Plank Road's Regular Events
Sing-Around
1st & 3rd Sat. | 2-4 pm
Vocal instrumental jam and sing-along with songbooks and leader.
Bluegrass Jam
Like a sing-around but it's bluegrass, "mostly!"
2nd Tuesday Song Circle -- BYOS!
Two Way Street Coffee House2nd Tues. | 7-9 pm
A monthly opportunity for musicians to perform songs for each other, within a song circle. Bring Your Own Song!
Plank Road String Band Practice
630-620-0688
2nd Sat. | 2:00-4:00 pm
An old-time string band practice for intermediate/advanced players.
Last Thursday Open Mike
Last Thurs. of every month | 7-9:30 pm
A monthly unplugged open mike for high school and college age students only.
5th Saturday Country and Western
Sing-Around
5th Sat. | 2-4 pm
Sing along with your favorite C&W songs.
- Come join us on April 29, 2017
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We will hold our Annual Meeting at the Log Cabin in Lombard on Saturday, Feb. 18
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Cat's AwayJanuary 6, 2017
While this is a Two Way Street event, PRFMS members will be
well represented on stage that evening. Best is that all proceeds will
be donated back to our community -- to those in need. Tentative lineup as of today - Thirsty Night Pluckers
- Lonesome Eagle
- Kilty Pleasure
- WoodShop Boys
- Joe and Pam Schumacher
- John Reisinger
- Amelia Sweet Bluebird
- Stephen Davis
- Karen Jensen
Plank Road Annual Membership Meeting
February 18, 2017
Bring
a dish, dessert or snack to share, your voices and your
instruments for a night of music and munchies, as we celebrate 32
years!
Doors will open at 7:00 PM and the music jam will start 7:30 PM, with George Mattson as our jam leader.
This is also a great time to renew your annual PRFMS membership but please remember; cash or check -- we can't do credit cards.
The Annual Membership Meeting is primarily an event for members to celebrate another grand year at PRFMS.
If you do bring a guest, we hope they will consider joining our organization while they are at the meeting.
7:30 PM Music Jam Session
Doors open at 7:00 PM.
Potluck Safety.
Read the brochure if you plan on bringing a dish to the potluck!
Help keep us all safe and healthy (please no sousaphones).
Winter Old-Time Barn Dance!
In conjunction with the Downers Grove Ice Sculpture Festival, come and enjoy a fun-filled evening of music and dancing for the entire family!
Our dances are informal, with no costumes needed -- in fact, you don't even have to bring a partner!
The Plank Road String Band will provide lively music, and a caller will walk you through all the dances at our Old-Time Barn Dance -- No Experience Necessary!
Tables will be set up around the edge of the room for visiting with friends and enjoying music between dances.
February 11
8:00 PM - doors open at 7:30 PM
1047 Curtiss St., Downers Grove
(Across from the Public Library)
***If you are up and about in Downers Grove Saturday morning, be sure to stop by for the:
All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast!
Saturday, February 11 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM At the First Congregational Church in Downers Grove, 1047 Curtiss St., Downers Grove, IL
The Plank Road String Band will be warming up for the evening's festivities from 9:00 am to around 10:30 am
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Musical salute to the holidays
Plank Road's annual Holiday party!
Once
again The Two Way Street Coffee House rang with seasonal singing and
strumming as Plank Road hosted its annual Christmas party on December
17. "The weather outside was frightful" -- but that didn't keep folks
from enjoying an afternoon of caroling and sing-arounds at our annual
Holiday Open House Party.
 Starting
at 12:30 a small but hearty group of carolers serenaded shoppers on the
streets of downtown Downers Grove. Then, back in the warmth of the Two
Way Street Coffee House, things got rolling with a sing-around of
familiar holiday tunes, led by George Mattson.
At
4 pm everyone adjourned to the "green room" across the hall for
refreshments. Several partiers brought tasty appetizers and holiday
treats. (Much appreciated!) Sandwiches and beverages were provided by
Plank Road. But wait, there's more! Fortified by food and drink, many folks returned to their instruments and continued singing and playing until 6 pm.
During
the holiday season, music takes on a special meaning -- whether
traditional or new, sacred or silly, happy or sentimental - we never
seem to get tired of those familiar songs.
Special thanks to Kristen, Jen, George and Tim for all your help.
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Get Out of Your House -- Go Hear Some Music!
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PRFMS Member Gigs
Two of our local Great American Bagel shops host two of our PRFMS member bands on Sunday mornings:
Comfort Food
The first Sunday of every month finds Comfort Food, Rich and Vickie
Ingle, performing at Great American Bagel at the 2 shops.
- January 1
- February 5
- March 5
- April 2
- Also - Books on First in Dixon on April 8 from 7pm to 9pm
Natural Bob Holdsworth
Then on the 4th Sunday of every month, Natural Bob Holdsworth along with mandolinist Tom Jaynes appears at the 2 shops.
- January 22
- February 26
- March 26
- April 23
Lonesome Eagle
- Two Way Street Coffee House for the Cat's Away program on January 6.
Amelia Sweet Bluebird
- Two Way Street Coffee House for the Cat's Away program on January 6.
- The Buzz Cafe - sharing the evening with Mark Dvorak
Saturday April 29
905 S. Lombard Avenue, Oak Park
Kilty Pleasure
- Two Way Street Coffee House for the Cat's Away program on January 6.
Mark Dvorak
- Two Way Street Coffee House
February 10 - Blue Boat Cafe * Dupage UU Church
Sunday February 26
1828 Old Naperville Road, Naperville - Oak Park Arms
Monday February 27
408 S. Oak Park Avenue, Oak Park -
Acorn Coffeehouse
Saturday March 11, 2017
216 N. Main Street, Wheaton
- Villa Park Public Library
Saturday April 15, 2017
305 S. Ardmore - The Buzz Cafe - sharing the evening with Amelia Sweet Bluebird
Saturday April 29
905 S. Lombard Avenue, Oak Park
PRFMS members, drop us a line if you will be appearing locally.
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 Two Way Street Coffee House
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 Maple Street Chapel Folk Concerts
If you are near Lombard, please visit the Maple Street Chapel Folk Concerts website to see a current listing of upcoming performers.
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If you are near Hinsdale, please visit the Acoustic Renaissance website for a list of upcoming performers.
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Did you know that
many of our local libraries also host occasional music events
throughout the year? Harpeth Rising, Mark Dvorak, Chris Vallilo, and
Lonesome Eagle all have been featured at several of our libraries in the
past years.
Lisle Library's Friends of Lisle Library Concerts
are offered on a regular basis. You can check their calendar at:
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A Special Thanks to our Membership Contributors!!
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Sustaining Artists ($200 - $399)
Member Artists ($50 - $199)
- George Mattson Trio
Supporting Members ($50 and higher)
- John J. Allan
- Dan Anderson
- Bill and Mary Boylan
- Frank and Helene Clarke
- Joe Jablonski
- Paul and Molly Klonowski
- Ron Kranz
- Dottie Lee
- Bill and Sandyha Matthews
- Gregg and Elizabeth Morton
- Pete Pribyl
- Joe and Pam Schumacher
- Carol and Fred Spanuello
- Gary and Kathy Steffenson
If you would like to become a member or just need to renew, here is a link to the renewal form that you can print and mail.
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Remembering Leonard Cohen
Like a bird on a wire
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free
Those opening lines to "Bird On A Wire" say a lot about the life of Leonard Cohen, who died November 7. Over
a musical career that spanned nearly five decades, Cohen wrote songs
that explored -- in spare language that could be both oblique and
telling -- themes of religion, politics, isolation, sexuality, personal relationships, despair and exaltation.
The Canadian singer, songwriter, musician, poet, novelist and painter was known for his haunting bass voice, nylon-string guitar patterns and Greek-chorus backing vocals. Cohen's best-known song may well be "Hallelujah," a
majestic, meditative ballad infused with both religiosity and
earthiness. That song, plus enigmatic earlier songs like "Suzanne,"
"Bird On A Wire," "Sisters Of Mercy," "So Long Marianne" and many
others, have been covered by hundreds of artists -- and influenced many
others.
Just this past autumn Cohen released his final album, You Want It Darker. Cohen was 82.
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You've been to the Two Way Street Coffee House.
Have you ever looked at the folks behind the counter and said, "I know
how to make coffee! I'll betcha I could do that!"
All you have to do is contact Tim Kendall.
Timothy Kendall
Assistant Director and Acting Volunteer Coordinator ;-)
Two Way Street Coffee House
cell 630-699-2974
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- Will Varley
- Kingsdown Sundown - Tanner Porter
- The Summer Sinks - Hiss Golden Messenger
- Heart Like a Levee - Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker
- Overnight - Kate Rusby
- Life in a Paper Boat - Jenny Hval
- Blood Bitch - Julia Jacklin
- Dont Let the Kids Win - Seth Lakeman
- Ballads of the Broken Few - George Barnes
- Two Guitars and a Horn - Chet Atkins
- Finger Style Guitar
If you have come across some new or little known artists that you think others might enjoy, please
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What's on your mind?
Do you have ideas for
future articles? Things you'd like to see in the newsletter? Ways we can
make it more enjoyable and relevant to Plank Road members? Here's your
chance to be "note-worthy." Just send us an email with your comments about QuarterNotes. We welcome your input!
We may publish some of your comments and always appreciate ideas. (Think of it as sort of a "letters to the editor.")
Please send all correspondence to: PlankRoadFolk@Hotmail.com
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Bob O'Hanlon - President
(630) 325-7764
Gary Steffenson - Treasurer
Bill Lemos - VP, Secretary
2017 Board Members
- Dave Humphreys
- Kristen Fuller
- Jennifer Shilt
- Stephen Davis
- Jim Gilroy
- Dottie Lee
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QuarterNotes Contributors
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Stephen Davis
Jen Shilt
Bob O'Hanlon
Bill Lemos
Rich Ingle
and thanks to the numerous folks who took and shared their photos!!!
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 President's Message January, 2017
Wow,
here we are in 2017! I hope you all had a nice holiday season,
filled with love and music. Let's carry this joyful holiday spirit
forward, despite all the discord we witness daily around the country.
They say "music soothes the savage beast", so let's use our music to
make everyone feel better.
Plank
Road has our usual events and activities lined up for 2017, plus a few
extras. Our organization is alive and thriving. If you haven't been
coming to our sessions, come on out and join the fun. There is a lot of
playing music, singing and dancing being done. Just visit our web site
for a calendar of events as well as features on each of our regular
events...plankroad.org.
This
issue of Quarter Notes features an article about Nobel prize winner, Bob
Dylan. He is a Plank Road favorite and we are proud of his
accomplishments, including this one. Enjoy the article.
Our
entire board of directors and officers from last year will continue on
in 2017. I will be President for the ninth year in a row, and the board
members are: Bill Lemos (Vice President), Gary Steffenson (Treasurer),
Dave Humphreys, Jen Shilt, Kristen Fuller, Stephen Davis, Jim Gilroy and
Dottie Lee. It is a great group of people, dedicated and nice to work
with.
I hope to see all of you soon. Don't forget our annual meeting at the log cabin in Lombard, on February 18.
Bob O'Hanlon
President
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SPOTLIGHT: PRFMS Bands
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Strike up the band(s)!
How independent bands evolved from Plank Road.
It may
start with a couple of Plank Road members talking about musical tastes
they have in common. Maybe a fiddle player is looking for others who
enjoy bluegrass. Someone else just wants to harmonize. People get
together and jam, sometimes it clicks . . . and a band is born.
At Plank
Road, a number of independent bands have formed over the years. Most
have played at the Two Way Street Coffee House, other local venues, and
at numerous community events and festivals.
Perhaps
the most visible -- and busiest -- is the Plank Road String Band. We'll
get to them later, but first, here's a look at some of the other bands
featuring Plank Road members:
The George Mattson Trio
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L to R: Tommy Re, Michael Hazdra, George Mattson
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George
formed the trio in 2003, handling lead vocals and playing guitar, banjo
and ukelele. Rounding out the trio are Michael Hazdra on double bass
and vocals, and Tommy Re on fiddle with a large dose of "good humor." They
play old-timey and classic country, plus swing, jazz, blues, honky-tonk
and Carter family tunes, with a big, rich voice and off-beat humor. "I
like to bill ourselves as playing acoustic-eclectic music,"
says George. "We play just about any genre that appeals to us." The trio
plays many local gigs, plus events such as the Fox Valley Folk
Festival. Comfort Food with a Cup of Joe
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L to R: Vicki and Rich Ingle, Joe Wadz.
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Rich
and Vicki Ingle met at an open mic at the Two Way Street Coffee House
10 years ago. Within weeks they were performing together -- and Comfort
Food was born. Both Rich and Vicki are accomplished songwriters, with an
extensive repertoire that includes many originals as well as
distinctive covers of other songs. About
a year ago, they released a new double CD with a new addition to the
band -- their pal, talented violinist and mandolin player, Joe
Wadz. Now a trio, Comfort Food with a Cup of Joe performs regular gigs
in the area. "Rich and I have grown a lot musically over the past 10
years," says Vicki. "We've had a lot of fun playing as a duo, and now as
a trio." Kilty Pleasure
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Denise Davis, Ron Leaneagh
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Denny
Davis and Ron Leaneagh, acoustically known as Kilty Pleasure, perform
an eclectic repertoire of songs with rich vocal harmonies, guitar,
mandolin, piano, and a hint of banjo. Longtime musical friends who've
played together for many years at acoustic jams, Kilty Pleasure has been
performing at Chicagoland venues and festivals for the past two years.
"We met at Plank Road sing-arounds, and sang together for quite a few
years," says Denny. They also co-led sing-arounds when George was out of
town, until teaming up as a duo. Always
fun, their shows include a range of tunes from 20s to 40s standards
such as Irving Berlin, to more contemporary folk artists, including
James Taylor, Carole King, Gillian Welch, and the Arrogant Worms. Lonesome Eagle
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L to R: Jim Zethmayr, Carol Sommer, Gregg Morton,
Ron Leaneagh
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Lonesome
Eagle has been described as "three old guys and a couple of nice
ladies" who love folk music and have played it, and other music, all
their lives. They do a variety of traditional and contemporary folk
music featuring three-part vocal harmony and an assortment of acoustic
instruments. The
group consists of 'Kilted' Ron Leaneagh - lead vocals, guitar, banjo,
ukulele and percussion; Gregg Morton - lead vocals and guitar; Jim
Zethmayr (who also leads Plank Road's monthly bluegrass jam) - lead
vocals, guitar and banjo; and Carol Sommer - bass, guitar and mandolin.
Carol Spanuello sometimes joins them on bass.
Gearl Jam
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L to R: Ann Strang, Carol Spanuello, Vicki Ingle, Jen Shilt,
Angela Salva
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Gearl Jam is a "music collective" of five kindred souls -- five women who are friends first. These seasoned musicians,
Carol Spanuello, Vicki Ingle, Jen Shilt, Ann Strang and Angela Salva,
gather together to share music that is close to their hearts and their
funny bones. They
perform acoustic music from many genres, including swing, old time and
bluegrass standards; hits from the 1950s; and special tunes such as
fiddle duets and modern songs that "tickle your fancy."
According to Vicki, they seek to create music that will "reach out and
touch you, make you laugh, and, for a moment take you to another place
where the world is only beautiful and your soul sings!"
Plank Road String Band
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The String Band performing at the Danada Fall Festival in 2016.
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The
Plank Road String Band features authentic old-timey and traditional
string band tunes. According to band leader Bob Smith, they play a type
of folk music particular to pioneers and farmers. The origin of the band
dates back to Cathy Jones and the Jones Family, Mark Dvorak, Marianne
Mohrhusen and Marvin Lensik. "Most of the music we learned at the Jones
family home when barn dance practices were held at their house," says
Bob. "We really owe our old-time music program to the Jones family." The
String Band performs regularly for Plank Road barn dances and appears
at a number of other community events, such as the Lombard Civil War
Reenactment and the Danada Fall Festival. Many Plank Road members participate, with a core group that meets and performs regularly. The current group includes 22 members: John
Allan, Gary Blankenship, Mary Beth Davidson, Stephen Davis, Ray Doud,
Barb Ellingsen, Kristen Fuller, Jim Gilroy, John Harrington, Joe
Hayward, Cathy Jones, Tom Jones, Cheryl Joyal, Ron Leaneagh, Dottie Lee,
Chuck Maltese, George Mattson, Angela Salva, Jen Shilt, Bob Smith,
Carol Sommer and Jim Zethmayr. Over the years the group has spawned several spin-off bands, including the Thirsty Night Pluckers and Blind Squirrel. More bands to come? As
members of Plank Road there are numerous opportunities for us to expand
our musical interests. As we attend the many functions sponsored by
Plank Road, take time to talk to your fellow folk enthusiasts. Maybe
there's a band in your future!
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With a Little Help From our Friends!
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Bob Dylan
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The times, they did change
Bob Dylan . . . from the North Country to the
Nobel Prize.
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Seattle Tour, 1974. Photo by Clay Eals, courtesy of Rich Ingle.
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By Rich Ingle
In January 1964, Bob Dylan had just released his third album for Columbia Records: The Times They Are a-Changin'.
It was his second album of "protest songs" and his devotees couldn't
get enough. The previous summer at the Newport Folk Festival he had been
unofficially crowned the king of folk music and the early '60s folk
scare was still in full swing. But all of that was about to change.
The
following month Ed Sullivan presented a new pop group from England who
called themselves The Beatles ("something for the youngsters"). If
you're lucky enough to be of an age that you can remember what it was
like, you'll know that music hasn't been the same since. Dylan was on
the road when he first heard "I Want To Hold Your Hand" on the car
radio. He was totally knocked out by it. No one had ever sounded like
that before. Little did he know that the Beatles had been listening to
his records and were Dylan fans before they ever came to America.
From protest to poetry
Following
the release of the third album, Dylan left protest music behind and
began writing more insightful songs with lyrics that more closely
resembled pure poetry than song lyric. The lyrical brilliance that was
evident in his earlier work now shown brighter than ever and he would
soon take popular songwriting to a place it had never been before.
Someone once said that Bob Dylan was a combination of Woody Guthrie and
Allan Ginsberg. You need only to listen to his fourth album, Another Side of Bob Dylan,
to hear for yourself. Of course his fans were disappointed. They wanted
to hear more anti-war songs, not "no, no, no, it ain't me, babe."
The
Beatles finally met Dylan in the summer of 1964 while they were touring
America. Arranged by a journalist friend, they met in the hotel room
where the group was staying in New York. (Dylan's first words to them
were reportedly, "Yeah man, I'm hip."). When asked about the meeting
later, Lennon said they all just laughed all night.
Dylan's
lyrical influence began to become evident in some Beatle recordings,
especially songs written by Lennon. John stated that "I'm a Loser," was him trying to sound like Dylan. Dylan's influence can be heard again later in "You've Got To Hide Your Love Away."
Dylan goes electric
Dylan's
decision to start recording with electric instruments might be traced
to the fab four but most definitely to the Animals. When he heard their
recording of "House of the Risin' Sun" (which he recorded on his first
album), he couldn't believe his ears. Of course, he was no stranger to
rock 'n' roll. Dylan used to bang out rock tunes, Little Richard-style,
with his high school band, The Golden Chords. So when he went into the
studio in January, 1965 to begin work on his fifth album, he brought
along a few friends. When Bringing It All Back Home was released
in the spring of that year, the first side of the disc was Dylan and a
rock band, the second side was primarily acoustic. A single from the
album put Dylan in the Billboard Hot 100 charts for the first time.
"Subterranean Homesick Blues," which peaked at #39, was also one of the
first music videos and arguably the first rap song.
In
the spring of '65 Dylan toured the UK, taking a film crew with him. The
Beatles attended his London concert and the classic film of the tour, Don't Look Back, documenting
life on the road with Dylan and his entourage, was filmed by D.A.
Pennebaker but not released until 1971. It features historic footage
with Donovan, Joan Baez and many others and it is not to be missed.
After
the tour, Dylan was back in the studio recording his new single, "Like a
Rolling Stone."He now had some heavyweights on his side in Michael
Bloomfield and Al Kooper (even though it was Kooper's first time on the
Hammond B-3). The result was Dylan's first top 10 single. It had just
been released and was entering the charts (it eventually peaked at #2)
by the time of the Newport Folk Festival that year. Dylan stunned his
folk audience by being backed up by members of the Paul Butterfield
Blues Band with Bloomfield's searing lead guitar and Kooper on organ.
Following the festival, Dylan returned to the studio to complete work on
the classic Highway 61 Revisited album.
You can please some of the people sometime, but not all of the people all the time . . .
The
remainder of the year was mostly spent touring the US and eliciting
negative responses almost everywhere he went. You can have rock 'n'
roll, you can have Dylan, but you can't have them both together, was
pretty much the mindset. Levon Helm quit the band (before they were The
Band) after the US tour, because he was tired of getting booed, and
Mickey Jones took his place on the world tour in the spring of 1966.
But before the world tour, there was another album to make. Blonde On Blonde was
recorded in a few sessions in Nashville in the early months of 1966. It
is easy to recognize how much Dylan's music had progressed during the
year since he started recording with other musicians. The songs on Blonde On Blonde
are musically and lyrically beyond anything he had produced previously.
Dylan himself is not sure how these songs came out of him and said he
couldn't do it again now. Returning to The Beatles/Dylan side of the
story, listen to "Fourth Time Around" on Blonde On Blonde and see
if you think it sounds like The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood." Or is it the
other way around? Debates are ongoing about who came up with the tune
first, Dylan or John Lennon.
1966 and beyond -- pivotal years in Dylan's life.
Shortly after the release of Blonde On Blonde,
Dylan crashed his motorcycle in July and went into seclusion. Rumors of
the severity of his injuries varied in the rock press and after a long
period of recovery, he went back to work with The Band in Woodstock, NY.
From the spring through the fall 1967, he recorded what were to become
known as the basement tapes.
In the fall he returned to Nashville to record John Wesley Harding.
While he continued to record, live performances were few and far
between and were limited to the Woody Guthrie Memorial Concert, a couple
of surprise walk-ons at concerts by The Band, and a rare TV appearance
on the Johnny Cash Show. Turning his attention to country music, he had a
top 10 hit with "Lay Lady Lay" in the summer of 1969. Also that summer,
Dylan made his first real concert appearance since the motorcycle
accident when he and The Band performed at the Isle of White music
festival off the coast of England. The Beatles were among the 150,000
people who attended.
This
was also around the time that George Harrison started hanging out with
Dylan. George stayed at his house, they wrote songs together, and in
1971 performed at the Concert For Bangladesh (with Leon Russell and
Ringo Starr). Their friendship endured as is evident on the recordings
by the Traveling Wilburys in 1988 and 1990.
More albums, tours, awards . . . and the Nobel Prize.
Meanwhile,
Dylan still continues to record and tour. He returned to touring in
1974 and has been on the road ever since. His albums of new material
continued to find their way into the top 10 starting with World Gone Wrong in
1998. Lately he's preferred recording covers of his favorite standards,
but the "Never Ending Tour" (which started in the 80's) still rolls on.
He's won Grammy Awards, has an Oscar (song: "Dignity," film: Wonderboys)
which he takes on the road with him, and many other awards too numerous
to mention. So I guess the only thing left was the Nobel Prize for
Literature. I can't think of anyone more deserving.
Dylan's enduring influence
When
I was asked to write an article about Dylan, I mainly wanted to focus
on the period in his career that many consider his creative peak
(1965-66) even though he still continues to produce brilliant work. As
Leonard Cohen once said, "you can never write him off." I also wanted to
let everyone know just how big of a role he played in shaping the
musical landscape of the future. That is why I continued to bring the
Beatles into the story since, along with Dylan, they had to be the
single greatest influence on music and culture in the 1960s. In addition
to his influence on the Beatles, there were the folk-rock groups that
started sprouting up in California after the release of "Like a Rolling
Stone" and a new genre was born. A large part of the Byrds early catalog
consisted of Dylan tunes and so many songwriters point to Dylan as
their godhead (including me).
How would music have been different without Dylan? I think (or hope anyway) that someone
out there would realize there's more to sing about than cars, surfing,
and wanting to get laid. It probably would have taken longer, might not
have been nearly as interesting, but thank God we didn't have to go
through it. That's reason enough for a Nobel Prize!
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