The Woodshed Podcast Live from The Hearing Room

Ronnee has been performing in clubs and coffeehouses throughout the southern New England area, playing "ClassicRock" covers and originals, including those from her self-produced CD,“Spirit of the Heart”. Ronnee's upbeat “acoustic-rock” style and choice of material never fail to draw her audiences' praise and applause.

Dear Friend,I'd like to share a story with you......about a girl. The youngest of six children, “the baby”, she spent summers barefoot and picking raspberries. During the winter she listened to the crackling fireplace while warming cold fingers after hours in the snow. She learned delight and appreciation.This girl was spritely and filled with joy. She was loving and always wanted to please those around her. She trusted quickly and forgave easily.Childhood was abundant. It also came with hardships. Life brought sickness, hurt, struggle, and great loss. She was fifteen when her dad lost his battle to cancer. She didn't know then, but these experiences taught her the gift of resilience, the value of hope, the beauty of love, and the friendship of music.Through the years this "Energizer Bunny" mastered the art of wearing masks to cover up her sorrow and fear. "Put a smile on your face, don't be a burden, and push through."Externally she was thriving. Internally she was numb, so she wrote. Songs, poems, and journaling were her haven for raw, unfiltered honesty.At the University of New Hampshire she began writing songs on her dad’s old guitar. It was a balm. Sophomore year brought a reckoning with her faith, a belief in a force of love and restoration. She had a sense of belonging just as she was.This also lead to self-reflection, opening wounds that had never really healed. Afraid, an eating disorder became her escape. There was sickness, hurt, struggle, and loss......and then there was resilience, hope, love, and music.Post undergrad, this now adult knew she wanted to help people, see them thrive. She also knew music filled her veins with an energy unmatched, meeting her wherever she was with exactly what she needed. Music was her confidant, dance partner, comforter, her mood lifter. Through the years, personal growth, therapy, amazing friends, and creating, all brought more clarity:She would cultivate Connection, Solidarity, and Hope through Love and Creative Expression.That little girl is now in her thirties. She is still spritely, loving, and filled with joy. She is also authentic and vulnerable. This woman has traveled. She has loved and lost. She cares for the environment and is passionate about ending injustice. She is an aunt to five incredible young humans and a mom to her feline Mowgli. She lives her vision. This woman is learning daily to trust her knowing and believe her worth.She is bold. She is courageous. She is flourishing.With the dawn she rises. I seek daily to cultivate connection, solidarity, and hope through love and creative expression. My hope is that as I share my music and heart with integrity and authenticity, you too feel empowered to live authentically.May you come to know and love yourself more and more, as you journey Around The Sun.BeBold, Kimayo

Tonight! Catherine Swan is on the podcast at 7pm. Listen in!I am originally from Dublin Ireland, currently living in Lowell Ma with my childhood sweetheart "Swanney" who I reconnected with after 30 years and married just 4 years ago. It wasn't until I moved to the US that I started playing out at open mics initially and eventually playing in pubs and gigging all over Lowell and surrounding towns with my band "Oskersfault" that I formed through meeting other musicians at Pinata's in Tewksbury MA when I ran the open mic there, we went our own ways after about 5 very successful years together, we had a great dynamic and it was a fab experience! My mother always loved playing music in the house and was a huge influence growing up, my musical influences to name a few are Elvis, Jewel, Amy Winehouse, The Cranberries, Fleetwood Mac,, I particularly like soul and R&B to listen to. Now that I'm getting older I am enjoying doing more songs from my home country Ireland and with the technology we have now I am able to share with my family and friends back there.

Chris Steele is a Massachusetts-based songwriter, singer, and rock musician. Depending on the day, Chris might be solo with an acoustic guitar in Edmonton, Alberta, jamming out with friends at a pizza joint in Newton, livestreaming online, or putting down new rock tracks in the studio.My music comes from a love of classic rock, influenced by 90’s grunge and post-grunge, and then filtered through the mind of a poet who travels too much.https://chrissteeleband.com

Doug Farrell is a Songwriter from Southern New Hampshire who's been described as John Prine meets John Gorka. he’s been featured on NHPR’s Folk Show ,winner of several New England Songwiting contests. He has a CD out called Spirit Man, and also 2 CDs with Decatur Creek .http://www.dougfarrellmusic.com

A brief Biography of Jay Singing Spirit Cunningham written by Jay:I started playing guitar at 15 years of age and I am self taught not until later on in life did I start performing at various coffee houses and pubs both at open mics and gigging out and also busking for tips I have been with my classic rock band the CRS Project for 20 years or so and actually started playing with some of these musicians 48years ago as a garage band that never did much I was lead singer at the time and only played folk music on my own of which I was just learning . I was born in Taunton Ma and moved to the back woods of Norton ma at 8 years. Of age I am 1/4 Abenaki Indian and 3/4 Scotch Irish and English I am 64 years old and have been married 45 years to the same woman and have 3 grown adult children and 8 grandchildren also I am retired and devoting all my time to music and native culture I lead a 26” buffalo hide drum and we drum at 13 powwows a year.

Pam Steinfeldsinger/songwriter/guitarist/piano-player.A Massachusetts-based musician, Pam has over 20 songwriting awards to her credit (6 awarded by the Billboard Magazine Song Contest). She writes upbeat, rhythmic tunes as well as soulful ballads.Pam’s debut CD, "Open Hands," features eleven originals and a cover version of John Gorka's song "Love Is Our Cross To Bear." Co-produced by Pam and WAMA "Producer of the Year" Marco Delmar, "Open Hands" also features the talents of Jon Carroll,Robbie Magruder, J.T. Brown (current/former members of Mary Chapin Carpenter's band), Al Petteway, and many other talented musicians."Open Hands" was nominated as "Best Debut Recording" and "Best Contemporary Folk Recording" by the Washington Area Music Association (WAMA). Radio/TV: Ten songs from "Open Hands" have been played on radio stations across the country and abroad, including WXPN in Philadelphia, WMVY on Martha's Vineyard, WETA in Washington, DC, and WRUR in Rochester. Pam has been interviewed on stations in New Jersey and Maryland. She has also appeared on television in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Virginia.Performance Highlights: The release of "Open Hands" launched Pam's performance schedule, highlights of which include shows at the Washington Folk Festival, National Race for the Cure, Wintertide Coffeehouse, Rehoboth Folk Festival, Watchung Arts Center, Jammin' Java, First Night Alexandria, Frederick Festival of the Arts, Herndon Festival, NERFA Official "Informal" Showcase, Vic's Music Corner/O'Brien's, and numerous houseconcerts.PressPam has been featured in numerous publications, including: Washington Post Magazine, The Journal Newspapers, The Gazette Newspapers, Music Monthly, Washington Jewish Week, The Watchung Journal, The Cape Gazette, The Old Town Crier, Indie-music.com, and collectedsounds.com. (See "Reviews" page for quotes.)Listen to Pam’s tunes on YouTube!https://tinyurl.com/PamOnYouTubeFor Bookings and Email List: PamelaJayne1@gmail.com

Jason Campbell was born in Billerica, MA and has spent his life in New England. He has a degree in Illustration and is self-employed as a Typographic Designer. He also paints, draws pencil portraits and publishes web cartoons. He has been a blues enthusiast for decades, some of his favorite artists are Paul Rishell and Annie Raines, Charlie Musselwhite and Guy Davis. When not listening to other blues artists he plays harmonica and sings at area Open Mics and Open Blues Jams. In whatever free time he can squeeze in he writes adventures for Dungeons and Dragons campaigns.

Lori Fassman moved to the Boston area from Connecticut in the late 1980s, armed with a math degree, and immediately became enchanted with the local folk music scene. She joined and later became a core volunteer for the Folk Song Society of Greater Boston (fssgb.org), helping to organize their concert series, singing parties and annual Fall Getaway Weekend. Lori has sung with numerous local performing groups including The Simones (named after her late cat), Acton Music Project, and Sisters in Song/SisterWolf, singing at weddings, private parties and local coffeehouses. Her repertoire includes traditional folk songs and covers of contemporary singer-songwriter material, as well as popular songs from the 1970s, and she has a particular fondness for the songs of blues rockers such as Bonnie Raitt and Susan Tedeschi.

“Tamara Hey’s soaring voice has charmed and captivated audiences throughout her native New York for over a decade. She writes meticulously detailed, magically crystallized three-minute pop songs which, just like her vocals, are disarmingly deep. She’s also one of the great wits in music: an edgy sense of humor spices Hey’s narratives and character studies, even in the gloomiest moments. And her punchlines have O. Henry irony and Amy Rigby bittersweetness. The title of Hey’s album Miserably Happy pretty much says it all.” – New York Music Daily�She also happens to be the rare music-schooled musician who doesn’t waste notes or let her chops get in the way of saying something as directly as possible, musically or lyrically. That sense of purpose and craftsmanship translates to her career as a music educator: she’s a popular guitar teacher and for the past ten years, Hey’s Alphabet City Music Workshops for music theory, transcription and arranging have built a following, especially among singer-songwriters.�Hey got her start in the Lower East Side’s edgy singer-songwriter scene in the early part of this century, in the days before the gritty, artistic neighborhood was taken over by real estate speculators. Inspired by the fearlessness and sardonic humor of classic punk, the catchiness and wit of 60s Brill Building pop and the quirky fun of new wave, Hey quickly gained a following in bars and listening rooms in New York including the Fast Folk Cafe, CB’s Gallery, the Bottom Line, Rockwood Music Hall and the Slipper Room. She’s shared the stage with artists including David Massengill, Jack Hardy, Ellis Paul, to name a few.�Her third album, Miserably Happy, has been called a high water mark of that scene. Tamara’s catalog of original songwriting includes three previous albums: Right This Minute, A Little Space Left, and a children’s album, Sharing the Same Stars. In addition, Tamara’s work appears on three Fast Folk Magazine compilations: Local Charm, New Voices NYC, and Rebirth, issued on Smithsonian Folkways Records.The EditorsNew York Music Daily/Lucid CultureReview of Tamara Hey at Rockwood Music Hallhttp://lucidculture.wordpress.com

Cantor Vera Broekhuysen has served as cantor at Temple Emanu-El of Haverhill, Massachusetts, since June of 2016 and is delighted to begin serving the Temple as its spiritual leader in July of 2018.As an educator, Cantor Broekhuysen brings guitar and drum into the classroom to infuse Hebrew language learning with music. Cantor Broekhuysen is also passionate about the beauty and vocal connectivity of early music and folksong and brings her experiences with Village Harmony (Vermont, international tours in the Caucasus Republic of Georgia) and Studio Sixteen (Toronto) to her cantorial work.Cantor Broekhuysen deeply values opportunities to pursue both spiritual enrichment and social justice in interfaith environments. She is a member of the Greater Haverhill Clergy Association and a founding member of the Merrimack Valley Sanctuary Network, which came together in the spring of 2017. While in cantorial school, Cantor Broekhuysen led an interfaith, cross-campus singing group (through the Center for Inter-Religious & Communal Leadership Education at both Hebrew College and Andover Newton Theological Seminary) and co-created a series of events and workshops exploring the female voice in relationship to text and spiritual authority within Judaism and Islam.Cantor Broekhuysen is a member of the New England Board of Cantors, where she currently serves as secretary. In March of 2018, she helped organize, and performed in, “From Out of the Storm: Cantors Respond to Devastation,” a successful benefit concert on behalf of the Jewish communities in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands who were impacted by Hurricanes Maria and Jose. This event was cosponsored by Temple Beth Zion of Brookline, MA.Cantor Broekhuysen completed her undergraduate studies in music history and theory at the University of Toronto and was ordained by Hebrew College in June of 2016, when she also earned her Masters Degree in Jewish Education. She lives in North Andover, Massachusetts, with her husband and two sons.

Danno Sullivan - Ukulele teacher, musician, actor, writer and all around performer.

My work as a writer tends to be mostly essay driven. My first full length book is a memoir titled "This is why you know me."I'm a professional stand-up comedian of five years. I also cohost the radio program, Poptarts in my VCR every Tuesday on 91.5 WUML. It can also be streamed on wuml.org. In addition, I co-host a Podcast, "One-hour Parking" based out of northern Massachusetts.

Haverhill raised musician, writing under BEDS the solo project and Motel Art, with inspirations from movie scores like Eternal Sunshine and bands Minus the Bear and the Front Bottoms. Ben works in the mental health field. When not working or performing, Ben runs a diy music/artist collaboration Let’s Get Weird as well as the podcast One Hour Parking with cohost Maxwell Shultz. The podcast interviews local artists/musicians.

Annie Patterson & Peter Blood developed and edited Rise Up Singing: The Group Singing Songbook, published by Sing Out Publications in 1988 and their sequel second songbook Rise Again published by Hal Leonard in 2015. They have led hundreds of singalong concerts and workshops across North America, New Zealand and the UK. Patterson is an accomplished folk performer, recording artist and jazz vocalist. She was the art director of Rise Up Singing and was producer and primary vocalist for the Rise Up Singing Teaching Discs. Patterson is a member of the swing band Girls from Mars and performs regularly with The O-Tones and at folk venues in the US and abroad.Blood was publications director of Sing Out (the nonprofit that publishes Sing Out! Magazine) from 1988 to 1993. He edited Pete Seeger’s autobiography, Where Have All the Flowers Gone: A Singalong Memoir. Seeger was actively involved in working both on Rise Up Singing and Rise Again.For more information on Annie & Peter and their work go to https://www.riseupandsing.org/

Rob Siegel is well-known in Boston folk music circles as an innovative songwriter who draws from his idyllic yet stressed- out middle-class suburban existence and produces memorable, intelligent, well-crafted songs.

LIZ BILLSA vocal powerhouse, a dynamic songwriter and an empowering force who bares her heart for the world to see. Known for her entrancing high energy performances and emotionally charged power vocals, vulnerable and passionate in her songwriting and stage presence; Liz openly discusses mental health, female empowerment and many other sensitive topics that so desperately need to be explored. Highlights have included winning Roots Act of The Year in 2019 and ‘Rock Act of the Year in 2018 for the New England Music Awards, opening for Bon Jovi at Mohegan Sun in 2017, runner-up in the 2016 Aloft Rising Star with Daughtry, and a semi-finals appearance in the WZLX’s 2016 Rock Rumble. Liz was a top 30 female finisher in the 2013 American Idol competition, and has been compared to singers such as Grace Potter, Janis Joplin, Florence and the Machine and Susan Tedeschi.

Alexandru Sabau is a Indie Folk Singer-Songwriter from Haverhill, Mass. His debut full length 'In between the Standing Trees' was recorded at BB3 Studios in Newton,NH. and self-released in 2014. He has been on several Road Trip tours, playing in cafes, bars and sidewalks to anyone who would listen, though at times, it was just the crickets. Currently he writes and performs with a local Punk Band called The Grubs, and performs his folk songs in the Local open-mic circuit. Future plans include releasing a new Ep and building and growing meaningful relationships with other folks.

Performing a unique blend of jazz, folk, rock and blues, Beverly-based, rootsy, rockin & blue, Bob Kramer delivers high-spirited and enthusiastic performances every time he performs. His lively sets are packed with songs for any age and range from the Blues of the Delta to the classic Jazz of the streets to his own tasty originals. Bob is a seasoned performer and multi-instrumentalist whose love for the Delta and Piedmont styles resonates through his energetic playing and his rootsy singing. He performs using a variety of instruments to produce their jazzy folk/blues original sound, including slide guitar, mandolin and other guitars. Bob Kramer regularly perform at a variety of venues in the area, including the Topsfield Fair, and hosts the open mic at the Indo Pub, Beverly, on Monday nights.. Bob has opened for national recording artists, Paul Rishell and Annie Raines at Beverly First Night and the Pete Best Band (original Beatles drummer) in Newburyport and the Terra Blues Club in Greenwich Village in New York CityBob has released solo CDs, produced a compilation CD of Boston’s North Shore singer/songwriters - North Shore Acoustic Project - which received a “ raving” review in Dirty Linen Magazine. He also received an Honorable Mention in Billboard Magazine’s Songwriting Contest, and served as Chair of the Music Committee for the Yankee Homecoming Festival in Newburyport. His songs have been on radio playlists all over the world. Bob’s CD Help Me Sing My Song is on the Oasis compilation CD Volume 5. You can purchase Bob Kramer's albums Help me Sing my Song and North Shore Music Project on iTunes as well as on CD Baby.

May Ave. was a long-term project that began on a Boston commuter boat in 2003. Bill Barton (A.R. West Studios/Billy and the Goats) listened to Gillespie discuss music, subsequently challenging him to write a bunch of songs that he offered to record in exchange for beer. This beer-inspired offer could do little else than garner a country-influenced record. Gillespie went to work writing songs and Barton began to artfully (well, sort of anyway) record. In the studio, the two shared common philosophies and developed a sound that in some ways pre-dated 1970 (just like Bill and Jay); meaning that it captured all of the raw energy of the 1960s while still drawing influence from old-time Americana. While "It's You that I Love" sounds like a lost George Harrison track, "The Facebook Song" might have been something crafted by Roger Miller if he had been given the chance to assess contemporary social media. "It was Just You and Me" harkens back to the pop country Urban Cowboy era of the early 1980s. "Kerri with a K" is the rock yarn of a young couple separated by the Atlantic Ocean riddled by a litany of phobias. "Goodnight Anna" is a creatively upbeat pop lullaby.