Roger McGuinn to Play and Teach at Monmouth

Monmouth University has seen their fair share of prominent singer-songwriters perform at the school in recent months. Just this school year, people like Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan and even Jeff Daniels have performed at Monmouth. Joining in that line-up of prominent singers will be Roger McGuinn, who will be performing at the school on Saturday, April 2 at 8 p.m.

McGuinn is a Chicago-based singer-songwriter, who is perhaps best known for his work with The Byrds, a band for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for. The Byrds were known as one of the most influential bands of the 1960’s, with hit covers of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man,” and Pete Seeger’s “Turn! Turn! Turn!”

The Byrds were made up of various musicians who would go on to even greater levels of fame, including Gene Clark, Gram Parsons and David Crosby. Since his work with The Byrds, McGuinn has gone on to release many other folk CD’s, including Treasures From the Folk Den. That disc actually features duets with famed musicians Pete Seeger, Joan Baez and Judy Collins.

Many musicians today credit McGuinn as a major influence. According to his website,http://www.ibiblio.org/jimmy/mcguinn/, he has been credited as one of the creators of “psychedelic rock,” “country rock,” and “space rock.”

One neat part about this showcase is that McGuinn will not leave the university after his performance on Saturday night at the Pollak Theatre, as he will be offering his services at a music workshop on Monday, April 4 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the Wilson Hall Auditorium. This seminar will feature McGuinn talking about the history of the Byrds, and he will also demonstrate his musical knowledge. Not only will he show this through the use of guitar, but he will also demonstrate various computer techniques used in recording.

Those who attend are encouraged to bring a guitar with them to play. Tickets for this seminar are $20, or audience members can get in free if they bring in their ticket stub from his performance on Saturday evening. If you plan on attending this seminar, please reserve a seat by calling 732-571-3512.

All tickets for the Roger McGuinn concert on Saturday evening are $33. Tickets for the event can be purchased by calling the Monmouth University Box Office at 732-263-6889, or by visiting the box office online at www.monmouth.edu/arts.