Album Notes

EVERY TOWN NEEDS A FOLK SINGER

The words of Michael Smith's special song, beautifully sung on this CD by Barbara Barrow, explain why we produced this project. Every town does need a folk singer, and we did have a good one in Fred. The Memorial Concert for Fred Holstein at the Old Town School of Folk Music® was an exhilarating display of talent that needed to be preserved in his memory. It sold out in 30 minutes and many who wanted to attend could not. We had great cooperation from the artists, the Old Town School, WFMT, and Rich Warren. We hope Fred's friends and fans take comfort and pleasure in this collection of songs in his tribute. As the song goes, "We had a good one, but he's gone."

The compilation begins with a song from Fred, a performance that was not previously released, heard here thanks to Rich Warren, to remind us why we miss him. The performances speak for themselves - heartfelt tributes by talented friends and admirers, many of whom teach at the Old Town School of Folk Music®. The net proceeds of this project will benefit the Fred Holstein Scholarship Fund at the Old Town School.

The Remembering Fred Group

The Artists

Ed Holstein is Fred's brother and an accomplished
performer. He is on the staff of the Old Town School
of Folk Music®, where he teaches guitar.

Kathy Cowan teaches voice at the Old Town
School. She toured with Kiltartan Road.

Fred Campeau & Mitch Thomas are long time area
musicians.

Chris Walz teaches guitar at the Old Town School
and is a member of Weavermania.

Barbara Barrow is on the staff of the Old Town
School, is a founder of Weavermania, and, with
Michael Smith, created and performed an opera,
"The Grapes of Wrath."

Tom Dundee is a popular writer and performer with a
national following.

Jimmy Tomasello is a respected teacher of guitar
at the Old Town School and a popular performer.

Steve Levitt also teaches guitar and other classes at
the Old Town School.

Michael Miles is a writer, actor, teacher and
performer best known for his banjo, and is on the
Old Town School staff.
www.magicbanjo.com

Ella Jenkins is the cherished great lady of
Chicago folk music, best known for her performances
for children and a good friend of Fred. She
recently received a lifetime achievement award from
the National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences (presenter of the Grammies®).
www.ellajenkins.com

Chris Farrell is a longtime teacher at the Old
Town School, an actor and a veteran of the great days
of Chicago folk music.

Kathy O'Hara & Diana Laffey are veterans of the
Chicago folk scene and are known for their humor.

Rick Neeley is on the staff of the Old Town School,
where he teaches banjo. He is an expert on Bob Gibson.
www.ricketymusic.com

Barbara Silverman is on the staff of five departments
at the Old Town School and, with her jug band, has appeared on national radio. She also performs with The Teflons.
www.silverbemmusic.com/barbara01.html

Al Day is another veteran of the Chicago scene, a
writer and a talented performer.

Betsy Redhed is a popular local performer whose father was co-owner with Fred and others of folk clubs in Chicago.

Ed Trickett has performed with Gordon Bok and Anne Muir and plays the guitar and hammered dulcimer.

Carolyn Ford, with her twin sister, started listening and
then playing folk music at the height of the Chicago
scene in the '60s and '70s.

Jim Craig runs Hogeye Music in Evanston, IL and
is a successful performer with many years of
experience.

Corky Siegel was Fred's roommate and classmate before launching his successful career as a blues harmonica player
and composer with Siegel Schwall Band and now his Chamber Blues group.
www.chamberblues.com

Bonnie Koloc was and is one of the great female folk voices, a great friend of Fred's and a visual artist and composer. She lives in Iowa.
www.bonniekoloc.com


Review in Dirty Linen (#117 April/May '05 page 19)

"It isn't easy for fans of folk and eclectic music to search out excellent local and regional musicians from across the country. Fred Holstein was a mainstay of Chicago folk music for almost three decades, and Remembering Fred:A Tribute to Fred Holstein is a double-disc tribute by his friends and fellow performers. Many performers on the CD are local musicians and instructors at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, but you may recognize names like Corky Siegel and Tom Dundee. A previously unreleased track from Holstein opens the first CD, setting the bar for the rest of the fine performances that follow. Apparently, folk music is not dead, just under deep cover."

Review in Sing Out! (Vol 49 No. 2 Summer 2005 p158)

This two-CD set was recorded at a tribute concert held last year for late Chicago folk singer Fred Holstein. Ed Trickett, Bonnier Koloc, Corky Siegel, Ed Holstein and others included songs from Fred's repertoire and some they thought he might like, plus there's Fred's previously unreleased rendition of "Passing Through." As Barbara Barrow sings in a new Michael Smith song inspired by Fred's passing, he was "a real good one." So is this album.--MR