Roxanne Rubell

Versatile and experienced writer and longtime PR and marketing pro who can create key messaging and custom storytelling for restaurant/hospitality, consumer and B2B clients to deliver results-driven strategic branding; longtime freelance journalist who can also strategize and pen myriad PR and marketing materials/copy: Press releases, pitch letters, social media strategy/content, website content and landing pages, proposals, op-ed pieces, ad copy for print, radio, billboard, web banners and banner ads. On any given day, I might be writing a feature on a band like Death Cab for Cutie or singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams and the following day switch gears completely crafting recruitment brochure copy for an assisted living chain and web banner copy for a bank. Of course, in a perfect world, I'd be doing my PR and marketing best to get the word out about a chef-driven restaurant and/or restaurant group or an up-and-coming restaurant chain.

Lita Ford | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader Lita Ford was 16 years old when she first emerged into the public spotlight as lead guitarist for the punk-rock band the Runaways.That was in the mid-1970s, and the rock goddess — whom Guitar Player Magazine’s has given its Certified Guitar Legend Award — has kept her amp turned on and turned up.Ford and her band (Patrick Kennison on guitar, Bobby Rock on drums and Marty O’Brien on bass) will take the stage at The Tupelo Music Hall in Derry Friday

'Wide Open' | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader To chat with him, you wouldn’t know that Michael McDonald has won five Grammys, had huge chart success or that he not only was an integral part of Steely Dan but helped redefine the sound of The Doobie Brothers.He’s got one mighty long list of career highlights, yet in a recent phone call he’s seemingly humble when it comes to talking about his forthcoming new record, “Wide Open,” his first offering of original material in 17 years. McDonald will b

Taking heart | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader | Michael Franti shows some love in a posting on his Facebook page at the start of the United States leg of the Love Out Loud Tour last month: “Woke up this morning feeling like, with everything happening in the world, that we need music more than ever to be a positive voice ... Keep shining bright.” Michael Franti recently shared a video on Facebook in which he artfully draws a road map to an ideal future. In it he describes not only his curre

Way to go, Daddy-O | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader | Big Bad Voodoo Daddy over the past 20 years has added a dash of swing to movie soundtracks, including “Swingers” featuring Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau and the TV shows “The Wild,” “Despicable Me,” “Friends,” “3rd Rock from the Sun,” “Ally McBeal,” “So You Think You Can Dance” and “Phineas & Ferb.” The swing revival band also has made appearances on “Dancing With the Stars,” NBC’s “Christmas in Rockefeller Center,” the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Par

Jesse Dayton to play rebel-rousing shindig at Queen City's Jewel | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader | Rest assured that when Jesse Dayton takes the stage for the post-Thanksgiving Shindig at Jewel music club in downtown Manchester next week, he’ll deliver a rebel-rousing performance featuring music from his newest effort, “The Revealer,” and no doubt throw in some songs from his chart-topping 1995 release “Raisin’ Cain.” The Americana singer and songwriter will share the lineup with rock band Supersuckers, the Appalachian folk-punk and bluegra

‘Where the Spirit Meets the Bone’ | New Hampshire

By ROXANNE RUBELL Special to the Union Leader | "Sorry, I’ve been sick — I’ll just enunciate,” says singer/songwriter and three-time Grammy winner Lucinda Williams with a soft laugh. Williams is getting over a cold and battling the overbearing sound of the air conditioner on her tour bus. She gets on and off the bus a few times, apologizing for the interruption, and finally gets back in the vehicle — air conditioner off, and settles in. The Los Angeles-based artist is on the road to prom

Painter’s love of nature is also his muse

For award-winning painter John Traynor, it’s a rare day when he’s not enjoying the outdoors, whether it’s painting, photography, gardening, playing golf or taking his still puppy-like black lab Dagny for a walk. In fact, nature is one of Traynor’s favorite muses, presenting him with sublime sunsets, stunning sunrises and stellar sunflowers that engage his creative vision. Traynor lives in a sprawling 19th century Victorian house in West Swanzey, part of which — a large part, in fact — is his wo

Harrisville artist, entrepreneur oozes creativity

Marylou DiPietro wears many hats. A self-starter with unbridled creative vision, she’s a published poet and writer, playwright, mosaic artist, wife and mother. And, to add to the list, she’s tapped into her entrepreneurial reserve and has embarked on a journey into the world of fashion. It’s a Wednesday morning at DiPietro’s Reincarnations Fiber Art Studio in Harrisville, and there’s no shortage of used clothing in the room. In fact, it’s everywhere: an old biker jacket, a faux fur leopard-print pea coat, a black satin cocktail dress, a houndstooth-patterned sport coat, even a wetsuit. But, the clothing isn’t hanging on hangars or neatly folded on a shelf. It’s more of a deconstructed, mixed display that is far more interesting, compelling and enticing. DiPietro has given faded flannel and worn leather new life. They’ve been “reborn” into kitschy chic computer and IPad cases, handbags, tote bags, even checkbook covers. The periwinkle bridesmaids dress is especially lucky and gets to be Cinderella in its second life. Or, Cinderella’s clutch purse, anyway.

Pipeline plan: Swanzey not off the hook, by Roxanne Rubell

If Kinder Morgan’s plans to build the Northeast Energy Direct (NED) pipeline are approved, it will be the beginning of the end for both the five area towns on the proposed pipeline route AND for the entire Monadnock Region. As a resident of Swanzey, one of the towns that is not YET on the proposed pipeline route, I’m embarrassed to say that I wasn’t paying as much attention to this issue as I should have when it surfaced last year. Like many people, I thought it didn’t concern me because it was