A FREE In-Store Concert by Singer/Songwriter PHIL WINTERMUTE and Friends

Saturday , April 08, 2006
12:00 pm
Location: Elderly Instruments
in-store performance (free)

The alliterative 'teaser,' above, describes mid-Michigan singer/songwriter Phil Wintermute to a "T." The entire quotation from which the teaser is drawn, penned by Seth Bernard, another Michigan songwriter and developer of the Earthwork Music label, comes from Bernard's Earthwork Music Quarterly:

"Phil Wintermute is an authentic folk troubadour, the Mark Twain of the Great Lakes. With well-crafted narratives, political commentaries, topical tunes and ballads, Phil keeps it simple and thoughtful. He has the wisdom of an elder and the imagination of a youngster.
He socks it to the status quo in the name of peace, equity, and common sense, throwing in enough deadpan humor and lyrical surprises for the whole family. His timeless wispy warble is carried gracefully by clear acoustic strumming. He's here to help."

Phil says he doesn't remember when he couldn't sing. His belief in the magic of music stems from his childhood experience of being cured by the sound of his family filling the house with harmonious song. His first guitar was a Stella, which he shared with his brother Rob. Soon Phil was playing for his friends and family and performing at school functions with two friends as
The Gould Mountain Boys.

Phil spent many years as a mandolin sideman and guitar accompanist before deciding several years ago to step out of the shadows and combine his love of singing and writing, and he began building a repertoire of original songs as well as his own interpretations of personal favorites. With the benefit of many hours of solo performance under his belt, Phil is fast making his way in the rich and exciting Michigan folk music revival, working on new songs.

His newly-released CD, on the Earthwork Music label, is titled Handful o' Dirt. Phil is also featured on Earthwork Music's recent anthology, Something Fresh, along with several other Elderly employees, former Elderly employees, and other Earthwork artists who have graced Elderly's stage with in-store concerts.

Whether for Phil's political commentary, deadpan humor, lyrical surprises, or "wispy warble," stop in and see this mid-Michigan singer/songwriter "sock it to the status quo"--gracefully.

Check out recordings we carry featuring Phil Wintermute