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Rick Berlin Songs with Subtitles

Rick Berlin Songs with Subtitles

November 3, 2017 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Cabaret Performance and Reading

Howl! Happening is thrilled to present a true original—Rick Berlin—reading and playing from his first book, The Paragraphs, published by Cutlass Press. Created from fragments used to write songs, this memoir recalls a musical life told in bursts of wild inspiration.

“A memoir? I guess that’s the right word,” says Berlin. “It’s a nod to my family in some way, but that wasn’t intentional. I’ve been writing stuff for a long, long time. Now I guess people who think I’m weird will understand why.”

Rick Berlin, the queer Boston music legend—former frontman of Orchestra Luna, Berlin Airlift, Rick Berlin: The Movie, and The Shelley Winters Project, and current helm of The Nickel & Dime Band—is known for his zany lyrics and unflinching wit. An integral part of the original CBGBs scene of the 70s and 80s, Berlin will read paragraphs from his book and play related songs accompanied by solo piano. Each song references one of the paragraphs in the book. “The result can be hilarious, disturbing, blunt, and particularly unflattering to myself. But it’s always honest.”

Rick Berlin is a giant on the Boston music scene. His colorful songwriting and strong stage presence have influenced countless other artists since the early 70s, when his innovative band Orchestra Luna harnessed a potent blend of theater and music, years before The Tubes. Throughout the decades and shifting fortunes of the business, Rick has continued to make music with intelligence and integrity, building an international reputation around his knotty, singular piano playing, straight from the heart singing, and a style of character-based songwriting that’s drawn favorable comparisons to the likes of Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen…. —The Boston Phoenix

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