Round ‘Em Up! Lee Stearns and the Yarmouth Circle of Song
Gig review / profile

Lee Stearns, Yarmouth Singer/Songwriter and Host of the Yarmouth Circle of Song

The Yarmouth Circle of Song takes place at 6:30 PM on the third Tuesday of each month at the Yarmouth Community Center, 179 East Main Street, in Yarmouth, ME;
The next Circle of Song is on March 20. For more information contact Lee Stearns at booking.stearns@gmail.com .

The tradition is as old as the guitar, and goes by many names “song swap”, “guitar pull”, I’ve even heard of a “guitar-b-que”. All these terms describe pretty much the same idea – get a bunch of players in a room, form circle, trade some tunes. It’s a great way to meet other performers, guitar enthusiasts, songwriters, and music fans. All levels of musicians can participate and derive some benefit, and besides, it’s just plain FUN!

Well, there’s a new opportunity to get in the fun, and it’s called the Yarmouth Circle of Song. This gathering of local acoustic musicians began back in November of 2006. In the four meetings since then, it has grown and evolved into a nice way to get some experience performing in front of some people, to try out a new song, or just to enjoy playing and singing with other musicians.

We can all thank Yarmouth singer/songwriter and music promoter Lee Stearns for starting this event. Lee is well known in Southern and Mid-coast Maine, and has also played venues in California, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and even Japan. He is a regular performer at the SeaGrass Bistro music series, the Yarmouth Clam Festival (for whom he coordinates the musical acts), Haggerty’s Musical Brunch and Chicky’s Fine Diner. Lee writes and plays an eclectic mix of folk blues, electric blues, alt-country, country rock, and Classic rock.

Lee says the idea for the Circle of Song came out of a rehearsal session, when he suggested that all of the musicians in the band play a tune as an icebreaker. A few of the participants suggested that Lee formalize that process as a song circle, and he ran with it.

I have attended two of these events and I enjoyed them both very much. The atmosphere is very laid-back, welcoming, and low-key, and in both cases, musicians at a wide range of musical ability were made to feel at ease, and that their contributions were important. The first Circle of Song that I attended had more of a singer/songwriter feel to it, and many of the participants shared their original tunes, and invited others to join in. In my second visit, there were more cover tunes in the mix of songs, and everyone had a copy of the popular song book “Rise Up Singing”. We each, in turn, picked out a song, called out the page number, and everyone was able to sing and play along. We shared songs by Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, John Prine, Roger Miller, Ian Tyson, Pete Seeger, The Eagles, John Denver, and many others.

This is a nice characteristic of the evening – the nature of the session changes from month-to-month, depending on who shows up and what folks are interested in doing. That keeps it interesting, and allows for all types of styles, levels of playing ability, and interests.

Lee keeps things loose and informal. If a participant wants to pass on his or her turn, no problem; if someone comes up with something they really want to do, and they are a little out-of-turn, who cares? It’s all about sharing the music, having fun, and learning from each other.

While most participants are guitar players, I also saw banjo, autoharp, harmonica, tenor guitar, mandolin, stand-up bass, and people who sang without playing an instrument. If you’d like to come and just listen, well, that’s just fine too!

I definitely plan to continue attending these sessions, and I recommend them to any acoustic musicians, singers, songwriters, or just music fans, who want an enjoyable, free evening out of the house, making and sharing music. I hope to see you there next month, or on any third Tuesday in the foreseeable future!

All the best to you!
Bob McKillop

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