Steely: As Creative Director for Steel Bridge Songfest for the past five years, you oversee the music, but also the look and feel of the festival and the way it's promoted. Do you see the Steel Bridge Songfest as more about saving a bridge, or more about the music?

pat: Our purpose has always been to save a bridge, because we believe it's indispensable and we want to spread that message by making it even MORE indispensable. I see the bridge, you, as a valve in the heart of Door County. Right or left ventricle depends on which side of the canal you're on. This bridge is a vital - not merely symbolic - part of our transportation system and who we are. Door County's busiest corridor is also the living centerpiece of Door County's identity, something that can be repaired, but never replaced. To sit back and allow the anti-preservationists to rip out that heart would be to lose our soul. Steel Bridge Songfest is an event that uses music to help preserve a bridge. Great music comes out of it. It's a magical kind of alchemy that turns steel into something that won't turn to rust. Like gold.

Steely: My understanding is that Steel Bridge was conceived as a dual-purpose event, to raise money and awareness. Do you ever feel a conflict between those two?

pat: Sure, of course, but whether preservation takes more funds or more awareness, we can achieve both. The awareness must precede the fundraising. People won’t pay to preserve something they can’t fully appreciate. Public outreach, even with volunteer help, can cost money. So it’s hard. More big sponsors would help. To maintain the character of the event, I have to decide which corporate sponsors reflect the qualities we want to project. Therefore we don't have many. (laughs)

Steely: So how do you manage without a lot of big sponsors?

pat: We try to cultivate the right relationships with smaller sponsors and individual donors, whether they're donating cash, goods, or services, and just continue to develop those relationships. One day everyone will see why we worked so hard to save the bridge, why it's so important. And once the public has reached a certain level of awareness, the money we raise can help fund bridge maintenance. It will be a win/win situation for Door County. Former generations built things to last. We have a rare technological treasure on our hands. And it costs way less to repair than to replace, so in the end quality doesn’t cost, it pays!

Steely: Some people are still confused about the purpose for the event. They say: "The Bridge rehab is scheduled to begin this year, so what's the point? Isn't the Bridge already saved?"

pat: Yeah well - yes and no. Preservation is never a done deal, it's an ongoing effort. Even if the bidding and contracting for the rehab proceed as planned there will still be efforts to stall the construction and divert those funds until the work actually begins. Senator Alan Lasee's open letter to the Governor asking him to postpone and divert the funds is still posted on his website.

Steely: Hmm.. I see. Do you think Steel Bridge Songfest has played a role in saving the bridge so far?

pat: I definitely think so. But the work didn’t begin with the Songfest. It started with Save Our Bridge (SOB) and Citizens for Our Bridge (CfOB), two organizations my sister Christie (Weber) helped to start. The Bridge was actually slated for tear-down and replacement, and Christie and her crew brought facts and experts and turned that all around. Yet, there is always well-heeled opposition with various reasons for wanting the bridge to go away. For some, it's just because they have investments on the outskirts of town and they want to pull traffic out that way. For others, it's just a matter of pure dislike for the monstrosity. Maybe they had to wait too many times on their way home from work for that drawbridge to go up and down.

Steely: So why don't they dislike the boats and ships going through?

pat: (laughs) Well maybe they do! That’s where the festival comes in. We’re here to generate positive attention for the Bridge, and connect some public fun and financial benefit to it, to prevent it from ever again being seen as expendable. Monies raised by the Songfest have paid for getting the listing of the bridge on the National Register of Historic Places. That’s a huge help in keeping it from being easily dismissed.

Steely: What else have you spent money on?

pat: Manufacturing CDs, getting the music out there to be heard. The songs written and recorded during the festival are a strong way to get the message across, and increase the real value of the bridge as a local attraction. We now have the most sung-about historical icon in Wisconsin, and-- who knows-- maybe someday the world! Three discs, Steel Bridge Songs, Vols. 1-3, are being sold in shops around Door County, and a fourth one will be available this spring. On May 1st, we're launching "Steel Bridge Song Drive” calling upon all musicians and songwriters to write and record a thousand songs before June 1st. We'll put them all on an iPod and present them to Governor Doyle during Steel Bridge Songfest saying, "We're counting on you to help us make sure this rehab stays on track, no delays, and no tricks!"

Steely: Well, thank you for your thoughts pat. I have always been inspired by your vision and in the way that vision has evolved since 2005. How do you think the festival will go this year?

pat: I’m thinking it's going to be the best one yet. We have more bands and songwriters wanting to come play. Jane Wiedlin (of the GoGos), Geri X, Cory Chisel, Freedy Johnston, Eric McFadden, Kim Manning, "T-Man" Latz (nine year old blues guitar prodigy)... basically everyone who plays Steel Bridge becomes part of its family and wants to return year after year because they have such a good time and they believe in the cause. I've had some good communication with some surprise newcomers too. The City Council has recently approved a relocation of the festival to the streets of Downtown Sturgeon Bay - right by you, Steely! Stay tuned for more exciting announcements.

Steely: Hey that IS exciting news. It must be a monstrous job to coordinate all that music- How do you do it?

pat: Well, we have a lot of help. There are more people offering to volunteer than ever before, and we're guiding our new Event Directors, Eric and Olivia, to take on a larger part of the work load, allowing Christie and I to focus on and grow other important aspects of the Songfest and Preservation efforts that we couldn't get to before. We have key people who've become familiar with the event excelling in what they do. For example, melaniejane came as a songwriter two years ago and has since become proficient at booking, scheduling and communicating with all the musicians. We're lucky to have such great returning volunteers working together better than ever, and new ones too. It's all very encouraging!

Steely: And you have Me! I’m a big bridge style volunteer!

pat: Yes of course, Steely! We've always had you…(smiles).

Steely: I’ve seen a lot through the years. I organize ship and automobile traffic that's been vital to this region for over seven decades. On July 4th I will be 79. I am going to do some celebrating starting June 11th with the Songfest!

pat: Hasn't this down time given you a chance to look around and find out who your friends are? We sure are getting to know more about who YOU are…

Steely: Honestly, it’s gotten stale now. I’m best in action. Serving traffic is what I love. That’s who I am. I want to get moving again very soon.

pat: Well, yeah, so we definitely have to get you up and running! But for now, you've been doing such a great job with the Facebook. I know you like communicating with everyone and so do we. Christie's increasing her preservation efforts. Eric and Olivia are pulling together so many essential parts, and I'm able to devote more energy to the music and putting on the best Steel Bridge show ever. I’m getting pretty psyched, Steely. Maybe I’ll even get to play more this year. So thank you!

Steely: I guess we both form unique types of bridges and become a part of all of them. It is what it takes…a heart of steel. Kind of goes with those steel strings and nerves of yours pat. Thanks for sharing some thoughts with me.

pat: Always good to see YOU, Steely.

This letter is archival only, originally posted May 9th before Steel Bridge 2008 by pmacd333
some information still applies to 2009, some does not!
Request the latest info via email: steelbridgebooking@yahoo.com

Hey everybody: Again, we've been flooded with generous offers from bands to play this year and i'm blown away by the line-up as it stands: over a hundred acts in three nights and a day! Jackson Browne is coming back (thanks to his amazing generosity) as are Jane Wiedlin, Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons, James Hall, Eric McFadden, Kim Manning of P-Funk, and many more!

Victor DeLorenzo (Violent Femmes drummer), will join the Construction Zone, as will Louise Goffin (daughter of the most famous male-female collaborative songwriting team of all time!), Lynda Kay (The Lonesome Spurs), Martin Jack Rosenblum ("the Holy Ranger"), and fiddler Doug Kershaw, the legendary "Ragin' Cajun"!
(This is not a complete list of favorites, just a few that come to mind right now.)

Our booking process has been rather free-form, so if you're a musician or band who's offered to play, and you're not sure whether you're booked or not, send an email with the subject heading "OFFER TO PLAY" to: steelbridgebooking@yahoo.com to get a confirmation. Include your play date preference. I'm way behind in answering emails, and i swear i WILL catch up, but if you think i might not have received your email, don't hesitate to write again.

Again, if i invited you to play this year, and you said yes, even if i was drunk at the time and we haven't spoken since, and whether or not you're listed on the website yet, please know that if i said it, i meant it (but feel free to remind me anyway, just in case :) by sending an email to steelbridgebooking@yahoo.com)

Please tell your friends and fans that we expect a much larger turnout this year due to increased promotion and growing awareness of the event, and with venue capacities limited as they are, get your passes early! If you want to make sure all your friends get passes, tell them to go to our homepage and click on the "Buy Passes" link, or go to my myspace page, www.myspace.com/patmAcdonald where there's some html code you can copy and paste into your myspace profile to put a link to the Steel Bridge website/store.

We'll be finalizing the line-up and schedule right now, so check here at www.steelbridgesongfest.org for updates.

xo,pat