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Happy Opening Day, Y'all!
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John McCutcheon's April Fools GreetingJohn's Alaska Adventure is filling fast!
Happy Spring, Y’all!
I’m on a flight returning from a week of recording, laying down the basic tracks for my new solo album, whose working title is Waiting for the Moon. It’s been a joyful reunion with the lads that make my little songs sound like proper music. It was a long hiatus during the pandemic and it’s wonderful to make music together at the same time in the same space. There’s still lots to do, but I hope for a Labor Day release of fifteen new songs, including some co-writes with Carrie Newcomer, Zoe Mulford, and Trent Wagler of the Steel Wheels. There is rumor of another McCutcheon/Paxton album beginning this summer, but more of that later.
March found me returning to my midwestern roots, playing the wonderful West Theater in Duluth, MN for the first time (look for a return in the near future!), and then playing in St. Cloud, MN, the nearest city to my alma mater, St. John’s University. I spent a day off with my dear college pal, Richard Bresnahan and his family, anticipating my October return for the firing of the largest wood-fired kiln in North America. In fact, one of the songs on the new album was written for the lighting of the kiln a few years back. I finished the weekend with a concert at the Cedar Cultural Center in Minneapolis, where I met up with loads of old friends, some dating back over fifty years. It was an exhilarating, exhausting weekend.
I made up my annual concert for the Craddock Center in Cherry Log, GA the following weekend, cancelled in early February after my mother-in-law passed away. The Woody Guthrie online concert was a great success the following day and the balance of the month involved working on music for a film about my old friend, Faith Petric, and prepping for the aforementioned recording session.
April begins with a long-overdue and much-needed getaway that
Carmen and I are taking beginning Easter Sunday. I'll be coming back in time to mount a monster online concert...
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Si Kahn is one of my oldest and dearest friends. We met on a Harlan County, KY picket line on Thanksgiving Day 1973 and have been writing partners, coconspirators in a variety of political works, touring buddies, and, not incidentally, Si is the godfather of my youngest son. Well, this old friend is turning 80-years-old on April 23rd and on April 14th I’m throwing him an online birthday party. And I won’t be alone. I’ve invited a number of Si’s admirers and partners to join me. These will include Kathy Mattea, Billy Bragg, Holly Near, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, Joe Jencks, the Kruger Brothers, Jane Sapp, Tom Chapin, and many more. 100% of the ticket sales will go to establish and maintain the Si Kahn Living Legacy Project. There are over 400 unpublished and unrecorded songs that Si has written and it is the Legacy’s intent to create usable demos of these songs and make them available for years to come. A GoFundMe project will be launched next week to help fundraise and information about how to contribute to that fund will be available at the concert. So, please plan on joining me and the dozens of Si Kahn lovers who will participate at this very special online concert. You can get your tickets here. As always, the concert will be available on-demand for two weeks after the live show. Hope to see you there!
On Saturday, April 20th, I’ll be joining my writing partner Carrie Newcomer for a concert at Dominican University in River Forest, IL (where there are still a handful of tickets available). Carrie and I have been writing up a storm the past couple of years and will be debuting some of the fruits of our labor, including old favorites from our individual catalogs. This is a concert we've both been looking forward to for over a year.
The end of the month will find me back in the state I lived in longer than any other, Virginia. I’ll be playing my inaugural concert at The Barns of Rose Hill in Berryville, VA, followed by a return to the Court Square Theater in Harrisonburg (act fast, as it’s almost sold out), then back to my old hometown of Charlottesville, and finishing with my annual benefit concert for the Richmond Peace Education Center at TinPan on the 28th.
The following week has me back in the studio doing all the pre-mixing work on the new album and then mounting a wonderful weekend of concerts back in the Southeast with Tom Paxton. Check out the dates below.
May and June are devoted to my two Songwriting Camps, with my music cruise to Alaska in between. The May camp is sold out. There are only a small handful of cabins available on the cruise. The June camp has a couple of slots left. Check out the links below to avail yourself of the final opportunities to join me for these very special, intimate offerings. July and August are blessedly slow with plenty of time for family beach outings and lots of fresh food from the garden.
I hope your springtime is finding you planting new promises afresh. The ones that take time and care are the most nourishing. Though my touring is much sparer than it used to be, I hope we have an opportunity to share an evening and a space together sometime soon. In the meantime, please know how much your interest and support mean to me and other artists like me. We couldn’t do what we do without you and you don’t hear that enough. So there.
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A Quick Summary of Upcoming Stuff
Songwriting Camps at Highlands
May is Sold Out, June still has some room. Join us in this amazing locale for The Best View Ever, camaraderie, inspiration, an introduction to life-long friendships, songs to see us through the hard times, and, oh yeah, lots of instruction in how to write such songs. Strictly limited to 20 souls. A mere $150 deposit holds your spot...the balance due in two separate payments in April & May. Click here to reserve your spot. Note: there is now a waiting list for the May camp and every year there are one or two last minute cancellations and every year one or two people on the wait list clear, so don't be discouraged from signing up.
Alaska Music Cruise
This trip is nearly sold out, so you'd best act fast. Join us for this very special trip. Whales, glaciers, a big Crab Feast, and lots of music. My wife, some of my kids and grandkids, lots of old pals, are joining us. Come on! Click here to find out how.
Together with Tom Paxton
My new album with Tom Paxton was the #2 album of the year on Folk Music Radio..and it wasn't released until October. The reviews have been over-the-top. Our mini-tour together was beyond fun. And we have another weekend planned...and soon to be announced...in May. It’s an embarrassment of riches for these two old guys. Get your copy here to find out what all the fuss is about. And, we promise, we’ll be touring some more together. We’ll keep you posted.
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Upcoming John McCutcheon Shows
w/Carrie Newcomer
with Tom Paxton!
with Tom Paxton!
with Tom Paxton!
check this out...almost full!
for future shows, more information, and ticketing go to
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