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TORNADO!
Friday, April 17th, 2009 | Uncategorized | 6 Comments
This is what it looked like at our house last Friday:
April 10, 2009 Tornado
This tornado hit the Riverview area in Murfreesboro (Thanks to Kevin Miller for the photo):
Concert Postponed
Saturday, April 11th, 2009 | Uncategorized | No Comments
Due to the tornados that swept through Murfreesboro yesterday, we’ve decided to cancel tonight’s Watson & Nash concert. According to reports, two people died in the tornados and over 250 homes were destroyed. Our friends and frequent house concert guests Mark and Cathy George were among those that lost their home. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and everyone that was affected by the tornados.
We will be rescheduling the Watson & Nash concert as soon as we can. We spoke to Shay Watson and he was very gracious in being willing to reschedule. He even suggested we make the rescheduled concert a benefit for the tornado victims.
We’ll let everyone know the new date as soon as possible.
BHC Presents Watson & Nash
Friday, March 27th, 2009 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment
Watson and Nash
I’m really excited to be hosting the singer/songwriting duo of Watson & Nash to Boro House Concerts on April 11. The duo is made up of Nashville-based Shay Watson and Joe Nash.
Watson and Nash first got together more than a decade ago. They met at a songwriting workshop and struck up a friendship. At the time, Shay was touring with his band, Ten Mile Drive, and Joe was working on a solo career. After Shay’s band broke up, he started pursuing a solo career, but all the while he and Joe would get together to write songs. In 2007, Shay and Joe put together a band. The band didn’t last, but the idea morphed into a duo. Shay and Joe have been together ever since.
Watson & Nash list their major influences as The Eagles, Bruce Hornsby, Tom Petty, Billy Joel, Jackson Browne, and Bruce Springsteen. They also list John Mellencamp, who they’ve worked with, as a major influence. In addition to Mellencamp, they’ve worked with artists like Holly Dunn, Jolie Holland, Trisha Yearwood, T. Graham Brown, Gretchen Wilson, Little Big Town, and many others. Their sound is “Organic American pop/rock meets country.”
We’ll be starting our evening with social hour at 7:00 pm and music will begin at 8;00 pm. As always, the suggested donation is $15/person.
Here’s a little peek into what you have to look forward to:
A Photo of Andrew McKnight
Monday, March 16th, 2009 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment
I tried mightily to put this photo in my last post about Andrew McKnight, but I couldn’t get the formatting right. So instead, I’ve provided a photo of Andrew here. Enjoy!
Andrew McKnight
Another Success: An Evening with Andrew McKnight
Monday, March 16th, 2009 | Uncategorized | 2 Comments
Andrew McKnight is a really nice guy. That’s the first thing you notice about him. He’s soft spoken, congenial, personable and very polite.
Andrew is also a terrific singer/songwriter. His songs come from a very well-thought out need to say what needs to be said. He’s an intellectual songwriter. Whether he’s writing about a Civil War soldier, a West Virginia coal mine, or a polluted river in eastern Tennessee, his word are carefully chosen and his music is evocative of the time and place he is singing about.
Saturday night, we had a small, but enthusiastic crowd listen to Andrew McKnight sing songs from his five CDs. We were treated to an excellent evening of songs and storytelling.
For each concert we host, there are always one or two moments during the evening that really stick with me. Andrew’s story about his friend whose family could not live on their land due to the pollution of the Pigeon River that runs through their property hit home with me while he was singing the song “The Other Way.”
Another special moment was Andrew singing “The Road to Appomattox.” I have a special affinity for Civil War-era songs and Andrew did not disappoint. I especially enjoyed the lyrics “On the road to Appomattox, where bullets whine like bees, cut blossoms from the trees,” which recalled the Battle of Shiloh where there was so much shooting that there were no blossoms left on the trees by the end of the battle.
Now that I think about it, I really liked Andrew’s song “Bad News” and his version of “Crossroads” by Robert Johnson. Both songs were excellent examples of acoustic blues, and Andrew’s slide work on “Crossroads” was terrific. Wow, that’s four really special and memorable moments!
Andrew spent the night with us and at breakfast Sunday morning, he showed Shelby (our daughter) a few tricks on the guitar. Shelby is an aspiring guitar player and Andrew’s instruction was really helpful. Shelby spent an hour or two after Andrew left practicing what he had taught her.
Andrew was another example of the fantastic music and musician we have had as part of our house concert series. If you weren’t able to make it, be sure not to miss Nash & Watson on April 11. If you were there, you know how great it was. Next time, bring a friend (or two).
First Impressions of Jack Williams
Friday, January 2nd, 2009 | Uncategorized | 5 Comments
Jack Williams
The first time I saw Jack Williams play live, I was somewhat awestruck. I wrote my thoughts down after the show on a now defunct blog I was writing at the time. Here’s what I thought after my first encounter with Jack Williams:
Kim and I were lucky enough to see Jack Williams in concert last night. He was playing at the Blake Library in Stuart, FL.
In case you’re not familiar with Jack, he is a singer-songwriter who plays “acoustic music.” I guess you’d call him a folk singer (if you felt the need to label him), but he is also a storyteller, a comedian, and a traveling philosopher.
The concert was a lot of fun and Jack was great. His voice was weathered and bluesy, and his guitar playing was phenomenal.
Several years ago, I got to see Michael Jordan play basketball. Each time I would see him play I would come away wishing that I could do something, anything, in my life as well as Michael Jordan plays basketball. After seeing Jack Williams in concert, I am left with the desire to be able to do something, anything, as well as he plays guitar.
It’s a little funny that Jack is such a virtuoso on the guitar because when he walked on stage, my first thought was, “Jeez, that guitar is sure beat up.” And it’s true. Jack’s guitar has seen better days. The top of the guitar is faded and delaminated, and the pickguard is so old and worn that it is falling off the guitar. Even so, the sweet, soulful music Jack created with that old guitar was amazing.
On stage, Jack told stories, cracked jokes, and talked about his beloved south, all the while strumming and picking his guitar. The sound of the guitar was omnipresent. I got the feeling that at home, Jack sits and play his guitar while he talks to his wife Judy (who was also at the concert). It’s somewhat comical to think of Jack and Judy sitting at home in Arkansas, talking about the weather, a neighbor, the bills, or anything else while Jack provides background music for their lives. I don’t think there is ever a time when Jack isn’t playing his guitar. It must make it hard to drive and play guitar at the same time, but somehow Jack manages.
During the concert, Jack did several of his own songs (Eternity & Main, Mama Lou, A Natural Man, Frog in the Kitchen) as well as a couple of other people’s songs (Buckets of Rain by Bob Dylan), but the highlight (at least for me) was the last song he did.
Jack has a way of ending a concert that is truly unique. It is to music what stream of consciousness writing is to literature. For about twenty minutes, Jack played and sang anything that came into his head. During the course of his finale I remember hearing such diverse songs as “Young at Heart,” “Girl from Ipanema,” “Misty,” “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” “The Weight,” and several other songs, both strange and familiar. Jack also made up a couple of mini-songs during the finale.
Jack Williams is a great performer and his concert provided one of the most enjoyable evenings I have had in quite some time. If you ever get the chance to see Jack in person, I would highly recommend it.
In Concert: Buddy Mondlock
Friday, September 26th, 2008 | Uncategorized | No Comments
I’m excited to announce that Nashville singer/songwriter Buddy Mondlock will be joining us in concert on Saturday, October 25. Opening for Buddy will be Jeffrey Joslin from right here in Murfreesboro.
Buddy Mondlock is a prolific songwriter. His songs have been recorded by a wide range of respected musicians including Janis Ian, Joan Baez, Guy Clark, Art Garfunkel, and Garth Brooks. Buddy’s songs are introspective and personal. It’s as if he reaches down into his very soul and pulls out a song. He won’t overpower you with lyrics, but will instead draw you in and make you part of the moment.
Buddy grew up in Park Forest, IL, but now calls Nashville home. Buddy has recorded five CDs including Everything Waits to be Noticed which he recorded with Miai Sharp and Art Garfunkel, and his latest solo effort, The Edge of the World.
Here’s what others have had to say about Buddy:
“Buddy Mondlock is the most startling new songwriting talent I’ve heard this year. This guy is an American Original, a folk poet whose vision veers effortlessly from wild witticism to soul-piercing insights. Living proof that the troubadour tradition sings on.”
- Robert K. Oermann, Syndicated Music Writer
“Since the first time I heard Buddy play in my office, I’ve loved his music. It’s always a pleasure to hear and have him play in the club.”
- Amy Kurland, Bluebird Café
“Buddy Mondlock writes beautiful songs and plays the kind of guitar they deserve. He’s a fine person and a fine artist.”
- Townes Van Zandt, singer/songwriter
Jeffrey Joslin is young, but he’s already making a name for himself. He’s a talented singer/songwriter that brings a maturity and sensibility to his music that is not very common among his peers.
Jeffrey grew up in the Appalachian Mountains in eastern Tennessee. His earliest influences were Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, and the Rev. Al Green. He mixed in these influences with a dose of piano playing from Michael W. Smith, guitar composition from Jars of Clay, and elements from the likes of John Mayer, Billy Joel, and Jason Mraz. The result is a unique style that harkens back to the 1970’s while staying firmly planted in the here and now.
Jeffrey currently lives in Murfreesboro, TN where he is attending MTSU. He is majoring in Recording Industry Production and Technology.
For more information about Buddy Mondlock, visit his website here and his My Space page here.
You can visit Jeffrey Joslin’s My Space page here.
Save The Date
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008 | Uncategorized | No Comments
Our next concert is scheduled for Saturday, October 25. We’ll be hosting Nashville resident Buddy Mondlock. I’ll be providing more info on Buddy as we get closer to the concert, but for now you can check him out here.
Also, check out our CDs for Sale area to purchase any and all CDs from Buddy.
Don’t forget, save October 25th. It should be a great show.
A Great Concert With Christopher Williams
Sunday, September 21st, 2008 | Uncategorized | No Comments
If you missed the Christopher Williams concert last night (September 20), you missed a great show. We had a small but enthusiastic crowd that heard Christopher do a two hour show of music, stories, and some baseball talk (CDub is a die-hard Red Sox fan, although that doesn’t make him a bad person).
It was great meeting Christopher and his wife Suzanne. Suzanne works for Young Life in Nashville and is working to start a non-profit for adults with disabilities. She obviously has a good heart, but she didn’t pull any punches when she declared her co-worker Brooke “lame” for not making it to last night’s concert. I believe her criticism also applied to Nancy Z, but I’m not certain.
Seriously, it was great hosting Christopher and Suzanne. They are both wonderful people and we appreciate them kicking off our house concert series.
At every show I attend, I try to pinpoint one song that really capped the night for me. There were several songs I could choose from Christopher’s concert, but I think the one that really did it for me last night was Deep Blue Sea which Christopher did accompanied by just a djembe drum. It was great.
After Christopher’s concert, Steve (our neighbor Sherry’s brother) played several songs for us. What a fantastic guitar player Steve is. Thank you, Steve.
If you want to purchase any of Christopher’s music (I especially recommend his newest CD Sweet Redemption), be sure to check out our CDs For Sale page.
Our next concert is scheduled for October 25 with Buddy Mondlock. I’m looking forward to another great show.
Ten Questions with…Christopher Williams
Thursday, September 11th, 2008 | Uncategorized | No Comments
In preparation for his concert at Boro House Concerts, I had the opportunity to conduct a short email interview with Christopher Williams. I wanted to know more about him personally, about his music and his influences.
Christopher was good enough to take a few minutes to answer my questions. Here are ten questions - and answers - with Nashville singer-songwriter, Christopher Williams:
Lou: How did you first get started writing and performing?
CW: I’ve been playing guitar since my junior year in high school and it wasn’t until I got my heart broken in my first year of college that I started writing songs. I think that is true of most dude songwriters…the old broken heart inspiration. I’ve been performing since I was kid in various capacities from church choir to the orchestra to musicals.
Lou: Who were some of your earliest musical influences?
CW: That is a hard one…when I first started playing guitar I listened to alot of the classics like Cat Stevens, CSN, James Taylor and once I got further into the genre started picking up more contemporary songwriters like Shawn Colvin, Patty Larkin, and John Gorka. In terms of first tapes ever owned…Rush - Moving Pictures. Amazing record!
Lou: Do you remember your very first show? Where was it and how did it go?
CW: No idea what my first concert was…probably this divey pub near my hometown outside NYC. Culligan’s, I think it was called. I was 18 and playing in a duo with my older brother and man did we stink. But we were sweet, nice guys, who could harmonize real well.
Lou: What is your proudest musical accomplishment?
CW: Always, the latest song that actually sticks around. Writing is always an accomplishment!
CW: See above :-
Lou: If you could do anything with your life, regardless of time, money or talent, what would you do?
CW: I think i would retire and live on a beach…just kidding. I would love to continue to play music and also continue to work with the organizations that I work with now, blood:water mission and International Justice Mission. It’d be great to have the opportunity to be able to afford traveling more internationally with those organizations and not necessarily have to worry about how it will get paid for. To learn more about them and then be able to spread that knowledge.
Lou: What do you hope to accomplish (musically or otherwise) in the future?
CW: I hope to have children. I hope to learn more about working on my house. I hope to continue deepening my friendships here in Nashville. And I hope to continue to gain a better understanding of what it means to love God and put that into practice.
Lou: Where do you see yourself in 10 years? 20 years?
CW: Honestly…no idea. Because I couldn’t have predicted where I am now ten years ago.