Patty Blee and Ernie Trionfo will be our featured performers for the SJARMS (South Jersey Acoustic Roots Music Society) March meeting on Monday, March 13, 2017 at 7:00 pm at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ. They will play one set and there is an all-level member acoustic jam afterward until 9:30 pm which visitors are welcome to participate in if you are a musician (bring your instrument) or stay and listen/ sing along.
Free to SJARMS members (for info on membership please see the membership tab above) and $10 for visitors and guests payable at the door. More info 609-280-4926.

About Patty: If you can imagine Sheryl Crow meeting Bonnie Raitt in a corner bar as they kick back a few cold ones with Lucinda, then you’ll have no problem envisioning Patty Blee pulling up a stool and fitting right in.
Her husky voice, confessional songs and roots-based sound have earned her numerous comparisons to such artists. Displaying a distinctive guitar style full of bass lines and grooves, Patty intertwines memorable melodies into mid and up-tempo songs of love and longing. A wide range of influences are evident in her musical palette– blues, folk, Celtic, country, and rock. Music meant to move the soul…

Ernie Trionfo is a legendary South Jersey guitar man, both in terms of playing and repairing guitars. He is a member of both “Home at Last” and “The Snake Brothers” and is an in-demand session player. He has also been the owner of “Ernie’s Guitar Repair” for more than 20 years now in Minotola, NJ.  He repairs and sells musical instruments and accessories and runs the lesson program at Music Central in Minotola.

Ernie recently collaborated on a new CD called “Lifers” with our well known SJARMS friend and Honorary Advisory Board member, Jimmy Heffernan. Information on obtaining the CD is below or you can purchase one when you come out to hear him at the March SJARMS meeting.  

http://www.jimmyheffernan.com/store-2/products/category/cds/

https://youtu.be/cHKSymL4UCo

Please enjoy this soulful, lovely song called “Just a Little Bit of Faith” written by Patty Blee and performed live by Patty Blee and Ernie Trionfo at the Tin Angel in Philadelphia.

http://www.rockline.com/ernies/

South Jersey Acoustic Roots Music Society (SJARMS) is thrilled to be hosting Cranberry Jam, a local old-time acoustic band consisting of 2 old- time banjos and one acoustic guitar on Monday, January 9, 2017  at 7:00 pm at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ. Admission $10 at the door. From fiddle tunes to heartfelt ballads, Cranberry Jam creates a unique blend of old- time/traditional/folk music.  Info 609-280-4926.  More Info about Cranberry Jam and SJARMS membership: www.sjarms.com.

Cranberry Jam’s Bio:

Members of the band include long- time SJARMS members Joe Jones and Donna Feldman playing banjo, and Cathy George playing guitar.  In addition to Joe being a long-time member of SJARMS, Joe is a versatile musician and member of the Stone Mountain Road Bluegrass Band.  He was also a member of the talented and well-known Jersey Grass Bluegrass band back in the late 70’s.

Joe, Donna and Cathy became acquainted at the SJARMS monthly meetings.  When Donna and Cathy first met, they shared their love of old- time music and began playing fiddle tunes.  Donna and Cathy began meeting weekly at Donna’s house to play.   Donna’s banjo and Cathy’s guitar together resonated a beautiful sound in the living room.  They loved it, so they continued playing new tunes and singing new ballads.   A year later, Joe Jones, also a lover of old- time music, began playing his banjo with Donna and Cathy.  Joe’s extensive music expertise and knowledge helped the band progress further.  Since then, the band has developed a large repertoire of ballads and instrumentals.

The Band’s mutual love for the Pine Barrens took them playing outside, and from playing at a cranberry harvest, the name “Cranberry Jam” seemed natural.  Since then, Cranberry Jam has played at “Lines on the Pines”, “Hammonton Summer Nights”, “Whitesbog Blueberry Festival”, “Apple Day” at Hill Creek Farms in Mullica Hill and “The Station” in Merchantville.  Cranberry Jam also performs frequently at the SJARM’s open mics.  They also love to play music in the pines in the summer time.   So, if you hear music in the background while taking a walk in the pines, it just may be Cranberry Jam playing their old-time music!

They will perform one set followed by an all-level acoustic jam. Please bring your acoustic instrument if you want to join in jamming.

South Jersey Acoustic Roots Music Society (SJARMS) is very excited to be hosting folk performer/songwriter/guitar and mandolin player Jefferson Hamer and fiddler/songwriter Adam Moss on Monday, December 12, 2016 at 7:00 pm at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ at the December, 2016 SJARMS members meeting. They will perform one set followed by an all-level acoustic jam.
Admission $10 at the door for guests and visitors. Free for SJARMS members.

More info 609-280-4926. Info on SJARMS membership: www.sjarms.com.Please also see our Facebook page: South Jersey Acoustic Roots Music Society.

We are very excited to host Blues Harmonica master Steve Guyger for our September, 2016 meeting on Monday, September 12, 2016 at 7:00 pm at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ. Steve will have a guitarist accompanying him at the performance.

Visitors $10 at the door. Current SJARMS members: no charge. For more information on membership please see the membership tab above. Other information please call 609-280-4926.

As usual we will have an all-level acoustic jam for about an hour after Steve’s performance and a short refreshment break. If you are attending the performance and are a musician that would like to participate in the jam please feel free to bring your acoustic instrument with you. More information can be found in the Acoustic Jam tab above.

Steve’s bio:

Philadelphia is home to one of the finest blues harp players in the world, much to the surprise of people not “inside” the blues scene. Over the past forty-plus years, 2009 Handy Award nominee Steve Guyger has been dishing out some of the finest blues to be heard anywhere. Whether in a duo, trio, or with his band, The Excellos, Steve always rocks the house.

Steve has toured with the late Jimmy Rogers, among others, and has played with many of the great Chicago bluesmen and contemporary players, yet he remains one of the best kept secrets in blues. The late William Clarke called Steve “the best harp player I’ve ever seen.” Mark Hummel called him “a monster player.” If you have heard Steve play, you know what they’re talking about. If you’ve never heard him, you’re missing a major page in your blues portfolio.

Steve began playing harp back in the late 60’s on a harmonica given to him by his future sister-in-law. Sometime later, his brother turned him on to Paul Butterfield. Steve’s passion for the blues harp took him to Chicago to learn at the feet of the masters of the art. Each trip taught him skills that he brought back to the local bands in which he paid his dues.

Steve has shared the stage with the greats in Chicago and the contemporary harp players touring the world today, names like Little Sammy Davis, Carey Bell, Rick Estrin, Rod Piazza,Kim Wilson, Mark Hummel, Charlie Musselwhite and many others. His playing, vocals, songwriting and stage presence have earned him a place among the best of the players on stage today.

Steve makes his home in Philly and can be seen on a regular basis at clubs in the tri-state area in addition to touring with the New Legends of the Blues All-Stars.

We have a great night of incredible bluegrass music planned for you on Monday, June 13, 2016!
SJARMS is very excited to have the bluegrass band, Stone Mountain Road, fronted by the award winning Resonator guitar (Dobro) player Jimmy Heffernan, performing for us as part of our June, 2016 meeting on Monday, June 13, 2016 at 7:00 pm at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ. Visitors $10, pay at the door. SJARMS members: no charge. For more information on membership please see the membership tab above. Other information please call 609-280-4926.

Members of Stone Mountain Road include SJARMS member Joe Jones, as well as Craig Kuhlow, Larry Hunsberger, Peter Lorch and Jimmy Heffernan.

Stone Mountain Road was one of SJARMS’ original performers back in 2010. Stone Mountain Road’s leader, Jimmy Heffernan, is one of the original SJARMS Trustees. He has given us invaluable guidance and advice over the years.

Jimmy has been an active member of the professional music industry for over 40 years.  He is a highly respected Nashville session player, sideman, and producer.  He is a versatile multi-instrumentalist, an outstanding music instructor who loves to teach, and one of the true masters of the resonator guitar (Dobro®).  He is a master in the recording studio and many musicians have worked with him to produce their recordings.

Early in his career Jimmy was a member of several bluegrass bands including Raintree,  Transatlantic Bluegrass and Larry Sparks and the Lonesome Ramblers, and toured with notable musicians as Bill Keith, Red Allen, Bill Grant, Delia Bell, and Doug Kershaw, performing on resonator guitar (Dobro®), banjo, pedal steel and electric guitar.

He was an integral member of Joe Diffie’s band for nine years, touring the country and performing at every major venue as well as appearing on many television programs, among them Grand Ole Opry Live, The Tonight Show, Good Morning America and Hee Haw.

Jimmy was a member of Brad Paisley’s touring band for two years and played Dobro® on Brad’s album track “Too Country” which featured performances by George Jones, Buck Owens, and Bill Anderson.

He collaborated with legendary resonator guitar (Dobro) player, Mike Auldridge and pedal steel guitar Ace Hal Rugg with the release of the 2003 recording “The Resocasters.”

He has also performed with Mark Cosgrove and toured with Charlie Louvin of the Louvin Brothers in 2008 on the Lucinda Williams tour.

He has performed with his current band Stone Mountain Road for several years and they enjoy a large following of enthusiastic and dedicated fans!

Jimmy offers face-to-face lessons as well as online lessons which can be found at jimmyheffernan.com. He will be teaching at Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Kamp again this year from June 19-25, 2016.

https://www.facebook.com/119558664768638/videos/1724214422202/

Photo Credits: Carolyn Miller

South Jersey Acoustic Roots Music Society (SJARMS) presents cowboy/western, prairie, and railroad song singer/performer Bob Bovee on Monday, April 11, 2016 at 7:00 pm at our new location at the Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ (on the block with The Pop Shop and Braddock’s Tavern- parking is directly behind the Community Center in the Public Parking spaces- please enter the building via the back door off the back porch.) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Admission $10 at the door for guests and visitors (free admission to current SJARMS members.) More info: 609-280-4926. For information on membership please see the membership tab above.

As always we will have an intermission and light refreshments after the performance where attendees can greet the performer and an acoustic jam following for about an hour to an hour and a half, ending promptly at 9:30 pm. We have been able to run two separate jams: one strictly bluegrass picking and the other for singer/songwriter songs.

Bob is a Nebraska native whose family sang and played the old-time songs. Many of the western and railroad songs he does were learned from his grandmother. He plays banjo and autoharp, sings and yodels, and can drive a dance band with his guitar and harmonica. Bob is well known and loved for his dry and witty stage humor. He has published numerous articles and reviews for The Old-Time Herald and Inside Bluegrass and been an instructor for a course called “The History of Country Music” for the Honors Division at the University of Minnesota.

Since 1971 Bob has traveled the country taking old time music to audiences of all ages at festivals, fairs, concerts, dances, schools, libraries, music camps, radio and TV programs, including Prairie Home Companion and Mountain Stage. This is rural music as played in homes, at dances and for earlier entertainments such as minstrel shows and country radio.

Along with a repertoire including dance tunes, ballads, cowboy songs, humorous and sentimental numbers, blues and rags, he spices their shows with stories, history and folklore.

For more information about the Medford Memorial Community Center and for directions, please visit their website at http://www.medfordcenter.org/.

Greetings to all SJARMS friends and members,

We had to make a last minute change in location for the Monday, January 11, 2016 at 7:00 pm performance by “Dr. Licks”/Allan Slutsky due to a heating problem at the Medford Arts Center.

The location is now: Medford Memorial Community Center, 21 South Main Street, Medford, NJ.

http://www.medfordcenter.org/. It is on the block between the POP Shop and Braddock’s Tavern (on the same side as both) There is a driveway just before the Community Center with a green and white sign that says Parking. You can turn into that driveway and go behind the Community Center to park.

All of the other information in the previous post is the same except for the location.

Hope to see you there!

On Monday, January 11, 2016 at 7:00 pm SJARMS is very pleased to be hosting Allan Slutsky aka “Dr. Licks” at our January meeting at the Medford Arts Center, 18 N. Main Street, Medford, NJ.  Doors open at 6:45 pm.  Admission is free for SJARMS members, $10 for visitors. Information on joining SJARMS can be found in the membership tab above.

Allan is a Grammy Award winning American arranger, guitarist, music producer, and historian. He studied music at Temple University in Philadelphia and The Berklee College of Music in Boston. He began transcribing music under the pen name “Dr. Licks.”  He is well known for his books on the art of playing rhythm and blues for guitar, bass and drums, funk guitar rhythm chops, as well as rock’s hottest guitar solos transcribed note for note, just to name a few.

Allan wrote the book Standing in the Shadows of Motown profiling the life of The Funk Brothers bass guitarist James Jamerson in 1987. The book went on to win the Rolling Stone/BMI Ralph J. Gleason Music Book Award in 1989.  He produced the film documentary Standing in the Shadows of Motown, released in 2002. The film expanded the scope to cover The Funk Brothers group of musicians as a whole. The film won two Grammy Awards in 2003. In addition to producing the film he was the music arranger, music supervisor, underscore composer and performer on guitar.

For the last 30 years Allan has also been touring with national Broadway shows as a pit orchestra musician.  At the SJARMS performance, in addition to talking about and playing music from The Funk Brothers era, he plans to play banjo, mandolin and guitar on selections from musicals like Mama Mia, The Color Purple, Matilda, Chicago, The Book of Mormon, etc,  and talk about the life of a pit orchestra player.

As always, there will be an acoustic jam (all levels) following the performance and you are welcome to stay, either jamming with the group or hanging out to listen. If you want to jam please bring your acoustic instrument.
Email us at southjerseyarms@gmail.com with any questions.

SJARMS is excited that the young singer-songwriter and guitar player, Nardo Lilly, (aka Annie Nardolilli) will be our featured performer for the SJARMS’ October meeting on Monday, October 12, 2015 at the Medford Arts Center, 18 N. Main St., Medford, NJ. Doors open at 7:00pm. Admission is free for SJARMS members, $10 for visitors. Information on joining SJARMS can be found in the membership tab above.
Annie’s songs are cleverly written and she sings them with her naturally resonant, gorgeous voice. She will be performing songs from her newly released LP “Wing Woman” as well as her 2013 album “Kitty Hawk.” A Temple University graduate with a major in Anthropology and minors in Italian and Political Science she hails originally from Arlington Virginia. From Benedict Cumberbatch to Hot Park Rangers to David and Goliath, Kitty Hawk and everywhere in between: the cast of characters, images, and places in Annie’s songs will delight and challenge you. The universe she surveys is complicated and crazy, but generous and good for a laugh.
Come out on October 12th and enjoy Annie’s songs and stay for the all-level acoustic jam afterward, either jamming with the group or hanging out to listen. If you want to jam please bring your acoustic instrument.

SJARMS is very pleased to host Warm Hearted Country at our September meeting on Monday, September 14, 2015 at the Medford Arts Center, 18 N. Main St., Medford, NJ. Doors open at 7:00 pm. Cost is $10 for guests and FREE for current SJARMS members.
As usual there is an all-level, acoustic jam following the performance that all concert attendees are invited to stay and participate in (bring your acoustic instrument).
Please see the membership tab above for more info on membership.
Warm Hearted Country performs an enjoyable mix of Classic Country, Bluegrass, Oldies, Old Time Rock & Roll, and Gospel music. Warm Hearted Country was formed in 2003 by Laurie and Alice Dorisio. Alice has been performing country music for about 50 years, mostly in family bands. Laurie’s love of country and bluegrass music goes back to her childhood when she began singing with her mother at age 6. Laurie sings lead vocals and plays guitar and mandolin. Alice plays the snare drum, bongos, provides harmony and sings lead vocals.
Other Warm Hearted Country band members include Dave Thomas playing lead guitar and mandolin; John Cleveland on upright bass; Alice’s son Bruce Bunning on harmonica and Diane Bunning singing backup vocals and playing other percussion instruments.
The band’s main goal is to keep the legends alive. You can expect to hear songs by the great Kitty Wells (Queen of Country), Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, Hank Williams Sr., George Jones, Chet Atkins, Ralph Stanley and Bill Monroe (Father of Bluegrass).
It doesn’t stop there, you can also expect to hear a mix of Oldies and Old Time Rock & Roll including such legends as Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, The Beatles, and the Drifters.