Peoples' Voice Cafe

The Peoples' Voice Cafe

An alternative coffeehouse offering
quality entertainment in New York City.

~ Spring 2015 Season ~ January 3, 2015:
	Reggie Harris Born in Philadelphia, a city rich in musical and cultural heritage, Reggie was exposed to a range of composers and musical genres. Reggie met his wife and musical partner Kim by chance at a summer camp in 1974, and began to develop their "Bach to Rock" musical approach, mixing classical, folk, gospel and jazz to their music of love, hope, freedom and empowerment. Tonight Reggie performs as a soloist while his soulmate, Kim is away at another event. kimandreggie.com
	Pat Wictor Pat Wictor burst on the folk and acoustic scene as an innovative slide guitarist known for doing fresh and memorable versions of traditional and contemporary songs. He's become a well-regarded singer and songwriter, creating material grounded in rural country, gospel, and blues. In recent years he's been touring nationally as one third of Brother Sun, the powerful harmonizing trio with Joe Jencks and Greg Greenway. Pat has lived in Venezuela, Holland, Norway, and England, which has given him an awareness of how people can take different paths to arrive at the same destination. patwictor.com

January 10, 2015:
	Special Afternoon Event: A Celebration of Ray Korona Lower Level Assembly Hall 3:00-6:00 pm Share a short memory or song.

January 10, 2015:
	Professor Louie & the Lewis Family Jeffrey Lewis has been playing his songs in Russia, Australia, China and all over Europe and the USA. Jordan Carlos does stand-up all over the country; he's also on MTV's Guy Code and Girl Code and in the (new) feature film Three Generations with Susan Sarandon and Naomi Watts, due out in 2015. Perry Robinson, a multiple first-place winner of the Downbeat International Jazz Poll, has played all over the world with musicians from Dave Brubeck to Badal Roy to Charlie Haden. Shayna Lewis and the Azure (Heart) Beats have been making world tours in Brooklyn this past year. Erica Hansen sang with the U Mass Chamber Choir and also won the gold medal as the lead vocalist in the state-wide Jazz Band Competition. Joshua Sol Lewis is playing Son Jarocho on guitar and also playing flute in Kargus, an African percussion band based in Guadalajara, Mexico. Professor Louie and Fast Eddie, veterans of the Peoples Voice Cafe, have played more meetings, rallies, benefits and demonstrations than they can remember. Most everyone has CDs out somewhere in the world. myspace.com/professorlouienyc

January 17, 2015:
	Peoples' Voice Cafe Open Mic Night Here is your chance to perform a song of your choosing for peace, justice, human rights, and/or the environment. Here is your chance to perform a song of your choosing for peace, justice, human rights, and/or the environment. Sign-up begins at 7:00 PM. For this night only we are asking for a contribution of just $5 or $10. As always, you are welcome to give us more if you choose and less if you cannot. No one will be turned away for lack of money. Cosponsored by the Folk Music Society of New York. Please note: Holly Near had to postpone her performance until a later time. Since she was going to donate her share of the gate receipts to Action for Health in the Americas to support the work of Educación Popular en Salud in Chile, you are still welcome to make a donation directly to AHA for that purpose.

January 24, 2015:
	Closed for People's Music Network Winter Gathering in Greenfield, Massachusetts, January 23-25. Register at: http://peoplesmusic.org/2015-peoples-music-network-winter-gathering-january-23-25/ See you there!

January 31, 2015:
	David Kleiman Memorial David Kleiman, singer, musician, genealogist, choral director, and much more, passed away in January 2014. A group of singers and musicians who played with David over the years is gathering to honor his memory, including Joy Bennett, Jan Christensen, Alison Kelley, Kate Kleiman, Chris Koldewey, Jen Larson, Ken Schatz, Chris Seymour, Ellen Weiss, Frank Woerner, and Heather Wood. Expect an evening of great chorus songs, shanties, and reminiscences. Performers' share of the proceeds will go to Kate, David's widow. Cosponsored by the Folk Music Society of New York.

February 7, 2015:
	Rod MacDonald A Rod MacDonald concert is an intimate and uplifting experience. Wry and sentimental, silly and inspiring, humorous and reckless, and always compelling, he grabs his audiences and doesn’t let go. Rod began as a reporter for a national newsweekly after he finished Columbia Law school, and his sharp ear and keen observations have found their way into his songs. When not touring, Rod is an instructor at Florida Atlantic University through their Lifelong Learning Program, presenting eight-week lecture/performance series on music history. His most recent CD is Later That Night (2014), and he has just published a novel, The Open Mike. rodmacdonald.net

February 14, 2015: *Women's Voices for Love & Freedom*
	MaryNell Morgan MaryNell Morgan is a professor and inspirational a capella singer of traditional spirituals, blues and pop. Her music has taken her to Caffe Lena; Peoples' Voice Café, Folk Factory, and colleges across the nation. MaryNell has been a member of The Peoples' Music Network for more than 20 years and has performed with Pete Seeger and other well-known folk singers.
	Alice Farrell Alice Farrell has been singing traditional Irish music in the New York session scene for over 25 years and was the founder of the weekly session at Swift Hibernian Lounge in the Village. Alice studied with noted Irish singer and song collector Frank Harte and has recorded with Colm Mac Con Iomaire, the fiddler in the original lineup of seminal Irish trad supergroup Kila. Her calatog encompasses both Irish and American traditions.
	Robbie Wedeen Singer-songwriter Robbie Wedeen plays folk, gospel, country, blues, bluegrass, and sea songs. She performs traditional and contemporary songs as well as her own compositions on guitar, autoharp and banjo.

February 21, 2015:
	"Remember the Major" Benefit Concert The late Congressman Major Owens founded the Central Brooklyn Martin Luther King Commission in 1985, the same year his son, Chris Owens, first performed at the Peoples' Voice Cafe. The Commission promotes the work of Dr. King and awareness of social justice in Brooklyn's public schools through annual essay, poetry and art contests. This "Remember The Major" tribute concert features original music by Chris Owens and OBB - The Owens Brothers Band. Guest performers include fellow Brooklynites Bev Grant, Judy Gorman, Barry Kornhauser, Professor Louie, Mauricio Alexander, Mike Glick, Steve Mayer, and others. We hope you'll sing along as well! Your financial contribution will support the Commission and the PVC. This event will be recorded live for distribution in CD and DVD formats.

February 28, 2015:
	MacDougal Street Rent Party Reunion Hoot! Formed at the 2003 Woody Guthrie Birthday Bash in New York City, the acoustic-folk-Americana band MacDougal Street Rent Party was Joel Landy, Eric Levine, Anne Price, Steve Suffet, and Gina Tlamsa, or some combination thereof. When they performed in New England, Sandy Pliskin sometimes pinch hit for Eric. The group dissolved shortly after Eric's untimely death in 2008, but the surviving members are getting back together for an evening of honest-to-goodness folk music, some traditional, some contemporary, and some in-between. This is going to be a good old fashioned hootenanny as Joel, Anne, Steve, Gina, and Sandy mix it up round robin style with solos, duets, and whole group numbers. Expect the unexpected, and as always, please feel free to sing along on the choruses and refrains. stevesuffet.com/MSRP.html

March 7, 2015:
Photo by Vicki Farmer	International Women's Day Celebration: SONiA of disappear fear From the Opera House in Sydney to the bomb shelters in Israel to the Woody Guthrie Festival, multiple first round Grammy nominee and singer-songwriter SONiA of disappear fear continues to excite and ignite audiences in the USA and around the world, playing rock, folk, country, Latin, blues and reggae with guitar, piano, and harmonica. She sings and writes in Hebrew, Spanish, English and Arabic. What makes SONiA SONiA is her powerful lyrics delivered with passion and hope. The honesty of her songs touches people from a wide spectrum of social and ethnic backgrounds, based on the premise that "when you disappear fear between people what you have is love". soniadisappearfear.com youtube.com/disappearvideo

March 14, 2015:
	Emma's Revolution Smart, funny and informative--like Rachel Maddow and Jon Stewart with guitars--Emma's Revolution is the duo of award-winning activist musicians Pat Humphries & Sandy O. Their songs have been have been an integral part of justice movements for 30 years and have been sung for the Dalai Lama and covered by Holly Near. The duo's awards include Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest and, for the second year in a row, the Washington Area Music Association's Fan Favorite Award. Emma's Revolution has released three CDs and recorded two with Holly Near, and Pat has two solo albums. Their uprising of truth, hope and a dash of irreverence is inspired by Emma Goldman's famous attribution, "If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution." emmasrevolution.com facebook.com/emmasrevolution

March 21, 2015:
	Brooklyn Community Storytellers The Brooklyn Community Storytellers is an eclectic group of performing artists, peace activists, musicians, educators, librarians, healers, ministers, and counselors. Since 1997, we have been spinning tales on stone stoops, in parks, churches, libraries, schools, and family gatherings. Tonight's program, Passion and Persistence, will feature the musician Mercy Van Vlack and the following storytellers: Remi Gay is an artist and dancer who specializes in Native American stories. She has worked with children at the Brooklyn Free School, telling Native American stories and leading dance workshops. Susan Lippman, a storyteller, writer, and songwriter active in the Peoples' Voice Cafe, recently completed a book of original folk songs. She is a spiritual-atheist, a cynical-optimist, and a social worker, who uses stories to help children cope with stress and assists adult clients in creating their own stories. Jeani Miller brings her unique talents, skills, and educational background to create an inspirational message that leaves a lasting impression on her audiences. bcsstory.org
	Adele Rolider Come join the fun as singer-songwriter / music therapist Adele Rolider weaves her passionate web of original and cover tunes to inspire, warm and nurture through song. From jazz to spiritual, from love to grief to love again, she'll sing about building our community, and get you singing too! "And we're all connected and we need that too, gonna feed each other, gonna live what's true. And breathe......believe." With Cynthia Hilts on piano and vocals, and Adele on vocals and guitar. "Adele's beautiful voice and empowering songs make me know a better world really is possible." --Ray Korona. adelerolider.com

March 28, 2015:
	Brooklyn Women's Chorus CD Release Party! The Brooklyn Women's Chorus, directed by Bev Grant, is thrilled to announce the release of our CD, I Will Sing!, recorded live at the BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center in March 2014. We sing for social justice, peace and freedom, with a large repertoire of songs, including traditional labor songs, and contemporary songs written by Bev Grant, Pat Humphries, Jean Rohe and Jon Fromer, as well as Paul Simon, Garth Brooks and the Dixie Chicks. Come help us celebrate! brooklynwomenschorus.com facebook.com/pages/Brooklyn-Womens-Chorus/61381121955

April 4, 2015:	*Closed for the Holidays*

April 11, 2015:
	The New York City Raging Grannies In the tradition of wise women elders, the mission of the "Raging Grannies" is to promote global peace, justice, and social and economic equality by raising awareness through the medium of song and humor. Wearing snappy hats and with snappier lyrics, poets and singers and puppeteers, The New York City Metro Raging Grannies are often seen at protests. Started in 1987 in Victoria, BC, there are now more than 60 gaggles of "Raging Grannies" throughout Canada, the U.S., and Scotland. nycmetro.raginggrannies.org facebook.com/10025NYCRG Left to Right: Adele, Susan, Judith, Mercy, Sally, Sunny
	Patricia Shih Multiple national award-winning singer-songwriter Patricia Shih and her accompanist/husband Stephen Fricker will present a set of mostly originals songs from her four decades in music, plus perhaps a classic cover song or two from her latest album. Many in the NY metro area will recognize her from her concerts for children and families, Patricia’s area of specialty over the past 28 years. But now she is returning to her roots in music for the taller set in an extremely rare appearance for adults in NYC. Her songs are truly for the heart, mind and funny bone! patriciashih.com

April 18, 2015:
	*Ray Korona Song Night* Though Ray will not be here in person, he will certainly be joining us in spirit as the Ray Korona Band and special guests perform Ray's songs of love, peace, dignity and empowerment. Ray's songs are funny, poignant, hard-hitting, joyous, and sometimes quirky — they are just too good to be left unsung! This date was originally booked as the Ray Korona Band’s annual evening at the Café, but we are turning the event into a broader community celebration of Ray's music. The Band — Ivice, Barry Kornhauser, Ellen Davidson and Gina Tlamsa, augmented by Rick Ulfik, Ben Silver and Laura Liben — will present a number of Ray's songs. These will be interspersed with performances by guest artists: Jay Mankita, Mercy Van Vlack, Adele Rolider, the NYC Raging Grannies, Lisa Garrison, Sharleen Leahey, Lydia Adams Davis, Anne Price, and Jim Gahn. They are all performers Ray would be proud to have on stage representing him! Please join us in keeping Ray's music alive tonight and further down the road. raykorona.com Printable Flyer to Share

April 25, 2015:
	Sally Campbell Quaker singer/songwriter, Sally Campbell, returns with her autoharp to celebrate her 73rd and a half birthday. She'll be singing her sometimes funny, sometimes deep, always friendly songs and inviting you to sing along. So far she has given away almost 2,000 copies of Gift Songs and Blessings, the CD of her 70th birthday concert/party. Since she feels these songs were given to her, she wants to pass them along. One of the songs she'll be singing is Malvina Reynolds' "Magic Penny" which asserts "love is something, if you give it away, you end up having more." Come and share in the wealth.
	Pat Lamanna Pat’s songs have been praised highly by Pete Seeger, Peter Yarrow, David Roth, and others. They have a strong folk influence, and cover issues such as peace, religion, the environment, and personal topics. They are carefully crafted and lyric-driven, with tunes that are eminently singable. She has two solo albums, Full Circle (2009) and Do I Know My Song Well Enough to Start Singing Yet? (2012). patlamanna.com

May 2, 2015:
	Anne Hills "Anne Hills is such an exquisite singer that it’s understandable that people might be swept up in the pure beauty of her voice and thereby overlook her writing. That would be a mistake. For me, Anne’s writing, in songs like "Follow That Road" and many others, is as direct, melodic and deep as any work being done today. She is quite simply one of my absolute favorite songwriters." - Tom Paxton.
	Harmonic Insurgence Harmonic Insurgence has been singing about peace, freedom, justice, and social change since 2003. With the rich harmonies and intricate rhythms of director Gene Glickman’s arrangements, the singers—Laurie Bennett, Ellen Davidson, Lupe Family, Josh Feintuch, Mara Goodman, Nancy Hoch, Mark Karwowski, Rina Kleege, Jenny Knight, Dennis Marshall, Togu Oppusunggu, and Marie Robinson—and cellist Martha Siegel present folk, reggae, blues, labor and love songs. Tonight they will sing about war, government spying, the environment, police brutality and racism, and getting from winter to spring, among other things. Come celebrate spring and renew your commitment to the flowering of compassion and justice.

May 9, 2015:
	*Second Annual Pete Seeger Sing-Along Celebration & Benefit* Come celebrate Pete's life in song by adding your voice to this participatory sing-along. The songs will all be Pete Seeger favorites, and the song leaders will include Steve Deasy, Mike Glick, Bev Grant, Robin Greenstein, Ben Grosscup, Joel Landy, Anne Price, Professor Louie, Ben Silver, and Steve Suffet (MC), plus others to be announced. This event will be a joint benefit for the People's Music Network and the Peoples' Voice Cafe, with all proceeds divided equally between the two organizations.

May 16, 2015:
	*The Cost of Freedom: Kent & Jackson State 1970-2015* A Commemorative Concert with Emma's Revolution and Magpie. Produced by Susie Erenrich. A project of the Cultural Center for Social Change and PVC.
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