Page 3
Nicholas Edward Williams and
Joan Crane
"The Woman Behind The
Talent"
Joan Crane Was A Very
Special Woman. She Was Very Giving and Thoughtful. She
Had Compassion and Empathy For Others. She Donated Her
Talent and Time In Order To Raise Money For Worthy
Causes, Such As The Church and It's Pastor. She Played
At Strawberry Festivals, For People Eating Dinner, At
Little Town Fairs, At The Schroon Lake Folk Festival, In
Little Hamlets, Out Of The Way Towns and Villages.
Joan Never Played At
Madison Square Garden, Or Shea Stadium, Or Even Saratoga
Performing Arts Center...That I'm Aware Of. She Did
Preform On Our Local Public Broadcasting System Around
1990, Along With Many Other Women On The Same Program.
It May Be The Largest Audience That She Had Ever
Been Exposed To, In Her Entire Career.
Joan Was A Country Girl,
From A Large Family. She Was Extremely Smart, But Not
Overly Ambitious, Unless Pushed Or Prodded. She Was A
Disc Jockey In Plattsburg, New York. Along The Way She
Learned To Play Expert Finger Style Guitar, One Of Her
Hero's Was "Memphis Minnie".
It's Just My Speculation
That She Had Access To An Extensive Record Collection
and A Quality Radio Station. She Was Good Enough To Get
Herself Into Caffe Lena's. You Need To Listen To Her
Play, Her Cassette Tapes Or CD's "Dirt Pushers Blues"
and "Foothills" Should Do It For You.
In Conclusion: Joan Is Gone,
She'll Never Be Forgotten By Me. She Played For People,
For Fun and Out Of Passion and Pride. No Ego Involved.
She Loved To Help Others,
Never Needed Big Crowds, She Thrived On The Quality Of
Her Audience and Not The Quantity. I Personally Believe
That She Was In Heaven Playing Before Half Dozen People
Sitting Around A Camp Fire On A Summers Night. That's
How I'll Remember Her In My Mind. Giving Her Heart and
Soul Without Measure - and That Smile Of Her's Until
The End Of Her Life.
Beautiful Joan, You Made It
My Friend.
Essex Theater Company
Gala - Presents Saint Louis Blues By Tennessee
Williams' A Lovely Sunday For Creve Coeur
At The
Masonic Lodge Right Next To The Ferry Dock In Essex,
New York.
With Music Provided By
Steve Feinbloom and Joan Crane.
Friday August 14, 2015.
|
Joan Crane At The Deer's Head
Inn Restaurant On Sunday June 10, 2018
The Deer Head Inn Is
Located At 7552 Court Street, Elizabethtown, New
York.
|
Essex Day - Street Fair and
Town - Wide - Market Day - On August 3, 2019
Venders Open At 9:00 am
- Music Starts From 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Featuring The Following:
1. Joan Crane
2. Steve Feinbloom
3. Lee Adams
4. Yannig Tanguy
5. Donna Joerg
6. "Back In Time" Is A Local
Favorite.
The Pot - Luck - Dinner -
Starts At 3:00 pm
With Pony Rides All Day Long
Come and Join In On The
Festivities As We Celebrate The 40th Annual Essex Day On
Saturday, August 3, 2019. We'll Be Closing Off Main
Street In Order To Allow For Pedestrian Traffic In Order
To Freely Move About Our Beautiful Hamlet. Four Local
Bands Will Be Performing, As Listed Above.
WKDR – RADIO – 1070 ON
YOUR AM DIAL – From June 8, 1982
Joan Crane Worked As A Disc
Jockey At WKDR AM Radio In Plattsburgh, New York.
Located In Clinton County.
The Station Went On The Air,
June 15, 1968 As WKDR. Later On It Became Known As
WXMS On June 1, 1993,
A Long Time Well Known Radio
Station In The North Country. Loved By The Local
Military Base and College Students Alike.
Dear Lena,
It Was Very Nice Talking
With You On The Phone Several Weeks Ago! I Was Pleased
That You Remembered Me! I Have Included A Tape With
Four Songs On It, Recorded October 1, 1981 At The Doc
Watson Concert, As Well As Several Articles and A
Resume, Which Generally, Gives A Basic Background Of
What I’ve Been Doing. Andy Cohen Was Up Here For A
Week In March, It Was Such A Treat To See Him After
Almost 14 Years!
I Credit Andy With
Initiating Me To The Country Blues Style, He Had A
Busy Week, Performing Not Only At The Dakota Dave
Hull, Sean Blackburn Concert, But At Area Clubs, and A
Live Radio Show On WRUV In Burlington. I’m Certain
Andy Would Have No Objections If I Use Him As A
Reference. I Would Appreciate You Reviewing The
Enclosed Tape, and I Look Forward To Hearing From You.
By The Way, I’ll Be Making You A Copy of The Album In
A Day or Two.
Yours Truly, Joan Crane
|
by Dave Willey:
In Conclusion:
I Myself Tried To Get In
Touch With Joan. I Found Someone Who Knew Her Address in
Nobesville, Indiana and I Wrote To Her, I Never Heard
From Her – Later On She Told Me That She Never Received
My Letter. Joan Returned To New York State The Same Way
That She Left In The First Place – She Just Reappeared.
I Don’t Remember How Or When We Reconnected, But We Did.
As Though Nothing Had Happened. Somewhere Along The Way
Brigitte and I Added A Section That Was Dear To My Heart
"Folk and Blues Artists".
I Only Wish That I Had
More Time, To Add More Adirondack Musicians To These
Pages".
I Had Many Chances To Meet
Joan In Person, Up Close and Personal, But Something
Warned Me Not To and I Always Follow My Gut Instinct. A
Decision That I Never Regretted. I Was Able To Help Her
From A Distance, and In That Way She Was Able To Trust
Me 100% - and It Worked For Both of Us. I Figured That
She Had Enough Complications In Her Life, and She Didn’t
Need Me As Another One – Under Her Feet.
R.I.P. My Friend.
TV EXPRESS CONCERT REVIEW
The Country Swing Concert
Sponsored By Council On The Arts For Clinton County Inc.
Was A Tremendous Success Artistically. Unfortunately,
The Orchard Room At SUNY Could Have Accommodated More
People Than Those In Attendance.
Joan Crane Did Her
Normal Super Job At Doing What She Does Better Than Most
By Acting As M.C. In The Second Half of The Show, Joan
Did A Number With Andy Cohen and Proved That She Can
Hold Her Own On The Talent Line With Anyone.
Andy Cohen,
A Ragtime Guitarist Who Will Be Around Town Every Now
and Then Showed Us Tremendous Stage Humour and
Personality. When He Plays His Guitar People Listen
Carefully and He Often Sounds As If Two People Are
Playing Rather Than Just Him. His Double Pick Method
Makes For Guitar Double Talk. His Voice Is Good, But Far
From His Best Talent.
Dakota Dave Hull and Sean
Blackburn, Two Nationally Known Country Swing Artist
Form A Fantastic Duo With Sean, Featured As The Lead
Vocal. Both Performers Are Second
To None In Playing Guitar and Fully Compliment Each
Other.
Even Though The Acoustics
Were Poor, The Show Was Well Worth The $3.00 Price of
Admission. Only Thing Missing To Make It A Great All
Around Evening, Was More of The Public.
|
|
In Concert With Doc, A
Dream Come True:
By Helen McLeod – Family
Life Editor – About Music:
Plattsburgh – Joan Crane
and I Have Been Friends For A Long Time. Back In 1970,
When I Was Making My Way Through College, Working As A
Cocktail Waitress At The Holiday Inn, and She Was
Singing There Three Nights A Week. My Then Fiance Tony,
Was Working As An Audio-Specialist, Did His Very First
"Live Recording" That Summer, and Her Singing Partner,
Lisa McDonald. It Was With Some Excitement When I
Learned That Joan Was Going To Be Doc Watson’s Opening
Act. But I Just Began To Touch The Cloud, She’s Been
Waiting For That Big Concert On The 15th. Are You Kidding
? Nobody’s Been Able To Talk To Me Around Here For The
Past Three Weeks!" She Chortled, You’re Finishing A
Radio Show Wednesday, WOW! I’m Really Excited," To Joan,
Doc Watson Is More Than Just An Idol. He’s A Friend, A
Teacher, A Fantastic Performer. Last May, After a Big
Concert In Vermont, She Got To Meet Him In A Special Way
That Was So Ironic, Or of God Stepping In and Pointing
His Finger In The Right Direction. Seems That Doc Had A
Rough Flight and Wasn’t Granting Any Interviews. Then
There Was Joan, In Tears Because After 15 Years, She Was
So Close and Yet So Far. Johnny Hartman, Who Was On The
Bill With Doc and Merle Watson, Got Her Backstage. She
Saw Merle and Asked Him If He’d Give His Father A
Message. "No, I Won’t But He’ll See You Now" – Was About
What Merle Said…And Then There She Was Face To Face With
Doc Watson. "We Sat There For 35 – 45 Minutes Just Like
Two Kids In A Sandbox," Joan Crane Recalls. They Talked
About Music, and Doc Talked About His Home In Deep Gap,
North Carolina and His Wife of 33 Years, Rosa Lee
Carlton. Joan Says, She Didn’t Have A Tape Recorder But
She Can Recall Almost Every Word of Their Conversation.
As Joan says, Much of Today’s Music Is So Commercial,
Even Country Music Has Crossed Over Into Contemporary.
But Doc Watson Is Hanging On To That Tradition, Playing
Traditional Appalachian Music As It Was Played In The
1800’s.
"He’s Continuing An
Attitude and A Feeling of A Different Era, When Life Was
A Lot Simpler. Oh Sure, He’s Been Influenced By Jazz,
But He Hasn’t Let It Get Out of Hand.
He’s Keeping A Tradition
Going. He’s Looked On As The Spokesman For Traditional
Music, One of The Best of The Travelling Troubadors.
"He’s On The Road About Half The Time, and Yet I Get The
Feeling That He’s Really Torn Between His Love of Music
and His Home.
He Talked About Growing
Up, When People Would Come Over and Sit Around On The
Porch and Play Music and Sing Songs – and That Was Their
Entertainment. It Was A Good Way of Life. "He Showed Me
The Scratches On His Hands From Trimming His Shrubs, and
Said He Couldn’t Wait To Get Back Home To Work On His
Ceiling.
"Eventually, He Will Stop
Touring, I Suspect, and His Son, Merle, Will Take Over.
He’s Good Too, But Then, Consider The Source. "I Ask Him
If I Could Feel His Callouses
I Figure A Man Plays As
Much As He Does, Must Have Gigoundous Callouses On His
Fingers. But He Doesn’t Have One. Then He Asked Me If He
Could Feel My Hands.
"Rose Milk" He Told Me.
"Anytime You Wash Dishes or Anything, Use Rose Milk,"
Joan Recalled. As She Watched Him Play, She Was Struck
By The Fact That She Was Looking At Something That Was
Going To Be History In The Next 10 or 15 Years. When She
Talked To Him She Told Him How He Inadvertently, Taught
Her How To Play – Through His Recordings. Someone Had
Given Doc A Copy of Joan’s Record, "Dirt Pusher’s Blues"
and He Remembered Her From That. He Recalled That She
Lived In Northern New York, and They Talked A Little
About Plattsburgh, Because He Was Planning To Come Here
In The Fall. When It Was Time To Go, Joan Asked Doc If
She Could Lead Him Out.
"When We Got To The End,
and I Said It’s Time To Stop Now, He Turned and Gave Me
The Biggest Bear Hug. He Asked Me, "How Tall Are You,
Anyway?" I Said "Five- One" and He Said, "No, Without
Your Boots On" – She Paused, As If To Say, What More Is
There To Say? "The Best Thing About Him Is That He Is
Warm, and He Is Genuine, and I’ll Bet He’ll Remember
Me."
|
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson
Born March 3, 1923
Died May 29, 2012 – Aged
89
Vocals, Guitar, Banjo and
Harmonica – Songwriter
Years Active – 1953 – 2012
Blind From An Early Age –
He Performed With His Son Merle Watson For Over 15
Years.
Until Merle’s Death In
1985 In An Accident On The Family Farm. Doc Got An Eye
Infection That Caused Him To Lose His Vision Before His
Second Birthday. He Liked The Carter Family and Jimmie
Rodgers.
|
|
JOAN
AND JUNIOR SING THE BLUES
BY BILL MAFFUCCI – PHOTO
BY ART COHEN
For A Couple of Nights
Last Weekend, Joan Crane and Junior Barber Stepped Up On
The Small Stage of The Side Track Café To Do A Blues and
Blues-Ragtime Show That Would Be Different In More Ways
Than One. Not Only Would It Be The First Time In A Long
While That A Woman Would Be Featured There, But It Would
Also Be One of The First Times That Two Musicians Would
Be Able To Reach Just About Everyone With A Musical
Style That Was Unfamiliar To Most. "We’d Like To Do A
Variety of Songs For You Tonight," They Began, and It
Quickly Became Apparent That They Would Keep Their
Promise. For Instance, The Contrast Between Even The
First Couple of Songs – "Deep River Blues" and
"Wedding Bell Blues"- Set
The Tone of Diversity For Most of The Evening. Joan
Played Guitar, Accompanied By Junior On Dobro. Both
Showed Precision and Skill On Their Instruments, As Well
As A Distinct Respect For The Musical Style.
"On This Next Song, The
Guitar Is Supposed To Represent An Old Time Blues
Piano," Joan Said As They Switched Gears," Again To Do
"Mississippi Blues," A Slow Willy Brown Song That Gave
Many Contemporary Country Rock Artists Had Borrowed A
Lot of Technique From This Man. Joan’s Ability To Play
Banjo Was Also Excellent, As Became Apparent On "Little
Sadie," A Song Which She Described As A "Blues – Ballad
On Banjo." Junior Complemented Her Graciously On Guitar
and He Showed Considerable Aptitude For More Than One
Instrument. Along With The Couple’s Respect For Their
Music, Was A Very Warm Sense of Personal Satisfaction
and ENJOYMENT !
"Old Fiddly Tunes On Banjo
Are So Much Fun!" Joan Said As She Prepared Herself For
Her Next Song. "I Love Them!" The Couple Continued Their
Diverse Blues Program For The Rest of The Evening,
Ranging From The Hard Core Blues of Blind Willy McTell,
("Statesboro Blues") To
The "Single Note Style" of Big Bill Broonzy. Joan’s
Singing, I Might Add, Was Warm and Comforting, and It
Seemed Especially Suitable For The Songs They Performed.
In Fact, The Best Part of The Performance Might Have
Been On A Song When Her Voice Rang Crisp With Emotion.
Joan Explained That The Blind Reverend Gary Davis Had
Written It About A Girl He Had Fallen In Love With, Who
Had Been Killed:
Delia, Delia
How Can It Be?
You Loved All Those Other
Men,
And Never Had Time For Me.
You’s All I’ve Got, and
Gone.
"Let Me Tell You, Living
In That Desolate Place Sure Helps You To Sing The
Blues!"
Next Week, Tom Mitchell
Will Be Appearing At The Side Track Café. He Will Be
Performing Some Original Country Material, So Come Sit
For A Spell and Give A Listen!
Junior Barber Dies On
March 8, 2017 – Aged 73 – Article By John Lawless
Bluegrass Today:
Junior Barber, Popular and
Beloved Reso-Guitarist / Dorbo With Joan Crane and Seven
Years With The Gibson Brothers. He Also Worked With A
Western Swing Band. His Son Mike Has Worked As A Bass
Player With The Gibson Brothers For The Past 24 Years.
His Father Junior Was Surely The Most Visible Bluegrass
Performer In The Plattsburg, New York Area.
Born Antoine, Was Well
Known in the Dobro Community All Over The United States.
Since Leaving The Gibsons,
He Had Worked With His Cousins, Tom and Jewel Venne In
Beartracks and With Gary Ferguson. Following A Severe
Stroke In 2016, Junior Had Been Unable To Play At All, A
Very Difficult Way For A Master Musician To End His
Days.
Eric Gibson Tells Us That
No One Is More Respected Among Musicians In Their Area
Than Junior Barber, and That He Was A Professional
Mentor To Them As Young Pickers.
"He’s A Legend Up Here,
One of The First Pro Musicians Me and Leigh Ever Got To
Work With. Junior Was A Super Tasteful Player, A Real
Tone Freak. He Loved The Dobro and All The People Who
Played It, and Would Always Stop and Talk Dorbo Set Up
With Anybody Who Approached Him. He Was A Great Set Up
Guy. I Always Felt That He Should Have Received More
Attention Than He Did, But He Didn’t Care At All For The
Spotlight. He Helped Mold Us Into Becoming Better
Musicians, Teaching Us The Importance of Restraint,
Taste, and Tone. Junior Was A Huge Influence On Us, and
I Am Very Thankful For That."
About 15 Years Ago, Junior
Recorded A Solo Instrumental Album Called, "Steffi’s
Waltz."
For Awhile Around 2001,
Joan Crane Was Among The Missing. I Moved To Germany In
January and Lost Track of Her Myself. I Was Just Reading
This Thread On "The Mudcat" and The Title Says: Joan
Crane…Where Is She? The Response Comes From December 1,
2001, All Six of Them. It Starts From Curmudegon and I
Lost Touch With Joan A Few Years Back When She Moved
From Upstate New York To, I Think, Michigan. Our Fault,
Not Hers, and I’d Really Like To Get Back In Touch With
Her. In Case You Don’t Know, She’s A Great Guitarist and
Blues Singer and Before She Moved, Got To Portsmouth,
New Hampshire On A Reasonably Regular Basis. If Anyone
Could Please PM Me With Her E-Mail or Snail Mail
Address, I’d Really Appreciate It.
From
Linn Schulz.
From Sorcha – Switchboard
(Internet Directory) Came Up With This:
Joan Crane
1520 Scio Church Road
Ann Arbor, Michigan –
48103 – 6135
Maybe???
Linn Schulz – That’s One
Place I Didn’t Check – And The Address Sort of Sounds
Familiar. I’d Really Like To Find Her E-Mail Address. I
Checked All The Music Resources I Could Think of – And
Google. Thanks Though…It’s A Place To Start ! – Linn.
From John Hardly – Last I
Talked To Her, She and Her Husband of Six Months Had
Moved To Noblesville Indiana, That Was Two Years Ago (I
Believe).
From Linn Schulz – Okay –
I Was Just Scrambling Through Some Old Papers And Found
A
P.O. Box Address For
Joan…In Nobleville, Indiana, So That Sounds Right. (Did
She Live In Michigan For Awhile? I’m From Wisconsin
Originally, So It’s Not Like I Have All The Midwestern
States Blended Together Mentally…) Anywho, I’ll Write To
Her, But If Somebody Has Her E-Mail …Or Will Give Her
Mine, I Appreciate That, Too. Thanks!!!
Linn.
From John Hardly – She
Lived In Michigan For A While and Gave Lessons Through
Elderly Instruments. She Met Her Husband To Be Through
The Call-In Portion of A Radio Interview.
He Was Apparently From
Carmel / Nobesville and The Two Settled There Last I
Heard.
She Was Going To Try To
Line Up Some Students and Play Around Indy (Rots O’ Ruck
As There’s No Bigger Void In The Acoustic Music Scene
Than Indianapolis, Indiana.
I Last Saw Her Play A
Concert and Workshop At Frant Porch Music In Valparaiso,
Indiana.
The Information Above Came
From The Caffe Lena History Project. In The Case of Joan Crane, These Are
Items That She Herself Sent To Lena Personally, In Order
To Introduce Herself and Provide Proof of Her Worth In
The Entertainment Field.
Lena Was The Owner of "Caffe
Lena" It Was Founded In 1960 By Bill and Lena Spencer.
Joan Crane – With Andy
Cohen – October 1, 1982
Joan Crane – Frank Orsini
– April 14, 1991
Joan Crane – Jeff Gonzales
– November 29, 1991
Joan Crane – November 12,
1993
Joan Crane – January 27,
1995
Paul Geremis – With
Special Guest Joan Crane – August 18, 1995
Joan Crane – Steve Hurt –
March 1, 1996
Joan Crane – August 1,
1997
Susan Hamlin and Friends –
May 8, 1998
Peggy Eyres, Dan Berggren,
and Dan Duggan – August 14, 1998
Roy Hurd and Joyce
Anderson – August 8, 1998
Susan Trump – November 20,
1998
Arlo Guthrie -
Arlo Davy Guthrie - Born Coney
Island, New York On July 10, 1947 - Age 72
John Kirk and Trish Miller
– December 18, 1998
Bob Warren and His Band –
January 16, 1999
Peggy Eyres and Bill Smith
– February 19, 1999
Camille West – February 6,
1999
Christopher Shaw – March
5, 1999
Dave Van Ronk – July 24,
1999
Joan Crane and Susan
Hamlin – August 7, 1999 |
|
Sarah Lee Guthrie – June
1, 2000
Country Joe McDonald –
April 27, 2001
Bridget Ball – July 21,
2001
Bill Smith and Donny
Woodcock – November 17, 2001
Jimmie Dale Gilmore –
March 1, 2002
Fairport Convention –
April 21, 2002
Commander Cody – May 5,
2002
Melanie – June 13, 2002
Tom Rush – June 14, 2002
John Hammond – August 16,
2002
Joan Crane – August 24,
2002
Paul Asbell – March 8,
2003 – (The Unknown Blues Band)
Peggy Eyrey Is Now Peggy
Lynn – North Country Music – May 3, 2003
Adirondack Night – With
Peggy Lynn and Jamcrackers – August 8, 2003
Johnathan Edwards – August
22, 2003
Peggy Lynn and Dan Duggan
– November 12, 2003
Peter Tork, Susan Hamlin,
Rev. Gary Davis, Arlo Guthrie, Maria Muldaur, Bob
Warren, David Lindley, Dakota Dave Hull, Danny Kalb,
John Hammond, Steve Forbert, Janis Ian, Al Stewart,
Andy Cohen and Dakota Dave
Hull – February 27, 2004
Joan Crane and Mary Flower
– September 12, 2004
Joan Crane and Matt Moore
– December 10, 2006
Kim Simmons (Savoy Brown
Guitarist) – January 19, 2007
James Honeyboy Edwards –
March 3, 2007
Paul Asbell and Brook
Williams – March 30, 2007
Mose Allison – October 4,
2009
Livingston Taylor –
February 27, 2010
Rory Block –
Aurora "Rory" Block
- Born November 6, 1949 - Age 70 - Born In Princeton,
New Jersey -
March 15,
2012
Blues Brothers – Cohen –
Asbell – Hull – April 17, 2016
Loudon Wainright III –
April 24, 2016
Popa Chubby – September
20, 2018
David Bromberg –
Born September
19, 1945 - Age 74
Roomful Of Blues –
December 23, 2018
Peter Yarrow – 2018 –
Peter Paul and Mary
Dan Berggren 70th
Birthday Party
Patty Larkin -
Born June 19,
1951 - Age 68
John Sebastian
- March 17, 1944
- Age 76
Melanie
Safka - February
3, 1947 - Age 73
Judy Collins -
Born May 1, 1939
- Seattle, Washington - Age 81
Bob Dylan -
Born In Duluth,
Minnesota On May 24, 1941 - Age 78
Doc Severinson -
Born July 7, 1927
In Arlington, Oregon - Age 92
ELEANOR ELLIS / BILL ELLIS
/ AND ANDY COHEN
– WITH SPECIAL GUEST JOAN CRANE -
CAFFE’ LENA –
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NEW YORK 47 Phila Street
"GOOD FOLKS SINCE 1960" –
DATE SHEET HISTORY GOOD FROM "1960 To 2019
This Will Be A True Feast
For Fans of Acoustic Blues. Three Towering Talents Take
The Stage Together To Bring You Blues Classics From The
Delta, The Piedmont, The Paramount Record Catalog of The
1920’s and 1930’s, and Pieces Learned In The Homes of
The Creators Themselves.
Eleanor Ellis Is A
Celebrated Master of The Country and Piedmont Blues –
One of The Significant Women In The Acoustic Blues
Genre. She Is A Torchbearer Especially For Her Friend,
Mentor and Musical Partner, Blues and Gospel Singer and
Guitarist Flora Molton, With Whom She Recorded Two
Albums. I Want To Be Ready To Hear God When He Calls,
and The Eponymous Flora Molton, "Recorded For Radio
France."
Acclaimed Americana /
Blues Guitarist William Lee Ellis Was Named After His
God-Father, Legendary Bluegrass Pioneer Bill Monroe. His
Father, Tony Ellis, Was One of Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys.
After Earning A Master’s Degree In Classical Guitar
Performance, Ellis Met Piedmont Blues Giant Reverend
Gary Davis. "Davis Was A Great Sacred Bluesman.
There’s A Combination of
The Heavenly and The Hellish, There Are Wonderful
Dynamics, Tension and Drama." In His Quest To Make The
Music’s Message Live For Today, Ellis Has Created A New
Style of Americana / Roots Music – One That’s All His
Own.
Blues Picker Andy Cohen Is
A Connector Between The Legendary Bluesmen of The Last
Century, Such As Big Bill Broonzy, The Reverend Gary
Davis, Honeyboy Edwards, and Today’s Generation of Blues
Revivalists. As A Youngster Coming Up In The 1960’s Folk
Revival, Andy Began The Explorations With "Source"
Musicians That Led To His Current Status As Virtuoso
Fingerstyle Guitarist and "Walking, Talking,
Folk-Blues-Roots-Music Encyclopedia." An Andy Cohen
Performance Encompasses The Well-Known, The Obscure, and
The Weirdly Wonderful, and Often Involves Autoharp and
Dolceola Along With Acoustic 6 and 12 String Guitars.
There Will Be A Tribute
Concert In The Spring At The Westport Federated Church
and The Stage Will Be Full !
Joan Crane Played At The
Whallonburg Grange Hall.
According to Debbie DiFulvio Joan
Played "Wabash Rag" there
on
May 7, 2017
|
Sad News; Acoustic Blues
Great Joan Crane Has Passed Away: January 9, 2020
Some Very Sad News, My
Friends. Joan Crane, One of The Preeminent Acoustic
Blues Players of Our Time Has Passed Away. Joan Had Been
ill For A While Now and She Left Us On January 4, 2020.
She Stood Five Foot One Inch, But Also Stood Shoulder To
Shoulder With Players Like Paul Geramia and Andy Cohen
(Her Mentor). Whenever Paul Came To Town He’d Ask After
(About) Joan To See How She Was Doing. Whenever Joanie
Took To The Stage She Owned It. Her Personality and
Presence Engaged An Audience Like Few Others. She’d
Interact With Folks Where-Ever She Played and Held Them
In The Palm of Her Very Talented Hands. She Played Songs
Like "Cincinnati Flow Rag" – "Deep River Blues" – Making
Them Look Deceptively Easy.
A Few Years Back, She
Entered A Contest At A Chicago Blues Festival. Just Joan
and Her Guitar. She Went Up Against Some Talented and
Seasoned Powerhouse Blues Bands.
Just Little Joan and Her
Guitar. When The Dust Settled and The Judging Had Been
Completed, Joan Placed Third. Just Little Joan and Her
Acoustic Guitar. It’s Easy To See Why She Was Chosen To
Open For The Likes of Bill Monroe and Doc Watson Over
The Years. She Leaves The Acoustic Blues Community
Terribly Saddened By Her Loss, But Fortunate To Have Had
Her Around For As Long As We Did. Those of Us Who
Attended
The "Crane School of
Music" For Lessons Were Very Lucky. She Was A Patient
and Forgiving Teacher Who Would Bring You Along Step By
Step Until You Got The Hang of Things. I Will Miss Her
Very Much. She Taught At Elderly For A While, and I Was
Fortunate Enough To Be Able To Take Some Lessons From
Her. God, She Was Fun.
More Bits and Pieces
Message From: Lorna Hohn -
"The Last Time That We Saw Her, Was At The Wadams
Strawberry Festival In 2019, Her Voice Was Weak, But Her
Hands Were Strong. Will Miss Her:"
Joan Crane and Steve
Feinbloom Perform At 3:00 p.m. At The Wallonsburg Grange
Hall - Located At 1610 Route 22 Whallons Bay Road.
Joan Crane Will Be Offering
Live Music From 1 To 3 On July 10th and 17th At The
Whallonsburg - Grange Hall.
Wadhams Strawberry Festival
- Free Library - Essex On Lake Champlain, New York 763
New York State Route 22.
Joan Crane Will Be On Hand To
Play Music From 12:00 Noon Until 2:00 p.m. In The
Afternoon.
On June 19, 2015 North
Country Musician Joan Crane Performs For Diners, While
Enjoying Their Strawberry Shortcake During The Wadhams
Strawberry Festival.
Valley News - From June 19,
2010 - By Sun Community News - Featuring Joan Crane
Helping Out To Raise Money For The Renovations Of The
Church Hall. Joan Crane On Finger Style Guitar, Along
With Joey Izzo Playing His Piano Creations.
End.
Adirondack Harvest Events -
From Saturday September 16, 2011 - Includes A Farm Tour
and a Pot - Luck Dinner, Right In The Field and Under
The Stars, Featuring Food From Local Farmers and Live
Music By Local Talent Joan Crane.
Essex Theater Company Gala -
On July 28, 2015 - Presents Saint Louis Blues By
Tennessee Williams - A Lovely Sunday For Creve Coeur At
The Masonic Lodge Right Next To The Ferry Dock In Essex,
New York. With Music Provided By Steve Feinbloom and
Joan Crane. 5:30 pm, Friday August 14,
2015.
"This Is Joan Crane, In
Action, Happy and Enjoying The Outdoors,
The Photo Isn't Perfect -
It's Out Of Focus and Fading Away, As Was Joan - Waving
Her Good-Bye"
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