February 2015 VOCAL Songwriter Showcase
The February 2015 VOCAL Songwriter Showcase was postponed a week because of the snow, but it attracted an attentive audience for the mid-winter performance.
The perennial favorite Dave Pollard opened the show with several of his “love lost/never obtained” songs which he is so adept at. He seemed to mesmerize the crowd with his guitar skills and alternate tunings (via the use of specialized capos). The slow, tender ballad See You in the Fall is always a crowd favorite. The up-tempo Run Away with Me was followed by Even Shattered Chains can Bind, which had a really cool play on words. Dave ended his set with Okracoma, another crowd favorite, which brings us the laid-back mood of life on Ocracoke Island.
Eddy Kitchen then took the stage wielding a new ukulele, with which he delivered one of his best, This Beer’s on Me. He then brought on a new song (untitled), which was a tender, reflective ballad about losing a mom/wife/grandma. He then switched to guitar, bringing on the sassy All I Lost, an ode to coming out ahead in a divorce. Two Young was a very touching tribute to the story about parents of a dying son who decided to get married for his sake. Eddy ended his set with a couple of up-tempo numbers Too Drunk to Remember and A Buffet Song, which was co-written with a friend of his.
The talented Claudia Carawan came on stage as the headliner with her uplifting, inspirational tunes. Lifeline was written with Harold Payne, who was a guest speaker/entertainer at VOCAL a couple of years ago. This song is a finalist for the Positive Music Awards! I Feel a Heartbreak Coming On says “My baby’s falling in love – wish it was with me!” (there’ll be plenty of time to sing the blues). Pure Possibility came from a vision of a hospital nursery, where all the innocent children have a chance of success in life. Claudia then delivered a wonderful new song Cardinal in the Snow, calling on the folk lore that this is a sign of a passed love one coming back to visit. What a wonderful tale! She then switched from keyboard to guitar for a female “empowerment” song (A Woman who Knows). Although she said the guitar is a relatively new instrument for her, I think she has been empowered playing it! She closed out the night with Childlike Heart, Refreshing, and Fearless. What a refreshing feeling to hear these positive, uplifting songs!
