Autumn was in the air on that late October evening as was the
rain. But what would cancel a playoff game in the Bronx, could
not stop the music in the great room of the New Fairfield Senior
Center. Four acts took the trademark brick-backed stage for
what would be an entertaining night of guitar-based music.
Groovin’ in New Fairfield’s own Ron Statler opened
the show with a smooth rendition of Stephan Stills’ 4
& 20, followed by a skillfully finger picked traditional
blues number.
Mark Huberman, another new Fairfield resident, performed two
original songs in his percussive, two-handed style reminiscent
of the late Michael Hedges.
Closing the first half of the show was Kama Linden, up from
the Big Apple, strutting the stuff that got her a chance to
tour Australia to promote her latest CD release. Our host for
the night, Jay Voss, flawlessly guided us through each transition,
even leading the group in attendance through an a cappella version
of a Peter, Paul and Mary classic.
After a brief intermission (to sample the snacks and purchase
a performer’s CD), Paul Asbell took command of the stage,
starting with the Dr. John standard “Such a Night”.
A self-taught master of the finger style guitar, Paul took us
from the Piedmont blues to an absolutely beautiful rendition
of “Stardust” that had some of the audience audibly
humming along. Each song in his repertoire so drew the audience’s
attention that one could almost hear ones own heartbeat (in
time with the music, of course). This writer was particularly
impressed with the sound of his Borges Custom Built boutique
guitar. As always, the sound reinforcement was true to the performance,
filling, but not overpowering the room.
If you’ve missed any of our shows, or reading this article
has your curiosity piqued, you can always catch a glimpse of
what we’re providing by turning to Channel 17. The next
coffee house is planned for mid-winter (January 23rd), so mark
your calendar and come and get a good dose of what is a sure
the cure for a case of cabin fever. And remember, still only
five bucks.
