Don Byron and friends to pay tribute to Junior Walker
Hudson, N.Y. — Jazz legend Don Byron will perform a tribute to R&B legend Junior Walker with an all-star band of rock and jazz talent at Club Helsinki Hudson on Thursday, August 6 at 8 p.m. Joining Byron on the gig will be Dean Bowman, Zachary Alford, Pete Levin, Scott Petito, and Matt Finck, musicians who have played with Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, James Taylor, Chick Corea, Annie Lennox, Paul Simon, John Medeski, and others.
Recording as Junior Walker & the All Stars, saxophonist Autry DeWalt Mixon Jr. led one of Motown’s signature acts in the mid-1960s. Junior Walker & the All Stars’ best known hits were “Shotgun,” the oft-covered “(I’m a) Roadrunner,” (Fleetwood Mac, Peter Frampton, Jerry Garcia Band, James Taylor), “What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)” and “Pucker Up Buttercup.” Walker’s saxophone can also be heard on Foreigner’s 1981 hit single, “Urgent.” Don Byron recorded “Do the Boomerang: The Music of Junior Walker” in 2006. Though rooted in jazz, Byron has worked in many different musical genres ranging from klezmer and Yiddish novelty (Byron was a charter member of the Klezmer Conservatory) to German lieder, Afro-Cuban, Raymond Scott’s “cartoon jazz,” hard rock/metal, and rap. Byron primarily plays clarinet, but has also used bass clarinet and saxophones. A member of the Black Rock Coalition, Byron has recorded with Allen Toussaint, Marc Ribot, Vernon Reid, Bill Frisell, Cassandra Wilson, Bobby Previte, and others.
For more information and tickets, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or call Helsinki Hudson at (518) 828-4800.
–E.E.
* * *
Boston Bruins and summer reading
Lee and Great Barrington — The Boston Bruins have teamed up with the libraries across the Commonwealth to encourage kids and teens to keep reading over the summer, and Boston Bruins’ mascot Blades will be making special visits to libraries in the state. On August 6, Blades will visit Lee Library at 11 a.m. and the Mason Library at 2 p.m.
To encourage children and teens to keep reading over the summer, Bruins players have helped libraries develop “Favorite Books of the Boston Bruins players,” a recommended reads list that also includes librarian picks for the best hockey books.
Summer reading helps children and teens maintain skills they’ve learned over the academic year. On average 350 Massachusetts libraries offer statewide summer reading each year with more than 300,000 children, teens, and adults participating. The Boston Bruins have been active partners and advocates for reading and literacy since 2009.
–E.E.
* * *
Berkshire Botanical Garden, Project Native moving towards merger
Stockbridge — The trustees of the Berkshire Botanical Garden and of Project Native have been discussing the benefits of joining forces, and both boards recently unanimously approved motions to pursue a combination. Both nonprofit groups are still working out details but are optimistic that a final agreement can be reached and that the deal will close by the end of the year.
“Our missions are in complete alignment,” said Matt Larkin, chairman of the board of Berkshire Botanical Garden. “The importance to the well-being of our environment of preserving the native elements of our habitat has never been better understood or more at risk. This has been a major subject of our educational programming and field trips for many years, and combining with the resources of Project Native will make a huge difference to the quality and effectiveness of the service we provide to our community.”
“This will be a great partnership,” said Project Native board chair Erik Bruun. “Our very different resources and capacities will advance our common mission of environmental education and promoting native habitats. Adding the Garden’s powerful educational and marketing know-how will draw attention to our work better than we could alone.”
The Berkshire Botanical Garden has grown significantly in recent years in terms of its revenue and programs. Its education department has been strengthened by recent hires and has expanded its Farm in the Garden camp, as well as its reach into local schools.
Project Native was founded in 2000 as part of the Railroad Street Youth Project. Project Native became its own organization in 2004, transforming a former 54-acre farm on North Plain Road in Housatonic into a wildlife sanctuary and native plant nursery with propagation facilities and a native butterfly house. Project Native is fewer than 10 minutes by car from the Berkshire Botanical Garden.
–E.E.
* * *
Pop-up art gallery in Great Barrington
Great Barrington — Artists Ron Ronan and Glen Martin have opened an art exhibit at 70 Railroad St. #2 (behind the Triplex Cinema). On display is an assortment of art pieces made with ceramics, oil, acrylic, Venetian plaster, and fresco.
Glen Martin, born in Trinidad and living in Hillsdale, N.Y., is primarily known for his beautifully rendered landscapes and sensual figurative paintings. His art has been shown and purchased internationally and shows in various prestigious galleries around the world.
Ron Ronan of Egremont, Mass., started out designing finishes for jewelry and picture frames with Elements/Jill Schwartz. While sharing studio space with other artists in New York City, he learned the art of venetian plaster, eventually developing his own style and bringing to it techniques used in fresco, mural painting, and design.
The exhibit is open through September 15 with opening receptions on Thursday, August 6 and Friday, August 7 from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., and Saturday, August 8 from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
–E.E.
* * *
Raising goats in the Berkshires
Adams – At 6 p.m. on Wednesday, August 5, Ralph Brill of White Column Farm in North Adams will present his vision and business plan for establishing a herd of 1,000+ goats along with a major goat creamery and goat meat operation in the northern Berkshires. The presentation, which will include a goat cheese tasting, will take place at Bascom Lodge and is free and open to the public.
The northern Berkshire area is losing its younger residents faster than other parts of Massachusetts and Brill believes that the operation has a chance of producing more than 3,000 jobs in the next 10 years and will attract young families and others who are interested in a sustainable local food movement.
For more information, email desk@whitecolumnfarm.com.
–E.E.
