Pastorius Park concerts: Acclaimed Songwriter to Perform
Acclaimed songwriter and Philadelphia native Phil Roy brings his self-described “simple, truthful, heartfelt” music to Chestnut Hill’s Pastorius Park summer concert series on July 13.
Roy, whose parents operated a shoe store at 16th and Columbia, grew up enveloped by the Philadelphia soul sounds of the ’60s and ‘70s. He began playing guitar as a teenager and performed in two moderately successful bands before landing as a staff writer for a music publishing company in Los Angeles, where he wrote songs featured on albums by Ray Charles, Joe Cocker, Aaron Neville and Widespread Panic, among many others.
Tired of the music publishing grind, Roy broke free and took a chance on recording his self-produced grouchyfriendly CD in 2000. This was followed, in 2003, by Issues+Options. Roy’s music has received notice from artists like Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen, and listeners of local radio station WXPN recently voted Roy’s “Melt” one of the “885 greatest songs of all time.”
Come out to the park and hear music from Ray’s celebrated first two releases and new material from a CD to be released this year.
The Pastorius Park summer concert series, sponsored by the Chestnut Hill Community Association with help from the shops and businesses of Chestnut Hill, runs every Wednesday through August 17. Upcoming shows include Alligator Zydeco on July 20, the Jump City Jazz Band on July 27 and Solas on August 3. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m.
On Sunday, July 17 from 5 to 7 p.m., the concert series presents Kidsapalooza!: The Annual Kids’ Concert. Erin Flynn and the Co-Op band bring their fun, high-energy music to the Pastorius Park stage. This special event is sponsored by Norwood-Fontbonne Academy.
The annual Police, Fire Fighters and Postal Carriers Picnic and Concert, co-sponsored by the CHCA and the Chestnut Hill Business Association, will take place before the Jump City concert on July 27. Come out to enjoy great food in honor of our local police and firefighters. Free to them and their families, the rest of the community is invited to dine with these and other honored guests for $7.50 a person (kids under 8 eat free). The picnic gets underway at 6 p.m. To make a reservation, fill out the attached coupon and return to the CHCA office.
For more information about this or any other CHCA-sponsored event, call 215-248-8810.
Remaining concerts:
• July 20: Let the good times roll with Alligator Zydeco.
• July 27: Swing night with the Jump City Jazz Band.
• August 3: Solas, back by popular demand, brings exciting traditional Irish music to the park.
• August 10: Pastorius Park is thrilled to welcome the virtuoso trio, Time for Three, in what will prove to be one of the most memorable park concerts in its long history.
• August 17: The concert series concludes on a high note with local jazz piano master Orrin Evans and his band.
Kidzapalooza – the Annual Kids’ Concert – will be held on Sunday, July 17 from 5 to 7 p.m. and will feature Erin Flynn and the Co-op Band, plus lots of fun, food and festivity.
