Open Mic, February 18, 2017

Arts Center Attracts New Performers

“We were privileged to have three new acts debuting on our stage last night,” said Arts Center President and Open Mic Host Ron Hackett. “It was a great mix of our regular artists with some new and unique acts to provide our audience with outstanding variety.”

Co-host Robert Foster opened the show with a cover of Cat Stevens' “Moon Shadow.” He followed that with Dan Fogelberg's “Old Tennessee,” and John Prine's “Souvenirs.”

Singer and songwriter Pete Crim made his first appearance at our show. He opened with a cover of Merle Haggard's “My Favorite Memory of All.” He follow that with two of his original songs entitled “I Grew Up a Cowboy” and “I'd Love to Walk a Mile in My Grandpa's Shoes.” He finished his set with “Choices,” by George Jones.

Avant-garde songwriter Thunderbyrd Newman returned again this week to perform two original songs entitled “Lost Summer” and “Cherokee Indian Eyes.”

Poet Samantha Grace Posey read some of her original poetry, beginning with a poem entitled, “A Musical.” Next she read “Finished,” a poem about giving up on rules and forgiveness. She finished with a poem she wrote for a friend struggling through a hard time. The poem was entitled, “Worthy.”

Next a three piece band lead by Kenny Blankenship on the guitar debut on the Arts Center stage. Ron Stacy played the mandolin, and Larry Groce played the violin. They started with “Kentucky Mandolin,” written by Bill Monroe. Next, they sang “Wagon Wheel,” written by Darius Rucker that is based on an unfinished chorus written by Bob Dylan. The finished with “Cold Frosty Morning.” According to Hetzler's Fakebook, this traditional fiddle tune memorializes an actual historic event as told there:

The fiddle tune Cold, Frosty Morning remembers the battle of Culloden Moor. On the morning of April 16, 1746 an English Army of 8,000 massacred a Scottish army of 7,000 ending the Jacobite Rebellion in Scotland.

Huntsville songwriter Jon Rosenblum made his debut at the Arts Center. He performed three of his original songs that included: “Walked Right Into That,” “It's Not Her Memory that Killing Me, It's Mine,” and “You're My Queen.”

Regular performer Elliott from Petersburg came next to perform three of his humorous songs that elicit audience participation. He began with a reprise of “Oh How He Lied” from our last show. He went on to perform “Coney Island Washboard” and “I Want a Beer Just Like The Beer That Killed My Dear Old Dad” to liven up the evening.

Local songwriter Greg Mitchell came next to perform two of his Caribbean inspired songs. “Take Me” is a song about love, the beach, and sailing in the Florida cays. Next was a song about a sailor called, “Charlie's View.” The tune got its name from a bench label that overlooks Bay St Louis. He finished with a country tune entitled, “West Texas Rain.”

Hackett backed Mitchell on the guitar before finishing the show with a set of solo instrumentals. He began with “Mr. Bo Jangles” that was written by Jerry Jeff Walker and made famous be the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Next, he played “Windy and Warm,” a well-known fingerpicked tune by John D. Loudermilk that was made famous by Chet Atkins. He followed that with a show tune from Doctor Zhivago known as “Lara's Theme,” or “Somewhere My Love.” As a favor for one of our regular audience member, Hackett finished with a traditional tune called, “Spanish Fandango.”