Kenny Karabelnikoff was my first connection to Doc. I loved sitting in with Doc, Kenny, Jim Wright, Ken Roy, Louise, Danny and many others at George's Market and at the Sourdough bar. I tried to go every chance I got. I remember missing one week and I asked Kenny if I
missed anything. He told me about a woman who started dancing to "Ring
of Fire" at the Sourdough Club and then she took out a can of lighter
fluid and made a ring of fire on the wooden floor. I guess that got
her kicked out pretty quick.
Then one day I saw Kenny at the Warehouse (a restaurant and folk music venue) and he invited me to bring my mandolin to the Mountain View Recreation center in Anchorage. Doc was there playing fiddle tunes
and calling dances with Kenny, Shonti, Sally Kabisch and others.
Every week I would try to learn at least one new tune. It was really
hard to play that fast. The Monday night test was to keep up with the
gang.
The Monday night sessions were a great place to meet other musicians,
form bands and go on to make 10s of dollars.
It was also where young cubs went on to grow into Dancing Bears -- an
organization that owes much to Doc for giving them a place to meet
each other and discover and learn traditional music and dance.
Jim Kerr
