Al Petteway & Amy White Robin Bullock	December 4th - Al Petteway, Amy White & Robin Bullock   Celebrating the Holiday Season Tickets $22.00 Showtime 8:00 pm Robin Bullock is a prolific composer and multi-instrumentalist, whose virtuosity on guitar, cittern and mandolin blends the ancient melodies of the Celtic lands and their vigorous Appalachian descendants into one powerful musical vision. Originally rising to prominence as a founding member of the innovative acoustic world-music trio Helicon (winners of the Association for Independent Music's prestigious INDIE Award for Best Seasonal Recording), Robin's solo career has won him three Washington Area Music Association WAMMIE Awards, a Governor's Award from the Maryland State Arts Council, and a feature broadcast on Naional Public Radio's hugely popular Celtic music program "The Thistle and Shamrock." His recorded work includes seven critically acclaimed solo CDs and numerous collaborations, the most recent of which, Celtic Guitar Summit with California fingerstylist Steve Baughman, was honored by Acoustic Guitar Magazine with an "Editor's Pick" as one of the top CDs of 2003. "Uncanny ability to combine precision, virtuosity and soul...his reputation as one of the best folk instrumentalists in the business is well-deserved." ~ Sing Out! "A rare combination of technical virtuosity and emotional nuance...Robin Bullock has a deep appreciation of the power of music to touch people's hearts, and the skills to make that happen when he plays." ~ Dirty Linen Al Petteway & Amy White present a musical tribute to winters majesty in the Southern Appalachians in their new CD "Winter Tidings." Holiday classics, original, Celtic-inspired, and traditional mountain melodies. Award-winning, critically acclaimed, passionate and playful, Al Petteway & Amy White are an acoustic performing arts team committed to creating an intensely personal yet universal sound. Al & Amy first began performing and recording together as a duo in early 1995 creating an exciting blend of contemporary, Celtic and Appalachian influenced, original, traditional instrumental and vocal music on acoustic guitars, mandolin, vocals, Celtic harp, banjo, Irish bouzouki, piano and world percussion. They are among the most respected and well liked acts in the acoustic music scene and have been Artists In Residence at the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage and perform at some of the finest concert venues in the country. Their signature sound is heard often on NPR, in independent films and on radio shows across the globe. While living in the Washington, D.C. area, Al & Amy won a grand total of 50 WAMMIES from the Washington Area Music Association in the Folk, Celtic and New Age categories and 5 grants from the Maryland State Arts Council for composition and instrumental performance. In 2001, they won a coveted "INDIE" award in the Acoustic Instrumental category from the Association for Independent Music (now part of the Grammy organization.) In 2005, Al received a GRAMMY Award from NARAS (National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences) for his solo fingerstyle guitar contribution to the pop instrumental compilation, "Pink Guitar."
	December 11th - A Celtic Christmas with The Hedge Band   Tickets $20.00 Showtime 8:00 pm The Hedge Band was formed in 2005 by Laura Byrne Egan, Donna Long, Pat Egan and Billy McComiskey, four of Maryland’s pre-eminent Irish traditional musicians. All perform, teach and are recognized and respected in Maryland and far beyond its borders. Donna Long has traveled the world playing the piano and fiddle and entertaining audiences with Cherish the Ladies. She continues to foster an impressive music studio in Baltimore, where she teaches both fiddle and piano. Her recordings with fiddler Brendan Mulvihill and her more recent solo recording Handprints are highly acclaimed. In 2001 Donna was commissioned by The Library of Congress to compose music for piano and fiddle which she titled "Before the Snow Falls" and "Pandora’s Box." Pat Egan, is from County Tipperary Ireland. He spent years performing in Westport, Co. Mayo before moving to the U.S. to join the band Chulrua. Also known for his work on the great recording "Music at Matt Molloys," Pat still tours internationally with Chulrua which includes highly esteemed musicians Paddy O’Brien, accordion and Patrick Ourceau, fiddle. Laura Byrne Egan is one of only a handful of musicians to successfully cross over to Irish traditional music from another discipline. She graduated from the Peabody Conservatory of Music in 1995 for classical flute, but now is highly regarded on both sides of the Atlantic for her proficiency in the Irish traditional style. Her 2005 solo recording "Tune for the Road" received rave reviews and receives radio airplay in the U.S. and Ireland She teaches Irish flute at Goucher College. Billy McComiskey, is one of only two American born musicians to win the senior All Ireland Championship. Billy is credited along with Brendan Mulvihill and Andy O’Brien for bringing Irish traditional music to the Maryland/Virginia area by way of their trio The Irish Tradition. Regarded as one of the world’s greatest button accordion players, he also recorded and toured with fiddler Liz Carroll and guitarist Daithi Sproule in their group Trian. His solo recording "Making the Rounds" was recently re-released on Compass Records and he will be releasing his new recording on the same label in 2008. The musicians of the Hedge Band have performed independently of each other at countless festivals and venues around the world including The Kennedy Center, The White House, Lincoln Center, and many other great venues across North America and Europe. Laura, Billy and Pat are recipients of Maryland State Arts Council grants and all have taught with the Baltimore Irish Arts Center.
Stephanie Corby David Glaser	January 15 - Stephanie Corby & David Glaser   Tickets $16.00 Showtime: 8:00 pm Stephanie Corby possesses a rich, powerful voice that transcends the borders of musical style. This soulful songstress has successfully fused her classical, jazz and blues backgrounds into a distinct R&B-flavored acoustic sound. Singer/Songwriter Ellis Paul says the following about Stephanie's voice: "she has the kind of voice that makes the waters part; loud sweet and soulful…..she could have saved Moses a lot of trouble." In Feb 2008, Corby released her 3rd studio album "More To Show You." The album takes the listener on a soulful pop journey that occasionally veers down a country road. Recorded in North Carolina, it was produced by Jonathan Byrd and features world-class musicians such as bass player Robert Sledge (Ben Folds 5), guitarist Will McFarlane (Bonnie Raitt, Etta James, Bobby Blue Bland), Wes Lachot and Kevin Brock. "...each time you listen, you will find yourself turning over something that you missed before - a new insight, a new story, or a new harmony, and it is always a joy. …truly captivating." ~ Mary Bryan, Chesapeake Music Guide. David Glaser is an Americana/Acoustic recording artist known for his unique voice, instrumental skill, and deft, evocative songwriting. He is currently promoting his newest solo CD titled "Cars and Lovers," a conceptual work featuring 10 songs involving the highway and the heart. David is a sought after instrumentalist (guitar & mandolin); you may have seen him perform with Lowen and Navarro, Karen Mal, and Stephanie Corby, to name a few. "David Glaser spins his stories and songs out of whole cloth. Denim, mostly. …you may find yourself humming "I keep your picture in my car" on Wednesday of next week..." ~ Songwriter David Morreale, host of the S.N.A.F.U. songwriter series.
	January 29th - Bill Staines   Opening: Phil Minissale   Tickets $17.00 Showtime: 8:00 pm Anyone not familiar with the music of Bill Staines is in for a special treat. For over thirty-five years, Bill has traveled back and forth across North America, singing his songs and delighting audiences at festivals, folksong societies, colleges, concerts, clubs and coffeehouses. A New England native, Bill became involved with the Boston-Cambridge folk scene in the early 1960's and, for a time, emceed the Sunday hootenanny at the renowned Club 47 in Cambridge. Bill quickly became a popular performer in the Boston area. In 1971, after one of his performances, a reviewer for The Phoenix stated that Bill was "simply Boston's best performer." A decade later, both in 1980 and 1981, the annual Reader's Poll of The Boston Globe selected him as a "favorite performer." In 1991, Bill entered his forth decade as a folk performer with an international reputation as an artist. Singing mostly his own songs, he has become one of the most popular singers on the folk music circuit today and averages around 200 concert dates a year. Bill weaves a magical blend of wit and gentle humor into his performances, and as one reviewer wrote, "he has a sense of timing to match the best stand-up comic." His music is a slice of Americana, reflecting with the same ease, his feelings about the prairie people of the Midwest or the adventurers of the Yukon. "Any new song that can live comfortably beside the well-worn songs of folk tradition has a good chance of surviving the test of time. Such, we believe, are the songs of Bill Staines" ~ Charles "Sandy" Paton, Folk-Legacy Records. Influenced by the likes of Bob Dylan, Toby Walker, John Hammond, and Chris Smither, Phil Minissale is on a crusade to introduce the Blues to younger audiences. “Cats my age know nothing about roots music, and that’s a shame.” Although Phil is Long Island born, he grew up in the Brandywine Valley of Eastern Pennsylvania. In September 2006, Phil returned to the area and now lives in Stony Brook, New York. “It’s nice to be back around my extended family. It’s like coming home to my own roots.” In just a few short months, Phil has become a crowd favorite at folk societies and coffee houses across Long Island. His fingerstyle guitar playing and instincts for finding new melodies are far beyond his years.
	February 5th - James Keelaghan   Tickets $20.00 Showtime: 8:00 pm   Three-time Juno nominee James Keelaghan has earned international acclaim for his song writing and performances and has taken main-stage at some of the most prestigious festivals in the US, England, Australia, Denmark, and Hong Kong. At home in Canada, he's a Juno award winner who's grown from a popular coffeehouse act in Calgary to a festival and concert hall favorite. A commanding performer, with exceptionally captivating tenor vocals, James Keelaghan develops an intimate rapport with audiences through his stories and humor — and then leaves them spellbound with passionate renditions of songs that touch on universal emotions and bring historical events to life. Keelaghan’s music has been described as displaying "…a genius for finding his way deep inside big stories, building them outward from the palpably intimate moments."~ The Boston Globe. His debut album, Timelines (1987 Tranquilla Music) was a collection of historically teemed ballads. James continues to win accolades for his songwriting; he won first place in the folk category of the USA Songwriting competition for the second year in a row, 2007. He also earned praise for his tribute to a Canadian songwriting legend, Gordon Lightfoot, with his cover of the ‘'Canadian Railroad Trilogy.’ The love of songs is what it's about on Keelaghan's CD "A Few Simple Verses." On this album, James sings other people's songs, longtime favourites of his. "Some I learned when I was very young, songs my dad would sing," he says. "Some are songs that have been important in my musical development, some I chose for emotional reasons. All of them are lyrically superior, melodically appealing. James has a devoted following around the world, with star turns at such venues as Denmark's Tønder Festival, the Hong Kong Festival and Australia's Port Fairy Folk Festival.
	February 12th - Mustard's Retreat   Davey O opens Tickets $18.00 Showtime: 8:00 pm David Tamulevich and Michael Hough celebrate their 35th Anniversary as Mustard's Retreat. Everything Mustard's Retreat does on stage is aimed at pleasing, moving and engaging their audience. Whether singing their own gentle love songs and vivid ballads, telling tall tales or offering treasures from America's vast traditional song bag, a Mustard's Retreat show always feels like it's designed for the people who have come to see them that day. And leave it to these guys to pen a glowing ode to the coffeehouse volunteers whose enthusiasm keeps the folk embers glowing. "I work with them several times a year and always wish it was more." Said Canadian songwriter Garnet Rogers, among the most popular performers on the folk circuit. "The thing that always impresses me is the incredible openness they have with the audience. They stand up there and just radiate friendliness; the audience is included in the whole process, encouraged to sing along and talk back. I've learned a lot from them in that sense." "They are so warm and friendly and giving on stage, completely in touch with the audience," said Tom Paxton . . . "there are no barriers at all, and you just love to watch that and be part of it. But the thing that strikes me about them from Jump Street - and that makes it all work so well - is that their time is so tight. Michael is such a wonderful, simple bass player; his time is just flawless. And that's why two guys can move you musically the way they do - they have a gorgeous sense of time and tempo, a real musicality to what they do." Through the years, Mustard’s Retreat, have released nine records, including an often hilarious live CD called "5 Miles or 50,000 Years," and a warmly reflective set of original songs called "Wind and the Crickets," which offers convincing proof of Tom Paxton's thesis that their stage antics work because they have the musical chops to go with them. As Spike Barkin said after seeing them at Lincoln Center, "At home with Mustard's Retreat is perhaps the best way to summarize the experience of seeing them live…go see them and make hundreds of new friends." "Raw, rustic, rootsy and melodic, Davey's songs endear themselves to you quickly. It's pretense-free Americana that's worthy of your attention" - Jeff Miers, The Buffalo News. Singer-songwriter Davey O is a resilient artist with a career that has not been of the skyrocket variety. It's been a slow steady climb, a ten-year journey of learning to scrape away anything that smacks of cliché and turn the raw experience of life into songs that cut straight through to a place of sunlight and tears. The struggle has paid off in a collection of songs that are justly earned--no hackneyed storylines, no insincere polish, just an unflinching poet's look at life. Armed with a classic troubadour's Gibson, battered straw hat and a powerful-yet-sensitive voice, Davey O has entertained attentive, diverse audiences throughout the Northeast and Midwest both as a solo artist and in collaboration with his musical partner Jeffrey Mikulski. He has been recognized with seven ASCAPlus Awards, five nominations for the Buffalo Music Award, and in 2004 he won the WNY People's Choice Award. Davey is currently touring in support of his fifth release "The Long Way Home" and his previous release, "thirtyninedollarview," has received airplay throughout the Northeast and in Europe.
	March 12th - Angel Band   http://www.angelband.net
	April 9th - Archie Fisher
	April 23rd - Dave Rowe Trio   http://www.daverowetrio.com/