Library Concert Series Features Flying Elbows, Folk Music and More

The Flying Elbows string band will join Jemima James, Dan Waters and Al Schackman at the West Tisbury on Tuesday, July 24th, as the Tuesdays at Twilight concert series continues. The series benefits the West Tisbury Library Foundation, Inc., which is spearheading the capital campaign for the .

With her warm, truth-telling voice and her 60s-era Gibson Hummingbird guitar, Jemima James is a cornerstone of the Vineyard folk-music scene. Before moving to Martha’s Vineyard to raise her family, she played in clubs in Greenwich Village, San Francisco and Los Angeles, where she appeared regularly at The Troubadour and The Hollywood Canteen. Over the decades she has collaborated with generations of renowned musicians and has made numerous recordings.

Sharing the stage with James will be West Tisbury poet/songwriter Dan Waters and legendary jazz guitarist Al Schackman. Waters was named West Tisbury’s first Poet Laureate in 2006, and is now dedicating his energies to songwriting. Schackman has enjoyed a decades-long, globe-spanning career, playing and recording with innumerable stars including Nina Simone and Harry Belafonte.

A part of the local fabric of Martha’s Vineyard, the Flying Elbows old-time fiddle band consists of Tom Hodgson, Nancy Jephcote, Bob Hammond, Brian Weiland and Paul Thurlow. In 2010, the Martha’s Vineyard Times wrote: “When the Elbows erupt into song, often in three-part harmony, it feels unavoidable, as if they are bursting the confines of mere strings. This is not diligent, dutiful playing; it’s pure, spontaneous joy…. The Elbows are not just flying; they are smiling and well-greased.”

The Tuesdays at Twilight concert series benefits the town library’s much-needed expansion and renovation. Upcoming performers include Danna Banana (children’s performer Dan Cohen) and Tim Laursen’s Blue Elephant Robot; Nina Violet; Lilah Larson with Sons of an Illustrious Father; and many other members of the local music community.

The Flying Elbows, Jemima James, Dan Waters and Al Schackman perform on Tuesday, July 24, 7:30 p.m. at the , State Road, West Tisbury. Doors open at 7. Admission is $15, with tickets for sale at the door.  For more information, visit wtlibraryfoundation.org.