It’s only July 1 (or July 2 when you read this!) and temperatures are already in the mid 90’s and above!  It’s a hot summer, but there are plenty of cool things to do, and I hope to see you at some of them!

Joon Toons!

June was lovely, with performances at The Breezeway Home (with Deborah Brooks),  The Frick Pittsburgh, PSST (People’s Song SocieTea) at Bantha Tea, and the Bloomfield Saturday Market.  Unfortunately, Lenni Green & Vida Chai‘s show at Baum Grove Parklet got rained out — twice! — but we are working on rescheduling it for August or September.

July!

Oh, man, I hope you don’t have other plans for tonight, July 2… because from 7:00 to 8:30pm, Uncle Al, Matt Eddy and Ben Getkin will be playing an outdoor concert at Baum Grove Parklet in Friendship. I’m hosting and running sound, and it will be great!  Free show, bring a chair / blanket / picnic, and maybe something to protect you from the sun!

Then on Wednesday July 8 from 6 to 7pm I’ll be back at 3 Rivers Outdoor Company in Regent Square.  I’m looking forward to playing music there, and getting a beer and a dog at D’s next door!

On Saturday July 11 I’ll be playing (from 3:40 to 4:10pm) on the acoustic stage as part of the Pittsburgh Music Festival out at the Pittsburgh Brewing Co. in Creighton.  This festival benefits Autism Pittsburgh and Band Together Pittsburgh, and you can get tickets here.

The next weekend is something of a double header, with a private show Friday evening July 17 at the Chapelgate Swim Club, and then I’ll be joining Joy Street! on Saturday July 18 at 6pm to provide some of the music for the annual Friendship Community Picnic Baum Grove Parklet in Friendship.

Finally on Saturday July 25, I’ll be back at the Bloomfield Saturday Market  from 10am  to Noon.

**Whew!** It’s going to be a good month!

As always, check brianjunkermusic.com for late breaking news and updates.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

June is Pride Month – our celebration of LGBTQ+ pride, rights, and culture, commemorating the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City, which served as a pivotal catalyst for the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement, and officially recognized at the federal level in the United States by President Bill Clinton in 1999.  Although we have made much progress in recent decades, there is much left to do.  It is especially important to celebrate LGBTQ+ rights now in this fraught time, and to look toward how we can make further progress going forward.

May Madness!

• Had a blast playing Ruckus Cafe on May 3, with the able help of friends David Bennett on cello and Brad Yoder on sax and glockenspiel.
• Deborah Brooks and I also had a couple of shows together, one as part of the Friendship Flower and Folk Festival on May 9, and one at the Confluence Creative Arts Center in Confluence PA on May 30.
• And I had a couple other gigs, one on Monday May 11 at 3 Rivers Outdoor Company, and another on May 16 at the Bloomfield Saturday Market. Lots of music, lots of people, lots of joy!

I played my song The Lonely Planets in Confluence and one audience member, Jeffrey ‘Pope’ Pankey of the local Tissue Farm coffeeshop and art gallery, was inspired to make a picture to go with the song.  Here’s the picture, and if you click on it you can hear a scratch recording of the song made a year or so ago by me and my friend Nadine Douds.

I hope to make an even more refined version of the song for an upcoming music release!

On to June!

On Friday June 12, Deborah Brooks and I will do a 2-hour show at The Breezeway Home in Point Breeze.  Showtime 7pm, $15 admission, snacks and drinks provided but BYOB/BYOF also fine.  RSVP Dennis at 412-805-4426 or thebreezewayhome@gmail.com.

On Sunday June 14 UPDATE: Saturday June 20 (postponed due to bad weather forecast) I’ll be hosting (not playing) Lenni Green & Vida Chai, 7:00-8:30pm outdoors at Baum Grove Parklet in Friendship. Bring a chair/snack/drink.  Free show but tips for the performers strongly encouraged!

Then on Sunday June 21, 12:30-1:45pm I’ll be helping to celebrate  Make Music Pittsburgh
In the Cafe at The Frick Pittsburgh (following a great set by Scott Moore), and on Thursday June 25, 7pm, I’ll be part of  PSST
(People’s Song SocieTea!, brainchild of Erica June Chtistian Laing) at Bantha Tea, 5002 Penn Avenue.

And finally on Saturday June 27, 10-Noon, I’ll be back at the Bloomfield Saturday Market
5050 Liberty Avenue.

As always, check brianjunkermusic.com for late breaking news and updates.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

Well, April was fun with a great run at Art All Night (check out all the great musical artists here!) and a really cool show with Caleb Pogyor & Dan Petrich in the Cafe at Mr. Small’s. And now May is upon us, and it promises to be madness!   It feels like Summer’s in full swing already…

May Madness!

On Sunday May 3, 6-8pm, I’m coming back to Ruckus Cafe. This is a super spot in Shaler on Route 8, with great salads, sandwiches, treats, coffee and other drinks — and an important supporter of live music in Pittsburgh! My friend David Bennett will play cello on a few songs, and maybe there will be another special guest as well… Free admission; a great way to spend a Sunday evening!

Then, from May 7 to June 4,  Deborah Brooks and I will be teaching a songwriting class for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.  Seats are all filled up, but I have a feeling one or both of us will be trying something like this again!

On Saturday May 9, come hang out  at the Friendship Flower and Folk Festival, from 11am to 4pm!  Grab some flowers for Mothers’ Day, and listen to the music that will be happening all day!  I’ll post a full music schedule at brianjunkermusic.com, but I’ll be on at 1:15 (Deborah Brooks will be just before me at 12:30).

Then on Monday May 11, I’ll do my first 3 Rivers Outdoor Company show of the season in Regent Square!  Starts at 6pm, ends around 7pm.

And on Saturday May 16, I’m back at the Bloomfield Saturday Market, 10am-Noon. (the very next weekend, on Saturday May 23, East End Appalachian Jam will take the same musical spot!).

Finally, on Saturday May 30, Deborah Brooks and I will split a bill at the Confluence Creative Arts Center in Confluence PA. Potluck at 6:30pm, music begins at 7pm!

As always, late breaking news and more information at brianjunkermusic.com.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

Art All Night runs 4pm Sat Apr 18 to 2pm Sun Apr 19
in the Rockwell Building
400 North Lexington Street 15208
(behind Construction Junction, across from Ascend!)

In addition to 100’s, even 1000’s of pieces of visual art, there are two music stages, the Acoustic/Coffeehouse Stage, and the Electric Stage.

Here’s the schedule for the Acoustic/Coffeehouse Stage, which I run:

Spring is happening, friends!  I know temperatures will bounce around a bit, but this morning I rode my bike out in a (rather comfy!) warm drizzle, and when I rode back it was warm and dry and almost sunny! …now, I just need to put a fender over the rear wheel so I don’t end up with a skunk stripe of road mud up my back when I’m done riding!

I’ve got a couple of nice events coming up in April and I’ll even tell you about some of what’s happening in May.  Should be fun!

April Powers Us Along!

First up, a really exciting show is happening in the Cafe at Mr. Small’s, 7-10pm Friday April 17.  Caleb Pogyor, Dan Petrich and I will be splitting the evening.  Caleb’s music takes inspiration from the introspective songwriting of Sufjan Stevens and Elliott Smith, as well as the expansive textures of Radiohead. You might hear echoes of Fleet Foxes and Wilco too!  Dan’s music is informed by traditional folk, American Primitive guitar, ambient, and even field recordings. He has three full length records to his credit. He has an album release show for his new instrumental record Soundings on Saturday April 4 at Acoustic Music Works on the South Side, and I’m sure we’ll be hearing some of his new stuff at Mr Small’s!  I’ll have some new tunes to share as well, part of a set of tunes I’m hoping to share soon on Bandcamp and elsewhere.

The rest of the weekend is packed as well, with the free, giant art show Art All Night running from 4pm Saturday April 18 to 2pm Sunday April 19, at the Rockwell Building in Point Breeze (behind Construction Junction and across from Ascend).  I’ll be running an acoustic singer-songwriter stage (the Coffeehouse Stage!) at Art All Night as I usually do…  If you’re interested in signing up to perform, check out artallnight.org/artists/.  But don’t delay — Art All Night is right around the corner!

A May Preview

There’s a lot happening in May, from Farmers’ Markets to Flower Festivals to a special show in Confluence PA!  You can find out all about it at brianjunkermusic.com, of course.  But here I’ll just mention two fun things, and save the rest for the May newsletter!

On Sunday May 3, 6-8pm, I’m coming back to Ruckus Cafe. This is a super spot in Shaler on Route 8, with great salads, sandwiches, treats, coffee and other drinks — and an important supporter of live music in Pittsburgh! My friend David Bennett will play cello on a few songs, and maybe there will be another special guest as well… Free admission; a great way to spend a Sunday evening!

Then, from May 7 to June 4,  Deborah Brooks and I will be teaching a songwriting class for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.  Last I checked there were only two seats left, so if you’d like to take the class, act fast!

As always, late breaking news and more information at brianjunkermusic.com.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

FAWM was challenging but always fun! It’s hard for me to write songs quickly but I managed to reach my personal goal of four songs.  Here’s two of them, if you’re curious…

Happy Feet

Dawn

(Photos courtesy of pexels.com)

March Along, Go March Along!

Just a couple things coming up in March, but they’ll be good!

First, Joy Street (which I’m a part of) will be playing special music and a couple other things (including a Deborah Brooks original!) for the service at the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh Sunday March 1, 10:30-11:30am. One doesn’t usually think of church services as fun, but this one will be!

Second, SongSpace and Calliope are jointly presenting a really great concert at in the SongSpace series, also at the First Unitarian Church:

Larry & Joe is the duo of Joropo maestro Larry Bellorín (Monagas, Venezuela) and GRAMMY-nominated bluegrass and old-time star Joe Troop (Winston-Salem, North Carolina). These two virtuosic multi-instrumentalists fuse their respective Venezuelan and Appalachian folk traditions on the harp, banjo, cuatro, fiddle, upright bass, guitar, and maracas, proving that music has no borders. Their engaging bilingual (ESP/ENG) program includes storytelling, humor, sing-alongs, and dancing.  (I’m not playing in this, but I help organize the SongSpace series, and I’m really looking forward to this one!)

Hear them on NPR’s Here and Now!

More coming in April – stay tuned!

As always, late breaking news and information at brianjunkermusic.com.

Stay calm, find joy! I’ll look for you out in the world!

-BJ

It’s been a good January (aside from the ICE and snow, and I didn’t really mind the snow…).  I had a great time leading the Calliope Songwriters’ Circle, and I introduced a song, Going Home, that you’ll get to listen to this weelend if you come out to the Starlite Lounge in Blawnox. It turned out I didn’t sing at the Let Freedom Sing Choir Concert, but I did run the livestream for them, with my tech colleague Nicky!  Inspiring music, as always. 

Coming up this weekend I’m splitting a bill with the very cool singer/songwriter and classic Americana performer Uncle Al, Saturday Jan 31, 7:30pm for the Starlite Invitational at the Starlite Lounge in Blawnox. David Bennett will be there on Cello and Uke (!) to spice up a few songs too!  Here’s a teaser…

…I hope you can make it!

Coming up: February Album Writing Month!

Every Feburary for the past several years I’ve participated in Feburary Album Writing Month (fawm.org), a social network for songwriters that only operates in February!  The “goal” is to write 14 songs (an album’s worth!) in 28 days.  Some write more, some write less.  I’m definitely in the latter camp — I’ll feel great if I can crank out 4 songs in February!

If you’re inclined to try it, or just to listen to some rough drafts of a very wide variety of cool music, you can register at fawm.org and look up people to listen to.

As always, late breaking news and information at brianjunkermusic.com.

Stay warm, find joy! I’ll look for you out in the world!

-BJ

What a nice December it was! With only one gig (that’s me up there in the lead photo with with Jett Downey, Susan Spangler and David Bennett for the December 21 Winter Solstice Celebration at First Unitarian Church in Shadyside) there was plenty of time to enjoy the holidays, develop some new songs and start thinking about some proper recording.

I hope your holidays brought you peace and joy, and I wish you all the best for the coming year.

January!

Three things are coming up that you might like!

Have you ever been curious about songwriting?  I’m hosting this month’s monthly Calliope Songwriters’ Circle this Monday January 5 at the Starlite Lounge in Blawnox.  It runs from roughly 7 to 9pm.  Come and see how the sausage is made (bringing your own song for feedback is encouraged but optional, especially for a first visit!).

Then on Monday January 19 the Nineteenth Annual Let Freedom Sing Choir Concert takes place at 7:30pm at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater in East Liberty.  If you’d like to sing in the combined choir there’s info on the website, or you can just come and listen to some amazing gospel music in honor of Martin Luther King.

Finally on Saturday January 31, 7-9pm, I’m playing in the Starlite Invitational at the Starlite Lounge in Blawnox, on a co-bill with the very cool singer/songwriter and classic Americana performer Uncle Al.  I hope to have one or two friends drop by to help out on a couple songs as well!

…and then it’s on to February!  Stay warm and keep music in your heart!

As always, late breaking news and information at brianjunkermusic.com (some other things are cooking for January but they weren’t ready for the newsletter yet, so check the website!).

See you out in the world!

-BJ

Hey, this is what my neighborhood looked like on December 2nd… How about yours?  I think we can safely say winter is here!  I can’t say I mind the cold as long as there’s also lovely white snow… Not looking forward to the slush though!

October and November!

I had such a nice run of shows to close out October before my November break… The show on Oct 23 with  Abbey Martin, Nadine Douds  and me at the Breezeway Home was an absolute pleasure.  Thanks to all who came out to listen to us in Dennis Inserra’s warm, welcoming space.  The very next night on October 24, I played music for the Three Rivers Waterkeeper annual fundraiser at the Pittsburgh Brewing Company out in Creighton PA.  Big space, big fundraiser for a very good cause, and big fun! Then on October 30,  Nadine Douds traded songs for travellers at the Pittsburgh International Airport.  And finally on November 2,  David Hawkins and I had a blast playing in the Ruckus Sunday Night Music at the Ruckus Cafe!

That should have been it for November, but as luck would have it, I played a couple of last-minute gigs at the Three Little Birds Cafe and Juice Bar in Allison Park — once with one of my favorite fiddlers, Alice Backer! I hope to be back there again soon, perhaps playing with more friends!

December Holidays

I’m looking forward to a restful December.  I’m continuing to take it easy, other than playing some music with Jett Downey, Susan Spangler and David Bennett for a Winter Solstice Celebration at 7pm on December 21 at the First Unitarian Church in Shadyside.

Have a great winter break too, and look for my January newsletter… I’ll have plenty to tell you about January and beyond!

As always, late breaking news and information at brianjunkermusic.com.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

Yes, I know it’s not really November yet.  But, as they say in Fiddler on the Roof, “Impossible things are happening every day!”.   And there are a few events at the end of October and beginning of November that I want to remind you of…

…and I want to thank you for coming out to support me in a great run of shows this summer and fall!  I’ll be taking a bit of a break now in November to recharge my batteries and start some new projects, but I’m looking forward to seeing you again out in the world after that!

Here’s What’s Happening Before my November Break!

Tomorrow night, Thurday Oct 23 at 7pm, Abbey Martin, Nadine Douds  and I will be playing at the Breezeway Home in Point Breeze (click the image to hear some pretty harmonies from a rehearsal — don’t forget to unmute the video!).  We’re really looking foward to singing and playing in various combinations together, and sharing some music especially for this space.  Our host Dennis Inserra invites you to RSVP, but you can also just show up at the door.

The very next night, Friday Oct 24, I’ll be providing music from 7:30 to 9:00pm for the Three Rivers Waterkeeper annual fundraiser, out at the Pittsburgh Brewing Company in Creighton PA.  You’re welcome to come support a really important Pittsburgh environmental organization, and enjoy dinner (starting at 6pm) and music (starting at 7:30)!  Full details at the Waterkeeper website.

A week later, on Thursday Oct 30 from 3 to 5pm, Nadine Douds and I will be playing for travellers at the Pittsburgh International Airport on the Airside Terminal Stage.  This is the second time for me this year, and I really had fun doing it earlier this summer.  It’ll be a first look at the newly remodelled terminal!

And finally, on Sunday Nov 2, 6-8pm, I’m joining David Hawkins to play in the Ruckus Sunday Night Music series.  Ruckus is a great coffeehouse on Babcock Boulevard just outside Millvale, and owner Chris Rautkis is such a dedicated supported of local music.  Come on out, have a cafe drink, a snack or a full meal, and help us celebrate late Fall at Ruckus!

After that, I’m taking my November break.

As always, late breaking news and information at brianjunkermusic.com.

See you out in the world!

-BJ

Upcoming Shows:

Abbey Martin, Brian Junker & Nadine Douds
7-8:30pm, Thu Oct 23
Tickets $10, RSVP or at the door
The Breezeway Home
7113 Reynolds St.
Pittsburgh PA 15208

Brian Junker
Three Rivers Waterkeepers
Ticketed Fundraiser
Friday Oct 24
Dinner at 6pm
Music 7:30-9:00pm
Pittsburgh Brewing Company
150 Ferry Street
Creighton PA 15030

Brian Junker
& Nadine Douds
3-5pm, Thu Oct 30
Airside Terminal Stage
Pittsburgh International Airport
Moon Twp PA

Brian Junker
& David Hawkins
6-8pm, Sun Nov 2
Ruckus Cafe
1707 Babcock Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15209