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Reviews of Gordon Bok's Music

Gordon Bok in Concert with Carol Rohl at Cornell University Nov.6,1999

Gordon Bok is Cornell Folk Song Club's most requested performer. For the last quarter century, he has defined the newfolk tradition and set the standard. His music includes old, borrowed, and new, all steeped in and attuned to deep-rooted folk music. No one can match Gordon's sonorous voice and masterfully understated instrumentation. Perfectly complementing his vocal work is his dextrous, soulful handling of 12-string and classical guitars and his own invention, the cellamba, a 6-string fretted cello. He's been known to pick up a whistle as well! And as you might expect from a resident of coastal Maine and someone who has lived and worked on boats for a significant part of his life, he has a special affinity for music of the sea. Gordon's songs and stories are large, seasoned, timeless as seascapes. But he's not too serious to indulge in some droll fun, as evidenced by his membership in the Camden Trash Band and the Quasimodal Chorus.

Alone, performing with the likes of Cindy Kallet, Anne Dodson, or as part of the legendary trio with Ann Mayo Muir and Ed Trickett, Gordon Bok has produced alegacy of fine recordings and a loyal audience. At any local "livingroom" folk sing, you're sure to hear more than one Bok song, with great choruses that urge the whole gathering to voice. Joining Gordon for this November trip to Ithaca is Carol Rohl, a marvelous harpist. Gordon and Carol have been touring regularly for the past two or three years and have been married for a good bit longer than that. Carol follows a family harp-playing tradition, having learned on her grandmother's Irish harp.

(Margaret Shepard and John Henderson)