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The

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F

olk music at one time was consid-
ered cutting-edge. Its heartfelt sen-
timents, sometimes about the'
ravages of war or the virtues of
worker unity, appealed to young and old.
In Detroit and throughout the coun-
try, the folk scene was fertile in the mid-

1950s and early 1960s, championed by
the young Bob Dylan. Herb Cohen's
Raven Gallery, first located on James
Couzens near Outer Drive, was one of
the premier venues in the city, attract-
ing national acts and opening its arms
to aspiring folk musicians in the area.
Ron Coden and Josh White Jr. were
among.the regulars, and they continued
to perform at the Raven until it closed
in the early 1980s in the location now
occupied by Sweet Lorraine's restaurant
at 12 Mile and Greenfield roads in
Southfield.
"It was a great place to perform in and

it was a great place to watch a per- Folk is alive and well in Detroit,
The two per-
according to folk veterans Ron
formance. Being a liquorless place,
formers are gear-
at that time the audience came to Coden (left) and Josh White Jr. ing up for another
more on folk, check out our
hear the performances, just the For "In
encore. Tomorrow
Focus" and "Profile"
music alone. The experiences I had
evening, they'll
stories in JN Entertainment.
performing, those are probably the
come together for
best memories," says Coden, a Hunt- a special Raven Gallery Reunion, per-
ington Woods resident.
forming sets together and separately at
Decades of rock 'n' roll, punk, disco, the Jimmy Prentis Morris JCC in Oak
grunge and hip hop dampened, but Park. Like the last JCC show, tables will
didn't kill the spirit of folk.
be set up around a stage like the days
Over the past five years or so, Coden of yore, when the boundary between per-
and White, a Detroit resident, have formers and their audiences was slight,
teamed up for a few sold-out Raven promoting an intimacy unheard of to-
Gallery reunions, including one at the day at concerts. Coffee, of course, will be
Maple/Drake Jewish Community Cen- on the menu, along with munclnes.
ter about three years ago. Coden said
"We hope to attract a lot of young cou-
about 250 people showed up, some out ples and middle-aged couples who re-
of curiosity; others for nostalgia's sake. member the Raven Gallery from their
"There's been a lot of interest in folk youth," says Leslie Bash, managing di-
music of that era, which was the mid- rector of JCC's Jimmy Prentis Morris
dle '60s and '70s," Coden says.
Building.

Coden, who began performing at the
Raven after his high-school graduation
in 1961, said he and White will do "plen-
ty of the old-time songs" by the likes of
Bob Dylan and Josh White Sr., and
some new ones, too.
"There will be plenty of sing-alongs
and clap-alongs, because that's the way
the music was in those days," he said.

—Julie Edgar

e Ron Coden and Josh White Jr.
will take the stage at the Jewish
Community Center's Jimmy Pren-
tis Morris Building at 8:30 p.m. Sat-
urday, Jan. 20. Tickets are $12.50
for JCC members and $15 for non-
members. To reserve tables for
groups, contact Leslie Bash at (810)
967-4030.

This Weekend's Best Bets

Party

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Fri. & Sat..

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Brothers Grimm
fairy-tale musical
presented by
Wayne State's Stu-
dio Theatre. Jan.
20-21, 27-28. $3.
(313) 577-2972.

Sat. & Sun. 3
1 & 3 p.m

sponsored by South-
field Cultural Arts
Division. From clas-
sical to rock 'n' roll,

Sun 5 3 p • m

II

I

on oil drums. $5.

Prudential Town
Center Atrium
(81 0 0) 424-9022.

. )

-

Annie Hall

Film and
discussion with
l'f-M Professor Ira
Konigsberg.
No charge.
Adat Shalom
Synagogue.
(810) 851-5100.

RS/DE:

JN E NTERTAINMENT

.
.
so what is folk music anyway? page 86

Janis Ian: Society's Child
in Ann Arbor. pag e 96
.
Ads with a Conscience. page 98

Reviews, Eye Spy, Calendar and more

Sun.. 7 p.m.

or The Week's Best Bets See The Calendar On Page

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