On the scene: C.A.P.E. Coffeehouse in Wareham

 

Camille Breeze grabbed her turquoise Martin guitar — a 1998 Kenny Wayne Shepherd Special Edition she bought second-hand — and broke into "The Gambler" by Kenny Rogers. The room soon came alive with people singing the chorus with her: "You gotta know when you hold 'em/ Know when to fold 'em/ Know when to walk away/ And know when to run." And with that, Open Mic Night officially began at last weekend's C.A.P.E. Coffeehouse at The Old Methodist Meetinghouse in Wareham; sessions are held on the last Saturday of each month. "I love this. This is my scene. This is my crowd," Camille, organizer/co-host, told me afterwards, as she sipped coffee in the kitchen — yes, they actually had coffee. "When I was younger ... I had no time for stuff like this. I look forward to this every month."  Ever since I saw photos of the C.A.P.E. Coffeehouse in The S-T's "Out and About" photo gallery, I had to check it out for myself. Playing and listening to music is how I like to spend my free time — and I found that everyone associated with C.A.P.E. (Coalition of Artists Performing for Education) feels the same. "This is my community," said Camille, an Andover resident, who drives an hour and 15 minutes (one-way) to get to Wareham for the coffeehouse. "Although, I am probably one of the younger people here," laughed the 38-year-old. Yes, it was a mostly gray-haired crowd, though Camille said they occasionally get students from music schools in Barnstable, Plymouth and Wareham. I arrived a little after 6 p.m. to find the historic house filling up with people, guitars and even a couple banjos. Open mic starts at 7 p.m. At 8, the "mentors" take the stage — musicians who regularly perform throughout southern New England. "C.A.P.E. just has a magic feel to it," said Camille, who hosts the coffeehouses with Rick Fetters, a renowned singer/songwriter on the New England circuit. The duo took over three years ago after founder David Jackson retired. "Everyone I know from Boston, when they come down here, they say it has a magic feel. Unlike most open mics up in Boston, what's unique about C.A.P.E. is there are people who come just to listen," Camille said. Last weekend, the main room was filled with some 40 people — only 14 of whom were there to perform.

 

The ambiance in the Old Meetinghouse at 495 Main St. is really cool: The historic house is painted gray and blue, with candles lit in each window. In the main room were microphones, stools, a piano and rows of folding chairs. On one corner table lay a spread of crackers, dip, strawberries and cream, gingersnaps and chocolate cake. On another lay a pile of black instrument cases. In the adjacent kitchen, folks milled about drinking coffee, munching sugar cookies and chatting. "I really believe in this place," said Camille.

 

Earlier, when Camille was setting up the sound system, a quiet, unassuming guy in glasses, jeans and black Velcro sneakers sat hunched over his guitar on the last bench in the crowd, finger picking a tune. For some reason — my bloodhound-sharp reporter's nose, I'd like to think — this guy instantly struck me as the silent type with a book-full of amazing stories. I took a seat next to him. He turned out to be Vic Wotherspoon, a 65-year-old Taunton musician who has been playing guitar since 1959. "I thought it'd be a nice way to meet women," he laughed. "I got really into the folk scene and left college to go to Greenwich Village in 1963." Now, anyone who knows me knows of my encyclopedic passion for Bob Dylan. So obviously, at the mention of "Greenwich Village" and "1963," I had to ask if he knew The Man himself. "Yeah, I knew Bob before he was famous," Vic said nonchalantly as I went bug-eyed. In New York, Vic played Gerde's Folk City and met legends like Richie Havens. Then he left New York for Cambridge, where he played Club 47, now Club Passim, where Dylan, Joan Baez, Tom Rush and the like performed. "I recorded a record on Vanguard around 1971 called 'Vic Wotherspoon Singin' the Blues,' " he said. "I don't know if it's still around." It sold about 1,000 copies and was never fully promoted, he said. He also recorded an album with fellow Taunton singer Tom Beaulieu in 1996. It sold for $14.99 at Sam Goody's at the Silver City Galleria. "Vic Wotherspoon & Tom Beaulieu" is still available on cdbaby.com for $15. Vic started to tell me about how he was sick for awhile, ended up in Brigham and Women's Hospital, had open heart surgery in 1995 — but his story got cut off when a performer took the stage. When he started talking again, he picked up with the old UMass Dartmouth folk fest, The Eisteddfod, which he played from the mid-1970s until it end in the early '90s. I asked him about songwriters. Turns out, he knew one of my favorites: John Prine. "Yeah, for a time, I knew John Prine very well. I was playing down in Virginia; he's from Kentucky. All those guys flat-pick very well ... I consider John Prine, Dylan and Townes Van Zandt some of the best songwriters." Agreed, Vic.

 

The "mentor" that night was Dick Webb with opener Robbie Walsh. Dick, 61, of Foxboro has been playing guitar and banjo since he was a student at Northeastern University in the 1960s.  "It just seemed like a natural thing. I was very into folk — Tom Rush, Dave Van Ronk, Jim Kweskin." He told me he picked up a lot of tunes hanging around Boston folk clubs and coffeehouses in the 1960s, where he heard Dylan, Rush, Van Ronk, Eric Von Schmidt, Taj Mahal, Pete Seeger and "Spider" John Koerner, among others. Since retiring from software development in 1996, "The Webb Guy," as he's known at C.A.P.E., has been performing around New England. "What I like about coffeehouses is people pay attention," he said. "At a bar, you're competing with the ball game." His 14-song set included "Bob Dylan's Dream," Tom Rush's "Paean to a Coyote," Jackson Browne's "These Days" and some traditional folk songs.

 

Mr. Walsh, 71, of Higham has been playing guitar and banjo since 1963, but is "better at banjo," he said with a chuckle. He also runs The Céilidh ("kay-lee"), a sing-along group in Higham. A céilidh is a traditional Gaelic social dance in Ireland and Scotland. Back in the day, musicians would gather for céilidhs in village halls on Saturday nights. Mr. Walsh, who has snow white hair, matching beard and twinkling eyes, is actually just the kind of guy you'd picture at a céilidh in some tiny Irish village. His eclectic six-song set list ranged from the traditional "Coo Coo Bird" to Chuck Berry's "No Money Down." "I mostly play southern Appalachian folk songs, but a little rock and roll, a few protest songs," Mr. Walsh said. "I just love music."

 

The next open mic is 7 to 10:30 p.m. May 24. Admission is $10; $5 for students and "open mic-ers."

 

On May 10, C.A.P.E. will host a CD release party for Rick Fetters' new disc, "When the Morning Comes." For more information, go to www.C.A.P.E.webbweaver.com.

 

Contact Lauren Daley at ldaley@s-t.com.