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Folk heroes

Musicians mix it up for Mardi Gras and Gulf relief

Thursday, Feb. 23, 2006

Click here to enlarge this photo Submitted photos Friday’s Benefit for the Bayou event will feature folk artists such as (top) Cletus and Lori; and Lea. (below) Click here to enlarge this photo

Lest there be any question, neither he nor his folkie compatriots — Doug Alan Wilcox, David Alberding, Cletus Kennelly, Lori Kelley, or Lea — will be baring anything but their souls during Friday night’s Benefit for the Bayou concert.

Likewise, there won’t be any fancy, glitter-glam masks or spicy Cajun gumbo.

But make no mistake about it: The event, to be held at the Christ Reformed Church in Middletown, is all about having a big party for New Orleans.

It’s the second benefit concert the church has hosted in as many years.

The first was an epic fund-raiser held in 2005 in response to the devastating tsunami that wreaked havoc in Asia.

That event drew a crowd of 500 and featured regional, Mid-Atlantic acts like the D.C. folk duo Cletus and Lori, who will return for Friday’s benefit.

‘‘Last year’s concert was a huge affair,” said Silver Spring’s Kennelly. ‘‘It lasted five hours.”

Benefit for the Bayou When: 7 p.m. Friday Where: Christ Reformed Church, 12 S. Church St., Middletown Tickets: $10 for adults, $5 for students For information: 301-371-6610

Both concerts were orchestrated by the congregation of Christ Reformed, an 18th century church that has, for over 250 years, served the small community of Middletown.

‘‘This is a very, very old church,” said evangelism board member Gregg Peterman, who helped organize the event. ‘‘It dates back to the Civil War. It served as a hospital then. It has [this perfect] auditorium setting. The acoustics in there just blow you away. [When we held the first concert], we had never seen anything like it before. ... And every now and then, you have an epiphany. It’s just one of those things. We wanted to do another concert.”

In the interim, Hurricane Katrina happened, and the Gulf Coast was at once plunged under water.

Nearly a year later, New Orleans and its neighboring cities are still struggling to resurface.

‘‘Katrina hasn’t gone away,” said Peterman. ‘‘Everybody thought that it would. It hasn’t.”

A multi-congregational effort, the churches of the Catoctin Association of the United Church of Christ — including Middletown’s Christ Reformed — are planning two mission trips to the Gulf Coast this year to help rebuild.

Friday’s Benefit for the Bayou will help raise money for the cause and — in the long term — roofs.

‘‘All funds go to rebuilding — not for any other purposes” Peterman said. ‘‘Transportation costs come out of pocket.”

Armed with hammers and nails, teams of 30 to 40, he said, will travel south to do the actual rebuilding.

But the mission will begin right here in Frederick County with six individuals, their guitars and their voices.

‘‘This year we have five amazing acts,” Peterman said.

In addition to Cleuts and Lori, Hagerstown’s Alberding, Frederick’s Wilcox, and D.C.’s Lea will take the stage.

Key, of Frederick, will also perform, while serving as the concert’s master of ceremonies.

‘‘I’ll be running around all night,” Key said. ‘‘Hosting, helping out with the sound.”

It’s been a long road for Key. His 20-plus year career has taken him from coast to coast, from his first paid gig in San Francisco to a folk uprising in New York City circa 1985 to the New England folk circuit where he toured for 10 years. He recently relocated from D.C. to Frederick, where he performs and regularly promotes music showcases at the WestSide Café.

‘‘I always wanted to run my own show,” Key said regarding his entry into independent music. ‘‘The people I met in Greenwich Village were putting out their own albums, not waiting to be signed. ... And there are some amazing songs out there.”

All of the benefit’s players are close acquaintances of Key. Many, he said, have played shows at the WestSide.

‘‘It’s going to be a gathering of good friends,” he said.

Kennelly agrees. The regional folk scene, it seems, is a close-knit community.

Lea appears on his solo CD — ‘‘She’s one of the best musicians I’ve ever met,” he said — and he, in turn, contributed a track to Alberding’s debut album. ‘‘David’s got this great, big voice.”

He and his partner, Lori Kelley, released their first album as a duo, ‘‘Lotus,” in September. Their union began gradually four years ago, Kennelly said, due largely to Kelley’s persistence — showing up at his gigs and urging two-part harmony.

‘‘I always say that Lori was a gift that landed in my lap that I almost didn’t accept,” he said.

A gift — the act of giving — is important to Kennelly.

‘‘I do benefits anytime anyone asks me,” he said. ‘‘It’s the feeling in the room. Everyone knows the money is going somewhere good. I love it whenever humanity joins together in small groups trying to help others in need.”

To add to the atmosphere, performers at the benefit were asked to mix up their sets Mardi Gras style, said Peterman.

‘‘We were asked to come up with a song that was specifically relevant to New Orleans,” said Key.

‘‘I’ve been keeping my ears open for the right song. It may be the last minute before I decide. I’ll just see what I feel like playing.”