Tomorrow: Mary Gauthier, Gretchen Peters & Eliza Gilkyson @ Beachland Ballroom

I have such a soft spot in my heart for music by female singers of a certain age, particularly from the likes of Joni Mitchell, Nanci Griffith, and of course Joan Armatrading.  There’s something that’s relevant, timeless, and often poignant about it, as I know the music of these three women will be.  I’m casually familiar with Mary Gauthier & Eliza Gilkyson by name, both have had venerable careers.  As does Gretchen Peters, i’ve since discovered.  Should be a great night of stories.  I’m looking forward to it.

"Three women, three guitars and the words, music, and hard-won wisdom from three lifetimes spent in pursuit of the song. Three Women and The Truth is a trio of accomplished, richly talented, multiple award winning female songwriters whose songs cut through the murky layers of life's complexities. Writing from their own experience, these songwriters are skilled in balancing personal tales with classic underpinnings, which hint at the evocative idea that all our lives are full of events and incidents that touch on the mythic and the timeless."

(Via Beachland Ballroom & Tavern | Cleveland's most eclectic music venue.)

"Talk about how this tour came together. Peters: We’re all good friends. We love and admire each other’s works. Mary and I had done some touring together, and Eliza and I had done some dates together. We shared a booking agent, and when we started talking about it, we said we wanted to team up with the three of us. We enjoyed the format of it. People seem to love it. We had to come up with a title for it. We did that based on the old Harlan Howard quote about country music being three chords and the truth. Gilkyson: I think all three of us really decided to be more out in the world with our careers late in life. We were all over 50 when we made that decision. I didn’t start touring until then. That’s very unusual. That’s when women are supposed to not be seen or heard. We felt the calling to be out there. We confirm it in each other in a really respectful way. We’re all really respectful of each other’s artistry. One of the things we see again and again is that once you have become famous you can break the rules about your place in society. But for every famous woman, there are thousands of not-famous women being told that they can’t do this. Most people deal with a lot of prejudice."

(Via Unique Songwriter-in-the-Round Tour Lands at the Beachland Next Week | Scene and Heard: Scene's News Blog.)