Pop WagnerDoes dear old Dad really deserve another gaudy tie/car-cleaning kit/bottle of aftershave/nose-hair clippers? Why not surprise and delight the father in your life with the gift of music and a family outing, from three of the greatest musical Dads around?

Pop Wagner sings, picks, fiddles, twiddles lassos, writes poetry and is a downright funny guy.He appeared quite frequently on Public Radio's A Prairie Home Companion during the show's formative years and for the last four decades he has worked his cowboy magic throughout 44 states and ten countries.His cowboy anthems crackle with the warmth of a prairie campfire and his old time fiddle tunes set toes a-tappin' while he serves up spellbinding rope tricks and tall stories -- all with a good dose of friendly humor.

Yid ViciousYid Vicious takes an innovative approach to klezmer through its incorporation of elements as diverse as bossa nova and ska, homages to the likes of Johnny Cash and George Gershwin, and even occasional solos. With seven members of Yid Vicious, and a musical arsenal consisting of clarinets, saxophones, fiddle, horn, vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin, prima, drums and theremin, the potential is almost limitless, and audiences are guaranteed an entertaining evening.

Bill FrisellRudy RoystonThe Cedar regrets to advise that due to a serious family emergency, the Bill Frisell concert scheduled for Sat June 21 has been cancelled. Patrons holding tickets are advised to follow the instructions here for a refund. A rare opportunity to hear guitar maven (and Grammy winner) Bill Frisell in the intimate space of The Cedar. Tonight he will be complemented by the incredibly sympathetic playing of Greg Leisz (lap and pedal steel guitar), Rudy Royston (drums), and Tony Scherr (bass).

Due to circumstances beyond our control this show has been cancelled. We sincerely regret any inconvenience this may have caused.

Nina Nastasia

Nina Nastasia's rare gift of a voice is an intimate, winged presence that is able to either freeze or melt your heart, that can powerfully soar and twist, or brush ultra-gently against you, suddenly summoning goose bumps. Mojo commented on its ability to "suck the air out of the room". Picking over themes of love, longing and loss, childhood, dreams and human dramas, her beautifully concise, hook-laden songwriting and the spare arrangements of her band have a certain gritty, rustic charm and intensity. Simultaneously tough and fragile, her songs crackle and smolder with an intimate emotional honesty and a dark undertow.

The Lovell SistersThree young sisters blend in heavenly harmony and play mandolin, fiddle and dobro. They are joined by talented collaborators on guitar and bass. The music has roots deep in bluegrass Appalachia, and branches growing ever upward and outward, towards parts as yet unknown. The Lovell Sisters Band has arrived and is making its presence felt.

HaydenCombining elements of both rock and folk music, along with disturbingly personal sentiments, dark humor, and a voice able to channel both the falsetto highs of Neil Young and the wavering raspy low tones of Leonard Cohen, Toronto's Hayden Desser has spent the last 15 years creating uniquely affecting music. Hayden, who is currently finishing up a four week US tour with Feist, will be heading out next month on a full band tour to the US, and making a return visit to The Cedar on June 27, along with a handful of other premium venues around the country. These shows will mark the first time Hayden has toured with a full band in over 3 years and comes on the heels of his new album 'In Field & Town' via his new home at the legendary Fat Possum Records.

Farmer Jason

TICKET UPDATE 6/27: GOOD SUPPLY OF TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE AT THE DOOR--PLENTY OF ROOM FOR EVERYONE TO HAVE FUN! When internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter Jason Ringenberg created his children’s music character FARMER JASON in 2003, he had no idea he was launching what would prove to be the most commercially successful creation of his storied career. With JASON AND THE SCORCHERS, he pioneered the fusion of punk rock and country that turned the music world on its ear in the mid-1980s. Their first record, LOST AND FOUND, still shows up on critics’ “best of the 1980s” lists, and there is an exhibit of them in the COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME. When Jason went solo in 1999, the LONDON TIMES called him “one of the most dynamic live performers of his generation.” Jason could rest easily, assured that his place in rock’n’roll history was secure. However, with two sweet, beautiful, preschool daughters missing Daddy Jason during his 200 dates a year touring schedule, Jason wanted to make a CD that his kids could listen to while he was out globetrotting. Since they lived on a small farm near Bon Aqua, Tennessee, and Jason grew up on an Illinois hog farm, he reckoned that a roots oriented CD about farming and farm animals was just the ticket. Hence the first Farmer Jason CD, A DAY AT THE FARM WITH FARMER JASON, was born. He released it “purely for fun” in the fall of 2003, delighted to hear his daughters singing along to songs like THE TRACTOR GOES CHUG CHUG CHUG and A GUITAR PICKIN’ CHICKEN. That was the peak of his ambition for it. To his surprise, soon lots of other daughters and little sons were singing along as well. Disney’s magazine FAMILY FUN called it “one of the Top 5 kids’ CDs of 2003.”

Boiled in LeadIn the midst of their 25th year of performing their unique blend of Celtic rock'n'reel, Boiled In Lead have retained a freshness and vitality that escapes far younger bands. The current BiL lineup of Todd Menton (vocals / guitar / mandolin / bodhran / whistle), Drew Miller (bass), Dean Magraw (guitar), David Stenshoel (fiddle) and Robin "Adnan" Anders (drums / percussion) features uniformly great musicians who each bring a lifetime of far-flung musical exploration to the Boil.

SiYAYA: Photo by Kurt MosesSouth African townships are overflowing with talented young people - singers, dancers and musicians. Poverty, the lack of opportunities and HIV/AIDS often results in all of this talent going undiscovered. Rev. Spiwo Xapile, director of the Zwane Community Centre in Guguletu, South Africa and Bongani Magatyana are determined to change this. Bongani Magatyana, an accomplished musician and composer, has formed SiYAYA - a performing group made up of 12 musicians who live in the townships surrounding Cape Town. In January of 2004 Magatyana held auditions and within a month the newly formed group was rehearsing daily at the Zwane Centre. Very quickly, word got out about this exciting new group and offers began coming in for SiYAYA to perform throughout South Africa, including an invitation to perform at Cape Town's prestigious jazz festival. Within a year, SiYAYA had recorded their first CD. In May of 2005, SiYAYA made their U.S. debut in Minneapolis. The Open Arms community was overwhelmed by their talent and the wonderful response from people.

Habib Koité: Photo by Dirk Leunis

[Habib Koité] sings his stories with soothing amiability, inviting you in, beguiling you with the implicit notion that the song he sings may be your history too... The telepathy among the members of Bamada is what you might expect of a sextet that has experienced few personnel changes over 20 years. Live, over the elastic braid of their interplay, Koité's voice alternately smoothes and scuffs the lyrics as if brushing them with suede. He's a global griot for the 21st century. (Britt Robson, Minnpost.com)

The must-see world music show of the summer, and a great kickoff to Twin Cities Pan African Festival! Malian guitarist and singer Habib Koité is one of Africa's most beloved and popular musicians. Featured in last year's Acoustic Africa tour along with Vusi Mahlasela and Dobet Gnahore, this show will be a whole evening's worth of Habib's high-energy, infectious rhythms, and sheer exuberance. His band Bamada features traditional instruments such polyphonic hunter's horns, alongside balafón (wooden xylophone), and n'goni (a Malian lute), and is the perfect complement for Habib's fluid kora-inspired guitar and soulful, earthy vocals. Lots of room for dancing!

Massive sale of 10,000+ LP records and books, music posters, memorabilia, videos, magazines!

Hours:

3pm--9pm Fri Aug 22

10am--6pm Sat Aug 23

noon--6pm Sun Aug 24

FREE ADMISSION! Refreshments and a full range of Cedar 20th Season tickets available for purchase (no service fees for cash, check or credit card purchases!).

Massive sale of 10,000+ LP records and books, music posters, memorabilia, videos, magazines!

Hours:

3pm--9pm Fri Aug 22

10am--6pm Sat Aug 23

noon--6pm Sun Aug 24

FREE ADMISSION! Refreshments and a full range of Cedar 20th Season tickets available for purchase (no service fees for cash, check or credit card purchases!).

Massive sale of 10,000+ LP records and books, music posters, memorabilia, videos, magazines!

Hours:

3pm--9pm Fri Aug 22

10am--6pm Sat Aug 23

noon--6pm Sun Aug 24

FREE ADMISSION! Refreshments and a full range of Cedar 20th Season tickets available for purchase (no service fees for cash, check or credit card purchases!).

Lucy Michelle and the Velvet LapellesOrange Mighty TrioThe Cedar’s 20th season kick-off event is free to the public and features storyteller Kevin Kling and local musicians Orange Mighty Trio and Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles. The event is sponsored by Schell Brewery. They will unveil one of their limited edition drafts, and your feedback will help Schell choose an anniversary beer in 2010. The event will also kick-off The Cedar’s “Light the Marquee” fundraising campaign which will fund the long-awaited renovation to The Cedar’s historic marquee.

Punch BrothersPunch, brothers! punch with care!
Punch in the presence of the passenjare!

So goes the annoying jingle from Mark Twain’s amusing story of an early ear worm that spawned the name for virtuoso mandolinist/composer/singer and Grammy winning Nickel Creek-er Chris Thile’s latest project: Punch Brothers (formerly the How to Grow a Band), where Thile on mandolin and vocals is joined by Greg Garrison (Leftover Salmon, Ron Miles, Tony Trischka) on bass, Gabe Witcher (Willie Nelson, Randy Newman, Beck, Jerry Douglas) on fiddle, Chris Eldridge (Infamous Stringdusters, and son of the Seldom Scene’s Ben Eldridge) on guitar and Noam Pickelny (Leftover Salmon) on banjo. The project is an ambitious one, with the group’s debut release Punch (Nonesuch) a song cycle featuring at it’s core a 40-minute four-movement chamber bluegrass suite called The Blind Leaving the Blind, chronicling the story of Thile’s marital breakup and its aftermath through impressionistic lyrics that fall somewhere between a confession (directed, variously, to his listeners, to his ex, and to God), and an impassioned, late night, barstool soliloquy. Together, these performers helped Thile to realize the most conceptually daring, emotionally cathartic work of an already impressive career. Bluegrass, jazz, chamber and pop—all come together in a complex, but highly rewarding work that lead the New York Times to proclaim “expands the frontier of an emerging style of what might be called American country-classical chamber music.”

Damien DempseyPart Van, part Bono, part Christy, and at times part Bob (Dylan or Marley, take your pick), powerhouse vocalist Dubliner Damien Dempsey puts a ton of energy into his passionate songs, and represents the undisputed new roots voice of Ireland. Damien has previously provided all-too-brief opening sets in Minneapolis for Sinead O'Connor and The Swell Season; this is his richly deserved local debut as a headliner. Openers tonight will be local Irish roots band Sweet Colleens, creating a doubly sweet opening weekend spectacular.

Eight HeadCome and help us show our deep appreciation to Bill Kubeczko, our leader and Artistic Director from 1993 until this past May. So many of the things we've come to love about The Cedar are the direct result of his efforts and talents. Just a few years back, Eight Head (Dean Magraw, guitars, Marc Anderson, percussion, JT Bates, percussion, and Jim Anton, bass) were Bill's favorite "house band," so it's only fitting that they are the hosts for this special event. And look for some very special guests to join in over the course of the evening including Ruth MacKenzie and Sowah Mensah!

A Velvets-Beefheart-Zappa stew with Czech lyrics, free jazz saxophone, grungy viola, crunchy guitar solos, etc., but what makes it unique is the applause. This audience knows that rock & roll can start a revolution and set you free: It happened. (Steven Merritt, Time Out NY)

They've been called "the greatest obscure rock band of all time." Their name comes from a Frank Zappa song, their fame from being suppressed and jailed by Czechoslovakia's communist regime. PPU was just a psychedelic '60s band until the government took exception to their music. Forced underground in 1976, they played concerts at such venues as the barn at Vaclav Havel's country cabin. Their persecution was one of the factors that generated Charter 77, the manifesto criticizing the government and advocating for implementation of human rights, which gave its name to the dissident movement that swept the communists from power in 1989.

One of Hungary’s most popular contemporary bands, Little Cow was conceived by László Kollár-Klemencz and his creative partner Igor Lazin in order to provide songs for their ‘Little yellow cow’ animations. From that auspicious beginning, the band in its current line-up began in 2005, brought to prominence by the incredible success of their song Szájbergyerek (Cyber boy). Although the video clip was not broadcast by any commercial channels, it became wide-known and popular via the internet. The song become a huge hit in the Hungarian music industry and was chosen as the ‘Song of the year in Hungary’ in the Fonogram Awards.

Joan As Police WomanSinger, songwriter, pianist and violinist Joan Wasser spent the 1990s and early '00s in alternative rock groups, including The Dambuilders and Those Bastard Souls. Her skill on the violin made her an in-demand supporting player, tapped to collaborate with acts such as Lou Reed, Antony and the Johnsons, Sheryl Crow, and Rufus Wainwright. But a few years ago, she set out on her own under the name Joan as Police Woman, inspired by the character portrayed by Angie Dickinson. She earned raves for her emotional, punk-informed take on American soul music on her debut album Real Life. In June 2008, she released her second album To Survive, a homage to her mother who had died recently of cancer, and filled with stark, unusual imagery, with song titles such as To Be Loved, To Be Lonely, and To America (with vocals by Rufus). A highly distinctive, compellingly strong new female voice! Aviette will open.