Ken Stringfellow’s ‘Touched’ has a quiet following. Now the tour is coming to Kentucky.
Ken Stringfellow
7 p.m. Sept 27 at the Rowan County Arts Center, 205 E. Main in Morehead. 606-783-9857. $12-$30. kenstringfellow.com, https://www.eventbrite.com.
In a fall dominated by late year festivals and surprise country concerts, here is something refreshingly different – an intimate evening with an overlooked indie-pop stylist taking place in, of all locales, Morehead.
On Friday, the Rowan County Arts Center will host a performance by Ken Stringfellow, a California-born songsmith, producer and multi-instrumentalist who has had a hand in the careers of three seminal bands – The Posies, R.E.M. and Big Star.
The basis of Stringfellow’s current tour of what he terms “mostly non-venue spaces” is a 2001 album, a pop treat called “Touched.” The recording boasts a somewhat tumultuous back story.
The record was issued at a point where Stringfellow’s career was especially hectic. The Washington-based Posies, which he co-led with Jon Auer, had recently reformed while work as an auxiliary guitarist and keyboardist for R.E.M. was ongoing. There were also dates with Auer in a reactivated Big Star, the vanguard rock troupe the two began performing with in 1993. In the midst of all this was the formation and rapid split of a band called Saltine that Stringfellow was only able to coax a few EP recordings out of.
The songs on “Touched” were delicate but sometimes unsettled pop-inspired works written mostly during the Saltine’s brief existence. When the album was complete, an eagerly to establish Stringfellow as a solo artist. The record was released on Sept. 11, 2001 – the day that life in the United States stopped in its tracks.
Difficulties in transportation along with a massive audience hesitance to venture out of a rock show in the wake of the 9/11 attacks largely stymied tour plans. Still, a Sept. 20, 2001, show at the Mercury Lounge in New York proved especially uplifting to Stringfellow, the venue and the patrons in attendance. When the Mercury Lounge celebrated its 20th anniversary in February, Stringfellow was invited back to honor the 2001 show by playing “Touched” in its entirety.
That’s how the idea ignited for a tour devoted to the songs of “Touched.” Along with the album performance, Stringfellow will play music from throughout his career.
In an article titled “How Ken Stringfellow’s ‘Touched’ LP became an indispensable document of 9/11” published earlier this month on the 18th anniversary of the attacks, Pennsylvania Capital-Star Editor-in-Chief John L. Licek reflected on the comfort drawn from the record’s subtle pop reflections.
“For a lot of people, myself included, ‘Touched’ has become an avatar of that troubled, tragic, and oddly hopeful time, when it was so quiet that even the cars driving over the Harvey Taylor bridge seemed to not make any noise, as if a blanket had been thrown over the whole world; as if in the midst of immeasurable sadness and loss, we were reluctant to raise our voices to a level louder than a prayer.
“The minimalist songs on ‘Touched,’ which boast little ornamentation apart from guitars, drums, and keyboards, reflect that silence.”
Tommy Emmanuel reschedules
As guitarist Tommy Emmanuel commands a devout audience in Central Kentucky, fans should be aware his two regional concerts this weekend have been postponed. According to his website, “a health condition that requires medical attention and rest” has reshuffled several fall performances
The Sept. 27 concert at the Taft Theatre in Cincinnati has been moved to March 13, 2020, while a Sept. 28 show at the Grand Theatre in Frankfort is now set for April 24, 2020. Tickets for the original dates will be honored at both performances.
Emmanuel’s tour is set to resume on Oct. 11 in Bismark, North Dakota.
America’s best
Here’s your chance to see America by simply traveling to Richmond.
We’re talking about America the pop group, of course. The duo of Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley, known for a string of ‘70s hits that includes “A Horse with No Name,” “Ventura Highway” and “Sister Golden Hair,” as well as the 1982 Russ Ballard-penned radio smash “You Can Do Magic,” is back in Central Kentucky this weekend.
As part a 50th anniversary tour, America performs on Sept. 28 at the EKU Center for the Arts, 822 Hall Dr. in Richmond (7:30 p.m., $45-$65). For info, call 859-622-7469 or go to ekucenter.com.
“Every night for me presents its own challenge,” Bunnell told me in an interview prior to America’s 2012 concert at the Lexington Opera House. “Nobody onstage is walking through this thing in their sleep. In fact, I’m always a little bit nervous before a show, so that keeps the adrenaline up.”