Cafe Carpe

BILL CAMPLIN- virtually
2021-02-14 19:00 - 20:00 (America/Chicago)
BILL CAMPLIN will be live streaming a concert on Valentine’s Day.
To listen, go to the Cafe Carpe YouTube channel at 7 pm on that day.
Satchel will have an opportunity to test his new video equipment, and Bill will test out his voice.
Donations will be accepted. The PayPal link will be posted during the concert.

15th Annual Boxing Day Show at the Cafe Carpe- not
2020-12-26 19:00 - 20:00 | virtually
We will miss hosting this fun event, but WHAT’S HIS NAME & the OTHER GUY will carry on the tradition of playing at the Carpe on Boxing Day. You can catch the spirit and share in the fun virtually on Brian Lucas’ Facebook Page.
If you want jambalaya carryout before the show, ($9 per order, $1 more with creole sauce) be sure to place your order by Friday night and pickup at our side door between 5 and 6:30. E-mail info@cafecarpe.com or call 920-563-9391. Expect a response from us no matter which method, and, if you don’t get one, try the other method.
From Brian Lucas (Looper) and Greg Valde (Valdemortified) “We couldn’t let year 15 go by without a show and so it shall be, online. We are going to do one set for about an hour and we hope that you will join us for this long-standing tradition.

The good news is that you don’t have to wait in line to get a drink, just go to your fridge. Need to go to the restroom, take us with you.
Want some delicious food? Go to the Cafe Carpe before the show and pick up some jambalaya with chicken & ham- order no later t
We’re going to miss all of our wonderful friends being with us both on and off the stage. Not to mention the annual post-gig party, but there’s always next year. Happy holidays and we hope to see you on Saturday. Cheers!”

Lamplighter livestream- PETER MULVEY/ SISTASTRINGS/ PAUL CEBAR
2020-12-20 19:00 - 20:00 | su carpa
Well, for some reason we cannot hold any events here, so, nanny nanny booboo, fine- we will hold the annual Lamplighter sessions virtually.
Access through Peter Mulvey’s Facebook page or Peter Mulvey’s YouTube page.
While we will all miss the excitement and anxiety the weather often caused, and the pleasures of being crammed in a small room after eating in a noisy restaurant, with a little mindfulness and gratitude and acceptance we will share a good experience in a new way.
Thanks to Peter, Monique, Chauntee, and Paul for sharing their talents, and to listeners for participating in the adventure.
PETER MULVEY
SISTASTRINGS
PAUL CEBAR

Lamplighter Coffee hour livestream w/ PETER MULVEY/ DAVID GOODRICH!/BILL CAMPLIN
2020-12-20 11:00 - 12:00 | virtually
Well, for some reason we cannot hold any events here, so, nanny nanny booboo, fine- we will hold the annual Lamplighter sessions virtually.
Can access through Peter Mulvey’s Facebook page and Peter Mulvey’s YouTube page, and the Cafe Carpe Facebook page, with luck.
While we will all miss the excitement and anxiety the weather often caused, and the pleasures of being crammed in a small room after eating in a noisy restaurant, with a little mindfulness and gratitude and acceptance we will share a good experience in a new way.
Thanks to Peter, Goody, and Bill? for sharing their talents, and to listeners for participating in the adventure.
PETER MULVEY
DAVID GOODRICH
BILL CAMPLIN

CORKY SIEGEL w/ RANDY SABIEN
2020-12-19 19:00 - 20:30 | virtually
Well, for some reason we cannot hold any events here, so, nanny nanny booboo, fine- we will hold the annual Lamplighter sessions virtually. A link will be provided here and on Facebook pages by the time it is needed.
While we will all miss the excitement and anxiety the weather often caused, and the pleasures of being crammed in a small room after eating in a noisy restaurant, with a little mindfulness and gratitude and acceptance we will share a good experience in a new way.
Thanks to Corky and Randy for sharing their talents, and to listeners for participating in the adventure.
Recommended donation: $25
Here is the link.
Blues legend teams with jazz violinist and all-around fun guy for a delightful holiday evening of music.

This is a special 83 minute presentation sponsored by us, the Cafe Carpe.

A similar show with many of the same songs was broadcast on Nov 15 in Three Lakes Wisconsin.

ABOUT THE SHOW: Corky Siegel and Randy Sabien offer 83 minutes of Blues Harmonica, Piano, Jazz Violin, wild songs, a little laugh out loud silliness, and a unique “big hug” approach to a virtual CLOSE UP concert.

FROM Corky:

“My 77 year career sees its culmination in my most creative period as Mother Nature has sent me and my collaborator, Randy Sabien, to our respective rooms (along with the rest of us). You are invited into those rooms vibrating with creativity, fun, and love. Randy and I have taken our life-long skill sets as world performers and poured our individual and collective hearts out to create an experience for you that could not have happened on a stage. Don’t miss this one for your life!” – Corky Siegel

The CLOSE UP show is sponsored by the sweet Cafe Carpe in Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin starring Alison Welch (Kitty), Bill Camplin, and Satchel Paige.

A ZOOM meet and greet will follow the show at 8:45 PM
Questions: cork@chamberblues.com

CORKY SIEGEL
“… fantastic … I’ve never heard anyone play harp with this much body and harmonic delicacy … I guarantee you’ve never heard anything quite like it.”- Stereophile Magazine

“A memorable musical joy ride…Siegel plays wonderfully on harmonica as well as piano and combines it with a grand sense of humor and showmanship.” – San Francisco Examiner

Corky Siegel has earned an international reputation as one of the world’s great blues harmonica masters. He is a composer, blues pianist, singer / songwriter, and recent winner of the Lila Wallace/Reader’s Digest/Meet the Composer’s national award for chamber music composition and the Illinois Arts Council Fellowship Award for Music Composition.

RANDY SABIEN
“Jazz violinists usually draw from one of two traditions. The best of both can be found in the superb Randy Sabien… he combines classical technique and folk energy in a program that’s still strictly jazz.”
USA TODAY
“…The resulting sound is swinging, rocking, rhythmic and bluesy with a fiddle that often plays more like a saxophone than a violin. There are shades of Duke and Miles and you can certainly hear the echoes of the great jazz violinists from the swing era but above all, Randy is a product of his time – someone who grew up playing the violin while immersed in the music of the 60s and 70s. “
Tune in on line for the holiday romp with 2 talented guys.

Lamplighter livestream- PETER MULVEY/ KATIE DAHL/ CHRIS PORTERFIELD
2020-12-18 19:00 - 20:00 | virtually
Well, for some reason we cannot hold any events here, so, nanny nanny booboo, fine- we will hold the annual Lamplighter sessions virtually. Access by going to Peter Mulvey’s Facebook page or Peter Mulvey’s YouTube page
While we will all miss the excitement and anxiety the weather often caused, and the pleasures of being crammed in a small room after eating in a noisy restaurant, with a little mindfulness and gratitude and acceptance we will share a good experience in a new way.
Thanks to Peter, Chris, and Katie for sharing their talents, and to listeners for participating in the adventure.
PETER MULVEY
CHRIS PORTERFIELD
KATIE DAHL

Lamplighter livestream- PETER MULVEY/ WILLY PORTER/ PAMELA MEANS
2020-12-17 19:00 - 20:00 | virtually
Well, for some reason we cannot hold any events here, so, nanny nanny booboo, fine- we will hold the annual Lamplighter sessions virtually.
Access by going to Peter Mulvey’s YouTube page.
Call the Carpe if you have any problems and we will attempt to guide you through them.
While we will all miss the excitement and anxiety the weather often caused, and the pleasures of being crammed in a small room after eating in a noisy restaurant, with a little mindfulness and gratitude and acceptance we will share a good experience in a new way.
Thanks to Peter, Willy, and Pamela for sharing their talents, and to listeners for participating in the adventure.
Donations will be shared between the performers and the Carpe. Donation links will be on each performer’s page. Here is ours:
www.paypal.me/cafecarpe
PETER MULVEY
WILLY PORTER
PAMELA MEANS

THE BOSTON IMPOSTERS benefit concert for the Carpe
2020-12-13 19:00 - 20:00
Maire Clement and Davey Harrison, THE BOSTON IMPOSTERS, are a midwestern-hearted husband-wife duo who somehow landed in Boston, then returned to the midwest, and now live in Oconomowoc. Davey hails from England, Maire grew up in Minnesota (her mother grew up in Fort Atkinson), and they began their journey together in Appleton, Wisconsin.
This geographically-experimental duo have generously offered to donate a portion of the proceeds from one of their regular Sunday live-streamed shows to the Cafe Carpe. Here is the link to use to access the show.
The duo blends beautiful harmonies, accompanied by acoustic guitar, mandolin, and banjo to craft heartfelt original songs. Inspired by traditional, classic and contemporary folk music, they write about their lives and experiences, inspired by the people who have been a part of their journey.
Thank you Marie and Davey for your generosity.

GEORGIA RAE/ GEORGIA RAE FAMILY BAND-cancelled
2020-10-24 20:30 - 22:30
This will be rescheduled sometime next year, when we hope to be able to gather together in music again.

GEORGIA RAE FAMILY BAND
Two sisters from the midwest, Georgia Rae and Kelly Jo have grown into quite a songwriting team since they began playing together at age 12 and 15. Their sound has grown from the traditional into contemporary Americana flavored with family harmony and youthful energy. 7 time state fiddle champion Georgia Rae and sister lead singer/uke Kelly Jo, are joined by a solid driving rhythm “punk rockin’ momma” on guitar, Joe Burie on bass and Laura Lanza on mandolin. They have been pedaling their recent CDs, “Into Our Own” and “Wingin’ It” from Texas to MN and WI, and as east as NC. Their original songs are clever and catchy and evoke good vibes all around.
GEORGIA RAE also performs solo, alone on stage with a pedal board and some fancy footwork. She loops the tracks right in front of you and builds each song into flight with beautiful sounds, clever lyrics, and some rippin’ fiddle solos. Be amazed, leave happy.

Live Streamed Benefit Concert w/ Willy Porter, SistaStrings, Paul Cebar & Bill Camplin
2020-09-27 15:00 - 18:00
We had technical difficulties- here is the new link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQ8lQ6LHmPo

Perhaps you noticed that the Carpe hasn’t put on a show here since GARNET ROGERS played here in March. Most of you can figure out why…
We’re doing alright in the grand scheme of things, but it’s not at all clear just yet how or when we’ll be able to reboot and rebuild the delicate infrastructure of spaces that facilitate so many beautiful and priceless things, or what all we’ll lose in the meantime.
This Sunday from the edge of our garden in our lot, we’re broadcasting a show on YouTube with our friends SISTASTRINGS, WILLY PORTER, and PAUL CEBAR—as well as with Mr. Carpe himself, BILL CAMPLIN. In essence, this show is two things: an excuse to get together and celebrate the good things in life with some old friends we’ve missed a great deal, and a benefit concert to help us all cushion the blow a bit. It’s going to be a beautiful day full of whimsical magic, so tune in if you can.
Here is the o view the live stream event. Consider using that link in advance of the show to subscribe, and set yourself up for a reminder. (You can also work out getting notifications from the event page, I think, if you list yourself as “going”.) The PayPal link for those inclined to throw something into the hat is www.paypal.me/welchnot

BROOKS WILLIAMS- canceled
2020-09-25 20:30 - 23:00

CURTIS & LORETTA- canceled
2020-06-20 20:30 - 22:30
CURTIS & LORETTA
Curtis & Loretta’s music comes straight from the heart. The husband and wife duo’s extraordinary harmonies and proficiency on a parade of stringed instruments create an alluring frame for their poignant original songs, and traditional pieces from America and the British Isles. The current menagerie includes mandocello, folk harp, guitars, clawhammer banjo, ukulele, and mandolin, plus a bit of kazoo, harmonica, and shakers. Curtis’ down-home sense of humor and Loretta’s theater background engage the audience in an experience that runs the gamut of rolling with laughter to holding back tears, with plenty of side-trips in between. They rack up countless miles each year, crisscrossing the country to deliver their own unique brand of folk singer/songwriter music.
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve seats.

Live streaming: MICHAEL HECHT- A Tribute to Cesar Chavez & Jimmy Santiago Baca
2020-06-18 19:00 - 20:00
A live streaming Facebook event on the Cafe Carpe Facebook page with literary artist Michael Hecht reading excerpts from writings and speeches by Chavez and Baca, and musical interludes by Bill Camplin.

NEW PIONEERS- canceled
2020-06-11 19:00 - 21:30

DULCIMER FEST canceled
2020-06-06 20:30 - 23:00
Will be rescheduled, probably to early summer 2021.

MAY ERLEWINE/ Rachael Kilgour- canceled
2020-05-29 20:30 - 23:00
MAY ERLEWINE’s gift for writing empathetic and engaging songs that feel at once fresh and soulfully familiar has earned her a broad, devoted fan base well beyond her deep-set Michigan roots. Her songs show a very real connection and concern with everyday folk. Erlewine uses her music as a platform for positive change.
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve seats.

HARMONY & BRAD- canceled
2020-05-23 20:30 - 23:00
HARMONY & BRAD are a high-energy acoustic rock duo from Boulder Colorado. This husband and wife duo features Fort Atkinson native Harmony Jones (Greenhalgh) on violin/voice and Brad Jones on guitar. Harmony and Brad play rock in the style of virtually every decade mixed with feisty world music arrangements. Since their first show in July of 2015, they have exploded onto the scene with a full schedule of shows across the US. This fun-filled upbeat duo is guaranteed to get you toe tapping and singing along.
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve.HA

BEN DE LA COUR/ RICHARD INMAN- canceled
2020-05-22 20:30 - 23:00
“BEN DE LA COUR is a master storyteller who pairs his narratives with dense arrangements and an unforeseen sense of drama and deliberation.” – GOLDMINE MAGAZINE
“Plaintive story-songs showcasing affecting, plainspoken vocals and narrative lyricism.”
– AMERICAN SONGWRITER

What happens when the unstoppable force of our dreams meets the immovable object of reality? It’s unclear… but Ben de la Cour is hell-bent on finding out.
Raised in Brooklyn, Ben was playing New York City dive bars with his brother a full decade before he could legally drink. A high-school dropout and former amateur boxer, he received his education by listening to his parent’s record collection – full of everything from Bob Dylan and The Everly Brothers to Black Sabbath and Lynyrd Skynyrd. At the tender age of nineteen he spent a year in Havana training with members of the Cuban national boxing team before moving to London with his brother to revive their doom metal band, Dead Man’s Root. They lived in a van and toured around Europe until 2008 when de la Cour returned to the states with a head full of softer, bruised, but no less intense acoustic songs later described by No Depression as “brimming with urgent authenticity”.
Following a short stint in Los Angeles, Ben passed through New Orleans on tour and decided to stay. He released Ghost Light in 2011 but was soon on the move again, this time winding up in Nashville where he crashed on friends’ couches and worked as a doorman until finding his footing.
De la Cour’s second album Midnight in Havana came out in 2016 on Flour Sack Cape Records and was met with critical acclaim from outlets like The Huffington Post, No Depression, and The Nashville Scene, with one journalist dubbing him “a vitriolic Leonard Cohen”. That same year he won the prestigious New Folk Competition at the 2016 Kerrville Folk Festival.
“I like stories that are specific and I don’t like them to be preachy” Ben continues. “If I think I’m being preached to or if there’s an agenda at play – I’m out of there. I think a lot of people feel that way. When I say I think this album is about dissolution, I mean it on a personal level. How do we cope with this feeling of being lost and unmoored? What happens to relationships when they fall apart? What happens when the unstoppable force of our dreams meets the immovable object of reality? Well, what usually happens is that it turns out our dreams aren’t quite as unstoppable as we once thought!”
In 2018 Ben de la Cour released The High Cost of Living Strange, eight tracks of his self-proclaimed Americanoir style – weaving what Maverick describes as “rich and uncompromising narratives of lyrical fierceness and rough beauty” with a unique blend of instrumental backing and the occasional glimpse of gallows humor. Along with his unique perspective towards songwriting and his lyrical attention to detail, de la Cour has a veracious studio ideology; live tracking, minimal overdubs, no headphones, one room, and just a couple of days. “I’m like a bargain basement Cowboy Jack Clement!” he jokes.
The High Cost of Living Strange debuted at #22 on the Euro Americana Charts and received high praise from American Songwriter, No Depression, NPR and Daytrotter amongst others as well as fellow songwriters and sometimes touring partners such as Adam Carroll, Jon Dee Graham and Rod Picott. Ben de la Cour currently spends over a hundred days a year on the road touring the U.S, Canada and Europe.
RICHARD INMAN is quickly becoming a staple of Winnipeg’s folk and country scene. With a rich baritone voice and delicate musical touch, he crafts mature songs that feel at once deeply familiar and bracingly fresh.

Between relentless gigging and a residency at the legendary Times Change(d) High and Lonesome Club, Richard has proven himself a savvy songwriter and true prairie gem.
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve seats.

SMALL POTATOES- canceled
2020-05-15 20:30 - 22:30

NEW PIONEERS canceled
2020-05-14 19:00 - 21:00

MARK DVORAK/ JIM CRAIG/ BILL CAMPLIN- canceled
2020-05-09 20:30 - 23:00
Now, this doesn’t happen too often!

ORDINARY ELEPHANT- canceled
2020-05-01 20:30 - 23:00
International Folk Music Awards 2017 Artist of the Year ORDINARY ELEPHANT captivates audiences with their emotionally powerful and vulnerable songs, letting the listener know that they are not alone in this world. The collaboration of husband and wife Pete and Crystal Damore, their connection, and their influences (such as Gillian Welch, Guy Clark, Anais Mitchell) all meet on stage.
“Two become one, in song…hand-in-glove harmonies surprise the listener with focused intensity and musical mastery,” says Mary Gauthier.
The Associated Press is calling their latest album, Honest, “one of the best Americana albums of the year.”
“I’m a big fan…intimate songs, weaving harmonies, and stories that draw you in as if you were gathered around an enchanted campfire.” — Eliza Gilkyson
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve.

SONG CIRCLE w/ TRICIA ALEXANDER- canceled
2020-04-30 18:30 - 21:00
Round robin song circle led by TRICIA ALEXANDER– (performer, poet, healer, “with a voice, music and lyrics that resonate the heart”) done informally, not from the stage, no microphones. This is a lovely gathering of singers, songwriters, musicians and music appreciators, poets, and storytellers held regularly on the last Thursday of each month.

Traditional Round Robin protocol applies – everyone is part of the circle and has an opportunity to: play, pass or request a song from someone in particular or from anyone in the circle.
Everyone is welcome to attend. $5 cover for musicians and audience. Come early and have a bite to eat- therein lies our sustenance.

POET KATHRYN GAHL-canceled
2020-04-29 18:30 - 19:30
Celebrate National Poetry Month with a reading by Wisconsin poet KATHYRN GAHL. Kathryn is the recipient of the 2019 Lorine Niedecker Poetry Award from the Council For Wisconsin Writers. Her poems and stories are widely published in small journals, including Eclipse, Hawaii Pacific Review, Permafrost, Porcupine Literary Arts Magazine, and Willow Review. Her readings have been described as “lively and pulsating. Even if you don’t like poetry, you will get goosebumps when you hear Kathryn.”
Kathryn is a writer, dancer, and registered nurse. Born to an Irish nurse and German farmer, she grew up with seven siblings in a farmhouse located at the end of a half-mile gravel drive. She earned a B.S. in English at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and a B.S. in Nursing at Syracuse University (NY). After 25 years in nursing and nursing management, she became a full-time writer, studying at Bread Loaf, Stonecoast, Sewanee, Iowa Writers’ Workshop Fiction Intensive, Iowa Summer Festival, Vermont College, and Taos.
Her poems and stories are widely published in small journals, including Eclipse, Hawaii Pacific Review, Permafrost, Porcupine Literary Arts Magazine, and Willow Review. Twice a Glimmer Train finalist, she received honorable mention from The Council of Wisconsin Writers and Wisconsin People & Ideas . Margie named her a finalist for the Marjorie J. Wilson Award. Other finalist awards include poetry at Lumina and Chautauqua , the Arthur Edelstein Prize for Short Fiction, the William Richey Short Story Winner, and the Flash Fiction finalist at Talking Writing .
Mother of two young adults and Oma to one, she loves red lipstick, the tango, and home cooking. Her readings have been described as “lively and pulsating. Even if you don’t like poetry, you will get goosebumps when you hear Kathryn.” She participates in Reading Buddies, a Wisconsin program supplying readers and picture books to preschoolers.
Gahl recently finished her first novel (hooray)! Inspiration flows from her father, who would have been a writer if it weren’t for frozen barn pipes, sows farrowing at midnight, rust in the wheat field, cows breaking into the raspberry patch, and eight children wanting lunch money. That, and his devotion to his wife and Saturday night dance partner, Kathryn’s mother. This site is dedicated to them.
Life Drawing Class (The Cottage Corollary, 2009)
“The graceful poems in Kathryn Gahl’s new collection titled LIFE DRAWING CLASS are an undeniable pleasure to read. Skillfully crafted, they reveal a firm control of pace, color and tone, taking the reader on an impressionistic journey through a high-risk world–from the poet’s girlhood to her coming-of-age in uneasy times, through marriage, motherhood, bereavement–and finally coming to rest at a point in mid-life marked not only by grief and loss, but also by life-affirming gain and enlightenment. The elements that Gahl consciously borrows from the visual arts–line, shape, shadow and light–are all realized here with delicacy and considerable passion, ‘recalling love/left in the marrow.'”
–Marilyn L. Taylor, Wisconsin Poet Laureate
“Art, even poetry, has its stars and character actors, both of whom essentially mirror themselves. However, there is no type-casting Kathryn Gahl, as LIFE DRAWING CLASS, this, her first collection, attests, with no two poems quite alike, each having assumed the mental of truth for the moment. Readers familiar with Walter Pater’s ‘To burn always with this hard, gemlike flame, to maintain this ecstasy, is success in life’ will discover a kindred spirit here, the difference being never in the degree of energy the poet projects but in the many roles she assumes from sometimes sassy farm girl to savvy and sophisticated sensibility.”
–Karl Elder, author of Gilgamesh at the Bellagio

NEW PIONEERS-canceled
2020-04-23 19:00 - 21:00

CENTRAL STANDARD TIME- canceled
2020-04-18 20:00 - 22:00
CENTRAL STANDARD TIME is an acoustic duo from eastern Iowa. They play original music similar to Simon & Garfunkel, John Denver, and Storyhill, with two guitars and vocal harmonies. They’ve been performing in coffeehouses, clubs, concert halls, churches, art and music festivals, on college campuses, and on live radio throughout the upper Midwest since 1996.
Their honest, unpretentious songwriting resonates with listeners and allows them to make connections and earn new fans at every show. During a performance at a showcase of local singer-songwriters at CSPS in Cedar Rapids, they finished our first song and the audience sat in silence until someone exclaimed, “Wow!” and the room erupted in applause.
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve seats.

CLIFF EBERHARDT-canceled
2020-04-17 20:30 - 23:00
Purchase tickets using the Buy tickets link below:

CLIFF EBERHARDT is well known for his epic first album in the 90s on Windham Hill Records. “The Long Road” features a title cut duet with the late folk icon Richie Havens. Eberhardt went on to produce 9 more albums on Shanachie and Red House Records to critical success as well as accumulating multiple song cuts by other notable artists like Richie Havens, Shawn Colvin, David Broza, Buffy St. Marie, Erasure, Russ Taff and Cry Cry Cry (Dar Williams, Richard Shindell & Lucy Kaplansky).
His project, “Shrew Songs” – written and performed in the 2012 Folger Theatre’s award-winning production of “The Taming of the Shrew” for the Shakespeare Library in Washington D.C. lead to his newest project. In 2019, Cliff was hired to write and perform in a new play by Aaron Posner – “The Heal” – which debuted at the Getty Villa amphitheatre in Malibu, CA in the summer 2019. The incredible reunion tour of “On a Winter’s Night” including Cliff Eberhardt, John Gorka, Cheryl Wheeler, Patty Larkin and Christine Lavin in an “In the Round” format is also happening in 2019/2020 just to cap off a great year. He tours constantly and also works consistently as a songwriting teacher, producer and arranger around the country.
“Eberhardt is as welcome as iced tea in August.” —People magazine
“Somewhere between Broadway and the Blues….”
“Eberhardt is better than ever, Steve McQueening his way into your heart at about ninety-eight miles an hour, kicking ass with fresh insight and new ways to lament old yearnings.” —Philly Rock Guide

RJ COWDERY- canceled
2020-04-16 19:30 - 21:30
Columbus, OH: Singer-songwriter guitar player RJ COWDERY is motivated by the best things in life: making people think, laugh, cry and feel. Fans tell her it’s uncanny the way her songs seem to take a peek directly into their lives. Much like the Midwestern Ohio landscape she calls home, her songs are stories of middle ground, and her tales are expressions of being in the midst of life. And RJ really plays hard; her unique, characteristic style is fingerpicking with a deep bass line. An injury to a finger on her left hand as a child resulted in Cowdery learning her own playing style out of necessity; this gave rise to the distinctive technique that’s earned Cowdery her rightful place at the folk table.
She has been a winner at the Kerrville New Folk contest in 2008 and the Mountain Stage New Song Contest in 2007, and won at Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist and Sisters Folk Festivals too. She’s played at venues like 30A, The Ark, The Bluebird, and Vancouver Island Folk Festival. Cowdery has worked with Don Dixon, Billy Crockett, and Amy Speace. She’s also received glowing press from No Depression, Country Standard Time, Making a Scene, The Alternate Root, WMOT, The Morton Report, Americana Highways, and many others.
Her 2019 release, What If This Is All There Is (GoosePie Music) was produced by Amy Speace and rerecorded and mixed by Thomm Jutz. Her all covers release Something Fine came out in 2015 on GoosePie Music and was produced, recorded and engineered by Matt Nakoa and Neale Eckstein. Her 2011 album was In This Light (Blue Rock Artists), produced by Billy Crockett recorded and engineered by Keith Gary. And her debut abum was 2008’s One More Door, out on GoosePie Music, and produced by Todd Burge.
“Midway through my first pass it’s obvious how outstanding it is – musically/sonically/lyrically. I’m new to the artist. Revelatory.“ Craig Havighurst, Music City Roots, WMOT
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve seats.

CLAUDE BOURBON- canceled
2020-04-15 19:30 - 21:00
Ready for a unique and talented take on a wide range of musical traditions? CLAUDE BOURBON is known throughout Europe and America for amazing guitar performances that take blues, Spanish, Middle Eastern, and Russian stylings into uncharted territories. Each year Bourbon plays more than 100 shows around the world.
Claude has played countless venues, including Glastonbury Festival, Isle of Wight Festival, Colne Great British & Blues Festival, Rock O’Z Arene, Avenches, Switzerland, among others. He has shared the stage in Europe and the USA with countless musicians, Calvin Russel, Charlie Morgan (Elton John, Gary Moore), Jan Akkerman (Focus), Steve Grossman (Miles Davis), Herbie Armstrong ( Van Morisson), Jose barrense Dias and many more.
Some of this guitarist’s influences allow us a fascinating insight into this remarkable musician; Paco De Lucia: Deep Purple’s Richie Blackmore; Joaquin Rodrigo; JJ Cale, Monty Python; JS Bach and Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks….
One reviewer even noted that although “Claude’s roots were in blues, that is like saying Leonardo da Vinci was a painter”. Intrigued ?
Experience an evening of exploration in the unique ambiance of the Thumb !
“ Claude Bourbon is a unique figure today… his playing is almost indescribable“ – The Hook, Charlottesville, USA
“Never heard anyone get that much beautiful sound out of a J-45”, Bob, Tucson, AZ
“Do you know what Medieval guitar sounds like? I didn’t either ‘til I hooked up with Claude! This is some cool stuff, and he’s French and everything!” Dolores River Brewery, Dolores, CO
“A breathtaking acoustic fusion of blues, jazz, folk, classical and Spanish guitar from a stunning guitar virtuoso…”Altadena News, USA”
“…This accomplished artist offers tender, compelling performance through highly developed precision. His sound instantly creates ambience – from haunting Spanish moods to lyrical, romantic jazz, Claude Bourbon provides both a rich evening of music for lovers, and a real treat for music lovers…”, BBC, UK”…His fingerpicking is exquisite and if I closed my eyes I could clearly hear two guitars playing. Just when I recognized a theme he moved on with a mesmerizing cascade of notes which kept on flowing. He added a driving bass, for a version of “She knows how to stretch it”. By the time he sang the first verse he had ‘stretched it’ from Spain to the Caucuses, and from the concert hall to the bar room. His forte is obviously his wonderful guitar work, but he does occasionally burst into song and what you then get is something between Bob Dylan and Cat Stevens, combined with a French accent! C’est magnifique.” Dave Baily
http://www.reverbnation.com/claudebourbon
Please call 920-563-9391 to reserve.

BILL CAMPLIN w/ Jason Klagstad & Paul Wehrley- may be live streamed
2020-04-11 20:00 - 22:00
except, it wasn’t- sorry to disappoint
