The event will be held at the Third Coast Theater in Port Aransas, TX.  More information is available here.

Sarah's performance will also be recorded, and released both as an album, and as a special broadcast for KC Cafe Radio, in the near future.  A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the album will benefit victims of the gulf coast oil tragedy.

The music begins at 6:30 PM Central Time.  Bring a lawn chair or a blanket and join us for the live music "under the stars."  If you cannot join us in-person, then listen here online at the website beginning at 23:30 UTC.

For details on the event, including a Google map of the venue location, Click Here.

Featuring…

Erik Karlsson’s folk-rock songs are stories about worlds that could be inhabited by you or by me, by the person sitting beside you or the neighbor across the street. They are people with honest issues dealing with things in honest ways – some are happy, some at the end of their rope – but all are treated with respect at the hands of this engaging songwriter and performer.

A transplant from Houston, Texas to the heartland of Kansas City, Erik quickly found his way into the Kansas City singer/songwriter scene using his positive outlook and dynamic stage presence. A musician since he was old enough to reach the piano keys, Erik has played hundreds of shows through the years.

Erik’s first CD release was as a member of a band in Houston named The Plastic Yardbirds in 2001. He has since been performing his brand of music at any number of venues, from coffee shops to opening for national artists like Dana Cooper. With this kind of dedication to his music, Erik has made an impact on the Kansas City original songwriter scene in a very short time.

Not only is Erik on the bill for this Friday night's show, he is also emcee for the evening.

Jim Abel is living his dream, writing, recording, and playing his unique style of music in front of live audiences all around the Kansas City area.  His inspiration comes from the likes of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Steve Goodman, Janis Ian, John McCutcheon and, first of all, Tom Paxton.  But he also listens to the American Songbook, and a lot of his musical ideas come from Broadway. People like George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Noel Coward, Hoagy Carmichael and Rodgers and Hammerstein.  Then there is Cream, Dr. John and dozens of other blues players, including Tom Waits.  The result is a performance that encompasses a  unique and entertaining repertoire of songs that delights any taste.

With more than 25 years of experience as a musician, songwriter, playwright, and actor, Rick Malsick has had a lot of time to accumulate a repertoire of more than 100 songs. Most of those songs emcompass a variety of musical styles, including ragtime, jazz, and blues, some extending back to the time of the Civil War. His songs include a set focusing on the personalities and events that shaped Kansas City.  He plays regularly around Kansas City at a variety of venues, including bars, coffeehouses, and restaurants, and is a member of The Herrmannators.

By: Brian Lush
The Kansas City-based pop rock siren Jillian Riscoe is on the verge of getting too big for Kansas City with the release of her electrifying debut CD ELEVEN:ELEVEN. Produced by music industry veteran David Percefull (Davidk Cook, Phil Marshal and Bowling For Soup) ELEVEN:ELEVEN is a testament to a young singer songwriter finding both her voice and sound.

Unafraid of wearing her heart on her sleeve and going for those big dramatic moments in a way that we haven’t seen since Bella Donna-era Stevie Nicks, Riscoe corners a soon-to-be ex-boyfriend on Lie The Truth, brings romantic disillusionment down to a steady rock groove on Stuck and positively burns on All Fall Down.

It was Riscoe’s intention from round one to embrace a definitive sound – one that she has dubbed ‘dark romanticism’. “Typically, my songs are about love.” says Riscoe, “One way or another, they all end up being about heartbreak or a relationship or an ex-boyfriend. I typically write with that template in mind as a songwriter. I like to think of my music as ‘dark romantic’ and that is something that I want to get across to everyone that listens to my music.”

Rick Lally is a singer-songwriter from Olathe who plays acoustic-based pop. His new release, Acoustic Dreams, was produced, engineered, composed, and performed nearly entirely by himself. He even designed the album's artwork.

It's evident that Lally not only put a lot of work into these recordings but also that he is a very talented songwriter. Acoustic Dreams is mostly filled with mid-tempo recordings that recall Jack Johnson or Jimmy Buffet.

You could definitely picture Lally performing these songs on some beach somewhere. Songs like "Spring
Time" and "Go With the Flow" might make the listener want to do nothing but lay on the ground on a warm,
sunny day. For someone who is so land-locked, maybe Lally uses these songs as his way of escaping from our harsh, continental climate to a more tropical environment.

Lally also runs the Six String Music Studios that helps support many other local musicians.

Rich O’Brien calls Olathe, Kansas home and it’s the inspiration for his new self produced album, Under a Kansas Sky. He creates music because he feels he must, taking the advice of Abraham Maslow, “a musician must make music to be fulfilled.”

Rich says, “Self producing your own album is really like running a marathon. It can seem like an endless task and there are times, like in running a real marathon that you feel like giving up. Believe me, having finished five marathons, and given up in one, it is very similar. Similar because it is a very long process, in which the preparation involved, stretches over a long period of time.

Also, you must acquire a set of new skills that you are really not sure you will be able to do the first time. Once you have completed your first DIY album, though, you will feel like you have really accomplished something, and be much more confident about the next one.” Rich’s album “Under the Kansas sky” was completed over a 2 ½ year time period was truly a labor of love.

Gary Putthoff grew up in Kansas City listening to his father play the guitar on his lap with a metal slide.  The crawdad song was one of his favorites.

In college he took music theory and has always been a huge fan of Duane Allman, Eric Clapton, and all those guys who drew from the masters that lived along the rivers here in the midwest (Robert Johnson, BB King, etc.)

"I was lucky enough to work at public radio station and be the engineer for many local shows," Putthoff says,  "including a blues program which gave me exposure to a lot of blues history and music."

Putthoff is currently working on a new CD.

Forrest Whitlow is one of Kansas City’s best known and loved singer/songwriters.  He has written and recorded seven albums as a solo artist and with his band The Crash.  His newest album, appropriately titled 7, is his best of the bunch, so far… Songs ranging from rock to folk and espousing a variety of topics that only Forrest can write and sing about.  His music and style have been described as David Lynch meets Neil Young.  He has a strong sense of who he is and it comes across in his strong musical performances.   Forrest has a devoted following and plays consistently at coffeehouses, bars and bookshops around Kansas City.

Larry Garrett has been performing in the Kansas City area since the mid-80's – in churches, coffeehouses, bars, and at festivals.  His music reaches into his own memories as a kid growing up during a time when life was simple, and neighbors were genuinely neighborally.  That simplicity is reflected in his performances, which consist of solo vocal, guitar and harmonica.  And for those of us who remember those simpler days, Garrett's music is a delight to the ears.

Kaye Johnston is a soulful and talented songwriter who performs her music with great emotion and grace.

Musical from the tender age four, Kaye is classically trained in piano and voice and also plays mandolin and guitar. Her musical gifts have taken Kaye to performances as far away as the UK, at clubs and pubs, to as close as neighborhood coffeehouses in the Midwest.

Kaye has performed at many venues in Westport and the Crossroads Arts District in Kansas City, MO and has opened for national acts Michael Brewer, Dana Cooper and Ruckus and the Trousers.

Kaye is currently working on her fourth CD “Love's End."  Kaye currently performs at various songwriter acoustic venues in the Midwest.

Kansas City Singer/Songwriter Erik Karlsson hosts the event, featuring 10 Kansas City area musicians.  The lineup includes Karlsson, along with Jim Abel, Rick Malsick, Gary Putthoff, Jillian Riscoe and The 21st Century, Larry Garrett, Rick Lally, Michael and Kaye Johnson, and Rich O'Brien.

"It's going to be a wonderful evening of music, representing the depth and breadth of talent that's available right here in our community," said Karlsson, who is also director of the Free Friday Night Concert series held weekly at the downtown Lee's Summit train depot.

The local event will also be broadcast live over KC Cafe Radio beginning at 6:30 p.m. (Central Time) July 9.

More information on the event, along with a map and directions to the venue are available here.

Screen Vinyl Image – Remixes

• Techno

Riely O'connor & Molly B. Moon – Who Knows When

• Folk

Si Genaro – Fearless Angel

• Acoustic Rock

Lee Garland – Hummingbird

• Folk/California Pop

Cathy DeWitt – Dreamsong

• Spiritual

Patchwork – Patchwork Rides Again

• Bluegrass/Vocal Harmony

Larry Garrett – A Rope Around the Wind…and Other Songs About Life

• Folk/Storyteller

Chris Steven Tomchak – Lil' Rock n Roll Record

• Rock

]]> http://kccaferadio.com/radio/new-music-on-kc-cafe-radio-june-22-2010/feed 0 http://kccaferadio.com/radio/swenson-opens-for-kansas-city-lilith-fair http://kccaferadio.com/radio/swenson-opens-for-kansas-city-lilith-fair#comments Wed, 23 Jun 2010 05:22:19 +0000 KC Cafe http://kccaferadio.com/radio/?p=3481 June 22, 2010 – Kansas City Singer/Songwriter and KC Cafe Radio Performing Artist Sara Swenson has been selected to open for the 2010 Lilith Fair Concert, on Thursday, July 15.  The announcement was reported by Kansas City's Arts and Entertainment Magazine The Pitch, on Monday.

Swenson will open for the likes of Sarah McLaughlin, Kelly Clarkson, Metric and Ingrid Michaelson, among others.  The event will be held at Capitol Federal Park at Sandstone.  More information on the event is available here.

Last summer, Swenson was named best Singer/Songwriter at the Pitch 2009 Music Awards, held Sunday, August 16.  For the Lilith appearance, Swenson was selected for the opening act honors partially based on votes collected in an online competition.

Music By Sara Swenson on KC Cafe Radio:

Brody Bond – Lovers Try

• Folk/Rock

The Mistics – The Mistics II

• R&B

Jacqueline Durbin – Superhuman

• Christian Folk/Pop

Tim Gleeson – No Sad Songs

• Americana

Dancing Light – Meadowdance

• Folk

Dancing Light – Rice Cakes From The Moon

• Folk

Ryan Totten – A Real Class Act

• Rock

David Morales – A Bit Of It All

• Pop/Folk

]]> http://kccaferadio.com/radio/new-music-on-kc-cafe-radio-june-8-2010/feed 0 http://kccaferadio.com/radio/batdorf-holder-finalists-at-folk-festival http://kccaferadio.com/radio/batdorf-holder-finalists-at-folk-festival#comments Thu, 27 May 2010 07:33:47 +0000 KC Cafe http://kccaferadio.com/radio/?p=3292 May 27, 2010 – KC Cafe Radio Performing Artists John Batdorf and Terry Holder are among the 32 finalists at the 2010 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk Competition, at the Kerrville Folk Festival that gets underway today in Kerrville, TX.

Both artists will perform in the first of the two-day competition, which begins at noon on Saturday, May 29.  Each will perform two original songs.

Batdorf and Holder were selected to perform in the competition from among 800 entries.  They will perform along with selected entrants from the United States, Canada, Australia, Denmark, Russia, Jamaica, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, and the United Kingdom.  Six award winners will be selected from those competing this weekend.  They join such music legends such as Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Nanci Griffith and Shawn Colvin in competing at the event.

More information on the event is available here.

Music By John Batdorf on KC Cafe Radio

Music by Terry Holder on KC Cafe Radio

Lee's Summit, MO – Ten Kansas City area musicians will perform a variety of musical styles in a concert from 6:30 to 10 p.m. US Central Time on Friday, May 28th, at William B. Howard Station Park in downtown Lee's Summit, Mo.  You can hear the event broadcast live here on KC Cafe Radio beginning at 2330 UTC.

    The event is a celebration of KC Cafe Radio's 2nd year of bringing you "The World's Finest Original Music!"   The show lineup represents the depth and breadth of music you enjoy every day right here.

    "It's really a showcase of our musical culture," said Kathy Forste, music director for the station.  "We started KC Cafe Radio two years ago with the idea of presenting music and musicians that deserve quality airplay, and I am pleased to report that today we are doing just that very successfully."

    KC Cafe Radio first went to air on May 28, 2008, playing music from approximately 30 musicians.  Today, the station serves up nearly 1800 songs from approximately 250 Performing Artists.

This Friday night's live concert broadcast will include performances by:

Beth Scalet

When Beth was inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame, she celebrated by gathering songs from her previous CD releases and had them remastered to compile "Body of Work: The Best of Beth Scalet."  She joins such greats as Melissa Etheridge, Martina McBride, Pat Metheny, and Big Joe Turner with the honor.  Her writing ranges from deep emotion to high wit, and her subject matter covers everything from traditional blues themes to vignettes about love and life in the new world to issues of concern to women in particular and humans in general — domestic violence, eating disorders, addictive behaviors, homelessness — and she handles them all with taste and insight.

Bill Peet

Bill started performing 48 years ago at the 10 o’clock Scholar in Dinkytown next to the University of Minnesota. Starting with folk tunes and three-finger picking styles, his music has evolved to five-finger right hand neo-classical stylings on the guitar, with beats ranging from pop to Hawaiian to folk-rock and country. His original songs deal with love, family, commentary and a hunger for a better world. Today he performs keyboard and vocals for The Herrmannators, a Kansas City area band that plays a mix of original rock and social justice songs.

Duane Woner

An active member of the Kansas City Songwriter's Circle, Duane has performed extensively throughout the Kansas City Metro area, both as a solo artist and as part of small acoustic bands.  He has been a finalist in several songwriting competitions, and has had songs recorded on independent projects by other artists.  He was the bassist for Ron Teamer & the Smokin’ Guns when the group won the KC Blues Competition in late 2005, then competed at the 2006 International Blues Competition in Memphis, Tn. Since then, he has  played bass on recording projects for several local songwriters and has set in as a bassist with a couple local blues bands.

Laura Lisbeth

Laura Lisbeth has been raising her voice to the ether since she was five, and was soon belting out Beatles’ tunes in her home town on the western Kansas plains.  Today Laura draws from the tradition of guitar-driven folk to deliver songs of stunning beauty and emotional complexity.  Her music – a blend of Americana/Pop/Folk  – and her sound have prompted comparisons to that of Jewell, Aimee Mann and Melissa Etheridge. Her live performances are the best way to experience her music.  With arresting vocals, Laura delivers lyrics as bold and unflinching as she is. But thanks to the humor and sensitivity underlying her poetry, the result is an irresistible mix that keeps audiences coming back for more.

Dave Panico

Named Instrumental Artist of the Year at the 2007 Kansas City Christian Music Awards, Dave Panico started out his performing and recording career in the Chicago area where he enjoyed a seat in the orchestra and studio band of Willow Creek Community Church. It was here that Dave took his love of ministering and combined it with his passion for music.  Known to his fans as "The Soaring Saxman," Panico brings his own unique stylings to the music that has been an influence and inspiration to his life.  His performances elicit an exciting mix of compelling melodies, strong rhythms and transcendent improvisations.

Rick Malsick

With more than 25 years of experience as a musician, songwriter, playwright, and actor, Rick Malsick has had a lot of time to accumulate a repertoire of more than 100 songs. Most of those songs emcompass a variety of musical styles, including ragtime, jazz, and blues, some extending back to the time of the Civil War. His songs include a set focusing on the personalities and events that shaped Kansas City.  He plays regularly around Kansas City at a variety of venues, including bars, coffeehouses, and restaurants, and is a member of The Herrmannators.

Jennifer Lynn Smith

For the last seven years Jennifer Lynn Smith’s haunting vocals and rhythmic guitar have served to deliver her message of hope to listeners of the Greater Kansas City area.  Currently Jennifer is studying music at the University of Central Missouri with her husband Alex.  Jennifer performs solo, with her husband on hand drums, and sometimes with bass virtuoso Dylan Reiter and 2008 Kansas State and Winfield Champion mandolinist Josh Hungate.  Together they create a unique blend of Contemporary Folk and World Beat Celtic/Bluegrass.  Their influences include Nickel Creek, Madison Greene, Norah Jones, Jennifer Knapp, Eden's Bridge, Waterdeep, and many more.

Jim Abel

Jim Abel is living his dream, writing, recording, and playing his unique style of music in front of live audiences all around the Kansas City area.  His inspiration comes from the likes of Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, Steve Goodman, Janis Ian, John McCutcheon and, first of all, Tom Paxton.  But he also listens to the American Songbook, and a lot of his musical ideas come from Broadway. People like George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Noel Coward, Hoagy Carmichael and Rodgers and Hammerstein.  Then there is Cream, Dr. John and dozens of other blues players, including Tom Waits.  The result is a performance that encompasses a  unique and entertaining repertoire of songs that delights any taste.

Larry Garrett

Larry Garrett has been performing in the Kansas City area since the mid-80's – in churches, coffeehouses, bars, and at festivals.  His music reaches into his own memories as a kid growing up during a time when life was simple, and neighbors were genuinely neighborally.  That simplicity is reflected in his performances, which consist of solo vocal, guitar and harmonica.  And for those of us who remember those simpler days, Garrett's music is a delight to the ears.

KANZAS

Based in Lawrence, Kanzas offers a unique mix of guitar, harmonica, and voice, and a message that you can feel as well as enjoy.  His clever lyrics and entertaining performance often allow his listeners to draw their own conclusions, and leaves room for lots of personal introspection long after his set has ended.  It is truly an experience that makes you want to hear more.

May 14, 2010 – KC Cafe Radio celebrates its 2nd birthday on Friday May 28, by returning to the place "where it all began."  That evening, nine musicians take to the stage at William B. Howard Station Park in Lee's Summit, MO to present an evening of entertainment representing the depth and breadth of the music heard everyday on the station.  More information on the event is available here.

"It's really a showcase of our musical culture," said Kathy Forste, music director for the station, heard exclusively online.  "We started KC Cafe Radio two years ago with the idea of presenting music and musicians that deserve quality airplay, and I am pleased to report that today we are doing just that very successfully.

KC Cafe Radio first went to air on May 28, 2008, playing music from approximately 30 musicians.  Today, the station serves up nearly 1800 songs from approximately 250 Performing Artists.

The Friday evening "birthday party" performance this year will present local concertgoers with a sampling of that music, beginning at 6:30 p.m., at William B. Howard Station park, otherwise known as the historic train depot in downtown Lee's Summit.  More information, including links to a Google map of the venue is available here.

The event will also be broadcast live on KC Cafe Radio, beginning at 6:30 p.m. (U.S. central time), at this website.

Click on the image above to view/download a high resolution version of the show poster.

Scheduled to perform…

• Kanzas
• Jennifer Lynn Smith
• Rick Malsick
• Dave Panico
• Laura Lisbeth
• Jim Abel
• Duane Woner
• Beth Scalet
• Larry Garrett
• Bill Peet

Many in this music community experienced significant loss — homes, cars, equipment, and rehearsal space — ruined by the unprecedented flooding in several communities.

It has been estimated that only a fraction of those who experienced significant loss have adequate flood insurance to cover their damages. MusiCares understands the effects of this disaster in a unique way.

Since MusiCares inception in 1989, it has been our mission to assist music industry people facing unexpected crises. MusiCares is poised and ready to help the Nashville music community get through this crisis.

MusiCares has established the MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief Fund to assist music people affected by the Middle Tennessee Floods. MusiCares' initial assistance will provide funds for food and clothing, gasoline and transportation, cleanup efforts, relocation costs, medicine, and other critical supplies. To apply for assistance, please contact MusiCares' South Regional office at 615.327.0050 or toll-free at 877.626.2748.

Please consider making a donation to MusiCares.