Singing Cedar Key in the summer? How many songs can you name about the Suwannee River, or the Withlacoochee, Alapaha, Alapahoochee, Little (which one?), Grand Bay, Banks Lake, the Okefenokee Swamp, Suwannacoochee Spring, Manatee Springs, or the Dead River Sink? Most people know only one song for all of that. Come on, songwriters, let’s hear more! WWALS members, come help organize the first Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest!
Update 2018-02-03: And you can join us afterwards for 5 Holes Cleanup and Site Exploration, at the Suwannee River but by land.
Sheet music cover of “Way Down Upon the Swanee River”. 1935. Color photoprint. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Accessed 1 Feb. 2018.
The WWALS Songwriting Contest Committee held its first meeting Sunday, January 28, 2018 at Crossroads Market & Grill in Hamilton County, Florida, with Eileen Box (Chair), Scotti Jay, Sara Squires, and John S. Quarterman. Numerous logistics were discussed, from submission format and content to venue: so far the leading contender is Cedar Key, in Levy County on the Gulf of Mexico.
When: 1PM, Saturday, February 10, 2018
Where: Crossroads Market & Grill, Inc., 5463 State Rd 6 West, Jasper, FL 32052
What: WWALS Songwriting Committee meeting to plan the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest
Way down upon the Swanee river in Florida, postcard, ca. 1930-1945, Boston Public Library.
What You Missed
Tentative decisions so far include:
When: This spring is already scheduled up, so summer 2018 for this event.
Where: Many venues were discussed, from Valdosta south through Live Oak, Lake City, and Branford, but it’s very difficult to get Floridians to go to Georgia, and it’s surprisingly easy to get everybody to go to Cedar Key, so Cedar Key is the leading contender.
What to submit: Lyrics and sound (mp3) about any river, creek, spring, sink, swamp, or pond in the Suwannee River Basin (except not the Santa Fe River nor creeks, sinks, etc. on it, because it has its own contest). Nature, people, or events, are all good.
What not to submit: No politics, religion, or flamingos.
Before the event: Submissions will be narrowed down to half a dozen or so, in two categories: from within the Basin, and from elsewhere.
The event: Finalists will perform live, and judges will decide. Contestants and especially winners will get prizes. Food, song, sunshine, and a fine time.
Format: If the format sounds familiar, that’s because we are shamelessly copying the long-running Our Santa Fe River Songwriting Contest, which we recommend you also attend. The rivers are different, and the winners will get prizes.
Come to the WWALS Songwriting Committee meeting on February 10th and help decide how we will pick some more songs about our rivers!
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
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