Local music legend, eight-time Minnesota Music Award winner, and two-time inductee into the Mid-America Music Hall of Fame, Mary Jane Alm has long entertained audiences in Minnesota and beyond. Her latest album, is Me and the Wild Blue.
Check it out at maryjanealm.com.
5:00 pm Club Opens
5:30 pm Music
Tickets - $20 ($15 for Members)
This event is TOTALLY open to the public!
Club Day Monday is a new event co-hosted by The Woman's Club of Minneapolis and local musician and music producer Lori Dokken. Join Lori as she hosts local entertainers in the relaxed setting of the Lounge at The Woman's Club of Minneapolis.
The Woman's Club of Minneapolis
410 Oak Grove St
Minneapolis, MN 55403-3294
Parking lot right next to the Club!
Lori Dokken Presents
WE ARE BACK AT THE CHANHASSEN and we hope that you will join us for an evening celebrating some of the greatest women singers and songwriters ever! With Lori Dokken at the piano, Twin Cities’ vocalists Judi Vinar, Patty Peterson and Rachel Holder will turn the stage into a celebration of some of the matriarchs of music. Sit back and enjoy the vibrant vocal harmonies these girls put to tunes made famous by such divas as Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Annie Lennox, Carole King, Tina Turner, Judy Garland, Christina Aguilera and many more. It promises to be a fantastic evening of hearing these women “roar” as only they can!
Sunday, August 21st - tickets on sale soon!
The Chanhassen Dinner Theatre
Concert Series
501 W. 78th Street
Chanhassen, MN 55317
1971 – 51 years ago – two of the most influential and renowned albums were released by two of THE greatest female composers of all time – Carole King and Joni Mitchell. The critical acclaim of Tapestry and Blue has only grown over time and this year these albums reach the milestone of being released a half century ago.
To celebrate this grand anniversary, “THREE” (Judi Vinar, Rachel Holder and Lori Dokken) is teaming up with bassist Jay Young and percussionist Dave Stanoch to present these two classic recordings in their entirety on The MainStage at Crooners Supper Club on Sunday, August 28th at 5:00 PM.
If you are like many of us, you have worn out several copies of Carole’s and Joni’s masterpieces. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to hear the entire albums played uninterrupted by this incomparable group of local artists.
Sunday, August 28th - 5:00 PM
The Main Stage at Crooners
6161 Highway 65 NE
Minneapolis, MN 55432
Doors at4:00
Show at 5:00
Club Day Monday's at the Woman's Club of Minneapolis have been such a great way to start every week. On Monday, June 6th, host Lori Dokken welcomes T. Mychael Rambo!
Vocalist, recording artist, arts educator, public speaker, community organizer, Regional Emmy-Award winning actor, and all-around amazing gentleman, T. Mychael Rambo returns to the Club for an exciting evening of song and storytelling.
Club Day Monday is a new event co-hosted by The Woman's Club of Minneapolis and local musician and music producer Lori Dokken. Join Lori as she hosts local entertainers in the relaxed setting of the Lounge at The Woman's Club of Minneapolis.
Great parking!
Great cocktails!
Great music!
Great way to start off your week!
The amazing PAUL PETERSON joins Lori on April 18th!
You’ll recall that Peterson, fresh out of high school, became a replacement member in the Time in 1983, just in time for the filming of “Purple Rain.” Then, he became co-lead singer of the Family, a Prince-created spinoff of the Time, featuring Peterson, Jellybean Johnson, Eric Leeds and Susannah Melvoin. After one album (he sang the original "Nothing Compares 2 U") and one gig at First Avenue, Peterson exited for a solo career. Over the years, he has worked as a teacher at professional music schools, toured as a sideman with the likes of Kenny Loggins and Oleta Adams, gigged with his jazzy family band the Petersons, resurrected the Family as fDeluxe and led the Minneapolis Funk All-Stars. You can see how well-connected Peterson is in his video for “You Got 2 Love.” Look for cameos by Sinbad, Fred Armisen, Tom Arnold, Donny Osmond, Victor Wooten, Jellybean Johnson, Monte Moir and Prince’s sister, Tyka Nelson, among others.
The Woman’s Club of Minneapolis is a 501(c)(3) community organization located in a stunning Italianate, six-story mansion overlooking Loring Park in downtown Minneapolis. The Club is a gathering place for active, interesting women and men of all ages and backgrounds. The Woman’s Club of Minneapolis has provided a splendid retreat for outstanding women and men since 1907.
Today the Woman’s Club continues to be a vibrant community that embraces people from a variety of backgrounds. The current Clubhouse, built in 1928, has been designated by the City of Minneapolis as a Historic Treasure and offers breathtaking views of Loring Park and downtown Minneapolis.
Minnesota’s own Emmy Award-winning acoustic tunesmith, Michael Monroe, performs an evening of music by the tremendously popular British singer-songwriter. In the ’70s, Michael Monroe looked like Cat Stevens, performed Cat tunes and even wanted to be him!
Stevens, whose music remains relevant five decades later said, ”Music can be healing… for what looks like a gigantic divide in this world, I feel I can point a way toward our common humanity again.” Monroe shares this viewpoint and feels Cat’s tunes are especially timely today. Cat Stevens “had rare ability to combine the strength, fragility, and sometimes mystery of his highly personal compositions,” said the LA Times.
Michael Monroe has performed his original music for five decades. His hand-crafted Seaton guitars are made of 200 year-old reclaimed wood from the bottom of Lake Superior. These “works of art,” his rich vocals and crystal/bamboo flutes showcase his signature mellifluous sound.
Expect the best of Cat with songs like “Wild World,” “Peace Train,” “Father & Son,” “Hard Headed Woman,” “Where Do The Children Play,” “Can’t Keep It In” and of course, “Moonshadow.”
Sunday, June 19th - 4:00 PM
Crooners Lounge
6161 Highway 65 NE
Minneapolis, MN 55432
The musical journey begins with Sister Rosetta Tharpe and travels through time to today featuring such female phenoms as Laura Nyro, Carole King, Phoebe Snow, Joni Mitchell, Bonnie Raitt, Lady Gaga and India.Arie as well as others. The evening will also be interspersed with words from some wise women such as Maya Angelou, Terry Tempest Williams, Winona LaDuke, Coretta Scott King, Mary Oliver and many others.
On stage to deliver an eclectic and dynamic array of arrangements of songs written by these iconic female composers are a cadre of local Twin Cities’ vocalists including Judi Vinar, Joyann Parker, Rachel Holder, Katie Gearty, and Anna Christy backed by pianist Lori Dokken (Producer & Music Director of “Shout! Sister, Shout!”) along with Jordan Hedlund on bass and Daryl Boudreaux on percussion. We will also be joined by actress Eden Bodnar who will be delivering the spoken word sections.
Tickets on sale now!
Saturday, March 19th - 8:00 PM
Sunday, March 20th - 4:00 PM
Crooners Lounge
6161 Highway 65 NE
Minneapolis, MN 55432
Patty will be joined by her trio of pals – Judi Vinar, Rachel Holder and Lori Dokken, along with special guests yet TBA. In the business for more than five decades, Patty is as diverse as they come. She is a world-class Jazz/R&B vocalist, a radio show host on KBEM Jazz 88, a mainstay in the jingle and voice-over industry and an inspiring presenter on the national speaking circuit. There is so much that we know about her. Yet with more than 50 years of musical history, this evening promises to be an amazing journey of stories and songs that will move us to tears, cause us to have bursts of spontaneous laughter and surprise us with all that have we yet to learn about this phenomenal woman.
To honor the accomplished life and generous heart of this Twin Cities’ treasure, the producers of this event are offering two FREE Concerts in the Dunsmore Room at Crooners on February 19th and 20th. They invite the attendees during that evening or afternoon to consider honoring Patty with a monetary gift to The Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation which is an organization that helps to support the staff and caregivers who saved Patty’s life fifteen years ago.
This concert is a gift with our thanks and gratitude to you, our musical supporters. We hope that will join us to experience “The Story of Patty …” and we sincerely thank you for considering making a financial gift that evening or afternoon to our friends in the medical community, who not only saved Patty’s life 15 years ago, but devotedly care for us every day and especially during this pandemic.
Your 100% tax-deductible donation will go directly to the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation. The Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation is an independent nonprofit research organization that partners with the cardiologists from Minneapolis Heart Institute to lead groundbreaking clinical research and education focused on the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart and vascular disease.
Saturday, February 19th - 8:00 PM
Sunday, February 20th - 4:00 PM
Crooners Lounge & Supper Club
6161 Highway 65 NE
Minneapolis, MN 55432
Join us for a live happy hour on my Facebook page ... usually happening on most Thursdays.
Rachel Holder will join me on Thursday, June 17th and I am TOTALLY looking forward to it!
Send me your requests ahead of time if you'd like - loridokken@icloud.com
Woo hoo !!! It's going to be tons of fun! Looking forward to hanging out with you!
Thursday -June 17th - 5:00 PM
live-streaming on Facebook at:
Submit your requests ahead of time by sending an email to me at:
How Spirituals and Gospel Music provided the musical inspiration and foundation for blues, jazz and rock and roll.
Every September at Unity Minneapolis the Music Department presents a month-long focus on a specific musical style, genre, artist or era from our past. Being the Musical Director at Unity places me in the position of selecting what will be featured each year.
I am very excited to join with my friend and collaborator, Ginger Commodore, to assemble this journey through Gospel Music from the Spirituals to contemporary Gospel artists. As challenging as this will be for us to distill into four Sundays, decades and centuries of songs, composers, and artists, we look forward to bringing you a snapshot of the foundational, musical building blocks for the development of some of America’s most renowned contemporary music styles such as blues, jazz and rock and roll.
Musical Guests for this series include: Ginger Commodore, Judi Vinar, Rachel Holder, Julius Collins, T. Mychael Rambo, Jordan Hedlund, Bobby Commodore, Pete Hennig and Dave Berget.
September Music Series – “Discovering the Roots of American Music”
September 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th
Unity Minneapolis
4000 Golden Valley Road
Minneapolis, MN 55422
In-person services at 9:30 and 11:30 AM
Live-streamed at 9:30 AM
To live-stream go to:
or
https://www.facebook.com/unityminneapolis
or:
https://www.youtube.com/user/unitycc
Happening on some Wednesdays from 5:00 to 6:30
live-streaming on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/lori.dokken Submit your requests ahead of time by sending an email to me at: loridokken@icloud.com
Join us for a live-streamed service
at 9:30 AM!
Join me for a tremendously uplifting experience at Unity Minneapolis where I have been the Music Director for the past nine years. Weekly Sunday morning services are at 9:30 and 11:30. If you can't attend in person - watch the live stream of the 9:30 service. (Tune in at 9:25 so you don't miss the Prelude!)
Frequent musical guests are The Unity Choir, Judi Vinar, Rachel Holder, Patty Peterson, Erin Schwab, Dane Stauffer, and many many other Twin Cities' artists.
"Discovering the Roots of American Music"
From the Spirituals to Gospel ... the inspiration for Jazz, Blues and Rock and Roll
Every September at Unity Minneapolis the Music Department presents a month-long focus on a specific musical style, genre, artist or era from our past. Being the Musical Director at Unity places me in the position of selecting what will be featured each year.
I am very excited to join with my friend and collaborator, Ginger Commodore, to assemble this journey through Gospel Music – from the Spirituals to contemporary Gospel artists. As challenging as this will be – to distill into four Sundays, decades and centuries of songs, composers and artists – we look forward to bringing you a snapshot of the foundational, musical building blocks for the development of some of America’s most renowned contemporary music styles … blues, jazz and rock and roll.
Robert Darden, former gospel music editor for Billboard Magazine, says it best in his book, *People Get Ready! A New History of Black Gospel Music:
“Among the richest of the lavish gifts Africa has given to the world is rhythm. The beat … It is rhythm that drives the great American musical exports, the spiritual (and by extension, gospel), the blues, jazz, and rock and roll.
But first you must have the spirituals – religion with rhythm.”
Mr. Darden goes on to describe his research:
“What I found thrilled me. I found a people so extraordinary that they could make something out of nothing. When denied a spoken language, they created a language of song of such complexity that researchers are still trying to tease out its meanings. When denied access to religion, they assembled snippets and bits and molded them into a religion that sustained them through America’s darkest hours, slavery, and Jim Crow (and, in my opinion, created a theology closer to first-century Christianity).”
Ginger and I have known each other for a very long time and just recently have spent time together sharing the stage. Ginger has been a member of the Twin Cities music scene for many years. Beginning her musical career, she joined the three-time Grammy Award winning Sounds of Blackness, touring across the United States and opening shows for The Jackson Five, Roberta Flack and The Pointer Sisters. She was instrumental in ministering, performing and recording with Sam Davis and The Twin Cities Gospel Ensemble, and the JD Steele singers. Ginger is also an original member of the local female group, Women Who Cook.
Her theatrical credits include: The World Premiere of Death in the Family with the Minnesota Opera Company, Selma and Black Nativity at the Penumbra Theatre Company, Black Belts at the Mixed Blood Theatre, Stamping, Shouting & Singing Home at the Children’s Theatre Company, Smokey Joe’s Café at Hey City Theater, Hairspray at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater, The Color Purple at Park Square Theatre, and Capitol Project at Wunderlust Theater. She’s also been a featured soloist with the Minnesota Orchestra Pops series at Orchestra Hall with Doc Severenson.
Ginger is a founding member of the local jazz ensemble, Moore By Four, who toured the United States performing at Colleges and Universities, concert halls and Coliseums and renown Jazz Festivals. Ginger also toured England, Scotland and Wales joining Judy Craig Mann of the 60s girl group, The Chiffons. You will find Ginger currently appearing at local jazz clubs with her own trio of musicians, as Ginger Commodore & GCQ.
Please join us in person or online in September 2021 for this fantastic music series.
I am really looking forward to it!
Lori Dokken
I am ecstatic to be back at The Ordway Center of the Performing Arts for the tenth year. This year's production is "Elf The Musical" and you will find me once again in The Target Atrium, seated at a very lovely Yamaha Concert Grand piano, playing pre show and intermission music. It is really my favorite job of the year ... I love Christmas and Holiday music ... I can't wait to see lots of 'short people' - some old friends and some new ... and of course I enjoy spending time with the fantastic staff at this treasured St. Paul theater.
"Elf The Musical" - runs from Wednesday, December 5th through Sunday, December 30th. Evening shows usually have a curtain time of 7:30 and matinees are at 2:00. You will find me seated on the bench an hour prior to the start of the show and then I will be playing again during intermission. I am fairly certain that some of my young friends will sit in and play a little "Jingle Bells" with me ... and we'll see how many renditions end up being posted on YouTube.
Please check out The Ordway site to find the exact dates and times.
CLUB DAY MONDAY is holding its first OPEN MIC on Monday, August 1st at the Woman’s Club of Minneapolis.
PUBLIC IS TOTALLY WELCOME!!!
Join Lori Dokken and guest emcee Dane Stauffer for a happy hour featuring some fabulous singers that you should hear. From Club members to chiropractors … you’ll be astounded at the talented folks that surround us in life!
We have a couple of performer spots still available … so if you are interested in taking your turn on the mic, email Lori at loridokken@icloud.com
DOORS AT 5:00 PM
MUSIC 5:30 to 7:00 PM
TICKETS - $20
($15 Members)
PUBLIC EVENT !!!
The Woman's Club of Minneapolis
410 Oak Grove Street
Minneapolis, MN 55403
612.813.5300