In the midst of pondering the eternal question of whether people were writing folk songs, I fell into the midst of some extremely talented folks writing songs. And some of them were indeed, in the folk tradition.

A little background:
In Chicago we are lucky enough to have the Old Town School of Folk Music. If you aren't aware of the history and tradition that is encapsulated in those five words, check out their web site (someone more learned than I will hopefully provide the blue clicky thing). In addition to lessons of all sort, concerts and a tremendous music store, The Old Town School plays host to "First Fridays", which take place (coincidentally) on the first Friday of each month.

First Friday is a mixed-bag of activities: They have an open mic in the auditorium (a first-rate performance venue)that lasts three hours and ends with a performance by a featured act. They have a song circle/strum along, hosted by one of the school's instructors, Steve Levitt. They also have a songwriter's circle, where you can try out new songs, hear new songs, exchange notes and generally ply the craft of songwriting. Admittance to all activies is a mere $4.00. And it's the best $4.00 you'll ever send.

This past Friday found over a dozen songwriters in the circle at any one time, with people coming in and going out periodically (some had gotten chosen in the lottery for the open mic). Everyone got a chance to present a song, and as we moved around the circle it seemed that the quality (and our mood) just got higherr and higher. At one point someone said, "I bet there's more talent in this room than on many major labels". And he was right. Although many of the songs willl never be found on a major release, 'most every song I heard deserved to.

What was most gratifying was the lack of "commercial product". There was very little navel gazing. And there were some real songs in the folk tradition. Terry McNamara, who serves as one of the hosts, presented two songs which struck me as reminiscent of Oscar Brand. Another writer, whose name I didn't get, sang a fine Civil War ballad that he wrote about the Illinois 7th. Topical and timeless music, with deep Chicago and Illinois roots. I could go on and on.

First Friday at the Old Town School can carry you through the whole rest of the month. In past threads I have decried the paucity of folk venues and radio stations in Chicago. While this, sadly, is an accurate description of the state of folk music in my city, I know that as long as we have the Old Town School, this town's tradition will be carried forward. It makes me proud.