Username: Puppet Maggie
Date: Monday, June 08, 2009

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Ahoy! Puppet Maggie here to report on the 2009 Port Washington Pirate Festival. I once again appeared with Bounding Main and, if I do say so myself, I enhanced their performance. I was sporting a new pirate hat, instead of my snail shell garland, and felt very fetching. However, you boys should know that I am a married puppet, and a mother, and I carried my new son in my arms all weekend to provide it! So back off! I was out and about quite a bit on Saturday but took it easy on Sunday. Actually, come to think if it, after a “meeting” with The Jolly Rogers, I really was in no condition to perform so the real live Maggie had to pick up the slack. She made a surprise appearance at the event on Sunday, and frankly, took the pressure off me to do anything other than look good, search out new kinds of food to try, and plan evasive maneuvers in case The Jolly Rogers tried to kidnap me-they did have a nine hour drive back home on Sunday you know! Don’t worry about me though, I am bunking with the Twins again and am perfectly safe. Good-bye for now. See you at Bristol!

Username: Gina
Date: Monday, June 08, 2009

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Anotherrrrrrrr “summerrrrrr” weekend has past and with it the 2009 Port Washington Pirate Festival! (There were no tornadoes this year but it wasn’t 80 degrees and sunny either. Hence the quotes around the word “summerrrrrr”.) Bounding Main joined hoards of scoundrels the weekend of June 6 to celebrate the fun side of pirates. The festival entertainment included the Guild of St. Michael who shared their knowledge of historic traditions and weaponry, and of course they brought their cannons-they always pack their cannons and that’s part of the reason we adore them! The beautiful belly dancers of Rakhshanda graced the faire site as did other entertainers too numerous to mention. There was a pirate invasion, a parade, fireworks, and cruises on the tall ship “Windy.” (Although why you'd want to go out for a boat ride is beyond Gina.) Musical entertainment was provided by the likes of Water Street Bridge, The Jolly Rogers and, of course, Bounding Main. We were also overjoyed to see Maggie in the crowd! No, not Puppet Maggie, the real Maggie. And she brought her wonderfully patient husband and her perfect 11-day old son! They stayed all day (Maggie’s husband is a saint) and were showered with affection from Bounding Main fans from all corners of the festival.

Other high points of the weekend included spending time with The Jolly Rogers, who despite their fervent denials, are true musicians/vocalists/artists who have been kind enough over the years to share their wisdom and experience with us. This year, we stayed up until after 2 AM chatting with them and we loved every minute. Watching them perform and just spending time with them is one of the highlights of our year. We miss them already and are currently plotting ways to get together again.

Gina provided additional excitement for the weekend by falling down the stairs in the hotel. She somehow missed landing on her knife, pewter mug or camera. Bounding Main came to the rescue -- well they ran over with a camera to snap a photo of her in a heap at the bottom of the stairs and THEN helped her to her feet. No really, the photo that will be posted in the Photo Gallery is not a re-enactment but a shot of her exactly as she landed! If you’ve spent any time with us you know we cannot resist a unique photo-op!

For everyone who missed this event-too bad for you-it was fantastic and you should come out next yearrrrrrr. For those who attended-thank you for coming to ourrrrr shows and for supporting the events that allow us to share our music, and puppets, but mostly music. See you all at the Bristol Renaissance Faire July 11-12, 2009!

Username: Puppet Maggie
Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2009

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I’d like to introduce myself, I am Puppet Maggie and I had a wonderful time at the Janesville Renaissance Faire on May 16 and 17, 2009. I got to meet and chat with all sorts of Maggie’s fans and everyone was ever so nice to me (except Jon) and sent well-wishes to the real Maggie as she nears motherhood. I do have to say that some of Bounding Main could have been a bit more gentle with me (Jon) or at least warmed up their hands before picking me up (Jon)! After all, I am pregnant you know! I simply cannot be shut in chests or folded in half (Jon). Thank goodness the Twins are here to make sure that I remain healthy this summer. Despite David’s begging, I went home with the girls so you do not have to worry about my recovery before the next show. Also, Dean was a perfect gentleman the entire weekend and never once tried to put his hand up my skirt! After his initial shock at my appearance in the first show, he was kind, but a bit chatty especially as I’m not sure I even have ears. Anyway, I look forward to the next show where I will hopefully get more stage time. Kisses to you all!

Username: Gina
Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2009

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Ahoy Mates!!! Ah ha! I gotcha! Someone out there, either in their own minds, or even better, out loud, responded with an “Ahoy Bounding Main!”. We just love you guys! Anyway, Bounding Main had a wonderful weekend at the Janesville Renaissance Faire on May 16 and May 17, 2009. The weather was sunny, and aside from some wind on Saturday, it was a good weather weekend. Everyone that worked the event was simply delightful, and the show so well run, that we had yet another good year at this event. If you have not visited this faire, schedule some time to visit next year. You will see some familiar faces, some new ones, and have oodles of fun. This year, we were able to spend time with some very talented performers and reconnect with Bounding Mainiacs that we have not seen in several months. Those that showed up in costume were very handsomely dressed, and those are comfy clothes, well, we envied them a bit as the wind made it chilly! We didn't notice the chill on Saturday as there was music, food, drink, a variety of shows, and stunning wares crafted by gifted vendors. The only thing missing from the event was Maggie. As you know, she and her husband are just days away from having their first child so she will not be performing with us this summer. Never fear though, we could never forget her and she was still very much part of our show. Check out the Photo Gallery to meet Maggie’s TEMPORARY replacement. Thank you to everyone who sat through all of our shows and helped us share our particular brand of music and humor with Janesville. Special thanks to Ray for his addition to our show, and to Dave for the Fig Newton cookies that proved that our fans are not fignewtons of our overactive imaginations! (Also-to our friends in the very fancy costumes-you know who you are-thank you for the laughs as we watched you chase your hat all over the site. That wind was wicked and certainly took a liking to your hat! We were glad you caught up with it and if we weren’t so lazy and windblown ourselves, we would have sent the Maggie replacement to help you chase it down!) We hope everyone made it home safely and are planning for a return visit next year.--+--Thank you, as always, for your support of our music and the things that just pop into our shows. Without you all, well, we'd be on the street and no one wants that.--+--Fair winds friends!

Username: Gina
Date: Saturday, March 28, 2009

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Congrats to our own David Yondorf who is credited (in print and everything!) for staging the Fight Choreography for the show Private Lives which will go up at the City Lit Theatre from March 20-May 3, 2009. Go to www.citylit.org for information on tickets. Great job David!

Username: Gina
Date: Saturday, March 28, 2009

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March 21, 2009

Whooooo-hooooo!”

“A capital ship…”

“Snort, laugh, crunch.”

“The timer’s set!”

What do all of these phrases have in common? They were all heard during our First Annual (that’s how much fun it was-we are already planning to do it again next year) Bounding Bonding Spring Break! That’s right, Bounding Main left everyone else behind and headed out for an overnight Spring Break event where we could relax and just have fun together. We’ve been working so hard these last two years that we thought we needed a little Bounding Bonding time so we took ourselves out to the water park and spent the day in the slides, tubes, and lazy river. Oh, and there was eating and snacking too. We would never deprive ourselves of necessary fuel! We didn’t intend to perform but as we were floating in the hot-tub, a gentleman came up to us asked us if we were Bounding Main! We said that we were (despite the change in costume-Maggie’s swim attire was truly amazing) and he stated that his daughters were big fans of our show. Their father owns a shop at Bristol and as he does not get out to see the performers, and his two young daughters were so cute, we offered to share a tune in the tub, so to speak. So we all floated to the end of the pool and sang “A Capital Ship” for them! Later in the day we ran into a stilt-walker that was juggling and Jon, of course, couldn’t resist tossing a pin or two. We explained who we were and then sang a bit for him since he let Jon juggle and get in on his act. We then went out to dinner and as we had an hour before our table was ready, Jon decided to help us sharpen our skills a bit and we learned a new barbershop tag! Then back to the hotel for more eating and general Spring Break fun! Did I mention we all stayed in the same room? Bunk beds and all? Lots of laughing and giggling in the dark and not a lot of sleeping. Photos of the event will be posted soon so check in on the Photo Gallery for updates! Whoooohoooo!

Can't wait for Bounding Bonding Spring Break 2010!

Username: Gina
Date: Tuesday, March 03, 2009

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The organizers of the 2009 Chicago Maritime Festival have once again outdone themselves! This year’s event was held on February 28, 2009, at the Chicago Historic Museum. The festival was a spectacular gathering of nautical aficionados who joined together to share their love and knowledge of all things maritime. There were lectures and classes available on almost any topic you could imagination, including one lead by our very own Gerard Heidgerken! If lectures and demonstrations were not enough for you, there was also music! Musicians from far and near appeared together to inspire audiences with unique maritime music. We were delighted to see our new friends from the Lierliet Festival (Workum, Friesland) Patrick Denain and Miguel Biard who actually hale from High Normandy. Patrick and Miguel were in fine form and impressed audiences throughout the day. Chicago should be proud that this festival draws such unbelievable International talent to our city. The United States was also well represented by the incredible music shared by David Coffin, The Johnson Girls, Tom Kastle, Chris Kastle, Dan Milner, and the singers from the Old Town School of Folk Music. Bounding Main also made appearances at the event and shared songs in the sing-alongs that opened and closed the daytime festivities as well as two additional performances: Songs for Younger Sailors and Under the Black Flag (pirate music). We shared the “pirate” set with musician Dan Milner whose lyrical music is a fine example of the power of one voice. We were honored to share the stage with such a talented performer. We also spent time (meaning we sang, chatted and snacked) with several Bounding Mainiacs and we can’t thank them enough for supporting this important local event. A special pat-on-the-back goes to our very own Dean Calin who provided additional support for this year’s event by designing the website for the festival! www.chicagomaritimefestival.org/

Username: Gina
Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2009

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January 24, 2009, found us comfortably set-up in Fon du Lac, Wisconsin, for our first performance of 2009. Bounding Mainiac Ray hosted a folk-music type House Concert complete with signs posted along the road to allow even the most directionally challenged (cough-Gina-cough) to find the venue! There was good music (if we do say so ourselves), tasty food and everyone was there to have a great time hanging out with Bounding Main. Friends, fans and newcomers to our shows shared an evening together that included the audience singing to us to celebrate our 6th year together (the anniversary of our first rehearsal was on January 19) and we were even given hot-pink buttons announcing, “I’m 6 Years Old Today”! Thanks guys for thinking of us! We acted our age by generally being silly, eating lots of sweets, putting on strange costumes, and telling jokes…poorly. There was even a pirate-chest piñata stuffed with candy and high-quality plastic toys! Ray and his friends were wonderful hosts and rigged the piñata line up for us at the last minute to add that wee bit of nonsense that makes Bounding Main who we are. Thank you again Ray, and everyone who helped set-up the event, for all you did. Thank you to all who attended the event and went with us on our first voyage of the year. And thanks to all who spent some time simply chatting with us between sets and after the show. A special "thanks!!!" to Sandy for taking photos for us-you can see her work posted in the Photo Gallery right now! To close, we never want you to forget that we know, without you all, we would be singing to ourselves! Ahoy Mates!

Username: Maggie / Ray
Date: Sunday, January 25, 2009

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After last night's house concert at Ray Fisher's house, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to him for setting the whole thing up and having it run so well. It was a fun show! And it was all thanks to Ray's hard work. But good egg that he is, Ray wants to send a thank you out to the attendees. So here it is, along with his thoughts on the concert: -+-Thank you Mainiacs! -+-Thanks to everyone who made the show. Despite the cold weather, we endured. We endured the frostbite, waiting for the Pinata to fall to pieces. We endured Jon, no, suffered, when he blinded us with almost no shirt. Good Food, good drink, good music, and the company of friends. We were only tempted to plug in the jukebox once. In short, it was a success. -+-Thank you Bounding Main. A good time was had by all. It was requested, by several, that there be a show here again when the weather is warmer. (Although I like the cold. In fact, the colder it is, the less chance we'll be blinded by Jon while he's "barely capable") -+-Thanks again to everyone who made the show a success - In other words, everyone. It couldn't have been done without you. -+-A special thanks to my friend, Bill, who spent a few late nights, helping to clean, and organize the garage and to install enough lighting for the show. Without your help, nothing would have been completed on time, and we'd have had a very dark show. -+-Also, Thank you Allison, Bill's wife. I appreciate your quick work on the Bounding Main signs early Saturday morning. -+-We'll hopefully see everyone again for the next "main event". -+-Ray

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, December 12, 2008

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Bounding Main shivered their timbers through their very first holiday performance this December. What better way to spend a crisp, clear, December 6th day (and evening), than by traipsing around the quaint town of Port Washington, Wisconsin, and spreading fa-la-la’s and yo-ho-ho’s throughout the town. We had a truly lovely time at the 2008 Port Washington Christmas on the Corner event and send a big thank-you to the organizers, participants and attendees. Take a peep at the photo gallery in a few weeks and we will have some pictures posted! The ladies looked lovely in their capes and fancy hats, and the boys, well, they looked…interesting…in their holiday outfits. After all, we are a summer maritime group so we had to improvise a bit to add some holiday spirit to our costumes and our music. We put some holiday spins on some of our maritime music, put some maritime spirit into some holiday music, and even sang some actual holiday tunes as well. We took a ride in a two-horse-open-wagon, waved at some real live reindeers, saw Santa as we marched in the parade, and watched the fireworks over the water at the end of the evening. Oh, and of course, what holiday event would be complete without the Milwaukee Brewers giant sausages! Whoo-hoo! Or rather, whoo-ho-ho-ho, as the case may be. A chilly but wonderful time was had by all and we hope that the event continues to grow each year!

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, December 12, 2008

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Bounding Main took center stage at the Skokie Theatre on November 15, 2008, for their first, all-on-their own, it’s-all-up-to-them, oh-my-goodness-what-have-they-gotten-into, auditorium show. What can we say, it was AWESOME! The theatre was within a few tickets of being sold out, the crowd was excited and Bounding Main was in rare form. For the first time Bounding Main was able to project lyrics to songs for audience members who wanted to sing-a-long, show pictures from events, pick on specific members of Bounding Main, and honored their good friend, and perfect travel companion Mr. John Wohlers, by presenting him with a stein to commemorate our trip to Germany. We had special appearances by a pie, a hoola-hoop, introduced some new songs, and made some special announcements. The Photo Gallery will of course contain pictures of the event very soon. For those of you who missed the show, and it was a spectacular amount of fun, never fear! We are already booked for 2009! Mark your calendars now for the show on November 14, 2009. We are already cooking up new bits of fun for that special show. Plus, for those who have come to see us in the sizzling heat and cold rain, it’s nice to be inside for a change!

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, December 12, 2008

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Bounding Main is excited to report that they made it outside the country, and perhaps even more shocking, back into the country, for the second time this year! We were honored to participate in the 2008 Lierliet International Shanty Festival in Workum, from October 17-19, 2008. For those of you scrambling for a map, Workum is located in the country of the Netherlands and is in the province of Friesland. We spent a wonderful October weekend singing, eating, and basking in the wonderful atmosphere of the town and the festival. Our hosts, Ankie and Nanne, the crew of the In Dubio, and our fellow musicians Miguel Biard & Patrick Denain, Johnny Collins & Jim Mageean Derek & Julia (Trim Rig And A Doxy) and 't Scheepsfolk and our new friends, made the experience one we will never forget. From our first night sleeping on the ship, In Dubio, to watching the historic boat races at the end of the weekend, we were embraced and welcomed by everyone we met. The pictures that will be posted in our Photo Gallery will give you only a glimpse of what was a magical weekend and we hope with all our hearts that the traditions we were a part of continue for years to come. Thank you to everyone in the United States who sent us well-wishes and good thoughts for our trip. Thank you to the hosts and organizers of the Lierliet event, and thank you to the people of Workum who are supporting the events that keep their maritime heritage alive. We cannot wait for another opportunity to visit and may just pop over again in a few years to visit the festival and see our Friesland friends again. We miss you all already!

Username: Dean
Date: Thursday, December 11, 2008

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Holy cow! It has been since July since we last posted on this log? Well, we took up posting on our travel blog for our European adventure, and life gets in the way sometimes. -+- We completed our last gig for 2008 - it was great fun, if very cold: The Port Washington Christmas on the Corner & Christmas Parade. -+- We already have gigs lined up for 2009 and 2010, we're talking about a fourth CD and how we'll deal with yet another Bounding Baby (this one will be Maggie and her husband Dave's)! -+- Happy Holidays to all of you. My year with Bounding Main has brought me great adventures and strong emotions and I count my blessings every year to be so fortunate to be in this group. I hope each of you has love and joy in your lives. Dean

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, July 18, 2008

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Dateline July 12-13, 2008, Bristol, Wisconsin. Bounding Main appears at the Renaissance Faire and Jon is silent for two days. Yes, that’s what I said. Jon was silent for two days. It took a gag and a huge amount of strong-arming to keep him in line, but, we did it. Jon had laryngitis and was not allowed to speak, let alone sing for the entire weekend. This of course was killing him so naturally the rest of us had a wonderful time teasing him. He on the other hand, had a wonderful time writing notes on his little chalkboard and just generally stealing the show from us. Again. Or still.

We generally ran around the faire like a band of crazy people, as usual, and met up with old friends and new. The faire is filled with talented artists, both musical and otherwise, and we were happy to be in such good company. We had perfect weather, perfect audiences, and just too much fun. Tons of people lined up to support Operation Share the Shanties and now those in service in the U.S. Military in Germany will benefit from their generosity and kind words. Look at the Operation Share the Shanties page for details about our special visit to the military hospital and airbases and let us know if you want to help support Operation Share the Shanties.

Thank you to everyone who shared their time with us over the weekend. Know that we are grateful, always, for your support of our music and of course, our silliness.

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, July 18, 2008

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Arrrr! Ahhhhhhhhh! Yep, that’s pretty much how it went at the Port Washington Pirate Festival from June 6-7, 2008, in Port Washington, Wisconsin. At first there were a lot of ‘Arrrrs!’ yelled at us by fellow pirates and patrons. Then there were “Ahhhhhhhhhhs!” followed by, “Take cover!” yelled at us by fellow pirates and patrons. That’s right. For year number two, we were forced to abandon our ships, or rather stages, and take cover due to dangerous weather. We were told that the Windy II was in port but the fog was so bad we’re not sure she really showed up! You just can’t trust a tall-ship, cheeky devils.

So Bounding Main headed inside the Holiday Inn and then down into the basement, and then into a ballroom. We had looked all over for our friends The Jolly Rogers (fantastic group and just wonderful guys-see their shows whenever you get a chance!) but had to then give up as lost and finally settled ourselves on the floor of the ballroom. While lying around on the floor, we decided to try and sing like that. Then someone asked for another song so we had to sit up. Then we were asked to sing another song and had to actually stand up. Before we knew it, the crowded ballroom was singing along to old favorites and learning the ways of Bounding Main. They were, after all, a captive audience so we ended up doing a full-blown show just for them. Turned out that was a blessing as soon as they all clear was announced, the festival cleared the grounds and off we went. For some folks, we may have been the only pirate musicians they met that day.

Sunday was a bit better but once again we were instructed to take cover and this time we joined up with the other musicians and made our way from tent to tent taking turns leading songs. It was a pirate parade all our own and was just too fun to put into words. Well, perhaps ‘yipee!’ might work but that’s not very pirate-like. We hope to try this again next year, rain or shine, and we’ll be there putting on shows on stage, in banks, and in basements if we have to. Just you try to stop us!

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, July 18, 2008

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It. Was. Awesome. Simply awesome. The Bounding Main Extravaganza hosted by Bounding Main on May 31, 2008, was just good clean fun!

 We held the event in the beautiful Gorton Center in Lake Forest, Illinois, and had the honor of opening the afternoon and evening concerts starring Moonie & Broone and held in the auditorium! Then Moonie joined us for a few songs during one of our sets. Really, it was just that cool. Between the competitive bidding on the Deport silent auction items, the pictures of us from years gone buy, our old costumes on display, songs, the jokes, talking with everyone who attended, and the cake…oh the cake, there was not a moment to spare. If you needed something to do for four hours, this event had it all! It was a perfect afternoon and evening.

We thank everyone who donated items for the silent auctions and everyone who won a bid and took home one of the treasures. We thank the Bounding Mainiac Volunteers for all of their help throughout the event. (If you look at the pictures, they are sporting spiffy yellow sashes complete with Deport Bounding Main Pins!) We thank Deb for making that amazing 5 year anniversary cake for us, it had a fountain and columns and everything, and for making it so yummy that people just had to have seconds (cough David, cough). Thank you to each and every one of you who put your seats in our chairs and joined your voices with ours. Without you, we would not have this wonderful opportunity to appear at the Festival Maritim in Germany. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. (That’s a “thank you” from each of us!)

Username: Dean
Date: Sunday, July 06, 2008

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Ahoy, mates!

I had the distinct pleasure of spending the afternoon with our old friends Nanne Kalma and Ankie van der Meer - who appear on stage simply as "Nanne & Ankie." They are on a cross-country tour of America, having connections in Virginia, Chicago, Madison, Washington State and California. These two took leave from their teaching jobs to reconnect with their friends, work some shows and network for future opportunities

We first met this charming duo at the Chicago Maritime Festival in 2006. We quickly fell in love with their energy and charm and utterly brilliant musicality. Though most of what they sang was in Dutch or Friesish their songs left you spellbound. We have met many international performers through this and other venues, but we have never had a warmer connection with any other artists as with these two.

Nanne and Ankie are the musically creative forces behind the Liereliet festival in October in Friesland, to which we've been invited to perform. We spend some time discussing the event over coffee in my living room, which was very nice. We also discussed news of friends in common, gig opportunities for everyone and life in general. It was such a very nice time, cut too short by their demanding schedule and their having to meet up with Tom Kastle and Mariah Clark in Madison later this day.

I am completely excited by the upcoming event, and am SO very glad we're staying over on the Monday to watch the Strontrace. This is going to be such a fun event!

Username: Gina
Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2008

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Hey! Haven’t I seen you someplace before? Yes! Yes, you have seen us someplace before and that place was the Janesville Renaissance Faire! We spent a delightful weekend in Janesville, Wisconsin, the weekend of May 17, 2008. We sang songs and told jokes (sometimes simultaneously), and laughed our collective tuckus’s off all weekend long. The organizers of the faire and all of the staff and volunteers simply outdid themselves. There were tons of gifted vendors and artists, creative cooks and talented performers all gathered together to create a wonderful weekend experience for all who entered through the gates. Everyone we met in Janesville was kind and supportive of the event and we just could not have asked for a better experience. Plus, we got to spend time with some old friends and see what they were up to. Greg and Heath have a sidesplitting two-man show that you simply must see. John W. has branched out and is now selling a nifty little craft that I just had to have. Juli’s booth glimmered with exceptionally crafted jewelry, and Shelly and Healther’s booth was filled to the brim with divine teas, lotions, jewelry, bubbles, and more! If you did not get a chance to stop in this year, pencil it in now for 2009; it’s never too early to plan for fun! See you all again soon!

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, January 25, 2008

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You missed a GREAT show on January 19, 2008, if you didn’t attend our CD Release Party! We all cuddled up close and sang songs, told stories, shared memories, and guessed how fat Bounding Main really is!

A wonderful time was had by Bounding Main when we celebrated the 5th anniversary of our very first rehearsal and the release of our third CD, Going Overboard. We all gathered together at Paddy’s Pub in Milwaukee for the celebration. We celebrated by performing all of the songs off of our new CD and we even included a set where the fans determined the song list by demanding their favorite songs from Maiden Voyage and Lost at Sea. We had friends from as far away as Connecticut, Indiana and Green Bay, join us for the evening. We also had a mini-fundraiser where for $1 you got to guess how much Bounding Main weighed, in costume, and the winner took home a basket of our favorite goodies complete with cut-outs of Bounding Main affixed to each kind of candy so you now know our weak spots! Congrats to Pirate Poli for winning the basket with his guess of 1,020! The correct total was 1,045.

Now, the rest of you scurvy, landlubber, crusty, pirates! A curse on you! Someone guessed that we weighed 1,110 pounds (Deanna L.!)! Plus, this person (Deanna L.) wrote out her individual guesses on the back of her entry slip so we can now obsess about how much she thinks each of us weighs. Aaaa!!!!! Another of our “fans” (Mike C.) guessed 1,371 pounds (Mike C.)! That’s 228.5 pounds each (Mike C.)! Ouch! Good thing we gave away the candy! The lowest guess came from Julie G. who kindly thought our group weight was 777 pounds. That’s 129.5 pounds per person. We adore Julie but think maybe she needs to sit closer to the stage the next time! One other person’s entry read, “Huge. I mean really huge. Giant even.”. That one may have been slipped in by someone within Bounding Main. Wonder who that could have been…

Anyway, Pirate Poli won some candy, entrants got to have fun guessing “Just how BIG is Bounding Main”, and we put a few more dollars into the Deport fund.

Thank you to everyone who attended! Without you there are no shows, just rehearsals.

Username: Dean
Date: Monday, January 21, 2008

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Bilgemunky played our birthday greeting during his show tonight, and during his “adult” show, Bilgemunky After Dark, he played “Blow Liza Blow,” because, “well it wasn’t dirty, but the title is, you know, “Blow, Liza, Blow.” There was a lot of favorable reaction to the song: 

<PearlyNecklace> this is a kick ass song <Chane_Schot> aye <PearlyNecklace> I have chills <Smylingsnake> = kicked arse <Chane_Schot> nice, we lykes this we do <PearlyNecklace> this is amazing <CapnJake> Thanks, Pearlynecklace! <Chane_Schot> these mates are gettin' good.... <Captain_Bob> GETTING good? <Chane_Schot> not that they never weren't <Smylingsnake> funny how well a capella goes with pirate tunes <LustyLil> good harmonies, not easy <LustyLil> me like it! <PearlyNecklace> mesmatizin <BloodlustyLynnne> I be quite tone deaf.. ne'er can I accomplish that <PearlyNecklace> wow “Captain Bob” is Bob Brinkman from Marooned, who put together the Lafitte’s Return CDs

BILGEMUNKY

Username: Gina
Date: Thursday, January 10, 2008

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What? Nothing new on the Ship’s Log? I’ll fix that! Hello again dear friends. I am here once more to regale you with tales from Bounding Main. The past few months have flown by as we finished recording and producing our third CD, Going Overboard! Did we? Yes, in fact we did go overboard, thanks so much for asking! We’ve also been preparing for an evening of fun with friends and fans at our CD release party/5-year anniversary party set for January 19. I have to confess that the six of us have not been together in the same room since, well, since we finished recording the CD. We’ve gotten together in small groups to work on various tasks and have a bit o’ fun, but we haven’t gotten all of six together in the same room for weeks and weeks and weeks and weeks. Why, that's well over a month! Maybe even two! What does that mean for you, well it means that if you are lucky enough to join us for the CD release party you will be in for it! Why do I say that? Well, past experience has taught me that when we don’t see each other for a long time, we actually store up silliness and smart-aleck comments and when the cork blows who knows how far it will fly. You might want to get ready to duck! Plus, we tend to forget the words to songs, trip over one another, etc. etc. It should be something to watch and listen to. I’m just sayin.

Miss you all and hope to see you on January 19!

Username: Maggie
Date: Wednesday, December 26, 2007

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On our way home last night, my husband and I were listening to a special Christmas edition - an all-music show - of Lake Effect on WUWM, Milwaukee's NPR station. They were playing their favorite groups, and yep, you guessed it -- they played Bounding Main. It was "Mingulay Boat Song", the live version we did in their studio in September.  Neato!

CLICK FOR LARGER VERSION

Right at the beginning of the show they said, "Lake Effect has featured many world famous musicians such as blah blah blah ... and many local musicians including blah, blah, and Bounding Main. So crazy!

Dave said, "My wife is famous!!" : )

Username: Gina
Date: Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Hello friends!  I have been remiss in my duties and have not written to you, dear readers, in a fortnight, or really a fortnight’s fortnight or something like that.

August 29, 2007

Let’s see, where were we when last we spoke, or rather written and read . . . ah yes, the Lake Effect radio program!  On August 29, 2007, we bounded into the studio in Milwaukee to appear on the Lake Effect radio show on Wisconsin’s public radio station.  We had a wonderful time doing our ‘live’ taping and got to chat with the host about doing what we love.  What could be better than that! Oh, yeah, editing out all the dumb stuff we say.

September 9, 2007

After that we were honored to help Crystal and Brian Norrick celebrate their recent vows. We had a delightful time singing and chatting and send our best wishes to the happy couple!  Thank you Crystal and Brian and The Keith family for allowing us to be part of your wedding celebrations.

September 14, 2007

Whoooo-hoo! A free house concert!  As many of you know, our second day at Bristol was rained out. Boooo! Well, we couldn’t have that so we invited everyone that we knew was planning on coming out to see us at Bristol over for a house concert.  We had a packed house, literally, and spent a glorious few hours putting on a show for those who missed us at Bristol.  We also recorded the show with the hopes of including a few ‘live’ tracks on our upcoming CD!  Oh, and did I mention our friends and fans dressed in costume and brought food?  Costumes, music, food, no rain and NO mosquitoes - priceless.

September 29 & 30, 2007

Then we were off to St. Louis for the Greater St. Louis Pirate Fest.  We were invited to sing at the Lesser St. Louis Pirate Fest but we declined.  Anyhoo, we dressed as pirates, told pirate and fssssh jokes and sang songs to our mates in Missouri.  The weather was beautiful and we had the opportunity to sing on a new stage.  Everyone was just great to work with and we had a wonderful time in St. Lou.

(See now why I haven’t written in a awhile, phew, we were busy!)

October 6 & 7, 2007

Hot, so very, very hot.  Oh yes, it was over 100 degrees on stage at the Fisher’s Renaissance Faire in Indiana.  We thought, ohh, this should be fun. A fall faire! It should be sunny and cool. Oh we were so very, very wrong.  Maggie said our stage was like singing in an Easy-Bake Oven and she was right. Check out the pictures to see how we dealt with the heat. Other than the scorching temperatures, we had an awesome time, met some great new people and generally just had a fabulous ol’ time.  It’s good to be us even when we’re cooking from the inside out.

October 19, 2007

We went on a Land Cruise!  Yep, we hosted our fall fundraiser on October 19 and took a bus load of our craziest fans to a corn maze to navigate in the dark! We sang, we got lost in the corn maze and we made s’mores. Those of you that missed this event can check our photo gallery to see what it was all about.  If you want to contribute to our antics and help us get to Germany next year, click on the Deport button on the homepage to contribute.  Stay tuned for more fundraising fun with Bounding Main!

Now…it’s after 11:00 PM on October 30, 2007, and we are in studio mixing tunes for our next CD.  We’re tired but we’re not hungry as we’ve been eating good food from our kingdom (ask me about that sometime) and Halloween candy. The candy is keeping us going and we are burning the midnight oil, or we will be before we get out of here, to get the CD to the press. Hang in there and stay tuned for more Bounding Main.

Username: Jon Krivitzky
Date: Wednesday, August 29, 2007

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You know, there are times when we get to do really cool stuff in Bounding Main.

A fan of the show, Lt. Cdr. Matthew Shirley in the U.S. Navy, was retiring from the military and he asked us to perform at his official retirement ceremony on August 21st. Having no idea what was involved, but always interested in anything military, we immediately agreed.

I got on base without a problem. I was early to help set up any sound equipment we might need (which we didn't end up using, but I get ahead of myself). I kibbutzed with various uniformed personnel . . . everyone seemed to be a captain or a lieutenant or some high ranking member of the Navy. Quite intimidating to be sure, but they were extremely friendly and warm.

Anyway, after about an hour, I realized that no one else had shown up yet. Previous calls had indicated that the rest of the crew was only a few minutes behind me. Subsequent calls explained the situation. For some reason, everyone except me was considered a “visitor” and had to go to the visitor’s center for official parking passes.

Considering that the line was very long and that the ceremony was scheduled to begin in less than a half hour, the Navy leapt into action. A friendly officer jumped into his SUV and drove over to the visitor’s center to pick up the crew and their gear. They arrived with mere minutes to spare, none the worse for wear but perhaps a bit frazzled.

We talked for five minutes and got into place. We opened with Mingulay Boat Song (on Matthew’s request) and we were off.

The ceremony itself was incredibly interesting. There were formal elements interspersed - the calling of officers to the fore with a true boson's whistle, the presenting of the colors and the flag, the opening prayer (non-denominational) . . . but there were also some humorous and heartfelt speeches from friends and fellow officers.

 We were particularly honored to sing the national anthem at the event. There’s something truly special about singing the Star Spangled Banner for an audience who has sworn themselves to defend our country. It was amazing.

Matthew’s speech was instructive, funny, and truly emotional. This is a man who has demonstrated true success – truly something that everyone could admire. At the conclusion of the speech, we sang “Leave Her Johnnie”. I intend no disrespect to any of our fans when I say that this was the most special performance of that song we’ve ever had. The repetitive call to “leave her” was poignant and more meaningful than ever before.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, Lt. Cdr. Matthew Shirley formally asked permission to disembark. We all got a bit teary eyed when his commanding officer said “Permission granted.”

We closed with “Marching Inland” as the participants left the dais. We weren’t given much attention, but, for perhaps the first time ever, we were very happy to let the spotlight shine elsewhere.

We sang some more songs for atmosphere and Matthew came by. We sang him “The Mermaid” and our modified version of “Strike The Bell”, which he loved (not surprising as he had written the words for us!). We talked for a while and then we grabbed some refreshments.

You know, when you get right down to it, Bounding Main is a just bunch of nutty adults running around acting like children. It is an incredible and unique luxury that we have the opportunity to do what we do. In many parts of the world, the idea of having a hobby like ours would be considered ludicrous and, in some cases, criminal. The central reason behind why we are successful is that we are lucky enough live in a country that supports our freedom to express ourselves in safety. Even the poorest among us are so wealthy that we can take hours or days off from our lives to don a silly costume and sing songs that most people have never heard of.

We have that freedom because there are people like Matthew Shirley and his fellow officers who do their job and do it so admirably. They have sworn themselves to protect the constitution of the United States and to keep its inhabitants safe from all enemies foreign and domestic. We can all go to work, spend time with our families and, yes, cavort around dressed like pirates, solely because there are individuals out there defending our right and ability to do so.

We in Bounding Main owe Matthew Shirley and others like him an enormous debt of gratitude. It was a true honor to be a small part of the ceremony celebrating his achievements.

Jon Krivitzky

You can see pictures of this event here: http://bounding.wohlershome.net/gallery/album97

Username: Dean
Date: Sunday, August 14, 2007

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We were all very excited to return to the Kenosha Days of Discovery event! We entertained with Tom & Chris Kastle back in 2004 and this was the first time since then that Kenosha held this event again.

Great fun! They had plenty of wonderful tall ships from nearby ports like Milwaukee and Chicago and from other Great Lakes locations and far ports as well. (For all the details, visit their web site at http://www.kenoshadaysofdiscovery.com/)

We arrived before noon so that we could wander the grounds, sing to the lines of people waiting for deck tours of the ships and generally be seen. While we were waiting to go up on stage we boarded one of the very fun Kenosha trolleys and sang to the passengers to a very good reception.

We had a great time on stage, introduced by Tom & Chris Kastle and David HB Drake. The sunburned audience received us warmly (no pun intended) and kindly supported us with gifts for our Deport Fund and the purchase of our CDs.

It was really fantastic to be able to see so many tall ship crewmembers that we've come to know over the years of performing at maritime events. (A warm "ahoy" to Mariah Clark of the Friend's Good Will currently being captained by our friend Tom Kastle.)  It means a great deal to us to be welcome into this community of adventurers and heroes.

We participated in the closing ceremony that brought together event managers, the shanty singers and crewmembers of various tall ships. We sang an eclectic group of songs and retired from the event with a laugh and good wishes. It was a fantastic event that we hope keeps going regularly!

Dean

To see photos from this event click here.


My favorite pic from this event!

Username: Dean
Date: Saturday, August 11, 2007

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On Friday afternoon I was having lunch at Gyros West in Waukesha, Wisconsin, reading the Weekend Cue section of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Amongst the various interesting reviews (including one of a cool place Bilgemunky introduced me to, Barnacle Bud's) I saw an ad on page five for the Pirates Exhibit at the Door County Maritime Museum

I realized that not only had we sung for the members-only opening night for that exhibit, but that our music was featured in a kiosk in the actual exhibit. The gravity of that really hit me: Bounding Main's music is in a museum. Lord, if only my parents were alive to know about this, they would have been so proud!

Then I came to page nine and found an ad for Kenosha Days of Discovery, happening this very weekend. We were asked to sing an hour's set on Sunday afternoon, and were especially asked by the organizer, Candy Eisenhower, to sing at the closing ceremony with Tom & Chris Kastle.

And then, back on page 15 I discovered an ad for the Bristol Renaissance Faire. We are appearing there in two weeks!  This was the show from which each of the six of us in Bounding Main started off and knew one another:  Dean and David from fight cast, Gina and Christie from the Falconer Show and Jon and Maggie from the madrigal groups.

I thought, how amazing and fortuitous it is that in one newspaper I found three ads for three events in which Bounding Main is involved. I am so proud of my mates in this crew, and count myself so fortunate that so many people have discovered our music and loved it enough to request it, buy it, recommend it, sing along with it and to welcome us into their hearts.

Another great note:  one of our dear friends and supporters (Hi, Norma!) recommended us to the local public radio program Lake Effect.  The producer of the show, in very short order, asked us to appear on an upcoming show.  We're working out the details for our studio visit even now.

I can't even begin to describe how positive I feel about life because of the success of this group.  The love and affection I feel for this troupe of maritime misfits is only surpassed by the joy I feel every time we perform together.

Life is so very good!

Username: Dean
Date: Sunday, August 7, 2007

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I'd been hoping that we could get into the Port Washington Maritime Heritage Festival since our first year at the Port Washington Pirate Festival. The Pirate Festival producer, Kim McCulloch, let us use the restroom of her store, The Portico, to change into costume. On the walls were posters of various events, including several years from the various Maritime Heritage Festivals. Seeing that they had tall ships and music, it seemed like a natural fit for us. After three years and a change of hands we were finally invited to perform for the weekend by Sara Grover, the organizer of this year's event and a shop keeper (Heart N Home Treasures), herself, in Port Washington.

After a fun and challenging evening in Saukville on Friday night we all found ourselves in the familiar grounds of Port Washington's Rotary Park on Saturday morning, where we'd performed recently at the Pirate Festival. There were a great many vendor and food tents set up in a very different configuration than at Pirate Fest, which was slightly confusing, as was the fact that there were no less than three events going on in Port that weekend (including a Flea Market on Franklin street and I believe a Kiwanis Club event out by the Yacht Club). We fueled up at the Dockside Deli (great breakfast sandwiches!), chatting for a while with some German visitors over for a business meeting at their American Branch nearby. They were very kind and not only donated to our Deport Bounding Main fund, they also bought a set of CDs!

We got our bearings and strolled about the grounds, singing to groups of visitors in the park, entertaining the crews and guests on the schooners Appledore and the Madeline. The folks from Riley and The Gleasons were very fun and talented and The Gleasons had us join them on stage for a very up-tempo version of South Australia! Our old friend David HB Drake shared a stage with us for a song, too! Good times.

Saturday night we dined with friend Jen Reusch at Beanies in Port Washington. Beanies is a great Mexican restaurant with great food, fun drinks and the most amazing bar seats you'll ever see. Make a point to visit Port Washington for a meal there if nothing else! After events wrapped on Saturday we retired to the Super-8 hot tub for a little relaxing and reflection on the day - very nice.

Sunday was a bit drizzly and the crowds weren't quite as thick as Saturday, but there were still responsive audiences to entertain and we met a great group of new friends in the Coast Guard Auxiliary. David was asked to speak on a Ham Radio station, the girls got to cozy up to some Coast Guard members. Jon pummeled each of us in some fashion during our performances. The girls wore fake moustaches - we hit all the musical high points!

The weekend ended quietly, due to the rain. We raised a good amount of money toward our Deport fund, sold quite a few CDs, made a bunch of new friends and came home with many good memories.

Dean

To see pictures of this event, click here.

Username: Maggie
Date: Thursday, August 02, 2007

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The Wisconsin Renaissance Fair, in its second iteration, was even more impressive than its first year. More permanent buildings, more food, more entertainment, more shops, but still retaining all the friendliness and energy its inaugural year boasted. We had a wonderful time, with friendly audiences and welcoming cast and crew. Favorite moments (as I can think of right now) ... Jon beating up on a poor unsuspecting patron in the front row at one of our shows ...the crew singing our hearts out in the pool at our hotel and actually gathering an audience ... numerous moments of frivolous joy with the Jugglenauts ... hanging out the window of front gate for photos ... and just overall lots of fun and smiles and joyous company.

Username: Dean
Date: Monday, July 30, 2007

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What a great opportunity we experienced recently with Jim Hurley’s group of corporate events! He put together pirate-themed receptions and dinners for two great companies, Badgerland Farm Credit Services and AgStar Financial Services.

We first ventured up to The Heidel House in Green Lake, Wisconsin for rare mid-week appearance for Badgerland. The German-themed resort accommodated two evenings of 140 and 160 attendees for the financial services company. There were many employees that dressed up for the events and MeetingSmart really put together a great environment for their evening's pleasure. Not only did the Badgerland employees have all manner of games and gambling tables outside during the reception, there was a great deal of drink and appetizers available for them as well. The first night we tried singing for people outside, amidst the bars and tables, but given the volume of ambient noise and the other distractions that effort merely wore us out. The next night we settled for some marvelous acoustics inside the building as we greeted the employees - and then our show after dinner. The shows that we were able to present were reasonably short, as our typical shows go, but we “shanty caroled” from table to table both night, and the people seemed to really enjoy that. I brought the CEO of the company, Diane Cole, on stage for “A Rovin” which everyone seemed to enjoy greatly.  Of course the girls performed a spectacular "Cadgewith Anthem," which outdid my meager performance.  (If you don't know of what I speak, then you have to come see us perform live!)

AgStar held their meetings of 600 employees per event at the remarkable Chula Vista Resort in the Wisconsin Dells. MeetingSmart really did some incredible things with the environment for these events, simulating both a storm at sea and an entire crew gathering for an elaborate mess together. For both nights we performed on a round stage in the center of the room which proved to be both fun and challenging. We were joined by a fine actor from Minneapolis, Scott Jorgenson, who played “Capt. Jack Emu” the master of ceremonies for both nights. He and Bounding Main wandered the tables, he throwing pirate banter about, we singing themed songs as requested and finding most people jumping into the opportunity to have fun and playing along. We opened with two songs after which dinner was served. Then we “shanty caroled” from table to table during dinner and then did our main show as dessert was being served.

After all four night's performances we were regaled with the kindest of compliments and the sweetest praise from both the employees and their families. It was an absolute pleasure to be able to entertain for these two fine companies. Jim Hurley and his MeetingSmart crew put together some amazing events and we hope he is able to carry on this successful theme party to more businesses in the future.

Username: Bounding Main
Date: Friday, July 06, 2007

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Ah, June 23, 2007 . . . a date to remember. Bounding Main hosted their first ever BBQ to support our efforts to ship ourselves over to Europe in 2008. Twenty of our wonderful fans bid on tickets to the “Deport Bounding Main BBQ” via eBay and joined us for an afternoon of outstanding food, fun and entertainment. Each attendee was well fed and hydrated, and each received their very own “Avast” card which entitled them to stop us at any time during the event and demand, yes that’s right, DEMAND, whatever Bounding song they wanted to hear. We also shared a preview of a new song we are working on and a few original tunes that have only been shared with the public a few times. We played an aggressive game of croquet, a strange game with blocks of wood that a guest brought-so much fun, and we sold water balloons to promote fun and games against Bounding Main. Everyone had a fantastic time and a few folks have already committed to coming to our October outing to raise funds to “Deport Bounding Main!” All attendees left with a box of homemade cookies and an autographed photo of Bounding Main. We expect our faces to be lining birdcages and covering dart-boards any day now.

We can’t thank our guests enough for sharing their time with us, playing games and throwing water balloons at us, and most importantly, supporting our music and our efforts to share our brand of shanties with the world. You have touched our hearts with your generosity and your spirit. We are honored to call you fans but consider you all friends.

Username: Maggie
Date: Monday, June 04, 2007

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What a craaazy weekend! Bounding Main performed Saturday and Sunday at the Port Washington Pirate Festival. Tons of people attended: eating, drinking, shopping, strolling, singing, sailing, and sitting through pirate battles and various other entertainments.

Our good friends the Jolly Rogers were there, and it was lovely hanging out with them, walking the parade together, joining forces in song, and generally having a laugh.

At about 2:15 on Sunday afternoon, the town whistle blew. For any Midwesterners reading this, you know what that means -- a tornado touched down nearby, and everyone needs to seek shelter. Well. Try telling that to thousands of people walking about at an outdoor festival. Good thing there were permanent buildings nearby. A whole lot of us ran into an abandoned bank (sooo cool in there, and we got photos). There was a heavy rain and some impressive thunderclaps, but no funnel clouds for miles. Other than some rain soaks, everyone was fine.

Through it all, our fans really stepped up all weekend - even after the weather scare, plenty of people stuck around. We made lots of new friends and saw plenty of old pals at our shows. Thanks to everyone who came -- laughing at our jokes, singing along with our songs, buying up our buttons and CDs -- in short giving us the energy and gumption to make it through a zany festival!

Username: Gina
Date: Monday, May 21, 2007

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Wow! What an audience! What a performance! Bounding Main traveled to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, on Saturday, May 19, 2007, and had a picture-perfect evening performance at the Renaissance Hotel. (Hey, why’d we go all the way up to Fond du Lac?) We performed in a wonderfully appointed room surrounded by tables covered with white linen and lilacs nestled in blue vases (not very nautical if you ask me!). We sang several songs, mostly featuring Maggie come to think of it. The room was pretty, the audience exceptionally appreciative (wonder why that was…), and we had all put forth some extra effort to look especially stunning for the show. We sold CDs and buttons to support the Deport Bounding Main campaign so it sure sounds like one of our shows, right? However, we only sang for about 30 minutes even though the crowd wanted more! After we sang, Maggie said she was done and forced everyone to leave the room. For some reason, we all did exactly what she said. Then again, she was wearing a tiara. Wait a minute…a TIARA? Something isn’t right. What is it, what is it? The Mainiacs were there. We saw John, Jen, Julie and Carl and Chris and Molly. We saw the Spitzer family. We saw Richelle, Sandy, Tzvia and Shira too. Lots of parents showed up for the show as well. Maggie’s parents and Gina and Christie’s parents and even Dave Wentzell was there with his parents. I feel like there is a part of this story that I am missing. Lets see, white linen, flowers, lots of friends and family, a tiara, Maggie was breathtaking in her green and orange costume…no, that’s not right. She was breathtaking in a long white gown. Dave Wentzell was there and ever so handsome in a tuxedo but why would be wear a tuxedo? And the Bounding Main boys were in suits? What the heck. Oh, Christie was in blue so that’s right but I was in blue too! And we weren't wearing fish and snails in our hair. We were wearing satin gowns. Ahh, right. We were at MAGGIE and DAVE’s WEDDING! Bounding Main sends all our love to Maggie and Dave who were married on May 19th. The day was absolutely perfect and we can’t imagine a better way to spend a Saturday then joining the people we care about as they say “I do”. May Maggie and Dave know nothing but happiness and joy in their life together. Congratulations to them both!

Username: Dean
Date: Monday, May 21, 2007

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This is a terrible tragedy for tall ship and maritime history aficionados:  The last clipper ship, Cutty Sark, may have become the victim of arson.  See this article.

Username: Dean
Date: Saturday, May 12, 2007

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Dean's Reflections for his ship mates on post-Pirate Exhibit Opening at the Door County Maritime Museum

I had a wonderful day on Saturday. I took a nice drive north on 57/42, stopping at Shipwrecked Restaurant, Brew Pub & Inn in Egg Harbor. I saw on a billboard that they were now bottling their own beer and I've long been a fan of their pumpkin brew. Stopping in, I discovered that they don't have that available until fall, but Jason the bartender and I struck up a conversation which worked its way around to him getting very excited about Bounding Main, saying that the owner really would love a sea shanty group to perform there. The owner was not available, but would be in contact with me later via the information I left on the business card that a very talented person in our group designed. (Gig possibility #1)

Then I stopped again in Egg Harbor at Bay Trading Co. The owner is a fellow Chicagoan, formerly in the salvage business and now he and his wife run an "Antique and Craft Mall Specializing in Architectural Antiques." I commented on the fact that he had over twenty real ships wheels, signal lights and a wide assortment of oars; he said that he has people that set nautical items aside from him in Florida, Louisiana and other points on the coast. This will be good information to share with our maritime aficionado friends traveling to Door County for the Pirate Exhibit. He also said that his son recently purchased a bar and restaurant called Casey's in Egg Harbor that he was renovating, but would be interested in hiring entertainers when he opens. (Gig possibility #2)

A little further north I stopped at a coffee shop called The Bridge. It is a tranquil little place that sells a variety of beverages and sandwiches and also sells used books. It has a bright, airy atmosphere that is very relaxing. I like to stop in here whenever I'm in Door County.

I head north again, enjoying the view of the bay on my port side and all of the quaint shops, inns and homes. My last stop was in Sister Bay at Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant. I had a great shaved ham sandwich on Swedish Limpa bread with a cup of split pea soup. I love the sod roof of the buildings on their property and the goats that live on top of the buildings - very cool stuff. I don't have a lot of ties to my Swedish heritage, so this is a fun way to revisit a touch the family history.

I missed making Gig possibility #3 because when I drove through Fish Creek I didn't spot The White Gull Inn, that often hosts folk musicians. I sent them an email which never received a reply, so I wanted to stop in to meet and chat up the owners. I'll have to make sure to make another trip to Door County to make this happen.

Richelle was grilling a Teriyaki Salmon at home, so I turned the car around and got home shortly after 7:00 and had a lovely dinner and evening with my wife and furry kids.

On Sunday I took Richelle out to lunch for Mother's Day at The Yardarm in Racine. (Shiloh, Azja and Starbuck ARE our kids, after all.) We both had buffalo burgers which were simply amazing. Richelle got her sand dollar potatoes which she so craves and I had a very piquant Sweet and Sour Cole Slaw, the likes of which I've never had before. I also was able to enjoy a very interesting new Leinenkugel product called Summer Shandy, which is very much like the Lager & Lime I like, but is actually beer and lemonade combined, which ended up being very light and refreshing.

Then to work off the food we pulled thistles, mowed and whacked weeds. A few long walks, including a long one down to and along the lake front by the Racine Zoo completed a truly relaxing and wonderful weekend.

I can't say enough how much I enjoyed our brief yet fun show at the Pirate Exhibit, and even more so, our very fun, fun, fun time together at the resort together afterwards. You people are wonderful and amazing and I can never get enough of you.

Username: Dean
Date: Tuesday, May 01, 2007

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I can't do it justice, I'm still recovering from the events of last weekend at KidsPlay's PirateFest in Indiana. There are web site updates to do, a script for the Port Washington Pirate Festival to rewrite, a business plan for an endeavor of mine to write, equipment that needs to be hooked up to my computer and for the love'a . . . I need to get to the gym!

I can't find the energy to talk about all of the incredible adventures we had this weekend, the amazing reception we received, the kindness and goodwill we were shown by so many wonderful people. It was honestly one of the best performance events we've had, and I'm still emotionally overwhelmed by it all.

Holy cow . . .

Username: Dean
Date: Sunday, March 23, 2007

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This is bold news about our friends aboard The Denis Sullivan, giving a daring midnight rescue to some wounded and sinking fishermen in Florida:

Read all about it here.

I can only say that this is yet another example of the fact that our friends on tall ships are living the life that we sing about. They are real heroes in the real world and should be praised for their work and heroism.

Great Job, Friends!

Username: Christie
Date: Monday, March 19, 2007

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Erin Go Braugh!

Several members of Bounding Main traveled to Doyles Pub in Richmond, IL, on St. Patrick’s Day (ah tee tee tee tee!) to see the fabulous Seelie Court. If you have never seen them, well what are you waiting for? They are fantastic! Do you own one of their CD’s? If not, then you have never met John Wohlers. He is a CD selling machine. In fact, (and this is just shameless) he sold a few of ours at the Seelie Court show. (In our defense, Dean, Maggie and the Twins each bought Seelie-Court CD’s that night.) And did I mention that several of the Ladies were asking John about his Utilikilt™? John, you rascal you!

Anyway, the members of Seelie Court are not only musicians, but Jon, Jessie, and Lindsey are entertainers too. Great to watch, wonderful to listen too. Just go to www.seelie-court.com for more information on them. Christie, Gina, Maggie and Dean were able to make the trip and it was well worth it. Not only did we get to visit with Seelie-Cult/Bounding Mainiacs fans John W., Chris and Molly, Jen, Steve and Jan S., Julie, Bob, Jen R., and Suzanne, but we also got a chance to sing with Seelie Court. Yes, we felt like rock starts! Gina and I got to sing a song with them in the first set (Maggie and Dean just missed it), then we all got to sing a song with them in their third set.

And then there was the fourth set. My oh my. Here is where it got a teeny bit strange. Maggie left by this time and boy did she miss something. Seelie-Court turned 80’s cover band. And the best part is they invited us to join them. Dean, Gina and Christie rocked out to what Jon called “Sham-rock”. That’s right, “Sham-rock”. Did I mention that you should immediately buy their CD’s at CD Baby? 

It was just soooo much fun. I think it is safe to say a magical time was had by all.

Hey, did I just see a Leprechaun run by? Ahhhh . . . drink!

Username: Gina
Date: Friday, March 02, 2007

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Ah yes, I remember it well. I remember it just like it was yesterday. Ok, maybe not yesterday, maybe six days ago, but still it was kind of close to yesterday, relatively speaking that is. In any case, Bounding Main had an extremely busy weekend last weekend when we joined other maritime aficionados at the 2007 Chicago Maritime Festival on Saturday, February 24, 2007, at the spiffy new Chicago History Museum.

There was a shanty singer from England [Johnny Collins]. There were shanty singers from France [the Philippe Duo]. There was even a shanty singer from Maine [Jerry Bryant] (not as exotic but a great bloke nonetheless). And of course there was a group of singers from the “Milwaukee-Chicago corridor” (a term coined by our very own Cap’n Dean) and you can all guess who they were.

We had a wonderful time with everyone who attended the event and even got to show off some new stuff! The girls sported new pirate hats (the hats got their very own round of applause at one show) and we debuted some new music. Some of the new pieces are historic pieces that now bear the mark of Bounding Main. Others are original works that also bear our mark. Curious? Well, we now have an original piece about the crew (David wrote this one and we’ll get our revenge for it later, oh yes, we’ll have our revenge.) We have an original piece about Ireland that is lovely and spirited and we blame that one on Maggie. We also have a new song that has a surprise ending that we blame on Gina and Christie. If you want to know more about these original works you’ll have to come see a show!

We also got to take some time to reconnoiter with some pirates from the far reaches of Indiana. The pirates from Kidsplay, Inc., and their parents, that’s right, you read that right. The pirates and their parents, also showed up at the festival and were jolly good fun to meet and swap pirate jokes with. Come to think of it, the parents may have been pirates too. Shifty group, hard to tell.  Anyway, we’ll see them again in April when we participate in their celebration of pirates. (Arrr, ye best be visitin’ our homepage for more details on this one!)

Check out the pictures of the event in our photo gallery to get an inside look at the festival and a few shots of the inside of the new museum. If you are in the Chicago area you should make it a point to stop in as they have done really wonderful things there.

Thank you to Tom and Chris Kastle for inviting us to participate in the Chicago Maritime Festival and for organizing such a fantastic maritime event. For all your landlubbers who missed it this year, put an X in your calendar for next year! Arrr!

Ok, one last thing, about that last seminar . . . they made us do it (except David)! We didn’t want to (except David)! We begged not to (except David)! Yep, they had a session about uncensored shanties. If you know anything about old sailors then you know that they are all a dirty bunch of old men. The over 18 session was packed (funny how putting an age restriction and the words ‘uncensored’ on a seminar will spark interest) and as we don’t sing that kind of music we were at a loss of what to do, except of course, David. You see, David has this song he always wants to sing and we always stop him, at least, we were successful in thwarting his events to get that song to the public until Saturday. Yes, on Saturday we let David loose with his song and he sang that song with gusto. So now we need your help. If you see David start to bounce up on his toes and start to mutter “bum, bum, bum, bum,” and then you see the rest of us try to take him down, HELP US! We cannot let him sing this song again! Never! Agggg! Now that song is stuck in my head! I have to go now and wash out my ears with soap.

Username: Cap'n Jake
Date:     Friday, March 02, 2007

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Our stalwart friend and Bounding Mainiac Steve Spitzer shot several videos during the Chicago Maritime Festival.  To see the final song for the evening concert, let by The Philippe Duo, follow this link:  http://youtube.com/watch?v=393AHRf0-J4.

Cap'n Jake

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Bounding Main had a busy weekend. We went to a studio on Saturday that specializes in a cappella music. http://www.vocomotion.com/ We recorded "Farewell tae Tarwathie" in a new way: one voice at a time. It was pretty cool -- it took hours to record, and lots of tweaking (that's a scientific word for "turning down the suck" {that's music-lingo for 'deleting Certain Parts altogether' [that's a polite term for *David*]}). We think you'll be pleased with the final product -- we sure are!

On Sunday, we visited our friend Jon "The Leubrador" Leubner at Surround in Sound Studio to lay down some tracks. We thought we'd record four songs, maybe five at most ....but then we ended up recording SIX SONGS! In less than five hours!!! Very exciting.

We are planning to record a bunch more for the coming CD, but most of those are newer songs. We like to let new material steep for a while and get tested at performances before we record (please stop throwing tomatoes, verbal feedback is more useful and doesn't stain the costumes). So maybe in a few months when we've given the new songs a few runs onstage, we'll lay 'em down.

I think I can safely say the new CD will be released in fall. Or at least by Christmas. For sure before Greenland melts.

In case you're interested, here is a list of the songs we recorded this weekend:

• Farewell tae Tarwathie
• Blow the Man Down
• Bristol Girls
• Fire Marengo
• Morning Glory
• South Australia
• Johnny Come Down to Hilo

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It was back to school for Bounding Main.  Last Thursday, we performed at reading night for Forrestal School, an elementary school located in Great Lakes. There were a lot of sailors in attendance from the nearby base, so the pressure was on to sing shanties swell. The kids had just received awards for reading something like 7,000,00000 books among 500 kids... and then Bounding Main popped in and sang for them. The kids were amazing! They hunkered right down in front and watched in rapture, danced, sang along, sang TO us, grabbed us for hugs (yes, during the show), volunteered to hold signs and shout things out and say "aaarrrrr" on cue. We were all reaffirmed in our career choices to NOT become school teachers, cause that took energy! But it was certainly fun for an evening!

Name: Dean
Date: Monday, October 30, 2006

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Ahoy, mates! This is just a note about something interesting that I discovered online. At the Door County Maritime Museum there is an excellent "hands-on" display showing different configurations of block and tackle, showing how its use enables increased lifting power. The online example can't show how if "feels" to lift a weight, but gives an excellent visual indication of how this ancient invention of Archimedes made sailor's lives manageable. http://www.walter-fendt.de/ph14e/pulleysystem.htm

Name: Gina
Date: Tuesday, September 26, 2006

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Shiver me timbers - Bounding Main made an appearance at the St. Louis Pirate Festival on September 23-24, 2006. We had a varrrrry good time playing with the pirates and telling hoards of really bad pirate jokes all weekend! We especially liked spending some quality time with John and Diane (Mainiacs who made the journey) and even had John up on stage a few times and got him down in the dirt a few times as well. Filthy pirate. Ask John Wohlers about it the next time you see him-good times!

David visited First Aid as he injured his hand, twice.

Dinner with Bounding Main and the Mainiacs was also a time to remember. We ate, laughed, hid Maggie’s food, laughed at Maggie looking for her food, ran around in the parking lot like monkeys (I kid you not) and one singer even laid down in the middle of the road in front of Gina’s car while another singer jumped into the car THROUGH the open sunroof. You’d think we’d been into the grog, but no, we’re always like that. When at a pirate festival, act like pirates! We did. It was fun and we’d do it again as we really like to act like pirates. Nice pirates, not well-behaved pirates, but nice pirates. Arrrrr!

Name: Gina
Date: Tuesday, September 19, 2006

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We made ourselves known at the Green Bay Botanical Garden’s Renaissance Herb Festival on Saturday, September 16, 2006. We sang in various places around the garden, we played in the kids’ area including a trip down the slide, we wandered the beautiful spaces and took in the gorgeous sights and smells and just generally did our Bounding Main thing.

Highlights of the day included Dean calling the rest of us a “bag of morons” during a show (which we of course did not deserve and was totally unprovoked), the girls’ daring photo-op which may or may not be posted in the Photo Gallery, everyone getting lost in the maze, fresh bakery goods for sale and the smell of the grills cooking burgers, brats, hotdogs, etc. Someone in the group scarfed down a brat before the first show with only 3 minutes to show time. Hmmm, wonder who that could have been…

We were also so very pleased to see some of the Bounding Mainiacs at the show. Thanks for singing along, taking pictures and sharing your day with us. We had a wonderful time visiting with you all! Bounding Main then went out to dinner with the Twinz folks and laughed and ate until we made ourselves ill. The waitress loved us and we tipped her big time for putting up with the likes of us. Oh the conversations she walked into...Oh David No!

For those of you who couldn’t make the trip (Jon), if you ever get to Green Bay and want to revive your spirit, go to the Botanical Gardens, even if you don’t see us there you’ll still have a good time!

Name: Maggie
Date: Wednesday, September 13, 2006

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We had a lot of fun at Bristol over the Labor Day weekend. We were pretty loopy and wet on the Monday, but the Mainiacs did not let us down! With an enthusiastic audience, we can't go wrong. Or at least, we may go wrong but it's sure to be funny! Highlights included Maggie spraying herself in the eye with throat spray, Jon getting his shoelaces tied together -- and to David's shoe -- with disastrous results, Dean shouting "You kids get off my lawn!" in a very cranky old-man voice, and Certain Mainiacs giving us money to stop telling pirate jokes. And that was just in one 30-minute show! I tell you, if you haven't seen us perform before, you are missing something! What it is, I don't know, but you are missing something!

Name: Gina
Date: Wednesday, August 30, 2006

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Bounding Main was excited to be invited to the WHARF festival for the second year in a row! WHARF (no, not some sort of Star Trek convention) was the Waukegan Harbor Arts and Recreation Festival held on August 26, 2006. We did some singing on stage, some singing by the Windy II, some singing around the grounds and of course we stopped into the Waukegan Yacht Club to sing a few tunes there as well. We also played some games including a rope line toss and we had the honor of helping the crew of the Windy II cast off as they headed out onto the water for a sail. We were so pleased to see some of our friends enjoying the pleasant event and want to give a special shout-out to the Meuth Family who listened to us all day long (so sorry that Maggie stole your food) and to Emily who was kind enough to take some pictures for us that are now posted in the Photo Gallery.

Name: Gina
Date: Wednesday, August 30, 2006

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Tall Ships at Navy Pier. What could be better then tall ships at Navy Pier! Well, Bounding Main could be there…and we were! We spent two glorious afternoons and evenings performing at Navy Pier on August 8 – 9, 2006, for the Chicago Tall Ships Festival. We had a very scenic stage overlooking the water and had an awesome time singing and playing around at Navy Pier. There was singing and eating and all sorts of stealing so we had a blast! Plus, we got to share the stage with some outstanding performers including David HB Drake, Tom Lewis and Chris and Tom Kastle. Several friends and fans came out to enjoy the sunshine on the lakeshore and we were happy to be able to spend some ‘maritime’ with them all. Check out the pictures in the Photo Gallery to see the fantastic views from our postage-stamp sized stage (they tried to contain us with a small stage but try as they might, they couldn’t do it!). We can’t wait for the majestic sailing vessels to return to Chicago in a few years. Stay tuned-we hope to be back there in 2009!

Name: Christie
Date: Monday, August 07, 2006

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Once upon a time, a group of Shanty Singers embarked on a grand adventure. They found themselves in a dark, spooky swamp, no a forest, no a swamp. There they met an ugly old man, no an old woman, no an ogre. The ogre had a cursed key or was it an enchanted sword? Enough of that! Bounding Main performed for the second year in a row at the 16th annual Sturgeon Bay Wooden Boat Show. We had a fabulous time there and the people of Sturgeon Bay were unbelievably kind and friendly. We stayed overnight in the Holiday Motel… boy what a hoot! It was like stepping into the 1950’s complete with an old fashioned cigarette machine (filled with candy bars…ummmmm candy bars) instead of cigarettes. The place was just adorable and we spent two very pleasant evenings in their care. The boat show itself was also great fun. There was a wide variety of beautifully crafted wooden canoes, kayaks and sailboats as well as restored vessels including large wooden sailboats and even a gorgeous fish-tug! Bounding Main was invited onboard two of the ships and yes, Gina actually got on them and did not die. (The tall ship the Dennis Sullivan tried to kill her ya know – true story.)

Then there was the Sikaflex® boat challenge. Teams of two are given a fairly small amount of wood and this amazing adhesive made by Sikaflex® and with these limited resources (and time), they have to build a boat. No motors allowed-only plywood for the body, some other wood for support structure and Sikaflex® glue. The teams are scored on the fastest build, fastest around the course when they are launched into the bay on Sunday, number of votes in the People’s Choice category (attendees voted for their favorite), etc. Once the boats are built they are decorated and these crazy people and their amazing sea going vessels paddle around a set course in the bay! The Coast Guard is on-hand to ensure the safety of all of the contestants. A few of the boats sunk but many made it around the course and back to safety. The “Rubber Ducky” was a crowd favorite this year! The two gentlemen that created it said that their only goal was to make it onto the front page of the local newspaper and we hope they did!

Oh, and did we mention the knife that was held very close to the person of one of our very own crewmembers? Our new friend the drawbridge operator (and museum volunteer) had occasion to whip out his knife and cut off a lock of Christie’s hair! Why would he do that? Was he so taken with the pirate songs that he felt some pillaging was in order? Did Christie draw her blade first? Nope. He did it because we asked him to! The food booth had flypaper hanging around the front edge of the tent and a strong gust of wind blew it right into Christie’s hair! We got the paper off but the glue is stubborn stuff and we had to cut off about 5 inches of her hair in order to save the rest of her locks.

Despite that event, we all look forward to performing there next year! Stop by the Photo Gallery and see pictures of the quaint hotel, the wooden boats that took years to build and the ones that took 35 minutes, the Coast Guard rescue demonstration and of course, our crew doing what we do.

Name: Cap'n Jake
Date: Tuesday, August 01, 2006

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I set out for the Baylake Bank Tall Ships Festival much later than I intended on Friday night. My wife and I closed on our new house that afternoon and I predicted it would only take two hours to move in a few things and change the locks on all three doors.

Five hours and many curses later I headed north to Green Bay, Wisconsin. Freaky, flippin’ locks . . . My wife; she has the patience of a saint!

So, mindful of traffic and speed limits I arrived at the Country Inn & Suites about ten o-clock. There was some miscommunication with David and instead of getting together for a merry time I sat in my room waiting for his call and he went out for a pint and a bite, waiting for my call. Ah, yes, masters of communication . . . The twins had dropped him off and went on to visit with the folks, while Jon and Maggie were coming up in the morning. Well, since David has this WILD idea that I snored it was nice that we each had a room to ourselves that night.  I was well rested the next morning - none of that waking up with the taste of pillow-ticking and feathers in my mouth like I usually do when we share a room.

The next morning we all met in the continental breakfast room, packs of portly tourists ravaging the free grub around us. Tom Lewis sat and chatted for a while before we all head out to the fair grounds. We received some nice comments about our “pirate” garb from the powdered-sugar-coated guests and the hotel staff. I was able to get directions from the desk clerk to reach the site while avoiding a bulk of the requisite summer road construction and deleted bridges.

The grounds were enormous! Both sides of the river were lined with tall ships, there were rows of vendor tents and two music stages. There were military reenactors and pirate reenactor friends from The Fool’s Gold Crew (whom we last saw at the Port Washington Pirate Festival) as well.  Gosh, with the clowns, stilt walkers, yo-yo experts and card sharps working the lines it was like a maritime circus!

David HB Drake had gone through great pains and detail to set up a CD Cove vendor table for the musicians. Tables, chairs, segregated money box, decorations, awning-tent, hand-painted sign, it was incredible! Then the bugger disappeared for the rest of the day! We manned the table for as long as we could, then we were spotted by Tom & Chris Kastle and we were able to do our show at noon. The sound guys were great and they helped us put on a good performance (though a little squeezed for time, as the Heritage Players ran a little long and our sound check was included in our allotted set time . . .). Tom Lewis came by to spot Tom & Chris for their show, which followed us. We listened to their great performance while we sold an armload of CDs to a very kind and appreciative audience.

Then we set to roaming and singing, which we love to do. We had the added delight of being cooked to a crispy glaze as the festival and the entire Midwest enjoyed a record-breaking heat-wave, the temperature index reaching 113°F in some areas. Despite our all staying coated in a gummy cover of sun block (SPF 150) and hydrating ourselves with wriggling well water and all flavors of slushies, we were pretty exhausted from skipping about in our upholstery. We went back to the hotel where we squeegeed off the sun-block, changed into weather-appropriate clothing and went to this unique Italian restaurant called “Olive Garden,” where we ordered more “authentic” Italian food than we could possibly stuff in our heads. We staggered back to the hotel and had a post-mortem review of the day’s work. An hour or so into our gathering, Yellowtail Shiraz and Merlot flowing freely (well, for Maggie and me, anyway), most of us were draped like limp dishrags across the beds.  We then got a call from Chris Kastle, inviting us to join them for a rousing song-fest and booze-up. We groggily shook our heads to David, who took the call, signaling that we could barely manage consciousness, much less carousing. And so off we went to sleep, the girls to their room, and the boys to ours. I taped a razor blade to my credit cards, knowing the company I was keeping. I fell asleep to Jon and David yammering on about South Park or Comedy Central or some such, my weariness as much boredom as a full day and a full stomach.

During the night an enormous storm blew through. I honestly had dreams about being on the festival site, lighting crashing all around as we dodged from tent to tent avoiding the rain. It turned out to be prophetic, as the next morning the grounds looked like it was hit by gale force winds. Entire rows of vendor tents were either knocked down or had blown away entirely. The press, which had written a nice article about all of us musicians, now only related about the damage done to the festival and the mood all around was considerably dampened. The crowds were rather thinner, too, as navigating the pig-trough-like fields was too challenging for most bipedal visitors.

Our first set on Sunday was THE first set of the day, and was complicated by ankle deep puddles with submerged electrical cables running to the sound booth, very little audience and finally an aluminum roof panel flapping and slamming in preparation to fly off and decapitating some unwary bystander. Midway through our set we had about fourteen people from the event management gaping from stage right and only three audience members in scuba gear in front of our stage. The site crew kicked us off the stage so they could anchor down the roof. We took the act to the audience, who now numbered about a dozen people, drawn by the mob of event management people repairing the stage roof with zip-ties, duct tape and soggy Gummi Bears™.

CD sales weren’t as brisk, naturally, so we again head out on the grounds, singing to the lines of people in queue on the wharf, waiting for tours of the tall ships. Most people were very appreciative, some bought CDs and some begged us to pull them out of the mud (which we did after Jon or David grabbed their wallets, nursing their razor-blade slashed fingers). Later we watched Capt. Bob Marthai of the Windy II make an endless series of three-point turns on the river for about an hour and the Denis Sullivan actually LURCHED onto shore, snapping and frothing at Gina. Christie smacked it across the bowsprit with some woman’s purse (which she kept) and we went on our way.

Our 5:00 show was fun - we had a better audience, sold some more CDs and the day remained cooler, cloudier and far more pirate-garb friendly.  We gave a rousing show (Jon flapped his arms so wildly at one point he actually became airborne) and cheated the audience of fifteen minutes of performance time (ha-ha!).  At the end of the day I went chasing down the pay master, but after about an hour of playing "keep-away" with Kris Mattes I gave up and told her to mail us our check.  I walked away as she was rolling on the floor, laughing, as she agreed to do so.  Jenna Check clothes-lined me for good measure on my way out.  That hurt.

And we finally ended up in a rousing pub-sing at the end of the day. Tom Lewis, a maritime Messiah-figure, sat at the center of the table while the rest of us lowly apostles, Tom & Chris Kastle, our new friend Mariah, our friends the stilt-walking family (she with great pipes, herself!), and the Bounding Main crew gathered around him, bellowing salty sea songs until our eyes bled.

After about an hour of arm wrestling the surly wait-staff for drinks, our chairs edging closer and closer to the exit (earlier Maggie made it out the door once or twice, but I tied her shoe-laces together which pretty much stopped her), we bid farewell to the whole gang and headed home.

I snagged Tom Lewis’ wallet on the way out, but all he had was a fistful of stupid Euros and some useless Canadian coins.  The bum.

Name: Gina
Date: Thursday, July 13, 2006

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SHARKS! SHARKS! HELP! What do sharks have to do with the Wisconsin Renaissance Faire in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin? Absolutely nothing-I just wanted to get your attention! Bounding Main had a fantastic time on July 8 – July 9, 2006, at the Wisconsin Ren Faire. We were so very impressed with this brand new faire. Their location is ideal and you can see how much work has already gone into changing the grounds into a town. They already have several permanent structures that are lovely to look at and are very well designed. But the thing that really makes a faire work are the people-and let me tell you what wonderful people work at and go to this faire. The vendors, artists, entertainers and management were wonderful to us; they just couldn’t have been nicer. They also had stunning Scottish brogues. Yes, Scottish brogues. So we have now ended up in France without outrageously fake French accents and now found ourselves in Scotland without the appropriate brogues. We’ll have to work on making sure we know which country we are in before we show up! We also had a blast with the patrons including a couple that read a review of our music on bilgemunkey.com and then heard our music on renradio.com and decided to come out to Chippewa Falls to see us. We then enjoyed talking with several active duty members of the U.S. Army who stopped in to hear a show after hearing us sing a tune someplace else on site. Oh, and then we got into a mock battle with the Jugglenaughts (a juggling troupe performing at the faire). In the end we all got hauled in front of the Queen and the Jugglenaughts were banned from singing on site and we were banned from juggling. Too bad Jon wasn’t with us that weekend or we could’ve showed those Jugglenaughts a thing or two! Ok, well, since Jon is our only juggler, we could only have showed them one thing-but it’s still a thing. All in all we had a great time. Check out the photos in the photo gallery to see us playing on a slide in the maze, greeting a Boarder Collie that was involved in sheep herding demonstrations, some juggling, a conga line… you just never know what you’ll find! We can’t wait to go back next year and be a part of the evolution and growth of this marvelous faire.

Name: Dean
Date: Thursday, June 22, 2006

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I just wanted to point out that our very own Jon Krivitzky will be performing on Higher Ground in Madison, Wisconsin very soon. The following paragraph was cribbed from the Higher Ground Web Site:

#626, July 1, 2006: Live from Vilas Hall with UW-Platteville Heartland Festival Community Theatre and scenes from "Little Shop Of Horrors" and "Wizard Of Oz", Dark Side Of The Moon A Cappella mixed chorus, UW Odyssey Project poets, singer/songwriter Matt Hendricks, bluegrass by the band Pickin' Up Speed", and Jerry Huffman talks about Wisconsin festivals.

(I'll bet he doesn't try to sell Bounding Main CDs that night!)

Name: Gina
Date: Friday, June 09, 2006

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Arrrr! Bounding Main spent a delightful weekend in Port Washington, WI, at the Port Washington Pirate Festival, June 3-4, 2006. On Saturday we sang to throngs of happy patrons, participated in the afternoon Pirate Invasion where some very talented folks staged a fight between the pirates (yeah!) and the military (boo!). Our very own Dean Calin wrote and staged the invasion and did a wonderful job. The women and men of the Guild of St. Michael showed off their deep knowledge of history, their muskets, their swords (the fruit had it coming!) and their assortment of cannons. Winken, Blinken, and Nod (smallish cannons lovingly crafted by Marc Lupescu) all made appearances as did the Guild’s huge cannon, The Retribution. The guys showed off how fast they can reload a cannon and Bounding Main cheered wildly from a distance, a very long distance. We judged very competitive pirate costume contests, consumed large quantities of food, and generally had a ball.

On Sunday we sang, judged more pirate costumes and made an appearance in the parade complete with our very own parade ‘floats.’ As the festival did not give us a float to ride on, we brought our own in the form of colorful inner tubes tied together with rope. We amused ourselves (naturally) and the audience had a good laugh with us. We then climbed aboard the tall ship Windy II and sang a few tunes there. A big thanks goes out to Cap’n Bob and Janine of the Windy for their kind words and willingness to let us traipse all over their wonderful ship.

Special smiles go out to Richelle, Shiloh, John, Jennifer, Carl, Julie, Lee, Piper, Gary and Mr. and Mrs. Zielinski for their voices and shining faces at our shows. The Bounding Main Twins say “Hi!” to the Meuth Twins who attended almost all of our shows. The photos below show some special Twin moments and be sure take a look at the shirts - these girls are shanty singers at heart! We declare the Pirate Festival a mad success and hope to do it all again next year.

Name: Dean
Date: Monday, May 29, 2006

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Barnes & Noble never knew what they were in for when they asked us to perform in their Mayfair Mall store to promote our new CD, "Lost at Sea." Paula Jones, the Community Relations manager, had been very excited by our coming in, and Bill Couture, the Music Department manager was very supportive also. Understand that this is the first time we'd performed in a retail store that was open to the general public (our gig at Steinhafel's last year was an invitation-only event) and we really didn't know what to expect.

Well, once we started singing in the Starbuck's Café we sure had an audience all around. There were people stopped in the aisles, people leaning over the atrium rail and we had the full attention of the crowd in the café itself.

So as to not wear out our welcome (and not blocking the main aisle longer than necessary) we sang our way up the escalator to the music department. There, we parked ourselves in front of the Comedy section (seemingly appropriate, but our CDs are sold in the "Local Artists" section at the Mayfair Mall, Greenfield and Brookfield Mall locations). We roused a bunch of folks, some of them standing jaws agape - I hope that was good - and we sang through selections from both "Lost at Sea" and "Maiden Voyage."

Then off to the second-floor mall entrance in the Children's Section. Christie sat and started reading a children's pirate book aloud to the kids (well, to Gina and Maggie, anyway) which I thought was very sweet. There was a whole table with nothing but pirate books and games for kids, arrrh! Then we discovered that this section had a built-in stage, so we kicked the Harry Potter selection out of the way and commandeered the space. We had mom's and kids stop and listen to us there, great fun!

So, heading back downstairs, my lovely and talented wife suggested we sing "Pay Me, You Owe Me" as we went down, which we did. And then we went back up the escalator, continuing the song; and then back down to finish another set in the Starbuck's Café.

As amused as people seemed to be at the free entertainment by the folks running around in pirate costumes, I didn't know what kind of an economic impact all this would make. I was delighted to discover that just one copy of Maiden Voyage remained while we were in the store. (I helped sell the last copy of "Lost at Sea" to one our new friends and her mom!)  We re-stocked their supply of both CDs and bid the store adieu.

Many special thanks to our friends and fans who made it out to support us through the store: Richelle, Carl and Juli, Lee, Piper & Gary, and Gerard and his son.

Name: Maggie
Date: Wednesday, May 24, 2006

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As usual, an excellent summation Gina. However, I must add one of my favorite highlights from the weekend....when David turned to the numerous young'uns in the audience and said, "Remember kids: drinking is cool!"

Name: Gina
Date: Wednesday, May 24, 2006

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Bonjour Mates!

Why am I speaking French, you ask? Because Bounding Main made an appearance at the Greater St. Louis Renaissance Faire on May 20 and May 21, 2006, and that faire is set in France (they have a king and everything). We had a splendid time at the faire as the performers, crew and patrons were all very welcoming and just fun to be around. We got to say hello to old friends, meet new friends, see some shows, do a little shopping and of course we sang a lot. If you must know, and I know you must, we really just spent two days generally amusing ourselves.

I have to take a moment to congratulate Bounding Mainiac Juli McCarthy on the success of her new shop, Mockingbird Studio. She did a brisk business this past weekend, and rightly so, as her jewelry and pins are fabulous. We also spent some time with Mainiac John Wohlers who split his time between guarding the petite Juli and seeing our shows/taking photos; we love it when he comes out to play!

We also had some adventures with The Jolly Rogers, a shanty/pirate-y/folk-y group. We sang some songs together, compared notes about our groups backstage and complained about how hard it is to manage the huge amounts of money we make as folk singers. If The Jolly Rogers are ever in your neck of the woods, go see them! You won’t regret it as they have a fantastic sound and are just a joy to watch.

The other high points for the weekend include being rousted out of the hotel at 5:00 a.m. because some yahoo pulled the fire alarm, ½ the group getting food poisoning (NOT from the faire but a dreaded buffet), and Maggie showing us (and two separate audiences) how not to play a recorder or a kazoo. I kid you not, I am still sore from laughing! As always, we had a great time together and look forward to our next outing.

Au revoir!

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Bounding Main had a busy weekend. We went to a studio on Saturday that specializes in a cappella music. http://www.vocomotion.com/ We recorded "Farewell tae Tarwathie" in a new way: one voice at a time. It was pretty cool -- it took hours to record, and lots of tweaking (that's a scientific word for "turning down the suck" {that's music-lingo for 'deleting Certain Parts altogether' [that's a polite term for *David*]}). We think you'll be pleased with the final product -- we sure are!

On Sunday, we visited our friend Jon "The Leubrador" Leubner at Surround in Sound Studio to lay down some tracks. We thought we'd record four songs, maybe five at most ....but then we ended up recording SIX SONGS! In less than five hours!!! Very exciting.

We are planning to record a bunch more for the coming CD, but most of those are newer songs. We like to let new material steep for a while and get tested at performances before we record (please stop throwing tomatoes, verbal feedback is more useful and doesn't stain the costumes). So maybe in a few months when we've given the new songs a few runs onstage, we'll lay 'em down.

I think I can safely say the new CD will be released in fall. Or at least by Christmas. For sure before Greenland melts.

In case you're interested, here is a list of the songs we recorded this weekend:

• Farewell tae Tarwathie
• Blow the Man Down
• Bristol Girls
• Fire Marengo
• Morning Glory
• South Australia
• Johnny Come Down to Hilo