WHAT: Banjo Babes Show Case.
WHEN: Saturday, December 12, 2015. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Show at 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: The North Columbia Schoolhouse Cultural Center on the San Juan Ridge, 17894 Tyler Foote Road, Nevada City, CA, 95959.
WHO: BANJO BABES SHOWCASE curated by ERIN INGLISH w/the STRINGTOWN AMBASSADORS, EVIE LADIN, & THE SMALL GLORIES (w/CARA LUFT, formerly of Canadian Supergroup the Wailin’ Jenny’s)
PRICE: $15 Available at BriarPatch, and Mother Truckers or
BANJO BABES SHOWCASE curated by ERIN INGLISH w/the STRINGTOWN AMBASSADORS, EVIE LADIN, THE LITTLEST BIRDS (featuring SHARON MARTINSON), & THE SMALL GLORIES (w/CARA LUFT, formerly of Canadian Supergroup the Wailin’ Jenny’s)
Join us for a special evening of music celebrating the release of the third-annual, limited-edition, international Banjo Babes 2016 Calendar & Album! Presenting a world-class show featuring four incredible lady banjo artists and their bands – Erin Inglish (w/the Stringtown Ambassadors), Evie Ladin, The Littlest Birds (featuring Sharon Martinson), and The Small Glories (featuring Cara Luft of the Canadian super group The Wailin’ Jennys). Curated by California banjo chanteuse Erin Inglish (expressive, sassy, dynamic banjo; lush and raw power-house vocals, award-winning songwriting), this show promises luminous musicianship, soaring harmonies and expressive style and technique on the five-string banjo from all acts! An absolute must-see show for fans of Americana music! The Banjo Babes 2016 Calendar & Album will be available for procurement at the show. (www.banjobabescalendar.com)
ERIN INGLISH w/the STRINGTOWN AMBASSADORS: Erin Inglish is a tour-de-force banjo chanteuse, a thoughtful wanderer steeped in the thick of California’s music scene. Inglish’s performances proffer passionate lyricism, toe-tapping grooves, and striking reflections about the state of the modern world. Her voice is both lush and raw, and her picking style on the five-string banjo is uniquely her own…expressive, sassy, dynamic. Erin has spent several years living abroad (in India, Madagascar, Bulgaria and Serbia) – and her songwriting reflects her elation for life, creative and exploratory nature, and passion for creating positive change through community and art. “Her melodic optimism is a lighthouse calling the rest of us to pay attention to our highest pursuits.” – Fan, North Carolina. Her music is galvanized by the soaring harmonies, tenacious solos and gritty rhythmic drive of the Stringtown Ambassadors – a rotating collective of passionate and unabashed modern-day minstrels hosted by fiddler and singer Rosalind Parducci. Luminous musicianship and rhythmic groove, Erin Inglish w/the Stringtown Ambassadors present a high-energy, entertaining, positively-charged act – steeped with harmonies and instrumental prowess on the banjo, fiddle, percussion, guitar, mandolin or bass. (www.erininglish.com, www.stringtownambassadors.com)
EVIE LADIN: The polyrhythmic heat of Evie Ladin’s clawhammer banjo, resonant voice, real stories and rhythmic dance have been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Celtic Connections, Lincoln Center to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. Known as a driving force behind San Francisco’s Stairwell Sisters, Evie’s solo debut Float Downstream (2010), co-produced by Mike Marshall and Keith Terry, was quickly followed by Evie Ladin Band (2012), which won Americana Album of the Year by the Independent Music Awards Vox Pop Vote. “Ladin sings and plays infectious clawhammer banjo, while Terry is a master percussionist. It was Appalachian string band music pared to the absolute minimum of accompaniment, but packed with an orchestra’s worth of rhythm” (Music City Roots, Nashville). “You don’t often hear words like ‘traditional,’ and ‘authentic’ paired with ‘innovative’ and ‘unique,’ but Evie Ladin has brought them together brilliantly in the self-titled, debut album of the Evie Ladin Band, and the result is truly a high point in new old-time music” (Folkworks, Los Angeles). (www.evieladin.com)
THE LITTLEST BIRDS are David Huebner on cello and Sharon Martinson on banjo, offering a gentle, harmony-fueled brand of twang that evokes the dusty backroads and wide open spaces of the American West while remaining deeply rooted on a backporch somewhere in Appalachia. Since 2010 they have traveled across 35 U.S. States, playing 100s of shows, including visits to Canada and England. They have performed at such renown festivals as the Vancouver Folk Music Festival and the Oregon Country Fair as well as numerous regional festivals and venues such as the CBA’s Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival. With voice, cello, and banjo, old traditionals are given a fresh turn, and their original songs display an enthusiasm and inspiration that flows off the stage and into the hearts of anyone that is listening. “Think instrumental virtuosity balanced by a breezy, backwoods soul, music that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally soothing.” (Seven Days Weekly, Burlington, VT) “…a lovely sound that embraces listeners simultaneously with the familiar and the new.” (Folk Alley) (www.thelittlestbirds.net)
THE SMALL GLORIES: Folk powerhouse pair The Small Glories are Cara Luft & JD Edwards, a dynamic new duo planted on the Canadian Prairies. They are a study in contrasts. Cara, all earth mother on her 21-speed bike, helmet and backpack, environmentally friendly and wholesome, ebullient and engaging; and burly JD, looking like a cross between a biker and long-haul trucker in scruffy beard, ball cap, t-shirt and jean jacket, slightly intimidating (until you meet him). At first glance few would peg them for a highly creative musical partnership. Yet these two veteran singer/songwriters have teamed up and are already building a buzz around their tight harmonies, authenticity and visceral performances. Luft is a Juno award winner, co-founder of folk trio The Wailin’ Jennys, and a touring road warrior. She has earned a solid reputation as an exciting live performer, accomplished guitarist, clawhammer banjo player and insightfully honest songwriter. Cara’s the real deal, there’s nothing pretentious about her. Edwards has a voice that defies categorization, one that easily ranges from gentle and melodic to fierce and powerful, leaving listeners begging for more. He is truly one of the finest singers of his time. Mix that with honest, passionate songwriting and it’s easy to see why he’s an enchanting musical powerhouse. Together as The Small Glories, Luft and Edwards are a tour de force, a case of 1 + 1 = 3.
For more information about the Banjo Babes Showcase or the Banjo Babes Calendar & Album, please contact Erin Inglish (www.erininglish.com) at erin.inglish@gmail.com or (805) 748-2998.
