January 2010

by Bonnie Brock
 

www.arizonafolklore.com

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BONUS NEWS

Dolan Ellis just rang out the Old Year last weekend, as always in style. On Saturday, he had a very special treat for the audience. His old friend, Ralph Grasso, joined him on stage for several minutes during each half of the concert. If that name is not familiar to you, it’s simply proof that a name doesn’t have to be a household word to be very important. Ralph is a great guitarist—he was not a member of The New Christy Minstrels®, but he performed with them on some of their early recordings. He also played guitar for Frank Sinatra, Glen Campbell, and many other very popular artists. The clencher: Dolan asked Ralph to play themes from a movie (“Pink Panther”) and TV show (“Peter Gun”) so the audience would know who he was.

Well, that weekend has set the stage for a great new year, and the January lineup is an exciting start. All of the January concerts have a good chance of being sold out, perhaps even early, so don’t delay making your reservations. And, as always, be sure to notify us as soon as possible when the number in your party changes (or when you have to cancel altogether).

CONCERT SCHEDULE AND INFORMATION

(click on a date for more information about the AFP event; click on a name for the artist’s Web site)

The year will open with a change of pace, a wonderful blues musician by the name of Stefan George. Dolan himself is a fan of Stefan’s, probably most of all for his outstanding guitar work (Stefan also plays the Dobro guitar), but also for his songwriting and singing and his knowledge, not only of the blues (techniques, origins, and more) but of other genres as well. Be sure to see Stefan this weekend; it is so rare to be able to see such a great blues singer/guitarist in a setting such as the AFP.

Stefan was among the early inductees into the Arizona Blues Hall of Fame (1998) and now serves as president of the organization. He has won numerous other awards, and has led the “Blues Project” at the Kerrville Folk Festival for more than a dozen years.

On January 9-10, the sweet harmonies of Journey West will once again grace our stage. They will bring with them Marvin O’Dell, who makes his first appearance at the AFP. Marvin is known and well-respected (and has won awards) as a radio host, playing the Western music he loves. At the 2009 Western Music Association Festival, Marvin won three major awards, this time not as a radio personality, but as a musician and songwriter and producer. Congratulations! (Journey West also won their second Harmony Award at the Festival. In 2008 they won the Trio Harmony Award; this year they won in the open category, as a quartet.

Marvin was not only honored by the WMA for “Song of the Year,” he also won the highly coveted “Songwriter of the Year” award. And he won the special “President’s Award” for his 2-CD set, “The Silver Screen Cowboy Project.” That project includes 24 original songs about the stars of the old cowboy movies.

Journey West members pictured above from left to right are Nancy Bucy (who plays clarinet), Ken Bucy (bass), Dawn Pett, Gale Rogers, and Audrey McLaughlin

Speaking of awards, one of the WMA’s biggest all-time award winners will be at the AFP for his first full weekend on January 16 and 17. Dave Stamey appeared at the AFP’s Gathering Day a few years ago, and the audience loved him. Now he’s coming back! A California cowboy, Dave is popular wherever he goes. The songs he writes are earthy, and he is a wonderful wordsmith as well as a tunesmith. His tenor voice also has an earthy quality, the perfect sound for an authentic cowboy, but his guitar is quite sophisticated at times. If you like Spanish guitar, be sure to ask him to play his original “Vaquero Song.”

Back to the awards: Dave was named Entertainer of the Year at the WMA Festival in 2009 for the third time. He also has several other major awards from the WMA and was recently named by True West Magazine as the “Best Living Solo Western Musician.” How can you turn down a chance to see someone with that prestigious title?

Dolan Ellis returns to the AFP stage on January 23 and 24 with his “Wintertime and Snowing” theme and as always with his great songs and photography.

Just a few weeks later, on Arizona’s Statehood Day (Sunday, February 14^th), Dolan will be celebrating his 44^th Anniversary as Arizona’s Official State Balladeer. He was the first to hold that title, and Arizona was the first state to name an official balladeer. Dolan of course is the founder of the AFP.

Dolan’s concerts this weekend will feature songs such as “Snowbird”). Dolan’s arrangement and his large-screen photography add a new dimension to the song (an example of a photo from “Snowbird” is in the poster at right). Other winter songs include Dolan’s version of “You’ve Got a Friend” (with photos from the Christmas trips he and friends took annually for 20 years to Navajo Land to deliver toys and clothes and needed supplies.

Way Out West is a delightful group from Tucson. Their name comes very honestly. Yes, they play Western music (and play it very well) and yes, it is a bit out of the ordinary.

In the photo at left, from left to right, members of Way Out West are shown: Tom Poley (banjo and guitar), Emmy Creigh (guitar and mandolin), and Slim Rost (bunkhouse bass). All three sing lead and harmony vocals.

They refer to their special brand of music as “Bordergrass,” sort of “Western music on steroids” or “Bluegrass music with a distinctive Western flair.” Many of their original songs are tongue-in-cheek, such as “Who’s Your Sidekick” (so you don’t ride into the sunset all alone), one sure to bring on toe-tapping as well as big smiles. Another song sure to bring a lot of joy is “Down on the Old Bar None,” about a socially conscious, enlightened, tie-dye wearing “zen” cowboy. He’s a vegetarian who makes his chili with tofu for protein and finds the saddle a great spot for meditation.

They punctuate their humorous songs with some straight-ahead Western music such as “Arizona April,” and “Adios to the Cowboy.”

Coming Events

Check the Performance Schedule page on the AFP site for the latest information.

Feb 6-7: Sue Harris
Feb 12: “Gathering Day” this Friday
        10:00 Doris Daley

        11:15 Bill Barwick

        12:45 Tumbling Tumbleweeds

         2:00  Prickly Pair

Feb 13-14: Closed for the Cochise Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering
Feb 20-21: Trails & Rails
Feb 27-28: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
Mar 6-7: Tony Norris
Mar 13-14: Journey West
Mar 20-21: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
Mar 27-28: Call of the West
Apr 3-4: TBA
Apr 10-11: Jim Jones
Apr 17-18: Sid Hausman
Apr 24-25: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
May 1-2: Ted Ramirez (also of the Santa Cruz River Band)
May 8-9:  TBA
May 15-16: TBA
May 22-23: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
May 29-30: TBA
Jun 5-6: TBA
Jun 12-13: TBA
Jun 19-20: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
Jun 26-27: TBA
Jul 3-4: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer

About our Concerts:

Our concerts are held on Saturday and Sunday afternoons at 2:00 PM, unless otherwise noted. Cost is $15 for adults and $6 for children 17 and under. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling 520-378-6165, or sending an email to reservations@arizonafolklore.com. For additional information, please visit our Web site.

From time to time we make a last-minute schedule change. The Performance Schedule page on the AFP site is always up to date. If you already have reservations, we will contact you to let you know about the changes.

Announcements:

AFP Posters:

AFP posters are available on the Internet. We began creating them in mid-January 2009, and will maintain all in our online archives.

Lodging:

If you need lodging for your visit (or your guests’ visit) to the AFP, we hope you’ll consider the following, both very generous sponsors of the AFP.

On the Air:

Links and Contacts:

Arizona Folklore Preserve (home page)

Map, Directions, General Information 

Performance Schedule (always up-to-date)

Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer

Guest Artists: (see the links within this newsletter)     

Email Links:

AFP Reservations ( or call 520-378-6165)

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Snail Mail Address:

Arizona Folklore Preserve

P.O. Box 235

Sierra Vista, AZ 85636