What's New?
3/28/10: The NEW CD, “Once Upon the Hudson” by The Hudson River Ramblers, is now
available!! Check out the “Recordings” page for more information and
details on how and where to get it! You can also hear “samples” of all 14
tracks on CDBaby.com (the “Recordings” page also has a link to the site).
To celebrate, The
Ramblers will be presenting a “CD Launch Concert” on Saturday, April 10th, at
the Beacon Institute for Rivers and
Estuaries, in Beacon, NY. See the “Performance Schedule” page for
more details!
1/24/10: This year is starting off with a bang! Well, actually it’s 2 bangs. The first one is a NEW CD by The Hudson River Ramblers! “Once Upon The Hudson” is a collection of stories (told by Jonathan Kruk) and songs (sung by me!) about the early history of the river, from Native legends and the arrival of Henry Hudson and the first Europeans, to the opening of the Erie Canal. We’re expecting to get it back from the manufacturer by the end of this month, so stay tuned for more details, announcements, and special CD release concerts real soon!
The second “big bang” is what we’re calling “The 3 Rix Tour”, which is a series of concerts next month (February) by old friends Rick Nestler, Rik Palieri, and myself (a.k.a. “Ricky”). We’ll be playing at a number of venues around the Hudson Valley, and then up in the Burlington, Vt. Area, with a little side trip to New Hampshire. Check the performance schedule for tour details and information.
Here’s hoping that your New Year is getting off to a great start too, and I look forward to seeing you at some of my upcoming concerts!
1/5/09: 2009: The Year of “The
Quad”! All year long, the entire
Festivals, conferences, exhibits and events of all kinds are being planned
just about everywhere along the river and lake from
This will truly be a “once in a lifetime” series of events and celebrations,
and it is my hope that I personally, along with my performing partners The Hudson River Ramblers and The Barefoot Boys, will be involved in
and performing at many of the festivities! I would strongly encourage you to
check the websites listed above for more news on what will happening during the
year, and to also check this site from time to time for updates on where and
when I will be appearing. This could very well be the year in which “
12/6/08: The Boys return
to First Night Saratoga Springs on Wed.
12/31! For those of you who might not be familiar with “First Night”, it’s
a family-friendly, non-alcoholic New Year’s Eve celebration. For just $15, you
can receive a button which admits you to over 40 venues throughout downtown
10/19/08: NERFA (North East
Regional Folk
3/23/08: The Barefoot Boys now have their very own website! Effective today, you can go to www.thebarefootboys.com and get all the latest news, performance schedule, photos, and other information. Some of the features of this new site are a guestbook, where you can send us a note, an email list, where you can sign up to receive emails about upcoming shows and other news, links to our CD pages on CDBaby, and also song files where you can listen to tracks from our CD’s. The song files will take about 10 days to be uploaded, so you won’t be able to listen to them at the new site until early April, but you can still hear them at CDBaby.com. Please check it out when you get the chance, sign our guestbook, and let us know what you think of our new home on the web!
1/15/08: Well here it is,
the day has FINALLY come, and I’m proud to say “The NEW Barefoot Boys CD is HERE!!”.
Over the next week or so, I will be setting up the “Recordings” page with
pictures of the CD cover and back, putting up the link to CDBaby.com where you
can buy it online AND hear 2 minute clips from ALL the tracks, and hopefully
adding more dates for special “CD Release Concerts”. In the meantime, we will
be appearing LIVE on Wanda Fischer’s radio program, “
12/29/07: The NEW Barefoot Boys CD, “Sweetwater Passage”, is right on schedule for a mid-January release! It is currently at the manufacturer where it’s being put together even as we speak!! We should have it by January 15th, just in time for all the “CD Release Concerts” we have lined up (see performance schedule). Along with the CD, we’ll have other “goodies” like t-shirts, free chocolates, and other “surprises” at these shows to make them real special events. Watch (and listen) for announcements here, in your local newspapers, and on the radio. Here’s wishing you all the very best for the new year, and I hope to see you sometime during 2008!
11/9/07: The new Barefoot Boys recording is almost
done!! Titled “Sweetwater Passage”, it will have 16 tracks of both songs and
tunes about the inland “superhighway” of the Hudson River and the
Songs: Shove
Around the Grog, Erie Canal (Low Bridge, Everybody Down), Simon Slick (Whoa
Mule, Whoa), Mary Powell Waltz, Lifeline to the Heartland, Rio Grande, NY Gals
(Can’t You Dance the Polka?), With a Big Bow Wow, Fifty Sail on Newburgh Bay,
Storm King, & Rolling Home.
Tunes: Billy in the Lowground/ Over the Waterfall,
The mixing was completed recently by Pete Sutherland, and now the only things left are the mastering, some of the graphic design work, and then shipping it off is for duplication and manufacturing! We’re hoping to have it ready for release by mid-late January, and are currently lining up lots of gigs for the big event! So stay tuned, because we’ll be posting more news as its completion comes closer to reality! We’ll also update the performance schedule around this time next month. Until then, here’s wishing all of you and your loved ones the very best of Thanksgivings!
9/3/07: First, the REALLY BIG NEWS!! The NEW “PHOTO GALLERY” is finally up and running! Check it out and let me know what you think. There’s still some “kinks” and “glitches” to work out, especially when trying to view it using all the various browsers (DAMN YOU BILLY GATES!!). It’s also still in the preliminary, formative stages, but in the near future you will be able to click on a photo from the main page and get an “album” or series of shots from the particular event or subject, and then be able to click on those photos for larger versions. Please let me know if you are having ANY problems viewing the gallery. Your input will be most helpful in working out the bugs!
There are some really big festivals that I’ll be performing at this month.
The first is the
The second big festival is the Garlic
Fest on Saturday, 9/29 and Sunday, 9/30 at Cantine
Field right in the heart of
Check my performance schedule and the websites listed there for more info on these events, and all the other concerts and performances I’ll be doing during September and October. Be sure to check back often as more performances are added when they’re confirmed, and more info is firmed up on the existing ones. I hope you all enjoy these last days of summer, and have a great autumn as well. As always, please stop by and say “hi” if you come to any of my shows!
7/21/07: I just wanted to give you an update on the NEW “Barefoot Boys” CD! Things are
progressing slowly but surely. We’ve been recording at Tom’s new, state-of-the
art recording facility, and we have about ½ the songs recorded. It looks like
it’s going to have a nautical/maritime “theme”, only with a twist! Instead of
the usual type, with lots of shanties and forebitters
(or foc’s’le songs ….. gawd
how I LOVE sailor lingo!!), there will be LOTS of songs from and about rivers,
lakes, canals, and seaports included. Some of the songs we’ve recorded so far
are “
Speaking of putting things on the
site, watch for some new “features” to be added in the near future! My wife,
Cathy, who is also the site’s “webmistress”, is
working on creating a page that will have all kinds of photos of myself, The HR Ramblers, and The Boys, including “early”
photos, concert shots, and others we think might be of interest to you. So keep
an eye on the site for updates and new developments. I try to update at least
the performance schedule about once a month, and there are some BIG things that
will be happening later on this year on that topic as well. So check back “early
and often”, and here’s hoping you all enjoy the rest of your summer!
2/3/07: A Look at the Year Ahead – 2007 is already looking like it will be an exciting and interesting
year! Jonathan and I (aka The HR Ramblers) have started working on a BIG
Arts-in Education residency about the NYC Water Supply System, through a
grant from the Catskill Watershed System. It involves 4th grade
students from 2 schools, one in the Catskills and one in Queens, and will
culminate probably sometime in May with the students from both schools getting
together to share the songs, stories, and letters they will be writing as part
of the project. I can’t wait to see how it turns out!
This year is also the bicentennial
of Robert Fulton’s “invention” of the steamboat, marked by his “Clermont”,
or “
Be on the lookout for a NEW
Barefoot Boys CD sometime later this year! We’re going to start preliminary
“pre-production” work on it this month, and probably start recording in March.
Details are still up in the air at this point, but it just might be a recording
of songs and tunes about the “working waterways” of the area, including the
Also, “the Boys” now play sometimes
as a trio (again!), with the addition of Rick Hill on standup, “doghouse” bass.
Rick is a great addition, as he can also sing harmony, which allows us to add
an extra dimension to our repertoire by doing 3-part harmonies on many of them!
I’ve also been doing lots of
research and collecting of songs written in the mid-1800’s
by a fellow named Henry Backus, known as the “Saugerties Bard”.
He was quite an eccentric character who wrote songs about current events of the
day, and sold them as “broadsides” or penny sheets. I’ll be doing a few of the
songs I’ve found when I play in Saugerties in April. Check the calendar for
more details posted about this!
Here’s hoping 2007 is a good year
for ALL of us!
7/2/06: This is just a short
note to let all of you in the greater Poughkeepsie area know that my 2 solo
recordings, “Hudson Valley Traditions”
and “Home for the Harvest” are now available at the Barnes &
Noble Bookstore on Rt. 9 in Poughkeepsie! They are located in the folk
music section (duh!) with my very own divider that says “Regional Artist – Rich
Bala”, which is right behind Joan Baez’s CD’s. For
directions and more info, their phone number is 845-485-2224.
Here’s more news about Dylan! His
new CD titled (at this time) “Modern Times” will be coming out at the end of
August! He actually spent 1 week back in February at the Bardavon
Theatre in
And in yet another piece of “Dylanformation”, he will be coming back to Dutchess Stadium on Rt. 9D in Fishkill for a concert on
Friday, Sept. 1st! Tickets go on sale on July 15th at
10am, and retail for $49.50 (the actual cost will be more like $55 with fees
and taxes). Tickets can be purchased at the stadium box office or through
Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.com). My wife and I saw him the last time he
played there 2 years ago, and it was a great show!! The stadium’s capacity is
only 8,500 people, so you can get up pretty close to the stage, and if you’ve
never seen him live, or haven’t seen him recently, I would highly recommend
this as a “must see” concert for anyone who likes his music!
That’s it for now. Have a great
summer, and if you come out to any of my performances, make sure you come up
and say “Hi!”.
4/30/06: Bob Dylan
(that’s right, The One And Only!) will premiere his new radio show “Theme
Time Radio Hour”, this Wednesday, May 3rd, on XM Radio! Details
on the show, and its schedule, can be found at www.xmradio.com/bobdylan/index.jsp. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m a BIG
fan of Dylan (hearing him back in 1963 is what originally inspired me to become
a folksinger!), and I find this to be totally incredible, and almost too good
to be true! He won’t be playing his own songs, but music from his own private
collection that has inspired and influenced him over the years. Also, as the
title implies, there will be themes to the shows, with this week’s being
“Weather”. There’s a 3 part article by Lee Abrams (head of XM Radio) explaining
how XM got Dylan to do a show, and a description of the unique (to say the
least!) format the program will use. You can find it on http://leeabrams.blogspot.com. That Dylan, what a guy!!!!
2005 Year in Review:
As a performing artist, I never know how the year is going to turn out until it
is almost over. The uncertain, unpredictable nature of this line of work, and
the month-to-month variation in quality and quantity of performances, leaves
one guessing through most of the year whether it will be a good one or not.
Even when things aren’t looking too good, one never knows when a last minute
gig will suddenly turn up, or what the next phone call will bring. Every year
is different, and the outcome can never be predicted or determined based on the
previous years. Fortunately, I haven’t had a really bad year (yet!). At the
same time, I haven’t many really great ones either (yet!). 2003 was one of
those very special, career high points, as a result of getting to play with the
folks in the photo above, which is why I keep it at the top of this page! Most years, however, seem to fall somewhere
in the middle area, with some high points along with a few disappointments.
2005 seemed to be another one of “those” years. But being the eternal optimist
(albeit a cynical one at times), I’m happy to recount the following as the
biggest and best highlights of this past year:
Ø
The
Barefoot Boys had the pleasure and privilege of playing at The Sounding
Board Coffeehouse in
Ø
We also
performed for the 10th year in a row at the wonderful Tavern
Concert Series run by Historic Richmondtown
Restoration in
Ø
In May,
The Hudson River Ramblers gave a performance at the New York Historical
Society in
Ø
In
September, “The Boys” played at a Harvest Festival that was held on the site of
the original Woodstock Festival in
Ø
Last but
certainly not least, I performed at a Farm Festival held on the grounds of the FDR
National Historic Site in
Well,
that’s it! Not too shabby, if I do say so myself! As far as what next year
holds in store, we’ll just have to wait and see. I do hope I get a chance to
see and meet many of you in the next 12 months, and I wish you all the very
best, with many of your own personal “highlights”, for 2006!!
7/23/05 – John Herald (1939-2005) – It was with shock and sadness that I
learned yesterday of John Herald’s death earlier this week. For those of you not familiar with him, John
was the lead singer and guitarist for the pioneering bluegrass group, “The Greenbriar Boys”, which was probably the first and
certainly most successful and respected “urban” bluegrass band in the
Northeast. He also was a great songwriter who wrote, among many wonderful
songs, the version of
“Stewball” that was recorded by Peter,
Paul and Mary, and also “High Muddy Water”, recorded by Linda Ronstadt.
Born and raised in NYC’s Greenwich
Village, he became part of the “folk revival” that was happening there in the
late ‘50’s and early ‘60’s, becoming friends and playing with people like Bob
Dylan, Joan Baez, Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, Ralph Rinzler, Eric Weissberg, Frank
Wakefield, John Sebastian, and Maria Muldaur. Later,
when he moved to
But above all this, John had a reputation
for being the sweetest, kindest, gentlest, most gracious and generous man and
musician around. I had the great privilege of meeting, talking, and playing
with him on a couple of occasions back in 2003. The first was at the rehearsal,
and later that day at a concert of Catskill Mountain Folksongs that we were
both a part of, along with many others (see photo above) in
He was most certainly a most gentle
man, and we are not likely to encounter one like him again anytime soon. I know
my life has been enriched, not only because of the wonderful, joyous, exhuberant, and passionate music he created, but more
importantly because of his honesty, sincerity, and genuine regard for people.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
11/1/04 – Ahhhhh!!
Autumn in the
The first was the Garlic Festival in Saugerties
on 9/25 & 26. This is a HUGE festival, the second largest of its kind in
the whole country, with something like 20,000 people attending each day! It was
named “Best Food Festival” by USA Today, and is one of the very
best run, family oriented festivals I’ve ever been to. The folks who put this
together really have their act together. Everyone has a great time, and even
though it gets really crowded, everyone seems to get along. The organizers
credit this to the fact that no alcohol is served, but it is also to their
credit that they do a terrific job. Special credit must go to Pat Reppert, the “Garlic Queen” for her positive energy! The
highlight for me is getting driven around in a golf-cart, like a real
celebrity! It’s the best VIP treatment I get all year!!
Then, in October, it was my pleasure
and privilege to present workshops again (for the 3rd year in a row)
at the New York State Historical
Association’s Annual History Teacher’s Conference at The Farmer’s Museum in
Finally, I was honored by being
asked to perform at The Hudson Valley
Folk Guild’s 25th Anniversary Concert Celebration on
October 23rd
at the Vassar Institute
Theatre in
It is being part of events like
these that truly rejuvenate and invigorate one’s spirit with a renewed sense of
purpose and dedication to the spirit of the music I play, and I’m sure it will
sustain me through the long, lean winter, and those times when I am struggling
just to get gigs and to make ends meet, and wondering why I am doing this and
if it’s worth all the effort for what seems like so little in return. It’s experiences like these that definitely make it all
worthwhile!
3/21/04 - The following are some reviews of my "Hudson
Valley Traditions" CD that I've received recently:
SingOut! Magazine (#48/1 Spring '04) said, "Fascinating selections. Rich Bala, with his fine voice and historical perspective, is
the perfect tour guide for a 300 year journey through
the region."
Chronogram Magazine (March '04) had this to say, "Bala has an expressive voice, by turns elegiac and playful,
which makes these numbers more than mere museum pieces. He conjures up the grit
and heartbreak of everyday life.... Still, a pride of place for the beautiful
valley bleeds through."
Now, I don't really know why all 3 reviews seem to focus on my voice, which I personally don't think is all that great. Heck, I even had to look up what "elegiac" meant (expressing sorrow or lamentation, as in an elegy)! But I'm not about to argue with them! However, if you want to see (or hear) for yourself, just go to my "Recordings" page, click on the CDBaby icon next to "Hudson Valley Traditions" and you will ba able to listen to parts of ALL the songs on the CD. Then, if you agree with the critics, and wish to buy a copy, you can either do it there at the CDBaby site, or send a check to me personally. It's as easy as that! As Tom Carvel used to say, "Please buy this delicious, non-dairy product"!
2003 Year in Review - Last year was the most productive one I've had since I started doing this full-time. I had more gigs (and more income!) than any other year! I must be doing something right! Here are some highlights:
There were many more high points than these, but rather than going on and on
endlessly, I thought I'd just mention the really BIG ones! I hope your year was
a good one too, and that this coming year is good to us all as well!
11/30/03 - I'm organizing a benefit for the financially
strapped
My new CD, "
Lastly, I'd like to wish all you a safe and happy holiday season! Try not
to get caught up in the frenzy of what I call "Giftmas",
like the woman in
9/17/03 - THE NEW CD, "
8/7/03 - I'm selling my guitar! The page with photos and
information is up. Check it out under "Guitar
for Sale".
Also, my redone, updated, improved version of my first recording, "
6/1/03 - In the next week or so, I will be adding a page to my site, which will include photos and other information about my 1987 Martin HD-28, which I am selling. I am FINALLY getting it back from the repair shop this week after dropping it off back on 2/13 and being told it would "only take 6-8 weeks"!! So if you know anyone who is looking for a great guitar, tell them to check out my site for details.
Also, I am getting ready to re-issue my recording, "
3/1/03 - Well, the big news for me this time around is that I bought a new guitar!! Yup, a brand-spankin' new Martin OM-28V (Orchestra Model 1930's Vintage Re-issue). It's still in the "break-in" phase, but it sounds really great already!! And the nice thing about Martins are that they usually just keep sounding better as they age! Sooo ...... if you or anyone you know might want to buy a 1987 Martin HD-28, get in touch with me. That's the guitar I've been playing for the past 15 years (that's right, I'm the original owner!), and the one I'm holding in all the photos on this site. I will be posting other, more detailed photos of the guitar here in the very near future, along with detailed information about its condition, so if you're interested, keep checking back.
The other big news is the concert of
1/5/03 - Happy New Year to all! 2003 gets off to a
good start as "The Barefoot Boys" return to "The
Tavern Concert Series" in
I'm also adding a few new links to my site here, which I hope will be of
some interest to you. One is for a new, online business called "Made
in the Hudson Valley", which has all kinds of gifts, crafts,
books, prints, food, music, and other items. All
of these products share a similar origin; they were all made, you guessed it
(the company name sort of gives it away!), right here in the
10/27/02 - There are a few events coming up
that I'm really excited about. The first one will be on Friday, Nov. 15th, when
I conduct a workshop on "Catskill Mountain Folk Music", along
with Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, and Happy Traum! This will be part of the Northeast
Regional Folk Alliance Conference, being held this year at Kutsher's Resort in
The other event that I'm so pleased to be a part of will happen on New Year's Eve, when The Barefoot Boys will perform at the legendary Caffe' Lena for Saratoga's First Night Celebration. We'll be alternating sets throughout the evening with a talented contemporary musician, Kate McDonnell, so there should be plenty of good music, both old and new, for everyone to enjoy! Check out my performance schedule for more details and contact info. What an exciting way to end a year full of many highlights!
10/8/02 - Autumn has arrived once again, and with it
comes the usual flurry of activity! I'll be traveling to Rochester for my first
house concert, then it's over to Cooperstown where Jonathan and I are giving a
presentation for the NYS Historical Association's annual Teacher's
Conference. Then, on the weekend of Oct 19th-20th, "The Barefoot
Boys" will play at Hunter Mtn.'s Harvest Fest,
and on the evening of Sat., Oct 19th, Jonathan & I will give a concert at a
new venue, The Uptown, in conjunction with the 225th Anniversary of
the Burning of
9/8/02 - There are a few things coming up in the next few weeks that I'd like to mention here. First, there will be an article I wrote in the next issue of Sing Out! Magazine, which should be out by the end of the month. It's the one with the photo of Ralph Stanley on the cover. The article is about the origins and background of the song, "Yankee Doodle", and is the featured article in the "Behind the Song" column. If you read it, please be sure to let me know what you thought of it!
The other thing I wanted to mention is an event during the first weekend
of October (the 5th & 6th). That is when the opening of the State's NEWEST
historic site,
6/20/02 - "The Boys" have returned from a
successful, 2-engagement "tour" of the historic, scenic, and
otherwise lovely area around
Beaufort reminded me of a quaint New England seaport, with it's colonial architecture dating back to the early 1700's,
and it's main street running parallel to the inlet. We
saw dolphins and wild horses, and on nearby
Now I'm preparing for the BIG July 4th weekend, with concerts of Rev War
songs at Clermont State Historic Site (the
home of the influential Livingston family) on the 4th, and another at
the
6/2/02 - The big news this week is that "The
Boys" (Tom White and myself) will be traveling down to
4/20/02 - There are a few noteworthy events coming up this week I thought you might like to know about. First, next Tuesday and Wednesday, April 23rd & 24th, PBS will be showing a documentary (9-11PM EST) called America's First River: Bill Moyers on the Hudson. Part one explores the cultural, historical, economic, and spiritual importance of the river, while part two focuses on the more recent battles against such threats as PCB's, power plants, and urban sprawl. The special includes an interview with Pete Seeger, among others, and I highly recommend watching/taping it!
Later in the week, we will celebrating the 225th
anniversary of the Paul Revere-like ride of Sybil Ludington. On April 27th,
1777, Sybil rode through parts of
3/26/02 - I've added 3 new links which should give
those of you who are interested in events concerning the Revolutionary War's
225th Anniversary all the information you need! As I mentioned previously (see
1/27's entry), there's LOTS happening in the
1/27/02 - This year will certainly be the most
exciting and significant one in a long, long time for historic events in the
valley! Locations along the entire length of the river will be commemorating
the 225th anniversary of the British Campaign of 1777, commonly referred to in
history books as the "3-pronged attack", to gain control of the
In addition to re-enacting its infamous burning in October, the city of
Finally, this year marks the the Bicentennial
of
So if you have any interest in history whatsoever, the
1/6/02 - Greetings and Happy New Year!! As I'm sure it was for many of you, last year was a roller-coaster ride of highs and lows. I finally fulfilled one of my career dreams by playing at the legendary Caffe' Lena which, since 1960, has hosted some of the first concerts by the likes of Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Don McLean, Utah Phillips, and Michael Cooney. It was also a year in which I lost 4 dear friends or colleagues.
In April my very good buddy, Bruce Morrison, lost his life-long struggle with diabetes. Bruce is the one who first encouraged me to make a recording, which resulted in "Hudson Valley Traditions", and I'll always be thankful for his encouragement and support. Bruce was always ready with a good joke or 3, a consummate professional and perfectionist when playing music, and one of the ONLY people I could talk with about our common interest in the open-wheel racing (Indy) cars of CART and Formula 1.
Eli Jaffe was still going strong at 88 years old when he suddenly left us. I'll ALWAYS remember those early days of the Hudson Valley Folk Guild open stages at the Amber Lantern, when Eli would invariably try to coax me up onstage to sing "This Land is Your Land" with him, or some other Woody Guthrie song. Eli, like Woody, was "the real deal"; what you saw was who he was, nothing more, nothing less. No patronizing, no bullshit, but always treating one with more respect and dignity than perhaps one deserved! Eli made me feel better about myself, just by being around him!
I wouldn't say that Vaughn Ward and I were "good" friends; we
had talked a few times about folk music and her Black Crow Network, but she
once gave me a piece of advice which has made a BIG difference in my attitude
towards my work. I was supposed to do a gig up in
I never actually met or even spoke with Tor Jonassen,
but we were kindred spirits in our love for the traditional song. He had a
radio show in the Philly area, and wrote some wonderful comments about my music
which I still use in my promotional material! I remember being extremely
pleased and somewhat overwhelmed when I saw what he had written, because I
immediately recognized his name, and knew he was a highly respected and very
knowledgeable authority on folk music. He's the one who wrote, "the oatmeal cookie of folk music, none better in
flavor". I'll always be in his debt for that quote!!
One of the best and greatest "benefits" of my work is in meeting,
knowing, befriending, and being touched by people like these! The world is a
better place, and we're all better people, for having had them around. I will
carry their memories with me wherever I go. My deepest thanks
and gratitude to them all.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
9/30/01 - I received a letter from Hudson Valley Magazine
earlier this week, saying that the staff has chosen "Revolution
on the River" as the "Best CD" for its "Best
of the
Watch for the magazine's November, 2001 issue for more details.
Jonathan and I were VERY excited to get this great news, and also a little
shocked and surprised, being that we're not used to such recognition!
We've also received some very nice comments about the recording, from some
very prestigious people! See the recordings page for who they are, and what
they said!
________________________________________________________________________________________________
8/5/01 - This site is now set up so you can order 2 of my recordings
("With Boots On" & "Revolution on the River") DIRECTLY
from CDBaby.com! The REALLY
nice thing about this is that you can actually LISTEN to 4 tracks from each CD
on their site! So, if you'd like to hear what the CD's sound like, just go over
to the site by "clicking" on the CD icon to the right of the
recordings, give a listen, then order directly from them, or directly from me!!
The "Revolution on the River" CD seems to be doing VERY
well in just its first month! Chatham Hill Games is doing an excellent job at
making sure just about EVERY historic site and museum in the valley stocks it, and people seem very interested in it at our
performances as well!
And speaking of performances, Tom and I are VERY excited about playing at
the "Family Concert" at Caffe'
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
6/30/01 - The NEW CD, "REVOLUTION
ON THE RIVER", has FINALLY ARRIVED!!! Check out
the "Recordings" section
of this site for ALL the details on this VERY unique project from myself and
storyteller Jonathan Kruk (aka "The
________________________________________________________________________________________________
3/15/01 - GREAT NEWS!! The Spring 2001 issue
of SingOut! Magazine (Vol. 45 No.1)
contains a review of "...With Boots On"!! This magazine, for
those who don't know, just celebrated its 50th Anniversary, was started by Pete
Seeger (among others), and is WONDERFUL publication. I've always enjoyed and
respected its integrity and dedication to folk music, and consider it an honor
and a privilege to be included in its esteemed pages!! What follows are some of
the "highlights" from the review:
(Tom and Rich) have created a recording of classic traditional tunes
played expertly, that may serve as an ispiration to many future players. The recording features
the duo as you'd likely hear them at a festival or house concert. (It) focuses
on classic traditional tunes from the old-time and Celtic repertoire, simply
arranged. It's delightful to hear the beauty of "Angeline the Baker"
or the medley "Liberty/St. Anne's Reel" played solidly. "Cockoo's Nest/RedHaired
Boy", two dance staples, are played with great
authority and at a pace which allows the beauty of these classic melodies to
shine. This music is highly accessible!" (not too
shabby eh?!)
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10/29/00- Welcome to my brand new website; I hope you like it! It's
been a long time coming, and I'm really excited about finally having it up and
running. Right now it's just a basic, rudimentary site, but soon I hope to be
adding some extra features, like links to other folkmusic
sites, and sound bites (bytes?) from my recordings. This section will also be
used for special announcements, keeping you informed about what I'm doing, and
maybe an occasional rumination, or "diatribe", as my friend Jon Kruk
calls it! So please check back often, and if you get a chance, e-mail me and
let me know what you think of it!