Coming Saturday, July 5: ALI’s 3rd Annual Summer Concert

Saturday, July 5 — 7pm — FREE!

Come out and join us on the front lawn of the historic Deepwells Mansion in Saint James this 4th of July Weekend for the outdoor concert of the summer. You’ll be entertained by some of the region’s finest singer-songwriters. Plus, there will be plenty of food and drinks to keep you going. Best of all, the concert is FREE, featuring:

Miller’s Crossing - Miller’s Crossing is a bluegrass band based out of Long Island, New York. The band was formed in November 2004 by Chris Maloy, Ronnie Feinberg, Marjorie Kelting, and Patrick Falco. Miller’s Crossing prides itself on the original material each member brings to the band’s repertoire. They strive to play bluegrass music the way they feel it, and the result is a fresh outlook on the music while not getting too far away from its roots. A premier release of the CD “Adirondack Rail”, by Marjorie Kelting and Ronnie Feinberg, is an example of some of the material performed by Miller’s Crossing. “Solid traditional and original bluegrass from a band living on Long Island? Better believe it! Miller’s Crossing’s talented musicians, singers, and composers rival any bluegrass band in the Appalachians. The Empire State is proud to have them!” - Bill Knowlton, “Bluegrass Ramble”. WCNY, Syracuse, Utica, Watertown, NY. More on Miller’s Crossing at www.millerscrossingbluegrass.com. BONUS: Listen to their podcast here at ALI.

The Chapin Sisters - The Chapin Sisters, Abigail Chapin, Lily Chapin and Jessica Craven, are three actual sisters who live and play music in Los Angeles. Upon hearing the first notes of one of their shows or recordings, it becomes obvious that the Chapins have the sort of tight, celestial harmony that only sisters can achieve. The Chapin Sisters’ lilting voices, lush arrangements and lovely melodies are wedded to dark lyrical content. Their words are sometimes cheeky, sometime utterly forlorn. Their EP of demos recorded in friends’ basements and garages has been a CDBaby top seller, and the Lake Bottom LP , their full- length debut was released by Plain Recordings in March of 2008. “The one virtue LA trio the Chapin Sisters shares with classic sister acts of old becomes apparent when they sing together: that shiver of spotless, familial unity that makes every syllable woundingly poignant.” - FLAVORPILL San Francisco. More on the Chapin Sisters at thechapinsisters.com. BONUS: Listen to their podcast here at ALI. Watch their video podcast, too.

Dan Stevens - Termed “Connecticut’s hardest working bluesman” by the NY Times in 2002, he plays over 200 gigs a year, including concerts, clubs, festivals, coffeehouses, community and private events and educational programs. He has appeared at LI’s Riverhead Blues Festival, the Berlin Blues Festival in Connecticut and was the closer in the acoustic section of the Fleet Blues Festival in Albany, New York. Dan won the 2004 Connecticut Acoustic Blues Challenge and represented the state at the International Blues Challenge on Beale Street in Memphis, 2005. Get even more on Dan at danstevens.net. BONUS: Listen to his podcast here at ALI.

Vance Gilbert - Vance Gilbert burst onto the singer/songwriter scene in the early 90’s when the buzz started spreading in the folk clubs of Boston about an ex-jazz singer who was knocking ‘em dead at open mikes. The word spread of this Philadelphia-area born and raised performer to New York; Shawn Colvin invited Vance Gilbert to be special guest on her Fat City tour. Gilbert took audiences across the country by storm (”With the voice of an angel, the wit of a devil, and the guitar playing of a god, it was enough to earn him that rarity: an encore for an opener” wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in it’s review of a show from that tour). Gilbert’s three albums for the Rounder/Philo label - EDGEWISE (1994), FUGITIVES (1995), and the celebrated, arrestingly sparse SHAKING OFF GRAVITY (1998) - are all essential additions to the American singer-songwriter collection. With guests as varied as Tuck and
Patti, Jonatha Brooke, Patty Larkin, Dee Carstensen, Vinx, and Jane Siberry, all three albums found significant niches on NAC (New Adult Contemporary) and Non-Commercial A3 (Adult Album Alternative) radio. These discs were followed by the self released SOMERVILLE LIVE (2000), his live recording lionized by the Boston Globe as the disc “young songwriters should study the way law students cram for bar exams”, and ONE THRU FOURTEEN (2002), a stylistically varied tour de force that New York’s Town and Village calls “lively, eclectic, electrifying and transcending.” Follow that with SIDE OF THE ROAD (2003), a duo album with Ellis Paul, lauded as “haunting, artful, and lovely” by Boston Magazine and nominated for a 2004 Boston Music Award.
UNFAMILIAR MOON stands as a most impressive cap to this discography. This is Vance Gilbert at his most fearless, timeless, compelling best. These examples of classic songwriting, presented with deep humanism and bravery, stunning artistry and soul, and unbridled joy are inarguably the blue ribbons that tie and seal the seemingly impossibly package that is… Vance Gilbert. Get even more at www.vancegilbert.com.

Coming July 9: Dana Edelman

Dana Edelman started playing guitar in high school and passionately writing and composing in college. He honed his chops throughout college, graduated from SUNY Purchase, and moved to Martha’s Vineyard for post-graduate performing at the famed Wintertide Coffeehouse. 1996 saw the release of Dana’s “Bedouin Man” CD, which received regular airplay on Boston radio. In 1997 Dana followed the airwaves to Boston and made it his base for touring the Northeast acoustic circuit. Douglas Sloan wrote in Metronome Magazine: “Jangling rhythms driven by crackling acoustic guitar, Edelman’s trademark wah-wah guitar riffs, and James Taylor-esque vocals, make for one great sounding album…each musician gives a piece of their soul to this outstanding effort that could net Edelman a Boston Music Award and more. Outstanding!”  Dana was signed to Segue Records in 2004 and released ‘Mile 23’ in 2006. For more go to www.myspace.com/danaedelman.

Coming July 16: Laura Veltz

FREE ADMISSION: Singer / songwriter Laura Veltz shaped her musical expression through a colorful career touring the US and recording with her family band, former Atlantic Recording artists, The Veltz Family (TheVeltzFamily.com). Her infectious songwriting and vocal prowess is an asset to the band, as well as her solo pursuits. Laura’s passion is songwriting, and in addition to her own performance of her music, she is currently pursuing other artists to perform her songs. For more information on Laura, visit www.LauraVeltz.com.

Coming July 30: Andy Mac

FREE ADMISSION: Andy Mac is an artist you’ll want to listen to. It takes a true gift to create such sleek musical synthesis. He’s a virtuoso in the art of putting all the right musical pieces, in all the right places. In their career, every songwriter wishes to attain such melodic appeal that Mac has so easily achieved. Originality, even within his own musical niche is perhaps what makes him so great. Each song has a new stylistic addition or change that makes each track interesting, building Mac’s repertoire into a single morphing entity rather than a list of formulated tracks. There are thousands of songwriters that can concoct memorable hooks and chorus lines and while Mac achieves this, he also goes beyond. For more go to www.myspace.com/andymac.