Fall was in the air as The Theatre Guild started up the grill on Saturday night and bands began their sound checks on stage. It was a beautiful night for a Concert For The Cause benefit concert in the park.
Alex Cartwright began the evening by doing double duty, not only by singing The National Anthem but then opening the show. Cartwright sounded amazing this past Saturday night. She had just returned from a trip to Minnesota and landed on our stage with very little prep time. Cartwright did an amazing job with a set that included original tunes and cover songs that she weaved together into a tapestry of words and song. I love her voice, it's very rich and full. One of her original songs, Nice Girls, had the line: nice girls don't punch people in the face, which got everyone's attention fully focused on the song, paying attention to the music and the lyrics. She did a rendition of Bonnie Raitt's Angel From Montgomery that was just gold. She followed both of these song's up with Little Grace by Jenn Bostich that was wonderful.
I spoke with Alex after her set and asked about upcoming dates, right now there is nothing in the works as she is re-evaluating the direction she wants to take with her music and is working on some original tunes. I'm sure we'll hear more from her once the spring/summer season of 2016 begins.
Conner Eaves and a new vocal discovery of his, Taylor Engle took to the stage. I've seen Eaves and his various bands: The Balkans, Earth to Matilda, and a few other incarnations but this was the first time I'd seen him sing with Engle. He played acoustic guitar and he and Engle harmonized. It had a very folk music feel to it. The crowd enjoyed the brief set and I would really like to hear these two sing together again. I'm not sure if that is the plan just yet, but Eaves and Engle have the sound and the look. I hope they continue to sing together and develop this folk music style more fully because the two of them are amazing together.
Then it was time for the headliner for the evening, Morgan Wilk. Wilk was accompanied by one of the members of her new band, Sean Story. Story is very busy in his own right as he is also the lead singer for VOS: Victims of Spotlight. Wilk started her set with a well-known cover tune, Pontoon. She gave it her own twist and I'll have to say that I liked her version a lot more than the original. It had a smoothness to it that the original doesn't have. Then it was a variety of different cover tunes that ranged from country to folk to classic rock. Wilk and Story harmonized and accompanied themselves on guitar, throughout their set. No one wanted the evening to end.
Wilk doesn't have any upcoming shows that she could say were definite right now. She is working on some original music, planning time for the new band to get together and gel, and deciding on the direction the band wants to take in the future.
Next week the non-profit will be First Call For Help. The musical acts for the evening will be Biscuit Miller and BTW-Beyond the Worship, a gospel group.
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