Litchfield Community Education is in the middle of winter activities at this time. They are already looking ahead to spring activities – and planning is already underway for the summer months.
Litchfield Community Education Director Grant Solem says if anyone has a skill that they would like to share and have an idea for a class, they should contact him or Kelsey at 693-2354. He says swimming is a popular activity for them and they are anticipating the completion of the pool renovation project at Litchfield High School.
Solem says the pool project should be completed by January 30th. He says summer swimming lessons are very popular and they usually get a lot of college students who return to Litchfield for the summer to give swimming lessons which is a great summer job.
Solem says they have some trips coming up including to the Chanhassen Dinner Theater on April 22nd to see “Guys and Dolls,” to the Sidekick Theater in Bloomington to see “Birthday Candles” on May 14th, and to see “Nobody’s Perfect” on June 24th. He says Litchfield Community Theatre will not be doing “Lend Me a Tenor” February 20-to-22 as originally planned, but will try to schedule it for next year, but auditions are coming up next month for the Youth Theatre production of “Finding Nemo.”
On this day in music, January 13, 1968, Johnny Cash performed in front of 2000 inmates at California’s Folsom Prison. The legendary appearance, which was recorded and released as Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison, had been a long-time dream for the country star, who first learned about the institution from the 1951 documentary, Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison. The film inspired Cash’s 1955 song, “Folsom Prison Blues,” which he famously performed during the 1968 concert. The live rendition became a Top 40 hit in the US, while the album topped Billboard’s country chart.
In 1965, Bob Dylan entered Columbia Recording Studios to begin recording his fifth studio album, Bringing It All Back Home. The day proved to be particularly fruitful, with takes of some of his finest songs, “It’s All Over Now Baby Blue” and “Subterranean Homesick Blues.”
In 2016, Ed Sheeran made UK chart history as the first artist to simultaneously take the top two spots with new songs. The hits in question were “Shape of You” and “Castle on the Hill,” which entered the pop chart at No.1 and No.2, respectively.
In 1990, reigning boy band New Kids On The Block scored their second and final UK No.1 single with “Hangin’ Tough.” The Boston group would continue to find success across the pond, landing seven more Top 10 hits in the UK before the end of 1991.
In 1978, The Police began recording their debut album, Outlandos d’Amour, at Surrey Sound Studios with producer Nigel Gray. Despite a tiny budget (borrowed from their manager, who also happened to be the brother of drummer Stewart Copeland) the band was able to lay down such career-defining tracks as “Roxanne” and “So Lonely.”
In 1962, Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” returned to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, a little more than two years after it first took the No.1 spot. The occurrence marked the first time in American chart history that a song hit No.1 on two separate occasions.
In 1969, Elvis Presley returned to Memphis to record his final No.1 hit in the US, “Suspicious Minds.” The date also marked his first hometown session since 1956.
BORN ON JANUARY 13
1929: Joe Pass
1938: Daevid Allen (Soft Machine, Gong)
1961: Graham “Suggs” McPherson (Madness)
1961: Wayne Coyne (Flaming Lips)
1975: Blasphemer (Mayhem)
The students and staff at the School of St. Philip in Litchfield are getting ready for Catholic Schools Week at the end of this month. The school also has a number of fundraising events coming up.
Principal Andrea Dietrich says Catholic Schools Week is always held the last week of January so the students have field trips scheduled for Black Light and the Children’s Museum in St. Cloud, along with special events like bingo and some community service projects, and the week will actually kick off with a spaghetti dinner on January 24th from 4:30-to-6:30 p.m. in the St. Philip’s Church Social Hall. The Knights of Columbus will serve a breakfast at the church the next morning – January 25th.
Dietrich says the annual Seeds of Faith Fundraiser this year will feature Song Blast Dueling Guitars on Saturday, January 31st at the Litchfield Eagles Club and the $50 tickets are available by calling the school of St. Philip. She says proceeds from the event help with scholarships, and they can enroll students at any time.
Dietrich says you don’t have to be Catholic to enroll at the School of St. Philip and they offer small class sizes and teach good values. She says she can give tours to families who are interested at any time, and they have a Discovery Day later in February which may be a good time to check out the school. For more information about St. Philip’s School or the events that are coming up, call 693-6283.