A Prairie Home Companion from American Public Media

Special Guests
Saturday, November 26, 2005

The Battlefield Band

Named after the Glasgow suburb of Battlefield, where the group was formed by four student friends, The Battlefield Band has spent more than 30 years living up to their motto "Forward with Scotland's Past" and bringing their innovative blend of traditional Scottish and modern music to venues worldwide. Although fiddle, bagpipes and guitar are common instruments in Celtic bands, The Battlefield Band is credited with being the first to add synthesizer. Their latest CD is titled Out for the Night (Temple Records). The current line-up features founding member Alan Reid on keyboards, guitar, and vocals; Mike Katz-originally from Los Angeles-on pipes, whistles, and bass guitar; Sean O'Donnell from Derry, Northern Ireland, on guitar and vocals; and Alasdair White, from the island of Lewis, one of the Gaelic-speaking Outer Hebrides, on fiddle, whistle, banjo, bazouki, pipes, and bodhran.

Jearlyn Steele

A native of Indiana, Jearlyn Steele first sang with her siblings (as The Steele Children) in churches, concert halls, and on radio and television. After Jearlyn left home to attend the University of Minnesota, one by one, the rest of the Steele kids followed, and they started singing together again as The Steeles. Now music is the family business. Fans still remember their participation in Gospel at Colonus at the Guthrie Theater and on Broadway. Jearlyn has voiced many local and national commercials, and she has recorded with top acts including George Clinton and Prince. Her most recent CD is titled Steele Praising Him. Jearlyn Steele hosts Steele Talkin', a Sunday-night radio show that originates on WCCO in Minneapolis and is heard in some 30 states nationwide.

Lou Anna Simon

In January 2005, Lou Anna Simon became the 20th president of Michigan State University-the first female CEO in the university's history. She was previously provost and vice president for academic affairs, a position to which she was appointed in 1993. Simon is one of only nine women to hold the post of chief academic officer among the 62 leading research institutions that compose the Association of American Universities (AAU). She also serves as provost of the Michigan State University-Detroit College of Law. She earned her doctorate degree in philosophy, administration, and higher education from MSU in 1974. In addition Simon also holds a master's degree in student personnel and counseling, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics, both from Indiana State University.

Andy Stein

Violinist and saxophonist Andy Stein was a regular member of Guy's All-Star Shoe Band on A Prairie Home Companion from 1989 to 2001. He collaborated with Garrison Keillor to create the opera Mr. and Mrs. Olson. He has appeared on Saturday Night Live and Late Night with David Letterman, and has performed with such artists as Itzhak Perlman, Eric Clapton, Smashing Pumpkins, Billy Joel, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, and many others.