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What They're Sayin'... About The Chairman

12/21/21: This section focuses on advance stories, reviews and commentary about the Chairman's music, spoken word, and related projects. Here's you'll find relevant interviews that I've done, plus press releases, and my own thoughts about my various projects.
Various Nuggets, Quotes & Ephemera

This entry will round up various emails, quotes and other comments about the Chairman's doings that don't fit any obvious niche in particular...enjoy the ride, as they say. Updates to come, as events merit...for more quotes like the one below, click "Full Text," and go from there!

ED ZINCAVAGE (12/18/10 e-mail) The thing I like about your music style Ralph, is that it's honest, and genuine, and to the point. Your style reminds me of Eugene Chadbourne's music. That's a compliment.

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Chairman Ralph Featured In "London Calling"/"Lo-Fi Poetry" Anthology

"The ice age is coming, the sun's zoomin' in..." Chairman Ralph joins his fellow spoken word commandos and language ninjas in celebrating the impact of LONDON CALLING, by the Clash -- the first entry in CityLit Press's "lo-fi poetry" series. You're just one nuclear error....er, click...away from getting the full details!

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TIMS52GIGS.COM (E-mail Chat, 3/01/13)

"Everybody has those 'I played to five people and a dog' stories, which is part of the game..."

One of many asides that I exchanged, thanks to the magic reach of email.

Actually, this chat came up via Craigslist, when I actually found it worth trawling through -- that's been a long time, hasn't it? -- where Tim Heenan, a singer/guitarist from Grand Ledge, MI, was seeking out interviews for www.tims52gigs journey, a site that he'd dedicated to his goal of playing 52 gigs, in as many weeks. Tim was looking to find out what fellow musicians thought about "this filthy racket called show biz," as I was jokingly calling it then, among other topics.

What the heck?, I figured, the idea sounds interesting. So I duly responded, and Tim got right back to me, with a form (!) to fill out: "Please feel free to answer as few or as many of the questions that you would like (of course I hope you answer all of them). 

"I posted the Craig's List ad all over the State so when I get a response, I don't necessarily know which part of the state people are responding from. I'm anxious to hear your stories.  The more I get into this the more interesting it is reading the interviews."

Thus prompted, I filled out Tim's form, and he posted the results. Alas, neither the original 52 Gigs link works (let alone the one for his own music), so I've gone to my archives, and re-posted the results for you to read. Just click "Full Text" below, and let your fingers do the walkin', as they say.

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CHAIRMAN RALPH IN PERFORMANCE (TAKE II). DAVE CASPER (HOST) INTRODUCES THE NEXT ACT.... ...AND MATTHEW HECKAMAN TAKES THE MIC.  VISUAL MOMENTO, TAKE I: APPLE SURROUNDED BY NAILS. VISUAL MOMENTO, TAKE II: THE AUTOGRAPHED T-SHIRT. SUE BERNARD GETS HER POINT ACROSS. PAM BLAIR WORKS THE CROWD.
Chairman Ralph: Live At Artpost Gallery (South Bend, IN, 4/13/12)

 Ever so often, an event rolls around that crosses so many boundaries -- and pools together so much talent -- that it'd be criminal to miss."

The Chairman summarizes his latest turn at the Artpost Gallery Poetry Marathon in this press release, exclusive to this site, fresh from the event! (Words: Chairman Ralph/Photos: Ralph & Lisa Quinlan-Heibutzki)

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Still early in the set, I believe. Johnnie Edwards is behind me, on bass. This is a little bit later, I believe, during my second number, &#34;A Revolution Of The Mind&#34;...just as the sky started getting dark, and the sun was going down for the night. Another highlight of the &#34;Xpression Session&#34; segment, complete with full-on Gospel freestyle-vocalizin&#39; &#39;n&#39; stylin&#39; to give the words of P. Whiz (left) even more punch, as Xpression Session regular Kfon Studnubian (right) looks on. (Photo by Ralph Heibutzki) <br /> (Photo by Ralph Heibutzki) Elnora Gavin (left) talks with Kareemah El-Amin about coming back up onstage for one more turn during the Xpression Session segment (she didn&#39;t; photo by Ralph Heibutzki). HERE&#39;S WHAT THE CROWD LOOKED LIKE ON DAY THREE... <br />(Photo by Ralph Heibutzki) (Photo by Lisa D. Quinlan-Heibutzki)
Chairman Ralph & Friends @ Harbor Vision Festival (8/12-14/11)

"It's like a big block party downtown. There's so much love in the air. It's about engaging people, and bringing people together under a common cause – which is to bring back this city." 

That was the verdict from Benton Harbor Vision Festival Chairman Kareemah El-Amin, in summarizing the three-day event that included live music -- plus a performance from Chairman Ralph, as part of her Xpression Session troupe, in this exclusive report for this website!

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"It's All Up For Grabs": Goshen News (Goshen, IN, 6/4/10)
The Chairman's body of work includes originals about difficult bosses ("Fetch 'N' Step") and tribute ballads to the concertizing power of his favorite band ("I Saw The Clash"). He has also been known to pull out spy themes, country-fried arcana and unlikely covers--with '60s Beat figuring prominently on the menu (including the Kinks, Who and Yardbirds).

Chairman Ralph regularly plays around the Michiana area. His performing venues range from The Chocolate Cafe (St. Joseph, MI), to the Acorn Theater (Three Oaks, MI), and Foundry Hall (South Haven, MI), as well as South Bend's Artpost Gallery, where he appeared in April as part of its Poetry Marathon celebration.

"Good music takes you somewhere that you haven't already been," the Chairman says. "That seems like an afterthought nowadays, but it's not to me. It's all up for grabs."
PAM BLAIR, 3.28.09 SESSION DAVE CASPER, 2.23.09 SESSION LAYIN' IT DOWN FROM THE BOOK (3.28.09) ANOTHER HIGH-ENERGY READING ENDS... (3.28.09)
Benton Spirit (11/12/09): Chairman Ralph At The Acorn Theater
For those who missed it, here's the original, unedited version of the preview for my 11/13/09 spoken word performance with Pam Blair (South Bend, IN), and Dave Casper (Benton Harbor, MI) -- in which we opened for blues, jazz and folk singer Claudia Schmidt, who's also dedicated herself to the art, as well!
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Michiana Entertainer Interview+Bonus One-Sheet
"Being solo has its share of comedic moments -- I remember playing a teen club once, when these kids come crashing in...’cause they’re late, evidently...and somebody asks, all out of breath, “Is the first band here yet?” Life on the road, and other pressing matters, as only Chairman Ralph can express them!
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South Haven Daily Tribune, 7/22/07. (Photo: Chairman Ralph)
Singer Mixes Folk, Punk For Concert At Eagle Street
For two years, the Chairman's been sharpening his guitar style, which he calls "untamed folk, with a twist of Americana, and roots punk."

"Good music takes you somewhere that you haven't already been," Ralph states. "That seems like an afterthought nowadays, but not to me. It's all up for grabs."
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— South Haven Daily Tribune
(Photo: Chairman Ralph)
Chairman Ralph Takes The Stage
His music is mostly drawn from real-life observations, Heibutzki said. "I was living in Chicago when 'I Fired The Dog' was written," he went on. "I was visiting a friend who had gotten a dog and was making her husband walk it. Eventually they got rid of the dog because it was too much work. I made the joke that they had fired the dog, which led to the song. It's a social commentary."
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— Doreen Troyer
The Saugatuck Commercial Record/Resorter
(Photo: Lisa D. Quinlan) (Photo: Chairman Ralph) (Photo: Chairman Ralph) (Photo: Lisa D. Quinlan) Original press clipping with advance press release for &#34;Budgie&#39;s Nest&#34; show. (Photo: Chairman Ralph) Story announcing last night of &#34;Budgie&#39;s Nest: Unraveled.&#34; (Photo: Chairman Ralph) Original press clipping with summary story on the two &#34;Budgie&#39;s Nest&#34; art shows. (Photo: Chairman Ralph)
Recent Exhibit Is A Feather In The Cap For A Bird-Themed Artist+(2) Bonus Press Releases
Six works from Lisa Quinlan's show, "Budgie's Nest," now hang on other people's walls -- instead of her own -- and she couldn't be more pleased with the results.

"I enjoyed it very much, having the opportunity to show off my artwork, as well as the variety (of styles)," Quinlan said. "I look forward to other opportunities like this one."

The show closed on Oct. 20 with "Unraveled," a multi-media party that featured refreshments, and live music from local guitarist Chairman Ralph (Heibutzki). (For a sampling of the highlights, and works sold, see the accompanying photos.)
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— Jonesville Independent
Courtesy photo. Another &#34;borrowed guitar&#34; show, as I was experiencing around this time -- we couldn&#39;t get a pickup going for my regular guitar, so Jason Adams, our headliner, graciously let me borrow his, which I could plug right in, and play! &#34;What a gent,&#34; I said, at the time. Live &#39;n&#39; sweaty, but still kickin&#39;... This show had plenty of audience participation when I got up and did my thing, as you can see -- not that I ever minded such a thing, coming from a DIY/punk performance background! Just keep workin&#39; that borrowed guitar...The well-lit room we&#39;re seeing here tells me this came at the beginning of the show. Here&#39;s the actual press clipping from the paper, as it ran originally. (Photo: Chairman Ralph) Here&#39;s a photo collage from that night&#39;s show (4/29/06), as it ran in the paper the following week. (Photos: Lisa D. Quinlan)
Hillsdale Annex 2006 Advance Show Releases x 4 (7/14, 5/18. 5/08, 4/29))
Exploring new territory isn't a problem for Chairman Ralph of Hillsdale. It's been his priority for nearly a year now, with sets ranging from countrified originals to improvised medleys, and his own versions of '60s Britbeat classics, like the Kinks' "You Do Something To Me." As always, look for Ralph's guitar to do its own talking on instrumentals like the dreamy, laidback "Big Bang (For Shiny Green Grasshopper)."
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Chairman Ralph Is Your Man For Loud, Untamed Folk Music
"Opened for three death metal bands, which is interesting, when you're a solo act! But they were singin' along by the third song, and clapping out beats for some of the other ones..." Chairman Ralph answers a few questions for the Jackson Citizen Patriot.
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— Jackson Citizen Patriot
(Photo: Chairman Ralph) With the musical duties of that particular evening done &#39;n&#39; over with, the last thing left to do is check out the flyer posted on the door...and take it home for a souvenir! (Photo: Lisa D. Quinlan)
Local Artist A Hit At The Annex
"His songs are punk through and through, with simple chord progressions and humorous wordplays that were at times political...Heibutzki was very talkative, conversing with crowd members often, and even made up some songs on the spot with lyrics about people in the audience. He elicited a laugh from the crowd when he made fun of a leaving concertgoer's Slipknot jacket."
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— The Hillsdale Collegian
All content, words and music: � Ralph Heibutzki (except where noted). For specific questions about permissions or quotations, please contact the administrator of this website (me!).