Do you ever have those odd days where strange things keep happening? This morning I was sitting at my desk with a nice cup of tea when the phone went. An American voice at the other end of the line said "Hi, this is Dean Friedman, who's that...?"
"The Dean Friedman?" I asked, putting down my cup and scrabbling in my handbag for my notebook. "American singer/songwriter Dean Friedman?"
Yep, twas he. He was ringing up to place an advert for his gig at St George's Hall next Saturday, and I found out a bit more about what he's up to, and the music that inspires him.
Dean is probably best known to UK audiences for his classic hits, 'Lucky Stars', 'Lydia', 'McDonald's Girl', 'Ariel' and 'Woman of Mine'.
He's in the country to host a new music series for the BBC, 'Dean Friedman's Real American Folk', and he's doing a 24 city, 2007 Summer Tour, which the Liverpool date is part of.
The series, made in Friedman's own Honking Goose Studios, will present the music, stories and spirit of the Hudson Valley region of New York, where Friedman makes his home.
'In the show,' he says, 'I'll be featuring contemporary and traditional folk music, from artists known and unknown, from in and around the Hudson Valley region of New York.
'It's fertile folk music territory, where legends like Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan still reside, where the late Phil Ochs grew up, and where a new generation of contemporary folk musicians, like Christine Lavin, David Bromberg, Dan Pelletier and New Middle Class, continue to push the form forward, keeping it fresh, exciting and relevant in these exceedingly strange times.'
'I'm part of an active community of songwriters in this area - the Hudson Valley Musician's Alliance - whose songs deal with real-life issues like raising families, fixing the front-yard fence, paying the mortgage and trying to find time to make music between taking out the trash and driving the kids to school. I'm really excited about the chance to introduce some of these great unheralded musicians, here in the Hudson Valley, to British audiences.'
The show will feature more than music. 'We'll also be doing comedy sketches, local recipes and folk remedies - we'll teach you what to do if you ever happen to get sprayed by a skunk - to give folks the real flavor of living here in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains and land of Rip Van Winkle and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow,' laughs Dean.
Lovely Dean also shared his top five favourite tracks with me, which will be on my music page in the Echo this Friday.
Tickets to all Dean's concert dates, plus his CDs, can be ordered via Friedman's website at: www.deanfriedman.com.