A Folkus Project / Westcott Community Center “Second Saturday” concert

Blue Lightning
Hot licks from up-and-coming local bluegrass talent

Westcott Community Center
826 Euclid Avenue, Syracuse, N.Y.
East of SU at the intersection of Euclid Ave and Westcott Street

Saturday, May 10, 2008
8:00 p.m. / $10; $8 for WCC members, $5 for students 18 and younger
For reservations call the Westcott Community Center at (315) 478-8634.

The Second Saturday Concert Series wraps up its spring season with a special concert showcasing the local "young guns" of traditional acoustic music. Headlining the show will be Blue Lightning, an exciting new bluegrass band from the Utica/Rome area. Made up of four young men ranging in age from 15 to 19, Blue Lightning is a rising star in the bluegrass world. Together since 2004, the band has steadily matured, performing at churches, coffee houses, and festivals across the state. Their youthful enthusiasm, combined with a blend of traditional and contemporary bluegrass and gospel music, is helping to bring bluegrass music to a new generation of fans.

"...all solid players but scarily good at harmonies" -- Syracuse New Times

On banjo, fiddle, and vocals is Nick Piccininni, while Bobby Delnero plays mandolin and provides tenor vocals. On rhythm guitar is Justin Winters, who also sings bass harmony or lead vocals. Julian Winters, the youngest member, is the heartbeat of the band on upright bass. They play with a maturity that reaches beyond their youth and their fluency with old standards has built a following among seasoned bluegrass enthusiasts. With fast-paced instrumentals, stirring vocals, and an occasional 4-part a capella number, the quartet has secured a place in the hearts of its listeners.

“In addition to terrific singing and instrumentation, Blue Lightning is learning great showmanship, something that makes this Central New York bluegrass band truly stand out!” -- Bill Knowlton,"Bluegrass Ramble," WCNY-FM

Also performing will be Syracuse singer/songwriter Melissa Ahern and 11-year old fiddling sensation Sean Martin.

The Second Saturday Concert Series at the Westcott Community Center is made possible in part with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

Bob Franke
Legendary songwriter of wise and spiritually generous songs

May Memorial Unitarian Universalist Society
3800 East Genesee St, Syracuse, N.Y.
(just inside the Syracuse city limits from Dewitt)

Friday, May 16, 2008
8 p.m. / $12.
For reservations, email tickets@folkus.org or call (315) 440-7444.

Artist’s website: www.bobfranke.com
Artist’s MySpace site:

Bob Franke is at the peak of his considerable craft, brimming with the wise and spiritually generous songs for which he is best known. His are the kind of songs that really do have the power to change the world by being taken into the lives of people. Franke often deals with political and personal themes, touching hearts with his emotionally driven, yet understated songs. He also excels at inspirational tunes that carry a strong message without being preachy. The deep compassion and humility of Franke's songwriting makes him a moving performer.

"It's his integrity. I always think of Bob as if Emerson and Thoreau had picked up acoustic guitars and gotten into songwriting." -- Tom Paxton

Many of Franke's songs, such as "Hard Love" and "Beggars to God," are considered classics, fueled by his deep faith and the life lessons learned from his 30-odd years of playing everywhere from concert halls to street corners. Acclaimed by his peers as a "songwriter's songwriter," Franke has written songs that have been recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary as well as David Wilcox, John McCutcheon, Sally Rogers, Lui Collins, Garnet Rogers, and June Tabor. Perhaps more important, they've been sung in song circles, at weddings, at funerals, and around campfires all over the world. Seasoned veterans and novices alike are drawn to the complex, warm-hearted spirituality and captivatingly clear-cut melodies of Franke's songs.

" . . . a singer-songwriter unsurpassed for his lyrical grace . . . one of our wisest and most spiritually graceful songwriters." -- The Boston Globe

Franke began his career as a singer-songwriter in 1965 while a student at the University of Michigan. He was one of the first to perform at the now famous Ark Coffeehouse in Ann Arbor. After graduating in 1969 with a degree in English literature, he moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and has made New England his home. Franke has recorded a number of albums with much well-deserved critical acclaim. "Brief Histories" was named one of the ten best albums of 1989 by Boston Globe critic Scott Alarik and was nominated as an Outstanding Folk Album by the 1990 Boston Music Awards. "In This Night" was named #1 Acoustic Recording of 1991 by WUMB-FM (Boston) and was nominated as Outstanding Folk Album by the 1992 Boston Music Awards. His "The Heart of the Flower," was named one of the Boston Globe's top ten folk albums of 1995 and "Long Roads, Short Visits" became one of WUMB-FM Boston’s top ten recordings of 1997. Among his live radio credits are A Prairie Home Companion, Mountain Stage, Our Front Porch, Sandy Bradley's Potluck, Folk Scene, West Coast Weekend, and Bound for Glory.

"...a standard of songs that most writers can only dream about, and admire in drop-jawed silence." -- Folk Roots

When he isn't writing or touring, Franke leads workshops in songwriting at music festivals and music camps. He was the artistic director of the Singer-Songwriter Project of 1999's Bethlehem Steel Festival. In August of 1990 Bob wrote a set of songs for a ballet of "The Velveteen Rabbit," commissioned by the ODC Dance Company of San Francisco. He has composed three cantatas and a number of hymns for the Church of St. Andrew in Marblehead, Mass. He wrote a harvest cantata for the Marblehead Eco-Farm in 1996.

"In the folk singer-songwriter realm, Franke is simply the best." -- Express, Berkeley, CA