Loudon Wainwright & Greg Brown

Loudon Wainwright III, Inside Out Gallery, September 23rd
When Loudon Wainwright III takes the stage at Inside Out, his familiarity to the audience may come from a multitude of sources. Possibly his famous son, poetic pop star Rufus Wainwright. Or his father, Loudon Jr., who was the famous writer and editor of “Life Magazine.” Or even his daughter, Martha, who is something of an underground folk-pop sensation.
Of course Wainwright III has done plenty in his own right to gain notoriety over the years, most notably his 1972 hit novelty song “Dead Skunk (in the Middle of the Road),” or possibly his appearances on the popular sitcom M*A*S*H as the singing surgeon Captain Calvin Spalding. Maybe you’re familiar with some of his other tunes, like his song “The Man Who Couldn’t Cry” (as recorded by Johnny Cash) - Wainwright has recorded twenty albums on eleven different labels. Then again, Wainwright has appeared in several movies over the years as well, among them Elizabethtown, 28 Days, For Your Consideration, and The Aviator, the Howard Hughes biopic.
But, if even after all of this, you still don’t have any idea who the heck Loudon Wainwright III is, one way to get to know more about him is to listen to the song that his daughter Martha wryly wrote about him on her MySpace site; it’s the one titled in expletives. Okay, maybe Wainwright’s parenting skills were not the best, but whatever he lacked in fathering abilities, he has more than made up for on stage, and his kids can thank him for that as they all (including his daughter Lucy Wainwright Roche from his marriage to folk singer Suzzy Roche (who, herself, is one-third of the female vocal group The Roches)) have inherited his performance genes.
Recently, Wainwright has again connected to the younger generation with his current album, Strange Weirdos - musician Joe Henry, Madonna’s brother-in-law, co-composed the music with Wainwright and also produced the CD.
Loudon Wainwright’s appearance at the Inside Out Gallery is a major coup for gallery owner Mike Curths, who has served as the impetuous for the resurgence of the “Warehouse District,” in Traverse City.
“This will be by far the biggest show we have had here since we started offering concerts,” said Curths. “Wainwright is an American icon, a great songwriter and hilarious.”
For additional information on Wainwright and to listen to musical samples, visit his MySpace site at www.myspace.com/lw3lw3 or his official website at www.lw3.com, and for advance tickets to his Tuesday September 23 show at Inside Out Gallery, call 231-929-3254.


Greg Brown, Traverse City Opera House, September 21st
Renowned folk singer/songwriter Greg Brown will return to Northern Michigan to kick off the Grassroots Productions fall/winter concert series (you might be familiar with Grassroots as the fine people who bring you the Dunegrass Festival.)
Brown has been a long time favorite in Northern Michigan. For years he would travel through the region doing a concert/fishing tour. Now 57 years old, Brown only performs 50 to 60 concerts a year, not because he isn’t in demand (he turns down gigs regularly) - quite the contrary. It’s because he has his priorities, those being family (he splits time between his farm that his grandparents once owned in southeastern Iowa and the Kansas City, Missouri home of his wife, folk singer Iris Dement) and maintaining balance in his life.
“As I travel the country I see a lonely place full of people with this false notion that if they can buy enough, it will make them happy,” said Brown. “But that approach seldom works. You have to have balance. I find that as I get older I want things to be simple. It is hard in this business at times to find that balance, and really it can be hard in any life to find that balance, so it has to be a choice.”
His words seem to resonate through the lyrics of many of his songs, which also often offer social commentary. His songwriting skills have been admired by many including Willie Nelson and Carlos Santana; both have had hits with Brown-penned tunes. Despite this, Brown has eluded the trappings of a major label deal.
“I don’t think these label people hear my songs and think, ‘well, this is a way to make a bunch of money,’ but I have done well regardless,” said Brown. “I have been supported by community radio and music festivals. It is amazing how many little community radio stations are still out there.”
Brown’s big break came from making regular appearances on Garrison Keillor’s “Prairie Home Companion” program on NPR. Brown was a weekly musical guest during the mid ‘80s. He also has won several awards, and has been nominated for a couple of Grammys, but refuses to attend award ceremonies. “It’s impossible for me to think of music as a contest,” said Brown. “I am sure they are fun, but these award ceremonies have no meaning to me.”
What does have meaning to Brown are family, trout rivers, and seeing George Bush leave office.
“I have been pretty appalled by some of things within the Bush Administration from day one that he went into office. I just don’t think our country is headed in the right direction,” said Brown. “The way I responded in terms of my music was to write some songs in which I spoke to the war the best that I could. I have played, and continue to play, those songs at my shows. I feel that everyone needs to speak out. Either through music or just standing together with others on the street corner and saying that I think the country is going in the wrong direction, or to stand on the corner and say our country is going down the right road.”
An avid outdoorsman and fisherman, Brown recently did a fundraiser to help protect the famed Yellowdog River in the Upper Peninsula. The concert was recorded and Brown allowed it to be released by Big Rapids based Eathwork Music as a CD to raise funds for the Yellowdog River Watershed, who are trying to prevent a British mining company from building a processing plant along the river.
“It is almost embarrassing that I or anyone else has to do these sort of things (benefit fundraisers.) You would think some things would be obvious like protecting our environment, taking care of our children, the elderly, or the poor,” said Brown. “Apparently we find it easier to go off to war to kill then to address these issues.”
Brown won’t be touting a cause when he returns to Northern Michigan, his first in the region since his appearance 2006 Dunegrass Festival performance in Empire. Brown said he misses Northern Michigan and the people here, and he’s looking forward to returning.
“Early in my career the people in Northern Michigan were very good to me, they supported my music then and still do,” said Brown.

Brown’s current release of original material is his 2006 album The Evening Call. He continues to write, and plans to release a new CD sometime in 2008. His Traverse City concert will feature a collection of favorites from the past and a few surprises. For additional information on Brown, check out www.gregbrown.org, and for concert tickets call (231) 941-8082.


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