11/2/23

Hello Everyone,
Here’s the latest Leo Coffeehouse/QCB news:

This Sunday
Leo Coffeehouse, November 5, 2023

5:15 PM: Open Jam
Musicians bring songs to lead in the circle while others provide backup and harmony. This jam continues upstairs during the concert.

Performances
6:45 - 9:00 PM

1st Set: Scott Nutter and Jeff Gushin
Expect a few rags from Jeff on fiddle and mandolin accompanied by Scott’s guitar. Jeff developed an interest in traditional music in the 1960s and was a member of the Grammy nominated Buzzard Rock String Band. He currently performs with old-time string bands, The Corncobs, and the Laurelview Ramblers. Scott returned to the guitar, the passion of his youth, about 15 years ago when he joined the Leo. He loves to explore a wide variety of musical styles.

2nd Set: Seldom the Same
Seldom the Same gets their name from the fact that not all members are able to play all their gigs. They are a group of retirees who share their love for Americana music. Dean Vamvas, lead vocalist, plays guitar, mandolin, banjo and harmonica. Tom McDonald is our primary harmonica and mountain dulcimer player. Vocalist Tom Laskey also plays lead guitar and percussion. Dave Martin supplies keyboard, fiddle and dobro and sings. Dave Sanders plays cello, acoustic guitar, banjo and sings both lead and harmony. Karen Shrock plays guitar and provides both lead and harmony vocals.

3rd Set: Lisa Biales and Bill Littleford
Lisa’s new record "At Christmas" blends her love of roots, New Orleans jazz, musical theatre, and blues into a tapestry of music that has become her signature style. It’s made up of nine original tunes and one Louis Prima cover that Lisa makes all her own. "From Blues to Jazz she can do it all. Biales and Braunagel’s production are perfect together." (Richard Ludmerer/Making A Scene) 

Looking Ahead
Leo Coffeehouse, November 12, 2023

5:15 PM: Songwriters' Collaborative
Songwriters Cooperative back up again. Come and share your songs with other songwriters for encouragement and friendly critiques.

5:15 PM: Open Jam
Musicians bring songs to lead in the circle while others provide backup and harmony. This jam continues upstairs during the concert.

Performances
6:45 - 9:00 PM

1st Set: Rockne & Cheryl
Cheryl McKinney is a balladeer and singer-songwriter of folk, Celtic, country, Renaissance Fair, and originals. Rockne Riddlebarger is a unique musician, an interpreter of many genres of music. His choice of instrument, the square neck Dobro, makes him an original, one-of-a-kind performer. Dick Males will add upright bass.

2nd Set: June Star
Baltimore’s June Star (Andrew Grimm and Dave Hadley), comes off like a Smog-Era Bill Callahan if he had chosen to dive inward or The Jayhawks if they were more keen to stark emotional realism. Grimm’s rich baritone voice and Hadley’s atmospheric, elegiac pedal steel brings a time-honored aesthetic to their unique tales of fractious love, quixotic anxiety, and the looming shadow of death. June Star has performed in 37 states! www.junestar.com

3rd Set: Ma Crow and Company
With more than a decade of performances, the legendary Ma Crow and Company together are a 4-time Entertainment Award nominee featuring bluegrass, Americana and Old-time Mountain music. www.macrowmusic.net 

QCB/Leo Coffeehouse Membership

We are keeping our standard annual QCB membership dues at $20.00 for a family, or for a single person plus a guest. Last year, knowing that the pandemic cut into our contingency funds, as we continued to pay overhead expenses with no income, some members donated larger amounts to QCB. We very much appreciate the support of all QCB members at all levels.

We are exploring setting up our website to allow the payment of different levels of dues support.  For now, if you’d like to pay the standard dues, you can pay them online here or by a check at Leo. (We’ve discontinued our P.O. Box, I will have a mailing address in the next newsletter for those who wish to mail their membership dues.)

If you would like to donate more than the $20.00 standard dues, you can do so by check, or through our website. When you get to the page with the box to relay instructions, just note that you are paying a larger amount for your dues.

For visitors who prefer not to become a member, a donation of $5.00 (cash) per person helps us pay the rent for our non-profit organization.  Donations can be slipped in the box at the welcome table outside our performance room, Founders Hall.  If you can’t afford that, pay what you can afford or nothing at all.  We will welcome you to join us either way.

The QCB Website

I thought I would point out some of the useful features on our website. 

Scrolling down the opening welcome page, you will find a copy of the latest Folknotes with news and the schedule for two weeks at Leo Coffeehouse.

To see the music acts we have booked for the next month or so, click on “Leo” (computer: top left; cellphone: under the double lines top right) and then “SCHEDULE”. Then you can scroll through the schedule to see what we have booked so far. On a cellphone, it helps to turn your phone sideways (landscape view) to read the schedule.

To join QCB, click on “Participate” (computer: top left; cellphone: under the double lines top right). If you’d like to join with the standard $20 annual dues, click on “Become a Member” and follow the instructions. If you’d like to join by donating a higher amount, click on “Donate” and follow the instructions there. Read more on our membership dues above.

I hope to see you at Leo Coffeehouse.

Neil Harrell
President, Queen City Balladeers/Leo Coffeehouse

President’s Letter