Review: Welcome to the Show

Welcome to the Show by Matt Hayward
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Review: WELCOME TO THE SHOW. (Anthology compiled by Matt Hayward and edited by Doug Murano)

If I should ever be asked to identify my single favourite Crystal Lake Publishing anthology, I couldn't answer--for I deeply admire each and every one. This publisher consistently chooses authors, editors, and artists who produce work of the highest quality.

WELCOME TO THE SHOW is a themed Anthology, set in the venue of an unusual (and long-lasting) nightclub tucked away in a not-so-classy neighborhood in San Francisco, the kind of club that one only discovers if one is meant to be there. Whether one is musician, performer, staff, or audience, one is never there "accidentally."

The Shantyman, as it is named, refers to those sailors of earlier centuries whose role was to raise morale and inspire labouring sailors by singing inspiring, bawdy, or humorous sea chantys, much as contemporary camp counselors lead campfire songs. But The Shantyman is neither a cultural venue nor a haven for the avant-garde. What The Shantyman serves are found only in deepest darkness, as the reader will discover as each new page is turned...Welcome, my friends, to The Shantyman....

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