Mike Peters will make a special guest appearance at the Light Of Day (Wales), Benefit Concert (Parkinson’s Disease), at the Tape Community Arts Centre, Berthes Road, Old Colwyn, North Wales this Saturday evening (7.00 pm), 30th November, along side Mercury Prize winner Badly Drawn Boy, Jesse Malin (Degeneration), Joe ‘D’Urso and US recording artist Guy Davis.
Badly Drawn Boy – or Damon Gough to use his real name, is Lancashire’s answer to Folk Americana – his own music style has achieved critical acclaim….along with the occasional tantrum and tambourine throwing when the audience don’t pay attention! Gough plays a variety of instruments to accompany his vocals – so expect guitar, keyboards, banjo, clavinet – and anything else he can get his hands on to entertain.
Mike Peters has performed at the Light Of Day (Wales), concert over the last few years and it was at one of these events a few years back the Mike heard Willie Nile performing ‘One Guitar’ for the first time.
Jesse Malin has recorded with Bruce Springsteen and Ryan Adams – amongst others. Another Light of Day favourite, Jesse makes a welcome return to this annual event – and with a new album pencilled for release in 2014, listen out for a batch of new tunes from this favourite song-smith.
Guy Davis plays some of the coolest acoustic blues you will ever hear – and with influences from Skip James through to Taj Mahal, he has the credentials and experience to be right up there with the greats. Davis has even acted off Broadway as the legendary Robert Johnson – so no greater ‘Crossroads’ accolade is needed!
Joe D’Urso makes a welcome return to North Wales – taking a break from his latest recording work with Stone Caravan in New York. where he has been collaborating with Willie Nile and [Little] Steven Van Zandt. Joe will be singing his new songs – as well as old favourites to get the house rocking in his inimitable style.
There will be special guests on the night – including Maeve O’Boyle and Rob Dye – so get your tickets early for a 7pm kick-off on Saturday November 30th at TAPE Community Arts Centre, Berthes Road, Old Colwyn. This will be a evening jam packed with top musicians – taking to the stage together and joining in with each others music in a songwriters circle. The concert will benefit both Light Of Day and Love Hope Strength Foundation.
For more information and tickets visit: www.wegottickets.com
“I want to wish Bob Benjamin, all of the musicians, and all my friends who are attending the Light of Day shows the very best for a great series of concerts….. I just wanted to give a shout out to Bob, Joe and all the musicians who make it such a great night.”
– Bruce Springsteen
ABOUT LIGHT OF DAY
Light of Day is a New Jersey-based 501 © (3) organization which funds research into possible cures, improved treatments and support for persons suffering from Parkinson’s disease and related illnesses. The primary fundraising efforts are an annual series of concerts held in Asbury Park, NJ. Since its inception in 2000, Light of Day has raised over $2 million in the fight to find a cure for Parkinson’s disease. What began as a single concert in New Jersey has grown into thirty-five shows in twelve countries throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe.
The concerts and the organization began as a birthday party in November 1998 to celebrate the 40th birthday of artist manager and music industry veteran Bob Benjamin. Benjamin had recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system, and in lieu of gifts, asked that donations be made to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. Over $2,000 was raised that night. Spurred by the generosity and support, Benjamin reached out to friends, including concert promoter Tony Pallagrosi and musician Joe D’Urso, and formed the Light of Day charity, taking its name from a Bruce Springsteen song.
The first official Light of Day concert was held at Asbury Park, NJ’s legendary Stone Pony in November 2000 and primarily featured local, unsigned artists. The critically acclaimed Pittsburgh-based band Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers (managed by Benjamin) headlined the show, which featured a surprise appearance by local hero Bruce Springsteen, who joined the Houserockers for a raucous hour-long set.
Over the years Light of Day has grown from a one-day event into a five-day festival in the New Jersey/New York metropolitan area. More significantly, Light of Day has expanded into an internationally recognized tour, through a true grassroots effort of musicians, music fans and benefactors. Light of Day shows take place around the world, including six shows in Canada and a two week December trek through Europe, with stops in England, Wales, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Spain and more. Portions of the proceeds from each show are donated to a local Parkinson’s organization.
Performers at Light of Day have included Bruce Springsteen (numerous appearances), Michael J. Fox, John Rzeznik (Goo Goo Dolls), Ed Kowalczyk (Live), Jesse Malin, Alejandro Escovedo, Willie Nile, Mike Peters (The Alarm), Garland Jeffreys, Jakob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, Badly Drawn Boy, Pete Yorn, Gary US Bonds, Joe D’Urso and Stone Caravan, John Eddie and many more local unsigned artists.
Light of Day also fields a team in the annual Parkinson’s Unity Walk in New York’s Central Park. Over the years the Light of Day team has raised $80,000, which helped the Walk raise over $3 million for Parkinson’s research.
The Light of Day concerts have received print, online and television coverage from many outlets, including the Asbury Park Press, Rolling Stone, Time Magazine, Billboard, New York Times, NJ Star Ledger, Home News Tribune, Aquarian Weekly, New Jersey Monthly Magazine, Backstreets.com, CBS Early Show, NBC Nightly News, WWOR Channel 9 News and more.
An award-winning documentary about Bob’s battle with Parkinson’s and the history of Light of Day (with extensive concert footage) was produced by Ohio-based Flat Broke Productions and released on DVD by Virgil Films in 2012. To order, visit the Light of Day Store www.lightofday.org/store or buy directly from Virgil Films.www.virgilfilmsent.com/store/product. The documentary is also available through Amazon, Hulu, Netflix and other VOD outlets.