Event Details
Friday, May 2nd
Doors: 7:00 PM
Honky Tonk Sue: 7:30 PM
Hurdy Gurdy Girls: 8:00 PM
Wonder Women of Country: 9:00 PM
Ticket Price: $20 Adv | $25 Door
WONDER WOMEN OF COUNTRY
When Kelly Willis, Melissa Carper and Brennen Leigh – three accomplished singer-songwriters who have forged their own unique lanes in country music – joined forces as a power trio, there was no more appropriate moniker than Wonder Women of Country.
At the end of 2021, after serendipitously sharing bills separately several times, Willis approached Leigh and Carper about teaming up and playing some shows together. Wanting more than your standard songwriter-in-the-round arrangement, the three learned each other's songs to create a more integrated, band approach. Those first few shows together were so much fun and so well-received that they decided to continue. Wonder
Women of Country have discovered that, together, their own individual superpowers come alive. (One of their superpowers is being able to find hidden treasures in any thrift or vintage store.) With Leigh playing lead guitar and mandolin, Carper on upright bass, and Willis playing rhythm guitar, they support each other's distinctive original material with beautiful three-part harmonies.
"At every show, folks were asking if we had records together,” says Willis. “After months and months of that, we finally found a chance to go make one."
Their forthcoming, six-song EP, Wonder Women of Country: Willis, Carper, Leigh, was recorded at Bismeaux on the Hill in Austin, TX in December of 2023. It features two songs by each artist, including a couple of Carper/Leigh co-writes, and one reimagined John Prine tune. Each track captures the magic these three create night after night on the road. Wonder Women of Country are the super heroes we've all been waiting for.
HURDY GURDY GIRLS
Petticoats, pistols, music, miners, and dancing....the Hurdy Gurdy Girls of the early 1900’s saw it all! These ladies lived a rugged life in the untamed, gem laden mountains of Idaho, entertaining miners by playing music and dancing with the men after the show. Idaho was built on the richness of a mining history. ....but wait!......There’s still gold in them there hills and the Hurdy Gurdy Girls are still around.
Hurdy Gurdy Girls is an all girl string band from Hailey, Idaho performing original songs steeped in an old-time music feel and sprinkled with traditional fiddle tunes. The music is influenced by classic country and people who are keeping traditional American folk music alive. Get ready for a porch swingin’ feeling mixed with a honky-tonk vibe. Their songs are about burning desires, life’s tough decisions, family, and of course, finding your way to the mountains we call home. Hurdy Gurdy Girls formed over ten years ago with Annie Maude on fiddle, Natalie Rose driving the train with her stand up bass, Sweet Joy Lee from Tennessee on guitar. Come out to experience the music of the Hurdy Gurdy Girls….you might even get a dance afterwards!
HONKY TONK SUE
A variety performer who prefers dirt roads to paved, Honky Tonk Sue cultivated a deep love for Americana roots musical at a tiny age. With generations of family in the fishing community of South East Alaska, she found her niche singing honky tonk tunes and strumming along on her mandolin surrounded by blue collar story tellers, outlaws, and cowboy crooners.
With much gratitude for her father’s shared wisdom of excellent music and righteous roots tunes, Sue stumbled across a Carter Family record one salmon season in a thrift store in Alaska. She followed the trail and began singing her own interpretations to the likes of John Prine, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and other classic country legends; allowing their musical influence to inspire her own original songs. Combining years of classical training with a passion for traditional twang, you can find Sue howling her harmonies at any open mic on her trail.
Cultivating her courage and performance experience for years living in New York City, she then took the leap to pursue it all in Nashville, Tennessee. Finally making her way to the dirt roads of her dreams in Sun Valley, where the abundance of community support has inspired her continued growth. From town to town, as musician and clown, Honky Tonk Sue is here to share her sound! Listen for her whistle …