News Release

Annapolis Maritime Museum / 723 Second St / Annapolis, MD 21403
Contacts: Jeff Holland / 410 295-0104 / director@amaritime.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - April 21, 2009

Folk artist Bill Staines to appear at the Annapolis Maritime Museum’s
Summertime Maritime Concert Series for 2009

Traditional and original maritime and folk music artists from all across the country are gathering in Annapolis to share their music in the Annapolis Maritime Museum’s popular and award-winning Summertime Maritime Concert series. The series includes free concerts at Annapolis City Dock and at the Museum campus in Eastport, starting with the original jazz trio Jassacotta on Thursday, June 18. The City Dock concerts run from noon to 1 p.m. every Thursday from July 2 to August 20. The evening concerts begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free, but a suggested donation of $10 per person will be gratefully accepted. Beer, wine and soft drinks are available for a nominal fee.

The series will conclude with a paid admission concert on Thursday, August 27, featuring the internationally renowned songwriter and folk singer Bill Staines. Staines is probably best known for his catchy 1983 song, “All God’s Critters Got a Place in the Choir,” recorded on one of his own 22 albums as well as by the legendary Peter, Paul and Mary.

“We’re honored to have Bill Staines wrapping up the Maritime Museum’s concert series,” says concert producer Janie Meneely. “His songs are both playful and lyrical, often evoking the image of water in nature, like ‘Bridges,’ ‘Crossing the Water,’ and ‘River.’”

These and countless other songs have also been recorded by such folk heroes as Nanci Griffith, Mason Williams, The Highwaymen, Glen Yarborough and Jerry Jeff Walker. Bill has performed on A Prairie Home Companion as well as other popular national public radio shows and a host of local programs on PBS and network TV. Bill Staines’ memoire, The Tour: A Life Between the Lines, was published in 2004. Bill lives near Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with his wife, Karen, his son, Bowen, and his cocker spaniel, Andy, who appears with Bill on the cover of his most recent album, “Old Dogs.”

Admission for the Bill Staines concert is $15 in advance, $20 at the door. The concert will take place in the Bay Room of the Museum’s newly renovated McNasby Oyster Company building. Space is limited and advance purchase is recommended.

The museum’s summer concert series has won an award for Best Heritage Event by Four Rivers, the Heritage Area of Annapolis, London Town and South County, and one concert has been featured on the NBC Today Show. The series is co-sponsored by the Chesapeake Music Institute and is made possible by generous support of the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County, the Maryland State Arts Council, City of Annapolis, the Eastport Civic Association, Eastport Business Association, and other supporters.

For information and directions, see the Museum web site at www.amaritime.org.

Lunchtime at City Dock

The concerts are offered again for free every Thursday at noon throughout the summer at City Dock. Musicians perform on the stage at Susan Campbell Park, where visitors can bring their own lawn chairs and enjoy free concerts by regionally renowned musicians singing songs about the Chesapeake Bay.

July 2	Mack Bailey & Rachel Levy, original folk & pop
July 9	Danny Spooner, traditional sea songs of Australia & Britain
July 16	Bob Zentz, original and traditional songs of the sea
July 23	Steve Keith, original songs inspire by cruising the Chesapeake
July 30	Ship’s Company Chanteymen, 1812-era living history re-enactors
August 6	Don Shappelle, original songs inspired by the Susquehanna River valley
August 13	Alex Bevan, the “Great Lakes Bard”
August 20	William Pint and Felicia Dale, traditional maritime musicians from the Pacific Northwest

Thursday Evenings at the Park

Each Thursday talented performers from throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed will sing songs of the sea and of the Chesapeake Bay at 7 p.m. at Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park on the Annapolis Maritime Museum grounds. Admission is free, except for the last concert by Bill Staines. The audience brings lawn chairs and picnic blankets to this waterside park for an evening’s entertainment. For those who don’t bring their own refreshments, AMM volunteers serve beverages from the deck of the oyster-tonger Miss Lonesome, a permanent land-based exhibit of a traditional Chesapeake Bay deadrise workboat. 

June 18	Jassacotta - (original acoustic jazz trio), featuring Larry Griffin on percussion, Richard Rausch on guitar, and John Starr on bass
June 25	Them Eastport Oyster Boys
July 2	Mack Bailey and Rachel Levy
July 9	Calico Jack with special guest Danny Spooner, Australia’s “living national treasure”
July 16	Bob Zentz, original and traditional songs of the sea and the Chesapeake Bay
July 23	Steve Keith, original sea songs, with special guest Kevin Brooks
July 30	Chester River Runoff, original Eastern Shore bluegrass
August 6	Deanna Dove, the “Island Girl” of the Chesapeake Bay
August 13	Mike Lange, upbeat maritime tunes, with special guest Alex Bevan, the “Great Lakes Bard”
August 20	William Pint and Felicia Dale, traditional maritime musicians from the Pacific Northwest
August 27	Bill Staines (paid admission concert in Bay Room, McNasby Oyster Company building)

Music to Save the Bay

In addition to exciting, hands-on exhibits inspired by a long-range interpretive plan, the Museum will concentrate on music about the Bay to encourage stewardship of the Bay. After all, any place worth singing about is a place worth preserving. This program constitutes a major portion of the Museum’s outreach efforts.

In 2004, the Museum created the Chesapeake Music Institute (CMI) to research and document traditional songs about the Bay as well as to encourage contemporary musical artists to create a whole new body of work inspired by the Bay. That year, CMI produced a CD album entitled Thomas Point Light: a compendium of music inspired by the Chesapeake Bay and the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse. Since then, nearly 600 have been sold. The album comprises songs that have appeared on individual artists’ CDs (each artist donated the use of the recordings) as well as original pieces, including the three-part Thomas Point Suite, composed by Randy Neilson, who recently arranged the piece for a performance by the Anne Arundel All-County Band at Anne Arundel Community College. The artists featured on the album have performed at the Museum’s summer concert series.

The Artists

Thursday, June 18
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Jassacotta

This original acoustic jazz trio features life-long Annapolis musicians Larry Griffin on percussion, Richard Rausch on guitar, and John Starr on bass. Friends since attending Annapolis High School, each of the trio members brings his own wealth of musical experience to the mix, from Larry’s Caribbean conga beat to Richard’s Brazilian guitar to John’s eclectic background performing an astonishing variety of musical instruments with such awesome talents as Charlie Byrd. Larry brings additional experience to the concert, having worked as a teenager offloading oysters from watermen’s boats at the Museum’s newly restored McNasby Oyster Company building.

Thursday, June 25
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Them Eastport Oyster Boys

For the past decade, Them Eastport Oyster Boys, the duo of Jefferson Holland and Kevin Brooks has been delighting audiences throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed with their irrepressible brand of humorous tunes inspired by living in a community where the best things in life are a “good hat, a good dog and a good boat.” Their original songs, all inspired by the Bay, swing from island rhythms to “Country/Western Shore,” some poking fun at stinkpotters, others pay homage to the plight of the waterman. In his “day job,” Jeff works as the director of the Annapolis Maritime Museum. Kevin Brooks volunteers on the Museum’s Board of Directors. They contribute their time and talents to the Museum for this concert series.

Thursday, July 2
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Mack Bailey & Rachel Levy

Nationally acclaimed singer/songwriter Mack Bailey is Mack Bailey is no stranger to Annapolis audiences. Many remember his vibrant solo performances on area stages and his countless appearances with the Hard Travelers. These days he’s also performing nationally with The Limeliters and with members of the original John Denver band in “A Musical Tribute to John Denver.” He’s shared the stage with the likes of Randy Travis, Barbara Mandrell, Emmylou Harris, Chet Atkins, Tom Paxton and more. Along the way he’s managed to produce eight solo albums. His smooth tenor voice continues to win fans whenever he sings, and his impressive range of original songs touch the hearts of his listeners and tickle their funny bone. Mack and Rachel live in Denver, Colorado.

Thursday, July 9
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.

Danny Spooner

Long described as “Australia’s living national treasure,” Danny Spooner was born into a working-class family in the East End of London, where he learned the traditions, music and folklore of a typical Cockney family. At 13, he left school and learned traditional British working sea songs while working on a sailing barge which plied the Thames and the south coast of England. After emigrating to Australia in 1962, he joined the folk revival in Australia and quickly developed into one of the best singers of British folksongs in Australia. Danny has performed in folk clubs all over Australia, New Zealand and in Britain, and has appeared at every major folk festival in Australia.

Thursday, July 9
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Calico Jack with special guest Danny Spooner

Calico Jack is actually the dynamic folk duo of Janie Meneely and Paul DiBlasi, whose new album You Don’t Know Jack was released this spring. Singer/songwriter Janie Meneely delves deep into the well of Chesapeake lore to produce songs evocative of the waterman’s way of life, featuring Bay characters, places and history. Her nautically inspired tunes have been recorded by artists throughout the country. Paul DiBlasi adds a vast repertoire of classic work songs to the group along with a flair for the guitar. Sometimes sober, sometimes saucy, they slide easily between old and new. Janie’s strong regional roots have led her to develop a hefty list of Bay-inspired songs, but her ditties are just as apt to poke fun at time-honored traditions. Paul’s mastery of classic sea chanteys will have an audience singing along in no time. Their voices blend together beautifully. Calico Jack released its first CD of Bay music, The Oyster Wife, in 2006.

Thursday, July 16
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Bob Zentz

Bob Zentz, a singer, songwriter, and storyteller from Norfolk, Virginia, has five recordings of traditional and original songs. His Chesapeake Bay songs like “This Old Bay” and “The Last Skipjack” have become true classics that have been included in a number of anthologies. He was featured in the 2004 Smithsonian Folklife Festival and performs concerts and educational programs throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Bob takes time to tell the stories behind the songs, and he accompanies his rich baritone voice with dozens of “unplugged” folk instruments. One minute he’ll be singing an original ditty about his experiences on the Bay, the next he’ll throw in a traditional Celtic tune, a ballad or a sea chantey, and then he’ll recite poetry set to his own special brand of music.

Thursday, July 23
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Steve Keith

Steve Keith, a self-described “picker-songwriter” from Whitestone, Virginia, is a multi-talented musician with two CDs dedicated to the people of the Chesapeake. Little Hinkley Yawl is a collection of mostly original songs about sailing. Fresh Fish, a recent release of more of Steve's salty songs, includes two future classics, “Blackbeard,” and a song for the region's staunchly independent watermen called “My Deadrise, My Flies and My Beer,” featuring Junior Brown and his band. He also appears on the compilation album of Chesapeake Bay musicians entitled Thomas Point Light, produced by the Museum’s Chesapeake Music Institute in 2004. Steve first played professionally with legendary blues man Babe Stovallin New Orleans at the age of 19. As a young man, he won many banjo and fiddle contests throughout the South and West. In the 1980s, he played as a sideman on fiddle and banjo with Jerry Jeff Walker, David Bromberg, and Mason Williams, often sharing the stage and playing on albums as featured guest with Willie Nelson, Leon Russell, Waylon Jennings, Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clarke, Tracy Nelson, Steve Young, Jimmie Martin and many other popular recording artists, including Annapolis’ own duo, Them Eastport Oyster Boys. He started performing as a solo artist in the 1990s, playing concerts around the country as well as Alaska, Canada, England, and Ireland. Kevin Brooks of Them Eastport Oyster Boys will join Steve as a special guest for the evening performance.

Thursday, July 30
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.

The Ship’s Company Chanteymen

The Ship’s Company Chanteymen are a group of 1812-era living history re-enactors dedicated to the preservation of the working songs of American maritime heritage. This jolly band of merrymakers has been seen and heard all up and down the east coast of the United States. Their CD, Donkey Riding, features hearty work songs, soulful ballads and lively instrumentals.

Thursday, July 30
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Chester River Run-Off

Chester River Runoff plays music that is continuously evolving from their inception in the fall of 2004 when four young musicians from divergent musical backgrounds decided to master the driving bluegrass that they all had loved. Together they have established a country bluegrass sound that echoes in the wide open spaces of the Chesapeake, carrying it to venues and radio airwaves across the region. They have grown from a small-town string band that relied more on humor than prowess, to a dynamic bluegrass band. With a confluence of styles and interests that flow together, they continue to develop a style that is all their own. High energy shows, and their ability to connect with an audience through sincere originals and unique takes on traditional music make a CRR concert a memorable experience.

Thursday, August 6
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.

Don Shappelle

Don Shappelle, singer/songwriter from the Susquehanna River watershed, sings songs inspired by the beauty and history of the Susquehanna, the people, boats and places of the mighty river that flows into the Chesapeake Bay. Listening to him singing from aboard a traditional Chesapeake Bay workboat is an especially appropriate setting for his body of work.  

Thursday, August 6
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Deanna Dove

“Island Girl,” Deanna Dove has been entertaining all her life. She was born on the Patuxent River on Broomes Island, Maryland. When this little girl wasn’t listening to music, she was crabbing or fishing on the river and the adjacent Chesapeake Bay. At an early age, Deanna and her sisters formed the Dove Sisters Trio, singing popular southern gospel hymns. Her lifelong experiences on the Chesapeake Bay contribute to her compositional writing style. Her powerful, earthy vocal style earned her the accolade of “musical Nirvana” during a 1998 review of her band, “Deanna Dove & Blues Power.” Dove’s solo debut CD entitled Chesapeake was released in May 2003. The title track, “Chesapeake” is currently the theme song for the “Voices of the Chesapeake Bay,” a Sunday morning radio program on WRNR 103.1, and has recently been released on the 2005 compilation disc entitled, Songs of the Chesapeake Bay.

Thursday, August 13
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.

Alex Bevan

“Great Lakes Bard” Alex Bevan has been sharing his voice, guitar, music and stories with audiences for more than thirty years. First known as the “Skinny Little Boy” from Cleveland, Ohio, Alex has made a name for himself through out the Northern Ohio music scene. Drawing on his deep skill set of imaginative and honest song writing combined with an agile, improvisational wit that dovetail wonderfully with his flawless guitar slinging, Alex never fails to delight and charm audiences no matter what the venue. His recordings span the gamut from folk to folk rock and pop to children’s educational music and he has won a number of awards for his commercial efforts in radio and television. Alex’s creative works have also contributed to documentary film scores. His latest CD is Fall & Angels.

Thursday, August 13
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Mike Lange with special guest Alex Bevan

Mike Lange is a piano player/singer/songwriter/bandleader who has played thousands of gigs in the mid-Atlantic and a handful overseas during the past two decades. Over the years he has performed with many of the top bands in the Baltimore/Washington area both as a bandleader, member, and as a highly sought after freelance musician. His original music has been featured on numerous radio stations in the mid-Atlantic area as well as many independent radio stations overseas. Best known for the group Mike Lange & Boogie Express, Mike started out in Baltimore specializing in blues piano and later branched out into boogie-woogie, swing, rock’n’roll, and more recently Caribbean music. Since moving to Annapolis, Mike also performs frequently with some of Annapolis’ best known bands including Them Eastport Oyster Boys and The Tiki Barbarians. His latest CD, Dinghy State of Mind, features ten original maritime tunes inspired by exploring the Chesapeake Bay and the East Coast on his 26-foot cruising tugboat with his wife, Kelly.  

Thursday, August 20
Annapolis City Dock – noon – 1 p.m.
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

William Pint and Felicia Dale

Felicia’s striking vocal harmonies are matched by her creative use of the hurdy-gurdy and Irish pennywhistles. William Pint’s emotionally expressive singing is complemented by his powerful guitar and mandola. Together, Pint and Dale have won an ardent following across the United States, Great Britain, Germany, Poland and the Netherlands with their recordings and appearances at festivals and concerts. They have recorded seven albums. Pint and Dale gather together material from many locales and cultures including the West Indies, Wales and Brittany. No dead tradition, seafaring music is very much alive in the hands of William Pint & Felicia Dale, and in the daily lives of people still dedicated to sailing tall ships in the 21st Century.

Thursday, August 27
Cap’n Herbie Sadler Waterman’s Park, AMM Campus – 7 – 8:30 p.m.

Bill Staines

Internationally renowned songwriter and folk singer Bill Staines is probably best known for his catchy 1983 song, “All God’s Critters Got a Place in the Choir,” recorded on one of his own 22 albums as well as by the legendary Peter, Paul and Mary. His songs are both playful and lyrical, often evoking the image of water in nature, like ‘Bridges,’ ‘Crossing the Water,’ and ‘River.’”

These and countless other songs have also been recorded by such folk heroes as Nanci Griffith, Mason Williams, The Highwaymen, Glen Yarborough and Jerry Jeff Walker. Bill has performed on A Prairie Home Companion as well as other popular national public radio shows as well as a host of local programs on PBS and network TV. Bill Staines’ memoire, The Tour: A Life Between the Lines, was published in 2004. Bill lives near Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with his wife, Karen, his son, Bowen, and his cocker spaniel, Andy, who appears with Bill on the cover of his most recent album, “Old Dogs.”

Admission for the Bill Staines concert is $15 in advance, $20 at the door. The concert will take place in the Bay Room of the Museum’s newly renovated McNasby Oyster Company building. Space is limited and advance purchase is recommended.

For more information or directions visit www.amaritime.org or call the museum staff at 410-295-0104.

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