Old-Time Jamboree

As the solidifies its reputation as the area’s live music hotspot, coveted Saturday night slots are hard to come by. Almost by accident, unassuming local musician Frank Pergola has created a monthly Saturday night hootenanny that shines the spotlight on a revolving coterie of area musicians.

As the evening, known as Frank Pergola and Friends, began to take off last Fall, café owner Peter Vouras offered Pergola a percentage of the evening’s sales during his shows. But Pergola didn’t feel right about being the only performer getting paid, so he and Vouras decided to donate the proceeds to local charities, including the Shelton Food Bank and Stratford Cat Rescue.  

“There’s a big scene of musicians around here and at this venue, people get exposed to players they would never meet otherwise,” said Pergola. “And it’s great because this is more of a listening room. Sometimes people are talking and having fun, but a lot of nights, you can hear a pin drop because the audience is so rapt.”

Pergola, who lives in Ansonia, filled in a couple of nights for the host of the café’s bluegrass open mic and the evening evolved from there. Soon to retire from his position as a postman in Shelton, he plans on taking mandolin lessons and spending more time playing with his bands The Stimulus Brothers, Cornbread and the ZuZazz Orchestra.

During his evenings at the cafe, he performs the opening set, often with friends, and then turns the proceedings over to three or four musicians who play roughly half-hour sets. Often, he will invite all the performers, along with musicians in the audience who brought along their instruments, to participate in a big jam at show’s end.

“There are no rules, no restrictions,” said Pergola. A blend of folk, country, country-friendly rock and lots of blues creates a rootsy, hippy-friendly vibe. The presence of so many musicians in the audience raises the bar for the onstage proceedings.

“Huntington Street Café has gotten to be a good little place in Shelton,” said Dan Williamson, a live sound tech who has attended several performances at the cafe. “Folksy bluegrass music isn’t huge in Connecticut, but there are a lot of pockets and this is one of the best places. And also, there’s an open mic that brings out younger kids playing younger open mic music.”

Last Saturday, Pergola kicked off the proceedings with a fingerpicking good rendition of “Never Going Back” by Fleetwood Mac with guitarist Rich Patchkotsky, whose solos inspired bursts of applause.

Lots of gear, including several guitars, two stand-up basses, a tambourine, a mandolin and several pieces of sound equipment, jammed the stage area along with a large stack of cases. Pat Plankey brought her big bass to play on two tunes.

Pergola yielded the stage to Tom Manna, who wielded a twelve-string guitar and sang, playing stirring blues and a rip-snorting rendition of “Dueling Banjos.” Kent Aldrich opened his set with a humorous ballad about Tiger Woods sung to the melody of Old McDonald, complete with chicks and hoes, of course.

Bill Morrell and his band impressed the crowd with smooth, laid-back country selections featuring nice three part harmonies with bass player Dennis Collin and guitarist Jimmy King. Scott Camara’s dobro added an ethereal drone during the songs and an exotic alternative during solo passages.

During the band’s set, Rosalia Bircks and her husband, Martin, exchanged the thumbs up sign. The couple, who live in northern Bridgeport, have attended around 15 shows at the café and had stopped by on the way to meet friends at Two Boots in downtown Bridgeport. The easygoing atmosphere reminds her of establishments in her native Italy.

“We love to come here because the volume isn’t overwhelming,” she said. “We like this kind of music and the food is great.”

That’s exactly the kind of reaction Pergola is aiming for. “What’s the definition of folk music?” he asked. “It’s music for the people and what we've got there is one big collaborative stage.”

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