When National Public Radio affiliate WUNC-FM (Chapel Hill, N.C.) needed assistance in producing a special cultural feature on legendary Mebane, N.C., musician Joe Thompson, station producers turned to Larry Vellani, Elon’s director of corporate and foundation relations.
Joe Thompson turned 90 years old on December 9, and NPR wanted to acknowledge this milestone in the life of the renowned musician who has toured the world and has received virtually every traditional North American music honor and award.
Vellani is a neighbor and friend of Thompson and has performed regularly with him on concert stages and in churches and private homes since 2000.
As executive producer, Vellani consulted on interview content and techniques, and scheduled all arrangements with the Thompsons, radio-journalist David Brower, documentary film maker and photographer David Persoff, and with fellow musicians Alan Julich and Sherry Lea for the two-hour-plus interview and music session in the Thompson’s home on Nov. 25.
David Brower’s edited interview ran Dec. 6 on WUNC-FM’s popular Back Porch Music program, and again Dec. 9 during NPR’s nationally broadcast Morning Edition program.
WUNC-FM’s website is carrying live streaming of the interview, as well as links to additional information about Joe Thompson and his music, including the live streaming of the award-winning 2004 documentary film on Thompson, produced by his younger cousin and former member of Elon’s English Department faculty, Iris Thompson Chapman. Vellani also consulted with Chapman on her film and performed on the film’s soundtrack.
The 30-minute film,”Steel Driving Man: The Life and Times of Joe Thompson,” has aired on public and commercial television networks throughout the English-speaking world.
Thompson performed in the Burbridge Atrium of Elon’s Koury Business Center on Nov. 21 during the release party for the latest student-produced compact CD, “Patchwork,” with members of the acoustic-roots ensemble Mebanesville.