March 2010
by Bonnie Brock

www.arizonafolklore.com

Concert Schedule & Information            Announcements               Links & Contacts                Subscribe             Unsubscribe

BONUS NEWS

This month will be an exception—Our founder and artist-in-residence, Dolan Ellis, had a commitment that prevented him from being able to present his monthly concert. He will return to the AFP on April 24 and 25 to present his “Song of Arizona Spring” concert.

 The rest of the 2009-2010 season is now booked, and you will see a lot of new names and faces. This month, Paul Harris will make his debut. In April, Kip Calahan will perform as part of a duo (and as Kip Calahan Young) with Dale Young. The duo is called “Forever Young,” and they will present a special Easter program on April 3 and 4.

There will be two debut performances in May: Gary McMahan and Richard Lee Cody & Mary Kaye. Then in June, Gary Allegretto will not only perform but will also teach the audience to play the harmonica. He is known as one of the best harp players in the world, so that should be a very special weekend.

Some of our most popular performers are returning. The Desert Sons and Michael Grande, both of whom have been around the AFP for 10 years or more, are returning in June. And Way Out West, newer to AFP audiences but proving to be among the favorites, will be back at the end of May.

Another of the all-time AFP favorites, Ted Ramirez, is returning as a solo act on May 1-2. Ted has performed often at the AFP with The Santa Cruz River Band which he founded many years ago. He introduced the band to the AFP audience at the 2001 Red Rooster Ruckus and brought the group to the AFP theatre for the first times in 2002. This will be his second weekend as a solo performer at the AFP (the first was way back in October 2003).

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)

If you don’t already have your reservation to see Tony Norris, make it now. And if you get this newsletter after his weekend has already passed, be sure to watch for his return. He is a true entertainer, a great storyteller and folklorist, a wonderful singer and songwriter, and a fun guy. Bring your children and grandchildren (even if your kids are 65 and your grandkids are 45).

Tony is an institution in Flagstaff, where he has lived for almost 30 years. On his way to Flagstaff, he grew up in Texas, where two of his uncles were original members of Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys. Tony also spent time in West Virginia, adding an Appalachian flavor to his storytelling and performances, and lived in South Dakota for a while before settling in Arizona.

In Flagstaff, Tony keeps busy with a number of projects that involve entertaining (live and broadcasting) and writing. We recommend a visit to his Web site, where you should plan to spend some time on his News page, reading some of his entertaining stories (and keep in mind they are even better when Tony narrates them). Also go to YouTube (www.youtube.com) and search on Tony Norris and watch some of his videos.

Photo courtesy of Tony Norris

Joyce Woodson is developing a real reputation as a songwriter, as many of her songs are now being recorded by other performers. Examples are “He’s Courtin’ Annie,” “Cheyenne,” and “If I Hadn’t Seen the West.” The latter was named Song of the Year in 2008 by the Western Music Association.

2008 was a great year for Joyce. She also earned the Will Rogers Award for “Female Performer of the Year.”

Joyce has traveled extensively, throughout the U.S. and in England, Ireland, and Wales, performing at the Queen’s Festival in Belfast by invitation from the BBC. She grew up in the Capistrano Valley, California, and spent several years each in New England and Nashville. Now she has returned to neighborhood where she grew up, and where she feels so connected to the land. That connection comes through in her songwriting and performances.

Another interesting fact about Joyce is that she has a strong Tucson connection, appearing often at the Tucson Folk Festival (held in early May). She won the Songwriting Contest for the Festival in its 22^nd year (2007). Joyce also is a founding member of the Western Music Association in Tucson.

Joyce has a degree in education from UC Irvine, and although she doesn’t use the degree in the traditional classroom these days, she does apply her skills to teaching music.

Photo courtesy of Joyce Woodson

Paul Harris makes his Arizona Folklore Preserve debut this month. His musical background goes way back to his boyhood in Arkansas, where his grandfather, a bluegrass performer, put him on stage at the age of 6 to sing “Rocky Top.”

Paul tried living in Nashville for a while, but rather quickly decided his real calling, in addition to the music, is being a cowboy. So he works as a cowboy, and travels to cowboy gatherings and festivals throughout the West to perform.

Paul feels his bluegrass roots come through strongly in his music. Lately, he has started writing some cowboy poetry and is finding that he enjoys that very much as well (and he is quite good at it).

Photo courtesy of Paul Harris

Jerome Campbell and Jeanne Cahill make up Call of the West. As a duo that has been together for more than 20 years, they are impressive for their outstanding instrumentals and vocals. Lynn Anderson and other major stars feature them as harmony vocalists. They have been featured on several RFD-TV programs. They are headliners at festivals.

Individually, both Jerome and Jeanne are accomplished songwriters, and award-winning instrumentalists. Jerome won the International Merle Travis Thumbpicking Championship in 2006, and Jeanne was named Instrumentalist of the Year by the Western Music Association in 2008.

Each of these veteran performers masters several instruments.

Photo by Garden Images, Vinita, OK

Coming Events

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

Apr 3-4: Forever Young (Kip Calahan Young and Dale Young)
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 known as founder of the Santa Cruz River Band)
May 8-9:  Gary McMahan
May 15-16: Richard Lee Cody and Mary Kaye
May 22-23: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
May 29-30: Way Out West
Jun 5-6: The Desert Sons
Jun 12-13: Gary Allegretto
Jun 19-20: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer
Jun 26-27: Michael Grande
Jul 3-4: Dolan Ellis, Arizona’s Official State Balladeer

Please check www.arizonafolklore.com/events.htm to see the beginning of the 2010-2011 schedule.

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