Mixer: Kelly Kessler

Mix Title:  Warning: May Emit Sparks

Melungeon Records is a label whose musicians, irrespective of genre, inhabit the margins where traditions collide with innovation. The name Melungeon is borrowed from a group of people found scattered throughout the southern Appalachians. Melungeons were already established in the mountains when Scotch, Irish and English settlers first arrived in the 1600's. Dark-skinned, sharp-featured and speaking broken English, Melungeons were clearly neither white, nor black, nor Native American. Their origins remain unknown today.

For Melungeon Records founder Kelly Kessler, these mysterious hill people hold particular interest - they're practically kin. "I first learned about them when I lived in Kentucky and as it turns out my West Virginia-born stepdad is part Melungeon," she says. She chose the name for her record label because it connotes the essence of the label's music: both germane and "other".

This mix features the following categories: Heartbreak, Whiskey, Jesus, Fiddles & Banjos, Critters & Hollering.

Bonus Tracks:

- exploding chicken and Barrel of Bangs

-Kelly Kessler "The Salt Of Your Skin" CD (Melungeon)

-Kelly Kessler and the Wichita Shut-Ins featuring Larence Peters "Life of Regret" EP (Melungeon)

-Tatsu Aoki, Robbie Lynn Hunsinger, and Joseph Jarman "Trio" CD (Melungeon)

THERE ARE NO ADVANCE TICKET SALES FOR THE MUSIC MIXER. $5 Suggested donation at the door.

Call 312.255.9454 if you can not attend the party and wish to fax in a bid on a mix. All faxed bids must be received by midnight CST on Tuesday, September 20th, 2005.