‘Essential Western New England Songbook’ project a who’s who of Connecticut music

‘The Essential Western New England Songbook’ is essentially a playlist. The list of more than 150 songs, spanning vital local music scenes from Northampton, Massachusetts, to New Haven and Brattleboro, Vermont, launched June 25 to share great music from the region, and provide a capsule history of sounds and trends in Connecticut music over the past half century or so.

The songbook was conceived by the New Music Alliance, based in Holyoke, Massachusetts, whose stated mission is “to assist and advance the careers of talented creative local musicians who write original music and to promote the extended Western New England area as a destination for original music writing, production, and performances.”

Connecticut contributors to the list include Robin Andreoli of the Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, WPLR “Local Bands” co-host Frank Critelli, WESU “Homegrown” host Rob DeRosa, Space nightclub founder and Mighty Purple front man Steve Rodgers, New Haven booking agent Margaret Milano (a mainstay at cafe nine) and Vic Steffens of Horizon Recording Studio in West Haven, to name just some.

New Music Alliance Executive Director Mark Sherry says these first 150 tunes are just the beginning. He says more songs will be added each year, just like a Hall of Fame or the Library of Congress.

The initial list includes selections dating back to the 1950s, while others are just a year or two old. Styles range from blues to bluegrass, from rock to rap and folk to polka, with a dash of punk, metal and indie rock.

It makes for a powerful listening experience. The modern roots rock rave-up “Chicks Dig It” by Cheshire’s Big Fat Combo can liven up any playlist, and outré cuts like “Descarga Ocho Kandelikas” by Afro-Semitic Experience or the jumpy “Key Lime Pie” by Washboard Slim & the Blue Lights give the songbook depth and distinction.

Who was eligible? According to the alliance’s website, newmusicalliance.org/songbook, the songbook “comprises original songs written by or originally recorded by artists who have spent a significant part of their lives in Western New England or who’ve formed their ‘breakthrough’ band while in college in Western New England.” That criteria neatly covers artists such as Gene Pitney (who grew up in Rockville), Gary Burr (the Nashville songwriter who hails from Meriden) and MGMT (which formed at Wesleyan University in Middletown).

No artist gets more than one song on the list, though some musicians do turn up more than once. Mark Mulcahy, for instance, is heard with the breakthrough mid-1980s hit of his old band Miracle Legion, “The Backyard,” as well as one of his solo numbers, “Cookie Jar.” Windsor-born guitar legend Al Anderson makes the cut both as a solo artist “Crazy Like a Fox” and his ‘60s band The Wildweeds.

The songbook naturally centers itself around the alliance’s own Western Mass. stomping grounds, but Connecticut is very well represented, with 46 acts hailing from the Nutmeg state. That sub-list is a solid reckoning of Connecticut music history. One can quibble about whether some of the artists’ other songs would be better choices than the ones picked here, but dozens of worthy artists who contributed to the history of music in this part of the world are given their due.

The Essential Western New England Songbook knows its Connecticut history. The Five Satins’ “In the Still of the Night,” recorded in the basement of St. Bernadette’s church in New Haven, is on the list. So is “You” by local prog groundbreakers Jasper Wrath and “Let’s Go” by pop-punk pioneers The Reducers of New London. The eco-friendly Paul Winter Consort’s on here, with “Wolf Eyes.” There’s even “Don’t Press Your Luck” by 1960s West Haven garage band The Shags, which featured future New Haven Register reporter Tom Violante.

With some of those notable exceptions, very few of the songs in the Essential Western New England Songbook could be called widely known. There are plenty of world-famous artists who are technically eligible for a list like this, from Michael Bolton to Dave Brubeck to Staind, but wouldn’t fit in. This songbook emerged from local music communities. It does not exist to celebrate those who escaped that realm.

In that spirit, the project was launched Friday with a low-key 90-minute livestream hosted by New Music Alliance Executive Director Mark Sherry. Several of the artists who made the cut for the songbook performed live from their living rooms or backyards, including Critelli (who also helped shape the list).

The New Music Alliance website offers the “Essential Essential Western New England Songbook” in multiple formats. There are links to the playlist on Spotify and YouTube and also a handy searchable text document presented as a spreadsheet, with song titles, artists and where they come from, dates the songs were released, genres and more.

Christopher Arnott can be reached at carnott@courant.com.