Lauren Ambrose to Bring Western Swing Sounds to Helsinki Hudson

Lauren Ambrose

Lauren Ambrose

(HUDSON, N.Y.) – Yes, that Lauren Ambrose. Perhaps best known for her dramatic role in the black comedy “Six Feet Under,” Lauren Ambrose brings her latest musical project, the Northeastern Western Swing Explosion, to Club Helsinki Hudson on Friday, May 30, 2014, at 9pm. The band, a kind of supergroup comprised of members of many of the region’s top Americana bands, specializes in performing danceable renditions of beloved Western swing classics by the likes of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys.

Although most commonly thought of as an actor, Lauren Ambrose has performed at Helsinki Hudson and elsewhere – including at Joe’s Pub in New York City – previously with her group, the Leisure Class, which specialized in ragtime Dixieland jazz. In sum, she knows how to entertain in a nightclub as well as she does on TV, on the Broadway stage, and on the silver screen. Now she is focusing on Western swing — the music that came after Dixieland, and a style that many hear as a precursor of rock ‘n’ roll.

Western swing is a unique fusion of country music and jazz that was popularized in dance halls in Texas, Oklahoma and California in the 1930s. The best known exponent of the style was Bob Wills, who with the Texas Playboys combined rural, cowboy, polka, folk, Dixieland jazz and blues and blended it all with swing as played by a string band of guitars, fiddles, banjos and violins augmented with drums, horns, and pianos. Contemporary groups keeping the style alive include Asleep at the Wheel and Hot Club of Cowtown.

Hailing from the far western reaches of New England, the Northeastern Western Swing Explosion is a supergroup featuring members of bands including, but not exclusive to the Lucky 5, Yellowbirds, the Leisure Class, the Blue Ribbon Boys, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Jr., Elvis Presley, the Minivans, Neko Case, Jonathan Talbott & Friends, Tthe Hunger Mountain Boys, Dooley Austin, Cobble Mountain Band, Reverb, King Wilke, Two Man Gentleman Quartet, Sam Quinn and Japan Ten, and Jim and Jennie and the Pinetops.

 

For reservations in The Restaurant or in the club call 518.828.4800.

 

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