A Modern Collection Of Antiques And Curios

Wesley Stace is synonymous with his Cabinet of Wonders at New York City’s City Winery. The show has become a fixture in the last ten years, dubbed by The New Yorker: “one of the finest nights of entertainment this city has to offer.”

For the Strawbs 50th, he is presenting something of a mini-Cabinet of Wonders as part of the festivities. A Modern Collection of Antiques and Curios (6pm on Friday April 26th) features his regular band The English UK presenting a series of Strawbs deep tracks sung by some of the Cabinet’s favorite and most beloved guests.

“We’ve never done a themed Cabinet, but I thought this was an ideal concept for the Strawbs 50th,” says Wes. “I’m a huge fan of the entire Strawbs catalogue, from the earlier folkier days, to the power ballads and stadium rockers of the 80’s – there’s good stuff everywhere –  so I thought I’d pick my favourite of these and offer them to various Strawbs fans among our favourite singers and regular guests. It was also important that these included great songs that fans might not otherwise hear during the weekend.”

This unique combination of singers includes world famous hitmaker Sophie B Hawkins (who appeared on a NYC Cabinet of Wonders with Dave Cousins); the outrageously talented and completely outrageous Tammy Faye Starlite (recently noted for her stunning Marianne Faithful tribute shows); Richard Barone of The Bongos, himself a noted interpreter of Greenwich Village folk; legendary British folkie Bridget St John, once on John Peel’s own Dandelion Records; songwriter David Lewis, who many years ago converted Wes to the Strawbs music and who currently finds himself making an album elsewhere in NJ; not to mention the genius of Pete Donnelly of The Figgs and NRBQ, and sideman to Soul Asylum and Graham Parker among many others.

But even this wasn’t enough: Wes felt the English UK (David Nagler, Eddie Carlson and Patrick Berkery) needed greater firepower, so he drafted Dag Juhlin (Poi Dog Pondering) in on lead guitar, also singing a Strawbs song of his choice. “Dag and I happened to see a fantastic Strawbs show at Joe’s Pub many years ago; so he was my first choice for this.

That’s what A Modern Collection of Antiques and Curios is: great, perhaps lesser played, Strawbs songs, sung by singers who can really sing them, accompanied by a crack band that really wants to play them.”