Hi Folks,

This is the month of the guitar at the Community Church! This Sunday we’ll be featuring none other than Blazing Steel, otherwise known as Terry Moran. January 13th we’ll have local legend John Moulder, along with Eric VanDuyne, and January 20th The All Star Blues Band with Mike Landers, Bruce Williams and of course the amazing Eric VanDuyne back for the second Sunday in a row. January 27th is TBD, but rest assured I’m working on some great music for that day as well.

Mark your Calendars:

Too Hot To Handel!! There is no better way to celebrate MLK weekend than to attend this event at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago. I’ve been lucky enough to go a few times and it is truly one of the best concerts you’ll ever see. Our own Kim Minichiello sings in the chorus and has a group of tickets for the matinee performance on Sunday, January 20th. Let her know if you're interested sings4u@comcast.net. For more information here is a link to the website.

The Love with the one and only Suede will be performing live at Norton’s in Highwood on February 2nd starting at 9 pm.

Happy New Year and see you soon!

Ken
















Always inspiring: the opening address to the 1964 Berlin Jazz Festival by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

God has wrought many things out of oppression. He has endowed his creatures with the capacity to create—and from this capacity has flowed the sweet songs of sorrow and joy that have allowed man to cope with his environment and many different situations.
Jazz speaks for life. The Blues tell the story of life's difficulties, and if you think for a moment, you will realize that they take the hardest realities of life and put them into music, only to come out with some new hope or sense of triumph.
This is triumphant music.
Modern jazz has continued in this tradition, singing the songs of a more complicated urban existence. When life itself offers no order and meaning, the musician creates an order and meaning from the sounds of the earth which flow through his instrument.
It is no wonder that so much of the search for identity among American Negroes was championed by Jazz musicians. Long before the modern essayists and scholars wrote of racial identity as a problem for a multiracial world, musicians were returning to their roots to affirm that which was stirring within their souls.
Much of the power of our Freedom Movement in the United States has come from this music. It has strengthened us with its sweet rhythms when courage began to fail. It has calmed us with its rich harmonies when spirits were down.
And now, Jazz is exported to the world. For in the particular struggle of the Negro in America there is something akin to the universal struggle of modern man. Everybody has the Blues. Everybody longs for meaning. Everybody needs to love and be loved. Everybody needs to clap hands and be happy. Everybody longs for faith.
In music, especially this broad category called Jazz, there is a stepping stone towards all of these.

-Ken
Terry reacts to Kenny's music
Picture

Hi folks.
Recently, after hearing Eva B Ross and company rehearsing, Christine, who is involved in the music business for a living and has been worshiping with us asked me, “Where do you find all these wonderful musicians”? I’ve often thought about that and I would like to highlight a couple reasons. Number one is Fred Koch! He is kind of like the Tree that all the branches have grown from. I met Fred when my kids were toddlers attending
“Lil’ Cow Band” concerts and since then he has introduced me to a countless number of amazing musicians. Those musicians introduced me to more amazing musicians, and so on. If you see Fred, please say thank you for what he has done. I couldn’t be more grateful for his unselfish support through the years. Number two is all of you! When any musician plays for people that, as Eva put it last Sunday, is “a good listening crowd” and ever so appreciative, that not only affects the performance, but naturally makes them want to come back. So thank you all for the love and support you’ve shown the musicians who have come to share their talents! The beauty is that the branches of the tree are still growing and you all nurture that.  
Fred Koch

Announcements

MUSICIANS: I regularly check out Facebook and your home pages to see where you all are playing, but often I miss or don’t get the information in time for the newsletter. If you’d like me to advertise your gigs, please let me know when and where you're playing.