Next Show - First Show Of Our 4th Great Season!

Join us for the first show of our 4th Season! There will be some door prizes to celebrate this milestone.

 

Folk enthusiasts fill the music room at the Free Times Cafe and for two hours are transported back to the coffeehouses of the 1960's Folk Revival. The show includes folk classics like 'If I Had A Hammer', 'Walk Right In', ‘Turn Turn Turn', 'Tom Dooley' and many more.

The fun monthly show is hosted by a 4 piece ensemble comprised of Sue and Dwight, Michelle Rumball, and filling in for Tony Laviola on double bass this month is Gene Falbo. The group takes the audience on a musical journey sharing stories and providing historical context that highlights the importance of the songs, performed in the style true to the period. Songsheets are provided, even though most of the audience seems to know every word.

Dinner reservations are available in the music room 416-967-1078.

Free Times Cafe 35th Anniversary

¸ .★ ° .☾ °☆ 　. * ● ¸ .
Thanks Judy Perly for a magical evening last night at the Free Times Cafe 35th Anniversary show!  'Where Have All The Folk Songs Gone' was honoured to be a part of it.

Great Last Show Of The Year!

Wow! That was SO much fun. Lots of Phil Ochs fans out last night...including two adorable twenty-somethings sporting Ochs t-shirts. And there was even a personal friend of his from back in the day. He has fans that span all age groups and they were in fine voice. 

In honour of this wonderful songwriter, nine of Phil Och's songs were added to the evening's setlist: Love Me I’m A Liberal, There But For Fortune, Draft Dodger Rag, I Ain’t Marchin’, Heat Of The Summer, State Of Mississippi, Changes, Hazard Kentucky, and When I'm Gone. We were impressed at how many people in the audience actually knew all the lyrics. Ochs wrote long songs...great songs...but long songs!

It's about 7 weeks until we are back with our next regular Where Have All The Folk Songs Gone show (Wednesday, January 20th), but in the meantime, the gang has been invited to perform some songs at the Free Times Cafe 35th Anniversary show on Tuesday, December 15th. Check out their website for details on that event http://www.freetimescafe.com/

 

Celebrating Phil Ochs 75th Birthday!

Based on songs requests from our audiences over the past three years, we know there are a lot of Phil Ochs fans among them.  

In honour of what would be his 75th birthday this December we'll be including a bunch of his songs at our Thursday, December 3rd show.

Hope to see you there!

Uplifting Experience!

After a very trying week, feeling down about tragic events happening around the world, we were looking forward even more than usual to being in a room full of people singing together. And as expected it was the perfect pick-me-up!

There were moments, in songs like 'Last Night I Had The Strangest Dream', 'If I Had A Hammer' and 'Universal Soldier' where the words hit close to the bone and some of us fought back tears. But there were laugh out loud moments as well, with lyrics like these from the Kingston Trio hit song 'MTA'... 

Charlie's wife goes down to the Sculley Square station 
Every day at quarter past two 
And through the open window she hands Charlie a sandwich 
As the train comes rumbling through 

The evening was a great reminder of the power of music and the camaraderie that comes from getting out of our homes and out into public places sharing positive experiences with like minded people. 

Thanks so much to everyone who joined us last night! 

Our next and final regular 'Where Have All The Folk Songs Gone' show of 2015 is on Thursday, December 3rd, 7:30pm at The Free Times Cafe. In celebration of what would have been Phil Och's 75th birthday the show will include a tribute to his music so you can expect to hear many of his songs that evening! Hope to see you there.

Last Night!

♫♪ ♫♪•*¨*• This photo taken by David Flack last night answers that age old question...'Where Have All The Flowers Gone?'

A Folkin' Good Time!

♫♪ ♫♪•*¨*•.¸¸Fun singalong at the Free Times last night! Thought I'd share a photo of the big after-party in the band limo...

Ain't no party like an Old Dutch party!

Another great group of sing-a-longers, in fine form, joined us at The Free Times Cafe last night. We debuted two new songs...'That's What You Get For Lovin' Me' and 'Mr. Tambourine Man'.

We've already had some lovely feedback on Facebook this morning from some folks who were there...

"The new friend I brought for the first time last night, said she never imagined having that much fun...even thought she wouldn't sing along, but found herself doing just that! See you next month." - Andrea

"Another wonderful evening! You all certainly know how to put a room full of people in a, HAPPY PLACE!" - Carol

Thanks so much. We always appreciate hearing from you!

With two shows scheduled in November, the next one (Thursday, Nov. 5th) is already sneaking up fast. It's not too early to make your dinner reservations to secure your spot 416-967-1078. Here's a link to the Event Invite on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/events/849635465153307/

Double Your Folk Fun!

After a string of sold out shows to start 2015, we decided to move to a twice a month format for the Fall. So, for those of you who just can’t get enough of the 60’s folk revival, you now can join in every two weeks! And for everyone else, this should create a bit more breathing and singing space at our wonderfully intimate room at the Free Times Cafe.

Mark your calendars for the 3rd Wednesday and 1st Thursday of the month in October and November.

Our Thursday shows launched on October 1st to an enthusiastic audience. Old favorites 'Don’t Think Twice' and 'This Train' made their return to the set list and new songs from September...‘Joe Hill” and ‘Changes’ received another warm response. There were even a few "Wobblies" in the audience to help with “Joe Hill”. 

 
Our next show is Wednesday, October 21. Make sure to call 416-967-1078 for a dinner reservation. See you there!

The Morning After

Still in my jammies, I am in that magical place this morning where you go after a magical show. Where you wake up with a big smile on your face and figure you MUST have been dreaming but then check FB and realize it was real! 

We arrived at the club to learn that EVERY seat was reserved in both the main room and the overflow area. The masses started arriving way early at 6pm and by the time the show started at 7:30pm, the buzz and excitement in the room was amazing. A final soundcheck at 7:15pm to check the levels against a full room confirmed that we had a real enthusiastic crowd...singing along to the soundcheck songs. 

It was a great mix of regulars and newbies. The most enthusiastic newbies had to be a couple from Helsinki Finland, in town for a couples of days, who stumbled upon the show via a Google search. Happily, they took home one of the trivia prizes offered up for the evening. They stuck around after the show and we learned they are involved in music and festivals back home. 

There was a great comradery in the room...singalongs and this music in particular really bring people together...and it was wonderful to see the audience cheering each other on, whether it be helping them with a trivia quiz answer or extending Happy 50th Anniversary wishes to the couple celebrating that milestone.

Last night reinforced our decision to up the frequency of these shows to twice monthly beginning in October for a 2 month trial. We want to make sure that everyone who wants to come out and singalong gets the opportunity.

The next show is Thursday, October 1st, 7:30pm at the Free Times Cafe - 320 College St., Toronto; Cover: $10; 416-967-1078 for dinner reservations

Overflowing Last Show Before Our Summer Break!

Posted by Dwight

It was another eventful night at the Free Times on Tuesday at the last show before our Summer break. The club was packed...even the VIP lounge (i.e. overflow) was full!

The night featured a tribute to the recently departed Ronnie Gilbert and the Weavers. In addition to 'House of the Rising Sun' and 'Goodnight Irene', we debuted Ronnie’s version of 'Study War No More' to an audience in full voice. She had such a unique approach to her leads and Michelle and Sue did a wonderful job of making it seem like Ronnie was in the room for those special moments. 

The evening was also unique in that we played a spontaneously totally unplugged version of 'We Shall Overcome'. This unplanned break gave our trusty soundman Alex a chance to work out a few tech bugs. It also created one of those tingly campfire moments that we’ll remember for a long time.

We also played our second round of folk trivia giving the audience the chance to win some fun prizes. Among other gems, we learned that Malvina Reynolds who wrote 'Little Boxes' later went on to appear on Sesame Street (but not Hee Haw). 

The evening closed with rollicking versions of 'If I Had a Hammer', 'Times Are a Changing’ and 'Where Have All the Flowers Gone'.

We’re taking a break for the Summer, which will give us some time to review the more than 100 song requests we’ve received from you. We’ll add a handful for the Fall season, which starts officially on Wednesday, Sept. 16 at the Free Times. Make sure to drop back to this site as we announce our summer plans.

Thanks to Judy and the great staff at the Free Times. And a big thanks to all of you, our wonderful folk friends, for joining with us to “bring back that feeling of community and song from those far away days!” as one of you commented.

Exciting!!

Our folk show at the Free Times Cafe was Snap'd in May. Here is a direct link to some great photos... 

Snap'd College Edition

Mark your calendars for the next show coming up on TUESDAY, JUNE 23rd!

“Fabulous Fun”!

It was quite a night at the Free Times last night, “fabulous fun" according to one of our comment cards. I agree. A nice full house was in full voice especially on 'Four Strong Winds' and 'Walk Right In'. It was nice to hear Michelle and Sue on their Facebook friend Tom Paxton’s 'Last Thing on My Mind', which we haven’t played in a while.  I’m still always amazed by how many people know the words to Phil Ochs’ jaunty 'Draft Dodger Rag', his songs always have a lot of lyrics... all good ones! 

Our debut of the Weavers’ 'House of the Rising Sun' turned the place into a sultry jazz club for 4:03 minutes and is a real keeper. Which reminds me to thank everyone for their requests. We had some for Gordon Lightfoot and 'Early Morning Rain' is in our repertoire so will show up in future shows. We also had a comment about the movie 'Inside Llewyn Davis' which covers the revival era and should be on the ‘watch list’ for folkies.

I’m always amazed at the stories that our audience shares with us when we get a chance to talk during the break or after the show. Many truly lived the folk revival era. Last night I heard a great story from a fellow who was a bit too young to make it to Martin Luther King’s 1963 march in Washington but did attend a follow up in 1967. 'We Shall Overcome' remained the anthem of the civil rights marchers. 

Thanks to everyone who joined us and a special welcome to the many first timers! A reminder to all that our last show of the season is on Tuesday, June 23rd.  Be sure to make a dinner reservation to guarantee a seat! Free Times Cafe 416-967-1078 

No February Blahs Here!

Thanks to everyone who braved the Winter chill and came out to sing with us. It was a fun night!

The next show is Wednesday, March 18th!

See Our New Promo Video!

Click on this link: WHERE HAVE ALL THE FOLK SONGS GONE - PROMO VIDEO

A Magic Night at The Free Times Cafe

★　° :.　♫ ♩ . • ○ ° Last night the music room at The Free Times Cafe was overflowing with folk singalongers helping us celebrate the start of our third season of 'Where Have All The Folk Songs Gone'. We had such fun. Thanks so much to all of you who came out and to Judy Perly and her gang at the club for their hospitality. This is a photo of one happy post show band...　

 

P.S. Next show is Wednesday, February 18th!