Roger Latzgo's appearance in the Knight's Gallery of the Palmerton Area Library was part of the Library Concert Series. He said it was also Earth Day weekend, which is a recent development.

"Everyday should be Earth Day for nature," said Latzgo.His first song was a poem by Emily Dickinson set to music. It is about bees and is titled "I take the liquor never brewed." He accompanied himself on the piano.Then he switched to love songs, some sad and some happy. The first was a tale of unrequited love from a story by Hans Christian Andersen. It tells of a northern boy who goes south to see Homer's grave. "A Rose from Homer's Grave" tells of a rose growing out of the grave. A nightingale falls in love with the rose. The nightingale died on the grave and a passing camel driver buried it there. The boy picked the rose and pressed it in a book.Latzgo said pressing a flower as a keepsake was frequently done before photography. The accompaniment was on a Greek bouzouki.Although Austrian Franz Schubert wrote 700 songs, he wrote the words for very few, and often borrowed poetry. He told the story of a rose in the style of a folk song which was becoming popular at the time. The song was sung in German.A boy wants to pick a rose but the rose said if he did, it would stick him. He picked it regardless and was scratched by a thorn.A Slovak love story between a lilac bush and a gray dove ensued when the lilac asked the dove if it would like to sleep in its branches. The dove said "yes," but that he had to leave before daybreak.The equinox occurs in the beginning of spring and fall when days and nights are the same length. The equinoxes were marked on earth and stone calendars and festivals were held to guarantee that the years would continue as they were. The "Song of the Equinox" was sung in Latin and English.Latzgo said an instrument of wood can tell you a lot about the weather, especially in spring. His guitar was specially made for him by Dale Unger of Saylorsburg. He wanted a guitar that was simple like a violin.People tend to associate natural aspects with people such as a sunny smile or girls named after flowers. "Sunflower Lady" tells of a lady with sunlight in her smile. "You spread beams of kaleidoscope light. Sunflower lady, you were early summer's child."Latzgo told of the tomatoes his mother grew. She started the plants about this time of year with heirloom seeds which were becoming popular at the time. Paulina's tomato was a late season tomato with excellent flavor. His song is "A Tomato called Paulina."It did not have a name when his mother was planting it, but now the seeds are widespread and named."The Last Word of a Bluebird" was told of a crow that was to carry a message to a girl, Leslie. The message was "I'll be back in spring." Latzgo said he was updating his repertoire and did the bluebird song as a rap, with sing-along.One of the things about spring is its fragrance, said Latzgo. He was visiting Knidos in western Turkey, a city that at one time had 100,000 people but that is nearly deserted due to changing trade routes.A statue was made of Aphrodite who promised love forevermore. It was the first life-size nude statue and the town would not put it up but "you feel her there by her perfume." The accompaniment was on a Turkish saz. He said he saw a man with a parrot that walked up and down the neck of the instrument. The saz is the national instrument of Turkey.It is mushroom season for the spring morel and searchers who are lucky enough to find one will not say where it came from. His grandmother would make mushroom soup and it would be eaten to the accompaniment of his grandfather playing the accordion. Names of the mushrooms were sung in Latin.You plant or sing about what you really like, said Latzgo and something he liked was "Hot Pepper Jelly." James Weaver of Bowers, a well-known grower of peppers who has an annual pepper festival, asked him to write a song about peppers. They gave him some of the Hot Pepper Jelly and "I was inspired.""Hot pepper jelly will drive you out of your mind," said Latzgo.He put on a ladybug glove and asked his young daughter who was in the audience what the bug was. She knew, and he sang the "Ladybug Song.""When into the dark I go to sleep, have a pretty dream of me," said the Ladybug.He said Roxanne, his daughter, would be selling CDs for her college education.Latzgo thanked the Friends of the Library and director Diane Danielson for having him, and finished by wishing everyone a "Happy Earth Day weekend."