Tag Archives: Oxford American

Tonight at South on Main – Dana Falconberry headlines Oxford American Local Live

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llsom dana gTonight at 7:30 at South on Main, this week’s installment of the Local Live concert series features Dana Falconberry!

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.

Dana Falconberry, an Austin songwriter and Michigan native, is best known for her eloquent interpretations of nature and wildlife in her music. Her 2012 album Leelanau, written as an ode to her childhood visits to the Michigan peninsula of the same name, is a more direct example of such inspiration. Leelanau was heralded by critics for it’s gentle but complex orchestration and garnered Falconberry widespread recognition which grew steadily over 2013.

Backed by her five-piece band, Falconberry proceeded to travel all over the United States, touring as support for other acts and blazing their own paths into unforeseen house shows and DIY spaces. The group was also presented with great opportunities to play festivals like ACL Fest, SXSW, and Noise Pop Festival. The critical recognition only grows further as music writers and radio programmers encounter the well-crafted sound of their live show.

Creative Class of 2015: Eliza Borné

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Eliza BorneEliza Borné was named Interim Editor of Oxford American magazine earlier this year.  She had been the Managing Editor of the magazine.  Currently, she is at work on the annual OA music issue, which this year will feature Georgia.

A Little Rock native and graduate of Central High School, she wrote Children’s Theatre reviews for the Arkansas Times while in high school.  While a student at Wellesley College, she interned for OA.  After graduation, she was an associate editor at BookPage.  In February 2013, she joined the OA as an editor.  When he was in Little Rock earlier this year, author Harrison Scott Key praised Borné’s skills as an editor.  At that appearance, he also lauded her skills as an interviewer. She has also used these skills serving as a moderator for the Arkansas Literary Festival.

 

While her talents as a writer and editor have been honed through hard work, she is also carrying on a family tradition in promoting Little Rock’s cultural life. A great-grandmother, Adolphine Fletcher Terry, was a member of the Little Rock Public Library Board (a forerunner of CALS) for decades.  Much could be written about what various ancestors have done to help Little Rock, but Borné is not one to rely on the family name as she forges her own career.  Instead, she uses her skills and love of Little Rock to promote good writing, good music and good living.

Tonight at 7, Oxford American’s Local Live at South on Main features Off the Cuff

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llsom offthecuffTonight at 7:30 PM, the Oxford American magazine presents this week’s Local Live concert at South on Main, featuring Off The Cuff!

As always, Local Live is free and open to the public. To guarantee a table/seat for this popular series, call ahead at (501) 244-9660.

Off the Cuff is a Jazz/Neo-Soul band comprised of passionate musicians from Arkansas. Originally founded in 2013, they have performed across the Central Arkansas area throughout the past few years. The band plays covers of everything from Roy Hargrove to Jill Scott and prides themselves on the composition of original music.

Off the Cuff debuted their first EP on July 25th, and are continuing to compose in preparation for a second album release. The band is comprised of vocalist Keke Collier, trumpeter Jose Holloway, keyboardist Camryn Stillman, drummer Darius Blanton, bassist Kaleb Ritchie, and saxophonist Rafael Powell. Their music is organic and interactive; audiences will be taken on a musical journey and will have fun along the way.

Tonight at 8 at South on Main – Oxford American presents Lera Lynn

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Tonight at 8pm, the Oxford American magazine welcomes Lera Lynn to the South on Main stage to kick off our 2015 – 2016 Americana Series!

Doors open at 6pm, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time. This series is made possible by our presenting sponsor, Ben E. Keith Foods Mid-South Division, and in part by the generosity of The Summer Foundation.

Tickets are $13 (General Admission), $17 (Reserved), and $22 (Premium Reserved).

Born in Houston, Texas, Nashville-based, and Georgia-bred, singer-songwriter Lera Lynn creates music that may be hard to categorize, but that is exactly why she appeals to so many. While the music business likes to wrap everything up in neat little packages, that isn’t always possible. Lera’s music has frequently been filed under “Americana,” “Folk,” and “Country.” But those categorizations tell only part of the story. “I just want to stop thinking about music as a marketing campaign,” Lera says. “Ray Charles went from jazz to R&B to country. Paul McCartney will do a ballad next to ‘Helter Skelter’ and not think twice. The most successful and lasting artists let inspiration steer them, not genre or marketing pitch. I’m just doing what moves me as it comes.”

Lynn’s album, The Avenues, produced by Joshua Grange, was released in September 2014. With The Avenues, Lynn created a mature album that resolutely defies pigeonholing. There is respect and nostalgia for the past while still pushing towards the future. “Where does my music fit?” says Lynn, “it’s the hardest question to answer. It’s something I’m constantly thinking about, and something people ask. I haven’t found an answer. I think it’s sexy. It’s sophisticated.”

“[The] album is the culmination of a life spent in music. Performing has been pretty constant for me my whole life,” she says. If you catch Lera performing live these days, she may be with a band—or playing as a duo with Joshua Grange on pedal steel. Either way, you’ll see a natural in action.

Tonight’s Oxford American Local Live at South on Main: Jeff Coleman & the Feeders

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llsom jcfeedersTonight at 7:30pm, the Oxford American magazine’s Local Live concert at South on Main features Jeff Coleman & the Feeders! As always, Local Live is free and open to the public. To guarantee a table/seat for this popular series, call ahead at (501) 244-9660.

Jeff Coleman & the Feeders have shared the stage with other musical talents such as Lucero, Son Volt, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Jack Ingram, Cracker, Eli Young, Randy Rogers, Pat Green, Marty Stewart, Casey Donahew, Dash Rip Rock, and Billy Joe Shaver to name just a few.

This four-piece is comprised of Jeff Coleman (lead vocals, guitar, and keyboard), Mark Chiaro (lead guitar), Stan James (drums), and Jerry Cordova (bass, backing vocals).

The Bo-Keys headline at South on Main tonight, sponsored by Oxford American and ACANSA

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acansa bokeysTonight at 10pm, ACANSA partners with the Oxford American to present Memphis soul band The Bo-Keys as part of the 2015 ACANSA Arts Festival! The concert starts at 10:00 PM with doors opening at 5:00 PM. South on Main will be open for normal dinner service prior to the concert. If you have tickets and intend to dine before the concert, you may make reservations for 8:30 p.m. or later by calling South on Main at (501) 244-9660.ACANSA logo

Tickets for The Bo-Keys are $15 each, and all seating is general admission. Seating at tables is limited and assigned on a first-come, first-seated basis when doors open. Purchase individual tickets to The Bo-Keys via Metrotix.com, or by calling (800) 293-5949. ACANSA Festival Pass buyers are also permitted entry to this concert. For more info on ACANSA passes click here.

The word “soul” has powerful resonance—musically, culturally and spiritually—and no contemporary band embodies the power of soul more than The Bo-Keys.

Through two critically acclaimed albums and four singles, as well as international appearances at major festivals and clubs, The Bo-Keys have kept the spirit of classic Memphis music alive, while also writing a vital new chapter for the sound and style that’s etched into the fiber of American consciousness.

The Bo-Keys’ multi-generational cast of players—some in their eighth decade—bring a high level of virtuosity developed cutting literally hundreds of hits during the ’60s and ’70s to those recordings. Or, in the case of younger members like Bomar, hundreds of hours digesting those records. But onstage, they embody the lively spirit of Memphis soul, digging in hard to deliver the deep grooves and wealth of emotions at the style’s core as they take the music around the world, making such prestigious stops as California’s Doheny Blues Festival, the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon, and Italy’s Poretta Soul Festival. The Bo-Keys have also supported the fabled soul singers Rufus and Carla Thomas, William Bell, Otis Clay, Sam Moore, Eddie Floyd, and Syl Johnson in concert.

Skip Pitts, a funk-soul innovator whose numerous credits include cutting the wah-wah guitar introduction to “Theme From Shaft,” was Scott Bomar‘s partner in founding The Bo-Keys along with trumpeter Marc Franklin. Franklin cut his teeth touring with Bobby “Blue” Bland before becoming a first-call R&B session player, and today tours with Gregg Allman. Joe Restivo replaced Pitts after his death in 2012. Restivo also plies his exceptional soul and jazz guitar vocabulary as leader of the all-instrumental band the City Champs. The Bo-Keys’ remaining elder statesmen include drummer Howard Grimes, who drove Stax and Hi Records hits for Ann Peebles, Al Green and others. Organist Archie “Hubby” Turner was also part of the Hi Rhythm Section, playing on historic sessions for Green, Peebles, O.V. Wright, and more. Trumpeter Ben Cauley was a charter member of the Bar Kays. That band cut the smash “Soul Finger” for Stax and toured behind Otis Redding. Cauley was the sole survivor of the plane crash that claimed Redding and his bandmates. He continued to record at Stax with Isaac Hayes and the Staples Singers. And vocalist Percy Wiggins has a long and storied history in gospel and soul music. He began performing at age thirteen with his brother Spencer and sister Maxine in the New Rival Gospel Singers, and went on to cut sides in the ’60s for the RCA and Atco labels with a band that included a pre-fame Jimi Hendrix. The Bo-Keys horn section includes relative youngsters Kirk Smothers and Art Edmaiston on saxes, plus Franklin on trumpet. Edmaiston is also a member of Gregg Allman’s band.

 

Tonight’s Oxford American Local Live concert at South on Main features Steve Hester and DejaVooDoo Trio!

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LOCAL_LIVE_Logo2Tonight at 7:30 pm, join the Oxford American magazine for this week’s Local Live concert at South on Main, featuring Steve Hester and DejaVooDoo Trio!

As always, Local Live is free and open to the public. To guarantee a table/seat for this popular series, call ahead at (501) 244-9660.

Steve Hester and DejaVooDoo is a high energy Southern Rock/Blues Rock/Country Rock band doing originals and original style covers. The band has performed with B.B. King, Eric Gales, Chris Duarte, Johnny Winter, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Smokin’ Joe Kubek and B’Nois King, Valerie June, Tony Joe White, Black Oak Arkansas, Samantha Fish, Anthony Gomes and Devon Allman. They have performed at The Sundance Film Festival Eco Hide Away Lounge, Pre Emmy parties and House of Blues on Sunset Strip in L.A., Spa City Blues Festival Hot Springs AR 2014, Bikes Blues and Barbeque Festival Fayetteville AR 2014, Highland Jazz and Blues Festival Shreveport LA 2014.

They are regulars on The VooDoo Stage at House of Blues in Dallas, and fast becoming regular Headliners at festivals all over the US! Endorsed by Saint Blues Guitar Workshop in Memphis, TN and Rocky Mountain Slide Company Salida, CO and GHS Strings Battle Creek, MI.