Blum Braves Blizzard; Beachland Brings 5 Bands, 2 Songwriters, 1 Big Wet Kiss

My mission was to interview Peter Case. He was scheduled to perform at Cleveland’s Beachland Ballroom & Tavern. It had been snowing for days; snowplow piles exceeded 6 feet; I was exhausted from telemark skiing.

Case’s story, however, was too fascinating to miss. Here’s a guy who as a teenager left Buffalo to sing on the streets in San Francisco. He slept in an abandoned truck in a junkyard and carried a fork in his pocket in case someone offered food. He went from punk to folk. Today he has almost 20 albums, and last year a 3 CD compilation was released in tribute to him with John Prine, Maura O’Connell and Dave Alvin singing his songs. He also has a new book called “As Far As You Can Get Without a Passport.” Listen for the interview as a Folk Alley Extra shortly.

The journey through the whiteout was worth it. Not only was Peter’s story worth capturing, I was rewarded afterward in 8 ways: 5 bands, two songwriters and 1 big wet kiss. Read on.