"Variety for the ears, Vaudeville for the mind", Portland's own eclectic radio variety show recorded here at the Aladdin and aired on OPB radio throughout the state, is back for another season of intellect meets irreverence; interviews with intriguing meets oddball, extraordinary musical guests; original sketch comedy with Faces for Radio Theater, and house band Ralph Huntley and the Mutton Chops. Billed by the Oregonian as "the retro-hip kid sister of A Prairie Home Companion," why don't you come on down and see what all the fuss is about? www.livewireradio.org for schedule and information.

Patty Larkin - Patty Larkin is part of the urban-folk/pop music phenomenon that spun off of the singer/songwriter explosion of the seventies, reinterpreting traditional folk melodies, rock, pop, bossa nova, drawing on anything from Dylan (Bob) to Dylan (Thomas). A self described "guitar driven songwriter," Larkin has wound her way through soundscapes of evocative vocals, inventive guitar wizardry and imaginative lyrics. Her songs run from impressionistic poetry to witty wordplay. In 2010 Patty Larkin releases a collectible collection of 25 love songs in celebration of 25 years in the recording industry. Here Patty has reworked 25 of her favorite songs in an acoustic, "unplugged" release, joined by friends along the way. A follow up to her critically acclaimed WATCH THE SKY (Critics Choice-NY Times, Brilliant-Billboard), "25" is a one of a kind project that is at once intimate and universal, the voice of a generation of songwriters, simple and direct, yet the touchstone of one woman's song. Over her 25 year career, Patty Larkin has worked with some of the brightest stars in American music, honing a reputation as a "musician's musician" along the way. John Gorka - Godfrey Daniels is one of the oldest and most venerable music institutions in eastern Pennsylvania. A small neighborhood coffeehouse and listening room, it has long been a hangout for music lovers and aspiring musicians, and in the late 1970s, one of these was a young Moravian College student named John Gorka. Soon he found himself living in the club’s basement and acting as resident M.C. and soundman, encountering legendary folk troubadors like Canadian singer/songwriter Stan Rogers, Eric Andersen, Tom Paxton and Claudia Schmidt. Their brand of folk-inspired acoustic music inspired him, and before long he was performing his own songs — mostly as an opener for visiting acts. Soon he started traveling to New York City, where Jack Hardy's legendary Fast Folk circle became a powerful source of education and encouragement. Folk meccas like Texas' Kerrville Folk Festival (where he won the New Folk Award in 1984) and Boston followed, and his stunningly soulful baritone voice and emerging songwriting began turning heads. Those who had at one time inspired him — Suzanne Vega, Bill Morrissey, Nanci Griffith, Christine Lavin, Shawn Colvin — had become his peers.

Though many still have trouble pronouncing his last name and the instrument he plays, Jake Shimabukuro (she-ma-BOO- koo-row) is unquestionably regarded as one of the world's top ukulele (oo-koo-LAY-lay) musicians. Renowned for lightning-fast fingers and revolutionary playing techniques, Jake views the ukulele as an "untapped source of music with unlimited potential." His virtuosity defies label or category. Playing jazz, blues, funk, classical, bluegrass, folk, flamenco, and rock, Jake's mission is to show everyone that the ukulele is capable of so much more than only the traditional Hawaiian music many associate it.

His name is synonymous with Funky Music, his pedigree impeccable: Maceo Parker; his band: the tightest little funk orchestra on earth. Everyone knows by now that he's played with each and every leader of funk, from his start with James Brown, which Maceo describes as "like being at University", jumping aboard the Mothership with George Clinton, stretching out with Bootsy's Rubber Band. Most recently Prince has borrowed Maceo for his record breaking Musicology Tour, after all if you want funk you'd better call Maceo! He's the living, breathing pulse which connects the history of Funk in one golden thread. The cipher which unravels dance music down to its core.

Jeff Garlin both co-stars and executive produces the HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm" starring "Seinfeld" creator Larry David. The unique comedy features Garlin as David's loyal manager. The critically acclaimed series has won the Golden Globe award for Best Comedy, the Danny Thomas Producer of the Year award from the Producers Guild of America, and the AFI Comedy Series of the Year award. The Chicago native studied filmmaking and began performing stand-up comedy while at the University of Miami. A Second City Theatre alumnus, Garlin has toured the country as a stand-up comedian. Garlin's first film as a director, "I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With", was released to critical acclaim last year. Garlin has extensive experience on TV and in film, most recently voicing "The Captain" in the Pixar movie WALL-E.

World music will be the resounding theme at the second annual World Water Day PDX concert series, slated for Monday, March 22, 2010, at the Aladdin Theatre. Three Portland-based acts will be featured in the World Water Day PDX concert series, including 3 Leg Torso, Obo Addy, and Loveness Wesa and the Bantus Band. The concert series caps off the two-day Walk for Water fundraiser for Water for All, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing clean water to families in sub-Saharan Africa. As headliner for the World Water Day concert series, 3 Leg Torso exudes an eclectic synthesis of chamber music, tango, klezmer, Latin and world music.

Jamie Cullum is an artist deserving of superlatives but more complex than a simple set of adjectives can depict. If you know him as "just" a jazz musician or from his strikingly creative way with cover versions (among them, Radiohead's 'High & Dry' and Pharrell's 'Frontin') you're just familiar with the tip of the iceberg. 'The Pursuit', his fifth album and first new solo record in four years, is summed up by its title, taken from Nancy Mitford's classic novel, The Pursuit Of Love. "In life, we pursue everything. Life is one long pursuit," says Jamie and the album is just such a pursuit – a combination of his eclectic music tastes and enduring love of Jazz and its timeless standards. It is a record that mixes his heritage with a thrilling selection of modern influences. Describing its sound he moves from Cole Porter to Rhianna to Aphex Twin in the same sentence. Jamie is a performer capable of delivering constant surprises with a talent elastic enough to evince a four-to-the-floor acoustic Ibiza song on the same record as a lushly recorded Jazz standard.