Open Doors CD
Monday, 18 May 2009 20:12 | 
Author: Jeff Maisey | 
Various Artists
Open Doors(Hope House Music)
Over the last 25 years, countless local bands and solo musicians have donated their time and talent to perform on the main stage at the spring and fall Stockley Gardens Arts Festival. The art show is a community event produced and promoted by and for the non-profit Hope House Foundation. In celebration of the quarter-century mark, 18 of those local acts have contributed a song to this compilation. Proceeds from sales will benefit Hope House. So whether you want to contribute to a great cause or simply want to sample and enjoy some of Hampton Roads’ finest, this disc is well worth picking up. And there’s something on it for just about every listening taste.
For jazz enthusiasts, The John Toomey Trio’s “Over the Counter” and Jimmy Masters’ “Nothing for Certain” are groovy little numbers. Got the blues? The Michael Clark Band (Ain’t Gonna Get Me Down”) and Fat Tony (“Swinging with Fat Tony”) have the cure. Dig acoustic, singer-songwriter stuff? There’s a bunch: Award-winning Julie Clark is impressive on “Change Your Mind,” as are Matt Miller (“The Question Still Remains”), Narissa Bond (“I Live Here Too”), Lewis McGehee (“Waterfall”) and Stephen Bennett (“A Walk on Winkfield Row”).
National recording artists Joan Osbourne (“One of Us”) and Dar Williams (“Better Things”) performed for Hope House special concerts early in the careers. Each donated a track.
Finally, this CD wouldn’t be complete without submissions by Lori Shapiro (“Yon Highlands of Scotland”), BJ Leiderman (“Open Doors”) and Jim Newsom (“Open Spaces”).
Great collaborative effort. – Jeff Maisey
WANT A COPY? Birdland Records in Va. Beach, at DnD Music off Taylor Road in Chesapeake, at the Hope House Thrift Store (on Monticello across from Doumar’s in Norfolk), and at the Hope House Admin Office (corner of Olney and Boush St. in Norfolk).
Last Updated ( Friday, 22 May 2009 19:09 )
