Also from the Trib, Eric Zorn's Notebook...

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SAD NEWS

Chicago folk-music legend Fred Holstein died Monday night.

Rich Warren, WFMT-FM (98.7) folk-music program host offered these thoughts via e-mail:

Fred Holstein was Chicago's troubadour. Fred opted not to join the crowd of singer-songwriters, but rather to interpret traditional and contemporary folk songs with a depth and passion rare on the national folk scene. His consummate taste in music introduced Chicago to such artists as Gordon Bok, Eric Bogle, Malvina Reynolds, Utah Phillips and a little known writer named Ken Hicks, who wrote "All the Good People."

Fred could mine a song and always uncover the gold. If Fred ever wrote a song, he kept it secret.

When actively performing, Fred had a repertoire of at least 200-300 songs. I'm sure he retained well over 1,000 songs and performed at least that many during his career. He didn't merely know the songs, he made a point of knowing their background and how they came to be written.

Warren will salute Holstein Saturday on his "Midnight Special" program (9 p.m.- midnight).

Kathy Kelly, host of "The Folk Show" on WNUR-FM (89.3) will dedicate her Sunday morning program (9:30-11:00 a.m.) to Holstein and include portions of her 1997 interview with him. Jules Eberhardt, who produced Holstein's double CD with Kelly, will co-host the tribute, which will also feature calls from listeners.

Tony Barnett, Concert Promotion and Production Coordinator at the Old Town School of Folk Music, had this to say:

Mr. Holstein died last night at Swedish Covenant Hospital during surgery. He was 61 years of age.

Mr. Holstein was an early member of the school, along with Steve Goodman, John Prine, and his brother Ed. A talented singer/songwriter, he was an inspiration to those at the Old Town School of Folk Music, and was an essential part of Chicago's musical community.