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Summer Issue:

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For Bruce Springsteen,
"Do Something" Means
Many Things.

The Beat of a
Different Drummer:
An Interview
with Jim Chapin

Students Use
Pocket Change
to Make a
Big Difference

Cancer Patient
Cites Harry's
Message as Key
to Survival

The Power
of Design(ers)

Harry Chapin —
Freedom of Choice

Goat Tales

The Cat's
in the Cradle...

Letter to
the Editor

LUNCH for WHY

Long Island
Songwriters Plan
"Sequel" Benefit
Tribute Concert

Satinwood,
Howard Fields and
Al Stewart in
Concert to
Benefit KIDS Can
Make a Difference

Readers Share Thoughts
in Second Annual
Circle! Survey

Circle Calendar

Long Island Songwriters Plan
"Sequel" Benefit Tribute Concert

by Mike Grayeb

For the second consecutive year, a group of Long Island singer-songwriters will pay tribute to Harry Chapin in a free concert benefiting two of the non-profit, anti-hunger organizations he co-founded.

(left to right) Ramona Spooney, Frank Walker, Sandy Chapin, Jeremy Schiffres, Stuart Markus, Judith Zweiman from last year's "Just Wild About Harry" concert. Photo by Mike Kaplan

On Monday, August 29th, at 7:30 p.m., members of the Island Songwriter Showcase (ISS) will perform Chapin classics at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theater in Eisenhower Park, East Meadow, NY. That's the venue where Chapin was scheduled to perform a free concert the day he tragically died in 1981.

Concert attendees are encouraged to bring cans of food to benefit Long Island Cares and make cash donations to WHY (World Hunger Year).

Stuart Markus, the organizer of the event and a member of the ISS, said he hopes this year's concert will be even more successful than the one he put together last year, which raised more than 650 pounds of food for Long Island Cares and $1,000 for WHY. "I wanted to do it again, but in a more high-profile venue, in front of more people," Markus said. "I've met so many people who had been there (Eisenhower Park) to see Harry play that night, and this is almost like fulfilling that, 24 years later."

The performer line-up as of press time consisted of Stuart Markus, Judith Zweiman, Martha Trachtenberg, Doug Kwartler, SpoonWalk, Marci Geller, Josh Joffen, Folk Fiction, Eddie Havoc & MediaCrime, Kenny Forgione, Cathy Kreger & Dave Cook, Sonny Meadows, Doc Butler & JC Cob, Jane Ross, Mike Soloway, Terri Winchell, and Debra Lynne. Some of the performers will be playing solo, some as a duo, trio, or more, Markus noted.

The concert will also provide an opportunity for the newly-formed Long Island Music Hall of Fame to honor Chapin for his music by presenting an award in his memory to the Chapin family, he said. Also, the Folk Music Society of Huntington is planning to make a donation to World Hunger Year at the event, he added.

"Harry set a high standard in songwriting, for his ability to tell stories casting ordinary people as subjects you want to care about, capturing the pathos and drama of the everyday struggle for a valid existence," said Markus. "As a performer, he had incredible energy and the ability to make fans feel like friends, and he demonstrated that the arts can be a powerful force for good, rather than just entertainment."

For more information about the concert, contact Markus at stumarkus1@aol.com or call the Nassau County Parks Department at (516) 572-0348.

Watch for the Next Issue of Circle! on September 7