Howie Newman brings musical comedy to area

PEPPERELL, Mass. – The bitter cold breath of Old Man Winter got you aching to warm your belly with laughter?

Well, trek on over to the Gypsy Cafe on Saturday night for three hours filled with the comedic musical stylings of Howie Newman. There’s no cover charge.

That’s right folks, Newman, the musician who spins comedic yarns for the masses, is bringing his guitar and his wit to the cafe’s stage, and anyone can go to this all-ages show. His songs have been featured on the Dr. Demento radio show, among others, throughout the years.

Newman has been a staple of the folk music scene for many years, and it is his own special blend of comedy and guitar work that has kept him a wanted man on stages throughout New England.

He had been a full-time folkie before his path was adjusted for him by a newspaper publisher back in 1979.

“I had recorded a vinyl record of baseball songs,” which caught the ear of The Dorchester Sport Eagle publisher who called him about a job as a sportswriter, Newman said.

“Being a big sports fan my whole life,” yet never considering being an Oscar Madison, he took the job. It wasn’t a paying gig, but it did spark what turned out to be a career path that would give him much inspiration in the coming years.

As his sports-writing career took flight, Newman had no time for the stage, spending many of his 18 years in Massachusetts covering the major teams – Celtics, Patriots, Bruins and Red Sox – and writing for the Boston Globe and Lowell Sun, among others. He is also a color commentator on WCAP for the Lowell Spinners, the Red Sox minor- league affiliate. But it was the passion for song and making people laugh that has been his muse.

“I like to have a good time and make (music) fun for people,” Newman said.

To date, Newman has recorded four albums, two that are comprised of jocular baseball anecdotal songs, and has opened for the likes of Vance Gilbert and Tom Paxton since his return to the stage in 2001.

“My material is suitable for all ages,” Newman said. His philosophy of comedy writing is that if “you can’t be funny without being off color, then you’re not really doing it the right way, no offense.”

He doesn’t just sing songs about baseball. Newman also pokes fun at driving in Boston, cell phones and a host of life’s quirks.

He also tosses into his set serious folk songs that he has written over the course of his three decades in music.

Comedically, Newman said, he was inspired by the likes of Martin Mull and Steve Goodman.

“I like to get the audience involved and singing along,” Newman said. “If I see people responding to what I’m doing, that’s what makes it all worthwhile.”