Molasses Creek to appear on Woodsongs Radio Hour. Travels in the North Country.

Hello Molasses Creek friends!

 
We have some exciting news before we tell you all about our travels these past two weeks.  About a week and a half ago we confirmed with the WoodSongs Old-Time Radio hour that we would be on their upcoming show this next Monday, November 19th at 7:00 PM.  The show is out of the historic Kentucky Theater, in Lexington, KY, so it means a bit of a drive from North Carolina.  But it should be worth the trip!  We will be sharing the stage with Caravan of Thieves.  The WoodSongs Radio Hour is taped in front of a live audience and streamed immediately to the show's website.  In about two months, the show will air on almost 500 radio stations to an audience of well over 1.3 million listeners.  We're looking forward to a wonderful concert!  Here is the website to find out more.  http://www.woodsongs.com/

Molasses Creek Travels: Where were we the last two weeks?

We are just returning from 11 days on the road.  Whew!  It has been a lot of fun . . . and we did have some unexpected adventures along the way.  We caught the Swan Quarter Ferry on Thursday, November 1st, and made it as far as Roanoke Rapids, NC, when we decided to check out a funny noise coming out of the van.  What we thought would be a couple hour fix turned into the replacement of a front ball joint.  The part wouldn't be able to arrive until the next Monday, so we rented a van and went merrily on our way (okay, slightly less than merry).

We stayed overnight with Marcy's sister and husband in Jefferson, MD and then traveled up to Harrisburg for a concert with the Susquehanna Folk Music Society at the Fort Hunter Centennial Barn.  The barn was constructed in 1876 as part of a dairy business and has now been redesigned as an activity space.  You can read more about the beautiful Fort Hunter Mansion and Park at http://forthunter.org/. Thanks so much to Jess Hayden and all of the friends at the Susquehanna Folk Music Society for a packed out concert night!

Sound check time at the Susquehanna Folk Music Society

 We traveled on to spend the night with Mark Cuddy and Karen, friends who we met on Ocracoke at our Deepwater Theater.  Mark works with the Hershey Area Playhouse, and also works for the Hershey chocolate company.  Let us tell you, when your host works for Hershey . . . you get a humungoid sized chocolate bar on your pillow in your room!  Incredible!

Did we mention that there was also a bowl of chocolate treats next to each bed?

Our instruments were protected from midnight barnyard attacks by this fierce chicken-eating terror!

Gerald was initially reluctant to visit the local antique shoppe.

Until he found this treasure! He'll never doubt Gary again!

 Mark and Karen took us on a tour of Hershey, PA and told us all about the history of founder Milton Hershey.  What a fascinating tale.  Read more about the origins of the company at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hershey_Company and about Milton Hershey at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milton_S._Hershey.

Hershey Park was originally built for the benefit of the Hershey community

Lobby of the Hotel Hershey, built in 1933.

Saturday afternoon we loaded in and prepared for the evening concert at the Hershey Area Playhouse.  Another old Pennsylvania barn converted into a great performance space!

Here we are at home at the Hershey Area Playhouse

Beautiful theater!

Did you ever wonder what happens backstage before a concert?

Ooops.  That was a mistake!

Fortunately Marcy always looks nice at showtime.  Here she is sporting her hobo digs!

Action!

 Thanks again to our gracious hosts for treating us like royalty!

On Sunday, Molasses Creek drove back down to Sykesville, MD to perform for Uptown Concerts at the Baldwin Station.  Baldwin Station is an old railway station that has been converted into a fine restaurant.  Hmm.  Hmm.  Tasty!

 Thanks to Joyce Sica for hosting us!

After the Sunday concert we returned to Jefferson and then Gary and Dave spent the next day driving to pick up the van (5 hours south . . . 5 hours north).  On Tuesday, we resumed our journey up to Albany area to spend a few days with Dave's uncle and aunt in Delmar.  Ron and Carolyn Tweedie are close to winning the fig-stuffed turkey for putting up with more Molasses Creekness than anyone else we know.  Ron is our #1 Albany are promoter, and Carolyn takes the prize as the #1 cook.  Thanks to them for another incredible visit.  We look forward to returning the favor this summer at the Ocrafolk Festival! 

The repaired van made it safe and sound to Albany!

 On Thursday, November 8, Molasses Creek traveled south to the Hudson Valley Resort in Kerhonkson (bless you!) for the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference (NERFA).  Molasses Creek was awarded one of the 15 official showcase spots during the weekend.   Here is where we got to perform!

Backstage Getting ready to go on!

 Not that it is always about food . . . but we did find this great German restaurant (the Mountain Brauhaus) just over the Mohonk Preserve mountain.

 

Pear, melted cheese sandwich

Hot Brown

This looks like some traditional German fare!

And back over the mountain

Up to visit the glacial lake on top of the mountain

Look at this ball of white stuff Fiddler Dave found!  Must of been a big polar bear!

Louie jamming at the conference

 On Sunday, we journeyed back to Jefferson one more time (kudos to Mark and Judy Coyne!  We love you!). And on Monday we headed south . . . aiming for that 4 PM Swan Quarter Ferry. 

On the way home we found an interesting town of Milford, PA.  Here are some shots from that visit.

Fiddler Dave, eat your heart out!

Ah! Swan Quarter Ferry on our way home to Ocracoke Island!

Our next public performance after Woodsongs Radio Hour is the Ocrafolk Festival Thanksgiving Fundraiser on the island, on Friday, November 23.  After that it's First Night Williamsburg on December 31.  Hope everyone has a tasty Thanksgiving.  We'll check in with you after this weekend's adventure!

The Island Breeze Tells us that Fall is in the Air

Hi there friends!

The summertime season has wound down on Ocracoke Island as the kids head back to school.  Now there is touch of cool in the air, and island residents can take a breather and make plans for off season projects.  Molasses Creek is eyeing Gary's Soundside Studio and plotting a new recording.  Fiddler Dave just planted lettuce, kale, and spinach seeds for his raised garden, and the fig trees have about run their course of fruit, and the baby loggerhead turtles have climbed out of their nests and made their way into the pounding surf.

Baby Lettuce & Spinach hope for a mild winter.

Two weeks ago Gerald Hampton’s daughter, Rebecca, got married!  One of the great things about being in a band is that when your relatives have a major life event happening, you get to invite your favorite folks to the celebration . . . AND they bring their instruments! 

Molasses Creek assembled in Franklinville, NC (Gerald Hampton’s home base) for a Friday rehearsal, after which we attending an incredible dinner at the Goat Lady Dairy, and a Saturday ceremony.  The weekend went over with a hitch.  Congratulations to Rebecca and Dillon!

Upcoming Performances

At the end of this week on September 14th, Molasses Creek with be hosted by the Wilson Arts Council in Wilson, NC for a 7:30 PM concert at the Boykin Center.  We hope to see you there for a fun evening of song and shenanigans!  For more details visit http://www.wilsonarts.com/.

            If you are headed to Ocracoke Island in September, make sure to plan an evening at Molasses Creek’s Deepwater Theater on School Road.  Monday, Fiddler Dave joins his wife, Amy Howard, and father-in-law, Philip Howard, for an evening of “You Ain’t Heard Nothin’ Yet: Strange Stories and Tales from Ocracoke Island.”  Amy and Philip are descendents of William Howard, the quartermaster on Blackbeard’s ship, so you know they have some interesting tales.  On Wednesday nights Molasses Creek hosts the Ocrafolk Opry, featuring local musicians and storytellers, and on Thursday is an all Molasses Creek show.   For show details visit http://www.molassescreek.com/deepwatertheater.cfm.

             Although Molasses Creek will be performing at quite a few private events off of Ocracoke in these next couple of weeks, our next public performance after this Friday’s concert in Wilson is on Wednesday, October 10th at Ashland Coffee and Tea in Ashland,VA (near Richmond).  Friday (October 12) we will be doing residencies and a concert at the Avalon Theater in Easton, MD.  The next weekend we will be at the first annual Outer Banks Seafood Festival on October 20.  At the end of October, Molasses Creek will appear on Saturday, October 27 at the RA Fountain General Store in Fountain, NC, and then on Sunday, Oct 28 at a community concert series at Music at St Alban’s Church in Davidson, NC.

On Thursday, November 1st, we will be at Baldwin Station in Sykesville, MD for a performance with Uptown Concerts, and then will scoot up to Pennsylvania for a concert and potluck with the Susquehanna Folk Music Society at the Fort Hunter Centennial Barn (Friday, Nov 2), and a Saturday evening performance at the Hershey Area Playhouse in Hershey, PA (Nov 3).  The following week we are headed to the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference (read more below). 

Molasses Creek's Fall Touring Schedule in a Nutshell

Saturday, Sept 14,7:30 PM ~ Arts Council of Wilson, NC

Wednesday, Oct 10, 8 PM ~ Ashland Coffee and Tea, VA

Friday, October 12, 8 PM ~ Concert at the Avalon Theatre Stoltz Listening Room, Easton, MD

Saturday, Oct 20 ~ Outer Banks Seafood Festival, NC

Saturday, Oct 27, 8 PM ~ RA Fountain General Store, Fountain, NC

Sunday, Oct 28, 3:00 PM ~ Music at St. Albans, Davidson, NC

Thursday, Nov 1, 8:00 PM ~ Baldwin Station, Sykesville, MD

Friday, Nov 2, 6:00 Potluck, 7:30 Concert ~ Susquehanna Folk Music Society, New Cumberland,PA

Saturday, Nov 3, 7:30 ~ Hersey Area Playhouse, Hershey, PA

If you are interested in helping to promote any shows in your region, please visit our Street Team page at http://www.molassescreek.com/streetteam.cfm.  We'll send you at least 10 posters to put up and the new album as a thank you!

***If you are traveling to Ocracoke Island, NC June-Sept, Molasses Creek performs every Thursday night at their own Deepwater Theater ***

Retreat to Molasses Creek’s Home Island of Ocracoke for the 6^th Annual Ocrafolk School!

 Would you like to rehearse and jam with Molasses Creek, be a part of a recording in Soundside Studio, eat great food and just 'hang' with the Ocracoke musicians? You should sign up for "Exploring Ocracoke Music" w/Gary Mitchell, a class offered this year as a part of the Ocrafolk School, October 14-19.

Ocracoke Island is known for having quite a vibrant music scene. In the "Exploring Ocracoke Music" class, students will spend the week 'behind the scenes' exploring and visiting the musicians, rehearsals, recording studios, history, venues and local radio that make it all happen. No musical experience is necessary! (but certainly welcome). Gary Mitchell is a founding member of Molasses Creek band, the Ocrafolk Opry and Ocrafolk Festival, and has made his home on Ocracoke Island since 1978.

If you would like to focus on another class for the week, this year’s Ocrafolk School is also offering classes in Wood Carving, IslandCooking, a Wellness Week, and an Ocracoke Sampler focusing on Ocracoke Island’s History, Culture and Seafaring Traditions. 

For more details visit the website at http://www.ocrafolkschool.org.

Reflections on a Week in Donald Davis’s Storytelling Workshop ~ by Marcy Brenner of Molasses Creek.

Donald Davis is an American storyteller and author (Donald also had a twenty year career as a minister before he became a professional storyteller). He has recorded over 25 storytelling albums and written several books based on those stories.

For Donald Davis, storytelling is a way of giving and living life.  He invites each listener to come along, to pull deep inside for one's own stories, to personally share and co-create the common experiences that celebrate the creative spirit.  For Donald Davis storytelling "is not what I do for a living...it is how I do all that I do while I am living."

The Donald Davis LIFE STORY WORKSHOPS are held each year in June, two separate one-week sessions on Ocracoke Island, NC.  These experiential workshops are designed to tap memory processes and begin to shape personal and family-based stories.  His wife Merle creates a safe and inspired space for this magical experience.  During the week the group is invited to tell stories at the Ocracoke Preservation Society’s Porch Talk during the week (typically Wednesday and Thursday mornings) and then hold a public storytelling evening at Deepwater Theater.

As a songwriter, musician, breast cancer advocate and writer, I am telling stories.  As a reader and music lover, I’m listening to stories.  I figure all we really have are our stories!  Working with Donald I’ve discovered how to “mine” my own stories and trust the power of story.

http://www.ddavisstoryteller.com.

Molasses Creek T-shirts Have Just Been Released!

 We are sooo excited that the new Molasses Creek T-shirt are in!  We want to make sure that everyone gets one . . . and so to help you out, for the first week (until midnight on Friday, September 21), anyone who orders will get free shipping (a $6 value!).  T-shirts are $20 dollars.  We have the five colors pictured below in sizes (S, M, L, XL, and XXL).  Get em while they are hot!

The Green is this color with Black Image

Molasses Creek to "Officially Showcase" at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference in November

NERFA Showcase ~ Molasses Creek was very excited this week when we learned that we had been awarded one of the fourteen official showcase spots at the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference in November.  Each year the Northeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference attracts of 750 folk musicians and fans for a four day retreat at the Hudson Valley Resort and Spa in Kerhonkson, NY (south of Albany).  

 The conference is wild fun with 14 official showcases as well as other conference showcases and what is termed "private or guerrilla showcases" (no monkeys or guns involved).  If you would like to experience the feel of a hotel taken over by a folk festival, walking down a conventional hotel hall dodging 8 standup bassists, 14 banjo players, and other assorted instruments you have never seen before, then this is the place for you!  Here are the other groups that were awarded official showcase spots for this year.  Can't wait to see and meet them! 

Brother Sun, Gypsophilia, ilyAIMY (I love you And I Miss You), Zoe Lewis,Molasses Creek, Greg Klyma,The Tres Amigos, Putnam Street Trio, Ariana Gillis, Suzie Vinnick,The Stray Birds, Connor Garvey, Carolyn Waters, Honor Finnegan

That's all for now.  Hope to see you out on the road or on Ocracoke Island!
Much love from your Molasses Creek crew (Gary, Fiddler Dave, Marcy, Lou & Gerald)