SAT 9/3: Boats, Tunes, Godot

If you're in town this weekend, let's raise a toast to the workers of the past who fought and died for better working conditions. Then drink more and stuff our faces...

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SAT 9/3 (to MON 9/5)

Various Times
Annual Gloucester Schooner Festival
around Gloucester Harbor
FREE

Saturday -- 10am to 10pm
Sunday -- 10:30am to 10pm
Monday -- "Rain day" makeup races

Gloucester is outside my usual range, but I have a soft spot for the town.

Around the harbor will be some activity downtown and on Rocky Neck, and there will be a Saturday fireworks display over the harbor around 9:15pm after the 'Boat Parade of Lights' (7:30pm).

Watching the schooners racing from the Eastern Point with some family is a wonderful memory I hope to keep for a long time. If the weather holds out, you might have a similar memory by the end of the weekend.

SAT 9/3 (to MON 9/5)

Noon
Campfire Festival
at Club Passim, 47 Palmer St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$10 per day / $30 all 4 days

Saturday schedule:

Noon -- Blues Ensemble
12:45pm -- Susan Cattaneo, Tom Smith, Randall Kromm, Addie Brownlee
2:15pm -- Laura Grill Band
3pm -- Jason Saltiel, Emily Ronna, Eric Leva, Anna Rose Beck
4:30pm -- Tricky Britches
5:15pm -- Plume Giant
6pm -- Danielle Ate The Sandwich, Rachael Sage, Julia Price, Sarah Borrello
7:30pm -- The Electric Heaters
8:15pm -- Kimon Kirk, Bhi Bhiman, Brian Webb
9:45pm -- Gideon Brown
10:30pm -- Liz Longley, Rhianna LaRocque, Nathan Reich, Jayme Salviati

How many campfires did you sit around this year? Most of us are counting on one hand, if not one finger or a faint wiggle.

No need to bring marshmallows or graham crackers, it's a campfire minus the fire yet exceptionally more acoustic instruments than usual.

There is folky/bluesy goodness all day long. Gotta love a string band from Portland who call themselves Tricky Bitches.

SAT 9/3

Jesse Dee (10pm), Stephie Coplan & The Pedestrians (7:30pm)
at Toad, 1912 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Porter Sq)
FREE

It's too bad that I didn't find a larger version of Jesse Dee's gig flyer, because it's aesthetically pleasing as usual. Like his music, the design is somewhat retro. Not many soul singers can pull off the solo gigs, but Jesse is strong guitarist with a bluesy shout that demands your attention. Expect some guest players as well.

The early show should be worth your while or at least good soundtrack for having a few beers. Stephie Coplan's piano-pop is in the vein of Ben Folds.

SAT 9/3 (and SUN 9/4)

8pm
"Waiting For Godot"
at Zack Box Theatre, Downstairs, 8 The Fenway, Boston (Boston Conservatory)
FREE

SUN 9/4 -- 2pm only

This existential play by Samuel Beckett is a sparse, minimalist tale where nothing much happens, so it would work fine in a relatively small basement theater.

It's not the feel-good hit of the summer, but who's expecting that on Labor Day weekend. (It's so small, you might get shut out -- like I did when I thought I could stroll in 5 minutes before curtain.)

SAT 9/3

9pm
Pretty & Nice, Husband & Wife, Metavari, Night Fruit
at Middle East - Upstairs, 472 Mass Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$8 advance / $10 day of show / 18+

Good news, everyone: A new Pretty & Nice album is coming. In the meantime, get a taste of their most excellent, hopped-up powerpop. I can listen to their last album over and over again (and I have occasionally listened to the streaming audio version for several hours at a time).

Honestly, I haven't been blown away by the other bands (including two bands from Indiana). There are interesting things here and there, especially Night Fruit, so you might dig it more than me.