Sons of the Never Wrong

Sometimes the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. 

In this case, it’s apples and oranges! 

Sue, Bruce, and Deb each have such depth and range to their

personal backgrounds and stories that it’s fun to learn more…

“SUE DEMEL has one of the most expressive female voices in folk music today.” — Isthmus Daily

Whether it’s scatting, collaborating, or writing, Sue explodes the pre-conceived notions of singing. Her body of work as a songwriter achieves a rare peace between the boundaries of love and redemption. The Huffington Post said, “And then there’s Sue Demel, a singular voice: a rich, athletic, octave-hurtling instrument that purrs and growls, rocks the foundation and raises the roof. She delivers with such a resplendent shimmer, you almost expect her to blink into a column of light.”

Raised in the city limits, in an Italian-American family, Sue became an integral part of the Chicago performance landscape from an early age. A much sought after, seasoned back-up vocalist featured on over 75 albums, Sue is also a poet, composer & freelance illustrator. Part of the gospel/jazz septet Come Sunday, guest-vocalist for Corky Siegel & Chamber Blues, and schooled in jazz, Sue is armed with a spontaneous sense of improvisation, making any concert a one-of-a-kind experience.

A beloved nationally known songwriting teacher based out of the historic Old Town School of Folk Music, the veteran writing and singing coach has been dedicated to the creative growth of performers for 25+ years. A genre-bending composer, Demel has written and performed everywhere from folk operas, puppet theater, fringe fests, rock bands, dance gigs, music therapy events, live experimental radio projects, Vatican masses, blues concerts, South American gospel festivals, poetry slams, humanity series, and much more.

To find more about Sue, her gigs, classes, poetry and art… check out www.suedemel.com — Better yet, get to a Sons of the Never Wrong show, for there is nowhere she loves to sing more than with her talented bandmates Bruce & Deb.

"Demel has an almost manic singing ability.” — WDCB

“BRUCE ROPER has written the near perfect song.” — A.P. Newswire

A former tooth extractionist and part time gun-runner in a previous life, Bruce was forced to come back and atone by writing love songs, of all things, on the guitar, no less, in the last and first bits of the 20 and 21st centuries. Born in St. Louis to a country-minister father and story-telling mother, Bruce managed to wiggle his way out of selling tractor parts in downstate Illinois and has surprised himself by becoming a prolific and cherished voice on the Chicago songwriting scene.

While raising two beautiful daughters good and proper, Bruce fine-honed his skills as a luthier. He started the Chicago Luthiers Workshop where he builds and repairs stringed instruments, makes how-to videos, and provides one-on-one guitar making workshops. In 1992 he founded the Sons of the Never Wrong, where his witty, heartbreaking songs have created a cult-like national following.

Bruce has built a treasured recording studio known for creating albums by many of Chicago’s finest songwriters. A playwright, producer, author, merchant of countless failed great ideas, Bruce is also the president of the picky-food-eaters club and all around man about town.

To take a class with Bruce or learn more about making an album in his studio — www.chicagoluthiers.com

“Roper writes songs that twist a phrase enough to make it resonate with pathos and a dose of wry humor. 

His voice is plaintive and searching. He might be the missing Beatle.” — Paul Barile, music critic

“DEBORAH LADER has a wealth of diverse influences that inform her multifaceted music. She has a national reputation as a visual artist, and is a skilled instumentalist of guitar, mandolin and banjo. Her songwriting and vocal harmonies have added a beautfiul dimension to the Sons.” 

— WGLT

Raised in Cleveland, Ohio, where she befuddled her long suffering parents with her dual passion for the hugely lucrative pursuits of printmaking and folk music, Deb’s attempt to live an artful life compelled her to operate a world-renown, 30-year-old community printshop and to join the Sons in 2000. She’s a maker of things — prints, drawings, songs, sculpture, babies, photographs, videos, paintings, unexpected fashion statements, and vegetables. Her visual art is shown throughout the world, and her produce is enjoyed at home. Her Chicago Printmakers Collaborative studio is a thriving hive of art making, classes, and events, and when she’s not overseeing a steamroller truck printing ginormous woodcuts, she might be found practicing licks on banjo, mandolin, octave mandolin, guitar, piano or some other thing she picks up.

Music critic Paul Barile says “Lader writes songs that inspire.” A multi-instrumentalist with a sought-after affinity for rich alto harmony singing, she also composes beautifully visual songs that speak of community, motherhood, and the human condition, like “Lader’s delicately invincible anthems Pass It On and Painting The Boat.” —Folk & Music Exchange. She’s won all sorts of awards for being a professor, administrator, featured speaker, singer and artist, but by far her most cherished accolade was when Sons of the Never Wrong made her the Employee of the Month.

You can check out her art at www.deborahmarislader.com, and her music right here with her beloved mates.

“Deborah Maris Lader (guitar, banjo, mandolin, mandocello, and vocals) seems to be the matrix

that brings all the elements together. Her voice is the apex of the arc between Roper’s and Demel’s. “

Leona” is an example of the beauty – and the versatility of her voice. All of the pieces fit.” —Vocal Local

Don't miss out on the fun.

If you are out of town, join the livestream concert!

Since February 2016, St Tim's Coffeehouse has presented

a six-concert series of Americana & Folk music

in the sanctuary of St. Timothy's Lutheran Church in Skokie, IL. 

Our season runs from September to April. It is  entirely staffed by volunteers. 

We are partnered with WFMT-98.7 FM

for the Folkstage Program (8 PM) on select concerts*.

2024 - 2025 St Tim's Coffeehouse Season

September 14, 2024 Gina Forsyth

*October 12, 2024 Jim & Susie Malcolm

November 9, 2024 Sons of the Never Wrong

*February 8, 2025 David Roth

*March 8, 2025 Aaron Nathans & Michael G. Ronstadt

*April 12, 2025 Kray Van Kirk, Ph.D.  

* designates a Folkstage live broadcast of WFMT-98.7 FM