Friday Night 12/12/25 was, as predicted:  “One of those nights" that we'll remember for a long time.

Of course, the fun got started with Sarah Spain recording a Christmas song on WREG in the afternoon.  It's always a treat doing performances on TV, whether Live or recorded.  But back to the night.

After playing Live at The Tracks in November, Caitlin Cannon and I got in touch with  KP Hawthorn who is currently getting play on Sirius XM Outlaw Country.  Sunny Sweeney specifically has rolled out the welcome mate for KP, featuring her on “The Sunny Side of Life” just last week.  We put together a night with the two Americana acts and couldn't wait for the night to arrive, our last show of the year.

The two hours flew by as both artists and their respective accompanies lit up the tiny South Main Sounds stage.   This is what happens often in this room: A lot of authenticity and  plenty of smiling faces.  Adding to the evening were multiple trips to Earnestine and Hazels by the performers and thankfully only one for yours truly.  

Saturday was an unexpected treat as well, courtesy of Flyway Brewery, one of the new hot-spots for great tunes.  Childhood friend Jeff Cline was running sound as one of his acts, Aidan Osias was joined by The Narrows and Zoe Dominguez who shows so many signs of success.  My friend Brett Moore and I were talking about her love of punk music and we agreed that she does favor a Chrissie Hynde version of the genre.   by about 6 it was time to get home which precluded me from seeing Alexis Jade at Momma's which is .4 miles from home. If this seems ridiculous, remember, the side-door slashing, rear view mirror mashing carport can jump out at any time.

Will be travelling next week but look forward to another blog to keep y'all updated on the happenings!

My blogs are obviously spurred by the songwriters and this is no exception.  Last night we had Van Duren, a Memphis legend play at South Main Sounds.  I and my friends basically sat in awe as the room filled up with Van fans, some of which have been following him since the 70's. It truly was a “Memphis Moment” that is a special thing that occurs here and you just know it when it hits you.

This morning on my over to the venue, Steve Earle was on Outlaw Country with Max Gomez, who is making waves at the moment.  If my memory served correctly, I saw Max play Railgarten a few years ago under the tutelage of none other than Keith Sykes.  Right then Max started telling the story about the next song he was going to play which was written with Keith.  Steve basically interrupted the story(it's his show after all) to tell about how Keith was in New York on the coffee house circuit and living in the same building as Jerry Jeff Walker and other notables.  Keith being 19 at the time, was dubbed “Baby Keith” by Jerry Jeff and for Earle, the name stuck even though Sykes is seven years his senior.  Apparently he jabbed back at the hard core troubadour with “Why do you call me Baby Keith?” I love it when the songwriters lives are intertwined like this and even more so when they are guys I have met.  

We take a bit of a break from shows until 12/5 when we have Amber Rae Dunn, Sydney Carty, Zach Borenstein and Ashtyn Miller kick off my birthday weekend.  I'll keep the blog posts coming though, even if just for me since it gives me an outlet for my senseless musings!

3C&TT,

-Mark

The songwriter community can be vast and local at the same time.  The late Todd Snider was an example of this.   Sadly, we lost Todd on November 14th and his death touched so many that perhaps even he would be in shock Even though I never met him, I had friends and aquantances who sung his praises and made me feel like I had. I've often heard stories of him getting a start at “The Daily Planet” in Memphis and playing Keith Sykes Songwriter Nights on Beale Street.  Though Keith covers more in his book, “A Very Short Time” than the two pages specifically dedicated to him, the title of chapter 125 is simply “Todd” and he talks about a rekindling of spirits after several years apart.  Get a copy of the book, it's steeped in Memphis musical history and much more.

Off subject for a minute, but this brings me to how we often refer to our musical heroes by a single name…more on that next time.

 I particularly like this quote from a November 15, 2025 article in Rolling Stone:

 “I’ve always been into being a troubadour. I love the chaos, that life of adventure — that’s what struck me. I had a predisposition for it,” Snider told Rolling Stone in 2023. “I was a hitchhiker and sofa circuit person. Jerry Jeff made me see that the difference between a free spirit and a freeloader is three chords on the guitar.”

Make sure to click into the link to read the entire story.  Oh, and come visit another one of our local “one name” legends Saturday Night at South Main Sounds.  Tickets to see Van Duren With Special Guest Sophie Chertow are available right here on the website under “shows.”

A Songwriter is like craft beer or farm-to table food.  Their music is organic and original, not following some formula on the bumpy road to stardom.  Long before he built an empire of tequila, blenders and restaurants, Jimmy Buffett was a songwriter and collaborated with some of the best in the business like Keith Sykes and Jesse Winchester.  While a cover band lends itself to a raucous party, a songwriter plays to an introspective, toe-tapping crowd of family, friends and peers.  This creates a comfort zone where the artist can try out new material and get feedback.  Our singer/songwriters are and always have been a treasure.  We get a deep look into their souls and often find them touching our own

-Mark Parsell, DeSoto Magazine, August 2016