COYLE — As the country-folk trio the Gloria Darlings maps a national tour, this community makes sense as a starting point.
It’s not that Coyle’s Laurel B. Johnson Community Center is terribly well-known in the music world. But for the kind of experience the Gloria Darlings are after, it is ideal.
The Gloria Darlings know this, having played here in 2011 and 2012 thanks to Norm Johnson, presenter of the Concerts in the Woods series. Johnson brings in modern folk, indie-rock, bluegrass and country performers for shows that are more than concerts; they’re community gatherings, parties to which people bring homemade cookies and produce from their gardens.
Admission is by donation, and listeners of all ages are welcome at the center, on the Coyle peninsula at 923 Hazel Point Road.
“It’s been neat to see Norm’s vision realized,” said Melissa Jane “Pandi” Pandiani, singer and guitarist with the Gloria Darlings, who will arrive for a 7:30 show Saturday night.
The Darlings’ own vision is coming to fruition, too, with “Come Home to Me,” their CD recorded with producer Michael Connolly at Seattle’s Empty Sea studio. A www.Kickstarter.com campaign with significant support from this part of the world funded the album, Pandiani said.
Concert offerings
In their concert Saturday, the Gloria Darlings will unleash songs from “Come Home to Me.” These include the title track, Pandiani’s original “Ghost Girl,” singer-fiddler Amelia “Milly Raccoon” Boksenbaum’s “Insomniac’s Lullaby” and “Jack of the Wood,” a fairy tale in song.
The Gloria Darlings, specialists in vocal harmony, also like to mix some Carter Family, Ray Price and Patsy Cline into their sets.
This blend of classic country and original songs has taken Pandi and Milly across the country and back several times already.
For Saturday’s gig, the women will have Forrest Marowitz of Friday Harbor playing stand-up bass. Milly sings and plays fiddle and mandolin, while Pandi sings and plays guitar.
The Darlings just bought an old Bluebird school bus, which will take them from Coyle to Seattle to New Orleans in the coming months. On their tour, the band will pull into intimate venues not unlike the Laurel B. Johnson Community Center.
“We find them all over the country,” Pandi said, along with concert presenters such as Norm Johnson who champion folk and country players.
“It’s kind of a movement: People who want to bring good music to their community put the time in and cultivate it,” said Pandi.
Intermission time
Johnson, for his part, noted that his Concerts in the Woods always have an intermission, “with time for a second cookie and more opportunities to meet old friends and make new ones. The band members love to mingle at that time,” too, and sell their CDs.
“The concerts end early at 9:30, and there is more time after the show to talk to the bands or make plans with your neighbors,” he added.
“People do eventually drive off in their cars, but they carry with them a feeling that they just experienced something special that extends beyond the great music they heard.”
For more details on Saturday’s event and the rest of the Coyle concert series, visit www.HazelPoint.info or contact Johnson at 360-765-3449, 206-459-6854 or johnson5485@msn.com. More about the band is at www.theGloriaDarlings.com.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
