Friday, April 25, 2003
Artist of the Week: John D. Lamb
Retreat helps other songwriters
By Melody Baetens / Special to The Detroit News
 

Singer-songwriter John D. Lamb's nonprofit organization, Springfed Arts, sponsors a yearly November retreat for songwriters at the Birchwood Inn in Harbor Springs.
 

ROYAL OAK -- Singer-songwriter John D. Lamb began performing while studying journalism at Central Michigan University.
These days, he earns a living as musician, performing three to five nights a week in Metro Detroit either as a solo artist or with his band, the John D. Lamb Band.
"The band is a really good bar band and show band, and I don't mind calling it a bar band," Lamb says. "Each of us has our separate projects that make us feel creative and artistic."
Lamb's other projects include his nonprofit organization, Springfed Arts, which sponsors the yearly Lamb's Retreat for Songwriters in November at the Birchwood Inn in Harbor Springs. Singers and songwriters from around the country take part in the retreat's workshops, jams and performances, which offer an opportunity to learn from other artists.
"It's all about developing this community of songwriters," Lamb says. "So often, we write in solitude and we think nobody appreciates what we're doing, until we get together."
He also runs Walloon Writer's Retreat, a gathering for creative writers. Now in it's fifth year, this project was started with the help of Oscar-winning filmmaker and author Michael Moore and his wife, Kathleen Moore.
The songwriters' retreat isn't all Lamb does to help local singer songwriters. Once a month on a Sunday, Lamb invites five or six songwriters to perform at what he calls Lamb's Songwriter's Showcase. The event is free and takes place at Memphis Smoke in Royal Oak.
Name: John D. Lamb.
Lineup: Lamb plays guitar and sings solo and with his band. The band includes drummer Stephen Grant Wood and bass player Joe Lambert. Lamb and Wood also perform as an acoustic guitar duo.
Sound: Not exactly classic rock, but not quite cutting edge. Lamb describes his music as "Great Lakes Rock and Roll." The band performs everything from Iggy Pop to Frank Sinatra and from Elvis to Glen Campbell.
Releases: "Live in the Barn" CD (2002); "A Novel Day" CD (1995, Schooolkids Records); "Live at Legs" cassette (1990, Whirled Records, out of print).
Next: At 10 tonight and Saturday, the John D. Lamb Band will perform at Bachelor One's, 1967 Cass Lake Road in Keego Harbor. Call (248) 682-2295. At 8:30 p.m. Sunday, a Lamb's Songwriter's Showcase will be held at Memphis Smoke, 100 S. Main St. in Royal Oak. Call (248) 543-4300.
For more information on Lamb's Songwriter's Retreat, visit www.springfed.org or www.jdlamb.com.
Melody Baetens is a free-lance writer. You can reach her at melodybaetens@yahoo.com.