Bill Harley, RI, Saturday, March 19

Subject: Bill Harley, RI, Saturday, March 19
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 16 Mar 11 - 03:45 PM

Bill Harley will be performing at Stone Soup Coffeehouse on March 19, 2011 in a "Show for Adults." Three fifths of the local hero band Superchief Trio (the math is right, somehow) Keith Munslow, Steve Bigelow and John Cote join Bill in an evening of song, story, improv and mayhem.

Stone Soup is located at St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 50 Park Place, Pawtucket, RI. Stone Soup is wheelchair-accessible. Tickets are $15.00 and available at http://www.stonesoupcoffeehouse.com/page3/JanMayCalendar2011.html (paypal link)

Last fall Bill and his pals wowed a sold-out crowd of 1500 at the Midnight Cabaret of the National Storytelling Festival. Now they bring the show to Stone Soup (same material, a lot fewer seats). Stone Soup may never be the same.

If you know and appreciate Bill Harley's children's songs and stories you are sure to enjoy his humor and his thoughtfulness in this adult show at Stone Soup. A two-time Grammy winner and a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the RI Council for the Humanities, Bill Harley is well known for his children's songs and storytelling. He has been called the "Garrison Keillor for Kids." He is also a regular commentator on NPR's All Things Considered, and he is featured in an hour-long 2008 PBS special. His work spans the generation gap, combining song and story, humor and meaning.

Bill uses song and story to paint a vibrant picture of American life. Poignant and hilarious, his work reminds us of our common humanity and challenges us to be our very best selves. In This Train Don't Run, he wrote, "But all we're ever gonna be is who we already are." In Thank You, Mr. Ryan, he thanks a teacher for the "simple" gift of music that is treasured dearly. He sings of Sweet New England with "Her rocky shores where ocean roars/Her rugged mountains worn by time," and he has us imagine that "They just found the world's biggest banana/ The size of the state of Rhode Island."

With his considerable talents, Bill considers his real work to be using these skills to encourage his audience to see the world anew by experiencing "live art", to honor the emotional lives of children and adults, and finally, to pass along a love of language and music.

In I Like To Sing, Bill Harley wrote, "I have got a song in this head of mine. Sometimes I sing it softly, sometimes right out loud, ….Make a joyful noise and sing…" Thirty years ago, he and some friends invited others to join them in song at a place they called Stone Soup. Come and "raise your voice,...make a joyful noise and sing" with Bill Harley on March 19.

Bill Harley's website is http://www.billharley.com/