Newsday readers are learning what many on the local acoustic music scene have known for some time now: Dave and Rob Dircks’ wonderful weekly Acoustic Long Island series at Cool Beanz in St. James is garnering increased interest from performers and fans alike, and the buzz extends far beyond Long Island. 

Acoustic Long Island is much more than just a Wednesday night open mic at a cozy coffeehouse – as much fun as that is.  As Steven Snyder’s March 20 Part 2 cover story declares, it’s “Long Island’s Podcast Hit.”  

Weekly highlights of what has been a labor of love for the brothers, who also are partners in a marketing communications firm, are heard the world-over via audio (and, more recently, video) podcasts downloadable on the Web both at acousticlongisland.com and Apple’s iTunes store.  Indeed, “Acoustic Long Island” ranks as the top acoustic podcast on iTunes – attracting more than 10,000 downloads weekly. 

This has prompted artists from all over the country to seek opportunities to play before a supportive audience at a small coffeehouse with limited seating, but with the added potential of reaching an unlimited worldwide audience via the podcast.  Folks were practically streaming out the door last December when the featured act was Red Molly, the rootsy Americana trio that has been deservedly striking a responsive chord with audiences across the East Coast. 

Preceding each evening’s featured performer(s) is an hour-long open mic featuring mostly local amateur performers from nearby Stony Brook University and throughout the Island. However, some top-notch pros from on and off the Island — like Little Toby Walker, a world-class blues artist who just happens to be from here — also stop by on occasion.

“Long Island Blues Boy” Starts to Gather Steam and  Notice

Among the emerging Long Island musical talents who can often be found hanging out at Cool Beanz on Wednesday nights is a young student and protégé of Walker’s named Phil MinissaleLong Island Blues Noy, Phil Minissale.  The “Long Island Blues Boy,” who’s been impressing folks locally with his fingerstyle guitar playing, opens for Paul Geremia, the acclaimed country blues fingerpicker and Red House recording artist, at the Lansdowne Folk Club, located just south of Philadelphia, on April 26. 

“Opening for Paul Geremia is real exciting, and to do it at the Lansdowne Folk Club makes it even more special for me,” says Minissale, recalling his last experience at the club in March 2001, when he was just 14 years old.  “My dad bought the family tickets to a show.  I had absolutely no interest in being there, but, being 14, and not being given the chance to opt out, I went.” 

“That night, we saw Dave Van Ronk.  For about an hour and a half, I sat there and didn’t breathe.  I couldn’t believe my eyes or ears,” he reflects.  After the show, Minissale says his dad introduced him to the folk-blues legend, and he listened to them chat about the old Greenwich Village folk scene.  “Well, about a week later, I had a $70 used guitar, half my father’s record collection, and a lesson book on fingerpicking,” Minissale continues.  “So, I’ll be back in the building where it all began for me, opening for one of the premier fingerstyle guitar players.  It’s funny how things work out sometimes.  Unfortunately, Dave never made it back for his next show in Lansdowne.”