We all know there will be plenty of energy in Chris’s performance.

Then there will be new CDs and performances from Jordan Tirrell-Wysocki and the Tom Lanigan Band.  Pete is planning to be there – so you never know what combination of any of the above might be called to the stage for some fun collaboration.  That’s a big part of the good fortune and the fun we all share in this area – so much great music with so many great people.

This night will rock  — here’s hoping you can be there!

It was great fun then, and now we’ll get to enjoy at least one summer evening there:

Wednesday, July 21st

Starting at 7 PM

Directions: The Restaurant and Pub is right on Route 1 in Wells, Maine. just north of Route 9 and the Wells Exit (19) from Route 95.

We’ll hope to see you there!

We are enjoying every Monday night at the RiRa Pub in Portsmouth, and we have a few things brewing at other spots.

July 23rd we’ll be at Kate O’Shea’s in Seabrook, NH, from 7;30 – 10:30.

August 4th we host the session from 8:30 – 11:30 at Harrington’s Pub in Wakefield, MA

And we may have a few other surprises to post in the next few days.

Hope to see you over a cool pint before long…..

Thanks again to Reagh for setting things up, and to Eva Powers for snapping these shots!

Terry is on vacation in warmer climes this week – and he has entrusted the Harrington’s Session to Pete and I.   One of  us told him ‘You can trust us” — while the other whispered “You’ll be sooooorrry”  (no need to tell you which was which).
Anyway – we have the reins there this Wednesday, the 21st.  If you happen to be around, or up for a little drive, we’d love to see you there.  We’ll be having a good time there from 8:30 to 11:30 – then trying to cover our tracks the best we can.

Who was that man? ….. now …. it *was* a man wasn’t it?…..

During the tune a woman walked over behind Pete to listen a little closer – and when we were done she said to him “That was beautiful … that’s my waltz.”  Pete smiled, and she added, ” I’m Amelia … Bob McQuillen wrote that for me.”  Now she had our attention and we enjoyed the first chance for all of us to meet ‘the’ Amelia.

After we’d chatted for a minute. I asked her to confirm or correct the interesting story I’d heard about how she’d been named ‘Amelia.’  The tale had started with Charles Lindbergh’s historic flight in1927.  As two large wooden crates had been built for his plane’s ocean journey back to the states,  they were given to the ship’s captain, Admiral Guy Burrage.  He built them into a humble cottage in the woods near Contoocook NH.  In about 1980 Amelia’s mother, Deana Stiles was living in that cottage, and Amelia was born right there.  I had heard that, with the Lindbergh connection, she’d been named after Amelia Earhart – but last night I got ‘the rest of the story.’   She said her mother loved Joni Mitchell’s song ‘Amelia’ — which does reference Earhart, but has some broader threads.  As her mother played flute at contra dances with Bob, he wrote the waltz for Amelia when she was about 3. 

One more note – I see that the cottage was bought and moved to Canaan, Maine, where it’s been restored as the centerpiece of Lindbergh’s Crates Museum there.

All in all, quite a special moment for us all – seeing the real Amelia there as we finished playing her song.

Click here to view the embedded video.

We’ll have two open chairs that we’ll mostly pre-arrange with the couple of players or singers who want to be part of our little ‘collaborative performance’ each week. It’ll be more planned and controlled than a session, but we hope everyone will see that it offers some things that wide open sessions don’t:

• For those who come to listen, this format means you’ll get to  ‘really hear’ the great musicians from the Seacoast and beyond play with us…and each week will be different because the other players will bring their own repetoire to the table.

• For our musician friends, the smaller table means we’ll be able to hear each other better — so the music will be tighter and sound the best it can. Plus, you’ll have more chances to lead the songs and tunes.

On November 23rd, Ramona Connelly and Emery Hutchins will join us to put the plan into action.

Ramona will bring her  fiddle and plenty of super tunes – and, when we be lucky enough – we hope she’ll give us some songs.

Emery, with the  combination of concertinas, guitar, banjo, drum, and stories that he chooses, will light up the night for us all.

Hope you can swing by for a pint and/or to give us a song or two.

And if any of our musician friends are interested in getting into the mix, let us know when you might want to stop by and we’ll get you there. Looking forward to some great craic!

We’ll use about the same setup we had at McM’s, with Pete and I at a table with mics and room for a few musical friends. The pub wants that format because it’s something different than their other nights, and we like it because it combines the best aspects of a performance and a session. How will that work?

• The performance part engages the audience, with a base of practiced, popular songs and tunes they know. That gets the punters in the door and ‘pays the rent’ for the business.
• The session part means we have one or a few friends join us for added spontaneity and variety. With a small group around one table, we can all hear what we are doing, making the music tighter, and giving those players more chances to lead songs and tunes with a solid foundation.

We hope you’ll enjoy this “collaborative performance” formula and join us on occasion. Having you there will help us make each Monday night unique and fun.

Looking forward to our maiden voyage tonight — hoping you can be there.

Robbie was the very special finale to concert on Saturday night, and he appeared with us on Sunday afternoon, sharing songs back and forth at RiRa pub in Market Square.

Robbie was most gracious throughout the weekend, often acknowledging how impressed he was with the songs and singing he heard from all the other festival participants. We are very lucky to have the critical mass of local talent,  that helps attract others from around the world on a weekend like this.

I’ll admit to a certain ‘dream’ quality that went with being in the songs with Robbie.  After years of listening to him and admiring what he does, I did have to pinch myself a time or two to be sure it was for real.  Truly a memorable day.

Mudhook, for the record, is Alan Eaton, Pete Hale, Mike Jeanneau, and myself.  We came together to perform for this festival a few years ago – but we may extend our reach to other maritime events throughout the year… and do watch for the CD!