 March 25, 2023 (Saturday): Old Hat Stringband  click for details- Old Hat Stringband is based out of Eliot, Maine. Fusing tight vocal harmonies with a propulsive acoustic rhythm section, Old Hat creates a sound that draws from bluegrass, old time, folk, and country traditions. The band features Whitney Roy (Guitar, Vocals), Steve Roy (Mandolin, Fiddle, Vocals), Amanda Kowalski (Bass), Isa Burke on fiddle .
Old Hat Stringband’s debut album Powerlines was released in 2022>
Whitney Roy’s lilting vocals provide the backbone of Old Hat’s vocal blend, while her solid rhythm guitar anchors the bands rhythm section. Steve Roy is one of New England’s premier multi-instrumentalists, and has performed and toured with many of the acoustic world’s top acts. Amanda Kowalski is one of the more sought after bass players in the worlds of bluegrass and old time music, and her rhythmic drive and energy on stage are second to none. Can't wait to hear these folks…
March 26, 2023 (Sunday): Stone Mountain Arts Walk and Brunch!! click for details - Our first Art show!
Two barns full of artists of all kinds!! You won’t have to walk far from barn to barn to enjoy lots of great artists and food and cheer SMAC kitchen will be serving a nice BRUNCHY/LUNCHY menu available all day and the bar will be open for some mud season cheer! LIVE Music Too! TBD . Vendors welcome to apply.
- March 31, 2023 (Friday): Maine's Own Dave Mallett and the Mallett Brothers details
- Folk to Folk Rock Royalty…
This family will break generational barriers and join us for one awesome night together. Two rockin sons with the father of folk, and three great songwriters.This is an encore show…it was super sweet and amazing.
Singer-songwriter, David Mallett, is one of America’s true original troubadours. In a career spanning four decades, he has recorded 17 albums, had several hundred covers of his songs, including the American folk classic Garden Song [Inch by Inch, Row by Row] and performed in clubs, concert halls and festivals across the US, Canada and Europe. He has appeared on numerous broadcasts, including National Public Radio’s A Prairie Home Companion. Known for his carefully written, poetic offerings, his body of work has provided material for an eclectic list of artists that includes Alison Krauss, Pete Seeger, Hal Ketchum, Emmylou Harris, John Denver and the Muppets.
The Mallett Brothers/Duo Luke and Will are strong songwrters with a county alt edge. Mot days they are with their indie rock and roll / Americana / country band that is all Maine. Their busy tour schedule since forming in 2009 has helped them to build a dedicated fan base across the U.S. and beyond while still calling the state of Maine their home. Theirs is a musical melting pot that's influenced equally by the singer/songwriter tradition as by harder rock, classic country and psychedelic sounds.
- April 1, 2023 ( Saturday): Harry Manx click for details
- It takes begging and pleading to get Harry to come to the States these days....I did and he is!!...What can I say about Harry....we have had him here many times....for a reason. Canadian artist (artist in every sense of the word) Harry Manx known as the "Mysticssippi" blues man has been called an "essential link" between the music of East and West, creating musical short stories that wed the tradition of the Blues with the depth of classical Indian ragas. I mean, who else would play a banjo, guitar and sitar, and keeps the beat with his feet....Oh, and great songs too....there is no one like him. He has created a unique sound that is hard to forget and deliciously addictive to listen to. We are obviously hooked on Harry too. As we said, his U.S. appearances can be a rare sighting, so we are so happy and lucky he is back! A Must See!!!
- April 7, 2023 (Friday): Buffalo Nichols click for details
- We are so happy to bring this artist to our stage for the first time. And artist is right, Since his earliest infatuations with guitar, Carl Nichols has been cutting his teeth between a Baptist church and bars in Milwaukee, to a globetrotting trip through West Africa and Europe. This experience gave him the blend of past and future blues he had been looking for that is Buffalo Nichols. The tumbling lines of the 30-year-old’s finger-picked guitar carry echoes of the blues pioneers of the 1920s, but while the likes of Robert Johnson and Willie McTell sang with high, pungent voices, Nichols’s vocals are husky and intimate, which makes the intensity of his lyrics all the more emotional. All the text you read about him says, blues, but I would say there is some old time folk here too that makes his music really interesting and unique. Listen on NPR Tiny Desk for yerself.
- April 8, 2023 (Saturday): Tinsley Ellis & Marcia Ball - Acoustic Songs and Stories details
- A Blues night to remember: Tinsley Ellis and Marcia Ball are excited to present an intimate evening of their music and memories called Acoustic Songs and Stories. They will each play a set of their own songs. Tinsley, an elder statesman of the Blues world, will perform many of his most popular songs from his twenty albums, plus some delta blues and classics on his National Steel and Martin acoustic guitars. Marcia, a five-time Grammy nominee, will play the piano and sing her often raucous and sometimes touching original songs full of the characters and places that shaped her. They will weave the music together with stories from their years on stage and on the road. Finally, they will come together as a duo to close the night playing songs together and swapping tales of their travels and travails.
April 9, 2023 (Sunday): Eastah Sunday "Blunch" click for details and menu- We are open Easter Sunday with reservations available between 10 am and 3 pm.
- April 13, 2023 ( Thursday): Spring Rooster Luncheon details
- (This event is Recommended for our Seniors)
Can't get out to see us at night? Here is a little taste of a night out at SMAC in the day time!!! A home cooked meal served with love to be followed by a short concert given by owner Carol Noonan all beginning at noon.
April 15, 2023 (Saturday): Adam Ezra Group click for details- Blowing audiences away would seem their primary job, and they do it well...their shows here have been no exception. I took this quote from the first paragraph of a No Depression Magazine article. ."The Adam Ezra Group has built its reputation on self-described "sweaty, passionate," and enduring live performances. In fact, the Boston area ensemble's shows have become so notable that its fervent Northeast following has swapped more than 100 live bootleg recordings, which wouldn't be a problem for the band if it wasn't for one thing." That should tell you that seeing them live is where it's at. Adam and his band have been compared to Bruce and the E Street Band, ..like The Boss, he is a thoughtful singer songwriter fronting a rootsy, and sometimes folky rock band. The Group has been touring non-stop and packing venues across the country and shared the stage with Jason Miraz, Rusted Root, Bela Fleck, John Hiatt, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Ziggy Marley, Little Feat and many others, With their new release underway the Adam Ezra Group will continue their national tour and come to us, with a new album Hurricane Wind and a momentum that is catapulting them towards being one of the country's most talked about bands. We are so happy to have them back. A quick sell out.
- April 20, 2023 (Thursday): Comedian Bob Marley click for details
- I don't know any other person who worked harder to keep us entertained during 2020 and beyond than comedian Bob Marley. His daily videos were a comic relief from the world's challenges, and there have been many. Bob has a gift and a way of finding the hilarity in the obvious and the seemingly common occurrences in our sometimes mundane lives. In fact, he would make fun of me for saying all this!!. I can just hear him mocking me now!
On a personal note, Bob kept my staff from going crazy! We appreciate him for being one of the artists that was willing to do shows in whatever way he could to make venues and people laugh..whether it was a small capacity show or a drive in…he did it all. Nothing can stop the Bob Marley train and we love him for that. And yes, I said artist!!
Bob is not just our Maine comedian, he is one of the funniest people in the current world of comedy. His viral videos have thrust him into further popularity as one of the hottest and most sought after comedians in the country. But we are lucky he will still come to us! You know'em, you love'm...more than 15 years as a stand-up comic, Maine's own Bob Marley has been featured in his own special on Comedy Central, and is one of the few comics to do the complete late night TV circuit: The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Craig Kilborn. But all those accolades aside, he is just one of us, and we can't get enough of him. And geesh don't we all need to laugh right now. Always a quick sell out!
April 22, 2023 (Saturday): Jake Blount, Nic Gareiss, and Laurel Premo click for details- We are really excited to present this show
This amazing group of performers does not have a name yet but their music is worthy of top billing,. Fiddler and banjoist Jake Blount is joined by percussive dancer Nic Gareiss and multi-instrumentalist (fiddle, guitar, and vocals) Laurel Premo to present an evening of traditional music that explores a variety origins from Irish, Canadian, Scandinavian, and American styles.
Jake Blount
“An incredible example of historically informed, beautifully played old-time music.”
– Rhiannon Giddens
Jake Blount is an award-winning banjoist, fiddler, singer and ethnomusicologist based in Providence, RI. Blount specializes in the music of Black communities in the southeastern United States, and in the regional style of the Finger Lakes. A versatile performer, Blount interpolates blues, bluegrass and spirituals into the old-time string band tradition he belongs to. He foregrounds the experiences of queer people and people of color in his work. His teachers include Rhiannon Giddens, Bruce Molsky and Judy Hyman.
Laurel Premo
“Subtle but dazzling and rich in texture. Watching a live performance is pure hypnosis.”
- MTV 10/08/21 “
Premo’s sense of touch and tone are impeccable” – Aquarium Drunkard 01/07/22 Laurel Premo weaves a ruminant and rhythmically deep soundscape of American and Nordic roots music on fingerstyle electric guitar, lap steel, fiddle, and voice, with both new compositions and arrangements of older music held in a living relationship with tradition.
Nic Gareiss
One of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch”
Nic Gareiss (he/they) is swiftly becoming recognized as a singular voice in traditional dance. Informed by 25 years of ethnographic study and performance, Gareiss’ work draws from many percussive dance practices to weave together a technique facilitating his love of improvisation; clog, flatfoot, and step dance vocabulary; and musical collaboration.
Come enjoy this special show.
- April 28, 2023 (Friday): Dar Williams click for details
- Singer, songwriter, author, activist, folk legend Known as much for her staunch progressive ideals as her raw acoustic energy, for decades Dar Williams has been captivating audiences with her sheer elegance and honesty in her folk-pop songwriting.
Critics say,"Dar Williams, one of America's very best singer-songwriters… Her songs are beautiful. Some are like finely crafted short stories. They are, variously, devastatingly moving, tenderly funny, subtle without being in any way inaccessible, and utterly fresh—not a cliche or a clunker in her entire songbook. --The New Yorker
"Seasons change, but Williams remains both ambitious and pleasingly plain-spoken... And importantly, she seems more at ease than ever. -- Rolling Stone
We just love her too :>)
- April 29, 2023 (Saturday): War and Treaty click for details
- We are so excited to have these amazing artist here. The War And Treaty have amassed a following as eclectic as their sound itself with "voices that will stop you in your tracks”(Garden and Gun) and their bluesy but joyful fusion of Southernsoul, gospel, Country, and rock-and-roll. The husband-and-wife team of Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter "continue their commando, no-limits journey to the top of the music world"(Associated Press) following their latest widely acclaimed release, HEARTS TOWN. Known for a live show nearly revival-like in its intensity, they "build up waves of emotion that crash into a cathartic release of a tour-de-force performance,"(Austin-American Statesman) as the versatile duo has opened for artists such as Al Green, Brando Carlisle, Jason Isbell, John Legend and Lauren Daigle while their multifaceted collaborative efforts include Dierks Bentley, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris, Leslie Jordan, Mumford & Sons, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and SturgillSimpson.The2021 International Folk Music Awards“Artist of the Year”an Americana Music Association’s 2019 “Emerging Artist of the Year”continue to reveal new headlining dates and will serve as direct support for Van Morrison (5/7-5/10) ahead of their overseas trek this summer to Australia, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, United Kingdom and Scotland.
The War and Treaty have partnered with PLUS1 so that $1 per ticket goes to supporting the Alzheimer's Association and their work leading the way to end Alzheimer's and all other dementia.
- May 5, 2023 (Friday): Miko Marks and Rissi Palmer click for details
- We are really excited about this show. We don't have any promo for these two friends together, so take in their own stories, watch their videos and and imagine them together…wow!!
Miko: a country singer songwriter on the rise, in January of 2022, Marks was named to CMT’s “Next Women of Country” class….and who could blame them. She is just a shining light. Watch Miko.
Rissi: Rissi Palmer's gift lies in reaching across all musical boundaries. While she made her mark in Country Music, she is equally at home in R&B music, bringing the entire spectrum of popular music to bear on music she calls “Southern Soul.”As a passionate voice for country artists of color and those who have been marginalized in mainstream country music, Rissi launched her own radio show Color Me Country with Rissi Palmer on Apple Music Country. Watch Rissi.
I think Miko says it best as two artists and their connection as black women in country music. “ What’s happening with Rissi and me, we’re making our opportunity. We’re not getting it. We’re creating it. We’re a team, on a certain level. We still have our individual thing, too, but we have decided: Let’s make something bigger and better together.” And they will... right here on our stage. Read this full article in New Yorker’s Vulture. It’s just a great window into their music and relationship .
- May 6, 2023 (Saturday): Eileen Ivers click for details
- Irish fiddler, Grammy awarded, Emmy nominated, London Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops, guest starred with over 50 orchestras, original Musical Star of Riverdance, Nine Time All-Ireland Fiddle Champion, Sting, Hall and Oates, The Chieftains, 'Fiddlers 3' with Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg and Regina Carter, Patti Smith, Al Di Meola, Steve Gadd, founding member of Cherish the Ladies, movie soundtracks including “Gangs of New York”, performed for Presidents and Royalty worldwide…this is a short list of accomplishments, headliners, tours, and affiliations. Fiddler Eileen Ivers has established herself as the preeminent exponent of the Irish fiddle in the world today. That description is from her website. MY description would be super fun and energetic, sweet, joyous, and a must see. It’s been awhile since she has been here with her terrific band. Can’t wait to see her again….don’t miss her!
- May 11, 2023 (Thursday): Lone Bellow click for details
- Zach Williams, the Lone Bellow’s lead singer and principal songwriter, can pinpoint just about exactly when the Brooklyn-based group serendipitously willed itself into being. It was around 9 a.m. one morning in 2010, at Dizzy’s Diner in Park Slope, Brooklyn, where the Lone Bellows guitarist and Williams’ old friend Brian Elmquist was working a shift. Williams, up to then performing as a solo artist, needed a place to try out some new songs; for a scuffling artist, the diner was as good as any rehearsal space. He asked fellow singer Kanene Pipkin, just returned to New York City from living in Beijing, to meet them at the diner and the trio did more than merely jam. With the beginnings of a repertoire and an already strong communal spirit, that fateful morning they became the Lone Bellow. As Williams recalls, “Three songs in I realized I should quit what I’m doing and just make music with these people.”
In 2013, the band made their auspicious debut with a self-titled, Charlie Peacock-produced album that quickly landed at No. 64 on the Billboard 200, later turning up on best-of-the-year lists from the likes of Paste and Pop Matters. With over 100 million career streams to date, The Lone Bellow’s past output also includes the Dessner-produced Then Came the Morning (a 2015 effort that earned them an Americana Music Award nomination) and Walk Into a Storm (a 2017 release produced by Cobb and hailed by NPR for its “warmly rousing, gospel-inflected Americana”).
And with the release of Love Songs for Losers, the trio feel newly emboldened to create without limits. “This album confirmed that we still have beauty to create and put out into the world, and that we’re still having fun doing that after ten years together,” says Elmquist. “It reminded us of our passion for pushing ourselves out onto the limb and letting our minds wander into new places, and it sets me on fire to think of what we might make next.”
May 12, 2023 ( Friday): Tom Rush and Matt Nakoa click for details- Since Tom Rush's 1962 debut as an unknown folk-blues musician on the Boston/Cambridge music scene, he has established himself as a consummate performer and singer-songwriter. A few years back, a sold out celebration of his five-decade career anniversary at Boston Symphony Hall proves his fan loyalty and endurance. When you think of the importance of the folk scene in the 60's you should think of Tom. These days he is just as vital and entertaining. We welcome him back with a big hug!
- May 13, 2023 (Saturday): Joe Henry click for details
- I am ashamed to say, that I am a new fan to Joe Henry. How I could have missed such an important songwriting career is just a mystery..chalk it up to me watching too many F-Troop reruns, and I have paid the price! Anyway, to say Joe is an artist, a poet, and a musician is just scratching the surface. His music has inspired us hugely during a time of little inspiration.
A strange journey to fame and back is the only way to put it, and you should take some time and go to his site and read about this extraordinary and gifted performer. If you go there you will see a who’s who of song writing stars who claim him for their own. A producer and three time Grammy award winner his credits are to long to mention (from Madonna to Rhiannon Giddens) ..again go read about him.
But in the meantime, watch this video…it is what hooked me.
May 18, 2023 (Thursday): Keb' Mo' click for details- He was hailed by NPR as the modern ambassador for the blues. Since the release of his self-titled debut in 1994, blues guitarist Keb' Mo' (born Kevin Moore) has been one of the most successful musicians in the genre. Earning multiple grammys and nominations, Guitarist/vocalist Keb' Mo' draws heavily on the old-fashioned country blues style of Robert Johnson, while keeping his sound contemporary with touches of soul and folksy storytelling. A skilled frontman as well as an accomplished sideman, he writes much of his own material and has applied his acoustic, electric, and slide guitar skills to jazz- and rock-oriented bands. We have had him here a number of times now, and from where we stand we every show is better than the last. An intimate show up here on the hill.....don't miss it.
- May 19, 2023 (Friday): Kevin Barry and Consuelo Candelaria and Carol Noonan details
- Carol and Kevin and Consuelo
This show helps to support Starting Point of NH
Carol is back with one of her guitar Gods..her good friend and cohort, Kevin Barry. Add Kevin’s wife to the mix..a super jazz pianist Consuelo Candelaria-Barry, and we have got one fine night of music.
Kevin and Consuelo: Many know Kevin as a sought after side man from his countless appearances here with Carol, Jackson Brown, Ray LaMontage, Paula Cole, Peter Wolf and Rosanne Cash
Consuelo an amazing jazz pianist with performances and recordings with the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra with the Bill Pierce Quintet, the Don Houge Quintet, Emiel Van Egdom (Clues) featuring Bobby Militello, and the Consuelo-Jon Quintet (original compositions) featuring Bill Pierce Tours of Asia, Europe, U.S., and the Caribbean. Winner of the 1998 John Lennon Songwriting Contest in jazz category With all their personbal accolades, Concerts with husband and wife Kevin and Consuelo together are among the most memorable.
Both bring to life some jazz standards along with their beautiful originals performed with a connection only a husband and wife could have.
Carol Noonan began her career as the lead singer and songwriter for the band Knots and Crosses. "Crosses" was formed in the late 1980s by Carol Noonan, Alan Williams, and Rick Harris... all were students at the New England Conservatory of Music at one time. They built a significant following around Boston and the New England area. After a major-label bidding war led to a short lived signing by Denny Cordell and Island Records, the group disbanded and so began Carol's twisting journey towards the Stone Mountain Arts Center.
Noonan went on to do three solo albums for the Philo/Rounder label through 1997. The "Carol Noonan Band" featured Duke Levine and Kevin Barry on guitars. Over the years these two amazing players and good friends have stayed with her for most of her live performances, when they were not backing up national acts like Peter Wolf, Rosanne Cash, J. Geils and Mary Chapin Carpenter. As well as all her albums. Since her time with Rounder she has released a number of albums on her own label carolnoonanmusic.com. An NPR darling for her music, she has also been a guest essayist on Weekend Edition, and been included on one of their Driveway Moments compilations.
Starting Point:
Services for Victims of Domestic & Sexual Violence is a private non-profit agency providing services to victims of domestic violence in Carroll County, NH since 1981.
- May 20, 2023 (Saturday): The Rough & Tumble click for details
- As many of you know who have seen this awesome duo, they have lived literally in a camper on the road for the last 7 or 8 years. Luckily for us they have finally taken up roots and right here in New England so we can call them our own!
About The Rough & Tumble… with many indie awards under their built this teeny tiny traveling folk band, has lived 10 years as a band and many years full time on the road with their two dogs in a 16’ camper."True Troubadors” In 2015 Mallory Graham and Scott Tyler quit their day jobs, sold everything they owned, and gave their thirty day notice on their rental house to trade in for a life permanently on the road. Don't let their vagabond tendencies fool you-- this americana-folk duo are a compact team of close harmonies, versatile instrumentation, and deliberate songwriting all presented with a nudge of the elbow and a tongue in the cheek. Haunting, quirky, solemn, and spritely, The Rough & Tumble are for the faint of heart and the strong of will. We just love them!
- May 25, 2023 (Thursday): Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy Family Band details
- If you have tickets for the previous February 16 show you will automatciallhy be trasnsferred to this rescheuled date.
The entertainment world is filled with extraordinary stories. But few match the beguiling true-life tale of Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, Canada’s reigning couple of Celtic music, whose dazzling career achievements underpin an incomparable off-stage life. Indeed, when two of the planet’s very best fiddle players married in 2002, the proverbial mantelpiece was instantly crammed with JUNO and East Coast Music Awards. Though MacMaster and Leahy followed different trajectories – she a Cape Breton native who could step-dance before she could walk; he the oldest brother of acclaimed family group Leahy – both had assuredly crested the traditional music peak.
Their first recorded collaboration, 2015’s Bob Ezrin-produced album One, which was followed by 2016’s A Celtic Family Christmas (and which cemented the couple’s status as powerhouses on the seasonal circuit) confirmed MacMaster and Leahy are as dynamic working together as they were working apart. Performing thousands of shows and collaborating with a multitude of world renowned artists Natalie’s and Donnell’s family and work-life have been intertwined. Their values are equally as important in their life as music. They believe incorporating family into the performances and their music is the perfect way to maintain a healthy work-life balance. MacMaster and Leahy now have five beautiful children, and Natalie and Donnell devotion to them is job number one.
On a personal note, I cannot describe the elation and emotion when this family performs together...love is not a big enough word.
- May 26, 2023 (Friday): Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy Family Band details
- If you have tickets for the previous February 17 show you will automatciallhy be trasnsferred to this rescheuled date.
This show supports our Local Food Pantry.
The entertainment world is filled with extraordinary stories. But few match the beguiling true-life tale of Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy, Canada’s reigning couple of Celtic music, whose dazzling career achievements underpin an incomparable off-stage life. Indeed, when two of the planet’s very best fiddle players married in 2002, the proverbial mantelpiece was instantly crammed with JUNO and East Coast Music Awards. Though MacMaster and Leahy followed different trajectories – she a Cape Breton native who could step-dance before she could walk; he the oldest brother of acclaimed family group Leahy – both had assuredly crested the traditional music peak.
Their first recorded collaboration, 2015’s Bob Ezrin-produced album One, which was followed by 2016’s A Celtic Family Christmas (and which cemented the couple’s status as powerhouses on the seasonal circuit) confirmed MacMaster and Leahy are as dynamic working together as they were working apart. Performing thousands of shows and collaborating with a multitude of world renowned artists Natalie’s and Donnell’s family and work-life have been intertwined. Their values are equally as important in their life as music. They believe incorporating family into the performances and their music is the perfect way to maintain a healthy work-life balance. MacMaster and Leahy now have five beautiful children, and Natalie and Donnell devotion to them is job number one.
On a personal note, I cannot describe the elation and emotion when this family performs together...love is not a big enough word.
About our Food Pantry: The South Western Oxford County Nutrition supporting over 100 families.
- May 27, 2023 (Saturday): Ward Hayden and the Outliers click for details
- This band has two sides to them...…one is rockin' and one is just pure roots. If Chris Isaac, Buddy Holly and Buck Owens started a band, it might sound like these guys! The twangy country rock and roll sounds of this fun band, is fronted by SMAC favorite and crooner Ward Hayden (we love him!) A smooth, authentic honky tonk/early rock & roll vibe with some country-folk thrown in there too...it is hard to peg these guys....but that's a good thing! An eclectic blend of musical styles that's reminiscent of Johnny Cash one minute, CCR the next, the all-male quintet mixes catchy melodies with cowboy vocals and creative percussion, hurling grit (sometimes grits) and heart into every tune.
- June 2, 2023 (Friday): Matt Nakoa click for details
- YOU HAVE SEEN HIM WITH TOM RUSH..NOW SEE HIM SOLO!
Singer song writer and pianist MATT NAKOA grew up on a small goat farm in Smyrna, NY and began composing music as a teenager. Following a formative stint as a classical pianist, Matt won scholarship to attend Berklee College of Music in Boston. There he studied alongside soon-to-be Grammy winners St. Vincent and Esperanza Spaulding among others. After college, Matt toured with his band, The Fens, and eventually landed in New York City's vibrant piano bar scene. Matt quickly became a star performer at Manhattan's Brandy's Piano Bar, with lines outside the door each Saturday night. Matt's first solo album, Light In The Dark (2012), is an eclectic pop opus. In contrast, A Dozen Other Loves (2014), explores a simple acoustic palette. This intimate collection has earned many songwriting awards, including a win at Kerrville Folk Festival's prestigious New Folk Competition. Additionally, Matt's piano music has received favorable reviews in publications including The New York Times, and his film scoring has been featured by Disney. Matt now tours internationally, recently performing at The White House, throughout India, and regularly with folk music icon Tom Rush.
- June 3, 2023 (Saturday): Danielle Nicole click for details
- Danielle has always been known as an multi award winning bassist, but since Grammy nominated in 2019 for Contemporary Blues Album, this gal has understrabnbaly been thrust into the whos who list of blues singers. Somewhere between Susan Tedeschi and Etta James you will find Danielle all on her own, and being nominated in every blues accolade out there. WE are very excited to have here here for ther first time. Check her out and get excited too!!
- June 8, 2023 (Thursday): Gaelic Storm click for details
- I always have said this is the hardest working band I know. The dedication to live shows date all the way back to the mid-1990s, when Gaelic Storm kicked off its career as a pub band. By the end of the decade, the musicians had appeared in the blockbuster film Titanic (where they performed “Irish Party in Third Class”). This laid the groundwork for a career that would eventually find them topping the Billboard World Chart six times, making appearances at mainstream music festivals, and regularly headlining the largest Irish Festivals across the country, all the while gaining a reputation as a genre-bending Irish rock band, whose songs mix Celtic traditions with something uniquely creative.
This multi-national, Celtic juggernaut grows stronger with each live performance, and as you can imagine, after two decades and over twenty touring years and 2000 shows, it is a true force to be reckoned with. The band has said, “You have to see us live. We are the true working-mans’ band," With their latest release, Go Climb a Tree, their music has never sounded more representative of themselves as musicians and as live performers. They are a great band, and great friends to SMAC.
Always a sell out..for good reason!
- June 9, 2023 (Friday): Walsh, Jordan and Wilson click for details
- An Evening with Jed Wilson, Joe K. Walsh and Ella Jordan
An utterly unique musical project, and one that has been a long time in the making. Mandolinist Joe K. Walsh and pianist Jed Wilson first met over twenty years ago when both were making their bones on the Boston scene. Wilson came from a background in jazz, Walsh from bluegrass, but each recognized in the other a fellow traveler on the path of improvisation and musical discovery. A collaboration wasn't yet in the cards, as each was busy with other pursuits: Walsh with Joy Kills Sorrow, The Gibson Brothers, Darol Anger, and then his own projects; Wilson with Heather Masse, Aoife O'Donovan, and various jazz ensembles. The two crossed paths again several years later in Maine, where each had relocated by happenstance. In the meantime, both had expanded their musical palettes considerably, crossing borders and expanding horizons, in search of the ineffable magic that can be found equally in a timeless folk song or down some uncanny improvisational byroad. Additionally, each had developed a unique compositional voice. When Walsh and Wilson finally decided to put together a band, there was no question who to call. Both immediately thought of Ella Jordan, the remarkable fiddler best known for her work with the progressive bluegrass band Mile Twelve. When the three finally got together, there was no doubt that something special was in the offing. Primarily a vessel for Walsh and Wilson's original songs, the trio breathes new life into the folk tradition with fresh melodies that somehow feel timeless.
- June 16, 2023 (Friday): Bill Frisell Trio click for details
- Featuring Thomas Morgan and Rudy Royston
Bill Frisell’s career as a guitarist and composer has spanned more than 40 years and many celebrated recordings, whose catalog has been cited by Downbeat as "the best recorded output of the decade."Recognized as one of America’s 21 most vital and productive performing artists, Frisell was named an inaugural Doris Duke Artist in 2012. He is also a recipient of grants from United States Artists, Meet the Composer among others. In 2016, he was a beneficiary of the first FreshGrass Composition commission to preserve and support innovative grassroots music. Upon San Francisco Jazz opening their doors in 2013, he served as one of their Resident Artistic Directors. Bill is also the subject of a new documentary film by director Emma Franz, entitled Bill Frisell: A Portrait, which examines his creative process in depth.
June 23, 2023 (Friday): Big Barn Musical Dinner with Hot Fiddle click for details- Join us for a five-course musical dinner in the Maine Hall.
- June 24, 2023 (Saturday): The Quebe Sisters click for details
- When these gals were here in their teens I used to say they were "Music's best kept secret....If Bob Wills married one of the Andrew sisters, and they had thee girls this would be the result" Now they all grown up and touring the country with that Quebe Sisters' mix of beautiful three part harmonies with equally beautiful three part fiddle playing, in that classic western swing style. With over fifteen years of touring to date, Grace, Sophia, and Hulda Quebe front an innovative Progressive Western Swing band of the archtop guitar, upright bass, fiddles, and sibling harmony. This Dallas-based five-piece band is always a joy….we can’t wait, so don’t you!
- July 7, 2023 (Friday): Erica Brown and the Bluegrass Connection click for details
- We love this band…the pride of Maine...they have been through thick an thin with us these last few years and we are so happy to have them back on our stage!!! The put out a awesome album last year, Blue Pine Moon, and Erica and her five piece band feature some of the finest musicians in New England. The band features award winning fiddler and singer Erica Brown, Matt Shipman on mandolin, Lincoln Meyers on guitar, Eli Gilbert on banjo and Kris Day on bass. They are energetic, fun and diverse as they incorporate music from the traditional Bluegrass, Folk and Country repertoire as well as French Canadian fiddle music and original songs. It will be a super night of music as always from these special SMAC friends. Check out this YouTube video.
- July 8, 2023 (Saturday): Bill Kirchen Band click for details
- Bill Kirchen is like SMAC's favorite Uncle. Upon tallying how many decades he’s worked as a professional guitar slinger, Telecaster master Bill Kirchen quips, “Well, they don't make 50 years like they used to.” They don’t often make careers like his, either.You hard core Commander Cody fans will know him as the the guy who made Hot Rod Lincoln famous. Kirchen is reported to be one of the musicians that pioneered the Americana radio format and is a founding father of the "twangcore movement" which includes Dave Alvin, Wilco and Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys. Kirchen's signature sound has been dubbed "dieselbilly" and incorporates elements of country music, blues, rockabilly, Western swing and boogie-woogie, laced with themes of American truck driving music. These days his songwriting could not be more vital. And I should put a youtube here with one of his more recent songs from his so latest and greatest. But geez, I gotta remind you of who this amazing tall drink of water is. So here he is, earnin' his paycheck above and beyond. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVHZLABxVw4
Flying alongside some of the planet’s coolest cats — including the Jesus of Cool, Nick Lowe, and Elvis Costello, Bill has been everywhere. We are honored to be one of those “wheres” and be able to call him a dear friend. A rare trio appearance. Don’t miss it!
- July 13, 2023 (Thursday): Shawn Mullins click for details
- This is one of the artists that we had hoped to have before the pandemic. Waiting has only made the excitement to have this artist back all the more exciting! We just love this guy!! We are always trying to get him back since his show stopper of a performance some years back. Grammy nominated Show Mullins' critical breakthrough came when his song "Lullaby", from the album Soul's Core, became a radio and video hit. Another familiar hit, "All in My Head", was featured on the hit television sitcom "Scrubs". But since then, he continues to write amazing songs and do amazing shows. This is one of those shows people thank us for bringing to SMAC after it's over. Don't miss him!
- July 14, 2023 ( Friday): Susan Werner click for details
- What can we say about Susan, but when I think of her I think of thoroughly talented, smart and entertaining. She would hate me for saying this, but I think she is the Mary Poppins of us singer songwriters. Her songwriting is poignant and her message is heartfelt…but always getting her point across with a little sugar on top. Couldn't we all have a little of that lately.
But back to her impressive career...Over the course of her twenty-five year touring career, Susan Werner has built a reputation as one of the country’s most compelling live performers. With formidable chops on guitar (she began playing at age 5) and piano (she was a guest on Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz) along with a graduate degree in voice performance, her shows are a one-woman master class in musicianship. Her songs are noted for their poetry and sharp wit, and also for their astonishing stylistic range. She’s written songs in the style of Gershwin and Cole Porter (I Can’t Be New, 2004), gospel music (The Gospel Truth, 2007), traditional Cuban “son” (An American In Havana, 2016), and New Orleans junk piano (NOLA, 2019). In 2014 she composed the music and lyrics to the musical theater score Bull Durham, The Musical (MGM) ands her latest recording of original songs, The Birds of Florida, took flight January 2022.
- July 15, 2023 ( Saturday): Paula Poundstone click for details
- Wooohoooo..she's back again and she has never been funnier.....our favorite funny girl. An NPR darling, heard on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, Paula has been making us laugh almost every year since we have opened. From her comedy specials, to her live shows, she is hysterical, witty, and her improv with the crowd is the highlight of the evening. A quick sell out every time, so get your ticket early!
- July 21, 2023 (Friday): Martha Spencer & The Wonderland Country Band details
- Hailing from the Blue Ridge Mountains, Martha Spencer, grew up in a musical family …a singer, songwriter, flat pickin’ , fiddle plain’ cloggin’, flatfoot dancer, mountain country musician, of old and original music….she does it all!. But don't let her “holler” style fool you…she has a sixties temptress kinda side to her that her makes her art very unique. Here with her Wonderland Country Show Band. Come see this cool young artist. I love this song.
August 3,2023 ( Thursday): Mary Chapin Carpenter click for details- Five-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee Mary Chapin Carpenter will return to SMAC once again, for two nights! Always a sell out..of course!!! Our favorite part of the summer!
August 4, 2023 ( Friday): Mary Chapin Carpenter click for details- Five-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee Mary Chapin Carpenter will return to SMAC once again, for two nights! Always a sell out..of course!!! Our favorite part of the summer!
- August 10, 2023 (Thursday): Comedian Bob Marley click for details
- I don't know any other person who worked harder to keep us entertained during 2020 and beyond than comedian Bob Marley. His daily videos were a comic relief from the world's challenges, and there have been many. Bob has a gift and a way of finding the hilarity in the obvious and the seemingly common occurrences in our sometimes mundane lives. In fact, he would make fun of me for saying all this!!. I can just hear him mocking me now!
On a personal note, Bob kept my staff from going crazy! We appreciate him for being one of the artists that was willing to do shows in whatever way he could to make venues and people laugh..whether it was a small capacity show or a drive in…he did it all. Nothing can stop the Bob Marley train and we love him for that. And yes, I said artist!!
Bob is not just our Maine comedian, he is one of the funniest people in the current world of comedy. His viral videos have thrust him into further popularity as one of the hottest and most sought after comedians in the country. But we are lucky he will still come to us! You know'em, you love'm...more than 15 years as a stand-up comic, Maine's own Bob Marley has been featured in his own special on Comedy Central, and is one of the few comics to do the complete late night TV circuit: The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Craig Kilborn. But all those accolades aside, he is just one of us, and we can't get enough of him. And geesh don't we all need to laugh right now. Always a quick sell out!
- August 13, 2023 (Sunday): Steep Canyon Rangers click for details
- The Grammy winning Rangers are made up of Graham Sharp on banjo and vocals, Mike Guggino on mandolin/mandola and vocals, Nicky Sanders on fiddle and vocals, Mike Ashworth on drums and vocals, Barrett Smith on bass, guitar, and vocals, and Aaron Burdett. Hailing from North Carolina, and rising to the top since 2009, the Steep Canyon Rangers have received widespread acclaim. Garnishing a nice career jumpstart by acting as comedian Steve Martin's backing band, those tours led to many thousands of new and deserved fans. In 2012 the music community really tipped its hat to the quintet by presenting them with the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album, and thrust them into the "band to watch" race of up and coming bluegrass bands. Seems like they have won that race! But they are not just any bluegrass band. The Steep Canyon Rangers of course have a myriad of talents: instrumental agility, tight harmony vocals,integration of percussion, and one of the best stage shows we have seen. But it is their songwriting that really sets them apart from the pack. Its’ been too long since they have graced our stage. We welcome them back.
- August 19, 2023 (Saturday): Peter Rowan click for details
- The iconic Peter Rowan and the Peter Rowan Bluegrass Band consists of outstanding musicians with over 100 years of combined recording and performance experience. Joining guitarist Peter Rowan are Chris Henry, mandolin and vocals, Max Wareham, banjo and vocals, Julian Pinelli, fiddle and Eric Thorin, bass. The ensemble has graced the stages of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, Grey Fox, Merlefest, Rothbury Australia’s National Folk Festival, and numerous other festivals domestically and abroad, entertaining audiences with original and traditional songs executed in vibrant harmony.
Peter Rowan ... GRAMMY-award winner and six-time GRAMMY nominee, Peter Rowan is a bluegrass singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades. From his early years playing under the tutelage of bluegrass patriarch Bill Monroe, Peter’s stint in Old & In the Way with Jerry Garcia and his subsequent breakout as both a solo performer and bandleader, Rowan has built a devoted, international fan base through his continuous stream of original recordings, collaborative projects, and constant touring. With Chris Henry- Mandolin, Vocals, Max Wareham: Banjo, Vocals Julian Pinelli: Fiddle, and Eric Thorin: Acoustic Double Bass
Wow..what a nice show to get.. first time for the honorable Mr. Rowan to be here. So Happy!
- September 22, 2023 (Friday): The Harlem Gospel Travelers click for details
- We are so excited to have this new to SMAC band. There is a lot to read about them, but I think watch them before you do anything. What voices!
Things are looking up for The Harlem Gospel Travelers, here with a new album, produced by Eli Paperboy Reed, Look Up! marks the group’s first full-length release as a trio, as well as their first collection of totally original material, and it couldn’t have come at a more vital moment. The music still draws deeply on the gospel quartet tradition of the ’50s and ’60s, of course, but there’s a distinctly modern edge to the record, an unmistakable reflection of the tumultuous past few years of pandemic anxiety, political chaos, and social unrest. The songs are bold and resilient, facing down doubt and despair with faith and perseverance, and the performances are explosive and ecstatic, fueled by dazzling vocal arrangements punctuated with gritty bursts of guitar and crunchy rhythm breaks.
Born out of an non-profit music education program led by Reed, The Harlem Gospel Travelers—singers Thomas Gatling, George Marage, and Dennis Bailey—released their debut LP, He’s On Time, to rave reviews in 2019, with Pop Matters hailing the album’s “musical transcendence” and AllMusic praising it as “dreamlike and joyous.” The record charted on Billboard, earned the Travelers high profile fans like Elton John (who invited them to appear on his Rocket Hour radio show on Apple Music), and landed them festival slots everywhere from Pilgrimage to Telluride Jazz.
September 30, 2023 (Saturday): Duke Robillard Band click for details- Guitar master, Duke Robillard puts new emphasis on the Blues. His resume is decorated with Grammy nominations, Handy Awards and Blues Music Awards, and other honors for his artistry, recordings and productions within the United States and internationally. On his latest release, "Duke Robillard and his Dames of Rhythm" on M.C. Records, he wields an acoustic archtop and joins six thrushes for evocative and enjoyable renditions of 1920s and 1930s swing tunes; it's a worthy successor to his 2016 BMA-winning "The Acoustic Blues And Roots Of Duke Robillard.” With a killer band including that amazing singer, Chris Cote. Don’t miss this great night of guitar driven blues, Duke Robillard style!
- October 25, 2023 (Wednesday): Comedian Bob Marley click for details
- I don't know any other person who worked harder to keep us entertained during 2020 and beyond than comedian Bob Marley. His daily videos were a comic relief from the world's challenges, and there have been many. Bob has a gift and a way of finding the hilarity in the obvious and the seemingly common occurrences in our sometimes mundane lives. In fact, he would make fun of me for saying all this!!. I can just hear him mocking me now!
On a personal note, Bob kept my staff from going crazy! We appreciate him for being one of the artists that was willing to do shows in whatever way he could to make venues and people laugh..whether it was a small capacity show or a drive in…he did it all. Nothing can stop the Bob Marley train and we love him for that. And yes, I said artist!!
Bob is not just our Maine comedian, he is one of the funniest people in the current world of comedy. His viral videos have thrust him into further popularity as one of the hottest and most sought after comedians in the country. But we are lucky he will still come to us! You know'em, you love'm...more than 15 years as a stand-up comic, Maine's own Bob Marley has been featured in his own special on Comedy Central, and is one of the few comics to do the complete late night TV circuit: The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Craig Kilborn. But all those accolades aside, he is just one of us, and we can't get enough of him. And geesh don't we all need to laugh right now. Always a quick sell out!
- October 27, 2023 (Friday): The Tannahill Weavers click for details
- FROM SCOTLAND"An especially eloquent mixture of the old and the new." - New York Times
Born of a session in Paisley, Scotland, and named for the town's historic weaving industry and local poet laureate Robert Tannahill, the Tannahill Weavers have made an international name for their special brand of Celtic music, blending the beauty of traditional melodies with the power of modern rhythms. As one of the world's premier traditional Celtic bands, their diverse repertoire spans the centuries with fire-driven instrumentals, topical songs, original ballads and lullabies, and humorous tales of life in Scotland.
In 2021 they have been joined by exciting piper and fiddle player Iain MacGillivray, who is also Scotland's youngest Clan leader. Iain, a fluent Gaelic speaker, has worked on such exciting productions as Outlander and Men in Kilts, and has performed for a huge list of stars and dignitaries in recent years. As the band celebrate the nomination of their 18th recording, Òrach (“Golden” in Gaelic) as album of the year, and themselves as band of the year, they are firmly established as one of the premier groups on the concert stage. From reflective ballads to footstomping reels and jigs, the variety and range of the material they perform is matched only by their enthusiasm and lively Celtic spirits.
November 16, 2023 (Thursday): Della Mae click for details- These gals put on one of the most "wowing" shows we have ever seen here, when last they visited. Everyone has wanted them back...so your wish is our command! Born from a yearning for a traditional bluegrass sound in the heart of New England. Born from a yearning for a traditional bluegrass sound in the heart of New England. When the band started, there was not a single all-women bluegrass band on the national touring scene. One of the main goals of grammy nominated Della Mae from the start, was to showcase strong women in bluegrass. Their musical style seamlessly blends years of experience with traditional mountain music and modern singer-songwriter sensibilities. Della Mae has toured throughout the U.S., playing festivals, music clubs, house concerts, churches, and conducting workshops. These ladies draw from a well of influences to create vibrantly original music that conveys their expansive musical vision with timeless lyrical truths and a contemporary sensibility all their own. Happy to have them back!!
- December 13, 2023 (Wednesday): Comedian Bob Marley click for details
- I don't know any other person who worked harder to keep us entertained during 2020 and beyond than comedian Bob Marley. His daily videos were a comic relief from the world's challenges, and there have been many. Bob has a gift and a way of finding the hilarity in the obvious and the seemingly common occurrences in our sometimes mundane lives. In fact, he would make fun of me for saying all this!!. I can just hear him mocking me now!
On a personal note, Bob kept my staff from going crazy! We appreciate him for being one of the artists that was willing to do shows in whatever way he could to make venues and people laugh..whether it was a small capacity show or a drive in…he did it all. Nothing can stop the Bob Marley train and we love him for that. And yes, I said artist!!
Bob is not just our Maine comedian, he is one of the funniest people in the current world of comedy. His viral videos have thrust him into further popularity as one of the hottest and most sought after comedians in the country. But we are lucky he will still come to us! You know'em, you love'm...more than 15 years as a stand-up comic, Maine's own Bob Marley has been featured in his own special on Comedy Central, and is one of the few comics to do the complete late night TV circuit: The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Craig Kilborn. But all those accolades aside, he is just one of us, and we can't get enough of him. And geesh don't we all need to laugh right now. Always a quick sell out!
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