Paddle Florida Evening Entertainment

Here are many of the entertainers scheduled exclusively for Paddle Florida participants each evening during various trips down Florida's rivers. Entertainment is included in your Paddle Florida package. Check your paddler.info link (in the nav column at left) closer to the paddle date of your trip to see what entertainment we have in store for you.

Lars Andersen, outfitter and trip leader out of High Springs will present a pictorial preview of the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail. Lars leads most of the tours provided by Adventure Outpost, a North Florida outfitter. He is author of the North Florida Adventure, an educational audio cassette, sefl-guided tour of north Florida, and Paynes Prairie: A history of the Great Savanna. His Paddlers Guide to the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail compiles a lifetime of experiences and understanding of the area's cultural and natural history.

Katherine Archer
Katherine Archer visited Florida in 2002 and never left. In her own words, "I have and ongoing love affair with Wild Florida." A manatee fanatic long before she ever met one, Katherine wrote her first mandolin tune "Manatee Waltz" after her first encounters with the graceful water muse in Titusville.

“Katherine is a gifted songwriter and performer whose music possesses the rarest of qualities: the ability to hush a crowd and touch the hearts of her audience.” —Clint Partridge, Real Time Recording Studio.

Katherine is an all around, truly engaging performer. It's hard to say what she is best at– singing, songwriting, guitar/mandolin–she's mastered them all and floats her audience through a heartfelt landscape of toe-tapping tunes aimed at honoring our connection with each other and our precious natural environment.

“Archer writes and plays deftly detailed songs about stuff that few singer/songwriters touch . . . plus she writes wonderfully witty love songs and has a voice that slithers, slides and glides.” —Steve Israel, Times Herald Record, NY

“First Rate guitar player and songwriter with a voice to match. Catch her if you can . . .” — Phil Ciganer, Owner, Towne Crier Cafe, NY

Katherine is a dynamic "live" performer, creating an intimate and powerful bond with her audience. With her trademark wry between-song humor, she weaves a musical journey through love, laughter and tears.
She is active in conservation efforts and performs regularly in St. Augustine and all over Florida.

Check out her music, links and videos at www.katherinearcher.com.

Franklin Baker, Florida Watershed Coordinator, U.S. EPA Region 4, Atlanta
Mr. Baker with an informative, well-illustrated presentation will show how parts of the Suwannee River are not up to the standards of the Clean Water Act, why it's happening and what needs to be done to fix it.

Big Cypress
Country and blue grass from Randy Slaughter on vocals and guitar, with his wife Kim on vocals and mandolin.  They are joined by Randy Lewis on lead mandolin, Eric Daniels on stand-up bass and Alan Everette on banjo.  They are from Trenton, Florida and play regularly at The Barn in Lake Butler, Florida. . Dixielee1@netzero.com

Mike Devlin, of Paradise Coast Paddlers, will give a kayak talk and demonstration.

Garrison Doles, songmaker
One of Florida’s premier performing songwriters, Garrison Doles has enchanted audiences for more than 30 years with his wide ranging assortment of award winning songs. With the hands of an artisan and the heart of a poet his richly expressive voice, guitar and harmonica conjure a vivid folk and blues landscape. He travels throughout the southeast and beyond playing at coffee houses, festivals and house concerts and writing to add to his collection of original soul songs.

Most recently he was a winner of the 2008 North Carolina Songwriter Co-op song contest and he won the singer/songwriter category of the 2008 Dallas Songwriters Association song contest.

You can find out more about Garrison Doles at sonicbids.com.

Willie Green Bluesman
Delta style bluesman: Born in Montgomery, Alabama, in the early 1930s, worked many years with a rural share crop family. learned the blues early on in his teens when he would hitch hike or hop a freight train to town to hear the old blues masters in the juke joints. He is self taught on both harmonica and guitar. Has opened shows for John Hammond, Jr (who calls him "the real deal"), Tommy Castro, Charlie Musselwhite, Maria Muldaur, John Lee Hooker, Jr, James Cotten, Eddie Kirkland, Joey Gillmore, JJ Grey (MOFRO) and many others including an outdoor opener at Veterans Coloseum for Eric Clapton. He now resides in Ocala, Fl and plays regularly at the Yearling Restaurant in Cross Creek, Fl. Website.

Magda Hiller
Magda’s career as a musically diverse, intelligent performing songwriter has had her sharing the stage with Vangelis at London’s Royal Alber Hall, & folk legend Odetta at the Ottawa Folk Festival. She’s opened for or performed with acts as diverse as Bob Dylan, Chick Corea, Huey Lewis & The News, Dan Fogelberg, Al Dimeola, Richie Havens and Steve Forbert. Hiller has won “Best Acoustic Performer” and/or “Solo Act” awards for years from multiple Florida news publications. Madga’s music draws from fingerstyle guitar to jazz, blues, and country Americana, with rich earthy vocals. Magda Hiller’s music is available through Little Silver Records, CFL, P.O. Box 1121, DeLand, FL 32721. info@magdahiller.com, www.magdahiller.com.

Patchwork is five women who like to play everything from original Florida folk, country and bluegrass to forties swing and rhythm & blues, all on acoustic instruments! Featuring award-winning banjoist and fiddler Tammy Murray, the band hails from Gainesville, Florida, and performs at concerts, festivals, schools, clubs and parties throughout the state. They’ve even been known to call a square dance or two.

In addition to adding their feminine Florida flavor to special events at the Appleton Museum in Ocala, the Cummer Museum in Jacksonville and the Sunday Sampler in Dunnellon, they have also been broadcast live on national public television and radio. They are a favorite at the Florida Folk Festival, where they have graced the Mainstage for over ten years.

With the extraordinary harmonies and sisterly rapport that can only come from years of singing together, Patchwork's performances are a delight to see and hear. They bring a spirit of camaraderie and fun to all their appearances, along with the professional ease of fifteen years of playing together.

Patchwork epitomizes the idea that "Girls just want to have fun"--and they want to make sure everyone else does too!

For music that makes people feel like kickin' up their heels while managing to impart a little bit of history and education at the same time, Patchwork is an unbeatable combination!

Tom Shed
Tom Shed presents “history, humor and the human condition” in an exciting evening of music.

Florida native, singer songwriter Tom Shed has written and played music for over 30 years. Tom performs at concerts and folk festivals across the US, including Florida festivals such as the Florida Folk Festival, Will McLean Festival, Gamble Rogers Festival, and Ravine Gardens Festival. Performing on guitar and banjo throughout the US, Canada, the Caribbean, New Zealand and Australia for many years gives Tom his unique perspective of life, love and truth.

Tom has written and performed sound tracks for several films for television including “Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings” and the award winning “Archie Carr, A Naturalist in Florida.”

Tom also produces albums for fellow musicians. Most notably “Walk Proud My Son” for the late, Florida folk icon and Native American, Don Grooms.
Tom sings about real events...
• The Native American’s journey on the Trail of Tears
• The great hurricane of 1928
• The great fire of Jacksonville 1901
• A murdered politician in 1953 serves as a window into small town relationships in pre civil rights Florida.
• One man’s nightmare in a swamp gives insight into the unforgiving nature of wild Florida.

Tom also sings humorous songs about: alien abduction; experiencing unique southern hospitality while traveling; motor home mayhem on Florida’s highways; and learning to appreciate your grandmother.
Tom’s music looks at questions facing all of us as we go through life: a questionnaire for marriage?; the many faces of fear; dreaming of lost opportunities; and love at first sight.

Contact Information: tom@tomshed.com • 352.283.4848
www.tomshed.com
Tom Shed, Curly Maple Music • P.O. Box 358599 • Gainesville, FL 32635-8599 © 2005 Curly Maple Music, a Service of SCI. All Rights Reserved.

Mark Smith
For 17 years, Mark has made Florida resonate in new ways for longtime residents and visitors alike. While his musical style reflects influences from Country, Rock, Blues and even Pop, it’s his lyrics that bring people closer to the mystical and complex place called Florida, and in doing so, closer to themselves. A regular at Florida’s major folk festivals, Mark has enjoyed significant commercial and public radio airplay and has shared the stage with prominent regional and national artists. Mark Smith songs. How Florida Sounds. www.marksmithsongs.com

Raiford Starke
(a human jukebox and true American icon)
...just an ol’ hombre trying to make sense of discord and chaos with my broke-cherry red WMD (Weapon of Mass Distortion) Silvertone hollow-body guitar and a gunny sack full of songs.

www.raifordstarke.com

Ken Sulak, USGS. Ken will give a presentation, on "Those Crazy Jumping Sturgeons — What&squo;s It All About?" Gulf Sturgeon are known for their spectacular jumping displays as they travel up river to spawn.

Tammerlin – Lee Hunter and Arvid Smith
Since 1992, Lee Hunter and Arvid Smith -Tammerlin have been placing their own stamp on folk/roots music. Always aiming to convey their passion for the story.. …..this is the magic of the music of Tammerlin.   What you’ll hear is exceptional musicianship accompanying clever original songs and traditional tunes pulled from the roots of American music-a little bit folk, pop, country, old time, British Isles and blues-with some world music flavorings.  Dirty Linen Magazine has described the duo as “captivating” and “one of the best kept secrets in America.” www.tammerlin.com. 

Rebecca Zapen
Photo: Joe Parker
Violinist, vocalist, and songwriter Rebecca Zapen won Best Album & Song (cabaret genre) in the Just Plain Folks Awards 2009, receiving 5 nominations. A classically-trained violinist and versatile musician, Rebecca was named Jacksonville's Musician of the Year 2008. Recent career highlights include her performance as the musical guest on Public Radio International show Michael Feldman's Whad'Ya Know?; original songs in a national promotion for Crocs Shoes; winning 2nd in the Bushman World Ukulele Video Contest and her resulting endorsement with Bushman Music Works. Zapen was a Finalist in the 2007 DiscMakers&squo; Independent Music World Series. Other highlights include appearances as jazz vocalist with the Hollywood Philharmonic Orchestra, and as the mandolin soloist in Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra's production of Mozart's opera Don Giovanni. She is an award-winning composer, earning the Silver Medal of Excellence for Best Use of Music in a Short Film at the 2008 Park City Film Music Festival. Her original songs appear in Look Both Ways, which won for Best Music in the 2009 San Francisco Seven Day Film Festival. As a session musician, Zapen has composed for and performed on recordings for soundtracks, television, public radio, theme parks, and various musical groups. Her music has been featured on NPR's All Songs Considered: Open Mic. Past performances include Florida Folk Fest, Gamble Rogers Fest, Jacksonville Jazz Fest, and venues such as Hotel Cafe (L.A.), The Bitter End (NYC), and Paganini Auditorium (Italy). www.zapen.com