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December 29, 2009

A monthly jam: There's room for bluegrass in Salem

Larry Claflin Jr.

Bluegrass fans, as well as musicians who like to play that form of American roots music, are invited to attend a monthly Bluegrass Jam at Salem's Gulu-Gulu Cafe. The event is held the second Saturday of every month and run by Henry DuLaurence, who sings and plays guitar and mandolin at the open jam.

The next jam takes place next Saturday, Jan. 9, from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m.

DuLaurence, of Salem, said the shows also include several country numbers.

He likes to take lead on "Old Home Place" by Butch Ross, Del McCoury's "You're a Flower in the Wildwood" and "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke," popularized by Ralph Stanley.

The Bluegrass Jam has been a monthly staple at Gulu-Gulu for about 11âÑ2 years; it moved from the Bay Bridge when that restaurant closed, according to DuLaurence, a retired lawyer who also plays mandolin and Dobro.

DuLaurence, 70, said he didn't get into bluegrass until the early '80s, when he regularly took his three children and their friends to a now-defunct Cajun Bluegrass Festival in Rhode Island. Previously, he played country music in the East Village in the early 1960s.

The family trips made an impression on his kids: Two took up music. His son, Henry IV, a singer and guitarist, sometimes makes the trek from his home in South Easton to play with his father.

"Now that they figured out (the jam has moved), people come to sit and have lunch and coffee, or a beer," he said.

The jam also attracts those who play Celtic music — in which bluegrass is rooted — folk and country. Some are amateurs, while others perform professionally, such as Dimitri Eleftherakis of Ipswich.

Eleftherakis plays stand-up bass and has toured in the United States and internationally with Barry and Holly Tashian, a country/folk act out of Nashville. He's also in Granite Grass, a four-piece bluegrass group.

Eleftherakis said he enjoys the Gulu gatherings because he gets to meet other musicians and play some new songs.

"It's fun to get together and play with other people," said Eleftherakis, who works as a software engineer.

Guitarist and singer Mary Wetmore of Salem also attends occasionally.

"I know a couple (of musicians) from being around and they're very supportive and forgiving," said Wetmore, who plays more acoustic folk-rock than traditional bluegrass.

Wetmore now works in publishing and owns a small baking business, but in the past she played professionally. She was in We Saw the Wolf and Old Cowboy Death, local bluegrass and acoustic country-style bands, respectively.

Other locals who sit in are Jon Stone of Danvers on bass, banjo player Glenn Dagley of Danvers, and Scott Rule of Lynn on mandolin. Former Salem resident John Flaherty, a guitarist and singer, sometimes joins.

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