Keep On Rockin' In the Seacoast

One of the first things I did when I moved to Dover, NH, in August 1988, was go to a bar in nearby Portsmouth to see Ed's Redeeming Qualities. I loved their sloppy folk music -- created with ukelele, violin, acoustic guitars, and percussion consisting of rice in a coffee can -- and their funny, albeit sometimes poignant, lyrics. I also fell quickly in love with Portsmouth.

I don't recall the name of the bar where I saw the band, but it was intimate and inviting and felt like the right place...