MidCentury Melodies CONCERT
Ardsley Public Library
9 American Legion Drive Ardsley NY 10502
Saturday • April 29, 2023 • 6:00 pm
The Friends of the Ardsley Public Library will host a concert by vocalist and vintage guitarist Ken Lelen at 6:00 pm on Saturday, April 29, 2023 at 9 American Legion Drive, Ardsley NY 10502. Event info: 914-693-6636 and www.ardsleylibrary.org.
The MidCentury Melodies concert celebrates great songs from the 20th Century's juicy middle ”the late 1940s to early 1960s. These tunes were hits before America's musical tastes were assaulted by metal, emo, rap and disco music or long-haired stadium singers with electric guitars.
With amusing anecdotes, the concert will offer some truly great midCentury melodies, including:
“I Don’t Know Enough About You” (a hit for Peggy Lee in 1945)
“Time After Time” (a hit for Margaret Whiting in 1947)
“Tennessee Waltz” (a hit for Patti Page in 1950)
“You Belong To Me” ( a hit for Jo Stafford in 1952)
“On A Slow Boat To China” (a hit for Rosemary Clooney in 1953)
“Teach Me Tonight” ( a hit for the DeCastro Sisters in1955)
“You Don’t Know Me” (a hit for Eddie Arnold in 1956)
“Old Cape Cod” (a hit for Patti Page in 1957)
“Beyond The Sea” (a hit for Bobby Darin in 1959)
“Autumn Leaves” (a hit for Andy Williams in 1959)
“I Wanna Be Around” (a hit for Tony Bennett in 1963)
“Fly Me To The Moon” (in 1963 Frank Sinatra in 1964)
"Mr. Lelen is a genial performer, with a pleasant tenor," the New York Times said. "The songs he plays will never go out of date." In addition to offering great American tunes, Lelen will play vintage acoustic guitars for an authentic, back-in-the-day sound. Made by Regal, Gibson, Martin, Weymann, Vega and other US firms, they make music that's striking for its character, tone and sustain without use of pick-ups. "People of all ages love these songs," the musician said. "And they're pleasantly surprised by the robust sound and classy look of the vintage guitars."
Program sponsored by the Friends of the Ardsley Public Library