House Concert Benefit for Team Fox (for Parkinson’s disease research)
With Bruce Gilbert and Cyndi Craven
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Doors open at 7:30 and the music will be performed from 8:00 until 10:00.
This is the finale in a series of house concerts hosted by my dear friends Bruce and Lex Gilbert. This evening I will be performing with Bruce and with Cyndi Craven!
All proceeds will go to Team Fox, which is the organization that funds the activities of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Admission to the event is free, and it’s the Gilberts’ hope that folks will contribute whatever amount is comfortable for them. There are seats for 40 guests. If you would like to come, please email bgilbertmusic@gmail.com or telephone at 404-474-0869 as soon as possible. If you have friends or family that you would like to bring, we would be delighted. Just make sure you sign them up also.
A little more than two years ago, my dear friend and longtime music partner, Paul Jean, died very suddenly and prematurely. Paul played piano with Paige Parvin and me for six years as the trio Local Honey. We did a number of my original songs and an eclectic variety of cover tunes that we just enjoyed playing and singing. Here is a tribute I wrote in memory of Paul just after his death in April 2008.
What I didn’t know until after he was gone was that Paul’s body had suffered the ravages of Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative illness that attacks the central nervous system, affecting motor skills, the voice and speech, and other countless physical and mental functions. It’s a devastating disorder, and Paul’s life was utterly transformed by it in ways that I witnessed but did not understand. He was a very private person, and only a select few knew of his illness before he died.
A few months after Paul’s passing, I met someone whom I was sure was sent to me from God, or maybe even Paul himself. It was during our first conversation that Bruce Gilbert said to me, “I just moved here. I’m a piano player, and I have Parkinson’s disease.”
Bruce invited me to back him up on a couple of his original songs at an open mic at Eddie’s Attic. His writing, I quickly discovered, is magical, and his playing is tasteful, soulful, skillful. I was happy to do it. From our first performance together, Bruce and his wife Lex have become an integral part of our beloved community of music makers here. They regularly host our Sunday night songwriters’ gathering in their home, and Bruce has played gigs with all of us, all over town. He plays on our recordings (just wait til you hear what he does on mine!). He helps us with our recording projects and technology in his own studio. He and Lex come out for our gigs even when he isn’t playing. Even when he isn’t feeling so hot.
Bruce and Lex have for many years been active and passionate supporters of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s research. This fall, they are hosting a series of monthly house concerts in their beautiful Lake Claire neighborhood home to benefit Team Fox, the organization that funds the activities of the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s research. Admission to the event is free, and it is their hope that folks will contribute whatever amount is comfortable for them.
The performers will be Bruce with two members of our little songwriting community (see below for the full roster) per evening. I will be playing with him and Cyndi Craven on Saturday, November 6. And I’ll be playing for Bruce and in memory of Paul.
If you’ve never attended a house concert, you’re in for a treat — it’s cozy and intimate and, maybe because of that, the performances, without fail, are typically inspired.
There is seating for 40 guests per night. If you would like to come, we are asking that you sign up as soon as possible for the evening of your choice (the seats are going quickly, and it’s first come-first served). If you have friends or family that you would like to bring, just make sure you sign them up also.
The doors will open at 7:30 and the music will be performed from 8:00 until 10:00.
Please RSVP as soon as you can to bgilbertmusic@gmail.com or telephone at 404-474-0869.
If you cannot attend but would like to donate, please go here.
