2023 FUNraiser Featuring Frank Sellman and Love Rockit
$250: Patron
Includes admission to the live performance and reception, plus a listing on our website.
All but $50 of each "Patron" ticket may be considered tax-deductible.
$125: Supporter
Includes admission to the live performance and reception.
All but $50 of each "Supporter" ticket may be considered tax-deductible.
$25: Friend
Includes admission to the live performance only. 100% of "Friend" tickets may be considered tax-deductible.
12 and under are welcome free of charge (live performance only)
If purchasing tickets at different levels of support, you will need to place a separate order for each level.
If you are unable to attend the event but wish to support the park, please follow the "REGISTER" button at the bottom of the page where you will have the option to make a donation.
Saturday, June 17 at the Washington Town Hall, performance begins at 4 pm
BRING YOUR LAWN CHAIR OR BLANKET - PICNICS ARE WELCOME
Frank Sellman and Love Rockit
Sellman began playing guitar as a teenager in the 1980s, after experiencing Stevie Ray Vaughan at an outdoor show near his childhood home in Boston. He recalls being blown away by the power and emotion of the blues. He quickly got a guitar and learned to play by ear, listening to the blues greats and copying what he heard. Sellman’s influences include Muddy Waters, the Three Kings (Albert, BB and Freddie), Albert Collins, Duane Allman and Jimi Hendrix.
Sellman moved to New York in the early 1990s and played small clubs around the city. Soon after, he met Sweet Georgia Brown, who has been called "one of the last real Harlem diva blues queens.” After hearing Sellman play, Brown invited him to be her guitar player for a pending European blues festival. He spent the next few years in her band, highlighted by playing a benefit at New York's Apollo Theater and a standing Saturday night gig at the legendary 55 Bar in NYC. Sellman’s years with Sweet Georgia Brown helped him hone his craft in R&B, funk and the blues. He also began writing his own original music during this time.
In 2009, Sellman and his wife, Coco, discovered Litchfield County when they spent a summer on Bantam Lake. They were drawn by the beauty of the area and the community. In 2013, they moved to Litchfield County full-time. After moving to Connecticut, Sellman took some time to meet local musicians and slowly put together his own band. In 2018, he released a double album of original music titled “Midnight Vinyl,” parts of which were recorded at Marc Wager Weisgal’s studio in Roxbury, Roxbury Station.
In February 2023, Sellman released a new album called Love Rockit, with a band that features world renown backing vocalists Lisa Fischer (Rolling Stones), Cindy Mizelle (Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston) and Vaneese Thomas (Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen). Also contributing on the record is Scott Sharrard, who was Greg Allman’s guitarist and songwriting partner for ten years and currently plays lead guitar for Little Feat.
More information
About the Performance
The performance will begin around 4 pm and will run approximately 90 minutes long.
Patron and Supporter Tickets
Patron and Supporter tickets include admission to a reception at The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens following the concert until 7pm. We invite you to join us there after the performance where your name will be on a guest list.
Seating
The "gates" will open at 3:30 pm and seating is on a first-come-first-served basis. For your comfort, we invite you to bring your own lawn chair or blanket.
Bring Your Own Picnic
While "Patron" and "Supporter" tickets include admission to a reception at The Judy Black Memorial Park and Gardens, all are welcome to bring you own food and beverage to the concert. Please carry out what you carry in.
Transportation to Pilobolus Ball
In order for the community to be able to attend both our FUNraiser and the Pilobolus Ball held the same evening, transportation between the two events will be provided.
Additional Thanks for Support From
