Open Mic, October 6, 2018

Open Mic 5th Season Premiere a Huge Success

"In spite of the unseasonably warm and humid weather that made its way into the gallery, the 5th season premiere of performing arts and open mic shows at the Fayetteville-Lincoln County Arts Center exceeded our expectations," said Arts Center president and show host Ron Hackett. "We had a full slate of performers and a wonderful and supportive audience."

Robert Foster co-hosts the show with Hackett and helps to keep things running smoothly. Foster kicked off the show with three covers of his favorite songs. He began with Harry Chapin's iconic folk song entitled, "The Cats in the Cradle." Next he performed "Old Tennessee," by Dan Fogleberg, and he finished with "Mood Ring," by Wade Bowen.

Alan Booth performed his version of "This Old House," that was written by Stuart Hamblen in 1954. He followed that with "Folsom Prison Blues," by Johnny Cash. He finished with "Rambling Fever," by Merle Haggard.

Newcomer Steve Payne and his wife Debra are new to Fayetteville, and we hope that he will become a regular at our shows. He performed "Where the Gentle Breese Blows," "Someplace Like Home," and "Baby I Want."

Another newcomer, Todd Mustin, wowed the audience with his a Capella performances of "Open the Eyes of My Hear Lord," by Michael W. Smith, "Wanted," by Hunter Hayes, and "Amazing Grace."

Musician and songwriter Len Bullard came up from Huntsville to perform for the show. He started with two of his original songs entitled, "Mandy Blue" and "Let's Do." He finished with a cover of a contemporary Christian song entitled "So Will I (100 Billion Times)," by Hillsong United.

Randall Mills returned to our show with three of his favorite songs. He began with "Turn the Page," by Bob Seger and finished with Chris Stapleton's "Tennessee Whiskey" and "Hotel California," by The Eagles.

Local singer and songwriter Greg Mitchell performed three of his original songs with Hackett backed him up on guitar. They started with two of Mitchell's "beach" themed songs entitled "There Just Ain't No Bad Days" and "Take Me." They brought it back home with Mitchell's song about "The Last Dirt Road in Tennessee."

Regular perform Thunderbyrd Newman returned to our stage performing two of his original songs that included, "Beautiful Dreams."

Hackett closed the show by playing the guitar part of Paul McCartney's famous "Blackbird" song. He finished the evening with a jazzy rendition of an old French tune entitled, "Autumn Leaves."

Pictures from the show can be found on the Arts Center's website and on their Facebook page. Videos from the shows are also broadcast on FPU's Channel 6.

The next show will be Saturday, October 20th in the gallery of the Arts Center at 7:00pm. The twice monthly performing arts and open mic held on the first and third Saturday of each month is free and open to the public. The Arts Center is a non-profit corporation, so donations are appreciated.

Each act is allowed 15 minutes for their performance. We allow both original songs and cover songs. Soloists who would like musical accompaniment for their performance, or anyone that would like to participate in an open jam session, please contact Ron and Taylor before the show. Questions about the show are also welcome. Their email address is openmic@flc-artscenter.com.

Located at 303 Main Ave. South in Fayetteville, The Arts Center is a non-profit corporation dedicated to supporting the arts in our community. Doors open and sign-ups begin at 6:30PM on Saturday, and the show begins at 7:00. For more information, please visit the Art Center website:

http://www.flc-artscenter.com/openmic

Photo courtesy of Greg Giesing