(From left) Robert LaFollette, Patrick Coman, Chris Hutchinson-Jones, Max Winer, from Arts at the Armory, Sept. 2010.~Photo courtesy of Patrick Coman

Blood on the Tracks concert to benefit MS Society
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By Lauren C. Ostberg

Blood on the Tracks is more than a classic Bob Dylan album, rife with regret, Biblical references, mouth harp solos, and self-satisfied couplets – it’s also a touchstone album for singer-songwriters.  So when folk musician Patrick Coman was discussing the theme for a holiday benefit concert, the conversation was short and sweet.

“To me, it’s the benchmark by which all other singer-songwriter performers can be judged,” Coman said.

He spread the idea by word-of-mouth through some of his local concert contacts, and he quickly had a full billing.  Local acts Brendan Hogan, Dressing the Debutantes, Brendan Murphy of Autumn Hollow, Matt Borello, and Buffalo-based Greg Klyma, will be performing with Coman at Somerville Arts at the Armory Wednesday, December 15.

They’re singing a song at their own expense, and donating the proceeds from the $10 tickets to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.  This was also a no-brainer for Coman, whose younger brother, an Oklahoma-based musician, suffers from the disease.  He won’t make the concert, but he enthusiastically supports the idea.

Expect some traditional Dylan tributes – there are at least three harmonica players in the group – but prepare for some new takes on seminal tunes.  Brighton’s Dressing the Debutantes, for example, plan to countrify “Shelter From the Storm.”  Then there’s the cross-collaboration.

Patrick Yerby, whose style is pop enough that his music was recently featured in 16 and Pregnant, teams up with a rootsy, banjo-ready Matt Borello for “If You See Her, Say Hello.”  The second section of the concert/album opens with a “Meet Me in the Morning” duet between Chris Hutchinson-Jones and Brendan Hogan, a long-time blues host at WGBH whose debut album boasts a spare, just-the-rafters style.

Most musicians came in with specific song requests, and Coman was happy to take what was left – “Tangled Up in Blue,” the concert’s opener and arguably the album’s best-known song. There simply weren’t enough songs to accommodate everyone who wanted to play, so he’s invited a few friends to accompany him. For the Dylan enthusiasts in the audience who still want an opportunity to perform, the concert will end with an open jam. All are welcome – jack of hearts, one-eyed undertakers, and idiot wind included.

Blood on the Tracks show will be performed on Wednesday, December 15 at Somerville’s Armory Center for the Arts, 191 Highland Avenue.  Doors open at 7:30 p.m.  Al proceed benefit the New England Chapter of the National MS Society.

Picture: Patrick Coman (second from left) and Chris Hutchinson-Jones (second from right), along with several other local musicians, will perform at Art at the Armory this Wednesday, December 15.