Niles Community Unity

Featured Performers

Bruce Cates - The Host of Open Mic Night

Bruce Cates: President, Co-Founder, Musician, Local Activist and Bon Viveur

Bruce Barley has been entertaining audiences for over 30 years, wearing a variety of musical hats. He started out as a drummer, but as soon as The Beatles came along, he felt the urge to learn how to play the guitar as well. Since then he has become an excellent bass player and taught himself to play the mandolin and banjo, too! He is also quite a crooner, and he's been writing songs since he was a teenager. Bruce has been a member of many bands, from Rock' N Roll to Jazz, Folk, Country and Bluegrass. A ham at heart, he gets audiences young and old to respond with tapping toes, big smiles and sometimes a tear or two.

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Megan Croft

Megan has performed once so she could officially say that she is a member of the performing group of The Essanay Cafe. In December of 2007, she did go out and purchase a guitar and is preparing to perform live!!!! at The Essanay anytime now! FINALLY - Megan performed live with guitar in hand for the first time Wednesday, November 12 and she even wrote her own opening song!

Steve Faria

I started playing guitar at about 10 years old. A few years later the guitar got sold to buy a surfboard. Wish that old guitar was still around – but I dug surfing too. Eventually got another guitar and now, whether its originals or my take on other’s tunes, the songs contain elements of rhythm-rock, folk, and country. The goal is to present songs with interesting lyrics, engaging tempos and great melodies. One way or another, it’s all about making it interesting for the audience and hopefully drawing them into the songs.

Ryan Grandfield

Dynamic rhythms and strum patterns, edgy rich guitar lines, smooth vocals and original meaningful lyrical content have defined this acoustic pop/rock music as multi-generational crowd pleasing entertainment. At 29, one would expect some Nineties influences like Third Eye Blind, Matchbox Twenty, and Collective Soul in FEEL FREE music composer Ryan Grandfield's style; but one is pleasantly caught off guard by the classic rock sounds of America, Simon & Garfunkel, and Richard Thompson flowing out of his original songs as well. And the accompaniment of a couple key musical friends and family members on guitar, percussion, and vocals definitely takes the music to the next level, too!

Will Matlack

Will is a true man of mystery. Some people have sworn seeing him dressed in a tux, recklessly driving an Aston-Marten through some vague, European city while dodging machine gun bullets fired by sweaty Eastern-bloc thugs in hot pursuit. Others claim that he is the true heir to the French throne, while a small cadre are convinced that Will is the direct descendent of Vlad, the Impailer, and that his real name is Wavill Mavatlavack.

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Michael McNevin

A tireless traveler and troubadour, Singer Songwriter Michael McNevin plays clubs and festivals across the U.S., penning numerous and poignant tales of the people and towns he comes across, hightlighting a seasoned voice, unique guitar work, and a vivid brand of storytelling. With 4 CDs to his credit, he's been a main stager at the Kerrville, Philadelphia, and Strawberry Music Festivals, and has been billed in the concert halls with Johnny Cash, Shawn Colvin, Donovan, Richie Havens, and many others. He is a winner of the Kerrville, Napa Valley, and Columbia River New-Folk Competitions, won the NARAS/NCSA "Unplugged Unsigned" competition, and is a 4-time winner of the NCSA "Song of the Year" award. He's been included in The Performing Songwriter Magazine's "Top-12 DIY's" of the Year, and is a past nominee for "Artist of the Year" by the National Academy of Songwriters.

Kris Olinger

Born and raised in not-always-so-sunny California, I was exposed to so much good music from birth that I suppose it's no great wonder I came to love it so. After much procrastination, I finally allowed my father to teach me the basics of guitar when I was a teenager and sort of ran with it from there, fumbling my way into writing songs and teaching myself to play the harmonica along the way.

Daphna Rahmil

Daphna is an award-winning songwriter who delivers sweet and surprisingly saucy originals in a crystal clear voice, as well as an eclectic selection of music from the theater and folk world.

Bob Raym

Versatile, skilled and entertaining are words to describe Robert "Bob" Raym’s musical style and abilities. Having covered many genres of music over the course of his career, it is hard to categorize the variety of sounds you might hear from this talented performer. His early musical influences range from the country sounds of The Sons of the Pioneers and Roy Rogers to the folk rock sounds of Bob Dylan and Donovan. But it doesn’t stop there.

You may also hear songs reminiscent of reggae great, Bob Marley or the jazz/pop fusion of Michael Franks. Robert has been a guitarist in orchestras playing the big band sound of the 40s as well as playing guitar and banjo in smaller, bands performing pop rock, country rock, reggae, funk, blues, and gospel. His acoustic rock band has performed at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco where they shared the venue with names like John Lee Hooker, Maria Muldaur, Boz Skaggs and others. He sometimes hits the stage locally performing western songs as “Cowboy Bob and Friends”. As a solo performer, Robert’s unique original songs will move you as he combines a well rounded yet ever evolving lyrical style with a curious inflection of voice accompanying the soothing sitar-like sound of a 12-string guitar. “Is he playing bass, rhythm, lead, or all three at once? You decide”. His dynamic live performances are destined to please, musically as well as intellectually.

Liz Ryder

Highly influenced by Folk and Americana, Liz directs her music with a spirit rooted in tradition as well as the contemporary. With a soulful voice, she renders folk songs with a modern twist and approaches song writing with a sense of progression.

Eddie Saubolle

Eddie had to come to grips with the fact he's addicted to music. Taking a break from band gigs in the Bay Area in the 80's, he still has a passion for song writing and singing! He just can't stop! Eddie plays harmonica and guitar.

Lynn Slater

Lynn can't sing, he can't even croon. What he can do is observe and summarize, creating thrice edited witty synopsis of the evenings events acknowledging each artist's contributions and unexpected common themes, and he gets these completed before the artists finish their performances.