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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2005)
apni 1,2005 » just out 41 Ferrick has guts and honesty that seem lacking in the music industry. She’s frank in talking about fighting both a drinking problem and depression after being dropped by Atlantic. Although she’s healthy and happier in 2005, Ferrick is still plagued by a panic disorder. It usually doesn’t interfere with her shows, but Ferrick was forced to leave a fan cruise in February after a severe attack. While most of her fans have been understanding, a few have threatened her with lawsuits or made out landish demands. “It’s such a mess,” she says, “h’s embarrass ing. It’s not like something I do on purpose." C^n the road now with Garrison Star, Ferrick is looking forward to her return to Oregon. “I love playing in Portland,” she says. “1 think the Aladdin is such a beautiful venue— a venue that can be so open to a songwriters show and a listening audience.” —Kathy Beige Cabaret with heart BodyVox is opening up its studio to the public for First Impressions vol. 4, a 70-minute showcase of several short works. “No one thinks of Richard Mohr anymore,” he said with a laugh. “They think of Father Pat.” Mohr will speak and sign copies of his hook 7:30 p.m. April 14 at Powells on Hawthorne, 3723 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd. —Stephen Blair Ferrick’s frankness wins her fans Sometimes one song is all it takes to propel an artist forward. For Melissa Ferrick, that song is “Drive,” a tribute to cunnilingus that lesbians around the world duplicate and pass on to one another, much like a copy of The Ladder must have changed hands in the 1950s. As you read this, somewhere in the world a lesbian could be making love to these lyrics: “Your head is bent back, your back is arched. My hand is under there holding you up. I hold you up and drive you all night.” Ferrick plays 6:30 p.m. April 6 at John Henry’s, 77 W. Broadway in Eugene. Tickets are $15 at the dixir and $1 3 in advance from TicketsWest. She then heads north for a gig 8 p.m. April 9 at Aladdin Theater, 3017 S.E. Milwaukie Ave. in Portland. Tickets are $17 at the d(K>r and $14.50 in advance from Ticketmaster. An out lesbian since 1995, Ferrick struggled for recognition for years in the shadow of the other Melissa. But one by one, her fan base has grown, and now she is the one selling out con cert halls. “When people get [‘ITrive’l they tend to download a couple of songs.... Then they come to a show, and they fall in love with the gig and the crowd and the vibe there. The next time they come, they bring two of their friends, and that’s just how it’s grown. It’s been very organ ic,” she says. More than most artists, Ferrick appreciates her fans, who she calls “lifesaving.” Her career has made a unique trajectory. She signed with a major label in 1993 and got dropped two years later. Next she signed with an independent label and finally formed her own label, Right On Records, in 2000. She’s taken that independence one step further on her latest release, The Other Side. She not only produced and recorded every track, she played every instrument. What happens when a group of performers from the Portland area put their heads together in the name of bringing relief to those recover ing from December’s tsunami in Southeast Asia? They put on a_show.- Cabaret d’Amore was conceptualized as a fund-raiser for the American Red Cross to ben efit tsunami survivors. The brainchild of Patricia Price-Yates, Cabaret d’Amore is packed with performances from local actors, singing numbers most of them have already brought to the stage in previous shows. Alan Anderson, a gay man who works as marketing director for the Broadway Rose Theatre Company in Washington County, will raise funds and spirits with two songs by John Kander and Fred Ebb. “I love singing these songs,” says Anderson. He is performing “Mr. Cellophane” from Chicago and “Sara Lee” from The World Goes 'Round. “I think everybody can relate to feeling invisible at one point in our lives, like the char acter from Chicago. In ‘Sara Lee’ 1 will sing about my great love for a woman I’ve never met before. It’s a fun song with a fun twist to it.” Other notable performances include “1 Could Have Danced All Night” from My Fair Lady, “Shouldn’t 1 Be Less In Love?” from I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change and “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha. Cabaret d’Amore will be presented 7 and 9 p.m. April 5 at Wilf’s Restaurant and Piano Bar, 800 N.W. Sixth Ave. Tickets are $15 from 503-223-0070. —Jaymee R. Cuti jm za&n www.Dharma-Rain.Org Our professionals unit arrange your delivery Don Duncan owner (503) 642-9992 1-800-356-1884 Aloha Market Centre 20455 SW TV Highway www.westsideflorist.net 5ou th minster Presbyterian C.,hurch Companions in Action Sunday Worship 10:00am rrom ien. Mian «naerson will join uoug ¿immerman, ueuoie numer, rairicia rrice-raies arm uen Norby for Cabaret D'Amore, a benefit for tsunami relief. 12250 SW Denney Road (at Hall Blvd.) Beaverton. OR 97008 www southmin.com I 503 644 2073
