TROY — Bob Dylan’s scathing words to an unnamed friend in “Positively 4th Street” contrast in nature to the friendships made in the Troy bar that once shared the song’s name.
Unlike the Greenwich Village sycophants Dylan described in his 1965 hit, these friends return.
Kim Buckley, Christine Baze, Niki Lee and Jennifer Tefft — billed as the Original Ladies of Positively 4th — reunite for one night at O’Brien’s Public House in Troy on Saturday, Jan. 20, at 6 p.m.
Lee said she earned her chops playing at Positively 4th Street in the 1990s. Now playing with Bleak Little World, the Troy native said the four were recently online musing over the time they spent playing at the bar.
“I was new to playing music,” said Lee. “Just hanging out and seeing these
women, who at the time I thought were more established than me, I was inspired by them, and loving their music. In a lot of ways, they helped motivate me.”
Tefft’s initial experience with Troy was from that of an outsider. The Boston
resident recalled one of her first shows at Positively 4th Street falling on a Sunday night. She said she expected the crowd to be small, if non-existant. And, if anyone did appear for the gig it would be for a short time on what was a school night.
“You know, Sunday nights aren’t necessarily the greatest nights for music. So, I was prepared for kind of a low-key night,” said Tefft. “[But], there were a bunch of people who came out to hear new music. I mean, the place was jammed. They were all into it. They were out until one o’clock in the morning, two o’clock. I was kind of knocked over. I don’t think I’ve experienced that here in Boston, or in any other city I’ve been to.
We had an amazing show,” said Tefft, “and [afterwards] we made ourselves back there a number of times while we were on tour.”
Tefft returns to play a full acoustic set from her collection of alternative rock music. Buckley, of Kim Buckley and Soul Funktion, is expected to take the stage
with a funky indie jazz sound. Baze, too, will be coming from the Boston area to play. And, Lee will have Bleak Little World with her on stage, as well.
Tefft said it certainly won’t be a drag to see her old friends and play in front of a Troy crowd, again.
“It’s going to be a very diverse and eclectic collection of music,” said Tefft. “We’re all very different from one another. So, it should be a very cool night.”
