Robin and Linda Williams: April News and Tours: 2009

Dear Friends,

Life is good with Robin and Linda. This week we've been busy with all the responsibilities that Spring brings with it, mainly getting the yard, the pasture and the garden ready for the start of "growing season." Okay, everyone, get those lawnmowers and string trimmers tuned up.

Several things are cause for excitement around our house. First, on Thursday, April 9th, PBS will begin showing a four part documentary called "Appalachia: A History of Mountains and People." This environmental history series will be narrated by Sissy Spacek and will include music from the Appalachians. We are pleased that they have included us on the sound track singing "Don't Let Me Come Home A Stranger," a song written by Robin and Jerry Clark. The sound track, "Appalachia Music From Home" was just released last week and is available from Amazon.com or from Lonesome Records (http://www.lonesomerecords.org). Other artists on the sound track include Ralph Stanley, Jean Ritchie, Darrell Scott and Dock Boggs. Many thanks to our friend Paul Kuzcko for bringing our song to the attention of the producers.

With Earth Day fast approaching and in a meager effort to do what we can to promote a healthy and sustainable planet, we are participating in a special concert on April 18. Our friend, and former pastor, Roy Howard has asked us to do a benefit for Greater Washington Interfaith Power and Light, a non-profit group the does what it can to mobilize a national religious response to global warming. What will make this concert extra special is having our friends Dr. Francis Collins and Alan Jabbour with us on the show. Francis is, most importantly to us, a good friend (we sang at his wedding), a guitar player and singer. He's also known as an author ("The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief") and, oh yes by-the-way, is an internationally known geneticist who, as director of the National Human Genome Project, was responsible for breaking the Genome code. Also on the show will be Alan Jabbour, an excellent fiddler who started out as a symphonic violinist but, upon discovering Appalachian fiddling, took a hard left turn which eventually landed him as the director of the American Folklife Center in the Library of Congress. He is an incredible performer. It will be a memorable night of music.

Many years ago we and Don Baker wrote a musical, "Stonewall Country," for The Lime Kiln Theater in Lexington, VA. It was most of our summer's work for six or seven years and continued to be produced for twenty consecutive years at The Lime Kiln. Because of popular demand, the theater is reprising "Stonewall Country" for a limited three day run this summer, July 10-12. We will be performing the music. We are already having fun revisiting the show and the songs.

Bumper Sticker Of The Month: This one's from Janet Goff. "HONK IF YOU LOVE PEACE AND QUIET."

As you can see from our gig list, we've got enough to do to keep us out of trouble. We're doing what we can to keep the economy moving. How about Robin and Linda Williams and The Stimulus Package for a new band name? We hope we'll see you at one of the stops along the way.

Our best to you and yours. Remember, music makes you smarter.

Robin and Linda