Charles Lyonhart is a singer-songwriter from New York who came of age during the Beat poetry and folk music movements of the 1950s and 1960s. He has faced serious health issues due to Hepatitis C, undergoing a liver transplant in 2005. Unfortunately, the virus infected his new liver as well. He is now undergoing an expensive treatment regimen but is unable to work and facing financial hardship. A benefit concert will be held for Lyonhart on June 21st at the Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, NY to help with his medical costs. Many top musicians will perform, including Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams, and Lincoln Schleifer.
This document provides an overview of the protest music that emerged in Nigeria after the civil war from 1970-1973. It discusses how bands like The Hykkers, The Funkees, and The Hygrades helped restore optimism to Nigeria through their new afro-rock sound that incorporated American psychedelic influences and addressed the pain of the postwar period. While Fela Kuti is rightly seen as the symbolic voice of unrest, these bands played an important role in speaking to the state of affairs in Nigeria through their music and messages of a brighter future.
The document discusses the views of W.E.B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter on African American support for World War I. Du Bois believed support would lead to racial equality at home, while Trotter condemned Du Bois' approach and favored protesting. It also summarizes the factors contributing to the Harlem Renaissance, including the Great Migration, trends toward cultural experimentation, and the rise of black intellectualism in Harlem. Finally, it provides background on jazz origins in New Orleans and its key elements of improvisation and swing.
The document provides an overview of the Mississippi Delta Blues movement through short biographies of influential Delta blues musicians such as Charley Patton, Son House, Robert Johnson, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Howlin' Wolf, and Muddy Waters. It discusses how the blues originated from the work songs of African American slaves and sharecroppers in the Mississippi Delta region. It then profiles the lives and musical contributions of seminal Delta blues artists who helped develop and popularize the genre in the early 20th century.
American folk music has its origins in oral traditions and tells the stories of working class people throughout history. It encompasses songs about labor struggles, war, civil rights, and other hardships. Important folk artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan advanced the genre and used music to raise awareness about social and political issues important to the working class. Folk music experienced revivals in popularity during times of social unrest in the 1960s and continues to be inspired by struggles for justice.
- Black popular music from the 1920s-1970s, including jazz, gospel, blues, and rhythm and blues, greatly influenced the development of rock and roll. However, black musical styles often existed separately from the mainstream pop market.
- In the 1950s, some black musical performers like Chuck Berry began to achieve mainstream success, and white musicians covering black songs also helped expose black music to broader audiences. However, questions remain about cultural appropriation within the music industry.
Med332 roots, rocks, reggae the politics of bob marleyRob Jewitt
This document provides an overview of the politics and influence of reggae musician Bob Marley. It discusses how reggae music emerged from earlier Jamaican genres like ska and rocksteady and was influenced by Rastafarianism. Reggae served as a form of protest music addressing issues like inequality, racism, and colonialism. Bob Marley helped bring reggae to a global audience and used his music to spread messages of empowerment and pan-African unity. His lyrics frequently referenced Marcus Garvey and Haile Selassie and promoted Rastafarian ideals of repatriation to Africa.
Protest Songs_ The Use of Music as a Universal Political FlagManuel Sierra Alonso
Protest songs have been used throughout history by oppressed groups to express their anger and political goals. While some theories suggest Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons may have used early forms of protest songs, there is no scientific evidence. The earliest known protest song is "Cutty Wren" from 1381 England during a peasant revolt against high taxes. Modern protest songs spread political messages and helped movements, with artists like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Johnny Cash addressing social issues through their music. Protest songs continue to be adopted by different societies and evolve over time but will always be used by those seeking change.
This document provides an overview of the protest music that emerged in Nigeria after the civil war from 1970-1973. It discusses how bands like The Hykkers, The Funkees, and The Hygrades helped restore optimism to Nigeria through their new afro-rock sound that incorporated American psychedelic influences and addressed the pain of the postwar period. While Fela Kuti is rightly seen as the symbolic voice of unrest, these bands played an important role in speaking to the state of affairs in Nigeria through their music and messages of a brighter future.
The document discusses the views of W.E.B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter on African American support for World War I. Du Bois believed support would lead to racial equality at home, while Trotter condemned Du Bois' approach and favored protesting. It also summarizes the factors contributing to the Harlem Renaissance, including the Great Migration, trends toward cultural experimentation, and the rise of black intellectualism in Harlem. Finally, it provides background on jazz origins in New Orleans and its key elements of improvisation and swing.
The document provides an overview of the Mississippi Delta Blues movement through short biographies of influential Delta blues musicians such as Charley Patton, Son House, Robert Johnson, Sonny Boy Williamson II, Howlin' Wolf, and Muddy Waters. It discusses how the blues originated from the work songs of African American slaves and sharecroppers in the Mississippi Delta region. It then profiles the lives and musical contributions of seminal Delta blues artists who helped develop and popularize the genre in the early 20th century.
American folk music has its origins in oral traditions and tells the stories of working class people throughout history. It encompasses songs about labor struggles, war, civil rights, and other hardships. Important folk artists like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Bob Dylan advanced the genre and used music to raise awareness about social and political issues important to the working class. Folk music experienced revivals in popularity during times of social unrest in the 1960s and continues to be inspired by struggles for justice.
- Black popular music from the 1920s-1970s, including jazz, gospel, blues, and rhythm and blues, greatly influenced the development of rock and roll. However, black musical styles often existed separately from the mainstream pop market.
- In the 1950s, some black musical performers like Chuck Berry began to achieve mainstream success, and white musicians covering black songs also helped expose black music to broader audiences. However, questions remain about cultural appropriation within the music industry.
Med332 roots, rocks, reggae the politics of bob marleyRob Jewitt
This document provides an overview of the politics and influence of reggae musician Bob Marley. It discusses how reggae music emerged from earlier Jamaican genres like ska and rocksteady and was influenced by Rastafarianism. Reggae served as a form of protest music addressing issues like inequality, racism, and colonialism. Bob Marley helped bring reggae to a global audience and used his music to spread messages of empowerment and pan-African unity. His lyrics frequently referenced Marcus Garvey and Haile Selassie and promoted Rastafarian ideals of repatriation to Africa.
Protest Songs_ The Use of Music as a Universal Political FlagManuel Sierra Alonso
Protest songs have been used throughout history by oppressed groups to express their anger and political goals. While some theories suggest Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons may have used early forms of protest songs, there is no scientific evidence. The earliest known protest song is "Cutty Wren" from 1381 England during a peasant revolt against high taxes. Modern protest songs spread political messages and helped movements, with artists like Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Johnny Cash addressing social issues through their music. Protest songs continue to be adopted by different societies and evolve over time but will always be used by those seeking change.
Bob Dylan was influenced by three major movements in American history - the American folk music revival, the civil rights movement, and the Beat generation. These movements provided inspiration for Dylan's music and allowed him to experiment with different styles. As a folk artist, Dylan built upon traditional songs and incorporated elements from writers like Woody Guthrie, Allen Ginsberg, and Jack Kerouac. Over time, Dylan shifted away from protest songs and toward more poetic, surrealist lyrics that reflected the influence of the Beat generation. The movements Dylan engaged with helped establish his diverse career and reputation as an icon of American culture.
This document discusses several major musical genres that developed in the 20th century, including rhythm and blues, rock and roll, rap, country, and pop. It provides overviews of when each genre emerged, characteristic musical styles and instruments, influential artists, and subgenres that developed over time. Urbanization led to more diverse music as people moved to cities. Rhythm and blues originated in the 1950s-60s and incorporated vocal melodies with strong rhythms. Rock and roll emerged in the 1950s and became more amplified over time, spawning many subgenres. Rap was invented in the Bronx and uses rhythmic spoken word. Country began in the 1920s and features instruments like steel guitar. Pop refers to commercially recorded love
The document discusses the Harlem Renaissance, which was a period in the 1920s and 1930s when Harlem, New York became a center of African American culture and art. It led to major developments in African American literature, music, dance, visual art, film, and political thought. Key events that influenced the Renaissance included the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to northern cities, the growth of an urban black middle class, and civil rights movements led by figures like W.E.B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey.
The document discusses the 1960s hippie counter-culture movement. It describes key beliefs and practices of hippies, including rejecting mainstream values, opposing war, embracing eastern philosophy and alternative arts. Hippies lived communally and promoted peace, love and personal freedom. They integrated psychedelic drugs into their culture and dressed in brightly colored, ragged clothes. The movement grew in San Francisco but deteriorated due to overcrowding and problems with crime, drugs and homelessness. Major music artists of the time influenced and gave voice to the movement.
The Harlem Renaissance started in the 1920s as a cultural movement where African Americans embraced their heritage through various art forms including music and dance. Jazz and blues became popular music genres during this time performed by famous musicians like Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Louis Armstrong. Dances like the Charleston and jitterbug also rose to prominence and were performed by influential figures such as Josephine Baker and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. The flourishing of African American music and dance in Harlem helped empower the community and influence wider American society.
Hippies emerged in the 1960s as a countercultural movement that rejected mainstream American values. They advocated peace, love, anti-materialism, and free expression. Key figures and bands represented the hippie movement including The Beatles, Janis Joplin, The Doors, and The Jaivas, who fused indigenous Latin American music with rock. The movement began to decline after events like the Altamont Free Concert and Charles Manson murders in the late 1960s.
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on blues music history, the contributions of women, an introduction to blues music, and songwriting. She has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring and performing blues music. Her workshops draw from her academic study of blues history as well as her experience as a performer and songwriter to engage and educate attendees.
During the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, jazz music and dance flourished within the African American community in Harlem, New York. Jazz originated in the early 20th century in the United States and had its roots in African dance traditions. Major performers like Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong influenced the Harlem Renaissance with their performances in nightclubs like the Cotton Club. The Cotton Club featured only black entertainers but was segregated, allowing only white patrons. Jazz became a popular music genre during this time, reaching audiences of diverse races. Music and dance were highly celebrated during the Harlem Renaissance.
The document provides information about music during the Harlem Renaissance period. It discusses how immense poverty and illness in upper Manhattan led African Americans to unite and redefine their culture, giving rise to the Harlem Renaissance. This new beginning allowed poets, musicians, actors, and artists to bring jazz, blues, and change to New York City. Famous musicians like Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday emerged and made important contributions, influencing both African American culture and wider American society through their talents and music.
Lil Hacky, a famous 17-year-old British rapper, is attacked and kidnapped after a concert by two gang members. He wakes up drugged and confined in a dark room. When he confronts the gang members, a fight ensues which Lil Hacky wins, allowing him to escape.
The passage discusses prohibition in the United States during the 1920s and how it led to the rise of infamous gangster Al Capone, who made millions smuggling liquor. It also provides context on the Harlem Renaissance and mentions poet Langston Hughes and his poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers." Additionally, it discusses preacher Billy Sunday who traveled the US in the 1920s preaching fundamentalist beliefs, as well as women of the 1920s called "flappers" who rejected traditional lifestyles. Finally, it notes how jazz music became enormously popular during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, showing famous jazz musician Louis Armstrong.
recent biographies by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw xmcshxdk
autobiography audiobooks by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw | best audiobooks by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw | recent biographies by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on the history and appreciation of blues music. Her four workshop topics are: 1) History of the Blues, 2) Women's Contributions to the Blues, 3) Blues Music 101, and 4) Song Writing for Fun and Profit. Liz has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring with her band and performing in Chicago blues clubs. She is passionate about blues history and uses her musical skills and knowledge gained from extensive research to engage audiences in workshops that entertain and educate about the origins and evolution of blues music over time.
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on the history and appreciation of blues music. Her four workshop topics are: 1) History of the Blues, 2) Women's Contributions to the Blues, 3) Blues Music 101, and 4) Song Writing for Fun and Profit. Liz has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring and performing blues music in Chicago clubs. She uses her musical expertise and enthusiasm to teach about the origins and evolution of blues styles over time.
Jazz originated in New Orleans in the early 1900s among African American musicians. Due to racism and violence, jazz musicians fled New Orleans and spread jazz to other cities like Chicago, New York, and Kansas City in the early 1920s. Popular jazz musicians of the decade included Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Jelly Roll Morton. The Charleston dance craze and flapper fashion were also defining aspects of 1920s culture. Prohibition led to the rise of organized crime and speakeasies providing alcohol became popular nightlife spots, though they also had darker sides. The Harlem Renaissance and works by writers like Langston Hughes helped spark a rebirth of African American arts and culture. The Lost Generation writers like T
Sam Phillips founded Sun Records in Memphis in 1950 and recorded many influential black R&B artists. Seeking a white artist with a similar style, he discovered Elvis Presley in 1953. Presley's hybrid of country and R&B launched his career in 1954 and made him a rock and roll star and popular music icon. Other pioneering rock artists recorded by small labels to avoid imitation included Little Richard, known for hits like "Tutti Frutti," and Jerry Lee Lewis, renowned for his piano-pounding performances of songs like "Great Balls of Fire."
Generations of Pioneering Entertainers, Journalists of the 20th and 21st Cent...Susan Graham
Though their careers in the media industry is different but they overcome many obstacles in their careers and personal lives and this is recognition of their achievements even scandals tried to derail them but they still defy the odds against them and made it to the top.
Med332 soul, funk and protest (civil rights movement)Rob Jewitt
This document discusses the origins and evolution of soul music from the 1950s to the 1970s. It traces how soul music developed out of gospel, blues, and R&B and was influenced by the civil rights movement. Artists incorporated themes of racial injustice, black pride, and urban struggles into their music. Soul evolved into funk music in the 1970s which provided social commentary on issues like racism, poverty, and the urban crisis through its blend of African and Western styles.
The document summarizes music in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. In the 1950s, the US was recovering from WWII and Elvis Presley emerged as a hugely influential rock and roll artist with hits like "Hound Dog". The 1960s saw the Vietnam War and John F. Kennedy's assassination, while Roy Orbison was a popular artist known for emotional ballads like "Oh, Pretty Woman". The 1970s saw rapid population growth and the birth of modern computers, while John Lennon remained influential as a solo artist with songs such as "Imagine".
Bob Dylan was influenced by three major movements in American history - the American folk music revival, the civil rights movement, and the Beat generation. These movements provided inspiration for Dylan's music and allowed him to experiment with different styles. As a folk artist, Dylan built upon traditional songs and incorporated elements from writers like Woody Guthrie, Allen Ginsberg, and Jack Kerouac. Over time, Dylan shifted away from protest songs and toward more poetic, surrealist lyrics that reflected the influence of the Beat generation. The movements Dylan engaged with helped establish his diverse career and reputation as an icon of American culture.
This document discusses several major musical genres that developed in the 20th century, including rhythm and blues, rock and roll, rap, country, and pop. It provides overviews of when each genre emerged, characteristic musical styles and instruments, influential artists, and subgenres that developed over time. Urbanization led to more diverse music as people moved to cities. Rhythm and blues originated in the 1950s-60s and incorporated vocal melodies with strong rhythms. Rock and roll emerged in the 1950s and became more amplified over time, spawning many subgenres. Rap was invented in the Bronx and uses rhythmic spoken word. Country began in the 1920s and features instruments like steel guitar. Pop refers to commercially recorded love
The document discusses the Harlem Renaissance, which was a period in the 1920s and 1930s when Harlem, New York became a center of African American culture and art. It led to major developments in African American literature, music, dance, visual art, film, and political thought. Key events that influenced the Renaissance included the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural South to northern cities, the growth of an urban black middle class, and civil rights movements led by figures like W.E.B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey.
The document discusses the 1960s hippie counter-culture movement. It describes key beliefs and practices of hippies, including rejecting mainstream values, opposing war, embracing eastern philosophy and alternative arts. Hippies lived communally and promoted peace, love and personal freedom. They integrated psychedelic drugs into their culture and dressed in brightly colored, ragged clothes. The movement grew in San Francisco but deteriorated due to overcrowding and problems with crime, drugs and homelessness. Major music artists of the time influenced and gave voice to the movement.
The Harlem Renaissance started in the 1920s as a cultural movement where African Americans embraced their heritage through various art forms including music and dance. Jazz and blues became popular music genres during this time performed by famous musicians like Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Louis Armstrong. Dances like the Charleston and jitterbug also rose to prominence and were performed by influential figures such as Josephine Baker and Bill "Bojangles" Robinson. The flourishing of African American music and dance in Harlem helped empower the community and influence wider American society.
Hippies emerged in the 1960s as a countercultural movement that rejected mainstream American values. They advocated peace, love, anti-materialism, and free expression. Key figures and bands represented the hippie movement including The Beatles, Janis Joplin, The Doors, and The Jaivas, who fused indigenous Latin American music with rock. The movement began to decline after events like the Altamont Free Concert and Charles Manson murders in the late 1960s.
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on blues music history, the contributions of women, an introduction to blues music, and songwriting. She has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring and performing blues music. Her workshops draw from her academic study of blues history as well as her experience as a performer and songwriter to engage and educate attendees.
During the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, jazz music and dance flourished within the African American community in Harlem, New York. Jazz originated in the early 20th century in the United States and had its roots in African dance traditions. Major performers like Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong influenced the Harlem Renaissance with their performances in nightclubs like the Cotton Club. The Cotton Club featured only black entertainers but was segregated, allowing only white patrons. Jazz became a popular music genre during this time, reaching audiences of diverse races. Music and dance were highly celebrated during the Harlem Renaissance.
The document provides information about music during the Harlem Renaissance period. It discusses how immense poverty and illness in upper Manhattan led African Americans to unite and redefine their culture, giving rise to the Harlem Renaissance. This new beginning allowed poets, musicians, actors, and artists to bring jazz, blues, and change to New York City. Famous musicians like Duke Ellington and Billie Holiday emerged and made important contributions, influencing both African American culture and wider American society through their talents and music.
Lil Hacky, a famous 17-year-old British rapper, is attacked and kidnapped after a concert by two gang members. He wakes up drugged and confined in a dark room. When he confronts the gang members, a fight ensues which Lil Hacky wins, allowing him to escape.
The passage discusses prohibition in the United States during the 1920s and how it led to the rise of infamous gangster Al Capone, who made millions smuggling liquor. It also provides context on the Harlem Renaissance and mentions poet Langston Hughes and his poem "The Negro Speaks of Rivers." Additionally, it discusses preacher Billy Sunday who traveled the US in the 1920s preaching fundamentalist beliefs, as well as women of the 1920s called "flappers" who rejected traditional lifestyles. Finally, it notes how jazz music became enormously popular during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, showing famous jazz musician Louis Armstrong.
recent biographies by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw xmcshxdk
autobiography audiobooks by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw | best audiobooks by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw | recent biographies by Michael Hall - The Slow Life and Fast Death of DJ Screw
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on the history and appreciation of blues music. Her four workshop topics are: 1) History of the Blues, 2) Women's Contributions to the Blues, 3) Blues Music 101, and 4) Song Writing for Fun and Profit. Liz has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring with her band and performing in Chicago blues clubs. She is passionate about blues history and uses her musical skills and knowledge gained from extensive research to engage audiences in workshops that entertain and educate about the origins and evolution of blues music over time.
Liz Mandeville offers fun and informative workshops on the history and appreciation of blues music. Her four workshop topics are: 1) History of the Blues, 2) Women's Contributions to the Blues, 3) Blues Music 101, and 4) Song Writing for Fun and Profit. Liz has a BA in Music from Columbia College Chicago and experience touring and performing blues music in Chicago clubs. She uses her musical expertise and enthusiasm to teach about the origins and evolution of blues styles over time.
Jazz originated in New Orleans in the early 1900s among African American musicians. Due to racism and violence, jazz musicians fled New Orleans and spread jazz to other cities like Chicago, New York, and Kansas City in the early 1920s. Popular jazz musicians of the decade included Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Jelly Roll Morton. The Charleston dance craze and flapper fashion were also defining aspects of 1920s culture. Prohibition led to the rise of organized crime and speakeasies providing alcohol became popular nightlife spots, though they also had darker sides. The Harlem Renaissance and works by writers like Langston Hughes helped spark a rebirth of African American arts and culture. The Lost Generation writers like T
Sam Phillips founded Sun Records in Memphis in 1950 and recorded many influential black R&B artists. Seeking a white artist with a similar style, he discovered Elvis Presley in 1953. Presley's hybrid of country and R&B launched his career in 1954 and made him a rock and roll star and popular music icon. Other pioneering rock artists recorded by small labels to avoid imitation included Little Richard, known for hits like "Tutti Frutti," and Jerry Lee Lewis, renowned for his piano-pounding performances of songs like "Great Balls of Fire."
Generations of Pioneering Entertainers, Journalists of the 20th and 21st Cent...Susan Graham
Though their careers in the media industry is different but they overcome many obstacles in their careers and personal lives and this is recognition of their achievements even scandals tried to derail them but they still defy the odds against them and made it to the top.
Med332 soul, funk and protest (civil rights movement)Rob Jewitt
This document discusses the origins and evolution of soul music from the 1950s to the 1970s. It traces how soul music developed out of gospel, blues, and R&B and was influenced by the civil rights movement. Artists incorporated themes of racial injustice, black pride, and urban struggles into their music. Soul evolved into funk music in the 1970s which provided social commentary on issues like racism, poverty, and the urban crisis through its blend of African and Western styles.
The document summarizes music in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. In the 1950s, the US was recovering from WWII and Elvis Presley emerged as a hugely influential rock and roll artist with hits like "Hound Dog". The 1960s saw the Vietnam War and John F. Kennedy's assassination, while Roy Orbison was a popular artist known for emotional ballads like "Oh, Pretty Woman". The 1970s saw rapid population growth and the birth of modern computers, while John Lennon remained influential as a solo artist with songs such as "Imagine".
1. 1
With a Love That is More than Love:
Benefit Concert to be Held for Local Artist Charles Lyonhart
His lyrics are written on the broadside of a raven’s wing,
and they mix with his music somewhere on the other side
of beyond. To his listeners’ ears, he has created five
entirely new and separate shades of black, each
representing a sense—a memory that has long been
forgotten, by chance or by purpose, and by the time
we’ve almost remembered it, the next verse slides
through the delicate wingspan of his voice.
In this action, Charles Lyonhart becomes both our savior
and our slayer. As savior, he delivers us to a soft landing
just as we’re taking a sweaty fall back into a long-
repressed nightmare. As slayer, he pulls us from a foggy
bliss of reminiscence, and at once we are jolted into
reality of our ever-present.
A Bronx-bred New Yorker, Lyonhart came of age during that great creative handshake between the Beat
poets of the 1950s and the Folk singers of the 1960s. The Beats rejected the caged institutional meter of
academe and put into words the undeniable thin line between the beauty and tragedy of human life.
Patti Page’s price of a doggie in a storefront window was all grown up, and the waggle in its tail became
the hackled hair of what happens when the sun goes down and the glassed up shiny of the display
shatters.
At the same time, traditional Folk music was beginning to slip its monotonic broadcloth jacket for a new
set of streetwise clothes, and it began its howling stride towards an audience that was starving for the
real of it all. One strike of a snare drum in 1965 threw an electrified gavel down on the sound block of
the age: Bob Dylan served up a fresh new dish of cool at the family dinner table.
Not unlike the creative minds of many Americans of that generation, Dylan and the Beat poets had a
substantial impact and influence on an adolescent Lyonhart.
“Of course I’d heard all of Dylan’s music and had his records, but Highway 61 Revisited,” he reflects,
“that’s when it all came together for me.” Lyonhart says that the last track on that album, “Desolation
Row” was the moment something snapped inside him, and that’s when he knew he had something to
say, too.
During the late 1960s, the young self-taught guitarist spent the majority of his time in Greenwich Village,
the urban birthplace but infinite mindscape of everything counterculture. As Lyonhart began stretching
his artistic mind and crafting his own unique voice through his music and writing, he and other “angel-
headed hipsters” found themselves in the audience of poetry readings and keeping time in the company
of some of the original Beat daddies, such as Allen Ginsberg, Peter Orlovsky, and William S. Burroughs.
The contemplative Lyonhart also found refuge and inspiration at Edgar Allen Poe’s cottage in The Bronx.
He still frequents the both location and the legendary author’s poetry and short stories for comfort and
vision.
Charles Lyonhart and the late, legendary, and
most beloved American folk singer Pete Seeger in
2010.
2. 2
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he appeared on stage as a musician and was a published writer and
music critic for publications such as Rolling Stone Magazine. In the 1990s, he was a regular performer at
The Tinker Street Cafe in Woodstock, NY, The Bitter End in New York City, and numerous local festivals.
His performances left his audiences mesmerized with his surreptitious way of taking the unheard of,
blending it into the obvious, and then delivering it in the key of “I’ve never thought about it that way.”
His talent and artistry and the reputation of his selfless, gregarious, and giving spirit combined to gain
Charles Lyonhart an almost instant and unwavering regional fan base.
With the release of his debut album Leap of Faith in 1997, he not only had the hearts of his fans, but he
also caught eyes and ears of several fellow musicians, including the late and loved John Herald, whose
tender lament “Martha: Last of the Passenger Pigeons” remains one of Charles’ favorite songs. After
hearing the album, Herald described Charles as “one of the best singer songwriters he’d come across in
ten years.” His second album Exception to the Rule followed soon after and was recorded with guitarist
and friend Steve Raleigh. Lyonhart fell ill in 2001, shortly after releasing his third album Down to the
Hard Line, which was recorded with his peers and collaborators Larry Campbell, Lincoln Schleifer, and
Denny McDermott.
Charles contracted Hepatitis-C in the early 1970s. Hepatitis-C is a virus that that can lead to cirrhosis,
liver cancer, and liver failure. Due to the extensive damage that the virus had caused his liver and body
over time, Charles was experiencing liver failure. His physicians placed him on the organ transplant
waiting list.
During the Christmas and Hanukkah season of 2005, he received the gift of a lifetime—a donor had been
found, and Charles underwent the transplant surgery that saved his life. Charles thrived after his
transplant surgery and throughout his recuperation, even working on and releasing a new album with
his working band, The Junkyard Angels. Titled Outside Looking In, the album was released in 2010.
Unfortunately, it was discovered that the Hepatitis-C virus that was still in his body had infected his
donated liver. This was devastating news, but it’s not an uncommon occurrence.
There are treatments for Hepatitis-C that have incredible success rates for removing the virus
completely from the body. With the support of his family and friends, Charles chose to begin this six-
month long journey to wellness. However, as with most rainbows that the heavens arch down our way
to Earth, there aren’t always pots of gold lying in wait at either end of them.
The medications required for Charles’ specialized treatment (Sovaldi and Ribavirin) are not only very
expensive monetarily, but they also carry a heavy physiological tariff. Sovaldi costs the patient one-
thousand dollars per pill, per day, and among many other unpleasant conditions, Ribavirin causes the
patient gastrointestinal problems, fainting, memory loss, deep muscle and bone pain, anxiety, and
situational depression.
The side effects of the medication and the illness itself have rendered Charles unable to work. In mid-
2014, he was forced to close his business, and he has since been out of work. Although he is diligently
working to gain disability benefits, the interim has left Charles with no income. Despite his having health
insurance, medical co-payments and the day to day expenses all adult Americans have to face (namely--
food, water, and shelter) have nearly depleted all of his savings.
3. 3
Any two or three of the circumstances listed above are enough to send most of us shrinking into a
darkness from which we’d scarcely know how to arise. True to his name, Lyonhart is facing all of it with
courage that would quake the knees of the great and powerful Oz himself.
He cannot do it alone, but he won’t have to. The Universe to which Charles has gallantly given so much
has conspired to give back to him.
On Sunday, June 21, 2015, the friends and musical family of Charles will come together for a very special
evening of comfort, caring, fellowship, and love. The Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, NY, will be the
site for a benefit concert in his honor. Doors open at 6:00 p.m., with the concert beginning at 7:00 p.m.
and continuing until 10:00. Golden Circle Tickets are $55.00, and remaining seats are $35.00.
“First and foremost, I want to thank Marc Black, who had the idea to do this benefit concert for me, and
I’d like to extend my gratitude to the artists who jumped on board as soon as they heard about it,” said
Lyonhart.
“I feel like I am in a dream,” he continued. “I am beyond grateful for having the support of friends like
this. They are an irreplaceable extension of my family—a true gift to my life.”
Scheduled to perform are Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams; Tom Panchero; Marc Black (with Eric
Parker, Pete Levin, and Mike Esposito); Joel Diamond; Lincoln Schleifer; Brian Hollander; Marty
Kupersmith; and George Quinn, with a few special surprises planned throughout the event, as well.
What better way to spend a Sunday evening than to enjoy some of the best musical minds of our area
and generation and to give to one whom we all hold so dearly? We look forward to seeing you there.
Contact The Bearsville Theater at 845.679.4406 for more information, or you may contact Charles
directly through his Facebook page.
For more information about organ donation, visit the U.S. Department and Health and Human Services
website at http://www.organdonor.gov/index.html.
####
Tracy E. Outlaw
ladywriter210@gmail.com
229.410.9347