Jukebox: Dionne Warwick to bring her songbook to Proctors

Odetta pioneered bluesy folk while Dionne Warwick made polished pop of equal impact and influence. Both sing here in the coming week, along with younger-generation singers they inspired: Nanci Griffith and MotherJudge. Odetta and MotherJudge sing on Monday at the Lakehouse Theatre (Washington Park, Albany) in a “Monday Nights in the Park” free show. Odetta was one of those “doing it for real,” as Dylan said in Martin Scorsese’s bio-film, describing those who inspired him in his early Greenwich Village days. Arguably every folk singer of either gender has aspired to her musical grace, conviction and authority, but no one can match the monumental gravity of her voice and her world-shaking laugh. She sings these days with pianist Seth Farber. “At my age, it’s a pleasure not to heft a guitar around,” said the now 78-year-old... [read full story]