Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW SONGWRITERS ROLLER DERBY SHOWCASE The Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase, presented by the Asheville Songwriters Association, is a quarterly music show with no roller skates included – just four performers “rollin’ out the songs, elbows-n-all.” Curated and hosted by Thomas Kozak and Jodi John Pippin, each “Derby Night” at The Grey Eagle will showcase the craft of songwriting in an intimate and welcoming setting. As an added element of the Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase, a surprise guest will join the performers on stage for interactive, on-the-spot commentary ~ a “look under the hood of the songwriting process” of sorts. The audience will have a chance to share comments as well, if they are inspired to do so. For most of the evening, the songwriters will perform finished songs, but they will also each share a brand new song that has not yet been performed on stage. Come support the songwriters as they show their vulnerable side and help nurture the art and craft of songwriting in the region and beyond. The performers for this 2nd Derby are:Will Hartz – A born entertainer and a multi instrumentalist, Will Hartz has been putting on a show for all to see before he could speak. With Appalachian funk and southern soul pouring through his fingertips, Will is best known for his ability to grab the attention of any and all audiences with his refined stylistic performances. Will started playing piano at the age of 8, later translating into years of musical theatre and a BA in musical performance. Andrea Rosal – Andrea picked up a guitar at age 40, started writing soon after and was hooked. The 2024 winner of Womansong of Asheville’s inaugural songwriting competition, Andrea has written her way through a global pandemic, cancer, parenting two kids, Hurricane Helene, and all the ups and downs of everyday life. Jackson Grimm – Jackson Grimm is an accomplished and respected band leader, multi-instrumentalist and teacher in the Western North Carolina music community. His songs marry pop melodies with the lonesome sound of Appalachian music. Grimm won the 2025 LEAF Songwriting competition and has been a 2 year finalist for the Songwriter Serenade. He has shared the stage with and opened up for acts such as Molly Tuttle, Sierra Ferrell, Shadowgrass, the Wilder Flower, Arlo Guthrie, Tim Grimm, Ben Bedford, Ordinary Elephant, Nathan Evans Fox, and more.Jane Kramer – Jane Kramer has garnered international recognition for the heartrending originality of her vocals and for the heavy-hitting lyrical eloquence of her songwriting. With deep roots in the musical traditions, culture and lore of beloved Appalachia, Kramer’s songs are introspective, gracefully gritty & fiercely memorable. A former social worker, domestic violence crisis counselor and avid humanitarian, Kramer continues to perform and teach about the songwriting process in prisons, shelters for the unhoused, programs for at-risk youth, hospitals and even animal rescues, sharing her message of music as a powerful tool for healing, connection and compassion. Quoted as “…an artist on the rise” by acclaimed American songwriter Mary Gauthier, Kramer has performed with Joan Osborne, Amy Ray of the Indigo Girls, The Steep Canyon Rangers, Sarah Siskind, Malcolm Holcombe, Josh Goforth, and Shawn Mullins.
An Evening With Chris Smither
ALL AGES FULLY SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE CHRIS SMITHER The sound and imagery of the 20th release by Chris Smither, All About the Bones, (release date: May 3, 2024 on Signature Sounds/Mighty Albert, distributed by Redeye) is as elemental as the inky black shadows cast by a shockingly bright moon. The listener is welcomed into some gothic mansion on an imaginary New Orleans street, and there in the lamplit parlor confronts the band, a minimalist skeleton crew: Smither’s inimitable propulsive guitar and rumbling baritone are joined seamlessly to producer David Goodrich’s carpetbag of instruments, Zak Trojano’s rock-steady, primal drumming, BettySoo’s diaphanous harmony vocals, and the flat, mournful flood of Jazz legend Chris Cheek’s saxophone. Recorded at Sonelab Studios in Easthampton MA by Justin Pizzoferrato (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., the Hold Steady) All About the Bones has a feel that is somehow baroque and austere at once. Smither and his longtime producer David Goodrich have been refining their musical conversation for decades, both in the studio and onstage, and by now, their bond verges on the telepathic. Goodrich plays on nearly every track. His sound is by now so translucent that it seems to function as a swath of silence, allowing the songs to burn like ciphers in the crackling air. And oh, the songs on All About the Bones. Chris Smither, after six decades of sharpening his knife as a songwriter, can at this point open damn near anything with a flick of his wrist. God and the Devil are opened here. Mortality is too. Politics, consciousness, renewal, family, vulnerability, surrender… Smither has sat with these topics like so many Zen koans, for so long, that every line is a pearl. The title track, “All About the Bones,” kicks the record off with “Consider your high station/ think about your fame. All of your creation depended on your frame.” Irony, wit, the double meaning of “depended”… each verse is a master class in songwriting. Yet the stark, elemental sage always has a twinkle in his eye, a light touch at your elbow as he guides you along. From the wickedly funny defense of the Adversary in “If Not for the Devil” to the unsentimental open-heartedness of “Still Believe in You,” he is as human as we all long to be. The disjointed imagery of “In the Bardo” and the dystopian mirror of “Close the Deal” find Smither unflinchingly staring down the mortality of both individuals and republics, and yet he is at peace, among loved ones in his cover of Eliza Gilkyson’s “Calm Before the Storm,” and turning his gaze to the future in “Completion”. As noted by the New York Times, Rolling Stone, MOJO, NPR, and others, in the decades of travels to All About the Bones, Chris Smither has gone from up-and-comer to journeyman to veteran to icon, and yet the whole time his path has more closely resembled Joseph Campbell’s “Hero with a Thousand Faces”- an unblinking, fearless trek into the depths of struggle and revelation, and a return back to the land of the living, to share the hard-won treasures found along the way. His restlessness is long gone, and his eyes are fixed “where the moonlight falls on some never-to-be-seen horizon” (“Still Believe in You”). The light given off from his music casts our own lives into a sublime and welcome clarity.
Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase
ALL AGES STANDING ROOM + SEATING, FIRST COME FIRST SERVED SONGWRITERS ROLLER DERBY SHOWCASE The Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase, presented by the Asheville Songwriters Association, is a quarterly music show with no roller skates included – just four performers “rollin’ out the songs, elbows-n-all.” Curated and hosted by Jodi John Pippin and Thomas Kozak, each “Derby Night” at The Grey Eagle will showcase the craft of songwriting in an intimate and welcoming setting. Spending an evening getting folky in “the rink” is a good thing to do. As an added element of the Songwriters Roller Derby Showcase, a guest songwriter will join the performers on stage for an interactive, on-the-spot, feedback session for a portion of the show. The performers will spend most of the evening sharing finished songs with the audience, but for these special feedback rounds, they will share new songs that have not been performed on stage. The entire house will get to experience what it’s like at one of the Asheville Songwriters Association’s “Roller Derby Songwriting Meetings” where the layers of creativity are peeled back, revealing what works with the songs and what doesn’t. Come support the songwriters as they show their vulnerable side and help nurture the art and craft of songwriting in the region and beyond. The performers for this first Derby will be: Thomas Kozak Ben Mackel Evan Veasey Alex Krug
Jodi John EP Release Show + Asheville Songwriters Showcase
ALL AGES STANDING ROOM + LIMITED SEATING, FIRST COME FIRST SERVED JODI JOHN EP RELEASE SHOW + ASHEVILLE SONGWRITERS SHOWCASECelebrate the release of Jodi John’s debut EP, Sybelia – a collection of true coming-of-age songs. Jodi leads the Asheville Songwriters Association, whose mission is to nurture the art and craft of songwriting in Western North Carolina and beyond. Most of her songs reflect a narrative lyric style on top of strong melodies. She believes that stories lead us to understand others and ourselves alike, both when we are the teller, and the listener. The second half of the evening will be a showcase of Asheville area songwriters involved in the Sybelia project, who will each share songs of their own. Come enjoy an evening of creative performances and joyful collaboration. FEATURING: Thomas Kozak Thomas Kozak is a singer-songwriter based in Asheville, NC. With a focus on lyricism and structure that stretches convention, he looks to bend an ear beyond the expected. His writing pulls myth and religion through the split-open skull of an obsessive-compulsive, anchoring the past to a new body and giving it voice through and beyond the conventions of folk and Americana. Old Sap Old Sap, poet from Chicago, rambled out to Montana, cut a banjo from a tamarack, strings across the country, foot like a freight train, voice rushing down over lush Appalachia, sings a thrush tune through the rush hour and into your long-forgotten prairie dreams. Melissa Hyman Melissa Hyman is a multi-instrumentalist and educator calling Asheville home since 2007. She plays in several local bands including The Moon and You, Tina and Her Pony, and Cowboy Judy. Will Hartz Will Hartz is best known for his ability to grab the attention of any and all audiences with his refined stylistic performances. Raised in a rural farming town south of Asheville, you can almost hear the mountain thunder and sweet streams rolling through his southern drawl. Will started playing piano at the age of 8, later translating into years of musical theatre and a BA in musical performance. https://www.willhartzmusic.com/ Jack Victor Jack Victor is songwriter, recording musician, and music educator based in Asheville, NC. He writes songs for the band Slow Packer (2018-present), and wrote songs for the band Midnight Snack (2011-2017). As an active member of the Asheville music scene since 2015, Victor also collaborates with many other bands and songwriters in the western NC area.
PATIO: Bobby Frith
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE BOBBY FRITH Bobby Frith is a Carrboro, NC-based singer-songwriter, composer, guitarist. His single release, Eastern Continental Divide, tells the story of two falling rain drops, whose paths diverge atop a mountain near where he grew up in Western NC. In his current era, you can find him on weekends performing at breweries, bars, and venues in NC and beyond. During the week, he brings his music to elder care facilities, hospitals, and health clinics in the local triangle area.
David Wilcox Annual Thanksgiving Homecoming Concert
ALL AGESFULLY SEATED SHOWLIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLEDAVID WILCOX There are songwriters who chronicle life, and then there’s David Wilcox—an artist who metabolizes it. He has long been a quiet force in American folk music; a musician’s musician, a writer’s writer, and a seeker whose gift lies in making the personal feel universal. With the upcoming release of The Way I Tell the Story (2025), Wilcox proves, yet again, that resilience isn’t just a survival skill—it’s an art form. The record shimmers with musical sophistication but leaves just enough space for the listener to feel what Wilcox has always done best: tell the truth, gently but without apology. The music he’s creating now comes from a place that can’t be faked. In recent years, Wilcox’s life has been shaped by his wife’s Parkinson’s diagnosis—a shift that reordered his priorities and redefined his sense of time, love, and presence. But rather than retreat, Wilcox leaned in. “Times get tough, and music gets good,” he says, and means it. These songs don’t dramatize. They don’t resolve neatly. They sit in the complexity of living—open-eyed, unafraid, quietly brave. Wilcox’s career began in earnest in the late 1980s, when his self-released debut The Nightshift Watchman caught the attention of A&M Records. His major-label debut, How Did You Find Me Here (1989), became an unexpected hit, selling over 100,000 copies largely by word of mouth and live shows alone—an unheard-of feat for a debut folk record. Critics took note of his deft guitar work and emotional clarity, but it was the unassuming wisdom threaded through his lyrics that truly set him apart. Rolling Stone praised his “soulful insight,” while The New York Times called his music “a kind of open-hearted therapy.” Wilcox’s music still resonates, especially now, because it doesn’t try to outpace the moment. It meets it. In his world, craft is a form of care. Introspection is a public offering. And staying soft in a hard world isn’t a liability—it’s a kind of leadership. For audiences seeking something more than noise, more than nostalgia, Wilcox’s songs remain a rare kind of company. Not flashy. Not loud. Just deeply, generously alive.
PATIO: McKinney
– ALL AGES- LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVE MCKINNEY McKinney is a singer/songwriter/musician living in Asheville, NC. A bass player at heart, McKinney is also at home playing her songs acoustic. Don’t miss your chance to enjoy this evening of genuine connection through lyrics that anyone can relate to, humorous conversations amidst the music, and a voice that will make your chill bumps have chill bumps.
Richard Shindell
ALL AGES SEATED SHOW LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLE RICHARD SHINDELL Richard Shindell lives as both an immigrant and emigrant, crossing thresholds, that informs his illumination of the human experience through narrative song. Shindell has inhabited a Zen Buddhist monastery and busked in the streets of Paris. Originally from New York, now living in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Shindell is a writer whose songs paint pictures, tell stories, juxtapose ideas and images, inhabit characters, vividly evoking entire worlds along the way and expanding our sense of just what it is a song may be. Meticulously recorded over three years in New York and Buenos Aires, his most recent release, Careless, offered an ambitious, luxurious, full- length statement. Shindell immersed himself in the studio, allowing the time and latitude to explore, experiment, take risks—to play—as each of these eleven songs was given form and substance. While his signature acoustic guitar style is used to good effect, Careless also found Shindell plugging in more. “The wider sonic and dynamic range of the electric has been a real inspiration. Rejuvenating.” During the pandemic, Shindell stayed in Argentina, out on the wide open Pampa, reading, writing, taking walks, doing a little experimental recording, and tending the garden. He now returns to the road for a limited number of performances. Innovative, original and occasionally spiritual, Shindell’s songs weave tales that interchangeably champion the downtrodden, exalt the disaffected or wax empathetic to those lost to society’s fringes. From lighthearted ballads and adulterous love songs, to dirges and diatribes that skillfully skewer politics, prejudice, war and religion, to the comic point-of-view of a cow stuck in a barbed wire fence, he has a unique ability to morph into the soul of the many and varied personalities he casts as narrators in certain songs—veritable novellas framed in haunting acoustic melodies. MANY A SHIP Many a Ship is an indie-folk-rock band deeply rooted in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Formed in 2017, this group of musical friends was drawn together by Vickie Burick (Warm the Bell, Nevada), united to craft a new sound, drenched in inspiration from nature, humanity, frailty, nostalgia and love. Burick serves as the anchor to this ever changing crew of shipmates that harbor in each performance— her original songs taking on new life and energy with each configuration, just like the ebb and flow of the tides. Original members included Burick on vocals, songwriting, guitar; Josh Gibbs (Dave Desmelik, Camp David, Velvet Truckstop) on lap steel, Andy Gibbon (Dave Desmelik,Why Why) on bass, and Sam Brinkley (Raif Hollister) on drums/vocals. Additional crew include Elizabeth Terry (violin), Stevie Lee Combs (guitar), Sarah McCoy (keys, harmonium, vocals) and William Drake (guitar). Collectively their music is a sea of stories about life, love, heartache, truth and hope.
David Wilcox Annual Thanksgiving Homecoming Concert
– ALL AGES- FULLY SEATED SHOW- LIMITED NUMBER OF PREMIUM SEATING TICKETS AVAILABLEDAVID WILCOX David Wilcox is a penetrating storyteller. The revered folk musician has an effortless talent for spinning lyrics that quietly cut deep, and crafting melodies that seamlessly ride the plot twists and turns. Wilcox handily exemplifies the power of lyrical and musical catharsisPick any song from Wilcox’s new acoustic album, My Good Friends, and you will find yourself instantly immersed. Sometimes you’ll see yourself in the lyrics, other times you’ll marvel at the four-minute mini-movie. My Good Friends is a stripped-down, acoustic collection of ten songs, a fan-requested creative respite for Wilcox as he also continues to work on a full band album coming in 2024.Of special note on the new recording is “Jolt,” with its jittery rhythm playing perfect backdrop to lyrics about today’s obsession with online fear mongering and internet disinformation. The title track is a folk-blues number about living a life filled with close calls and surviving them all. Then there’s a trio of story songs – “Dead Man’s Phone,” “This Is How It Ends,” and “Lost Man” – that are as cinematic as they are charismatic. Wilcox says those last three songs “create a whole movie in my imagination.”In fact, the way Wilcox feels about every tune on My Good Friends proves this is indeed a fan-requested labor of love. “I am grateful for the community that sustains me – my good friends,” he says. “These are the kind of friends that get you through difficult times. The kind of friends that you go to for a fresh perspective when the future looks grim. These songs grew out of conversations with friends, and they hold ideas that I like to have around.”Such dedication to honoring personal and heartfelt music has been the backbone of David Wilcox’s entire career. The Ohio native with the warm baritone found his artistic muse in North Carolina during the mid-1980s. In 1987, he released his debut album, The Nightshift Watchman, which led to winning the prestigious Kerrville Folk Festival in 1988. That translated to a four-album stint with A&M Records starting with 1989’s How Did You Find Me Here, which sold 100,000 copies by word of mouth. Thirty-plus years and twenty-plus albums later, Wilcox won top honors in the 23rd annual USA Songwriting Competition in 2018 for his effervescent “We Make the Way by Walking” from his album, The View From the Edge. Wilcox has deservedly earned praise over the years in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Los Angeles Times, and Rolling Stone, to name a few. He also has a dedicated and vocal core of fans who regularly write to thank him for his work and the impact his songs have had on their lives.Today, Wilcox is still earning his admirers with storytelling that cuts deep into the soul and observes the human condition from both the nerve center and the outside looking in. That kind of storytelling is certain to become a good friend.
PATIO: Sara Jean Kelley
ALL AGES LIMITED PATIO SEATING IS FIRST COME FIRST SERVESARA JEAN KELLEYA lover of wild things— plants, animals, people, and music— Nashville native Sara Jean Kelley crafts songs that combine upbeat, pop-inspired country hooks with thoughtful, often philosophical lyrical themes that explore our human connection to the natural world. Due to her dark sensibility and slightly melancholic sense of humor, Kelley’s particular brand of alternative country is multidimensional, with one foot firmly rooted in her Nashville Country/Americana background, another foot exploring the realms of alternative rock, rock and roll, pop, and even hip hop influences. Her voice, at times husky, dark and sultry, at times floating light-as-a-feather, has been compared to celebrated female country stars Brandi Carlisle, Patti Griffin, and Lucinda Williams. She’s opened for country music icons Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, and her songwriting reveals a clear, intuitive understanding of what makes a song work. Her latest EP Black Snake, is about life and death, transformation and rebirth, strength and resilience; all the things you experience in your early thirties that you wish you had known a decade earlier.
