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A Benefit for OLS: Rex Fowler, Con Fullam, Tom Dean, Alana MacDonald & Kate Schrock

A fantastic night of songwriters and storytellers from Maine! All proceeds go to One Longfellow Square!

It's good to have friends! OLS has made a few over the years and none more special than this talented cast that has come together to support our wonderful room by donating a rare and unforgettable one-time concert event! OLS will be calling on more friends in the future so look for these special benefit concerts and come out to support your favorite venue and hear some great music!
Longtime friends and collaborators, Rex, Tom & Alana will perform solo, material from their Aztec Two-Step and Devonsquare catalogs, as well as songs they co-wrote and performed together over the decades. A rare treat from these artists with Maine roots and a love for our venue.
Con Fullam held the release party for his first CD (after a long and highly lauded career writing hits for others) at OLS and has been a friend of the venue ever since. He has brought us several great concerts and continues his work with children's music in Portland!
Kate Schrock has performed at OLS many times and was happy to join in the party with her trademark blend of jazz and rock gospel.

($25 advance / $30 door)

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The Stray Birds

When The Stray Birds take the stage, the spotlight falls on three voices raised in harmony above the raw resonance of wood and strings. It is a sound drawn from the richness of American folk music traditions, spun with a stirring subtlety and grace. From bustling street corners to silent halls, their performances speak to an uncompromising reverence for songs.
Darlin' Corey (Erica Brown and Matt Shipman) opens!

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Joe Walsh, Darol Anger, Grant Gordy and Karl Doty

Encore Performance!

Portland based mandolin master Joe Walsh (Gibson Brothers, Yulegrass, Stowaways), fiddler extraordinaire Darol Anger (Republic of Strings, Yulegrass, The Furies etc.) blistering guitar hero Grant Gordy (David Grisman Quintet) and Karl Doty, bass (Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and A Far Cry) will come together for a special night of acoustic string music. Come and join us for an evening of inspired original tunes, expertly crafted standards and spontaneous musical serendipity with this once in a lifetime cast of super string stars.

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Shelley King

The music of Shelley King draws from and blends a spectrum of roots music styles, but one word succinctly describes it: soulful. Be it R&B, folk, blues, country, bluegrass or rock — or combinations of and variations on those themes — she delivers the goods straight from the heart with a voice that’s splendidly rich and warm and as big as all outdoors. Writing “a proverbial trunk full of instant hits and yet-unheard classics,” as the Austin Chronicle describes her songs, King has risen from the vibrant music scene in the Texas capital city to charm fans across North America, Europe and Japan, win two Austin Music Awards, and be named the Texas State Musician for 2008.

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Miss Tess and the Talkbacks

“When you decide to go into the studio,” reflects Miss Tess from her home in New York City, “the timing has to be just right.” In fact, uncanny timing informs and enhances nearly everything Tess does, from her disarming, behind-the-beat vocal phrasing to her solid yet gently swinging rhythm guitar. In the years since she first emerged, she has wisely learned to trust her sense of timing. “In this case, we had a batch of unrecorded songs, the studio I wanted to use was available, and the band was tight after touring all year.” The resulting album, Sweet Talk (available October 16), is Tess’s first studio album in three years, her first for Signature Sounds, and the debut of her newly christened backing outfit, The Talkbacks.

While still bearing hallmarks of the simmering, jazz-inflected sound that has made Tess and her former band the Bon Ton Parade a club and festival favorite, Sweet Talk introduces a more personal mix of influences. By blending her knack for melodic and rhythmic improvisation and interplay with elements of honky-tonk, western swing, and golden-era pop standards, she and her multifaceted supporting band have arrived at a style simultaneously refreshing and hauntingly familiar. “By changing the name of the band,” she says, “I wanted to let people know that our sound had evolved: now there’s a much stronger country and early rock’n’roll influence—and different instrumentation.”
DOS ECKIES (Joel Eckhaus and Chris Eckhardt) open!
Video! ($12 adv/$17 door)

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EMEFE

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The Portland Jazz Orchestra

Dr. Chris Oberholtzer and his 18 piece ensemble perform an evening of big band swing!
($5 students, seniors, and advance. $9 door)

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Roy Book Binder: The Good Book CD Release

NEW CD! The Good Book - Roy's first studio album in TEN years!

Roy has been described as a guitar pickin' hillbilly bluesman. Back in the 60's he began his career, traveling and learning guitar from the legendary Rev. Gary Davis and Pink Anderson, a medicine show entertainer who recorded back in 1928. Book Binder has recorded five albums and has performed at most major blues and folk festivals in the U.S. and Europe, including Merlefest. He has toured with Bonnie Raitt, and has shared the stage with many great bluesmen including; BB King, John Jackson, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee. Roy has appeared regularly on Nashville Now, a national cable TV show and has been included in Sheldon Harris' book, The Blues who's who. Roy is a veteran teacher whose engaging style of music and storyteller have enraptured his students at many workshops nationally. He is a regular at the Fur Peace Ranch.
($15 adv/$18 door, 8pm)
Video!

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Gregory Alan Isakov

Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and now calling Colorado home, Gregory Alan Isakov has been traveling all his life. Songs that hone a masterful quality beyond his years, tell a story of miles and landscapes, and the search for a sense of place.
Music has been a stabilizing and constant force. “I’ve always had this sense about music and writing, that I sort of have to do it. Like I’ll implode without it. I probably wouldn’t do it if I felt any other way.”
His song-craft lends to the deepest lyrical masterpieces, with hints of his influences, Leonard Cohen and Bruce Springsteen. He has been described as “strong, subtle, a lyrical genius” but the source of his writing often remains a mystery to him. “My songs have nothing to do with me; they have a life of their own. A lot of times I won’t know what a song is about when I’m writing it. It just has a certain feeling about it.”

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The THE BAND Band

The mission of The THE BAND Band is to present the music of The Band in a manner true to its original style and form, evoking the sound and the spirit of their live performances! Video!
($20 adv/$25 door, 8PM)

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Celtic Fiddle Festival

Called "three of the finest folk violinists anywhere" by The Washington Post, Celtic Fiddle Festival celebrates the violin in all its globe-trotting variations. Fiddlers Kevin Burke (Ireland), Christian Lemaître (Brittany, France) and André Brunet (Quebec, Canada) showcase a fascinating juxtaposition of international and individual styles.

Sold-out tours and standing ovations give testimony to the electricity and excitement generated by the group. Along with acclaimed guitarist Nicolas Quemener from Brittany, the quartet combines their talents, musical traditions, and spontaneous humor for an evening of dazzling energy and subtle grace. These traditional masters showcase their regional repertoires and together conjure an experience of breathtaking performances.