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Recording artist, songwriter and folksinger John O’Connor will be appearing in concert with Nat Williams at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Oneonta, Saturday, May 13, at 7 PM. Local musicians, Jason Starr and the Galaxy Singers — Kathy Shimberg, Charlie Reiman, and Dennis Shultz — will open the concert. The concert is to benefit Compressor Free Franklin.
The Unitarian Universalist Society of Oneonta [UUSO] is at 12 Ford Ave., Oneonta, NY. Refreshments will be served from 7:00 PM. Suggested donation is $15.
Compressor Free Franklin [CFF] was formed to address construction of the Northeast Energy Direct Pipeline [NED], the proposed compressor station planned for Otego Road, and the Constitution Pipeline. Currently, the NED and compressor station are on hold. Constitution Pipeline appealed the NYSDEC’s denial of the 401 Water Quality Certificate. A decision by the 2ND Circuit Court of Appeals is expected in late spring or early summer.
Meanwhile, CFF continues to actively address other issues related to increased fossil fuel consumption and infrastructure expansion by supporting other like-minded groups throughout the Northeast protecting their communities.
“Just opposing an issue is never enough; providing other options and solutions to the issue is the proper response”, says Don Hebbard, founder of CFF. The group is currently supporting a renewable energy project in Franklin, Community Shared Solar, which if constructed, will provide solar electric energy for the school and town buildings.
The Social Action Committee [SAC] of UUSO is co-sponsoring the concert with Compressor Free Franklin. SAC has long worked for Social and Climate Justice, contributing much personal time and effort toward these issues. Scheduled events and actions are posted on their calendar.
John O’Connor, whose debut album, Songs for Our Times, was named one of the best albums of the year by the Washington Post, is known for his songs and ballads about ordinary working people and their struggles. His song North by North has been recorded by Ireland’s popular band, the Fureys as well as by the Scottish folksinger, Arthur Johnson. The song also was adapted to the French by the popular French artist, Renaud and upon its release went to number one on the French charts. Craig Harris wrote in the Black Sheep Review that “…O’Connor has shaped his own acute observations of the working class into songs that beg to be sung along to.” O’Connor, who has toured widely throughout the United States, is a resident of Franklin.