Singing for suppers, on new Carter CD

SALISBURY — Parishioners at St. John’s Episcopal Church might be surprised to know that their minister, the Rev. John Carter, could have been a contender in the protest song genre.At least that’s the sense one gets after listening to “Capital Soup,” one of the tracks on the reissued album “Carry the Dream: Songs for Bread and Love To Help End Hunger.”Carter said the album was recorded in the spring of 1981 and released in 1982. “The studio was called ‘Splice of Life,’” he said. “I think it was in Boston area.”Carter and his wife, Deborah, were living in Boston at the time. Carter was preparing to go to seminary, doing odd jobs, and both Carters were “involved in hunger issues.”Carter sings lead on all the tracks, and the musicians were put together by producer Willie Sordill and engineer Karen Kane.As far as “Capital Soup” goes, the song berates “multi-nationals” and CEOs for earning a “quarter-of-a-million base salary.”Carter laughed when reminded of this. “It’s a funny thing; $250,000 as a base salary was a lot of money then.”He didn’t see any need to rewrite it, though. “I think the songs are just as on-target as they were 30 years ago.”He said the CD release was part of “thinking it was time to put the educational and fundraising aspects of the project back to work.”“Hunger is still a big issue, maybe more so. I see it firsthand. I just got a call for a food voucher from a man who is homeless. I see it on a regular basis.“That reality nudged me toward rereleasing” the album.Proceeds from CD sales go to hunger relief. Carter said he had just delivered a check for $200 to OWL’s Kitchen, a Lakeville food bank.The disc costs $18 and is available from Carter or at Oblong Books in Millerton.

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Father Joseph Kurnath

LAKEVILLE — Father Joseph G. M. Kurnath, retired priest of the Archdiocese of Hartford, passed away peacefully, at the age of 71, on Sunday, June 29, 2025.

Father Joe was born on May 21, 1954, in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended kindergarten through high school in Bristol.

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Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

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Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

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