Pickin' Jams

 

 

================================================

                                Banjo Workshop

Saturday August 9, 2008

10:00AM

 

Banjo Workshop – Assemble, Tune, Pick, Play & Take Away a 5-String Banjo for only $30!   The Savannah Folk Music Society will present a 5-string banjo workshop at 10:00AM on Saturday, August 9, 2008. The twenty participants will assemble a 5-string banjo, donated by the Gretsch Foundation, and learn to tune, pick and play the instrument. Best of all, those who attend will get to keep the banjo! Registration for the day-long event is only $30.00.   This workshop is the latest of several collaborations between the Society and the locally-based, world famous Gretsch – maker of guitars and drums for 125 years. Gretsch also is a key sponsor of the annual Savannah Folk Music Festival.   The workshop will be held at Senior Citizens Incorporated, 3025 Bull Street in Savannah. Senior Citizens, Inc. and Ships of the Sea Museum are also partners in this project.   The banjo is a fun, historical instrument. Its origins go to the African continent and it was developed in Appalachia and throughout the Southern United States. People of all ages are encouraged to take part in this workshop. If you are interested, please contact Hank Weisman at 912-786-6953.                                                                  ================================================

THE 2008 SAVANNAH AREA YOUTH SONGWRITING COMPETITION                                                   Sept. 1, 2008 is the deadline for entries to the third annual Youth Songwriting Competition at the Savannah Folk Music Festival. Start now with original compositions and compete for $1,000 in prizes! The 19th Annual Savannah Folk Music Festival, presented by the Savannah Folk Music Society and the City of Savannah’s Department of Cultural Affairs on October 10, 11 and 12, 2008, will feature the finals of a Youth Songwriting Competition . The purpose of this competition is to encourage young people from Savannah-Chatham County to develop their skills in musical and lyrical expression, promote the time-honored method of storytelling by song, and recognize outstanding achievement in these efforts. Any resident of Savannah or Chatham County who has not reached his or her twentieth birthday by the conclusion of the competition, October 11, 2008, is eligible to participate. Only those who have won first place in the previous years of competition are ineligible to participate. Those wishing to participate must submit a song (original words and music), written in the acoustic folk ballad tradition, by September 1st, 2008 on cassette tape or compact disk. The songwriter may accompany him or herself or have one or more other individuals provide instrumental accompaniment. By “acoustic folk tradition” the competition includes story-song ballads. No percussion or backtracks, please! Only one entry per person per year, From those entries submitted by the September 1st deadline, a panel of judges will use common criteria to select a group of finalists. These finalists will be notified and required to perform their compositions at an event, open to the public, at 2:00 PM on October 11, 2008. At this event, judges will select the top three submissions. Third place will receive a $200 gift certificate from AMR Music (either Waters Avenue or Broughton Street location). Second place will receive a $300 gift certificate to AMR Music. The first place winner will receive a $500 gift certificate to AMR Music and will be invited to perform the winning composition the next day, October 12th during the Festival’s final event, “The Concert at Grayson Stadium,” along with major folk performers like Jesse Winchester. Those interested in participating or having questions may contact Hank Weisman at the Savannah Folk Music Society by calling 912-786-6953 or writing to SFMS at 1111 B Bay Street, Tybee Island, GA 31328.

On Saturday, Sept 20^th , 2008  8:00PM

at The New Day Fellowship Church

6500 Habersham Street

Tracy Grammar & Jim Henry 

 in concert

       Click here for

                                                                      VIDEO

 

$10 General Public, $8 SFMS members & $5 children/students

Tracy Grammer bio.

“Music for me is a language like no other; it is my channel of authenticity. I know I'd only be telling half the truth without it..”

Born in Homestead, Florida and raised in southern California, Grammer comes from a musical family. Cousin Leo Fortin played double trumpets in Lawrence Welk’s band, while her grandmothers and mother played keyboards and accordion. But it was her guitar-playing father who was her first true inspiration.

“When Dad used to get out his lap steel and electric guitars, we’d invite the neighborhood kids over and sing country songs. I’d sit across from my dad and read the music upside-down so I could turn the pages for him. I developed an ear for harmony early on and hardly ever sang the melody,” she muses, “and it drove my little brother crazy.”

Grammer saw Dave Carter perform at a songwriter showcase in February 1996. “Here were stories that could stand alone as poetry, sung with compassion, intelligence, and a hint of Texas twang.

Folk music authority Andrew Calhoun of Waterbug Records comments: “No one sings Dave Carter’s songs better than Tracy. He chose her to be the voice of his songs. His vision, their vision, was that they shared something they both saw. She is half the reason why they were great.”

Jim Henry bio.

Fans first discovered Jim Henry in the Sundogs, an eclectic "swamp-boogie-swing" group that was one of New England's hottest touring club and dance hall bands in the late 80's/early 90's. In 1993, Jim released his debut solo disc, Into the Blue, whose title track garnered national praise and still gets airplay 15 years later. Signed to Signature Sounds in 1995, Jim released Jacksonville, which hit the upper reaches of the Gavin Americana chart and received significant airplay throughout the country.

In 1997, Jim joined with acoustic axe man Brooks Williams to record Ring Some Changes, a soulful album of guitar duets which continues to be a favorite among fans. Never straying too far from his small-town roots, Jim Henry released The Wayback in 1999, whose title track is an anthem to the importance of family. The disc, recorded live and unedited, features cream-of-the-crop players.

It was about this time that Jim started to explore the world of being a side man. Though not the usual career path, the shift allowed him to do a little on-the-job training with some other instruments. He started to play mandolin and dobro and picked up his electric guitar once again. He soon found himself being asked to play with other folks. Lots of folks. The Burns Sisters. Then Mark Erelli. The Kitchen Table. Deb Talan. The Weepies. Cliff Eberhart. The Nields. As his chops improved, so did his resume. And so did his arsenal of available instruments. To this day, it's not uncommon to see Jim on stage with an assortment of instruments from his collection: acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, dobro, lap steel, baritone, and 12-string guitar.

In 2003, Jim got a last-minute call from Tracy Grammer, who found herself suddenly in need of an accompanist on the east coast. Jim Henry was the first name on the lips of people in the know. In only 3 days Jim learned the lion's share of the Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer repertoire. Tracy and Jim's first show at the Iron Horse in Northampton, MA went so well they have been playing together ever since. Says Tracy, "I can't imagine not having Jim by my side. I have come to count on his sensitive playing and glorious singing. He is a musical force whose presence is huge without over whelming, always subtle and reliably strong." Tracy's first solo release, Flower of Avalon, features Jim on dobro, mandolin, acoustic guitar, electric guitars and backing vocals-something on every track.