Annie Patterson

Annie Patterson & Peter Blood support hope & change through their world-famous group singing books, Rise Up Singing and Rise Again. For close to 40 years they have been nurturing & leading group singing. Peter was editor for Pete Seeger's autobiography, Where Have all the Flowers Gone, and Annie performs in multiple configurations, including with Girls From Mars.

The music of Joe Jencks burns in the heart of the listener, both with his lyrics and his powerful voice. The stories and poetry of his songs lift up a vision of love, compassion and solidarity without preaching or posturing - just solid, inspirational music. In addition to a wealth of solo performing, he's now part of a trio called Brother Sun. As Joe says in one of his songs, "You may hold the candle but you cannot hold the flame".

Annie Patterson & Peter Blood have been encouraging group singing for the people, a la Pete Seeger, for almost 40 years, first with Winds of the People, then with Rise Up Singing, and now with 1200 more songs in Rise Again. They and other musicians are touring to share the music with their world premiere in Madison, WI, on 8/27/15, followed by a sing-along workshop on 8/29/15, 11am at the Great River Folk Festival, then off to Northern CA.

Peter Blood and his wife, Annie, gave the world an immense gift of music with the Rise Up Singing. Peter has a passion for leading group sing-alongs, like Pete Seeger, with whom Peter Blood has worked on Seeger's autobiography. But Peter is more than music, including social change organizing, teaching religion (Quaker) and advanced practice psychiatric nursing.

Annie Patterson is a thorough music lover, maker and sharer, with many years experience performing music in coffeehouses, clubs and festivals and with a swing group called Big Nite Out and Girls From Mars. Annie was raised Methodist, but felt, even in her teens, a tug toward the Divine presence available in silence, an attraction that led her to Quakers as an adult.