Big Eagle (w/Mike Chase), Lauren Shera, The David Mayfield Parade April 12, 2012

The David Mayfield Parade
Big Eagle, Lauren Shera
Thu, April 12, 2012
Doors: 8:00 pm / Show: 9:00 pm
$10.00

The David Mayfield Parade

Leaving the 1956 Flex tour bus David Mayfield and his family called home to start his nightly shift at the tool and die along side his father it's easy to understand why he celebrates every performance he's afforded.

David Mayfield is the "other" voice and lead guitarist, as well as a contributing songwriter for folk rock favorites Cadillac Sky, whose last album "Letters In The Deep" was produced by Dan Auerbach (Black Keys) but his role as a member of the Texas by way of Nashville quintet is just one of the many musical paths this Grammy-nominated artist has journeyed.

Growing up in Kent, Ohio, David was surrounded by Bluegrass music. At the age of twelve he was playing bass for the family band, traveling from festival to festival, along with his younger sister, noted songstress, Jessica Lea Mayfield, singing and absorbing the stories and lessons taught by road hard veterans, all the while picking up tips on how to play a lick on guitar or mandolin. By the time he was a teenager, Mayfield had won several national awards for his guitar and mandolin playing and his reputation was being forged in the world of Bluegrass as a player to watch out for.

Things changed however when the family parked their bus in the heart of Country Music USA. Settling in Nashville, with the hopes of finding a steady gig that would allow for some stability, struggling to survive on music alone, David's father took a job in a machine shop working the graveyard shift, while 16-year-old David got hired to sweep its floors. Once the last day shift worker and office staffer had left the building, voices would soar over the roar of machinery. Father and son while working to keep the family afloat, would simply sing. As if they hadn't a care in the world. Mayfield recalls it as one of his happiest memories.

The family eventually moved back to their hometown in Ohio but David returned a few year later and after a stint of all night "gun-for-hire" gigs in the tourist filled honky-tonks that line downtown Nashville, Mayfield auditioned for country hit maker Andy Griggs. He got the gig and hit the road, eventually landing several appearances on the coveted Grand Ole Opry stage.

In 2008 when Jessica Lea Mayfield was ready to make her debut record, Blasphemy So Heartfelt, she asked David to play bass on it. He did. And over the next year he would tour as her bassist, and as a newly minted member of Cadillac Sky all while writing and performing his own songs.

That same year he produced and engineered the album "In Gods Time" for old friend Barry Scott. Much to Mayfield's surprise and with some amusement the song went on to earn a Grammy nomination in the Southern Gospel category in 2009. His production credits continued with Among The Oak & Ash's sophomore effort for Verve Records.

But it was while on the road with Jessica that Avett Brothers, Scott and Seth took notice of Mayfield's musicianship and the three quickly developed a friendship, leading them to invite David to sit in with them dozens of times including their 2010 Bonnaroo & Merlefest sets. After urging him more and more to make a record of his own, when he took to the studio the Avett's were quick to lend their voices.

David Mayfield Parade is the culmination of that encouragement. The album reflects the numerous influences that come from a lifetime of being immersed in American music and channeling its unique forms with sincerity and celebration from the howl of early rock-n-roll, to the low lonesome twang of folk and country with a voice that is all at once heartbreaking and inherently hopeful.

BIG EAGLE

Hear ex-Peels leader Robyn Miller sing, and it's clear she has country in her heart and something wild in her veins. It's there in the tender folk ballads and the free-spirited rockers on her debut full-length, Willow Creek, which she wrote and recorded as Big Eagle, and will release on Grass Roots Record Co. in mid-June. The daughter of an artist and a naturalist, Miller grew up among the towering redwoods of Humboldt County, California. And even though her path took her far afield from her rustic roots, they still bubble up in her songs, along with hints of the many adventures she has had along the way. The album was the culmination of a nearly decade-long musical odyssey for Miller. The clear descendent of folk music's kings, Gram Parsons and Bob Dylan, and more obscure performers, like Karen Dalton, with a soulful delivery reminiscent of Bobby Gentry, Miller creates music born of these elements, with a modern edge.

LAUREN SHERA

Music has played an integral part in Lauren Shera's life from the very beginning. The New York native grew up surrounded by an eclectic range of performers. When she was 13, her family relocated to northern California at the same time that she picked up the guitar.

Shera swiftly developed a reputation in the folk-indie world, joining the ranks of such artists as Jessica Lea Mayfield, Iron & Wine and Gillian Welch, and earning titles such as "Princess of Power" and "Folk music's new royalty."

In 2008, she studied at the renowned Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, where she expanded her knowledge of traditional folk music and honed her skills as a singer and a musician while adding ukulele and clawhammer banjo to her arsenal.

Her original songs and soulful voice combine to make a sound that is equal parts powerful and melancholy; she weaves her opulent sound together with the performances of various instruments, including the mandolin, violins, cello, banjo and more. Her personal experiences with grief and emotion translate effortlessly into stunning musical arrangements, haunting melodies and honest lyrics.

"Every generation or two, a voice comes along that redefines what you thought you knew about music and touches you deep down in your soul…" said Phil Lesh from the Grateful Dead about Shera. "Her voice is going to define the next generation of folk music."

Shera's most recent project "Once I Was A Bird," re-tells the stories of her hard-learned lessons with heartbreaking transparency, while imparting solace and wisdom to the listener. The album's lush sounds and beautiful temperament are complimented with guest performances by Abigail Washburn, and Kristin Hersh (Throwing Muses).

"It's important to me that people are able to relate to [the album]," said Shera. "and take out of it a shared experience that everyone has been through in some form or another."

Shera has shared the stage with such artists as Ray LaMontagne, Jason Mraz, Phil Lesh, Shawn Colvin, Billy Bragg, Nanci Griffith, Kristin Hersh, Joan Osborne and Abigail Washburn. She's also making her mark on the festival circuit, making appearances at Bonnaroo, the High Sierra Music Festival, Sausalito Music and Arts Festival, Monterey Music Summit and South by Southwest. When she was 18-years-old she was also invited to perform at the Bob Dylan Tribute Concert at New York City's Avery Fisher Hall.

Venue Information:
Hotel Utah
500 4th Street
San Francisco, CA, 94107
http://www.thehotelutahsaloon.com/