Peter Stampfel & the Ether Frolic Mob lays claim to Red Hook tonight. The boss told a Philly Web site that his hard-picking crew “sticks its hands up the ass of American music, grabs it by the throat, and pulls it inside-out.”
As I once said somewhere: “There’s great yin/yang at work when the forever whimsical Rounder balances his anything-goes persona against that of the comparatively academic (no diss – who wouldn’t be?) John Cohen. Due to it, this ever-changing gaggle of singers and strummers is unique in the Stampfel resume. Crazed gospel, boo-hoo bluegrass, kids’ songs for adults, giddy swing, Jeannie Scofield‘s barn dance harmonies, and the most arrestingly scratchy fiddle you’ll ever hear. They’ll take a flying leap at anything if it’s old-timey enough.” Shambolar!
