Jennifer Kimball

Happy New Year everyone!

1. GIGS

2. SOME THOUGHTS & THANKS

3. links to shows

GIGS:

JAN 11 Crossroads Coffeehouse, Andover — w/Duke Levine and Sonny Barbato

JAN 14 Lizard Lounge, Cambridge — Session Americana ‘Northeast’ collaboration

FEB 18 Lilypad, Cambridge w/Duke and Sonny

FEB 25 Lilypad, Cambridge w/Duke and Sonny

Thanks to all who came out to Peter Mulvey’s amazing twelve hour benefit show at Passim yesterday. Duke and I were the first guests, relief pitching for about 1/2 hour between noon and one. Followed by Erelli, Staples, Dietrich, Rose, Barry and many more. I don’t think there is anyone equal to the enormous capacity of Mulvey’s musical brain. No one person embodies more melodies, harmonies, chords, lyrics, poems and stories. And generousity. Let's not forget that one. A lot of money was raised for the six organizations he chose. www.petermulvey.com

THOUGHTS:
Happy New Year all — into the third decade of the 20th century we roar. Even while I sew my little Christmas ornaments late into the night on the couch in my little house in Somerville I am feeling that roar. Each felt beet, tomato, carrot and bean hurls me into the great salad of the world. Isn’t that what we are? A gorgeous, home-grown cornucopia of greens tossed about with a myriad of red, fuchsia, white, yellow, orange, green and purple vegetables - each searching for the truth?

I say seek it. Tell it. Shout it.
So many would have us fear those things. Don’t!
Grow your vegetables. Eat your vegetables. Share your vegetables. Make art of your vegetables.

Then make more art. Make love. Promote peaceful thinking, understanding, multi-culturalism, deep breaths. Celebrate being alive. Try not to be afraid. Seek joy. Seek justice, be curious, ask questions. Make community with new friends, old friends, strangers. Yes, but my heart is breaking. The world is full of injustice. Here at our own borders; in our own cities — and far away in war-plagued countries, impoverished nations, lands on fire. I hold all that in my heart but try to keep my needle moving. Keep my eyes from social media — where time floats and I feel ‘left out.' Depressed. Outside. Let me be 'inside' at least in my mind. Let my new song 'Make me a Flower' make me feel better. Make me feel possibility and joy and lift me up out of the dark into the roar.

The roar might seem small now. But let mine rage come the summer. What is more productive in these times than a roaring and productive rage? Let me know your thoughts. Let me know you've read this. Let me know if your email changed - or is about to. My little missives reach only a tiny fraction of your inboxes.

Thank you for your interest. For your support. It matters. It really matters. Photos, stories, video of singing life coming soon. Content. I'm generating content. Be well. Stay awake.
Jennifer

Dear friends/colleagues/fans - I'm writing to let you know that I have a few different kinds of shows coming up:
- singing my own songs with Duke and Sonny at Gail's Rec Room 10/25
- Subrosette @Lizard Lounge 11/20 (guests and them tba)
- a cd release show with Session Americana (11/7 Brooklyn)
- and the Wintery Songs tour!

The last little entourage of monarchs and bees are pollinating away - like there’s no tomorrow. And, actually, well… By the time Duke and Sonny and I play our second ever trio gig, October 25 at the Rec Room, I'd like to think these 80 degree days will be long past and we’ll immerse ourselves in leaves of orangeyellowredgold. And I don't know about your trees, but mine have had a banner year of seed production. Can we talk seed pods? Constant barage of falling conkers from the european horse chestnut. I've been under the tree picking up chestnuts and hit on the back with gnawed-free conkers falling from thirty feet above. Squirrels are really on top of it this year. I'd say in the space of a week every seed has been felled by our resident squirrels. Given their diet, I'm guessing they have a much easier time surviving than the rats and bunnies, who seem to studiously avoid hanging out under the tree's canopy. My fantasy of carrying said chestnuts through audiences of Wintery Songs shows while I sing chestnuts roasting on an open fire may actually come to fruition this year:)

Tickets for 10/25 Rec Room gig in Belmont, MA here

Esteemed spouse, Ry Cavanaugh and the Session Americana crew have just released a beautiful new record called North East with a whole team of local guests. Everyone chose a song written by a New England songwriter. And we spent three days in the studio last Spring recording twenty tunes. CD release shows in September were fabulous - Session Americana plus nine guests! Singing harmony and playing piano on Ry's version of Carly Simon's Coming Around Again was a highlight for me. As well as listening to Ali McGuirk sing Mark Sandman's The Night, Kris Delmhorst's version of Chandler Travis' Air Running Backwards and John Powhida's killer version of Gloria Gaynor's Dim all the Lights! Some sweet reviews including one which singled out my track: Patty Griffin's Goodbye.

Ten weeks until the Wintery Songs shows are upon us. Tickets on sale already for some of them. I read with great interest in the the NYT this week about recent McArthur Award winner Annie Dorsen, who wrote an algorithm for a computer to transform a score from one song into another over the course of about 15 minutes of ‘transition.’ Brilliant! Three singers sightread their way live through the computer's score. Dorsen started with Yesterday and ended with Tomorrow. Cool!! Paul McCartney to Annie. And while I don’t have an algorithm for it I have been fascinated with this very idea - how to write an arrangement that sneaks you surreptitiously from one song into another. In my case it’s been about that old chestnut, The Christmas Song morphing into Away in a Manger? Here Comes Santa Claus? Let It Snow? Love to hear your ideas. Write me. Please incorporate the actual chestnuts into your idea.

cheers, Jennifer

Hello friends & fans. As per usual I begin with something like ‘so excited to play some shows!’ So, here they are and then I'm going to delve a little.

4/18 Portland, ME Flask Lounge
5/23 Waltham, MA Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation w/Duke Levine
6/5 Cambridge, MA Club Passim with Duke Levine, co-bill w/Ry Cavanaugh

As most of you know, two factors are involved in my less-than-satisfyingly-crafted newsletters and lack of new songs; one, the small bandwidth I have left for music after my executive director job is done for the day and two, the slow recovery of flexibility in my left hand from last summer’s surgery. But these are not deal breakers, friends! Music is coming back to me. I am progressing on uke and guitar, but drawn to piano again. Easier to reach all the notes I’m hearing. Small notebooks filling up with words. I’m playing with my friend Duke Levine: he plays, I sing. Duke is reinventing previous interpretations of the songs. It is one of the greatest pleasures of my little musical life to get to sing while Duke plays. And I look forward to wherever it is that this duo is going for the next 30 years. (Yup, we’ll be 86 - and that'll be the new 66 right?).

In the last couple of months I’ve had the pleasure of singing on two really interesting projects. Dramatically different from each other: one, loose and flowy, with a live band. I sang a cover song in a well-equipped studio with a flock of other songwriters around. The other, more form-fitting, created in garageband entirely by one person. I got to sing harmony vocals, background ‘da-ba-dah’ vox and a whole verse without even leaving my own house. Now I will tell you about those experiences.

Session Americana is making a new record called Northeast! They invited a bunch of local songwriters to cover songs written by New England songwriters. I sang Patty Griffin’s “Goodbye.” A spectacular song and a great experience performing it live in the studio. Basically I sang the tune three times. After the first run through we talked for a second about the vibe. About how to make it a little bit more our own. Two more takes and that was it. Kris Delmhorst and Ry, co-producers of this SA project sang some harmony vocals. Done. The record’s called Northeast and features songs by Al Anderson, Mark Sandman, Carly Simon, Jonathan Richman, Bill Morissey, Amy Correia… sung by the likes of Rose Polenzani, Merrie Amsterburg, John Powhida, Ali McGuirk, Dinty Child, Kris D, Jeffrey Foucault, Ry… This is such a cool project - check it out here. And join in the kickstarter so you can keep posted about gigs and other doings.

Recording project #2 happened this weekend. Phil Broikos, friend, lawyer, music fan, Berklee grad, prolific songwriter, garage band expert is on a mission to record 288 original songs reflecting the hours in the day starting at midnight. Each song 5 minutes - 12 on a record. 12 midnight to 12 noon. That’s 24. He’s in Album #2. Got to sing on #1 also.

I am reminded of how like birds we are in this overdub recording process. Darting in and out of the song - view of the forest, then in to trees, then the branches, then a single leaf - to work on this part and that part and then winging back out from that leaf to see the whole forest/song again. The hover of a hawk. This is the big picture.

Starting with the forest view, singing down all my prepared ideas a couple times I always find a few new ones. Cool. Glad those are 'on tape.' I mean 'manifested digitally in color on your screen.' Then I fly down into the detail of one phrase/leaf; singing just the upper half of one melodic phrase isolated from it’s lower notes. Yes, timing, choice of notes - yes, in tune, Ok now the lower part. Same thing. Yes! Fly back up and out to the forest/song view - yes, it’s a cool idea AND it works here AND that performance was good. Let’s finish recording it for that other section of the tune. Fly down, back in.

Now singing a verse - make it up as you go - but I have an idea too. It’s like gliding through the evergreen branches. Now fly over them to the chorus. We're in the deciduous grove now - sing harmony with Phil’s lead. Two ideas: one, sing the words along with him (do I keep that harmony note that’s the 7? Is it too dissonant? We like it. Yes, keeping). The expression - matched to lead voice. Timing, yes, good. Right words (was that a ‘go’ or a ‘yeah’?), check. Two, go hover over the maples and sing a second part on the chorus in longer tones. Maybe record a few parts we could use all at the same time (keep those other notes in your head while you sing the new parts). Yup. Good. Before we know it there are nearly 100 tracks of JK vocals and six hours has flown by. A fantastic recording day - completely different vibe from the Session stuff. Loved them both.

Splendid how you can only know so much about what you think you are going to record. And that when you actually fly in there and sit in that forest on that branch next to that leaf, the whole megillah is completely different than listening and singing along in your car or in your kitchen. No fields or buildings rushing past at 65mph. No familiar faces and treasured bowls sitting on kitchen shelves. Headphones on, mic on, eyes closed, forest light dim but the air crisp. Feels shady but clear. Just right. For this song, in this place at this time.

Thank you for supporting live and recorded music.

Cheers,
Jennifer

Excited to be playing gigs this week!! I’m travelling to a few of my favorite places in New England to play with Alec Spiegelman and Deni Hlavinka! Deni sings like an angel and plays keyboards, Alec will play bass clarinet and keyboard and sing, too. In addition he's opening the shows at Passim and the Owl. You don't want to miss that - Alec is a master of self-deprecating love songs. Delivered with a deadpan comedic face.

And check out the videos if you didn't get a chance to see them through the pledgemusic campaign. Beehive Production shot three videos of Alec, Deni and me in the Somerville Theater playing Saturday Day, All Truth is Bitter and Love & Babies. And my friend Ian Brownell made a really cool music video of Love & Birds. I am embracing the visual with all my heart.

TOUR DATES (as of 3/17)

3/21 Portsmouth, NH Book & Bar

3/22 Cambridge, MA Club Passim

3/23 Brooklyn, NY The Owl Music Parlor

3/24 Phila, PA Burlap & Bean s/f Chris Trapper

4/27 Burlington, VT Light Club Lamp Shop

4/5 Somerville, MA Boston Stands: a Benefit for the ACLU (with a parade of local luminaries)

5/6 Cambridge, MA Sinclair s/f Deb Talan

5/25 Northampton, MA Click

6/2 Milton, MA Milton Center for the Arts

As always, thank you for your support!

Jennifer

I ask — which is more important the music or the promotion?
The answer — in the real world the bird needs both wings to fly.

Thank you so much for supporting the crowdfunding campaign to send my new album Avocet out into the world! We raised about 13k — about $650 goes to the ACLU, $1950 to pledgemusic and about 10.5k to Avocet. This is such a big help! We wouldn’t have been able to commit to promoting this project without YOU. Thank you again for being part of the Avocet team. I am deeply grateful.

January and February have been busy with radio promotion mailings, booking tour dates, designing posters, sending out press materials, cd package assembly, sorting out digital distribution. The official cd release date is tomorrow, Friday March 3; so if spotify is your thang – well you can add Avocet songs to your playlists tomorrow. If you happen to have tickets to Kris Delmhorst's Passim shows (also tomorrow) I will singing with her and opening the first show!

Can’t believe it’s March already:) We will be sending out pledgemusic packages over the next week. Stay tuned to the website and/or social media for upcoming shows. Hope to see you out there. THANK YOU SO MUCH,
Jennifer

3/5 Cambridge, MA rescheduled private cd release party (people bought pairs of tix/$150 on pledgemusic - email me back if you are interested...)
3/21 Portsmouth, NH Book & Bar
3/22 Cambridge, MA Club Passim
3/23 Brooklyn, NY The Owl Music Parlor
3/24 Phila, PA Burlap and Bean s/f Chris Trapper
4/22 Burlington, VT Light Club Lamp Shop
5/6 Brooklyn, NY House of Love co-bill w/Ana Egge

Gigs are in the works. Ry Cavanaugh will be joining me for next weekend's private cd release party in Cambridge, Alec Spiegelman will be joining up for the cd release tour which begins March 20. But first, this coming Saturday evening I'm playing my first solo show in ages at the Rose Garden Coffeehouse in Mansfield, MA! It's a lovely venue and a co-bill with the Rose Garden's Songwriter Contest winner Seamus Galligan.

FEB 11 Mansfield, MA Rose Garden Coffeehouse TIX

click to buy tix FROM this page

FEB 12 Cambridge, MA Private CD release party TIX

once on the pledgemusic page either scroll to see the link for tix or go to THE STORE and find it there

Hi friends - so happy to announce that we’re halfway to our financial goal of raising $20,000 on pledgemusic!
You can get Avocet HERE

Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has already ordered my new cd Avocet through this crowdfunding campaign. There are a bevy of lovely ‘rewards’ you can get ahold of at pledgemusic also - like:

• TIX to a private cd release show in Cambridge, MA 2/12

• CARDS: handmade potato print cards

• MIX TAPE: my 12-song MIX TAPE of favorite harmony I’ve had the pleasure to sing on other folks’ cds

• POEMS: autographed books of poetry by two of the poets whose poems I’ve set to music on this record! including our former poet laureate, Billy Collins!
• HOUSE CONCERT: house concert solo or trio!
• HARMONY CONSULTATION: one hour harmony consult (you also get the MIX TAPE with this one)
• ALL the Jennifer Kimball CDS

You can get Avocet HERE

And EVERYONE who pledges gets an instant download of the cd PLUS instant access to a whole bunch of exclusive content like videos and photos and stories about the songs!

Live Video for Saturday Day HERE!

As you all probably know the entire music business has changed so much - and really the only ways to sell your cd are through crowdfunding and at gigs! Yes, there are downloads and yes, you might sell a few physical copies here and there. But basically ALL of us get our music through streaming services for which we pay a small monthly fee. Nearly impossible to get paid anywhere near a real wage for that. Millions of plays on spotify gets you $31.

I’m so proud of this new work. And so excited to get out on the road a bit. The tour is coming together - hoping to see you out there. Write me back and tell me where I should come play near you!!

cheers,
Jennifer