Songwriter’s Circle provides songwriters of some of the most popular local bands with an outlet for creative expression; musicians are able to focus on their songwriting in an intimate space and the community is invited to share in the creative process. Singer/Songwriter Dore Coller is spearheading these sessions which highlight some of the best tunesmiths around.
John Haley-Walker lopes on stage with long. lean legs and a smile as warm as Texas sunshine. He ropes in his audience with a witty, engaging stage presence, a sweet, strong baritone voice and beautiful melodies – then zings them with lyrics at turns heartbreaking, sardonic, tender and sharply funny.
His songs range from brutally insightful tales of romance gone wrong to openly affectionate tributes to his children. He writes the kind of tunes that creep into your heart and nest there for keeps.
He was the winner of the NCSA Song of the Year in both 1993 and 1998. He was a finalist at the 2001 Kerville Folk Festival. He has performed at Sweetwater in Mill Valley, Freight & Salvage in Berkeley, Cafe Montreal in Sacramento, Buffalo Gap in Portland, The Point in Philadelphia, Gerde’s Folk City in New York City and on KPFA radio.
Caren Armstrong -Award winning Singer/Songwriter Caren Armstrong has been making “big buoyant music” since the tender age of ten years old. She was awarded top honors at the Emerging Songwriter Showcase at the Napa Valley Music Festival, and the 15th Annual Songwriting Competition at the Tucson Folk Festival, and has been a finalist at the Rocky Mt. Folk’s Fest and the Wildflower Music and Arts Festival. She is a member of Folk Alliance and has twice been a featured showcase artist at the FARWest Folk Alliance conference in 2004 and 2010. Caren was named as one of the top 10 artists of the decade by KALW radio in 2010.
Claudia Russell – Claudia Russell is an outstanding singer and songwriter who has shared stages with Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer, Loudon Wainwright III, Steve Forbert, Tish Hinojosa, Kris Kristoffersen, Willie Nelson, Darryl Purpose, Peter Rowan, Rosalie Sorrels and Bill Staines, among many others. When the planets align, she is sometimes pleased to count Carl Byron (piano accordion), and Eric Lewis (dobro, guitar, mandolin) and Tom Tally (viola) in her band. She is also thrilled to perform in the occasional pop up band Paper Birds with Katie Dahl and Rich Higdon. Boston’s WUMB FM named Claudia the Best New Artist of 2000, the East Bay Express named her Best Musician in 2006, and she has twice been selected as a finalist in the Kerrville New Folk songwriting competition. Claudia was a 2004 finalist in the Sisters Folk Festival Songwriters contest in Bend Oregon and the 2002 KRCL Songwriting contest in Salt Lake City.
Jesse Lee Kincaid – Jesse Lee Kincaid began playing music at age 11 when his uncle, 12 string guitar player and folk legend Fred Gerlach, gave him his first guitar. At age 19 Kincaid drove his 1953 Pontiac on Route 66 from Hollywood to New York City to be a folksinger, going on to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he formed a folk music duo with Taj Mahal. In 1965 Jesse and Taj drove cross country from Detroit to Hollywood where they founded The Rising Sons, along with Jesse’s pal Ry Cooder. Their album, containing six Kincaid songs, was released on Columbia Records. Jesse Lee Kincaid’s solo album “Brief Moments Full Measure”, released in 2014, contains a baker’s dozen songs written by Kincaid that range from the folky, funky “Little Rain”, with Taj Mahal on banjo and harmonica, to “Black Crow,” a country blues with Maria Muldaur singing, and Taj Mahal on banjo, to a touchingly sentimental “My Family,” again with Muldaur on harmony. Don Henley, of The Eagles, has recorded Kincaid’s song, “She Sang Hymns Out Of Tune” for his album release, “Cass County.”
In 2014, Kincaid’s memoir “Ibiza Chronicles” was published, documenting his times in the 1970s in Europe’s hip capitol on the Spanish Mediterranean island of Ibiza, performing in a rock and roll band and traveling to the ancient East on the road to India.
Dore Collier Local artist and Songwriter Circle Host Dore Coller has played with many artists including Big Brother & the Holding Company, Jeffrey Cain, Larry Campbell, Lacy J Dalton, Matt Eakle, Jerry Garcia, , Dan Hicks, David La Flamme (It’s a Beautiful Day), Old and In the Way, Maria Muldaur, David Nelson, Pablo Cruise, Quicksilver, Jefferson Starship, The Rowan Brothers, The Waybacks and The Youngbloods. Over the years Dore and his groups have opened for Elvin Bishop, Los Lonely Boys, Dana Carvey, Jesse Colin Young, Foxy Collwood, R Crumb & The Cheap Suit Serenaders, High Country, Rattlebox, Mikey Dread, Dr Hook, and even made an appearance on the Gary Radnich Show on KRON TV. One of his songs ‘Silent Spring’ was the Platinum Award Winner of the Marin Earth Day 40th Anniversary Green Song Contest. Some of his most recent efforts have been concerned with local issues. His song ‘The Way It’s Supposed to Be’ about the restoration of the west peak of Mt Tamalpais was written for a video produced by Dore and reknowned filmaker Gary Yost, as well as ‘The Old Railroad Grade’ which is going to be used in an exhibit at the visitor center in Mt Tam State park.
Throckmorton Theatre is committed to fostering community and providing accessible, transforming experiences. We believe the arts create and bestow community identity and a strong sense of identity and pride rallies confidence, hope and productivity. This cannot be done, however, without risk, adventure, and the willingness to embrace and understand the new. We embrace that risk every day. Our Sunday Sessions offer the community the opportunity to discover artists and be inspired in an intimate and positive setting. To ensure accessibility we offer these sessions free of charge to the public. We pay a small stipend to performers. We greatly appreciate your help and support in making these programs possible – donations of any kind are appreciated.
