Nightspots
The Ark
316 S. Main [map]
761-1451
theark.org
Michigan's leading showcase for American and international performers of all forms of traditional music. Shows almost every night at 8 p.m., Mon.-Sat., & 7:30 p.m., Sun. Unless otherwise noted, tickets are sold in advance at Herb David Guitar Studio, the Michigan Union Ticket Office, and all other Ticketmaster outlets, and at the door.
April 1: The Julian Lage Group
Jazz ensemble led by this 23-year-old jazz guitar virtuoso, a former prodigy who was playing with the likes of Carlos Santana at age 8. "Lage displays masterful chops, distilling guitar traditions from prebop swing to bluegrassy flash into an original sound marked by a clarity of execution and fresh, surprising turns of phrase," says Time Out (NY). $20.
April 2: The RFD Boys
Authentic bluegrass by these longtime local favorites who have appeared in numerous festivals and on the cover of Bluegrass Unlimited magazine. Their shows blend top-notch musicianship with funny between-songs dialogue. They have several recordings, including Live and Unrehearsed, a 1994 Ark performance. $11 at the door only.
April 3: The Civil Wars
Nashville-based minimalist pop-folk duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White whose music offers exquisite, haunting explorations of the complex tensions of intimate relationships. Opening act is Arum Rae, an Austin-based folk noir singer-songwriter. $15.
April 4: Garnet Rogers and Archie Fisher
Double bill. Rogers is a veteran Canadian folkie known for his resonant baritone and his poetic, emotionally potent original songs who accompanies himself on guitar, fiddle, flute, and synthesizer. Widely regarded as the finest contemporary traditional Scottish singer, Fisher is a veteran singer-guitarist whose repertoire includes both Scottish folk songs and ballads and traditionally styled originals on contemporary themes. $17.50.
April 5: Over the Rhine
Energetic heartland rock ’n’ roll, at once artful and urgent, by this acclaimed Cincinnati quartet. Led by the husband-and-wife songwriter duo of vocalist Karin Bergquist and bassist Linford Detweiler, the band is known for its enchantingly spare arrangements and its reflective, self-consciously literary lyrics. The band’s Ark shows usually sell out in advance. Opening act is singer-songwriter Lucy Wainwright Roche, the daughter of Loudon Wainwright III and Suzzy Roche, has just released her debut CD, Lucy. $25.
April 6: Open Stage
All acoustic performers invited. Fifteen acts are selected randomly from those who sign up to perform 8 minutes (or 2 songs) each. The most talented and popular Open Stage performers are offered their own evenings at the Ark. $3 (members & students, $2).
April 7: David Bromberg
A veteran folkie who emerged from semiretirement in 2009 and released his first recording in 17 years, the acclaimed Try Me One More Time, Bromberg is a brilliant entertainer whose style draws on blues, country, early jazz, and even classical music. He’s a forceful singer and a first-rate virtuoso on several string instruments, including guitar, mandolin, and violin. His repertoire includes offbeat, often wryly ironic originals and highly personal interpretations of traditional material. “[Bromberg] has such control of his audience that he can, at one moment, hold it in his hand with a tender, touching, yet funny anecdotal song, and then set it romping and stomping with a raucous bit of raunch,” says the New York Times. He is backed by his band. Opening act is Angel Band, a female vocal trio (including Bromberg’s wife, Nancy Josephson) with an eclectic repertoire that ranges from old-time mountain music to pop-rock originals. It is backed by a quartet that includes Bromberg and other members of his band. $35.
April 8: Steppin’ in It
Popular Lansing string band that plays everything from bluegrass, country-folk, and country blues to Cajun, western swing, and calypso. $15.
April 9: “Mr. B’s 13th Annual Blues & Boogie Piano Celebration”
Apr. 9 & 10. Ann Arbor’s own world-renowned blues pianist, Mark “Mr. B” Braun, hosts 2 nights of blues and boogie- woogie piano featuring guest appearances by Bob Seeley, a veteran Detroit blues pianist known for his electrifying, passionate renditions of boogie classics, along with Philadelphia- bred jazz pianist Eric Reed and the widely heralded young stride pianist Stephanie Trick. The show features solo sets by each performer, followed by a series of duets. $25.
April 10: “Mr. B’s 13th Annual Blues & Boogie Piano Celebration”
Apr. 9 & 10. Ann Arbor’s own world-renowned blues pianist, Mark “Mr. B” Braun, hosts 2 nights of blues and boogie- woogie piano featuring guest appearances by Bob Seeley, a veteran Detroit blues pianist known for his electrifying, passionate renditions of boogie classics, along with Philadelphia- bred jazz pianist Eric Reed and the widely heralded young stride pianist Stephanie Trick. The show features solo sets by each performer, followed by a series of duets. $25.
April 11: Brendan James and Matt White
Double bill. James is a New Hampshire-bred New York City pop- folk singer-songwriter and pianist, and White is a NYC singer- songwriter and pianist known for his sly lyrics exploring the contours of modern love. Opening act Lauren Pritchard, a Tennessee-bred young singer-songwriter whose influences range from Aretha Franklin to Carole King and Billy Joel. $15.
April 12: Adrian Legg
This celebrated acoustic guitar virtuoso is a perennial winner of Guitar Player magazine’s Best Fingerstylist award. Legg’s compositions, alternately joyful and soaring or moody and melancholy, offer an elegant, intricate blend of country, jazz, folk, rock, Celtic, and classical idioms, and his work is especially known for his melodic inventiveness. But it is the dazzling, dizzying blend of speed, precision, and witty playfulness in his guitar work that leaves audiences and critics gasping. “To say that Legg is a good player is like saying Menuhin saws a fine fiddle,” says one reviewer. His live shows also feature his deadpan humor and hilarious stories--a talent that has landed him a second career as a commentator-at-large on NPR’s All Things Considered. $17.50.
April 13: Catie Curtis
A highly regarded young singer-songwriter from Maine who lived in Ann Arbor for a few years in the early 90s, Curtis writes engaging, down-to-earth songs about the pleasures and tragedies of ordinary life. She’s also known for her expansive, soaring vocals, her percussive guitar style, and her musical blend of folk, blues, and pop. “Any fool can write a love-gone-wrong song; it takes a real genius to write a love-gone-right one. No urban songwriter does that better than Curtis,” says Boston Globe critic Scott Alarik in his review of Curtis’s 2007 CD Long Night Moon. “She sings grippingly about love’s better moments: tracing the shadows on a lover’s face, and the sweet delights of staying warm on a cold day.” She is working on a new CD due out this summer. $20.
April 14: Breathe Owl Breathe
Local trio of guitarist and banjoist Micah Middaugh, cellist Andrea Moreno-Beals, and percussionist Trevor Hobbs whose songs are atmospheric, intricately textured instrumental and vocal landscapes. Opening act is The Photographers, a Chicago band that plays atmospheric folk-rock. $12.50.
April 15: The Johnny Clegg Band
Clegg is a legendary English-born South African guitarist who first learned Zulu music from a guitarist who played on a street near his home. Flouting apartheid, Clegg joined black South African musicians to form the bands Juluka and Savuka, hugely influential ensembles that laid the groundwork for what is now called world music. $22.50.
April 16: Anais Mitchell
Acclaimed young pop-folk singer-songwriter from rural Vermont with a deceptively girlish voice whose songs feature emotionally direct, meticulously written lyrics that blend searching introspection and keen observation. No Depression reviewer Russell Hall calls describes her music as “intimate songs that feel spindly on the outside but sturdy at the core.” $15.
April 17: Peter Yarrow
Stories and songs by this award-winning human rights activist best known as a member (and chief songwriter) of the influential 60s pop-folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary. $35.
April 19: Candye Kane
Smart, sassy, sexy jump blues and R&B by this big-voiced singer- songwriter from Los Angeles known for comically lustful lyrical cartoons like “(Hey Mister) She Was My Baby Last Night,” “200 Lbs. of Fun,” and “Let’s Commit Adultery.” A former adult entertainer who has been compared to Bessie Smith, Big Mama Thornton, and Etta James, Kane is accompanied by her band, the Swingin’ Armadillos. $15.
April 20: The Guggenheim Grotto
Acclaimed Dublin pop-folk trio known for its soaring melodies and gorgeous vocal harmonies. “With debts to both Radiohead and the Beatles, this is modern, intelligent, lyrically potent pop,” says a Boston Herald reviewer. “Nearly the only thing overtly Irish about the Grotto is its love affair with words.” $15.
April 21: Crooked Still
Adventurous Boston-area neo-bluegrass quartet that sports the self-styled “low lonesome” instrumentation of cello, bass, and banjo behind the winsome, soothing vocals of Aoife O’Donovan. “Crooked Still manages to amp up its ancient American tunes in unplugged yet groove-crazed ways,” observes a Boston Herald reviewer. “Melody lines and rhythms crossbreed and shift focus. An expressive sense of dark, wild life ensues, [and] the bravura playing deepens the mood.” Opening act is Mike & Ruthy, a Woodstock folk-rock duo. ” $15.
April 22: The Paper Raincoat
Brooklyn (NY) singer-songwriter duo whose songs explore the characters and storylines of a fantasy world centered on a woman on the eve of her 50th birthday. $15.
April 23: Brian Vander Ark
Solo performance by this West Michigan singer-songwriter, the raspy-voiced lead singer of the popular mid-1990s dance-rock band Verve Pipe. His 2006 CD Angel, Put Your Face On and his brand-new eponymous CD are collections of earnest, reflective, characteristically melodic explorations of the themes of family, love, and loss. $15.
April 26: Old Sledge
Old-time country string band led by the duo of Sabra Guzman and Chance McCoy from Floyd (VA) in the Blue Ridge Mountains. FREE.
April 27: William Fitzsimmons
Pittsburgh-bred acoustic folk-rock singer-songwriter whose songs have been featured on Grey’s Anatomy and other TV soundtracks. Opening act is Slow Runner, a pop-rock trio led by singer-songwriter and pianist Michael Flynn. $15.
April 28: Colin Hay
Apr. 28 & 29. The former frontman of Men at Work, this Australian singer-songwriter recently released American Sunshine, a collection of tuneful meditations on life, love, maturity, and perseverance. His live repertoire includes both Men at Work hits and Hay’s recent and new songs. “While the music was outstanding, between-the-songs banter was brilliant. Hay is a master storyteller of the hilarious kind,” says a Silver Tongue (Atlanta) reviewer. Opening act is Chris Trapper, a Boston-based pop-rock singer-songwriter whose songs have been recorded by the likes of Great Big Sea and featured on the soundtracks of several films and TV shows. $25.
April 29: Colin Hay
Apr. 28 & 29. The former frontman of Men at Work, this Australian singer-songwriter recently released American Sunshine, a collection of tuneful meditations on life, love, maturity, and perseverance. His live repertoire includes both Men at Work hits and Hay’s recent and new songs. “While the music was outstanding, between-the-songs banter was brilliant. Hay is a master storyteller of the hilarious kind,” says a Silver Tongue (Atlanta) reviewer. Opening act is Chris Trapper, a Boston-based pop-rock singer-songwriter whose songs have been recorded by the likes of Great Big Sea and featured on the soundtracks of several films and TV shows. $25.
April 30: Uncle Bonsai
This folk-pop a cappella vocal trio from Seattle, one of the Ark’s most popular attractions before disbanding in the late 80s, reunited in 2000. Billed in its heyday as “Seattle’s first family of satire,” Uncle Bonsai is known for its thrillingly sharp and swooping vocal harmonies and for the audacious, keen-witted humor of songs like “Cheerleaders on Drugs,” “Billboard Love,” “Boys Want Sex in the Morning,” “Penis Envy,” and many others. The trio--sopranos Arni Adler and Patrice O’Neill and countertenor-songwriter Andrew Ratshin--still performs many of its old hits, along with lots of new material, some of which is featured on its new CD The Grim Parade. $20.
May 1: Wild Swan Theater Benefit
A benefit for this suPerb local children’s theater features performances by a variety of prominent local musicians who have all composed and/or performed music for Wild Swan shows: the duo of vocalist Theresa Smith and string virtuoso David Mosher, inventively offbeat avant-folk composer-musician Frank Pahl, Irish American roots- music singer-songwriter Kitty Donohoe, blues and folk harmonica wiz Peter Madcat Ruth, All-Ireland champion uilleann piper (and My Dear Disco founder) Tyler Duncan, singer-songwriter Dick Siegel, and the acoustic folk duo Gemini. Emcee is Grace Morand of the Chenille Sisters. $30 ($100 includes a wine- and-appetizer preconcert reception) in advance and at the door. 995-0530.
May 2: David Roth and Anne Hills
Double bill. Roth is a highly regarded young singer-songwriter from Chicago who writes humorous, refreshingly down-to-earth songs that have been described as a blend of James Taylor and Dan Fogelberg, injected with the humor of Tom Paxton and David Letterman. His songs have been recorded by everyone from Christine Lavin to Tom Chapin, and the Bose Corporation includes 2 of his songs on its recent "best of new folk" compilations sold in Bose stores worldwide. Hills is a Chicago- based folksinger known for her soaring soprano voice and her skills as an interpreter of a wide variety of traditional and contemporary acoustic songs, including many fine originals. Her new CD, Ef You Don’t Watch Out, is a collection of 10 original settings of the dialect poems of the 19th-century “Hoosier Poet” James Whitcomb Riley. $15,
May 3: “For Pete’s Sake: A Pete Seeger Birthday Tribute”
A celebration of the folk legend’s 91st birthday features in-the- round performances by an all-star lineup of area singer- songwriters, including Chris Buhalis, Sally Potter, Dick Siegel, Paul Tinkerhess, Matt Watroba, Michael Hough of Mustard’s Retreat and the singer-songwriter duo Gemini. $10.
May 5: Natalia Zukerman
The daughter of the famed classical musicians Eugenia and Pinchas Zukerman, Natalia Zukerman is a singer-songwriter and slide guitarist whose music blends jazz, pop, blues, and folk influences. “Her bright vocals can send an orchid into bloom, while her delta- slide guitar can open a beer bottle with its teeth,” says Andy Friedman of City Salvage Records. Her show tonight includes songs from her brand-new CD Gas Station Roses. $15.
May 6: Greg Brown
A former regular on A Prairie Home Companion, Brown is best known for “The Iowa Waltz” and other gruffly expressive, down-to-earth tributes to midwestern life and true love. His well- crafted songs have been recorded by artists as diverse as Willie Nelson and Carlos Santana, and he has also composed settings for the poetry of William Blake. He’s an engaging, at times mesmerizing performer, with a deep voice that one critic calls a “gravel-floored basement full of memories, ruminations, lusts, and last-ditch humor.” $32.50.
May 7: Josh White, Jr.
Known for his powerful, intense singing and his virtuosity on 6- string and 12-string guitars, White sings in a more modern style than his famous folksinger father. His blues, gospel, and folk repertoire includes many of his father’s best-known songs as well as several upbeat, inspirational originals. $20.
May 8: Bettye LaVette
Veteran Detroit R&B and blues-based soul singer with a tough, feisty, passionate vocal style. “A dynamic singer, when she periodically dropped the microphone to howl a cappella, she got the lawn crowd halfway across the park to howl back,” says Chicago Daily Herald music critic Mark Guarino in his review of LaVette’s performance at the 2005 Chicago Blues Festival. Her 2003 CD A Woman Like Me won the W. C. Handy Comeback Album of the Year award, and her new CD Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook puts a traditional R&B spin on British Invasion classics that range from the Animals’ “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” to the Moody Blues’ “Nights in White Satin” and the Stones’ “Salt of the Earth.” Her band is led by Ann Arbor native Al Hill. $27.50.
May 9: The Paul McKenna Band
Widely heralded young Glasgow quintet that plays Scottish and other traditional Celtic music and originals in a traditional vein. $15.
May 10: Copper Box 
Oshkosh (WI) quartet led by the husband-and-wife duo of singer- accordionist Danny Jerabek and singer-multi-instrumentalist Michelle Jerabek that plays an accordion-heavy mix of polka, roots rock, blues, Tex-Mex, and zydeco.
May 11: Open Stage
All acoustic performers invited. Fifteen acts are selected randomly from those who sign up to perform 8 minutes (or 2 songs) each. The most talented and popular Open Stage performers are offered. their own evenings at the Ark. $3 (students & members, $2).
May 13: Girlyman
Atlanta acoustic singer-songwriter quartet known for its politically progressive point of view, quirky stage banter, and inventive 3-part harmonies in a variety of styles from country-rock to contemporary folk to doo-wop. $20.
May 15: Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks
Part of a tradition of white hipster singer-songwriters that stretches from Hoagy Carmichael to Mose Allison and Tom Waits, Hicks and his band, the Hot Licks (and Lickettes), perform a retro-hip blend of western swing, ragtime, old-time country, and 40s jazz. His musically eclectic original songs sport wry, offbeat lyrics that totter teasingly between a revelatory humor and wise-guy foolery. $25.
May 18: Lynn Miles
Canadian singer-songwriter and acoustic guitarist who writes rootsy, emotionally intense pop-folk story songs. She sings in a voice that’s been called “warm, plangent, and edgy in a very human way,” and her best songs are known for their incisive poetry and emotional power. Her latest CD, Black Flowers, is a collection of songs exploring the relationships between love and loss, despair and redemption. “Lynn Miles makes being forlorn sound like a state of grace,” says New York Times music critic Jon Pareles. $15.
May 19: Bruce Cockburn
May 19 & 20. (The May 20 show is sold out).. A major star in Canada, where he has won several awards and is rightly regarded as a peer of Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, this Toronto- based singer-songwriter is still something of a cult favorite in the U.S. He has broken into American mainstream radio only twice, in 1979 with the single “Wondering Where the Lions Are,” and in 1989 with the ecologically minded “If a Tree Falls.” Cockburn is best known for his riveting, rhythmically varied folk- to-rock guitar stylings and for his articulate, imaginatively impressionistic songs that blend leftist politics, Christian mysticism, and a barbed erotic intensity. Opening act is Jenny Scheinman, a folk, rock, and jazz fiddle virtuoso (and a member of Cockburn’s band) who writes original songs in an old-timey style. $35.
May 20: Bruce Cockburn
May 19 & 20. (The May 20 show is sold out).. A major star in Canada, where he has won several awards and is rightly regarded as a peer of Joni Mitchell and Neil Young, this Toronto- based singer-songwriter is still something of a cult favorite in the U.S. He has broken into American mainstream radio only twice, in 1979 with the single “Wondering Where the Lions Are,” and in 1989 with the ecologically minded “If a Tree Falls.” Cockburn is best known for his riveting, rhythmically varied folk- to-rock guitar stylings and for his articulate, imaginatively impressionistic songs that blend leftist politics, Christian mysticism, and a barbed erotic intensity. Opening act is Jenny Scheinman, a folk, rock, and jazz fiddle virtuoso (and a member of Cockburn’s band) who writes original songs in an old-timey style. $35.
May 21: Eddie from Ohio
This highly regarded acoustic quartet from Arlington, Virginia, is known for its resonant vocal harmonies, ace musicianship, and upbeat, well-crafted original songs. “Imagine Crosby, Stills, and Nash in their heyday, backed by Bela Fleck and the Flecktones,” says Dirty Linen magazine, and Austin, Texas, radio DJ David Obermann says the band evokes “shades of Washington Squares, Uncle Bonsai, and 10,000 Maniacs--but [is] still unique.” $25.
May 22: The Greencards
This acclaimed Austin-based acoustic bluegrass duo, comprised of Australian and English musicians, is known for its blend of superb musicianship and an infectious sense of fun. “The key is the voice of bassist Carol Young, which approaches the vast ethereality of Patty Griffin on the breathtaking opener ‘The Ghost of Who We Were’ and provides the perfect harmonic center to the first single ‘Time,’” says Austin American- Statesman critic Michael Corcoran in his review of the band’s 2009 CD Weather and Water. Tonight’s show includes songs from a forthcoming CD. Opening act is ChessBoxer, the duo of Matt Menefee and Ross Holmes, former members of the acclaimed Texas alt-bluegrass band Cadillac Sky. $15.
May 25: Open Stage
All acoustic performers invited. Fifteen acts are selected randomly from those who sign up to perform 8 minutes (or 2 songs) each. The most talented and popular Open Stage performers are offered. their own evenings at the Ark. $3 (students & members, $2).
May 26: Crash Test Dummies
Densely textured, rhythmic rock ‘n’ roll by this quintet from Winnipeg, Manitoba, whose music nicely blends anthemic excess with old-time country grit and whose lyrics range from Shel Silverstein-style comedy to pure darkness. Tonight’s show previews songs from the recent Ooh La La, the band’s 1st CD since 2004. $27.50.
May 31: Dragon Wagon
Highly regarded local experimental acoustic roots-music sextet that calls its music “bluegrass folk-rock with a touch of Irish whiskey.” Free. All encouraged to bring nonperishable food or money to donate to Food Gatherers.
