February is Folk Legacy Month at the me&thee

The me&thee coffeehouse has declared February as Folk Legacy Month to celebrate its 47th anniversary. To kick off the winter season in style, the venerable coffeehouse has invited several musicians to play who were mainstays on its stage in the early years: Bob Franke, Bill Staines, and Lui Collins. The final show of the month is a tribute to the one and only Bob Dylan. Needless to say, Dylan has had a profound effect on musicians the world over. Folk Legacy Month at the me&thee coffeehouse is supported in part by a grant from the Marblehead Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency." The me & thee coffeehouse is located at the Unitarian Universalist Church is located at 28 Mugford Street in Marblehead.

Bob Frankeb is headlining on February 3. Franke is at the peak of his considerable craft; brimming with the wise and spiritually generous songs for which he is best known, along with wrenchingly convincing topical songs and sugared with the hilarious. His are the kind of songs that really do have the power to change the world by being taken into the lives of people. They come to you, these songs. As Tom Paxton says, "It's his integrity. I always think of Bob as if Emerson and Thoreau had picked up acoustic guitars and gotten into songwriting. There's touches of Mark Twain and Buddy Holly in there, too." Opening the show is the do, Aaron Nathans and Michael J. Ronstadt.

On February 10 the me&thee presents Bill Staines who has played on its stage more than any other musician in the entire history of the club. For over four decades Bill has traveled back and forth across North America, singing his songs and delighting audiences at festivals, folksong societies, colleges, concerts, clubs and coffeehouses. A New England native, Bill became involved with the local music scene in Boston and Cambridge in the early 1960s and for a while he emceed the Sunday hootenanny at the legendary Club 47 in Harvard Square. Bill quickly became an area favorite and still is. Opening this show is Byfield teenager Quentin Callawaert.

February 17 brings Lui Collins to Marblehead. She has been performing, writing and recording for over 40 years, earning international acclaim for her music. Her music ranges from original and traditional folk songs to bossa nova in the original Brazilian Portuguese. She’s made 16 recordings of her own and has sung and played guitar or banjo on others’ projects as well. She’s shared the stage with such folk-world notables as Tom Rush, Bonnie Raitt, Dave Van Ronk, Stan Rogers, John Gorka, and Anais Mitchell, and has recorded with Johnny Cunningham, David Darling, and Rani Arbo, among others. Lui has been hailed by the Boston Herald as a “folksinger for our times” and by the Boston Globe as “one of New England’s first and brightest stars.” Opening the show is the Boston-based duo, Jakals.

A Tribute to Bob Dylan rounds out Folk Legacy Month at the me&thee on February 24. For the Sake of the Songis a Boston-based concert series and traveling roadshow which features an ever-changing mixture of some of the Northeast’s best songwriters and bands, collaborating to perform music from and inspired by their greatest influences. This tribute show features Patrick Coman, Greg Klyma, Ryan Fitzsimmons and Danielle Miraglia who will be all playing their favorite Dylan songs as well as some of their original songs inspired by the Nobel Prize for Literature winner.

Tickets for all me&thee shows are available online at www.meandthee.org. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Spirit of ’76 Bookstore or the Arnould’s Gallery. The Landing Restaurant at 81 Front Street and Soall Bistro on 10 Bessom Street in Marblehead offer a 10% discount on dinner if you show your ticket or receipt. Enjoy a meal before the show! As at all me & thee coffeehouse events, refreshments are available, including homemade pastries, coffee, and teas. The me & thee has a handicapped-accessible entrance and an accessible bathroom, is a smoke-free environment, and is easily reached by MBTA buses 441 and 442.

The me & thee is one of the oldest continually running acoustic coffeehouses in New England, and probably the country. It has been and will always be a volunteer, non-profit organization sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead. For information and directions, call 781-631-8987 or check the website atwww.meandthee.org.

Next concert: February 3 – The me&thee winter season begins with Bob Franke, singer-songwriter extraordinaire. Opening act: Aaron Nathans and Michael G. Ronstadt