NYS Music 202​2

Category: Poughkeepsie

  • The Weight Band at The Bardavon, A Hudson Valley Homecoming

    The Weight Band and special guests Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams started off the pre-Thanksgiving festivities at the Bardavon Theater in Poughkeepsie on Saturday, November 19th. With many performing having roots in Woodstock, The Band, and Levon Helm’s Midnight Ramble the night was more than just another show. 

    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams proved to be the perfect opening act. The duo employed their roots rock style to originals and covers.  A few songs in, Larry and Teresa invited Brian Mitchell of The Weight Band to grab his accordion and join them on stage.  Jim Weider (also of The Weight Band) would follow a few songs later. This was an indication of how the night would progress. Close friends joining in at various points celebrating their love of music. 

    The Weight Band at The Bardavon
    The Weight Band

    The Weight Band’s (Jim Weider (guitar, mandolin & vocals), Michael Bram (drums & vocals), Brian Mitchell (keyboards & vocals), Matt Zeiner (keyboard & vocals), Albert Rogers (bass & vocals)) set included numerous Band classics. Crowd favorites  “Up on Cripple Creek”, “Life is a Carnival,” bellowed through the house.  The band threw in a few covers including The Allman Brothers “Come and Go Blues,” and The Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie” to round out the setlist. 

    The Weight Band at The Bardavon
    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams

    Between songs memories of Allen Toussaint, Levon Helm and Bob (yeah, that one) were shared. The intimacy of the evening gave you the feeling that you were sitting around with old friends reminiscing. Song selection directed the activity on stage. Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams joining in at various times. Players switching from electric to acoustic guitar, keyboard to accordion, and fiddle to mandolin and back as the night progressed. It was loose, it was fun. 

    The Weight Band at The Bardavon
    The Weight Band with Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams

    With the clock inching toward midnight, the evening came to an end.  Everyone joined in on iconic song “The Weight,” sending off it off into the ethos of the Hudson Valley. From the smiles and glow affixed to those on stage, this proved to be more than just a show. This was a musical homecoming.

    And take a load off Fanny
    Take a load for free
    Take a load off Fanny
    And (and, and) you put the load right on me
    (You put the load right on me)

    “The Weight”
    Robbie Robertson

    The Weight Band

    The Weight Band at The Bardavon
    The Weight Band at The Bardavon

    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams

  • Buddy Guy adds UPAC Kingston Date to ‘Damn Right Farewell’ Tour

    Buddy Guy will return to UPAC in Kingston for the final time on his ‘Damn Right Farewell’ tour, on June 15, 2023, with special guest the Samantha Fish Band.

    buddy guy damn right farewell

    At age 86, Buddy Guy is a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, a major influence on rock titans like Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, a pioneer of Chicago’s fabled West Side sound, and a living link to the city’s halcyon days of electric blues. Buddy Guy has received 8 GRAMMY Awards, a 2015 Lifetime Achievement GRAMMY Award, 38 Blues Music Awards (the most any artist has received), the Billboard Magazine Century Award for distinguished artistic achievement, a Kennedy Center Honor, and the Presidential National Medal of Arts. Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him #23 in its “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.” 

    In July of 2021, in honor of Buddy Guy’s 85th birthday, PBS American Masters released “Buddy Guy: The Blues Chase The Blues Away”, a new documentary following his rise from a childhood spent picking cotton in Louisiana to becoming one of the most influential guitar players of all time. The documentary features new interviews with Buddy Guy, Carlos Santana, Eric Clapton, John Mayer, Gary Clark Jr, and more. Watch the full documentary at PBS Online here. 

    Though Buddy Guy will forever be associated with Chicago, his story actually begins in Louisiana. One of five children, he was born in 1936 to a sharecropper’s family and raised on a plantation near the small town of Lettsworth, located some 140 miles northwest of New Orleans. Buddy was just seven years old when he fashioned his first makeshift “guitar”—a two-string contraption attached to a piece of wood and secured with his mother’s hairpins. 

    In 1957, he took his guitar to Chicago, where he would permanently alter the direction of the instrument, first on numerous sessions for Chess Records playing alongside Howlin’ Wolf, Muddy Waters, and the rest of the label’s legendary roster, and then on recordings of his own. His incendiary style left its mark on guitarists from Jimmy Page to John Mayer. “He was for me what Elvis was probably like for other people,” said Eric Clapton at Guy’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2005. “My course was set, and he was my pilot.” 

    Seven years later, July 2012 proved to be one of Buddy Guy’s most remarkable years ever. He was awarded the 2012 Kennedy Center Honor for his lifetime contribution to American culture; earlier in the year, at a performance at the White House, he even persuaded President Obama to join him on a chorus of “Sweet Home Chicago.” Also in 2012, he published his long-awaited memoir, When I Left Home. 

    These many years later, Buddy Guy remains a genuine American treasure and one of the final surviving connections to an historic era in the country’s musical evolution.

    Buddy Guy 2023 Damn Right Farewell Tour

    Feb 17 – Rockford, IL – Coronado PAC
    Feb 18 – Joliet, IL – Rialto Square Theatre
    Feb 23 – Fort Wayne, IN – Embassy Theatre
    Feb 24 – New Buffalo, MI – Silver Creek Event Center
    Feb 25 – Anderson, IN – Paramount Theatre
    Feb 26 – Evansville, IN – Victory Theatre
    Mar 01 – Baton Rouge, LA – Baton Rouge River Center Theater
    Mar 03 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater
    Mar 04 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater
    Mar 05 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall
    Mar 08 – Dallas, TX – Majestic Theatre
    Mar 11 – Kansas City, MO – Uptown Theater
    Mar 13 – Chesterfield, MO – The Factory
    Mar 14 – Memphis, TN – The Orpheum Theatre
    Mar 16 – Knoxville, TN – Tennessee Theatre
    Mar 17 – Atlanta, GA – Atlanta Symphony Hall
    Mar 20 – Spartanburg, SC – Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium
    Mar 21 – Chattanooga, TN – Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Auditorium
    Mar 22 – Charlotte, NC – Ovens Auditorium
    Mar 23 – Greensboro, NC – Steven Tanger Center for the Perf. Arts
    Mar 30 – Toronto, ONT – Massey Hall
    Mar 31 – Toronto, ONT – Massey Hall
    Apr 08 – Tyagarah, Australia – Bluesfest
    Apr 10 – St Kilda, Australia – Palais Theatre
    Apr 12 – Sydney, Australia – Enmore Theatre
    June 15 – Kingston, NY – UPAC

    More dates will be added

    buddy guy damn right farewell

  • Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams Announce new Album, Woodstock Stop

    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams announced their long-awaited album Live At Levon’s! will be released on Feb. 3. They have also announced a tour with stops in Tarrytown, Poughkeepsie, and Woodstock.

    Larry Campbell

    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams returned to their Woodstock home in 2019 to create the record, after a long year of touring. They recorded it at Levon Helm Studios, a historic and dual-purposed recording studio and live music venue founded by the legendary Levon Helm. The duo played multiple shows there with the Midnight Ramble Band, fronted by Helm with whom Campbell served as a bandleader for over a decade.

    The album was supposed to be released in 2020 after a live performance was recorded at the studio with their musician friends. Of course, the pandemic stopped that from happening, and Campbell ended up catching COVID in March 2020. With all that aside, they are ready to perform and get back into touring.

    I’ll never forget the first time I experienced performing as a child and knew my lot in life was set. The only reason I am a singer is because of the indefinable spark that happens with the giving and receiving of your most intimate selves, back and forth, between the artist on stage and the audience there in the room. If I can’t see the audience because of lighting, it almost becomes even more spiritual, because it’s all just feeling them—us together in the moment. And each performance/audience has its own personality. If you can drop the thinking and just ‘be’ with them and this sharing of your most intimate selves, there’s no describing the transcendence.

    Teresa Williams

    The record Live At Levon’s! puts Campbell’s world-class guitar skills on display, and shows his songwriting capabilities. William’s vocals provide raw honesty and her trademark fragility and ferocity. Their new single “Angel of Darkness” is out today.

    Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams are also going on tour, and are hitting Tarrytown on Nov. 18, Poughkeepsie on Nov. 19, and a special performance at the Levon Helm Studios where they recorded the album in Woodstock on April 22. Their brand-new album is available for preorder here and to purchase tickets to their tour go here.

    Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams Tour Dates

    2/2 – Easton, MD – Avalon Theatre – Stoltz Listening Room
    2/3 – Richmond, VA – Richmond Music Hall
    2/4 – Johnson City, TN – Down Home
    2/5 – Decatur, GA – Eddie’s Attic
    2/7 – Jacksonville Beach, FL – Blue Jay Listening Room
    2/8 – Tampa, FL – The Attic
    2/10-17 – Miami, FL – Cayamo Cruise on Norwegian “Pearl”
    2/24 – Washington, DC – Mountain Stage @ The Kennedy Center
    3/15 – Pittsburgh, PA – Thunderbird Cafe *
    3/16 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark *
    3/18 – Chicago, IL – Old Town School *
    3/19 – Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall *
    3/21 – Madison, WI – Stoughton Opera House *
    3/22 – Minneapolis, MN – The Parkway *
    3/24 – Kansas City, MO – Knuckleheads *
    3/25 – St. Louis, MO – Off Broadway *
    3/26 – Nashville, TN – City Winery *
    3/28 – Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle *
    3/29 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle *
    3/31 – Washington, DC – Miracle Theatre *
    4/1 – Ardmore, PA – Ardmore Music Hall *
    4/14 – Great Barrington, MA – The Mahaiwe PAC ^
    4/22 – Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studios

  • Hammerhedd Opens At The Chance in Poughkeepsie on October 27th

    Kansas City progressive metal trio Hammerhedd is playing at The Chance in Poughkeepsie as the opener for Swedish juggernauts, In Flames, on Thursday, October 27th. The heavy metal band from Brighton, Michigan, has also just released their first full-length LP, Grand Currents, in July of 2020.

    Hammerhedd Opens At The Chance Oct 27th

    The band, which first started playing together about a decade ago, is comprised of 19-year-old Henry (vocals, guitar), 16-year-old Eli (drums), and 14-year-old Abe (bass). The boys were 4, 7, and 9 years old when the band was formed.

    Together, the Ismert brothers have amazed fans with their high-level, technical playing, which has drawn comparisons to modern metal icons similar to artists Gojira, Meshuggah, and Mastodon. Especially for their age, the band is much more than the sum of their influences, They rock the house every time they have played.

    Hammerhedd Opens At The Chance Oct 27th

    In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. In Flames tickets for the upcoming concert tour are on sale at StubHub. Likewise, for Hammerhedd’s tour information can be accessed by clicking the link here.

    You can check these fantastic metal bands at The Chance Theater, which is an old concert and theater complex located in downtown Poughkeepsie. The venue has featured big-name and up-and-coming rock acts throughout it’s lifetime since being built in 1912. The vibes at this venue are unforgettable, and it has a long history of now-famous musicians that have played there.

    Hammerhedd Opens At The Chance Oct 27th

    To watch Hammerhedd’s song “Tunnel,” click here. For more information on the event at The Chance Theater and to purchase tickets for this upcoming event, click here. 

  • Beacon Sloop Club to host Annual Pumpkin Festival on October 16

    The Beacon Sloop Club will once again host an Annual Pumpkin Festival on Sunday, October 16th at Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park in Beacon. The rain or shine event offers free admission to all and runs from Noon to 5pm.

    beacon pumpkin festival

    The Beacon Pumpkin Festival features Hudson Valley pumpkins of all sizes & shapes, fresh homemade baked pumpkin pie, hot pumpkin soup, hot and cold apple cider and much more available for purchase.

    beacon pumpkin festival

    You’ll also find many free children’s activities,many food and craft vendors, hula hooping, free sails on the Sloop Woody Guthrie and much more. Environmental non-profits will feature displays of local Hudson River history and the environment including information about their organization.

    On two solar powered music stages (one just for the kids), much music is on tap at Beacon Pumpkin Festival, with performers including Betty and the Baby Boomers, The B2’s, Rick and Donna Nestler David & Jacob Bernz, The Judith Tulloch Band, Last Minute Soulmates, Spirit of Thunderheart, Beacon High School Chorus Singers, Beacon Songsmiths, Cosby Gibson and Tom Staudle, Bindlestick Bill, Pat Jones & Laurie Siegel, The Neverly Brothers, and Lydia Adams Davis.

    Pete and Toshi Seeger Park is located at 2 Red Flynn Drive in Beacon, right next to the Metro North Train Station.

    The Beacon Sloop Club’s boat, the Woody Guthrie, will be taking guests on free sails from the Beacon Harbor, weather permitting. The public may sign up for an afternoon sail to relax and experience the beauty, power and grandeur of the Hudson.  Sign up at the Beacon Sloop Club table starting at noon.

    The Beacon Sloop Club is an all volunteer and non-profit organization. The Beacon Sloop Club’s Strawberry, Corn and Pumpkin Festivals raises money for the public sailing program on the Woody Guthrie and other environmental education programs. The Beacon Sloop Club meets the first Friday of each month at the clubhouse in Beacon for a potluck dinner, business meeting and live music. The clubhouse is located on the banks of the Hudson River near the Metro-North train station. Everyone is always welcome.

    beacon pumpkin festival

  • Postmodern Jukebox “Life In The Past Lane” Tour makes 4 Stops in NY in 2023

    Postmodern Jukebox embarks on their “Life In The Past Lane” Concert Tour this fall, celebrating the greatest 20th century musical genres, fused with the recognizable hits of our own modern era, for the perfect patina of “vintage” and “modern.” The group brings the PMJ Universe to life with a cast full of exciting vocalists, instrumentalists, and tap dancers, leading to a top-shelf entertainment experience for which PMJ is known.

    Postmodern Jukebox

    When New York City pianist Scott Bradlee created Postmodern Jukebox out of a basement in Queens in 2011, his goal was simple: to remake the pop hits of today into the classic sounds of the legends of yesterday. Miley Cyrus became The Platters. Bruno Mars became Frank Sinatra. The Spice Girls became The Andrews Sisters. Guns ’n’ Roses became Bessie Smith.

    Nearly a decade later, Postmodern Jukebox has grown to become a pop culture mainstay in its own right, having played over a thousand shows on six continents worldwide — including acclaimed venues like Radio City Music Hall, Sydney Opera House, and Red Rocks Amphitheater. In the process, PMJ has introduced audience to many of the world’s greatest singers, dancers, and instrumentalist — many of whom have gone on to become stars in their own right.

    Postmodern Jukebox

    No matter your age, catch Postmodern Jukebox for a ride and an unforgettable trip through 100 years of timeless music.

    Postmodern Jukebox “Life In The Past Lane” Concert tourdates

    10-Mar-23 | Fri | Owensboro, KY | River Park Center
    | 15-Mar-23 | Wed | Troy, NY | Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
    | 16-Mar-23 | Thu | Keene, NH | Colonial Performing Arts Center
    | 17-Mar-23 | Fri | Great Barrington, MA | The Mahaiwe Theatre
    | 18-Mar-23 | Sat | Portland, ME | State Theater
    | 19-Mar-23 | Sun | Plymouth, NH | The Flying Monkey
    | 24-Mar-23 | Fri | New Haven, CT | College Street Music Hall
    | 25-Mar-23 | Sat | Bayside, NY | Queensborough Performing Arts Center
    | 28-Mar-23 | Tue | Akron, OH | EJ Thomas Hall
    | 30-Mar-23 | Thu | Poughkeepsie, NY | Bardavon
    | 31-Mar-23 | Fri | Verona, NY | Turning Stone
    | 4-Apr-23 | Tue | Charlotte, NC | Knight Theatre
    | 5-Apr-23 | Wed | Greensboro, NC | Piedmont Hall
    | 6-Apr-23 | Thu | Virginia Beach, VA | Sandler Center
    | 7-Apr-23 | Fri | Myrtle Beach, SC | House of Blues
    | 8-Apr-23 | Sat | Atlanta, GA | Woodruff Arts Center
    | 10-Apr-23 | Mon | Greenville, SC | Peace Center
    | 13-Apr-23 | Thu | West Palm Beach, FL | Kravis Center
    | 14-Apr-23 | Fri | Ft. Lauderdale, FL | Parker Playhouse
    | 15-Apr-23 | Sat | Clearwater, FL | Ruth Eckerd Hall
    | 18-Apr-23 | Tue | Melbourne, FL | King Center
    | 19-Apr-23 | Wed | Jacksonville, FL | Florida Theater
    | 23-Apr-23 | Sun | Sarasota, FL | Van Wezel
    | 24-Apr-23 | Mon | Orlando, FL | Disney Hall

  • The Bardavon Announces The Return Of The Nutcracker

    After a two year absence for the pandemic, The Bardavon has announced the return of the holiday classic, The Nutcracker. The shows will put on on Saturday, December 10 at 2 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, December 11 at 3 p.m, (snow date December 12 at 7 p.m.).

    Nutcracker

    Following a very long two year absence due to Covid, New Paltz Ballet Theatre will return to the Bardavon for its 23rd season to present this classic holiday event featuring dancers from the New York City Ballet. Peter and Lisa Naumann, co-directors of the NPBT, have brought many fine regional artists together to create this beautiful production. Dancers, designers, and technicians have all contributed to make this Nutcracker a visual delight. Come along with Marie as she dreams of a fierce battle between giant mice and toy soldiers followed by a magical journey through the Land of Snow to the Kingdom of Sweets.

    NutCracker Photo by Jacques Luigi

    The Bardavon 1869 Opera House, Inc. (the Bardavon) was incorporated in 1976 as a New York State nonprofit corporation, which is the oldest contiuously operating theater in the state. It owns and operates a 944-seat historic theater in Poughkeepsie and acquired the region’s premiere orchestra, the Hudson Valley Philharmonic (the HVP) in 1999. The Bardavon offers affordable, world-class arts education programs, music, dance, theater, Live in HD broadcasts, and classic films for the diverse audiences of the Hudson Valley. The company regularly presents at other venues such as Kingston’s Ulster Performing Arts Center and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.

    The Nutcracker is an 1892 two-act ballet originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Op. 71). The libretto is adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann’s 1816 short story “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King”.

    The tickets are $36 for adults and $30 for students while members get $5 off. For more information, please visit https://www.bardavon.org/show/the-nutcracker-30/.

  • In Focus: Michael Franti & Spearhead at MJN Convention Center

    On June 30th, Radio Woodstock – WDST presented Michael Franti & Spearhead at the newly renovated MJN Convention Center in Poughkeepsie. Two-time Grammy Award winners Arrested Development were included on the bill.

    Michael Franti & Spearhead

    The tour, in support of Michael Franti & Spearhead’s latest release Follow Your Heart, will continue through the summer. The night included a short video sharing Michael Franti’s experiences at his home in Bali during the Covid years. Sharing what he encountered, discarded, and is now looking forward to in the future, offering an optimistic tone for evening.

    Hip-hop pioneers Arrested Development opened the show.  The band offered up a nonstop dance set including songs from the 2021 album For the Fkn Love.  Formed as an alternative to gangsta rap, Arrested Development put positivity in the spotlight.  They capped their set by reaching back to their beginnings with the iconic “Tennessee.”

    Arrested Development

    With “Stay Human” emblazoned on his guitar strap and “Don’t Give Up” on his t-shirt, Michael Franti backed by Spearhead took to the stage.  Over the course of two- and one-half hours the night resembled a preacher with his flock, engaging everyone in a heartfelt love fest.

    On multiple occasions, Franti stepped down from the stage, singing his way through the crowd to one of the two mini stages located in the house. Once there, Michael stood tall and spread his arms wide open, inviting people up to harmonize along with him.

    Michael Franti

    Spearhead’s four members, including Franti’s longtime collaborator Carl Young on bass, generated a powerful musical backdrop. Throughout the night, the band moved from electric to acoustic and back without missing a beat.

    As the night concluded and after taking their bows, Michael and members of the band headed into the crowd to taking selfies and sign autographs.  If there was ever a way to say thank you to an audience, this was it.

    Michael Franti & Spearhead

    Arrested Development

  • Bardavon Announces Shows for 2022 Juneteenth Celebration

    Bardavon will present performances from Resistance Revival Chorus and Imani Perry to celebrate Juneteenth at the Old Dutch Church in Kingston and the Bardavon Opera House in Poughkeepsie.

    The Old Dutch Church was often referred to as “The Cathedral of Kingston,” which was originally built in 1660 in the colony of New Netherland. While the Bardavon 1869 Opera Houseowns and operates a 944-seat historic theater in Poughkeepsie and it is operated by the Bardavon.

    The Resistance Revival Chorus — June 18th at 7pm at Old Dutch Church, Kingston

    The Resistance Revival Chorus

    The Resistance Revival Chorus (RRC) is a collective of more than 60 womxn, and non-binary singers who enjoy singing and express themselves with the music. The singers are in various occupations including not only professional singer and Broadway performers, but also political activists, educators, and more. They aim to be intersectional in our feminism and reveal that all social justice issues overlap heavily with woman’s issues. Tickets start at $20

    Imani Perry — June 19th at 5pm at Bardavon

    Imani Perry

    The Princeton University African American Studies professor and author Imani Perry will speak on her new book South to America, followed by a Q & A and a book signing in the Bardavon lobby. She also wrote 6 other books, including Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry, May We Forever Stand: A History of the Black National Anthem, Breathe: A Letter to My Sons, etc., which are renowned for the prizes they won.

    Free tickets available at Poughkeepsie’s Adriance Memorial Library & Bardavon or UPAC box offices.

  • With The Punches Return After Nine-Year Hiatus

    With The Punches has dropped a new single “Stoneham Blues.” This single comes following their signing with Mutant League Records, an independent record label based in Chicago. Their new EP, Discontent, is set to drop on May 27th.

    With The Punches was initially formed in 2008 out of Newburgh. The band released two consecutive EPs, one in 2009 and one in 2011. In 2012, the band released their first and only full-length studio album titled, Seams and Stitches. Now, after nine years of silence, the band is ready to make a big return.

    With The Punches

    Their newest release takes the listener back to the height of skater-influenced pop-punk. The opening of the track powerfully draws you in as a bright guitar gloss fully floats over bulldozing percussion. The lyrics, contrarily, take on a more mature theme.

    Capturing the feeling of emptiness may be the hardest emotion to replicate in art. Death, addiction, and everything in between are experiences that everyone has dealt with in their life. With The Punches do not hold back in discussing these feelings and they manage to beautifully capture these emotions through excellently constructed metaphors with a slight Midwest emo twist.

    Pre-order for the vinyl EP is available at withthepunches.presspressmerch.com