David Olney & Sergio Webb w/ special guest Amy Speace
Sunday May 8, 2011 @ 6:00 PM
An intense, gritty, rockin’, high energy performance… “David Olney is ... Something quite special. A sagacious, witty storyteller, Olney is something like John Prine with a bit more of an old school ROCK 'N' ROLL soul.” -- Michael Berick (Los Angeles, CA; Oct. 2010)
The prolific David Olney infuses his live performances with an intensity that converts many new listeners into die-hard fans. Mr. Olney’s intelligent compositions radiate that same intensity and have earned a place as one of the most respected singer-songwriters in the world today. His songs have been recorded by Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Del McCoury, Lonnie Brooks, James King, Slaid Cleaves, Dale Ann Bradley, Tom Rozum, Ann Rabson, Keiran Kane/Kevin Welch/Fats Kaplin, Tim O’Brien and others. He has released more than 20 albums over four decades, including six live recordings, and performs worldwide. Mark "Sergio" Webb is a talented Texas born Nashville based guitarist, who played with Pinto Bennett and The Famous Motel Cowboys, Gail Davies and currently tours with David Olney.
“Amy Speace sounds uncannily like a 21st Century Joan Baez, her timbred voice full of genuine emotions…the record soars with salient vocals and poetic lyrics,” writes The Classic Rock Examiner in its review of Nashville singer-songwriter Amy Speace’s third album, Land Like A Bird (Thirty Tigers). After releasing two well-received albums on Judy Collins’ Wildflower Records, Bird is Speace’s first record since migrating south from her longtime home in the NYC area.
Amy Speace's path to songwriting may not have been a straight line, but like many journeys, has been better for the winding way. Born in Baltimore, Amy grew up the oldest of 4, moving homes and states every few years, learning early about comings and goings, and finding solace in music very early. After graduating from Amherst College, she moved to Manhattan to study acting, toured with The National Shakespeare Company for a few years until a bad breakup and a $50 pawn shop guitar sparked a late-blooming songwriting burst. An appearance at an open mic led to a regular gig at The Bitter End, which led to an independent release of her first songs and in 2005, a chance encounter with Judy Collins' manager changed her life. Judy Collins signed Amy to her own Wildflower Records label in 2006, releasing Songs for Bright Street. The Killer In Me followed in 2009, with a rare duo appearance by Ian “Mott the Hoople” Hunter, who brought her to the UK for his Acoustic Tour. USA Today called her “a rising star”, NPR named the title track from Killer “Song of the Day” and wrote “her velvety, achy voice recalls an early Lucinda Williams.” In 2010, John Platt of NYC's premiere AAA radio station WFUV named Amy's song “The Weight of the World” in the Top 5 of his list of the “Best Folk Songs of the Decade,” a song that Judy Collins herself would record and call “one of the best political folk songs I've ever heard”. In 2009, Amy shifted landscapes, moved south to Nashville, and beginning the writing of her latest album Land Like A Bird. Produced by Neilson Hubbard it features guest vocals by Kim Richey and is already receiving the best reviews of Amy's career. “Amy Speace is the perfect torchbearer for the unconscious cool of true Americana” (Houston Press). Amy will also be seen in the upcoming documentary “Nothing Can Hurt Me: The Big Star Story”.