Over the last decade, Pokey LaFarge has won the hearts of music lovers across the globe with a lively mix of early jazz, string ragtime, country blues, and western swing music, which LaFarge has dubbed “riverboat soul.” With a style that is at once ragged and polished, LaFarge is a songwriter, bandleader, innovator, and preservationist whose arsenal of talents has placed him at the forefront of old-time American music. Accompanied by a top-notch backup band, Pokey LaFarge plays with a classic bluesman’s confidence, infusing his performances with dynamic vocals, effortless wit, and good old-fashioned storytelling. Time Out Chicago writes, “His jumpy American roots music is pure joy.”.
Date: Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Major Sponsor: The Blacksmith Inn
Jackson Browne defined the term “singer/songwriter.” The Eagles credit him with teaching them how to write songs. Bruce Springsteen, in his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction speech, said, “I always thought that our job here on earth and the way we regain our divinity is by reconstructing love out of the broken pieces that we’ve been given. Jackson Browne’s work has always been the sound of that reconstruction.” Fittingly, he first came to Door County to help save a bridge. Now he returns to help build new bridges in the arts community.
After their barnburning debut at DCA in 2013, genre-bending sister band Rising Appalachia returns. Though they classify their music as “progressive Appalachian groove,” Rising Appalachia is impossible to pigeonhole, mixing traditional folk songs with soul music, spoken word poetry, and even beatboxing. National Public Radio calls the resulting musical blend “aural divinity.” Passionate and enthralling, Rising Appalachia centers on multi-instrumentalist sisters Leah and Chloe Smith, who wrap their haunting vocals around accompaniment by banjo, fiddle, drums, kalimba, djembe, spoons, and washboard, merging a broad array of world music traditions with their own deep Appalachian roots.
With a joyful swagger that could only come from New Orleans, Preservation Hall Jazz Band has been playing Louisiana jazz since 1961. Today, the band’s multi-generational members sustain and expand the rich tradition of jazz music that permeates life in the Crescent City. Boasting a direct lineage from the earliest incarnations of New Orleans jazz, Preservation Hall Jazz Band maintains a robust touring and recording presence, collaborating with musicians like Tom Waits, Bonnie Raitt, and Del McCoury. Whether performing at Carnegie Hall or Lincoln Center, for British royalty or the king of Thailand, Preservation Hall Jazz Band shines with an exuberant, timeless spirit.
Don McLean and Judy Collins both burst onto the American musical landscape in the 1960s with anthems that came to define a generation. In an extraordinary double bill at DCA, these folk-rock stars will showcase the inimitable performance styles that made them legends. Grammy Hall of Fame inductee McLean’s wistful tenor is as unmistakable as the nostalgic groove of American Pie or the languid lyricism of Vincent (Starry Starry Night). Judy Collins’ crystalline soprano sailed onto American airwaves with the megahit Both Sides, Now and remains iconic to this day, painting from an eclectic musical palette that includes folk, cabaret, pop, and show tunes. Together, Collins and McLean are unforgettable.
Date: Sunday, May 11, 2014
COMMUNITY PARTNER EVENT: YMCA Spring Dance Recital
‘Culture Under Canvas’ comes to Door County as Tent Show Radio Live celebrates its 20th Anniversary with this wonderfully dynamic radio show! The show features New York Times best-selling author, songwriter, radio show host, and amateur pig farmer – Michael Perry – along with Big Top’s Blue Canvas Orchestra and special guests.