{"id":25279,"date":"2017-08-03T13:59:26","date_gmt":"2017-08-03T17:59:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=25279"},"modified":"2017-08-03T13:59:33","modified_gmt":"2017-08-03T17:59:33","slug":"on-stage-phoebe-legere-really-is-unique","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=25279","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: Phoebe Legere really is unique"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Staff Writer, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Phoebe Legere, who will headline a show on August 4 at The Steel City Coffee House (203 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, 610-933-4043, www.steelcitycoffeehouse.com<\/a>), is a talented singer, songwriter, instrumentalist — a multi-talented artist who is like no other.<\/p>\n

The descriptive word \u201cunique\u201d is often misused \u2013 frequently as an unsubstantiated hyperbole. When used to describe Legere, it is \u201cspot on\u201d \u2013 and still a little inadequate.<\/p>\n

Legere, who has released close to 20 albums, plays seven instruments including one she invented to help physically challenged children play music — the Sneakers of Samothrace.<\/p>\n

Phoebe Legere is a Juilliard-trained composer in addition to being an internationally recognized visual artist. She offers small collectible paintings after each performance. Each original art work has a CD embedded within it.<\/p>\n

Her most recent album \u201cHeart of Love\u201d is a hymn to life on the American Highway \u2013 and a Top 20 Americana album.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe musical genre is folk\/Americana,\u201d said Legere, during a phone interview last week from her home in New York City\u2019s East Village.<\/p>\n

\u201cI play guitar, Native American flute, piano and accordion. It was released on February 14, 2017 and immediately went Top 20 on the roots charts. It\u2019s all originals \u2013 except for my cover of \u2018Jambalaya.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Legere\u2019s music is a blend of Americana, Cajun, New Orleans jazz, country, folk and blues. She is an award-winning accordion player, virtuoso piano player, a rural folk blues guitar stylist, and an award-winning songwriter.<\/p>\n

A standard-bearer of the Acadian-Cajun renaissance, Legere is descended from one of the original Acadian families in North America.<\/p>\n

Her album \u201cAcadian Moon,\u201d which was released in 2015, received strong radio play in Canada. \u201cHeart of Love\u201d is faring even better \u2013 on both sides of the Canadian-American border.<\/p>\n

\u201cA DJ friend of mine gave me a list of every Americana station in America \u2013 and a list of college stations,\u201d said Legere, who has performed at prestigious venues around the world including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and at the Congr\u00e9s Mondial Acadien.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sent out 400 envelopes with the CD along with self-made heart-shaped chocolate lollipops. That resulted in me reaching the Top 20.\u201d<\/p>\n

In reality, the deejays were suckers for the music \u2013 after being lured in by the lollipops.<\/p>\n

Legere, whose debut album \u201cTrust Me\u201d was released by Epic Records in 1986, has a long and diverse artistic resume.<\/p>\n

She has appeared on National Public Radio, CBS Sunday Morning, ABC, NBC, PBS and Charlie Rose. She also received the prestigious Acker Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2014.<\/p>\n

In 2015, she appeared in HBO\u2019s documentary \u201cIt\u2019s Me Hilary.\u201d<\/p>\n

While still in her teens, Legere was signed Epic Records as a songwriter. She opened for David Bowie on his National Tour in 1991 and led a number of influential New York bands, including Monad, 4 Nurses of the Apocalypse and her nine-piece swing-punk outfit Swingalicious.<\/p>\n

After the radio success of her 1989 album \u201cMarilyn Monroe\u201d (Island Records), and her appearance in numerous underground films, Legere shifted her focus to avant-garde classical music and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for her work with the Cleveland Chamber Symphony.<\/p>\n

Legere, who has had six of her original plays with music produced in New York City, did not enter the world of entertainment unprepared.<\/p>\n

She graduated from Vassar College, studied composition at the Juilliard School. She also studied piano at the New England Conservatory, and film scoring, orchestration and jazz arranging at the NYU Graduate School of Music Composition.<\/p>\n

Legere studied composition with John Lewis of the Modern Jazz Quartet, Morton Subotnick, Wayne Oquin and Dinu Gezzo. She also studied jazz arranging with Ira Newborn and Rick Shemaria.<\/p>\n

According to Legere, the death of the record business is a much-needed correction.<\/p>\n

\u201cLife in the music business is never easy,\u201d said Legere, who has been embraced by the Outlaw Americana community and music lovers around the world. \u201cIt\u2019s so competitive.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt one point, record companies felt artists didn\u2019t have to be musicians. Female artists got signed because they were pretty. They didn\u2019t need good musicians. They could just use machines.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey didn\u2019t have to deal with intelligent people. Intelligent people are like lightning rods. They\u2019re really doctors. They\u2019ve been doctors for thousands of years.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was signed by Epic Records when I was 16 so I really know about the abuse and sexual harassment \u2013 and unethical practices. Now, big record companies are falling apart.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Legere, \u201cRight now musicians have a golden opportunity. For the first time, we can shape our own careers. Musicians are no longer the slaves of music corporations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are free to invent the music we hear in our hearts today, and invent new ways to deliver it to the listeners of tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legere was too talented \u2013 and too smart \u2013 to be sucked into the world of being just another pop princess.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got involved in very avant-garde music more than 15 years ago,\u201d said Legere, a versatile artist who created a 15-person, rideable giant Eagle sculpture that runs on alternative energy (learn more about The Shamancycle at Shamancyle.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\u201cI did an epic poem with the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra \u2013 singing the poem and improvising the music.\u201d<\/p>\n

In another of her many projects, Legere is the executive director of her own nonprofit organization — The Foundation for New American Art.<\/p>\n

The Foundation for New American Art is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation that fosters art and music education programs geared to underserved communities.<\/p>\n

The goal is to educate, nurture and strengthen the artistic and musical spirit of the children of low-income communities, as well as provide support for after-school programs.<\/p>\n

She visits schools, military bases, libraries with encouraging workshops — most notably her \u201cSongwriting from The Heart.\u201d Proceeds from Legere\u2019s lectures and public performances will go to The Foundation for New American Art.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am dedicated to nurturing the visionary artists of the future,\u201d said Legere. \u201cArt and Music are not extra-curricular. Art and Music are integral to the harmonious development of the human heart and soul.\u201d<\/p>\n

Legere has brought the project to Pennsylvania this week.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m spending the last week in July teaching at Foundation for New America Art\u2019s Camp Superstar at Ruhe Farm in Emmaus,\u201d said Legere.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re bringing arts and music to the children. We\u2019ll be so focused on the arts, music, dance, theater \u2013 and nutrition.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt my Steel City Coffee House gig, in addition to my songs and stories, I\u2019ll be reporting on the joy and gratitude of bringing the Art Spirit to Pennsylvania\/New Jersey\/New York children of low-income communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Phoebe Legere \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/Xo2q62GU3yM<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Steel City Coffee House, which has Radka Kasparcova as the opener, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12.<\/p>\n

The other show this weekend at Steel City will feature Novyy Stil\u2019 and Nikia Camp on August 5.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Fastball<\/p><\/div>\n

Frequently, there are bands that have several hits and then sort of fade from the spotlight \u2013 bands that people sometimes ask, \u201cWhatever happened to\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n

People might at times ask that question about Fastball.<\/p>\n

After rising to prominence in 1996 with the debut disc \u201cMake Your Mama Proud,\u201d the Austin, Texas-based trio exploded into a household name with 1998\u2019s breakthrough album \u201cAll the Pain Money Can Buy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fueled by the chart-topping hit \u201cThe Way,\u201d the Top 5 song \u201cOut Of My Head\u201d and the Top 20 favorite \u201cFire Escape,\u201d the album soared to platinum-plus sales in just six months.<\/p>\n

Fastball scored a pair of coveted Grammy nominations, an MTV Music Award nomination and regular rotation on the late-night talk show circuit (Conan, Letterman and Leno to name a few).<\/p>\n

Fastball never really went away — but its recorded output did slow down.<\/p>\n

The trio \u2013 Tony Scalzo (vocals, bass, keyboards, guitar), Miles Zuniga (vocals, guitar), Joey Shuffield (drums, percussion) — released \u201cThe Harsh Light of Day<\/u>\u201d in 2000 and followed with \u201cKeep Your Wig On<\/u>\u201d in 2004 and \u201cLittle White Lies<\/u>\u201d in 2009.<\/p>\n

Now, after an eight-year gap, Fastball released its sixth album, \u201cStep Into Light,\u201d earlier this summer and immediately set out on an extensive North American tour with Everclear.<\/p>\n

The new album, which was released through the band\u2019s own 33 1\/3 label, is the first Fastball full-length to get a vinyl LP release. The band is now out on its own headlining tour \u2013 a tour that stops at the Ardmore Music Hall (23 East Lancaster Avenue, Ardmore, 610-649-8389,\u00a0www.ardmoremusic.com<\/a>) on August 3.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been together with the same lineup for 23 years and we\u2019ve never really stopped,\u201d said Scalzo, during a phone interview this week from a tour stop in Atlanta, Georgia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn every one of those years, we\u2019ve done something. The new album, which is distributed through Red Eye, is a giant step for us.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe album came out May 19. We recorded it a couple years ago in Austin at the Bubble Recording Studio.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were trying to get in and out of the studio because a package tour fell through. So, we decided to gather eggs together and see what we wanted to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were pretty pissed about the tour cancellation. So, we got a new manager and a better booking agent. With our old booker, we had been doing weird gigs like metal bars in the middle of nowhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, we started forming a team with a new booker. We had to decide how to put the album out. Our previous two albums had done nothing because of poor promotion.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, we went and did a Pledge Music drive. It was more successful that we expected and hit double the goal. We went to a publicist and paid him. It\u2019s going great \u2013 I\u2019m talking to you.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve also been getting songs on the radio and people have been responding. It\u2019s all been good enough to get people in front of us when we play.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe music industry has changed drastically. We\u2019re finally getting a handle on it. The new album is out and selling well and we\u2019ve already done a few videos for us. Things are good again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Fastball \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/2nv7TRGp5gk<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Ardmore Music Hall, which has Rad & Kell as the opener, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25.<\/p>\n

Other upcoming shows at Ardmore are Donavon Frankenreiter with special guest Matt Grundy on August 4, Freeway & Friends on August 5, Jeff Washington Band with Swamp Ash on August 6 and Junior Brown with special guest Transistor Rodeo on August 9.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Shemekia Copeland<\/p><\/div>\n

Several new things \u2013 very good things \u2013 have happened in Shemekia Copeland\u2019s life since the celebrated blues vocalist played the area last summer.<\/p>\n

In December, she gave birth to a son \u2013 Johnny Lee Copeland. Earlier this week, she Living Blues<\/em> magazine announced the winners for the 2017 Living Blues<\/em> Critics\u2019 and Readers\u2019 Awards and Copeland was named Blues Artist of The Year (Female).<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the second year in a row that I\u2019ve won that award,\u201d said Copeland, during a phone interview Tuesday from her home in Chicago.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m blessed to be able to have a job that doesn\u2019t feel like a job \u2013 just something I love to do. The Critics\u2019 and Readers\u2019 Choice Award is important because the people chose me \u2013 especially because I haven\u2019t been out there touring so much. I\u2019m grateful for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copeland, who is headlining a show on August 3 at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808,\u00a0www.st94.com<\/a>), curtailed her touring schedule a little because of her pregnancy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI cut back on my shows but I was still doing gigs up to six days before he came,\u201d said Copeland. \u201cI had a show on December 18 and Johnny Lee was born on Christmas Eve.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s amazing. He\u2019s seven months old and he just started to crawl. Now, we need to child-proof everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copeland has been touring in support of her most recent album \u201cOutskirts of Love,\u201d which was released in September 2015 on Alligator Records. Her previous album was \u201c33 1\/3\u201d in 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like I\u2019ve had this album made forever,\u201d said Copeland. \u201cI started making it two years ago. We did it in pieces. I like working on it, stopping and reflecting and then going back.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was recorded at two studios \u2014 Southern Ground and Sound Emporium. I used the same producer at both \u2014 Oliver Wood. He\u2019s a genius. I love working with him. Oliver makes the calls and he\u2019s usually right. I trust him to make the right decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe album is doing well. The music has been received very well — especially in Europe. I\u2019ve been going to Europe for years. I don\u2019t have a huge presence there — but it\u2019s getting better.<\/p>\n

\u201cI played some shows in Europe last March. France, Norway and Switzerland have been good countries for me and my music. We\u2019re foreigners there. We come across the ocean to perform for them and they\u2019re very appreciative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copeland was born in Harlem, New York on April 10, 1979, and came to her singing career naturally. Her bluesman father (the late Johnny Clyde Copeland) recognized his daughter\u2019s talent early on.<\/p>\n

He always encouraged her to sing at home and even brought her on stage to sing at Harlem\u2019s famed Cotton Club when she was just eight. At that time Copeland\u2019s embarrassment outweighed her desire to sing.<\/p>\n

But when she was 15, and her father\u2019s health began to slow him down, she received the calling. At 16, Copeland joined her father on his tours after he was diagnosed with a degenerative heart condition. Soon enough Copeland was opening, and sometimes even stealing her father\u2019s shows.<\/p>\n

Copeland stepped out of her father\u2019s shadow in 1998 with her groundbreaking debut CD \u201cTurn The Heat Up,\u201d which was recorded when she was only 18. \u00a0Since then, she has recorded seven more albums \u2014 including \u201cOutskirts of Love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the new album, the choice of songs took forever,\u201d said Copeland. \u201cSongs are so important. If you\u2019re putting something out in the universe, you have to do it right.<\/p>\n

\u201cI only pick the amount of songs that are going to be on the record. If I pick it, then it\u2019s going to be on the record. I look at what I want the record to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn my last three albums, I\u2019ve started doing some songs that are a little more political\u2014 topics like religious hypocrisy and domestic abuse.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn this tour, I\u2019m doing a lot of songs from the new album. And, I\u2019m doing songs from all my previous albums. But, I\u2019m not doing any covers. I have enough of my own to draw from.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copeland plans on working the new album for a while.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve not gone back in the studio at all since I made the new record,\u201d said Copeland. \u201cI\u2019m not a serial recorder.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I put out in the universe is really important to me. When I make an album, I want to have something to say. People who make an album every year usually have nothing to say.<\/p>\n

\u201cI already have a big repertoire of songs to draw from for my live shows. And, I have a great band that\u2019s been with me a long time.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur guitarist Arthur Nielsen is in his 18th year. Our bassist Kevin Jenkins is in his 12th year and guitarist Willie Scanlon is in his seventh year. Our drummer Robin Gould is the new guy at three years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Shemekia Copeland — https:\/\/youtu.be\/q5b7Rj6nV94<\/a><\/p>\n

The show at Sellersville, which has Bex Marshall as the opening act, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $29.50 and $45.<\/p>\n

Other upcoming shows at the Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808,\u00a0www.st94.com<\/a>) are Craig Thatcher Band Pays Tribute To Jimi Hendrix on August 4, Trespass (Genesis Tribute) on August 5, Socks In The Frying Pan on August 6, Poor Man\u2019s Whiskey on August 8 and Blaze Bayley (of Iron Maiden) and Psychoprism on August 9.<\/p>\n

When West Coast surfing sites are mentioned, most people think of areas like Zuma, Venice or Malibu.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Current Swell<\/p><\/div>\n

Current Swell, which is headlining a show at Boot and Saddle (1131 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, 215-639-4528, www.bootandsaddlephilly.com<\/a>) on August 3, took its name from a surfing term.<\/p>\n

The band members are associated with the surfing and skate park scene in their hometown along the Pacific Ocean. But, it\u2019s not a California beach town, it\u2019s Victoria in British Columbia Canada.<\/p>\n

Current Swell, which features Scott Stanton, Dave Lang, Ghosty Boy, and Chris Petersen, is a Canadian indie rock<\/a> band that has released six albums \u2013 \u201cSo I Say,\u201d \u201cTrust Us Now,\u201d \u201cProtect Your Own,\u201d \u201cLong Time Ago,\u201d \u201cUlysses,\u201d and \u201cWhen to Talk and When to Listen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Current Swell\u2019s third Nettwerk Records release, \u201cWhen To Talk And When To Listen,\u201d has allowed the band to make more of an inroad in America \u2013 a daunting task for most Canadian acts \u2013 and a tour that stretches from Vermont to Texas to Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just started a new leg of the tour today,\u201d said Land, during a phone interview last week from a tour stop in Burlington, Vermont.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve toured in the states a handful of times. We\u2019ll do the West Coast once a year. Getting off the coast and inland is a rare occurrence. A few years ago, we did the East Coast and Midwest so it\u2019s good to be back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re coming at it from a much smaller scene. In Vancouver, we can draw over 1,000 fans to a show. In Seattle, 250 is a good number.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaking the new album, we worked with an American producer and looked at the American scene. We used Jacquire King as our producer.\u201d
\nGrammy-winning producer Jacquire King (Kings of Leon, Tom Waits, Norah Jones, Cold War Kids, Of Monsters and Men, James Bay) produced the album over four weeks in two vastly different locales — Nashville and Vancouver.<\/p>\n

Nashville is where King lives and does most of his studio work. Vancouver is a ferry ride away from where Current Swell makes its home. Both cities have music at their core.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe made a list of four producers we\u2019d like to work with,\u201d said Lang. \u201cWe put out feelers to all these people and sent them demos. Jacquire wrote back the next day and said he liked the demos. So, we sent him songs.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a Grammy Award winner and has worked with huge bands. We went to Nashville and worked with him \u2013 and we invited him and his team to come to Vancouver. We spent two weeks at Blackbird Studio and two weeks in Vancouver at the Warehouse Studio.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the first night at Nashville\u2019s famed Blackbird Studios, King cut short the sessions and told the band to come back when they had something worthwhile to say. Current Swell was talking loud and saying nothing.<\/p>\n

A blunt, band-only meeting quickly cured what ailed the band.<\/p>\n

They went back to their first-ever phone call with King months earlier, when they discovered he had an extensive list of questions and ideas for each song. The four friends returned the following day ready to create.<\/p>\n

\u201cJacquire\u2019s production made our music more rock-focused, more pop-focused and to have good choruses,\u201d said Lang. \u201cHe brought out the rock edge. That\u2019s what he\u2019s known for.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe told us that what we do here could change the course of our lives. He told us that we really needed to focus. It was good to have someone caring about the music. He pushed us to another level.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Current Swell \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/PJ9UnScTQI8<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at Boot & Saddle, which has La Capita\u00f1a as the opening act, will start at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are $12.<\/p>\n

Delaware is also a good destination this weekend for music fans — especially music fans who love the blues.<\/p>\n

This weekend, it\u2019s time once again\u00a0for the annual Riverfront Blues Festival which is being held August 4-6 at Tubman-Garrett Waterfront Park (Water and South French streets, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-576-2139,\u00a0http:\/\/riverfrontbluesfestde.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Lil\u2019 Ed & The Blues Imperials<\/p><\/div>\n

As always, at least one of the headline acts is an Alligator Records recording artist. This year, it\u2019s Lil\u2019 Ed & The Blues Imperials, who are performing on August 4.<\/p>\n

Lil\u2019 Ed is Ed Williams, Chicago-born blues guitarist, singer and songwriter who has risen to fame on the strength of his standout slide guitar work.<\/p>\n

His backing band — The Blues Imperials — are bassist James \u201cPookie\u201d Young, guitarist Mike Garrett and drummer Kelly Littleton.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always used a four-piece band — two guitars, bass and drums,\u201d said Williams, during a recent phone interview. \u201cKelly, Mike and Pookie are my guys. This is a really tight band. These guys have been with me for about 30 years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Williams and his half-brother Pookie Young, received childhood encouragement and tutelage from their uncle, blues guitarist, songwriter and recording artist J. B. Hutto.<\/p>\n

\u201cJ.B. would come and play for my family,\u201d said Williams. \u201cSlide guitar was the instrument for me because it shimmied. J.B. would play his slide and the 40-watt light bulbs in our house would dim.<\/p>\n

\u201cI started playing guitar when I was 11 or 12. J.B. would always play songs by Muddy Waters, Jimmy Reed and Elmore James. The Muddy Waters songs always had a lot of slide guitar. That\u2019s what I really liked a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been almost 30 years since Lil\u2019 Ed & The Blues Imperials released their debut album \u201cRoughhousin\u2019\u201d on Alligator<\/a> Records. The band\u2019s most recent album is \u201cThe Big Sound Of Lil\u2019 Ed & The Blues Imperials\u201d in 2016. \u00a0All of Li\u2019l Ed\u2019s records over the last three decades have been on Alligator Records, a Chicago-based label specializing in blues music.<\/p>\n

\u201cBack around 1985, I was playing a North Side club here in Chicago and Bruce (Iglauer, producer and owner of Alligator Records) heard me play,\u201d said Williams. \u201cHe invited me to play a couple tracks on a compilation album called \u2018The New Bluebloods.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to their studio and did 15 songs. Then, we kept going. We cut 32 songs in a couple hours. That was where all the songs from \u2018Roughhousin\u2019 came from.<\/p>\n

\u201cI signed with Alligator Records then. Bruce and I shook hands and we\u2019re still together 30 years later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Williams has started working on his next album for Alligator but no release date has been set.<\/p>\n

\u201cI kind of write as I go because I write about things that I see or little things people say,\u201d said Williams. \u201cA good example is my song \u2018Icicles in My Meatloaf.\u2019 My wife had made meatloaf — some of it was for dinner and she froze the rest for later.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen she defrosted it and served it, it wasn\u2019t heated up all the way. My mother-in-law started to eat it, came across a part that was still frozen and said — there\u2019s an icicle in my meatloaf.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get that kind of vibe going. I look around me. I try to focus on what\u2019s going on around me in the world — all the things that happen in everyday living in all our lives. That\u2019s why people relate to my songs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a little studio in my house. I\u2019m always sitting down plucking on my guitar. I get a groove going and then decide if it\u2019s a heavy song or as happy song.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 201<\/em>3, the band was awarded the Living Blues Critics\u2019 and Readers\u2019 Awards for Best Live Performer. The band won this same distinction in the 2012 and 2011 Living Blues Critics’ Poll. The group won the coveted 2009 Blues Music Award for Band Of The Year, the same honor they received in 2007.<\/p>\n

In his live shows, Williams presents fans with an overview of his career — and a heavy dose of the blues.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got so many songs that I can play,\u201d said Williams. \u201cEvery show, I try to mix up the material — old songs from 25 years ago along with newer songs. I also throw in some covers — Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Elmore James — all the good ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Li\u2019l Ed & The Blues Imperials — https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fU4aw907pT4&list=PL9A2DC920F3A6D813<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Li\u2019l Ed & The Blues Imperials will perform on August 4. Tickets are $35 each day or $90 for a festival three-day pass.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295,\u00a0http:\/\/www.kennettflash.org<\/a>) will present \u201cTaller – Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Black Crowes album Southern Harmony and the Musical Companion\u201d along with Hannah Taylor & the Rekardo Lee Trio on August 4, \u201cCrowded Streets – A Tribute to Dave Matthews Band\u201d on August 5 and \u201cOpen Mic with guest host Bill Currier\u201d on August 6.<\/p>\n

Chaplin\u2019s (66 North Main Street, Spring City, 610-792-4110,\u00a0http:\/\/chaplinslive.com<\/a>) will have Frank DiMino with Mantis and Dog Tag Money on August 4 and Snowed-In with The Climaxers on August 5.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times Phoebe Legere, who will headline a show on August 4 at The Steel City Coffee House (203 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, 610-933-4043, www.steelcitycoffeehouse.com), is a talented singer, songwriter, instrumentalist — a multi-talented artist who is like no other. The descriptive word \u201cunique\u201d is often misused \u2013 frequently as an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25281,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7529],"tags":[9272,9271,6518,9273,9270,7570,8899],"class_list":["post-25279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-current-swell","tag-fastball","tag-featured","tag-lil-ed-the-blues-imperials","tag-phoebe-legere","tag-shemekia-copeland","tag-taller"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25279"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25280,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25279\/revisions\/25280"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/25281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}