Tonight at South on Main – Charles Woods takes the stage

som charleswoods.jpg.190x140_q60_cropTonight at South on Main, their next February Sessions, curated by Amy Garland.  The featured musician is Charles Woods who takes the stage at 8:30pm

We have a musical legend in our midst and many folks don’t even know it! Born in Little Rock in 1946 and raised in a musical household with a gospel and blues background, Charles Woods began playing the harmonica at the age of eight and started playing the electric guitar at the age of 12. Charles honed his musical talents in the gospel chorus on Sunday mornings. While in the choir, Charles Woods also developed his heartfelt and soulful voice reminiscent of such legends as Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, and Johnny Taylor. Charles’ impressive musical talents came to the forefront while playing electric guitar with such notable acts as the Staple Singers, Rufus Thomas, Little Johnny Taylor, Fenton Robinson, Larry Totsie Davis, and playing bass with Freddie King. Although Charles Woods has traveled the world and performed with a number of world-class entertainers, he has remained true to his roots, his heritage, and his hometown of Little Rock where he still entertains to this day and is known to his fans and his musical peers as the “Best Kept Secret in Arkansas.” Charles Woods is a musician’s musician.

Charles just released a brand new record, “Something In The Dark.” This record highlights some of the finest musicians in Arkansas; Tonya Leeks, Jess Hoggard. Eric Ware, Ivan Yarbough, Cecil Parker, and Tim Anthony, among others.

Isaac Alexander takes the stage tonight at South on Main as part of Sessions series

som isaacNext for the South on Main February Sessions, curated by Amy Garland, Isaac Alexander takes the stage!

The concert begins tonight (February 17) at 8:30 pm.

Amy Garland says, “The first person who comes to mind when I hear the word “artist” is Isaac Alexander. He’s a prolific songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, performer, graphic designer, and illustrator. And he is a great guy! I met what I lovingly refer to as the “White County crew” when I met my husband, Bart, many moons ago. He was playing with some young fellas (Big Silver) from Searcy. Led by Isaac, they were just starting to play in Little Rock, so I asked them to open for me at Juanitas. That was all she wrote.”

Isaac Alexander has been playing, writing, and recording in Little Rock since 1999 and has put out a total of twelve records under various band names—Big Silver, The Easys, Molten Lava, Greers Ferry to name a few. He’s played drums in the legendary Little Rock band, The Boondogs and has played and recorded with a number of local artists, including The Salty Dogs, Brother Andy and His Big Damn Mouth, Cosby, The Big Cats, Jonathan Wilkins, Jesse Aycock, Chris Micheals, and Jim Mize.

The last few years Alexander has been working on solo albums with his friends. He has so far released See Thru Me and Antivenin Suite and is working on a third record presently. See Thru Me was No. 6 on the Arkansas Times Music Poll’s best Arkansas albums list.

Sessions at South on Main features The Salty Dogs tonight

IMG_6086Next for the South on Main February Sessions, curated by Amy Garland, The Salty Dogs take to the South on Main stage!

The Salty Dogs are a four piece band that enjoys playing and recording original country music. The Little Rock based band has released 3 full-length studio albums including their current EP – Too old to fight. The band was formed in 2003 and was named the “Best Original Band in Arkansas” by the Arkansas Times. Since then, the band has played countless shows sharing the stage with such likes of Junior Brown, Hank Williams, Jr., Old Crow Medicine Show, The Gourds, Pete Anderson, David Rawlings, Robert Earl Keen, Kinky Friedman, Kelly Willis and many more.

The band’s music has been featured on TLC‘s hit TV show, Trading Spaces, on the award winning Sundance Channel hit show, Rectify, and most recently the motion picture release, Valley Inn. 

Sessions with The Salty Dogs starts at 8:30 pm on Wednesday, February 10.

Flowers and Dirt headline tonight’s Local Live at South on Main

llsom f and dTonight at 7:30, this week’s installment of the Local Live concert series features Flowers and Dirt!

Presented by the Oxford American magazine, Local Live showcases the best of local and regional music talent and is always free and open to the public. Call ahead to South on Main to make your reservations and ensure a table: (501) 244-9660. Local Live is made possible by the generous sponsorship of Ben and Jane Hunt Meade.

The rural ingredients of Amy Garland’s songs create less of the musical gumbo typical of the southern half of her native Louisiana than a slow-cooked stew. Raised in rural Webster Parish, she blends folk, R&B, bluegrass, pop, and country into what one would expect from an artist raised on a cattle farm in the woods of north Louisiana.

Mark Currey is a Little Rock singer-songwriter whose roots run through North Texas and Southeast Arkansas. Inspired by roots rock, classic country, folk and americana music as well as southern gothic literature, Mark is a storyteller searching for a honest expression of his own southern voice. Currey has shared the stage with artists such as Billy Joe Shaver, Todd Snider, Wanda Jackson, Amanda Shires, David Olney, and Lilly Hiatt.

Trey Johnson mixes a blend of blues, folk, and country music into a cornbread salad that is all his own.

The Wildflowers on stage tonight at Ron Robinson Theater

wildflowersArkansas Sounds brings the Sounds of Arkansas to the stage of the Ron Robinson Theater.  Tonight is a special treat as three songstresses join forces performing as The Wildflowers.

Amy Garland, Bonnie Montgomery, and Mandy McBryde have recently formed the Wildflowers, performing music with folk, country, rock, and blues influences.

This concert will feature a brief solo set by each artist, followed up with a full set to be performed by the trio all-star back up band (Nick Devlin on guitar, Bart Angel on drums, Brent LaBeau on upright bass and Geoffrey Robson on fiddle).

The concert starts at 7pm. Tickets are $10 for the general admission seating.

Explore “Learning Curve”s tonight at Tales from the South at Stickyz

talesfromsouthSchool may be on Spring Break this week, but there is still much to learn.  Tonight, Tales from the South examines the lessons of “Learning Curve” at the Stickyz Rock N’ Roll Chicken Shack. The storytellers for this edition are Tom Hopkins, Jimmie vonTungeln, and Claire Green.

Music is by Amy Garland as well as blues guitarist Mark Simpson.

“Tales From the South” is a radio show created and produced by Paula Martin Morell, who is also the show’s host. The show is taped live on Tuesday. The night is a cross between a house concert and a reading/show, with incredible food and great company. Tickets must be purchased before the show, as shows are usually standing-room only.

“Tales from the South” is a showcase of writers reading their own true stories. While the show itself is unrehearsed, the literary memoirs have been worked on for weeks leading up to the readings. Stories range from funny to touching, from everyday occurrences to life-altering tragedies.

Dinner is served from 5pm to 6:30pm, the show starts at 7pm.  Admission is $15 in advance.  Dinner can be purchased separately.

You MUST purchase your ticket before the show. Any tickets available at the door will be $20.

Previous episodes of “Tales from the South” air on KUAR Public Radio on Thursdays at 7pm.  This program will air at a future date.

Tonight’s Local Live at South on Main: The Amy Garland Band

Tonight at South on Main at 7:30 pm: the Local Live music series features the Amy Garland Band. 

Call (501) 244-9660 to ensure your seat at a table for this popular event. The Oxford American’s Local Live is made possible by the generous sponsorship of Cosmic Cowboy Music.

The Amy Garland Band, a six-member group formed in 2000, released its most recent album, Hang a Light, in June 2013. Earlier albums include Plays Well with Others (2000) and Angora (2004). Hailing from Little Rock, the band’s style blends folk, R&B, bluegrass, pop, and country for a deliciously unique sound. Members include: Amy Garland, vocals and guitar; Nick Devlin, guitar; Mike Nelson, bass; Bart Angel, drums; Jeff Coleman, keyboard; and Brad Williams, mandolin, guitar, and harmonica.

Amy Garland, who started playing guitar at the age of nine and began songwriting at ten, was a regular on the stages of the Louisiana Hayride and the Northern Louisiana Hayride as a young girl. After traveling and playing broadly during her high school and college years with prominent artists and at infamous venues—such as the Whispering Pines club in Ringgold, Louisiana, and honky tonks along the infamous Hwy 80 Bossier Strip—Garland moved to Arkansas in 1995.

During her years in the Natural State, Garland has become a regular host of KUAR’s “Arkansas Flyer,” and she began hosting the weekly Americana-flavored “Backroads” radio show on Little Rock’s KABF, greatly expanding her musical footprint. While touring the South, Garland has proudly collaborated with some of the best musicians in the region.