Brief Mostly Musical Bio

Hi! Welcome to my home page. I'm a blues/old-time-country guitar player and mandolinist, a founding member of both the Delaware Water Gap and Wretched Refuse string bands, a past host of several music programs, including "A Taste of the Blues," on WBAI-FM (Pacifica radio in NY), and a former member of the NYC Labor Chorus, with an interest in ethnomusicology (M.A. in music from Hunter College). I am presently an instructor of Music Appreciation from a global perspective at Hagerstown Community College in Maryland.  I belong to AFM Local 351 and AFSCME District Council 37 (I am a licensed MSW, with a degree from Yeshiva University and a course concentration in community organization). I've written articles and record reviews for Sing-Out! magazine and the JEMF Quarterly. In the early 1970's, I co-founded and co-managed two coffee houses that featured folk and traditional music performances (Cafe SUBO at Brooklyn College, and Random Canyon at the Park Slope United Methodist Church in Brooklyn). During 1978, I lectured on blues at CW Post College. In 1979, I toured Europe with the Delaware Water Gap, and performed with them on the soundtrack of the Oscar-nominated 1980 documentary film "The War at Home," as well as a television commercial for public radio on WUHY-TV in Philadelphia. During the 1980's and 90's, I played string band music with Harmony, Grits and Jam, and Jewish music in the duo Tsvei Klezmorim. I sang with the NYC Labor Chorus on the soundtrack of the documentary film "The Statesboro Boys" (also nominated for an Oscar), and provided music for the play "Wholly Mother Jones," which was broadcast over the Pacifica radio network in 2000. I accompany labor singers George Mann and Julius Margolin, and regularly join my long-time partner Ralph Litwin (on whose cable TV show, "Horses Sing None of It," I've appeared several times) in the duo, "The Fabulous Furry Harmonica Brothers," as well as other ensembles. In addition, I play mostly blues covering a variety of pre-war styles with Rick Eisenberg, Ken Ficara, Delta Dave Johnson and (Delaware Water Gap co-founder) Myriam Valle in Big Road Blues.............

 Main musical influences: Dad (a.k.a. Lenny Pat [professionally]); Lead Belly; Rev. Gary Davis; Gene Meade (back-up guitarist for Clark Kessinger); Blind Willie McTell; Big Bill Broonzy; Lightnin' Hopkins; Martin, Bogan and Armstrong; Woody Guthrie; Phil Ochs; Dave Van Ronk; Mississippi John Hurt; Doc Watson; Pete Stampfel and Steve Weber (for starters). Might as well add Fairport Convention and Dave Swarbrick (especially now since I've been to Cropredy--THREE times!) and, of course, Steeleye Span.

SELECTED FESTIVAL APPEARANCES