Brewing Coffee, Concerts and Community Activism

The volunteers behind Common Ground Coffeehouse work hard to support positive causes. Since the series started in 2002, the group has raised over $20,000 for local charities, including Midnight Run in Dobbs Ferry and the Beczak Environmental Center in Yonkers.

Five years ago, they started the Common Ground Microcredit Fund, which distributes donations and low-interest loans ranging from $500 for Just Food, a group in New York City that brings healthy, sustainable food to underserved populations, to $5,000 to assist families in New Iberia, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.

And, of course, they sponsor a concert series that brings top talent to Hastings and its environs throughout the year. "It doesn't feel like work when you're doing something you love," said Carter Smith, the man behind the curtain. "I love presenting music and I'm looking for more opportunities to do it."

Many of the artists that he books circulate in the folk music scene and generally perform on acoustic instruments. But he's also showcased Cajun-Zydeco, blues, jazz, klezmer, world music, and even opera. "The term 'folk' is misunderstood as being just traditional folk music like Joan Baez and Pete Seeger, but it's more than that," he said. "Folk music to me means authentic music of the people, so in that sense, hip-hop is folk music."

This September marks the start of the ninth year of Common Ground Coffeehouse concerts at the First Unitarian Society. Smith also recently launched Common Ground Community Concerts, a full service concert promotion and event planning company. That led to the start of a second regular series, Common Ground Downtown, held at the James Harmon Community Center in downtown Hastings. These concerts coincide with the monthly Hastings Friday Night Live celebrations, which are sponsored by the village.

Smith strives to book family-friendly acts and lets children under 12 attend for free. The first Common Ground Downtown concert of the season on September 3 will feature bluesman Guy Davis, the son of renowned actors Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee.

Other performers this year at one or another Common Ground venue include Steve Forbert, who had a big hit with "Romeo's Tune" in 1980, Sloan Wainwright, sister of singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III, and Sarah Lee Guthrie, daughter of Arlo Guthrie.

He also produces a number of one-off shows, benefits mostly, incuding one for the Wolf Conservation Center in South Salem on September 19 and another for United Way of Westchester and Putnam, to be held in Scarsdale on October 10.

Many musicians who have performed on Common Ground's stages are well-known in folk circles, including Chris Smither, who played the first sold-out show a few years back, Kimya Dawson, whose songs livened the soundtrack of the film "Juno" and  folkie fave Susan Werner, who performed to a sold out crowd at the First Unitarian Society last January.

In addition to coffee, there are other brews available at the Common Ground Downtown concert series: beer from sponsor Captain Lawrence Brewery of Pleasantville. Though the rules and regulations of the Harmon Center in Hastings prohibit alcohol at the center, village manager Francis Frobel granted Smith permission to serve beer and wine, and Smith has received temporary beer and wine licenses from New York State for each concert.

"The law allows the manager, at his or her discretion, to make a decision whether or not to allow alcohol," said Frobel. "I was convinced that they will be responsible and that they have the safeguards in place to make sure that no one is over-served."

For Smith, he is finding his groove and expanding his offerings, which often center on breaking down the barriers between artist and audience. "Part of the reason for doing these concerts is to bring in national touring artists to small venues where they mingle with attendees during intermission and sign CD's," he said. "It's an interactive community feeling that you don't get at a club in the city."

Though he is responsible for bringing a wealth of talent to the Rivertowns, he enjoys discovering new local artists. "What I really appreciate is finding artists who are not big names, maybe they're local moms and dads with a page on MySpace, and bring them to a bigger audience," he said. "That's what really gets me excited."