Plank Road Folk Music Society

Winter - January 2024 www.plankroad.org

In This Issue

Dreadnought . . . the guitar that changed popular music.

Steam Machine . . . old-time & bluegrass workshop draws large crowd.

Remembering . . . Folksinger, comedian, activist Tom Smothers.

Andy's Music Trivia Quiz . . . and more!

Plank Road Events

Please join us for our in-person get togethers — co-sponsored with Two Way Street Coffee House.

Sing-Around

1st & 3rd Saturday. | 2-4 pm

Vocal instrumental jam and sing-along with songbooks and leader.

Country & Western Sing-Around

4th Saturday. | 2-4 pm

Sing along with your favorite C&W songs. Songbooks provided.

Song Circle -- BYOS!

2nd Tuesday. | 7-9 pm

Bring Your Own Song! A monthly opportunity for folks to perform original or cover songs for each other, within a song circle.

Plank Road String Band Practice

2nd Sat. | 2:00-4:00 pm

First Church of Lombard

630-620-0688

An old-time string band practice for intermediate/advanced players, from September to April.

Be sure to check the Plank Road and Two Way Street websites and Facebook pages for details about each event.

President's Message

Winter 2024

Greetings in 2024! Here we go again with another year to enjoy and be thankful for (unless you follow politics). Plank Road is as active and vibrant as I have seen, thanks to all of you.

Our membership level remains very consistent from year to year. We gain members on a regular basis; people hear about us from others or access our web site and start by attending one of our 60 + events we present each year, and we try to make them welcome.

As an organization with many seniors in our ranks, we do see natural turnover from year to year; we tend to gain and lose about a dozen members per year.

Our regular sing-arounds are well attended these days, and our string band’s barn dances are more popular than ever. We will be scheduling a Log Cabin party later in the year, as well as a workshop.

On a personal note, 2024 is my sixteenth year as President of Plank Road. I have made many friends during this time and have enjoyed all the music events over the years. It is a perfect fit for a retired man, who loves music and people.

Bob O'Hanlon

President

What's on your mind?

Have ideas for future QuarterNotes articles?
Comments or responses to current articles?
Want to submit a photo or story? Concert experience? Favorite artist? Tips for learning, playing or writing a song? How you got started in folk music and what it means to you? What you love about Plank Road?

Drop us a line!

lemos.bill@comcast.net

Dread not the Dreadnought . . .

How Martin’s big guitar

revolutionized

popular music.

In 1916, during the Great War, England was fighting for its survival. German U-boats prowled the Atlantic in deadly wolf packs, hunting the vital supply line from the United States. Fortunately for England and Europe, Britannia still “ruled the waves,” standing between the U-boats and possible annihilation.

At that time, the Royal Navy was best symbolized by the H.M.S. Dreadnought — the largest battleship ever built.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic . . .

C.F. Martin & Co. was creating the biggest 6-string guitar ever built. Chris Martin IV, CEO of the company that bears his family’s name, recalls his grandfather saying, “this is the largest guitar ever made — let’s name it in honor of the biggest battleship ever made.”

Compared to guitars that proceeded it, the dreadnought had more volume and more bottom end. In a 1916 edition of Music Trade Review, the instrument was “said to be an excellent instrument for use in auditoriums and large halls,” in addition to being “excellent for the making of talking machine records.”

The Hawaiian Connection

Ukuleles and Hawaiian music had become popular in 1915 to a mainstream American audience — and musicians were looking for an instrument with a “bigger” sound and a strong bass response. At first the dreadnought proved less than popular. The early model had a wide, flat fingerboard, and was designed for Hawaiian musicians to play with a slide.

Filling a need for recording and performing . . . more volume please.

In the early 1930s Martin introduced the D-1 and D-2, which soon became Martin’s iconic D-18 and D-28 models. By the mid-‘30s the dreadnought started to become more popular.

The recording industry was growing, along with the use of electronic microphones and amplification, while acoustic guitarists performing onstage were discovering they needed more volume. The larger dreadnoughts provided the solution, and was ideal for performing groups in venues such as the Grand Old Opry.

During the Depression years, country artists embraced their dreads. After World War Il, when the economy picked up, their popularity grew. In bluegrass music, the dreadnought could hold its own against the loud banjos, mandolins and fiddles.

It’s 107 years old . . . and perhaps the most copied guitar on earth.

It was the 1960s folk boom that really spurred dreadnought sales — and many copies by other guitar makers, both high-end models and “economy” lines — all built around the dreadnought model. Most major guitar companies make versions of the dreadnought, including Taylor, Gibson, Epiphone, Seagull, Yamaha, Alvarez and others.

By the 1970s Martin offered five different dreadnought models: D-18, D-28, D-35, D-41, and D-45.

From country, folk, and bluegrass, to rock and pop artists.

Here are some of the musicians who recorded and performed with dreadnought guitars:

Gene Autry, Hank Williams, The Kingston Trio, Doc Watson, Johnny Cash, Jerry Garcia, John Lennon, and Bob Dylan . . .

Joni Mitchell (above), Ramblin’ Jack Elliot, Jimmy Page, Nancy Wilson, David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Neil Young...

Loggins & Messina, Seals & Crofts and Peter Frampton, to newer folk artists like Mumford & Sons, Kurt Cobain, Avett Brothers, Shawn Colvin and Neko Case.

Elvis played this D-35 during his 1977 tour. Valued at $75,000, it's now on permanent display at the National Music Museum in Vermillion, South Dakota.

Presley played a D-28 on his1956 debut album. He had a 1942 D-18 in 1954-55, but traded it in for a D-28 in 1955.

Paul McCartney and John Lennon used their D-28s to write 42 songs that would become The White Album, Let It Be and Abbey Road.

The Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards played a D-45 on the band’s 1972 Exile On Main Street tour.

You can hear a D-28 on the opening chords of Pink Floyd’s “Welcome To The Machine” and “Wish You Were Here.”

How a favorite Plank Road Saturday sing-around song first became a classic.

There are two versions: (1) The Band was visiting the Martin factory in Nazareth, PA, and liked the town's name. (2) Guitarist Robbie Robertson was struggling with some of the lyrics to a song he was working on. He liked the opening line — “I pulled into…” but got stuck on the rest. Glancing at his D-28, he noticed the guitar’s back center brace was branded with “C.F. Martin & Co, Nazareth, PA.”

That’s how “I pulled into Nazareth, I was feeling ‘bout half past dead…” evolved into “The Weight,” a huge hit for The Band in 1968. The song opens with a distinctive guitar riff played on that very same D-28.

Edited from a February 2016 Acoustic Guitar article by Greg Cahill.

Old-Time & Bluegrass Workshop

Large turnout enjoys Steam Machine . . . “It was amazing!”

Judging by the enthusiastic response of attendees, the Plank Road October workshop featuring The Steam Machine was a rousing success. “It was a perfect blend of watching and listening to an energetic and talented band perform,” says Dottie Lee.

Organized by Jen Shilt and Kristen Fuller, the event exceeded expectations. As Jim Gilroy recalls, “I arrived early with Jen and Kristen to help set up. We arranged chairs in a loose circle. But as it turned out, Dave Humphreys had to get additional chairs as we had more people than expected.”

Bob O’Hanlon introduced the four members of Steam Machine. “They played the three tunes that they were going to teach us,” says Jen. “Then divided into three groups — fiddle-mandolin, clawhammer and bluegrass banjo styles, and guitar-rhythm-bass.” The largest group stayed in the main room, while the other two groups went to different rooms.

Breakout rooms focused on each instrument.

“I found it very helpful that we were divided into separate breakout rooms,” says Dottie Lee. She was in the guitar/bass group and says her instructor demonstrated ways to effectively provide the necessary rhythm backing to support the melody players in a group.

Jim Gilroy was in the fiddle-mandolin workshop, along with a few other mandolin players. “The instructor taught us three fiddle tunes, "Pig In a Pen," "Wolves a’ Howlin," and "Got a Little Home To Go To," says Jim. “The instructor emphasized learning by ear — no written tunes were used.”

After the breakout sessions all the groups came together to play the tunes they had learned. At the end of the workshop, Steam Machine played a few tunes, held a question-and-answer session, and provided some online resources (see below).

About Steam Machine . . .

Steam Machine is a Midwest-based old time/bluegrass music project fronted by award winning Minneapolis fiddler AJ Srubas and old-time music and dance instructor Rina Rossi on guitar and bass, plus David Robinson on banjo and mandolin, and Andrew Norcross on banjo and bass. Steam Machine aspires to “keep Midwest style old-time/bluegrass music alive and well wherever they go.”

Online resources:

Traditional Tune Archive

https://tunearch.org/wiki/TTA

Slippery-Hill

https://www.slippery-hill.com/

Click here to watch a video of Steam Machine playing “Pig In a Pen” at the workshop!

“The Steam Machine Workshop was amazing!” - Dottie Lee

“I picked up some insightful and useful tips, specific for each instrument and its role in the string band. I also very much appreciated that we were allowed and encouraged to take video of some of the step-by-step techniques and demonstrations — so that our learning can continue after the workshop.”

Scenes from the November Barn Dance

So far this season our Barn Dances have been quite popular! The dances, and the String Band music that accompanies them, bring people together in a family-friendly environment.

The simple joy of joining together and sharing this old-time tradition will bring a smile to your face – as you can see in these photos!

Above: Plank Road String Band.

Below: Caller Moose Flores.

Mark your calendar — the next Barn Dance is February 3.

Photos by Jim Scalone.

Welcome New Members!

We’re pleased to announce these folks have recently joined Plank Road Folk Music Society.

Thanks for your support . . . it’s all about the music and the camaraderie!

Jim Chesney
Sarah Kierstead
Gary Rotramel
Tom Brown
Hugh Heinsohn
Cindy Moriarity
Bill & Wilma Morris

Local Venues

Two Way Street Coffee House — Friday Night Concert Series.

Doors open at 7:30pm and concerts start at 8pm. You can also view concerts online — more information on Two Way Street Coffee House or Facebook.

Maple Street Concerts.

Live concerts have returned to Maple Street Chapel in downtown Lombard. Concerts are subject to CDC guidelines. Please check the Maple Street website for concert listings.

Other venues . . .

- Acoustic Renaissance Concerts

- Old Town School Of Folk Music

- Tobias Music Concerts

- Friends of Lisle Library Concerts

Some venues have live concerts — check their websites to confirm.

Holiday sing-around

Caroling gets rained out, but not the music!

You’d think by the middle of December there might be a little snow — not rain. But on Saturday, December 16 the Plank Road Christmas carolers were washed out, unable to entertain shoppers in downtown Downers Grove.

But all was not lost. At 2 pm, back at Two Way Street, 20 folks attended our annual Holiday Sing-around. Trusty song leader George Mattson was ill, so Bob O’Hanlon took over with assistance from Andy Malkewicz and Jim Gilroy.

Stream it NOW!

Listen to music by Mark Dvorak, George Mattson Trio, Ashley & Simpson, and the Plank Road String Band, plus tunes by other Plank Road Members — FREE on most streaming sites.

Just look for Down the Old Plank Road Volume 3. (Be sure to enter the complete title.)

* Apple Music * iTunes * Spotify

* Pandora * Amazon Music

* YouTube Music * Bandcamp

* And many others!

With a little help from our friends . . .

George Mattson Trio

gmtrio.com

Mark Dvorak

markdvorak.com

Tobias Music

www.tobiasmusic.com

Remembering . . .

Tom Smothers

As one half of the famed Smothers Brothers comedy and folk music duo, Tom Smothers fought racism, the Vietnam War and television censors throughout his career. He died December 26 at age 86.

Smothers was born in 1937. Four years later the family moved to the Philippines when his father, an Army Major, was sent there. As World War II expanded, Tom’s mother brought Tom, his brother Dick, and sister to Southern California. His father was captured, survived the Bataan death march, but died on a Japanese POW ship in 1945.

Growing up, Smothers played guitar and was part of musical groups with his brother. As the Fifties drew to a close, he and Dick decided to try their luck at folk music. They formed their own act in 1959 with Tom on acoustic guitar and Dick on upright bass. Two years later, they played the Purple Onion in San Francisco, New York’s Blue Angel, and were regulars on The Steve Allen Show.

Combining folk music and comedy was their breakthrough.

In 1962, they released the album The Two Sides of the Smothers Brothers. One side had classic folk tunes, the other comedy tunes.

In 1967 The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour premiered and became a counterculture staple with pointed routines and sly references to everything from recreational drug use to the Vietnam War.

Their banter before, between and amid songs would become the focus of their act and their sibling rivalry. Tom, who played the “dumb” one, often complained to Dick, the straight man. “Mom always liked you best,” became a running gag.

A time of unrest . . . and censors.

“It was a traumatic time in our country,” said Rob Reiner. “Tommy, with his cunning intellect and strong desire for social justice, wanted to tap into that.”

Censors killed many skits and changed the language in others. CBS also pre-empted one episode and banned performances of Pete Seeger’s anti-Vietnam War song “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy,” and Harry Belafonte‘s “Don’t Stop the Carnival,” about the 1968 Democratic National Convention riots in Chicago.

At its peak the show attracted 30 million viewers a week.

But it wouldn’t last for long. In 1969 the pair were fired after 72 episodes — even though their show was in the Top 10 and already renewed for a fourth season. Their program attracted younger, hipper, more rebellious viewers — and launched the careers of Steve Martin, Rob Reiner, Mason Williams, and Elaine May.

The brothers filed a lawsuit against the network for breach of contract and copyright infringement. They won a settlement of about $900,000 but never regained their clout.

Tom Smothers has been called “a true champion for freedom of speech, harnessing the power of comedy to push boundaries and our political consciousness.”

Cathy Jones

cathy@jonesfamilymusic.com

WDCB Folk Festival

Music Trivia

Andy's Music Trivia Quiz

Thanks for your responses. It was pretty competitive between Bill Mathews and Fred Spanuello. Fred corrected me on Q5, while Bill somehow had the answer to the question I "intended" to ask. So Fred eked out the win for this quarter. Thanks again.

Answers to previous Quiz:

Q1, What Buddy Holly song was the 1st big Rolling Stones hit in the US?

A1. "Not Fade Away" reached #48 on the Billboard 100, and peaked at #7 in Chicago on WLS Silver Dollar Survey in 1964. (BTW – I bought this off the discount rack when it was still a hit!)

TRIVIA SNIPET: Buddy's Cricket drummer J.I.Allison recalls that when playing "Peggy Sue" Buddy is the only guitarist who played it with only DOWN STROKES, he was that good/fast! (from "Listen to Me" by Jeffrey Smith p.85.)

Q2. David Seville was quite famous with the “Chipmunk Song.” Who wrote the song, and what other hits did he have?

A2. David Seville's real name was Ross Bagdasarian, and he wrote 3 of his biggest songs in 1958; "Chipmunk Song," "Witch Doctor," and "Bird On My Head.”

Q3. Name two of Lavern Baker's top 20 pop hits?

A3. “Tweedle Dee” #14 in 1955; “Jim Dandy” #17 in 1956; “I Cried a Tear” # 6 in 1956. She also had "See See Rider" at #38 in 1962 (when I really got interested in pop music).

Q4. What song did the Ran-Dells make and when?

A4. The "Martian Hop" on Chairman records reached #16 on the BB100.

Q5. What song did the Rondells make and when?

A5. Correct answer is "Greensleeves" in 1959. There were 3 groups with similar names: 1) Rondells - early 60s instrumental backing group; 2) Rhondells - 50s R&B group; 3) Ron-dels – 60s one-hit wonder with lead singer Delbert McClinton. "If You Really Want Me To, I'll Go" by the Ron-dels was what I intended to ask. The song has since been covered and released by several big names later. "If You Really Want Me To, I'll Go" barely charted at #97 in 1965 on the BB100, while charting #21 on Chicago's WLS Silver Dollar Survey. Lead singer Delbert McClinton has since gone on with several bigger country hits. The subject song has since then hit the charts by Waylon Jennings and others.

Q6. What popular doo-wop song was based on an early 19th century poem?

A6. "Little Star" by the Elegants, released in 1958, was adapted from "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" a popular English lullaby. The lyrics are from an English poem written by Jane Taylor, "The Star," first published in 1806 in Rhymes for the Nursery.

Q7. Where, when and what was Elvis Presley's 1st single? (2 different answers acceptable that I know of.)

A7. He paid $3.99 in August 1953 to cut "My Happiness;" or "That's All Right" with Sam Phillips SUN records in Memphis with Bill Black and Scotty Moore on July 5, 1954.

Q8. What is a Celesta? On What Buddy Holly hit is it used, and who plays it?

A8. A celesta is a percussion instrument with a piano type keyboard. Invented by French instrument maker Victor Mustel in 1886. A key is pressed to move a felt hammer that strikes a sound plate with a wood resonator creating sound an octave above the music notation. Norman Petty plays the one available in his studio when the Crickets recorded "Everyday" (b-side of “Peggy Sue”) which went to #3 on BB100 in 1957. Tchaikovsky was impressed by the instrument, and wrote the celesta solo of "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy".

Q9. What do the following hit songs have in common? 1)“Heartlight” by Neil Diamond; 2)”Arthur's Theme” by Christopher Cross; 3“It's My Turn” by Diana Ross; 4)“Nobody Does it Better” by Carly Simon; 5)“That's What Friends Are For” by Dionne Warwick; 6)“Midnight Blue” by Melissa Manchester; 7)“When I Need You” by Leo Sayer; and 8)“Groovy Kind of Love” by the Mindbenders.

A9. Carole Bayer Sager co-wrote all these songs: 1)1982; 2)1981; 3)1980; 4)1978; 5)1985; 6)1977; 7)1977; 8)1966. "Groovy Kind of Love" had lyrics by Carole Bayer, and Toni Wine written while still in high school. The melody is based on a composition by classical composer Muzio Clementi. Once they were able to settle on a title, the song was written in 20 minutes.

NEW Trivia Quiz:

Q1. Name 4 (or more) songs that use Onomatopoeia in the name of the song, and the artist that sang it.

Q2. When and by who was 3 Dog Night's '"Black and White" written?

Q3. What famous cowboy song collected by Lomax in 1910 remained obscure until it was perhaps the most popular song of 1933? It’s in our C/W songbook.

Q4. in 1971, a Billboard100 song that went to #3 was like a continuation of a verse from Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land.” What tune is it?

Q5. What hit song did Paul Anka write for Tom Jones? For Frank Sinatra? What was Paul Anka's 1st self-written #1 song? How about one for Buddy Holly?

Q6. What Dion hit features a kazoo as a main instrument?

Q7. What #1 hit did Anthony Newly co-write?

Q8. Who wrote Dobie Gray's "Drift Away" and why? What other hit did Dobie Gray have?

Q9. What was Frank Sinatra's first paid performance?

Hope to get more responses!

Keep them coming in:

pictq@yahoo.com

Did you know . . .?

John Phillips wrote many songs for The Mamas & The Papas

. . . at least two of them were about Michelle’s “extracurricular activities.”

The Mamas and the Papas’ John and Michelle Phillips were married in 1962. They had been members of a Greenwich Village folk act called the New Journeymen. Denny Doherty and Cass Elliott had been in similar groups, the Big 3, and the Mugwumps (along with John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky, founders of The Lovin’ Spoonful).

In 1966 John Phillips wrote “I Saw Her Again Last Night” after discovering a “torrid” (but short-lived) affair between Michelle and Doherty. According to Michelle in a recent documentary, John also wrote “Go Where You Want to Go, (Do What You Want to Do)” based on the same affair. In the documentary Michelle freely admits she “liked to have fun” in her younger days.

And the band name? While watching a TV interview about the Hell’s Angels, the four Mamas & Papas heard the bikers describe their girlfriends as “mamas.” From that remark came the name of one of the biggest folk-rock quartets of the ‘60s.