co-hosted a show on WLUM-FM, at Loyola, and with decades of enriching young souls and bodies as a music specialists at schools in the Chicago area, Susan makes beautiful, meaningful, & memorable music.
Abraham Jam is the confluence of David LaMotte, Billy Jonas, & Dawud Wharnsby, channeling their gifts together for an honest & resplendent harmony. This is what happens when a Muslim, a Jew, & a Christian walk into a concert hall, arm-in-arm, as brothers.
Justin Jay Arnold is himself and nobody else, happy to wrestle with the full range of beliefs, heading toward preacher-hood complete with his tattoos, scraggly beard, & shaved head, and making his own music of whatever type. With a father who played in the Feather River Canyon Band, and with influences like CCR, Waylon Jennings, & Elvis, Justin's gravelly, open-hearted vocals and lyrics swim on the deep side with no saccharine taste at all. Who else sings of choosing between a guitar and a bullet to his head? Find his 3 albums to-date on CDBaby.
With her music, Carrie Newcomer shines light, raises up hope, and brings us home to that perfect center in our hearts, the place where the Divine and our very best both reside.With 3 new CDs and 3 years additional experience since our last visit, we're overdue to have her back. Carrie Newcomer lives in south-central Indiana, and has released a total of 18 CDs; Carrie periodically shares the stage with writer & profound thinker, Parker Palmer, in a collaboration called The Growing Edge.
Joel Landy (or on Facebook) is a mild-mannered NYC HS teacher by day, but after hours he dons his Treason t-shirt and performs his original and parody songs around the city and beyond. You can hear & see much of Joel's music on Joel's YouTube Channel, and you can catch him at NY City's "premiere progressive venue", People's Voice Cafe.
A taste of Farm Aid 2019, the work & music, of the event & the organization. We have 2 amazing musicians from the 18 acts from this year's mainstage: Particle Kid (Micah Nelson, Willie's youngest son) and Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, (Willie's 2nd youngest son), joined by Jennifer Lahy, Communication Director of Farm Aid's staff. Find how to watch Farm Aid 2019 live. Find more about Micah, including his art, on his personal website, and about his Hawaii-based Farm Aid-ish non-profit, Mahi'ai Music & Food Festival, and the Hawai'i Farmers Union United.
Susan Urban is half of February Sky, along with Phil Cooper, a duo originally from the Chicago area now well-installed in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They play a wide range of traditional, modern, and original folk and Celtic tunes, on guitars, banjos, citterns, dulcimers, and other instruments. Susan's songs are full of reality-based fictional story-telling, conveying important meaning and values at the heart of our lives.
Though he's of & lives in South Armagh, Ireland, the music of Ben Reel is variously described as Rock/Americana, Roots Rock, Alternative Folk, Adult Alternative Pop/Rock and even Jazz Pop. Thing is, he's great. Though Irish through-and-through, he's influenced by musicians all over, like Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Neil Young, Rob Orbison, U2, & many more. Having grown up in the middle of "the troubles" in Ireland, Ben is deeply committed to a better country & a better world.
Mild-mannered, big-hearted Joel Pace finds expression for his wide-ranging passions and intellect both in the English Dept at UW-EC and in writing and performing as part of Irie Sol, with its authentic Jamaican chat/DJing and soaring, soulful melodies backed by blazing bebop horns, wailing guitar, and tight drum and bass, and with Eggplant Heroes, who blend multi-part harmonies with guitar, trumpet, violin, mandolin, and bass, to present an eclectic mix of originals, literary adaptations, mountain gospel, and folk.
Ruth Pelham has decades of experience with People's Music Network and in helping found Children's Music Network, and has 4 decades of using music to connect the people of Albany, NY, and the world, with her non-profit, MusicMobile.org.
Diane Patterson takes us on an odyssey of spirit-based music, close to the Earth. From moon lodge to addiction healing to holy rains to long roads, Diane sings evocatively of the power to change and be changed.
Randall Adams has a passion for and connection to the the sacred Earth, especially the slice of heaven known as Lake Superior. From a very talented musical family and devoted to music from an early age, Randall spent years with music as his side job, doing chiropractic in the day. With retirement came his opportunity to flesh out his folk-ish tastes & talents, leading to the release of his CD West Wind.
Jennifer Evans is the real folk deal. Covering traditional folk songs & adding songs composed by her brother, Griff Evans, Jennifer finger picks the tender chords of your heart. With decades of experience, she is late to emerge from the shadow of her day job to warm our souls with real, authentic, & skillful songs of the human condition.
Pat Humphries of Emma's Revolution was at Pete Seeger's bedside as he died, singing to him. Pat and Sandy O of Emma's Revolution, along with Sally Rogers, Charlie King, Annie Patterson, and Peter Blood, join in the post-intermission part of a concert to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pete Seeger's birth, held April 27th in Northampton, MA, at the Unitarian Society, as a benefit for Climate Action Now MA, part of a wealth of events for the 100th anniversary.
1st part of a concert to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Pete Seeger's birth, held April 27th in Northampton, MA, at the Unitarian Society, as a benefit for Climate Action Now MA, part of a wealth of events for the 100th anniversary. This concert includes performances by Emma's Revolution, Sally Rogers, Charlie King, Annie Patterson, and Peter Blood.
Charlie Parr is a singer/songwriter dynamo, touring constantly & widely, sharing his down-home music of the American country blues genres. For a person who battles constantly with depression, his music is powerfully enlivening, played on either his 12-string or resonator guitars, or sometimes on his banjo. A life-long Minnesotan, Duluth is his occasional refuge from the road.
Part 3 of musicians who performed with & whose music was grown by Pete Seeger. We'll end with his sister, Peggy Seeger, after visits with & music from Ruth Pelham of Music Mobile Online, DC Cultural Warrior & Singer Luci Murphy, and Jane Sapp, founder of the Black Belt Folk Roots Festival, and much, much, more. Pete's influence on music is alive and thriving in so many places!
More fruits of the musical seeds planted by Pete Seeger over his 94 years, with guests like Reggie Harris, Annie Patterson & Peter Blood, Peter Alsop, and Sarah Pirtle (and several more folks in 2 weeks!). 3 weeks of Pete Seeger stories and music influenced by him!
Victoria Shoemaker is a multi-instrumentalist with a deep affinity & talent for the flute. Classically trained, but having discovered her deep passion in improvisational flute, and having been mentored by Eau Claire’s grammy-nominated flute artist, Peter Phippen, Victoria’s gifts are impressive and diverse. She rocks, folks, classicals & can definitely spin ethereal music of the spheres. Plus she’s been twice nominated for the People’s Choice Award for Best Music Teacher in NW Wisconsin. All this and she is still a few years away from 30. Also, catch her onstage with Peter Phippen in the mini rock duo Virginia Steel.
Sarah Morris is so much and so good, a sweet, kind voice of power in a woman with a spine of steel and a gift for words that make addressing Mansplaining a joy for all. With 4 CDs and her Toilet Tunes series, she's prolific, profound, and pro-fun.
Katy Vernon is a rare combination of deep, joyful, heart-rending, creative, and spritely. Wielding her trusty ukulele and backed up by a rich assortment of instruments, her voice, tunes, & lyrics will embed themselves in your heart. Born & raised in England, Katy landed in Minnesota in 1993, and has produced 3 CDs over the past 10 years. Just recently she performed her 4th Toilet Tune with Sarah Morris.
Mother Banjo (Ellen Stanley) is wonderful. In addition to her musical career, she is executive director of the Minnesota Music Coalition, and does a weekly show on station KFAI called Womenfolk. She writes all kinds of great music, with a special gift for creating new & impeccable gospel songs. She's shared the stage with many folks, among them Robert Bly and Tracy Grammar, and is coming near the end of fund-raising for her 5th album with a Kickstarter Campaign.
The music of Jennifer Levenhagen stirs deep currents and invites soul rejuvenation. While she’s shared her guitar, piano, violin, and exquisite voice in many settings, including playing bluegrass music, her current calling is to the meditative, rooting, flowing end of the spectrum, as evidenced by her recent release of piano improvisations, Another Sea, and her growing work in what she calls Listening Rooms, a place for personal deepening, reflection, and settling.
Let Elizabeth Erin Kemler ride into your heart with her passionate songs related to The Weight of Mortal Skin. Elizabeth champions an array of organizations like Kids for Peace, Songs for a Cause, Hope Sings, and many others, while single parenting her son. The skin may be mortal, but not so the music.
Xanthe Alexis is a captivating and enchanting musician from Colorado Springs who so clearly captures power, meaning and charm through her music. She self-describes her music as sepia-toned Americana, and while I don’t see it exactly that way, there is something reflective and deep that the listener will receive from her music, She performed for many years as part of The Hopeful Heroines including on their album, Goddamn Mess (Live), and just returned from the annual Folk Alliance International session in Montreal.
Lena Elizabeth writes and sings music straight from the heart, using her songs to transform experiences like depression, crippling anxiety, & an eating disorder into health and wholeness. While clearly growing from folk-music infused ground, she has a blues-rooted voice, and the combination of these & other influences is magical. Check out her transformation of the Everly Brothers' song, Bye, Bye, Love, so that it sounds like the lyrics, with Sarah Morris and her Toilet Tunes.
Wendy Martin is part country, folk, Americana, and rock, but she is completely a golden throat and a golden heart. She wrote her first song, a really viable song complete with harmonies & instrumentation, at age 5, so it's a great pity that shyness and care for her children and family delayed the release of her musical gifts to the world by decades. She's here now, a great reason to be thankful for her voice, lyrics, & stories.
Stuart Stotts is a powerful singer/songwriter, storyteller, & writer. Although he's made a living for around 30 years focusing mostly on youth & schools, many of his most popular and requested songs are targeted at grown-up audiences. Present for the founding of the Children's Music Network, Stuart also played for a stretch as part of the social change rock group, Tongue N Groove.
David Van Dyke is deeply passionate about the music he writes & plays, even more so than the science he teaches to middle school students. Obsessive about chord progressions, authors, and Evel Knievel, his songs reverberate with the rich & varied inputs of his passions. David sometimes performs solo, sometimes with his father as The Backsliders, and sometimes with the full band, The Van Dyke Revue.
A retrospective of many, but not all, of the Minnesota-based Song of the Soul guests of 2018. There's gospel, folk/Americana, country, blues, rock, and more from: Mother Banjo (Ellen Stanley), Sarah Morris, Charlie Parr, Annie Fitzgerald, Braden Canfield, Joyann Parker, Kristin Lems. Click on the date to listen to the full interview.
For great folk music north-of-the-border, Dawud Wharnsby is the one. Homeboy of Kitchener, Ontario, with roots also in Syria and Pakistan, Dawud weaves nature, vulnerability, faith, truth, and universality into song, integrally linked to the Islamic path he walks. Occasionally he performs as part of the Abraham Jam, a Jewish-Christian-Muslim collaboration trio.
Laura Joy won the Songwriter Contest at the Great River Folk Fest 2017, and it's no mystery why. The young Phoenix-to-Chicago transplant has talent far beyond her actual miles. And what's more, "Laura Joy has been known to quell dark, angry bars full of ornery old Irishmen".
Barb Tilsen became a devotee of folk music in the early '60s, and has spent a life mixing music, activism, and enrichment of children. Her circles of music & work have included the People's Music Network, the Midwest People's Music Network, and the Children's Music Network (CMN) - watch the video of Let The World Be Well - and she was the founder/early curator of the CMN Song Library.
Vicky Emerson touches the heart with Americana-rooted music with country tinges telling stories of relationship & connection. A mentor in the Minnesota Music Coalition and a touring partner of Sarah Morris as The Home Fires, Vicky has lived on both coasts and is now happily at home in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Launa Schweizer is lead voice & writer for New Yeller, based in Gowanus, Brooklyn, NY, dazzling musically through indie pop, prog rock, folk-rock, bluesy and jamband sounds. Previously with Bliss Point, Launa's gift with words & people is exercised in her day-job teaching English/humanities to middle schoolers at Brooklyn Heights Montessori School. Find New Yeller on Bandcamp, Reverbnation, Facebook, CDBaby, and more. Contact Bill Lienhard.
Unfortunately, Tracy Newman has far less renown for her music than her other work, but that's not so surprising given her amazing success as a writer for TV shows like Cheers and Ellen, for which she received an Emmy. Tracy was also a founder of The Groundlings, effectively the farm team for SNL. Her music can be funny and moving, whether for adults (TracyNewman.com) or for kids (RunAlongHome.com).
Mary Bue’s music has reverberations of all the rich and wonderful things she’s done and places she’s lived. Sure, she’s an Indie musician and yoga studio owner, but she also was a psychology major, a grunge rock devotee, and she’s a sumptuous pianist, plays hot licks on her electric guitar, is a vegan nature-lover, and is a rolling stone gathering little moss. Find her virtually on Facebook as MaryBueMusic and physically (currently) in the Twin Cities of Minnesota.
Jason Horowitz of The Whiskey Farm penned the tune that beat out 100's of competitors to win the Songs for Social Change 2017 contest. Weekdays he's mild-mannered child psychologist Dr. Horowitz, but on stage he and the other musicians of The Whiskey Farm exert superpowers of joy, healing, & transformation through Americana music flavored with country, rock, & bluegrass highlights.
Jean Rohe has created an alternate (and much better) National Anthem: Arise! Arise! and she shares the songs from the US, Cuba, Brazil, & Republic of Georgia that got her there. She'll share much more of her own music on her next Song of the Soul visit.
Amanda Udis-Kessler is part of EverySoul, and their music has a message, often a counterpoint to narrow, doctrinaire, theology and thought. Having explored the highways & byways of the religious & spiritual world, Amanda identifies as Unitarian-Universalist, appreciating diverse points of view, but strongly rooting in love & hope. Her song, The Difference, was a finalist in the Songs for Social Change 2017 of RAWA.org. She is Director of Assessment and Program Review at Colorado College.
Dada Veda uses a couple different taglines. One is Meditation, Music and Social Vision, and the other is Eastern Mysticism meets folk, country, and world music. He is a monk at the Ananda Liina Spiritual Eco-Community in Urbana, Illinois, where he teaches meditation and promotes the activism of his community through music. He is central in the work of RAWA (Renaissance Artists & Writers Association) and their Songs for Social Change contest, and broadcasts music on-line via RAWAradio.com.
Jan Nigro has been growing healthy kids for 30 years with his musical group and project called Vitamin L. If you're daunted by their intention to produce positive character development through music, think again, because you'll experience songs that are beautiful, fun, & inspirational. Jan lives in Ithaca, NY, and comes from a very musical family, including a jazz-oriented dad, classical-focused mother, plus his immensely talented sister, Laura Nyro. Spend an hour and walk a mile with Jan Nigro & Vitamin L.
Lisa Ann Wright (or on Facebook) makes compassionate, thoughtful, creative music, even as she performs as one of the Snarky Sisterz with Diana Quinn. Her song, My Daily Bread, was included in the Songs For Social Change top 10 by RAWA.
Listen to Nici Peper and you'll know why she won the title of Minneapolis's most authentic artist at the Wholly Guacamole contest. Whether performing solo, as part of Firefly, with The Big Smooch, or in other configurations, Nici radiates. Titles like indie, Americana, folk, etc, do not capture the reality of this love-based, Lutheran-raised, intense and deep woman who delights in performing in rowdy dive bars.
Jan Krist and Jim Bizer make music that is fun, profound, quirky, insightful, and moving. As a duo their creative name is Jan Krist & Jim Bizer, but they also perform in a number of other groups & configurations, with Diamonds in the Rust, The Yellow Room Gang, Floyd King & The Bushwackers, and more.
The mission of Ananda Marga is self-realization & service to humanity, and one of the ways they do this is the work of RAWA (Renaissance Artists and Writers Association). They hold an annual contest of Songs for Social Change and today we look at the fruits of their 2017 submissions & CD with Dada Veda who oversees the contest.
Encinitas is home to Ashley Mazanec whose passion for earthcare merits her the title of "A Voice for Sustainability". Living in a tiny house on an urban post-organic farm, attending San Diego 350 activities for fun, passionate about water protectors - this only scratches the surface. She runs, yogas, and surfs - and wait 'til you hear her sing in a perfect marriage of art and activism! Ashley has toured with Inspired Flight and currently performs with The Altruists and solo.
David Tamulevich's life is folk music, in various configurations. He's been performing for more than 40 years with Michael Hough as Mustard's Retreat, been writing songs and performing with a group called The Yellow Room Gang for about 12 years and, on top of that he puts in a full week plus overtime as booking agent & manager services as Tamulevich Artist Management.
Jan Krist creates stunning songs of the human condition, sometimes with deep pathos, sometimes with a wry eye, always with superb lyrics and voice. She often takes the stage solo, but also commonly with Jim Bizer, and sometimes with the Yellow Room Gang.
Braden Canfield loves inner exploration & conveying the power of the experience through his music. He pays attention to the details and the transformation. While after-hours he's a singer/songwriter, in the light of day his joy is the good he can do as a counselor in the Indian Education department of the Minneapolis School System.
Annie Fitzgerald is a beautiful voice & songwriter from among the riches of the Twin Cities of MN. Her songs are deeply-rooted and high-flying, centered on connection, relationships, belonging, and home. Back to the Midwest after 10 years in Brooklyn, NY, Annie is releasing her new CD, You & Me & the Sun, on June 1st, 2018. See a fun video of her 'Toilet Tune' with Sarah Morris.
Collectively, Kai Ulrica & Nikk Wolfe are Wolves At The Door. Their collective music combines Nikk's lyrics and musical framework with Kai's melodies and arrangements. With a frequent strong rock edge, Nikk is often tugged toward blues and slide guitar, while Kai's tendency is harmonies, like when she performs as part of RavenWolf or Girl Band.
By day Daniel Zerr is a mild-mannered Natural Resource Educator with the UW Extension here in Eau Claire, but other times Dan makes music in a variety of configurations, including his solo act. One of his common bass & vocals gigs is with Eggplant Heroes, and you will find him mixing other strange incredients, hence his 2014 release, Guacamole, Macaroni and Cheese.
Maria Dunn is a passionate and inspired storyteller and songwriter with a voice to charm us all. Born in Scotland but having lived almost all of her life near Edmonton, Alberta, Maria combines old world music and roots with Canadian life and people to produce beautiful, moving music.
Cody Diekhoff is Chicago Farmer, a consummate story-teller combined with heartfelt tunes & evocative voice. Coming of age when punk/grunge rock was the alternative thing, he got hooked on an alternative to the alternative by Hank Williams, leading to a kind of alt-country/folk/Americana style all his own. Cody is from a farming family in small-town Illinois, did good time in Chicago, and has settled in between with his wife, the artist creator of Twice Upon A String who makes Upcycled Instrument String Jewelry.
Gem Andrews is born & raised in Northeast England, around Liverpool, so it was a bit of a surprise to find that the beautiful music she makes owes much to Americana and Alt-country influences. All the more since she's spent the last few years in Berlin, Germany. Honesty, vulnerability, and twang come powerfully through Gem's music.
The Minnesota Music Coalition is a statewide network of artists, industry professionals and music supporters who care about creating and sustaining a vibrant popular music community. Ellen Stanley, aka Mother Banjo, is their executive director and shares samples of the wonderful work & music across genres from the coalition.
Mindy Dillard is so many things, besides being an enchanting singer/songwriter. She's a Musical Alchemist, Body Image Activist, and sometimes she's Princess Fearless. And that's just a start. She created a one-woman folk rock opera called How to Survive a Poison Apple, combining mythological scholarship and soul-deep whimsy. She operates out of Salt Lake City, Utah.
A revisit to 6 powerful performers from the end of 2017, sampling some of the musical styles we heard, including kirtan, pop, folk, rap/hip-hop, and country, and you'll encounter stories and songs from folk like Heidi Kalyani in Nova Scotia, Laura Joy in Chicago, Jen Hazen in Eau Claire instead of prison, Alex Mead in Buffalo, NY, Dawud Wharnsby in Kitchener, Ontario, and Elizabeth Erin Kemler, with a cowgirl heart in New York. Click on their names to listen to the full interviews.
A Song of the Soul collage from mid-2017 full of folkies, young & old, with tributes to Pete Seeger by Charlie King and Pete's sister, Peggy Seeger, a Quaker ballad by Paul Tinkerhess, a sing-along song with Peter & Annie, Anishinabe-rooted music with Bill Miller, and an heartful journey across America in song with Robinson & Rohe.
A rich sampling of the wonderful songs & guests of the first half of 2017, including Radmilla Cody, Irfan Ali Taj, Ashley Mazanec, Nici Peper, Billy Jonas, and Jean Rohe. An incredibly rich potluck of musical dishes!
Erika Kulnys is out to change the world, sometimes by tackling the "big issues", but also by inspiring the listener to heal themselves and therefore get out of the way of change. Operating from Nova Scotia, and with an enchanting voice, piercing lyrics, and great instrumentation, Erika takes the heart and soul flying into a better future.
Sarah Vos is a founder and lead vocalist of Dead Horses. With poise, depth, and beauty, she and the band take listeners on a sensuous and soulful glide through layers of experience and meaning. With language that is evocative and comforting, Sarah welcomes you into a piece of heaven. They appeared at the Great River Folk Festival in LaCrosse, WI, August 27, 2016.
Manifestive: The Holiday Album is a fund-raising gift to The Community Table from a generous flock of musicians in the Chippewa Valley of Wisconsin. Masterminded and led by Anastasia Vishnevsky and Danno, the songs include work by 12 other musicians.
Idris Phillips has been making superb music with wonderful artists for close to 40 years, and finally he's released his first CD, Star By Moon, this one emphasizing his folk roots, but promising his jazz, blues, and other styles in future recordings. His guitar & keyboards are magic, and his lyrics triple-deep, in the listener's ear, in Idris' personal experience, & in the mystical truths they name.
Anastasia Vishnevsky shares her Buddhist soul locally as Manifest Eau Claire and as part of RavenWolf (with Kai Ulrica). Stasia does alchemy, mixing pain, errors, injury, blessings, & vision into golden music. Her CDs Trigger and She are planned for release in 2018, but you can see & hear her music on Bandcamp.
Jim Page has been a fixture of Seattle's folk music scene since the early 1970's, including his successful campaign to legalize street performing through the city in 1974, and as one of the founder of the Pike Market Performers Guild, and their Busker Festival. In addition to strong folk roots, Jim has spent years in Ireland, and he's produced 23 records, the latest being A Hand Full of Songs.
Alex Mead isMy Rap Name Is Alex, and he makes world-healing rap/hip-hop music in Buffalo, NY. A year-round bicyclist in a snowy land, a member of Bloodthirsty Vegans, and a reformed computer programmer, Alex combines tech savy with peace-justice-environmental passions to create absorbing music & videos. Subscribe to his YouTube channel here.
Larry Long is the kind of great musician who brings musicians together, hence his collaborations known as the American Roots Revue. Studs Terkel called Larry America's Troubadour. With flavors of folk, soul, blues, rock, and Native American music, and as a deeply passionate activist, Larry helps transport hearts and create programs like Elders' Wisdom Children's Song. Larry & the American Roots Revue will be performing on Weds, July 6, 2016, in St Joseph, MN, at the annual Friends General Conference Gathering.
Jen Hazen has deep honesty and an awesome laugh, and both come through in the way she lights up the stage as part of the many constellations of music she occupies: Jenny & the Lost Boys, Jenny & the Jets, Girl Band, Milk & Whiskey, and Weapons of Brass Destruction, among others. In Jen's blog, you can learn more about Jen and her Music Heals recovery work with music at Arbor Place (and get the CD too).
Weekdays, Jim Phillips is a mild-mannered Chemistry prof at UW-EC, but after hours to transforms into a singer/songwriter, well-favored bass guitarist who has found a reborn calling to music after dramatic changes in his life.
Jeff White wants musical revolutions constantly, and some non-musical revolutioning too. His style, self-dubbed, is Alt Country and Western Folk, but that's the tip of the iceberg. He's toured in 4 countries, recorded with Greg Brown, and opened for a Bernie Sanders rally, and he hosts a weekly open mic gathering for musicians 7 pm on Tuesdays at the Tomahawk Room in Chippewa Falls, WI.
David LaMotte is rich in music, and bountiful in living out what he sings about. With 12 recordings, 3 books, founding credits for Abraham Jam and a Rotary World Peace Fellowship, there is so much to rhapsodize about. Situated in Black Mountain, North Carolina, David has voice, lyrics, & guitar to charm you deeper.
Tash Terry is half of Indigie Femme, a confluence of two powerful, spiritually-rooted, women of native tribes of the global north and south. Tash is from the Dine/Navajo Nation, roots she draws on to express identity, love, connection, gratitude, & joy.
Art and music suffuse the work & play of Heidi Kalyani. Her musical collaborations are wide-ranging, including Turko-Balkan music with ORO! Orkestra, kirtan with Blue Lotus Trio and her Heart Wide Open Project, and Indonesian music as part of the Mindful Flower Gamelan. Heidi is Canadian, occupying a small town called Wolfville in Nova Scotia.
Billy Jonas is more fun and spiritual depth than you can hardly imagine. Sometimes described as doing neo-tribal hootenanny, industrial re-percussion, and soul-spelunking, he started as part of the Oberlin College Big Bang Theory performance art collective, was part of The Billys, sometimes shares as part of the Abraham Jam, and is at the core of the Billy Jonas Band.
Douglas Wood has produced at least 8 CDs & is author of Old Turtle and at least 31 other books, often on themes of deep connection & respect for the Earth. These passions also guide his work as a wilderness guide. In addition to his solo music, he performs as part of the Wild Spirit Band.
A self-proclaimed "Budd Lite" (as in Buddhism), Catholic-raised, Americana musician, Joe Fahey lives the questions through his music. Today the questions include life & death, but there are no definitive answers on tap here, just experiences, feelings, & some whimsy, from this Twin Cities-based artist.
Mandy Breeze and Doug Kelly take traditional folk tunes, mostly, and transform them into vibrant, living stories and culture. With rich, beautiful vocals and creative, engaging instrumentals, you'll discover a love for traditional songs with modern impact.
Liam Robinson & Jean Rohe largely birthed their Hunger EP at the Crosshatch Center for Art & Ecology in Bellaire, Michigan, and a creative threshold was crossed into the duo called Robinson & Rohe. Their collaboration is a crucible for refining the American experience from many vantage points and creating a musical edifice of powerful lyrics, evocative harmonies, and consummate skill.
Bill Miller is a 3-time Grammy Awards winner, a Mohican Indian from Northern Wisconsin, and a Nashville-based singer-songwritter of incredible & diverse musical talents. He'll be the headliner at LaCrosse, WI's Great River Folk Festival Sunday afternoon concert, August 27, 2017.
Annie Patterson & Peter Blood support hope & change through their world-famous group singing books, Rise Up Singing and Rise Again. For close to 40 years they have been nurturing & leading group singing. Peter was editor for Pete Seeger's autobiography, Where Have all the Flowers Gone, and Annie performs in multiple configurations, including with Girls From Mars.
Juliana MacDowell is sure that she was making music before she ever saw the light of day, and her music will make you believe it. A soul-deep voice and wide-open heart, you'll want her for your new best friend, singing in your ear every day.
In the hours when Paul Tinkerhess is not repairing Birkenstock footwear for the people of Ann Arbor, he finds other ways to nurture his town - by organizing the Water Hill Music Fest, by keeping winter sidewalks walkable with Snow Buddy, and by sharing his banjo-playing and song-writing talents generously in the cause of community. A CD of the live music from this interview will be available for sale at NorthernSpiritRadio.org, the only current source of Paul's music!
An old friend of Northern Spirit Radio, Charlie King, returns for the first time in nine years. Join us as this talented troubador shares his songs, stories, and trenchant wit with us and our listeners on Song of the Soul, tales from becoming a concientious objector as a Roman Catholic to being told by Pete Seeger to write a Woody Guthrie song.
Pete Seeger planted seeds of music & change everywhere he went, and some of that harvest is shared today (& next week) by a visit with Leda Schubert, author of Listen: How Pete Seeger Got America Singing (and also The Princess of Borscht), and musician friends of Pete's, Joe Jencks, Charlie King, and Pat Lamanna (and several more folks next week!). Pete was inspirational & transforming for so many people!
A long-ago migrant from the Jersey Shore to the Heartland, Ian Alexy and his brother have been the Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank, while his own band is Ian Alexy & The Deserters. It's driving rock, it's folk, it's real, it's great.
Let him near a guitar and Ned Brown transmutes the punk rock of his youth, mixed with ingredients of jazz and word play, into something new for the planet, though most days he's just a mild-mannered, meditating, Tai Chi, bodywork professional with Earth & Sky Bodyworks, Who is the real, who the fakir? A question beyond our pay grade!
Michael Smith is the face and guitar of Whisper Behind the Light, drawing on the deep place to speak messages of power and transformation. Michael has found a life of rootedness and simplicity - as much as that happens with 5-plus kids - away from the squirrel!!! of big city life, and in the community of the Catholic faith of his upbringing. Check him out on Soundcloud and his musings on Blogspot.
Rod MacDonald spins deeply emotional tapestry with his songs, a sort of emotional journalism, powerfully capturing the aspirations and angst of the listener. He was a principle in the 1980s folk revival in Greenwich village, co-founding the Greenwich Village Folk Festival. You'll find a couple of his songs in Rise Up Singing because of their penetrating & enduring power. Follow him on FaceBook.
Michael Hough has been making music with Mustard's Retreat since 1974, and as part of The Yellow Room Gang for the past decade. Michael is honest. He's straightforward. He's got a good heart. And he's talented. You will surely find both depth & enjoyment in his songs.
For the past 3 years, Joe Kidd & Sheila Burke have been awarded the Detroit Music Awards for Outstanding World Music. With 60's folk music roots mixed with Appalachian/Celtic/Bluegrass/Country/Middle Eastern/African/Native American spirituality, influences, and rhythms, Joe & Sheila make moving, meaningful, music.
David HB Drake has deep Wisconsin roots, and deep knowledge of Wisconsin's music, wonderfully exhibited in his Wiscon-Sing history of the state's music. His decades of endeavors have included his years dancing with the Milwaukee Ballet & Betty Salamun's Dance Circus, and serving as shantyman on the tall ship, HMS Bounty. He leads music & worships with the Congregation of the Great Spirit.
Many people find an important piece of themselves in nature, but Deirdre Jenkins knows herself in oneness with nature at a whole new depth. Through her journeys with trauma, devotion, and remembering-the-self, Deirdre produces music that transports and transforms the listener. Contact her on Facebook.
Brian Miller has a great passion for the Irish music and traditional songs of Great Lakes workers. He knows the legends, people, & places, to a science, steeped in art. Raised in Northern Minnesota, enriched & deepened in Ireland and other lands, Brian plies his trade from St Paul, MN. Check out his TheLostForty.com collection recordings from 1924.
The music of Joe Jencks burns in the heart of the listener, both with his lyrics and his powerful voice. The stories and poetry of his songs lift up a vision of love, compassion and solidarity without preaching or posturing - just solid, inspirational music. In addition to a wealth of solo performing, he's now part of a trio called Brother Sun. As Joe says in one of his songs, "You may hold the candle but you cannot hold the flame".
Kevin Basl had 2 tours of duty in Iraq and in the course of the 2nd he wrote & recorded a CD capturing his frustration, doubts, & anger at the role he played in what he judges to be an illegal war. He currently does healing/empowerment work with 2 veterans' groups, Warrior Writers and Combat Paper NJ.
Radmilla Cody is firmly rooted in the Dine' musical & cultural tradition, and her songs come straight from the plateaus of the Navajo Nation, where she was the 46th Miss Navajo Nation. From her youth herding sheep, to her experience of domestic violence, to her activism work with social and environmental injustices, Radmilla seeks & sings beauty, balance, & harmony with our wide kinship and with Mother Earth.
Jim Bizer is a profound, engaging, talented lyricist, singer, & musician whose songs speak of our connection and the mind-blowing reality we live in. It's folk with some jazz touches, joyful with scattered clouds, deep with occasional dancing on the surface. Jim also performs frequently as part of a duo with Jan Krist, as part of the Yellow Room Gang and as a part of Floyd King and the Bushwhackers.
Christmas songs you probably didn't hear leading up to December 25th - but which would have made the season so much more rewarding and meaningful. Instead of the old standards, how about new standards, but lesser-known, extremely wonderful musicians? Peace, justice, & growth at a dark time, growing lighter.
Dean Magraw is some kind of awesome on the guitar, not just technically, but spiritually. Dean defies labels and limites - musically & spiritually - with one review saying, quite accurately that Dean is a Jazz cat, a folkie, a rock star, a front-porch bluegrass picker, a bluesman, ... and more. He's located in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, but the universe is his oyster.
One of the best companions you could have at a protest, around a campfire or in a song circle is Bruce O'Brien. With his banjo and guitar (and sometimes mandolin or even violin), Bruce is completely in his element holding his ground or under a shining owl moon.
Kristen Graves is a dynamo of wonderful music and good work in the world. With the talent of Tracy Chapman or Janis Joplin, and with seemingly boundless energy, Kristen was recently the Connecticut State Troubadour, she was founder of Simply Smiles and also The 'Just Be Nice' Party, has 8 recordings, and draws on a religious studies major and diverse spiritual influences. And makes awesome, heart-moving, music, available on CDBaby.com.
It's rather seldom that a predominantly folk-oriented musician can be a commercial success, but such a one is David Barrett. Of course, it helps if you write a song like One Shining Moment that gets adopted by the NCAA as their anthem. But that is such a tiny scratch on the surface of David's creativity & artistry.
Time for some country-rooted music today with Fizz Kizer. Actually, he's been told that he's "too country for the cafes and too folkie for the taverns". When playing with his trio, they're called Fizz & the Farm Hands. His music sings of country things, like the rivers and the taverns and the hearts that grow deep away from the cities.
Judy Kass took a long hiatus from sharing her music with the world, but was reignited in her zeal to share by the loss of almost 300 colleagues on 9/11. Judy's music draws on a deep exploration of our human condition, to find ways to call in angels to assist us.
In her mission to model and teach the content, Barbara McAfee has produced 7 CDs plus a book, Full Voice: The Art and Practice of Vocal Presence. She also leads two other groups, The Morning Star Singers and The Flowering Women. Having found the path herself, she is devoted to guiding others to their full potential.
Music shared via video feed from all across the USA for Northern Spirit Radio's fun-raising event, Broadcasting From the Heartland, including Si Kahn, Peter Alsop, Magic Mama, Ken Lonnquist, and Tom Rowley with The Healthcare Blues. All of this, and more, was part of the NSR event!
Brett Kemnitz does the booking for Milwaukee's The Coffee House. In addition to his solo singer/songwriter career, he has performed as part of the Plum Creek String Band and Pebble Creek Crossing - and with many other folks. Find his music on CDBaby.com.
Kate MacLeod was East Coast born, but Utah settled, capturing the beauty & stories of the Western landscape in her songs. With her powerful fiddle and magical voice, Kate transports everyone into the realities she's read and experienced.
The voice of Annie Capps transports the listener on a tour of her Midwest Urban Folk Blue Garden, filled with twang, jazz, soul,& hoochy coo flora, and more. With exquisite instrumentation by Rod Capps and others, Annie's songs are moving, joyful, fun, and powerful. Radiating from Michigan, Annie Capps shines a rich bouquet of music across the nation.
Mark Dvorak, in addition to his livelihood as a singer/songwriter, is a frequent teacher at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. With beautiful, soothing vocals, talented guitar or banjo fingers, and great songwriting, Mark will inspire and enchant you with his music.
Rhonda Rucker is most often heard performing as part of Sparky & Rhonda, with a strong flavor of Southern Appalachian music, but also Civil Rights folk music, old hymns, and a number of songs by Rhonda. She was a medical doctor for 5 years, cares deeply about our Earth, and her writings include a recent novel called Swing Low, Sweet Harriet.
Tonia Hughes brings us music of and for the soul, taking us through a journey of faith and fruits in the face of true hardships, like the early death of her husband. Raised in St Louis, for the past 20 years Tonia has been blessing the Twin Cities with her music. You can find her Gospel, Blues, Jazz, R&B, Rock and Worship music on CDBaby.com.
Though the music of Kat Eggleston shines its light widely, it strongly reflects the light & love passed on from her parents, particularly her Dust-Bowl-raised father. He bequeathed to Kat loads of creativity and his eventual home on Vashon Island, in the rainy Northwest. Kat's guitar, lyrics, and voice are all first rate and, as Jonathan Byrd comments, 'She kicks so much ass she has to buy new shoes.' Kat & others will be performing The Cyclone Line, a musical dedicated to her father, presenting the first weekend of November, 2016, at the Vashon Center for the Arts.
After 27 years devotion as a grade school teacher, Heather Jerrie has now freed up more of her time for her musical passion. As a cancer survivor, 12-step fan, and very engaged UCC member, Heather's beautiful voice sings of hope, service, depth, & devotion.
Chuck Suchy balances a life stretched between two callings, one as a singer/songwriter, and the other as a farmer, tied to the land of the Northern Great Plains - specifically, North Dakota. His music often emerges from his connection to the place of his roots, but can also fly to romance, joy, and the freedom of spirit. See Chuck on Prairie Public
Micah Sommersmith follows his nose into great music, letting the lyrics lead him into deep meaning. Although accordion is his weapon of choice, he also plays/has played piano, trumpet, euphonium, guitar, and the organ (required for his job as music director for a Methodist church). He joins us before a live audience to share music today, nearing the birth of his first child.
Ida Kristin's latest release, along with David Llewellyn, is Songs Around the Kitchen Table. Hailing from Sweden, with maternal Brazilian influences, and living part-time in Nashville, Ida leads hearts and souls to stir, ponder, & laugh, even more potently when paired with Welshman David. Inspired by biological science, tried by hardship, and rooted in meditation, Ida sings a powerful song of the soul.
Freebo has an impressive musical pedigree, having recorded, performed & toured with oodles of luminaries, including Ringo Starr, John Mayall, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Maria Muldaur, and including 10 years playing bass with Bonnie Raitt. After decades doing other people's music, he found his calling to write his own songs, and it has fueled a rich collection of musical styles united by a strong spiritual undercurrent and, sometimes, overcurrent.
Max Garland is a professional backslider, was Wisconsin's Poet Laureate 2013-2015, and makes music as part of Eggplant Heroes. With deep roots in Western Kentucky and a 'lover's quarrel' with the religion of his childhood, Max retired recently from teaching in the UW-EC English Dept.. Look for the bonus song & excerpts!
After 4 decades, Bill Staines continues to produce some of the best folk music of our times, some well-known like All God's Critters and River, hundreds more less-known. With inspirational, heartfelt, and sometimes just fun themes, Bill's music has reached folk devotees everywhere. Having logged more than 3 million miles while touring, Bill takes his musical gifts virtually everywhere, constantly adding to all the critters in the choir.
Consider the names of Doug Kelly's bands over the past 35 years: Tansey's Fancy, Churinga, Sirocco, and Simple Folk, and you've got to suspect that there's something different going on here. Australian-based, Doug plays passionately and provocatively on a wide array of instruments from around the world, wedding traditional forms and tunes to evolving creativity.
Paul Loomis spreads his time between teaching Math at Bloomsburg (PA) University, traveling in South America, raising 2 kids, and making music. His latest CD is World Famous in Bloomsburg, just like him.
Arthur Davenport currently hails from Hilo, Hawaii, where he found Northern Spirit Radio through the Friends Journal and tracked us down to share his rich, diverse, profound, and fun music, not to mention his Arthurisms!
Laurie Childers lives out a stunning world of art and activism in Corvalis, Oregon. She performs both solo and with her band, the River Rocks, and her activism takes a number of forms, including her work as chair of the National Council of the Fellowship of Reconciliation. Beautiful music from a beautiful spirit.
Matt Watroba has been deeply immersed in folk music since 9th grade, including hosting the Folks Like Us show on WDET in Detroit and Folk Alley on WKSU at Kent State University, for a combined 26 years or so. With more than 3 decades performing, Matt is a master of the folk music genre, both as a performer and as a leader of group singing.
Mike Plaisted lives out multiple passions, in part through his work as a lawyer performing a vital role in the lives of his clients, especially with folks in Drug Court, but also through his performing music, something that deeply feeds Mike. He's a member of the Milwaukee Musicians Co-op, and performs regularly on Riverwest Radio.
Patrick Landeza is passionate about the music of his Hawaiian roots, though he's Berkeley, CA, born & raised, and a special man. He was awarded the Musician of the Heart award as part of the Listen for Life concert for peace at Carnegie Hall, and he's the first mainland artist to win the Na Hoku Hanohano Award for Slack Key Album of the Year, Hawaii's equivalent of the Grammy. Catch him on the radio regularly with hisAloha Everywhere program.
A.L. Williams leads Milwaukee's One Lane Bridge and broadcasts his music Friday night ever 5 weeks on Riverwest Radio. Enjoy some creative themes, diverse music styles, and stanch advocacy of cooperative local music.
The Milwaukee Musicians Co-op is celebrating 34 years of upholding one-another as of 3/12/2016, at the 19th Street Coffeehouse. We talk to 5 long-time Co-op members to explore some of the soul of the group: One Lane Bridge/A.L. Williams, Rick Kokan, Mike Plaisted, Friar Otto/Michael Hoppe, Mud River Lee
Evalyn Parry mixes music, spoken word, with writing, directing and performing theater. With beautiful vocals, wide-ranging thoughts and creativity, and lots of engaging attitude, Evalyn makes magic, including her musical theater production, Spin, concerning the early feminist movement & biking.
Steve Carlson doesn't really think that PleasantVille is all that pleasant and he associates Christmas with A Hell of a Time, so this is a world view with some spice in it. With country roots and under a folk canopy, Steve makes beautiful music filled with lots of social commentary.
Frank Florin began with hard rock music, but along the way he found his spiritual and musical appetite filled exclusively by the Hindu devotional practice called kirtan. Frank now passes on his love for this special music through performances with the group called Temple of Light kirtan.
Micah Sommersmith has a real range to the music he's involved in. Part of his work is as a church music director, but he's also the kind of creative, quirky, musician you'd expect of someone who has played piano, trumpet, euphonium, guitar, and accordion, and who'd write a Song about Glass. He mixes deep and playful, and profound and surprisingly profound, lyrics.
A different format for Song of the Soul - we sit in on the quarterly open-mic experience known as White Pines. In a low-tech, high-personality event, folks come out to share their down-home skills and creativity for a special community-building opportunity, 26 years into its life.
Darrell Smith's day job is with Purple Cow Organics, which tells you something significant about one of Darrell's passions, and in his other hours he plays with Embedded Reporter and The Pardee Boys, using his skillful voice and fiddle.
Heart of the Earth is the recently released CD by Judith Gottlieb & Liz Kohlenberg, calling the listener to a deep musical & spiritual encounter with the land, the water, the place of people in our environment, all comfortably fitting with a scientific knowledge and appreciation of the Earth, including Judith's education in geology and civil engineering.
Ellen B. Ochs is a prolific songwriter and perenial participant of all sorts folk musical - song circles, Stringalong weekends, White Pines quarterly open stage, and jams. An English major pouring creativity through her pen, Ellen brings joy and community through her music.
Rabbi Darkside's website tells us to "Use the force to enter" - enter the world of Hip Hop culture and rap music and alternative ways of connecting the world. Sam Sellers is Rabbi Darkside, a creative, emotive, healing force who was raised Jewish and self-describes as a secular humanist who practices Kum Nye meditation.
Possibilities always surround us, and we can use lemons to make a sour face, or to serve a lemonade feast to all our acquaintances. In spite of a challenging start to life including bad role models, abandonment, and some JD points, Glen Roethel received grace through adoption and has chosen to pass it on. Part of the House Band for the Posi Awards for many years, Glen seeks to uplift and shine Light. Check out his music & greeting cards on InspireLine.com.
Jo Schlesinger finds the fullness of her soul in international folk dance, and it comes out of her mouth when she sings as part of a group of women singers called The Balkan Babes. The members of this Pittsburgh-based group join Jo to sing the music of Jo's soul.
Radoslav Lorkovic grew out of a supremely musical family from the region of the former Yugoslavia, Croatia specifically for him, and he's amazingly cross-bred with blues, folk, jazz & country music, having performed with the likes of Greg Brown and Odetta. This only scratches the surface, and when you scratch deeper you'll find an original with vast talent and ability.
Living well off the beaten path in hillbilly shack in the Ozark Mountains, Carolyn Carter has been singing for her supper as long as she can remember. With a voice that is soft and wild, 100% Arkansas, Carolyn plays the listener's heart strings while stumming those of her guitar. Inspired by church music and folks like Joan Baez and Emmylou Harris, Carolyn is gifted and passes on the gift through her wonderful songs.
Walter Craft has been spreading his message of Serve the Song for close to 50 years, on a trajectory between Minnesota down to Florida, eager to provide a force that feeds hearts & souls and nudges the world in a good direction. Down-home, sing-along, is Walter's preference, gracing places like The Bullfrog Fish Farm/Eat My Fish or the Wrong Place Saloon.
Alex Smith has a deep voice & deep roots in the Allegheny Mountains of northern New York. He was a punk rocker in high school, but at 23 makes music of the folk/Americana vein, about the people & places of his rural home.
Inspired by the likes of Odetta & Pete Seeger, Lisa Meissner makes music with the feel of traditional folk music, but with new tunes and themes, concerns like Climate Change and much more. With her husband, Klaus, they are The Rustic Riders.
From Tillamook to Nashville, to Bend, Lindy Gravelle has always been all about music. And Friendz. And Love. Growing up part of a family band, having 9 CDs of her own, and with her enduring local following in Bend (and elsewhere), Lindy's voice, piano, and, sometimes, guitar & uke, are enchanting and moving.
Nicolas Boulerice was a founding member of Le Vent du Nord, a group from Québec playing progressive folk music, mixing a traditional repertoire with their own originals. Reinterpreting, energizing, and conveying the power of songs, old and new, the band aims to both please and motivate listeners to make a difference.
Jillian Rae says that she's got music genre ADD, unable to stay focused on any one genre of music. Trained in classical music on the violin, she's likely to be on stage singing and playing pop, cosmic country, old-school folk, hard rock and anything else in reach. You can see her in person at the Great River Folk Festival, August 28-30, 2015.
Sandy Weisto has been a part of Milwaukee's folk music scene for 30 years, in front of and behind the spotlights. Having done organizing and sound for Milwaukee's The Coffee House and at The Miramar Theatre, and performed individually and with groups like Sweet Diversity, The Silver Linings, and, currently, Green Sails, Sandy puts a beautiful voice to great music.
Our third visit with musician/poet/artist extraordinaire, Carrie Newcomer, during her visit to the 2015 FGC gathering at Western Carolina University. Along with the release of her 15th album, A Permeable Life, Carrie released her first book, of poetry, by the same name. Carrie's gentle spirit and her deep and persistent passions combine with her music to make world-changing songs.
Kevin Slick has Pennsylvanian roots, New York growth, and a Coloradan canopy. Sure, since he was 5, that music was where he was going, Kevin has been inspired by folks like Pete Seeger and the Beatles to find the soul of music. He has performed solo and with bands like Steel Pennies, Neo Pseudo, and The Amen Trio, and he's done many musical genres, including instrumental film scores, AND he wrote a song called Dancing Naked in God's Navel. There is much here to marvel at and glory in and move to.
Pete Seeger once said, "If you want to hear some of the best songs out there today...listen to Sarah Pirtle," an author and musician with deep roots which feed the abundant branches and fruits of her work for peace, wholeness, and care for the planet.
Libby Roderick is a world-healing singer/songwriter, best known for her song How Could Anyone. Firmly rooted in Alaska and inspired by Native Alaskan ways of thinking, Libby combines deep concern for the Earth and its creatures with beautiful music and lyrics, to inspire and equip listeners toward a better world.
Tribe1 is a growing, morphing, evolving, group of musicians, orchestrated by Niyonu Spann, who express their testimony and aspirations for the world through the songs they co-create - it's a pretty special process! Jonathan Snipes & Ingrid Lakey, 2 of about 10 members of the group, share their soul journey with Tribe1.
Heidi Hart was dramatically changed by her first encounter with the German concentration camps of WWII, and she has dived deep into the subject of music and violence. With her harp and voice, Heidi explores and interprets the beauty and power of music, often of German origin, and in her writing she leads us to better understand of the potential of music for health and harm.
Marielle Allschwang makes music in several configurations - with Group of the Altos, Hello Death (also on Bandcamp.com, and with Adam Krause (Ethan Krause's brother). And solo as well now. Creative and beautiful, both vocally and instrumentally, Marielle will lead you to the edge and beyond.
Brianna Lea Pruett sends an evocative message through her music and her art. With all kinds of deep musical influences - classical, jazz, rock, pop, and country - Brianna does breathtaking folk (and more). Her lineage includes Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw forebears, but also French and Irish, so she's a rich mix in the very way you might expect. And she lives a deep passion and concern for human life on this planet.
Chris Vallillo's music is roots music. Occasionally it's on themes of things like the music of Abraham Lincoln's time, the poetry of Carl Sandburg, and the music of Stephen Foster, but there are also songs of his own place and time. Chris' music is stunningly rendered on his stable-full of guitars, and other instruments. Located in Macomb, Illinois, Chris sends his song from the heartland to the heart.
With a masters in poetry and feet planted faithfully in West Philly, Sterling Duns caught the hip-hop passion and has been churning out music with Hardwork Movement for years, and recently as part of a duo, City Love.
Megan Smith is half of Misner & Smith, a really special folk/roots/country music duo. Megan plays the upright bass and mandolin, but it's her phenomenal vocals that won my soul. A native of Davis, California, she's also appeared in a number of theatrical productions. This is music and a musician you don't want to miss.
Larry Penn was a prolific folk musician/song-writer in the footsteps of folks like Woody Guthrie and Utah Phillips, until his death in October, 2014. Using themes like trains, workers, and powerful, common folks, Larry was inspirational to so very many others, and some of those folks share their stories and Larry's songs in celebration of Larry. In part 2 of 2, we talk with Bill Camplin, Mark Dvorak and Brett Kemnitz.
Larry Penn was a prolific folk musician/song-writer in the footsteps of folks like Woody Guthrie and Utah Phillips, until his death in October, 2014. Using themes like trains, workers, and powerful, common folks, Larry was inspirational to so very many others, and some of those folks share their stories and Larry's songs in celebration of Larry. In part one of two, we'll visit with Craig Siemsen, Lil' Rev, and Mud River Lee.
Craig Siemsen was a wandering musician till he came back home to Milwaukee and a duet of a life with Patty Stevenson. Sometimes Craig is solo act, sometimes a duo with his wife Patty Stevenson, and he leads the Plum Creek String Band. Folk, jazz, bluegrass - you name it, he does it.
Sam Misner is half of Misner & Smith, and their latest CD is Seven Hour Storm, chock full of great glimpses into the human condition, but even more full of awesome vocals & harmonies. This is Folk/Americana music from a younger generation to match anything that's gone before.
Mud River Lee & the Bluegrass Orchestra (or sometimes the Bluegrass Bells) has been a fixture of the Milwaukee Folk Music scene for decades. Lee is also a co-founder and mainstay for the Milwaukee Musicians Coop. With a down-home style all his own, Lee warms a room with good music and a great ambiance. Lee's in Milwaukee and I'm in Eau Claire (Clear Water, in English).
Matt Watroba has been deeply immersed in folk music since 9th grade, including hosting the Folks Like Us show on WDET in Detroit and Folk Alley on WKSU at Kent State University, for a combined 26 years or so. With more than 3 decades performing, Matt is a master of the folk music genre, both as a performer and as a leader of group singing.
Doug MacKenzie has a long pedigree - as a jet engine mechanic and as a folk musician. Currently in collaboration with Sue West as Rural Roots Music, they are churning out music at an incredible rate. Because of his brother, Guy MacKenzie, Doug got used to having folks like Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Dave Van Ronk, and others around the house. After a hiatus of a couple decades, Doug is back doing full-time folk music.
Harmonious Wail & their music defy simple categorization, but you're sure to find some Gypsy Jazz in their sets. Maggie Delaney-Potthoff is the voice most often at the front, and the vocal spotlight is well-deserved. Maggie's Method is the unusual technique used in the voice lessons she gives, and Harmonious Wail leads up the Midwest Gypsy Swing Fest twice a year, in Madison, WI.
Anne Hills is a folk music gem, prominent and still too little known. She has recorded & toured with Tom Paxton, David Roth, Priscilla Herdman & other greats, and she writes with wonderful depth & color, singing with great beauty.
Jon Brooks takes us on an odyssey with his music - through passion, compassion, history, politics, and identity. With powerful & evocative lyrics that unlock inner meaning, Jon takes on the big questions and issues with unblinking honesty sustained in hope.
Tony Vacca's music is rooted in rhythm & Africa & raw spirituality. Through percussion, spoken word, and the help of many African musicians, Tony has us surfing the edge of experience, from New Jersey to Senegal and around West Africa, and straight to your heart.
Randall Paskemin is a member of the Plains Cree & a prolific and creative Round Dance & Pow-wow songwriter. Firmly rooted in native culture, but enriched by the music of the Beatles, U2, Shania Twain, & others, Randall weaves native vocal & drum style music with lyrics & tunes & themes to create music accessible and rich for all people. His latest CD is Christmas Cheer.
Michael Rambo first assembled his latest music as a project and it became a phenomenon. What to expect? Soul, jazz, R&B, gospel, and messages of gratitude and connection to God.
Marca Cassity shares wonderful acoustic soul spirit songs on her latest CD, Songs From the Well. Raised within the Osage Nation in Oklahoma, seasoned by 10 years in the Bay Area in CA, and now located in North Carolina, her spiritual exploration has been vast and deep.
Howard Lewis Hinterthuer is primary songwriter & co-anchor of the folk duo (plus friends) Embedded Reporter, featuring stories, local & global, of the human condition. Homey and real, the lyrics and music fit into real people's lives, and tug the listener to enter into the songs and be part of the experience.
Megan Dooley is a home-town, Kalamazoo, woman with sultry, bluesy, vocals and great guitar that she's contributed to the groups she's been part of - Dooley Noted, Top Heavy and, now, Moxieville (on Facebook or on SoundCloud). A passionate advocate of local music, Kalamazoo has a worthy and successful tradition to uphold, and Megan embraces and fulfills it!
A concert of improvisational music with the native & international flutes of Peter Phippen and the Tibetan singing bowls played by musical mystic, Rahbi Crawford for the 1st annual Northern Spirit Radio membership banquet, November, 2013.
George McCorkell is central to & primary songwriter for The May North, a band that self-proclaims that they perform "bluegrass without boundaries, folk without pretense, honest storytelling without apology". They're right!
Kris Gruen started out in NYC, but has been fed and thrived in the natural world, including Vermont with his farmer wife and as station director of WGDR/WGDH, Plainfield, VT. Kris has a style all his own, combining mystic poetry with new folk influences, and with the Kris Gruen secret ingredient.
Victoria Vox is more than a beautiful voice, she's a creative font of folk/pop music, occasionally in French, always in style & beauty. Write a song each week for 52 weeks? She's done it. Writing songs since she was 10, inspired by the likes of Cyndi Lauper & Madonna, and powered by the ukelele, Victoria's music is full of grace & depth.
Sue West (AKA RuralRootsMusic.com) is all about traditional folk music, including the traditional songs that she writes. With a strong environmental & spiritual bent, Sue's music conveys simplicity and depth of feeling, and a sense of rootedness. Plus, she is a prolific songwriter when under the leading of the muse and she plays with the Rush River Ramblers, an old-time string band.
Musician & writer Gretchen Wing is an emerging talent at songwriting, with music & lyrics that are profound and moving. A growing presence of the music scene on Lopez Island, WA, you can only hope that she'll come visit you, or that she'll start producing CDs of her songs. Email her at gretchen.wing@gmail.com
Danny Ellis spent 8 often-traumatic years in an orphanage in Ireland, healed from it by meditation, music, & love, and through his newly released book, A Boy at the Gate, shares the pain, humor, love, & music of his story. A beautiful voice & great music, & a true story on top of it - what's not to love?
Red Grammer, while known especially for his children's/family music, also caters to adult listeners. Mixed with an irrepressible inner child is his spirit-deep Baha'i adult, bebopping and crooning, all approaches leading to joy, joy, joy. His beautiful voice, speaking through great lyrics, will lead you in celestial, exuberant, pathways.
David Wilcox is a musician, a poet, and a spiritual seeker. As he says, "Music is sacred ground and it shouldn't be reduced to that kind of simplified demographic target-marketing." This is music aimed at the heights & depths, no skimming the surface, so be ready for a ride! Along the way, David lived in Hanger Hall, founded by Howard Hanger.
Joanne Rand melds elements of folk/rock/country/classical and more in her songs, all of them infused with a root-deep connection to nature, peace, and roving ways. A lover of trees, whales, peace, and her Georgia-based family, she uses her music to connect all.
Patrice Haan has been part of the leadership of the Bay Area Folk Harp Society, producing music with an instrument wonderfully compatible with her voice & lyrics. She has 2 CDs on her own, and another 2 as part of the duet Leftover Dreams. Whether she's singing the water-infused songs of her own pen, sharing healing in hospitals with Healing Muses or performing the jazz/torch song music of Leftover Dreams, there's loads of heart & Spirit to bask in.
Rahbi Crawford does amazing music with a unique focus, stimulating the energy & health of our chakras and the system they are part of. With crystal bowls, wood flutes, wooden frogs and more, Rahbi follows an intuitive muse on a mystical, musical, journey. From Catholic, to born-again Christian, to chakra adept, Rahbi shows us new possibilities.
David Roth is great! Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul & Mary) said, and we agree, "David has reached our hearts. With voices like his still singing, there's a certainty that the candle will remain lit, the hope reasserted and the dream still sung...". His music is tender, classic, insightful, personal, and sometimes funny.
Stephen Lee Rich is a musician with a joke (or a comedian with a song), a yodeler, and a leading figure in the work of Musicians United to Protect Bristol Bay. Based in Madison, WI, and performing & recording frequently with Sandy Andina, Stephen is both serious and humorous and caffeine-fueled.
Joanne Rand overcame her shyness because of her need to sing people together in care for the Earth. Having lived way off the grid, in a tree house, she's walked the walk, from growing up in Georgia to parenthood in Northern California, where she listens to the song of the stars.
Sue Kranz is a musical gift, and humble on top of that. Rooted in mindfulness meditation, thriving in nature, changing the world through activism and teaching, Sue shares a beautiful soul, voice, guitar and flute, helping the world be a better place. Starting as a solo act, she has delighted in performing with a 6-woman group, Constellations, and currently partners with Ben Tousley, previously on Song of the Soul. Contact Sue to get her earlier recordings.
Jacob George did 3 tours of duty in Afghanistan, and it changed him completely, including the healing process in the aftermath leading to his involvement with Vets for Peace. With tools like this banjo and bicycle, Jacob takes us inside a Soldier's Heart, the title of his CD, to be released on 5/1/2013.
Priscilla Herdman is a shy person with the gift of a singing voice that carries the listener to laughter, tears, and wonder. With 13 CD, some solo, some family albums, and some as part of a trio, Priscilla shares audio riches to paint pictures. Trained to work in fashion, the folk music scene stole her away, and the rest is history, shared here!
Though Susan Grace Stoltz was Michigan raised, she's all about her home in Alaska - the people who are really there for you, the rivers, protecting the land and creatures, and, again, the people. A beautiful soul and voice with vibrant lyrics, Susan brings listeners into the Light.
Jody Soland's spiritual gifts were refined and deepened through a period of painful adversity, a series of years which included West Nile Virus, mono, complications, traumatic brain injury, and more. As you'll find out, Jody has chosen the bright pathway up from such depths, called to the path by a red-tailed hawk and channeled through beautiful vocals and instrumentation.
Niyonu Spann is the leader of Tribe1, a Philadelphia group singing for peace and unity. Niyonu is used to wrestling with the deep things, walking carefully through the tender places, and bravely going to the scary territory where the fainter hearts just faint. In addition to her moving, soulful, questioning music, Niyonu leads workshops called Beyond Diversity 101. And more. Find Tribe1's music on Bandcamp.
Lon Milo DuQuette, a practitioner and teacher of Thelema, has written extensively and resumed a career in music a few years ago after decades away from the music scene. His music is profound, fun, simple, complicated, and engaging. He and his fan page are excellent sources of amazing music and spirituality.
Ben Tousley is a folksinger with a great mix of song and spirit, with 6 CDs to his personal credit, plus one more recently released with Sue Kranz. His degree from Harvard Divinity School prepared him as chaplain to college students, the elderly and to hospice patients. As a cancer survivor, he understands vulnerability, anguish, and hope from the inside, and it ends up in his music, his hospice work, and in his teaching.
Nancy Bowker has been forced, and led, into a life of profound solitude, due to illness. From working in blueberry fields as a child, to the jazz stage, to the inner retirement of improvised, sung prayer, Nancy sings out of the depths. Find more of her music on http://nbcrossings.tumblr.com/
Michael Johnson journeys between folk, rock, & country charts, reaching the tops of the respect charts over the decades, with probing lyrics and excellent guitar. Recently returned from Nashville to the Twin Cities, Michael is making music with Red House Records & exploring connections with his newly-discovered daughter.
Ann Mayo Muir has a long pedigree as a folk singer/songwriter, including many years as part of the near-legendary trio, Bok,Trickett, & Muir. Talented on a number of instruments and with a beautiful, evocative, voice, there is power and depth in all of her music. With a deep connection to the sea, she lives in France on a peninsula jutting into the Mediterranean.
James Mudcat Grant is the Mudcat in Mudcat & the Bottomfeeders, an appropriate name for someone who has lived his life on the banks of the Mississippi. With 50 years of music making of rock, folk,country and other varieties, Mudcat has the chops and and heart for powerful music. Find him on Facebook, at the Great River Folk Festival, painting houses, or wandering the great outdoors.
Christina Muir is a singer/songwriter/musician/artist, and one-third of the trio known as Hot Soup. Daughter of folk luminary Ann Mayo Muir, Christina has music in her genes & in her heart. With her wonderful vocals, talented instrumentals, fertile creativity, and a winsome laugh, she'll win your ear and your heart.
Chris Van Cleave has a long and many-textured career with music - as part of the folk-rock band Meadow, writing & performing a lot of his own music, but also performing in several musicals, including a couple national tours in the title role of Jesus Christ Superstar. He's also co-written a rock/gospel musical called The Davidson Affair
Damh the Bard is the stage name of Dave Smith, singer, songwriter, and Pendragon in the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids. Taking inspiration from those connected deeply with the Earth & the wild, Dave guides listeners in the footsteps of a closer knowledge and life with our home.
You can get a good idea of what kind of music singer/songwriter Don D. Harvey makes by the list of groups he's been part of (in addition to his solo work): Shakin Loose, Tennessee, The Acoustic Conspiracy, The Earthbound Band, and currently, The Ultrasonic Duo. Featured at the Great River Folk Festival this year, Don lives and plays in the LaCrosse, Wisconsin area.
Sarah McQuaid carries a world of music with her, born in Spain, raised in the USA, and having lived 18 years in Ireland & England. A singer/songwriter who started in the folk world, Sarah will win your heart with her beautiful voice, lively and lovely guitar, and deep spirit.
Tracy Grammer is, via her website, a poetry-loving, type A ex-head cheerleader, graphic designer, classically trained violinist and karaoke queen with Florida roots and California cool. And for a handful of years she was in a folk duo with the incredible Dave Carter, which makes this a story for the ages. One of their songs, Gentle Arms of Eden, was rated 75 in the top 100 folk songs of all times, so you know this is great folk music!
Pat Lamanna is part of the People's Music Network for Songs of Freedom & Struggle, has performed for 15 years as part of the folk trio, The Raggedy Crew, and run a coffee house music venue starting in the 1970's. Find Pat on Facebook, get her music at CDBaby, or visit her very occasional blog.
Annie Lanzillotto rocks it! Soulful, quirky, sweet, brash, indomitable, she produces a variety of art - 3 rock/blues/spoken word CDs (Blue Pill, Carry My Coffee, and Eleven Recitations), a memoir, L is for Lion: An Italian Bronx Butch Freedom Memoir, a book of poetry, Schistsong, and much more performance art, some available on her site.
Ellen Whyte mostly hangs out in Portland, but recently toured Wisconsin's Chippewa Valley with Sue Orfield. She combines her beautiful voice & great musicians with a powerful personal understanding - of the blues, of rhythm, and of turning her life around. She's someone you want to know, both as a musician & as a person.
Ken Lonnquist is change-making, environmental activist, humorous & serious type of singer/songwriter. Ken produces a wide array of musical styles, though folkish is sort of home base for him. You'll find a spirit of deep connection with the Earth and a musical talent to add riches to your musical experience in Madison, Wisconsin, with Ken.
Phil Circle, now in Wisconsin's Chippewa Valley, spent most of 2 decades in Chicago. Trained in classical, influenced in jazz directions by a visit to New Orleans when he was 7, and walking in Eric Clapton's guitar-steps, Phil combines rich and diverse influences as a singer/songwriter.
Kim Harris and her husband, Reggie, have been conveying passion, history, and spirit through great music for decades. In addition to the folk venues and schools where they've performed and taught, Kim has added learning & teaching as part of the degree she's poised to receive from Union Theological Seminary in NYC.
While traditional Quaker worship, based on silence, has no scheduled singing as part of worship, Quakers are among the singing-est and dancing-est of folks around. Don Pardee did a simple recording of 6 folks from Milwaukee Friends Meeting singing a sampling of songs they share Sunday mornings before worship. Jim Schacht, Don Pardee, & Andrea Jehly share about the music they made, along with Sally Durgerian, Kay Augustine, and Jennifer Dahlquist.
Kiya Heartwood has an amazing assemblage of musical influences, from folk to hard rock and punk rock, plus her degree in composing. She was with Radio Cafe, then on Arista records with Stealin Horses, and settled into a long spell with Miriam Davidson as Wishing Chair, and CDs & books by Kiya and Meg Barnhouse are available at OutlawHillArts.com.
Richard Bruxvoort Colligan is a passionate singer/songwriter with a difference - his degree from United Theological Seminary in the Twin Cities. Whether making acoustic music on his own, singing with his wife as River's Voice, creating liturgical music, or writing on his blog called 'World Stretching', you'll find a kind, deep heart & mind poured out through beautiful melodies. He's also a founder of the Progressive Christian Artists Network.
Meg Barnhouse is a singer/songwriter/storyteller, plus she is minister of Austin UU Church. Raised in southern evangelical Christian circles, ordained Presbyterian, Meg's faith was lost and reborn transformed as a UU when she was 40. She sings and passion and deep heart.
David Massengill mixes singing, songwriting, storytelling, mountain dulcimer, guitar, and the taste of home-grown Tennessee, painting auditory pictures that pluck heart strings and induce smiles. He's engagingly just himself. Find info also on his website.
Gordon Bok is one of the greats of folk music, with many songs coming from the sea, or the edge of the sea, where he lives. He delivers them with a depth and a resonance that echos deep in the soul. With 22 of his own recordings, plus collaborations with Ann Muir, Ed Trickett, Cindy Kallet, among others, Gordon Bok has created and passed on an immense wealth of balladry and inspiration.
Dave Para & Cathy Barton are passionate about folk music and folk history, living that out by performing folk music, old and new, by creating historical albums, like about Lewis & Clark, anchoring the Big Muddy Festival and by jamming with the folks of Carp Camp at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas.
David Huckfelt is co-founder of The Pines, a Twin Cities band making Midwest music which is sometimes haunted, eloquent, gripping, starkly poetic, and which is always very, very, good. With all kinds of musical influences, the final product is unique to them. David grew up in Iowa and now is in awe of Lake Superior.
Cheryl Wheeler does music and life her own way - openly, honestly, and comfortably - and the result is a lot of stunning music and messages. Her songs have been covered by folks like Peter, Paul & Mary, Garth Brooks, and even Bette Midler, a testament to real quality, appealing across the musical spectrum.
Denise Jordan Finley performs in a duo with Daniel Pagdon as Finley and Pagdon. Denise has decades of experience with other duos and configuration, but the real suprise is that she's only really got her stride as a songwriter in the 12 years or so. With music rooted in folk or Americana, she ranges to bluegrass, jazz and much more. As a non-conforming believer, directing music in the Presbyterian Church, she's a deep soul and a musical voyageur.
Terry Leonino & Greg Artzner are Magpie with 37 years of singing songs of peace, civil rights & connection with the planet. Terry was a freshman at Kent State on May 4, 1970 when 4 of her fellow students were shot down, so she has a long history in the thick of powerful events.
Sue Orfield is a dynamo of music in the Chippewa Valley and far beyond, performing with a double-digit number of groups. Her musical tastes and skills are equally wide-ranging, although her instrument of choice is the sax and she's especially renowned for her swing & jazz music. Whether it's with the Sue Orfield Band, the Tiptons Saxophone Quartet or AcoustiHOO, the music has energy and creativity.
Mother Banjo is Ellen Stanley, an incredible voice and talented songwriter of the folk/gospel/Americana/down-homey variety. When Ellen is not promoting other great musicians for Red House Records or being a DJ for Womenfolk on KFAI, you may be lucky enough to see her perform as Mother Banjo.
Andra Suchy comes from an impressively musical family, including her father, Chuck Suchy, so you know that she good schoolin' in music on the North Dakata plains. A down-home woman currently living in the city, Andra speaks & sings her heart passionately. Featured on Prairie Home Companion repeatedly, she combines folk, country, all-her-own, music.
Dorothy Zerbe is a wonderful singer/songwriter, person & voice to know. A latecomer to performing her songs, she shares music in many ways, including at the Shawano Folk Festival, plus she hosts house concerts under the name of The Savage Beast House Concert series.
Bill Harley is a singer/songwriter with something more - powerful/funny/insightful storytelling capturing glimpses of the human condition. Whether singing of our greed and hunger, of tossing a TV out the window, or of the compounding complexity of juggling reality and virtual reality, Bill's music and stories open up the listener.
Joe Maurer is the Coconut half of the musical duo Coconut & the Duke. They produce music which is creative, eclectic, and engaging. Joe is multi-talented, working as a solar & landscape designer with Next Step Energy and farming as part of St. Isidore’s Mead Organic Dairy Farm.
David M. Jones, English Professor is the not-so-secret identity of Davey J, bluesman & singer/songwriter. With his band, the Jonestones, he makes music to move you and, hopefully, to move you to insight & peace.
Peter Sterling has released 12 CDs and now a book, Hearing the Angels Sing - A True Story of Angelic Assistance. While sitting meditation is the Sedona back country, Peter received direction from the angels to begin playing the harp and 10 months later he had his first album. An enduring favorite on the New Age charts, Peter weaves magic on the harp.
Andres Gonzales is a yogi/world-healer with The Holistic Life Foundation, Inc and a hip-hop/rapper with For The People Entertainment (or here). Based in Baltimore, Maryland, fuses music, messages and movement to bring power and love to the Great One we all are.
Jonathan Byrd hails from North Carolina, AKA North Cackalacki, and his music has home and depth and hurt and celebration. He doesn't shy from the facts but he's skillful with an image or metaphor as well, bringing listeners the best of both sides of experience.
Cris Williamson has played an important role as one of the prominent voices of feminism and lesbians, including her part in founding the first women's record label. With more than 20 CDs, Cris has been prolific and fertile for many hearts. And, of course, her song has been our theme music since day 1.
Vonn New creates innovative music, modeling deep listening in the process. Using things like flutes, percussion, found sounds and field recordings, Vonn creates sonic playgrounds over which she improvises. She also notes that "My intention as an artist is to promote peace-building and non-violence by modeling the power of listening, and the expression of defiant joy", crucial tools and gifts sorely lacking in our culture.
Danny Schmidt is one of many talented artists with the Americana Agency. Danny is profound and down-home, and he has an amazing gift for stunning lyrics, with influences like Bob Dylan & Leonard Cohen - and many others. Raised Jewish, his current spiritual outlook is not bound to any church or organization.
Chris Moore is unique singer/songwriter on a very conscious spiritual path, often explored in and through music, currently as part of the trio, Kindling Stone. Chris' journey forward in Spirit has taken him progressively back in musical styles and forms, including music from the Sacred Harp and the Shakers. He's profound, humble, inspiring, and a talented, creative musician.
Singer/songwriter Tracy Feldman is one of the many rewards I got for going to this year's MREA Clean Energy & Sustainable Living Fair. While there's a clear and powerful passion in his guitar, violin & lyrics, teaching biology at UW-Stevens Point is also a major calling of his life.
Sally Campbell does not refer to herself as a musician so much as a "song catcher". Having been judged unacceptable for choir as a youth, she had to work on developing her singing & playing ability when she started receiving songs in 1982. For her 70th birthday she performed & recorded a concert of her music for a group of friends.
SuZ Ogden is an angeltonk Baptist Buddhist living in Oklahoma, with visits to California, Russia and Israel. In other words, she's all over the map, from nightclub singer to minister in the United Centers for Spiritual Living.
Joe Reilly is a singer, a songwriter, an environmental educator, and a man on a spiritual quest. His spirit journey has taken him from Catholic to Native American to Buddhist and back to Catholic, all the while deeply connected to the Earth.
NOTE: Photo of Joe Reilly by Mary Kerney
A memorial Song of the Soul for Walkin' Jim Stoltz, the great hiker and minstrel of the open places, who left us 9/3/2010. Jim's passions and music are here guided by his wife, Leslie Stoltz, sister Susan Grace Stoltz, and long-time friend, Scott Carpenter.
Chris Picco is lead singer of Castles In Air, a Christian Indie band in Southern California. He's originally from Canada and part of his path to settling here with his American wife included a period in NYC helping out after 9/11/2001. His love of music is profound as you'll see on youtube, as is his Christian faith.
Peter Mayer is a Minnesotan singer/songwriter - but also a storyteller, dreamweaver and earth-based theologian, mixing science, spirituality & wonder. Raised Catholic, having spent important years in a Jesuit seminary and as a Catholic music leader, he now travels spiritually with Unitarian-Universalists.
Ed Trickett has a long and fruitful connection with folk music, on his own and as part of the nearly legendary trio, Bok, Muir & Trickett, all recording with Folk Legacy Records. When he's not on the road, Ed is a prof of psychology at Univ of Illinois - Chicago.
Carrie Newcomer added some rich music, experience and Spirit to her repertoire by her recent visits to India, including collaboration with legendary sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his sons Amaan & Ayaan. As always, Carrie weaves tapestries of music & Spirit spanning the globe, all launched from her home in Indiana.
Si Kahn is a powerful singer/songwriter whose music tells intimate stories of people at the same time it provides valuble lessons for societal change. His newest book is Creative Community Organizing: A Guide for Rabble-Rousers, Activists & Quiet Lovers of Justice and his latest CD is Courage. Si has strong Jewish roots and his spiritual home is The Movement.
Lon Milo DuQuette is a stunning combination of sweet music, profundity, hilarity, and love. With a career as a folk/rock musician from the precocious age of 14, through many employment variants including his 15 books and position as US Deputy Grand Master of Ordo Templi Orientis, Lon has word and song riches to pour out.
Rich Baumann has a heart of gold that he shared through his music, especially with schools, retirement homes and churches, as well as at folk festivals and the like. As founder of The Million Closets project, he has transported $26,000 of instruments to people on the Gulf Coast since Katrina hit.
Michelle Lynn packs more profundity per square inch of her 25 years on this planet than anyone I've every met. With a musical voyage which is an exploration of the mind, body and spirit, Michelle goes deep and universal.
A visit with the Threshold Singers of Eau Claire, a group of women who, like other Threshold Choirs across the USA, sing people at the edge of life on their way, offering comfort and peace through song.
ZEFFeREEN is a singer/songwriter, originally from India, living in Dubai for the past 16 years. His website proclaims, "Oh! To fill the eyes of orphans with hope... To bring joy to the widow's heart... To steady the hand of the weak... That is why i create music... That is why music was created. Music transforms lives." That's what ZEFFeREEN is about.
Meg Hutchinson is a singer/songwriter whose music is vibrant, deep, poetry, exploring inner spaces while she travels wide open spaces. Raised by non-conforming hippies, her spiritual path has led her to Tibetan Buddhism.
Fred Small animates stories through his songs, with a heart and a spirit of gold. He weaves a world-wide family with his songs of healing and hope. Fred started out as a lawyer in the environmental field, became a folksinger/activist, and is currently as a minister at First Parish Cambridge Unitarian Universalist. You can purchase his CD's at rounder.com and CDFreedom.com.
Christopher Grundy is a UCC minister and teaches at Eden Theological Seminary in St Louis and he's one of the founders of a group called the Progressive Christian Artists Network. His songs are filled with vivid images and diverse subjects, including even one ghost story!
Blue O'Connell uses her music to heal with her training in Therapeutic Music and as a Certified Music Practitioner, this in addition to her stagework and other singing/songwriting. Perhaps the most astonding fact - for roughly half her life she's been profoundly deaf!
Mary Miche has been sharing values-rooted music with children for decades, connecting them to the plants, animals and people of the entire globe.
Peter Alsop combines his skill as a folk musician with his profession of educational psychologist, along with an awesome sense of humor to produce musical gems.
Living off the grid and connecting best with the mystery through contact with nature, Pine Wilson leads Maritza, a band that touts itself as producing "Balkan Boogie, Romany Romp, Klezmer Kut-Ups".
Matt Wahl's deep voice and gentle spirit carry the listener to a soothing, joyous, place, replacing the tempting distractions of the world with the things of true value - family, connection, peace and the present moment.
Anne Feeney went from 12 years as a lawyer to full-time as a social activist musician. With 8 CD's plus other recordings, she's given us a wealth of music and messages.
Patricia Morrison first trained as a classical vocalist, but a combination of factors, including her experience around 9-11 led her to a degree in Peace and Global Studies, peace activism, communal activist living and, eventually to her current life as a itinerant musician, wandering the American landscape.
Jon Watts digs deep with talk about nakedness, righteousness, our global body, and more, in his distinctive, quirky, style: Spirited music-enhanced spoken word poetry. Come on!
2 passions of Joshua Brown's life are traditional folk music and West Richmond Friends Meeting, where he is pastor. Raised with a wealth of songs from Irish uncles and the rest of his family, he shares the riches in schools, nursing homes, for coffee houses - and at church.
Neal Swanger makes fine music with simple, earthy, lyrics & melodies, connecting listeners to the land & the heart. When mixed in with his work with Folk 'n' Thieves and with the kids of the ReUse Band, a project of the Urban Arts Academy of the Twin Cities, you're in for some great music and great fun.
Ali Youssefi produces music that is ethereal, flowing, moving, and profoundly spiritual. Raised in Chile by Baha'i parents, his father from Iran, and currently living in Haifa, Israel, Ali shares engaging and heart-opening testimony through his music.
We continue as Jon Watts digs deep with talk about nakedness, righteousness, our global body, and more, in his distinctive, quirky, style: Spirited music-enhanced spoken word poetry. Come on!
Karen Taylor-Good is from Nashville and over the years she's made important splashes in that sizeable music pool. Her songs have been nominated for Grammys and she's recorded with a number of well-known performers like Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson & Kenny Rogers. Deeper glimpses of the power of her life show through her work with The Planet Earth Project, Hospice organizations and through her Jewish and Unity roots.
Devaa Haley evokes the many faces of the Divine Feminine on her new release, Sacred Alchemy. As an Interfaith Minister through The Chaplaincy Institute for Arts & Interfaith Ministries, with her degree in Anthropology from Stanford, in her post as Chief Transformation Officer for The Shift Network and in her work awakening women with Soulful Women Retreats or the Soulful Women Certificate Program, she sings powerfully and goes deep.
Tom Goss is a big-hearted singer/songwriter from Washington D.C. Motivated by his passion for social justice issues, Tom spent 6 months in seminary to become a Catholic priest before deciding it wasn't right for him. Tom writes and sings frequently of love and its rightness, regardless of laws. Tom and his partner will be married in October in D.C., one of the areas that provides for gay marriage.
Tret Fure has a rich and lengthy career as a singer/songwriter, starting at 16 in Midwest coffehouses, moving to Berkeley and performing with Spencer Davis, as a force in the blossoming field of Women's Music, and founding her own label, Tomboy Girl. She's on a path guided by Light & Angels and her heart shines through her music.
Howard Shalowitz is the hazzan (cantor) for Beit Shira Synagogue. His experience with music, both Jewish & non-Jewish, is impressive, including the singing telegram he delivered to the renowned opera star Luciano Pavarotti. He's served as hazzan with several prominent synagogues across the country and beyond. He shares programs on Jewish music widely as part of the Ambassador Program of the Cantors Assembly.
Howard Shalowitz is the hazzan (cantor) for Beit Shira Synagogue. His experience with music, both Jewish & non-Jewish, is impressive, including the singing telegram he delivered to the renowned opera star Luciano Pavarotti. He's served as hazzan with several prominent synagogues across the country and beyond. He shares programs on Jewish music widely as part of the Ambassador Program of the Cantors Assembly.
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Alice Di Micele has a deep connection to Spirit in nature, especially through the element of water. With 12 recordings to her name, she's been prolific and profound. Raised Catholic, nature is now her church.
Larry Heagle has created serious & humorous music for the Midwest for 33 years. He's mostly Irish, with all the sentiment and humor that frequently comes with those origins, though I doubt that he'd ever blame anyone else for his sometimes-bawdy sense of humor.
Stasa Morgan-Appel is a Pagan Quaker with the gift of leading & sharing music and her feminist-pagan identity puts her at a particular spot on the wide Pagan spectrum. She co-authored A Winter Solstice Singing Ritual book & CD. She led a workshop on "Singing the Goddess" at the 2011 FGC gathering and is accompanied by 3 members of the workshop - Sandy Moon, Peggy Bright and Denise Madland - for this program.
Sally Barris is pure Minnesota-raised, but she found her musical home in Nashville, first as a music writer, and now as a singer/songwriter. With a beautiful voice and a loving spirit, her music is both moving and meaningful.
Ari Herstand is a Midwestern singer/songwriter, soon to be in LA. Much of his studio work is mellow, painting images from an inner palette and, raised as a cultural & religious Jew, Ari provides a new and valuable perspective for many listeners.
Lisa Wildman performs kids music with Peanut Butter Jellyfish, folk music with Group W, as well as performing country, opera and symphonic music. She plays flute, guitar and sings, and her current passion is sacred chant. Lisa is accompanied on some of these songs by Brenda Rose Simkin (vocals) and Paul Tinkerhess (banjo).
Pat Humphries is half of Emma's Revolution, a powerful, moving and fun collaboration aimed at making our world better. Inspired by all sorts of music, including hymns, gospel, folk and more, Pat has produced musical gems featured on "All Things Considered" and "Democracy Now". Here she shares the music that led her where she is, including a song by one of her mentors and inspirations, Pete Seeger
Rod Kinny is a singer/songwriter on a heart-led spiritual journey. As his web site proclaims, "Rod Kinny, Music with a deeper meaning ...". Rod was raised Methodist, and now attends Unity Unitarian Universalist church in the Twin Cities.
Carrie Newcomer is a musical beacon of light & soul from Indiana. She is consciously reaching inward, gently sharing what she finds, delighting in people and flashes of the Divine everywhere. She's got 12 recordings of her own material and regularly collaborates with other musicians, poets, and writers. She is a member of Bloomington, Indiana, Friends Meeting.
Nathen Aswell is a Canadian singer/songwriter who believes his purpose in this life is to inspire and heal through his music. His debut CD "Little By Little" is a mix of excellent music with deep Spirit.
Andy Murray's music has been featured regularly on our Spirit In Action program because his music is steeped in a combination of deep spirit and healing work for the world. Andy has long worked as a teacher of Peace and Conflict studies at Juniata College in Pennsylvania. With a singer/songwriter sideline that has spanned 3 plus decades, Andy has created a lot of wonderful music, much of it originating with his lifelong faith as a member of the Church of the Brethren, one of the historic peace churches.
A collage of interview & music from the past year's Song of the Soul guests with particular connection to the Earth. Featuring Gina Citoli, Magpie, Peter Mayer, Joe Reilly, and Walkin' Jim Stoltz.
Michelle Lynn, at 23, has already made 3 CD's, Jump Roping in Chains, Hospital Radio and Pre-echos for the Postmodern, experiencing her own spiritual emergence in the process. She now lives in Decorah, Iowa.
Andy Juhl is a young, quiet, Quaker farmer in rural Northwest Iowa with a passion for peace, love and music. With his twin brother on drums, his wife on French horn, and various friends and musicians to accompany him, you'll find a lot of music with meaning.
Lisa Meissner performs with The Rustic Riders with a definite spiritual/religious element, fueled by personal & cultural struggles and a with a healing vision of the possibilities.
Peggy Seeger has a wealth of recordings from the 50+ years she's been performing, on her own, with her husband, Ewan MacColl, with her brothers, Mike & Pete Seeger, and other folks. Traditional folk music is where she started from and she has enriched them with her own songs on feminist, peace and other themes.
Eileen McGann is a Canadian singer/songwriter who combines a stunning voice, deep passion for the natural world, wide-ranging education and thoughts with a rich Irish/Celtic upbringing to make top notch music of the Spirit.
Brahman Shaman is Matt Olson and Brahman Shaman is what he's about. Raised Catholic, drawn to the spirituality of the East, led to connect with real-Earth living, Matt searches for answered to his questions through his music.
Mike Hamer is a singer/songwriter from Greenville, North Carolina, who performs a rich variety of music, often as part of Mike Hamer and the Rhinoceroses with the Angelic Choir. Until an accident left him a quadriplegic, Mike had played guitar and bass, but found that the hammer dulcimer worked for him afterwards. He's an inspired and inspirational musician and songwriter.
Mike died December, 2017.
Mike Quick has done a lot of types of music over a few decades, including blues, rock, country, etc, but his musical home is folk music, his church is the wide outdoors, and his tree is the Oak.
Marcia Prager is Rabbi at Philadelphia's P'nai Or community, an affiliate of ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal. Marcia is a teacher, a singer and a dynamic source of spiritual guidances vibrantly rooted in the Jewish faith.
MargeTheMaven.com is the web home of Jewish singer/songwriter Marge Eiseman. Marge leads workshops and programs on Storahtelling, Comfort Shawls, Hip Spirituality and many other topics.
Gina Citoli has a long pedigree singing and writing music. Gina has performed with several groups, including Alchemy VII, but is now typically on her own. She's been popular with those with an organic, holistic point of view, especially those that connect with New Thought and Earth-based spiritualities, as well as consciousness raising groups.
Warren Petryk has done a lot of music, with a group called The Memories, as part of Taize-style worship, with the Chippewa Valley Symphony and, of course, on his tapes and CD's. He's deeply rooted in Christianity with great appreciation in the ways God shows through all of Creation and the writings of many other religions.
Jack Kessler has many musical faces. He has decades of experience as a Cantor with Aleph, Alliance for Jewish Renewal. He's also the director and lead force behind Atzilut Concerts for Peace, a Jewish-Arab ensemble, and Klingon Klezmer, a Klezmer-Fusion band beyond belief.
Bruce & Julie Hecksel are Patchouli, 2 former city folks thriving on nature and music in rural Wisconsin, making deeply stirring vocal and instrumental songs to reconnect and deepen lives. Bruce answered the call of his guitar one semester short of finishing seminary, and it was a fortunate choice for music lovers everywhere.
A vibrant voice and astonishing songwriting talent are a joy whenever they appear, but all the more wonderful when they appear by the age of 13. Kenzie Joy is a Chippewa Valley singer/songwriter destined for great things.
A re-visit with singer/songwriter and activist Mary Shapiro, organizer and host of the Sounds of Hope Concert Series in Washington DC, and niece to the Dominican priest who founded the Friends of God Dominican Ashram.
Annabella Wood has filled many roles: singer-songwriter, long-haul truck driver, handywoman and cancer survivor. A recent brush with death has focused her ever more firmly on what she loves - music, especially music about her journey to integrity.
Brian Bethke emerged from 8 years of illness by capturing the vivid stories of his life in song. On his own since the age of 15, his folk/Americana/country style music conveys a powerful journey with powerful, heartfelt music.
Greg Herriges (& Telluric Currents) is music that tastes of the vastness of the world and the universe. It is spirituality, most often without words, that is World Music and Minnesota music. It's a treat!
Magic Mama is Kjersten Hallin deGaia and she does what she calls eco-edu-tainment and "Organic Hip Hop & World Beats for the Whole Family", and she does it with spiritual depth and soaring joy.
Steve Deasy has a wealth of musical experience, both instrumental & vocal, but only began writing songs relatively recently. He got some top honors at the Kerrville Folk Festival this year. His latest release is the fruit of a deepening spiritual engagement with Quakerism and issues of peace & justice.
Tom Allen is very involved in Transcendental Mediation, Men's work, and working for world peace, especially on the spiritual plane. He's a talented guitarist of many styles - classical, jazz and much more. In addition he has a long history with Christian praise bands, A COURSE IN MIRACLES, and other contemporary expressions of Christ's energy.
Joyce Johnson Rouse has been Earth Mama for the past 15 years. With a degree in Earth Literacy, she teaches about care for the Earth through her songs, spreading peace and justice as part of the message.
Alivia Bright Maple Biko is a singer/songwriter with a ministerial component, raised in the Midwest but now a longtime Oregon resident. Part of her religious and spiritual journey was in the UCC and Lutheran churches, and she is now clerk and substitute pastor for Freedom Friends Church in Salem, Oregon.
David Serotkin is a singer/songwriter/guitarist/pianist from Richmond, CA. David also has a masters in Consciousness Studies from John F. Kennedy University in Pleasant Hill, California, bringing tremendous insight to his songwriting and to this program.
Singer/songwriter Russ Downs has been making music of many sorts for a couple decades - pop, rock, rockabilly, Christian, and more. Arlington, VA, is home with some time in Nashville, and his religious travels have taken him from non-practicing Methodist to Unitaritarian Universalist. Russ has an independent and compassionate mind, and plenty of heart in his songs.
Susan Werner is a Chicago-based singer/songwriter, preferring a big, big, city still close to her Iowa roots. Susan is an innovator, and among her musical creations is "The Gospel Truth", a no-holds-barred grappling with faith and doubt which raised hackles and admiration from the entire belief spectrum. But that project is just the tip of the iceberg, and there is so much more to hear and see.
Self-proclaimed as a Jewish-Christian-Mystic-Pluralist, Mary Shapiro is clearly a rich spiritual pastiche. Her music is folk-rock-progressive, and she carries deep passion for work to heal and grow the world. Native to the Midwest, Washington DC is her current home.
A different format Song of the Soul - a recording of a Taizé style worship service filled with music, words and silence. We've abridged the silences for this radio broadcast, but encourage you to try them with full silence to experience the power of the worship.
Peter Phippen started his musical career playing bass in a country western band, making good money, at the age of only 12. His search for the instrument of his soul was fulfilled when he met the bamboo flute 23 years ago. He's a regional icon on the flute, as both a composer and performer. Raised mostly non-religious, Peter considers himself a spiritualist with great affection for the Tao Te Ching.
For about 30 years Tom Rawson has been a presence on Seattle's activist and music scene. Teaching or not, you'll find his banjo, dulcimer or other instruments nearby, ready to help inspire hope and get a group singing.
John Haigis and his wife, Jan, make exceptionally diverse music, music that is silly, serious, spiritual and much more. Out of dulcimer and voice they weave simple and way-faring music, from Groundhog Day carols to an upbeat version of the Lord's Prayer.
Todd Werner is a singer/songwriter from Wausau, Wisconsin with a deep spiritual bent and practical skills in nurturing peace through his work with Peaceful Solutions Counseling. Raised Catholic, gravitating to the kind of Spirit present in Unity Churches, Todd remains a seeker and singer.
Few of my Song of the Soul guest share all instrumental pieces, but Greg Gibertson has a special gift of speaking poetry through his guitar, without words. A finger style guitarist and vivid composer, power and Light shine through his music and, in this interview, through his words.
Singer/songwriter Bryan Sirchio is an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ, and his passions include his frequent trips to and service in Haiti - and, of course, his music. He’s been my guest for Spirit In Action, highlighting some of the many songs he’s written on Peace and Justice themes, but today he’s just back from Haiti to share his spiritual journey through his Song of the Soul.
My guest is Wanaku and he's founder of a band, SUNplugd - Sweet Afrikan Kontry Muziki. Wanaku grew up in British Cameroon, West Africa and currently shares his music with the folks of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The warmth, joy and passion of Wanaku's roots shine through his music.
Yata is a musician with tremendous talents and deep spirit, delighting in collaboration with other artists, including Bruce Black, Timothy Young, Dave Ja Vue, and his wife, water-colorist Jean Accola. Yata is Lutheran, past and present, with a special fondness for the writings of Lao Tzu in the Dao De Jing.
Regina Gallero was born and raised in Chile, coming to the USA for graduate school. Though she played guitar in her youth, she didn't start writing songs until her later 50's. Her spiritual path started with Catholicism, wended its way widely, and she has been attending Milwaukee Friends Meeting for the past year, where she gave a concert recently on "The Experience of Oppression and the Quest for Freedom" through Latin American Folk songs, images and stories.
Julie and Bruce Hecksel are Patchouli and 'Fast Forward Folk' is what it says on their website. Julie caught the guitar bug seeing Taj Mahal while in her teens.
Dhaivyd Hilgendorf teaches at Friends School of Minnesota, a Quaker school which fits Dhaivyd's inclinations very well. He's made a wide variety of music in a wide variety of places and with a wide variety of musicians.
Julie Rust started out her life in Wisconsin, including college in Eau Claire, but she's lived out in Nashville for about 15 years now. Music has been our calling from her youth on, and the keyboard is her passionate home. Born Lutheran, she met the teachings of Meher Baba through her husband, Rusty.
Paulette Meier is a singer/songwriter and a school-based trainer in violence prevention and social emotional learning. Based in Cincinnati, she performs as part of Just Earth, along with Jamie Fota and Len Webb. Jamie performed with Paulette for this Song of this Soul interview.
Susan Stark is a spiritually deep and musically powerful musician. She has 4 albums behind her and one in the near future. She grew up a "preacher's kid", attended Earlham School of Religion, is the mother of 2 and the piano is her preferred instrument. Raised UCC, she's been Quaker most of her adult life.
Mark Holdaway has many facets to his life including his work as a scientist and currently as a musician whose passion is centered on the Kalimba, the African Thumb Piano. From generic Christian to Born Again to Quaker, Mark's life is a tapistry of spirit and music.
Mark Holdaway has many facets to his life including his work as a scientist and currently as a musician whose passion is centered on the Kalimba, the African Thumb Piano. From generic Christian to Born Again to Quaker, Mark's life is a tapestry of spirit and music.
Singer/songwriter Dennis Warner has 8 recordings under his belt and just one children's book, Beads On One String, named for one of his songs. Dennis joined us from Chicago's Dominican University where he was invited as a performer for a New Thought conference.
Derek Lamson is a bluesy, spiritual, free-wheelin' kind of guy with a sure sense of the ministry he's been called to. His music talks of the joy he's attained, but also of his struggles, like those with addiction and divorce.
Charlie King has been performing music since he was four, eventually finding a home with folk music. A lifelong Roman (or roaming) Catholic, he morphed from a Goldwater supporter in 1964 to an anti-war protester by 1967, and he's been an outspoken voice for peace and justice ever since.
The main stage music from Eau Claire's 2009 Earth Day celebration, including performances by Quinn Elizabeth, Jeff White, Billy Krause & Chuck Roll, Patchouli.
Jonathan Lutz is a musician and choir leader of diverse talents and with deep spiritual reflection. Born in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, he's lived in Finland, at Europe's northern rim, for the past 30 years where he's part of a very small Quaker meeting.
Chris Pfeiffer is a singer/songwriter from Southern Texas who found his career as a songwriter for the country music market interrupted by a spiritual awakening to the universal presence and blessing of God.
David Rovics is a singer/songwriter with a cause - actually many of them. His music takes him wherever there are listeners for his activist selection, with concern for peace, social justice and much, much more.
Scott Beck has been in a wide assortment of bands since high school, from folk to rock to blues and cycling back, now to acoustic guitar. Raised Catholic, disaffected from religion for many years, he's now found a spiritual home with enough heart and wide enough walls to include his beliefs in New Thought churches.
Claudia Schmidt has been producing music, poetry and theater for over 30 years. Folk and jazz are some of her musical styles, the Midwest is her home, but the world is her audience!
Bob Franke has decades of experience writing songs that vividly capture the experience of the human heart and spirit, enough so that at least one of his songs made it into the Friends Hymnal that came out in 1996. His latest CD, The Other Evening In Chicago is available at the waterbug.com site.
Sara Hickman is an artist with a passionate and activist soul. From the work that earned her an honorary degree as a music therapist to her work on behalf of Romanian orphans, whether performing in a church fund-raiser for a shelter or on the stage of Austin City Limits, Sara brings heart and deep listening to Spirit to her music.
Singer/songwriter Kate MacLeod was a Utah violin-maker, but became a performer when push came to shove. The fiddle/violin is her special instrument among the other instruments she plays, but my favorite is her voice. Catholic raised, Quaker at present, she’s a story-teller, a folk singer, a blue grass virtuoso.
Sara Thomsen lives amongst the woods of Northwestern Wisconsin, making music and leading a choir. She's released 3 solo albums plus one with the group called Three Altos. Raised ELCA Lutheran and an occasional UU attender now, her music is deeply spiritual with a lively concern for the world.
Carlton has spent the past 2 years at an ashram in California, finding his way forward in his spiritual life. He's produced a CD Love Is The Cure that shares music he's been given, freeing him to skip past the ego battles that were such a part of his work as a counselor.
Annie Patterson is a thorough music lover, maker and sharer, with many years experience performing music in coffeehouses, clubs and festivals and with a swing group called Big Nite Out and Girls From Mars. Annie was raised Methodist, but felt, even in her teens, a tug toward the Divine presence available in silence, an attraction that led her to Quakers as an adult.
During nearly 30 years of driving trucks Annabella was pulled into deep spiritual introspection. One of the outcroppings of this was prolific songwriting on spiritual matters. With her partner at the time, Bobbie Bush, she formed the singing duo "Sweet Spirit". Annabella continues singing solo now delving into the challenge of balancing physical life with spiritual being.
Sally Rogers has been sharing her music with the world for at least 3 decades, has more than a dozen recordings, and some of her songs have been included in both the Unitarian and Quaker hymnals. She teaches music in Connecticut and is a singer/songwriter on weekends and in the summer.
Dana had a life-changing experience in 1991 when God gave her the first of her Christian songs, after years with secular bands. Since then she's been given more than 100 songs and will have a release concert for her first solo CD, Leap of Faith, on November 17th.
Jon Watts is a 'Young Friend' - a Quaker in the 18-35 age range - and he's found a passion and a ministry through his music.
Joe has 2 CD's out as part of a band named Carp 18 and has one solo album of his own. He's Catholic-raised and has found a niche helping the teens of St Joan of Arc Catholic Church in Minneapolis with their youth band.
Bryce Black, Timothy James Young and Yata teamed up in a concert bursting at the seams with Spirit on May 10, 2008, held at Unity Christ Center.
Born and raised in the South, between Georgia & Texas, David's spiritual path has taken him from the traditional Christianity (Baptist/Methodist/Presbyterian) through 12 Step experiences to New Thought Churches (Unity & Religious Science). Through it all, music was a perversive and Spirit-livening part of David's process.
Catherine Price is southern born and raised with a hobo's heart and deep affection for many types of music, including, currently, country swing. She was raised Southern Baptist, served in the Peace Corps and ended up a Quaker, all of it with a deep connection to music.
Tom Neilson has been making folk music for a few decades now, combining his passion for music with his desire to make a positive difference in the world. His music confronts the problems of the world, but it also embraces the farm folk he grew up with, the nurture of family, and laughs at the funny things in the world.
Tom Neilson has been making folk music for a few decades now, combining his passion for music with his desire to make a positive difference in the world. His music confronts the problems of the world, but it also embraces the farm folk he grew up with, the nurture of family, and laughs at the funny things in the world.
Methodist born and a Quaker later in life, Tom Neilson has been making folk music for a few decades now, combining his passion for music with his desire to make a positive difference in the world. His music confronts the problems of the world, but it also embraces the farm folk he grew up with, the nurture of family, and laughs at the funny things in the world.
James Schattauer has been writing and performing songs since 1979 or even before, and since 1987 has used the moniker Mister Jim for his performances for children and families.
Peter Alsop has produced dozens of recordings over the past few decades, specializing in "Children's Music" - often aimed equally at adults - for more than 20 years. He's an educational psychologist, a motivational speaker, recipient of awards for Best Children's Album, a dad, and a deep, serious and humorous songwriter.
Dale Worley's music is fun and it's deep and it's sacred and it's rockin'. Dale is a Lay Minister & Truth Student at Unity Village, and has been playing the piano since he was 8, influenced by Jerry Lee Louis, Elton John, Bonnie Raitt, Ray Charles, Little Richard and Elvis Presley.
Peter Alsop has produced dozens of recordings over the past few decades, specializing in "Children's Music" - often aimed equally at adults - for more than 20 years. He's an educational psychologist, a motivational speaker, recipient of awards for Best Children's Album, a dad, and a deep, serious and humorous songwriter.
Carol Johnson has been producing music for adults and children for decades and her music has even been featured on Sesame Street and in national hymnals and curricula. Among the powerful, moving and insightful spiritual music she has created is the theme song for our Spirit In Action programs, "I Have No Hands But Yours." She lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, performing and touring extensively.
Back on April 22nd, also known as Earth Day 2007, the Eau Claire Friends Meeting organized, Unity Christ Center of Eau Claire hosted and the Sierra Club and the Shalom Mennonite Church co-sponsored an Earth Banquet Potluck and Community Earth Singalong. About 40 hearty voices showed up and lifted up song of their souls for the Earth. It was all done without practice and with low-tech recording methods, but with immense joy.
Chester McCoy grew up Catholic in a working class neighborhood of St Louis when segregation was still the rule. His way out of the limitations and oppression of racism was through education, social work and his his rich connections with people, including college at St John's in Collegeville, Minnesota. Chester has been writing songs for about 30 years now, and is a Quaker, a member of Minneapolis Friends Meeting.
Cyndi Bradbury has a passion for music that she lives out each weekday in her profession of music therapist, and each weekend as the music director for Plymouth Congregational UCC. Cindy loves animals and the outdoors, being a bit silly and conveying caring through her music.
A number of folks in Eau Claire started Advent with a Peace Sing-along. The event was organized by Eau Claire Friends Meeting (Quakers), hosted by Unity Christ Center, and co-sponsored by Eau Claire's Unitarian Universalist Congregation, the Network of Spiritual Progressives and Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ, each providing 15 minutes of peace-related songs for all to sing. Although the recording quality was low, the Spirit of the gathering was high!
Nancy O'Neill is a life-long American Baptist and a lover of music, including decades of bringing music to Eau Claire's First Baptist Church. Daughter of an American Baptist minister, she has grown from conservative beginnings to embrace more of the world and to embrace its people more widely.
Greg Farley started learning guitar around 10, and came back to it after several other instruments. Raised Catholic, he sought a better fitting spiritual home, studied with Jehovah's Witnesses, eventually settling, more-or-less, in charismatic Christian circles. His Song of the Soul is comprised of original compositions by Greg, from his new CD called For All To See.
Chris Powell started piano lessons when 6 years old and added trombone to his repertoire in high school, and appreciates music of all stripes but has a special passion for classical music. Chris is a member of the First Baptist Church in Eau Claire, though he was raised without much exposure to organized religion.