From our buddy Bailey Jones over in Auburn with Sundilla! If I come across as a little brain-dead this week, it’s because I have just returned from Folk Alliance. Folk Alliance is a four-day conference in Memphis, and to put it as simply as possible, a thousand or so musicians take over a large hotel and spend almost the entire time auditioning for people like me, in hopes to get booked at places like Sundilla. At a given moment there might be dozens of tiny little concerts taking place in various rooms of the hotel. It’s actually indescribable, and if not for the aforementioned brain-dead thing, I wouldn’t be trying.
It was at Folk Alliance two years ago that I first heard Miche Fambro, and immediately put him on my “gotta get this guy to Sundilla!” list. And finally, we have; Miche will be performing this Friday, February 26. Showtime is 7:30, and admission is just $10, $8 for students, and free for children 12 and under. We’ll have free coffee, tea, water and food, though as always you are welcome to bring whatever food or beverage you prefer. AND– I’ll mention this again later– you can go to www.offbeatauburn.com and hear an interview that our own Kelly Walker did with Miche. It’s a great way to get a handle on just how engaging and entertaining Miche is… though it’s only a fraction of the whole Miche experience.
Miché Fambro is known by many different people for very different things. Some know him as the dynamic band leader of one of Upstate NY’s most popular bands a few years back. Others know him as an extraordinary guitarist/vocalist singer-songwriter touring through their small town (”Why are you here??”), performing with the energy and sound of a full band on his single instrument. And, still others recognize him as a jazz crooner, lending his fluid voice to beloved classics. His grandfather, a Vaudeville “hoofer,” knew him as the boy who wouldn’t listen, and chose to shape his life around music/entertainment despite the experienced advice of his elders.
As a kid in Philadelphia, Miché played the drums. At 14, he picked up a guitar and taught himself to play, left-handed and upside-down, tuned down a whole step in ascending fourths. Ooops. But it never mattered. Miché is intricately involved with the percussive nature of his instrument. He sure bangs the heck out of his guitar! His critically acclaimed CD My Canvas is recorded live with no overdubs. You might think you’re hearing a drummer accompanying him, but you’re not. It’s all Miché all the way.
But mastery of the guitar is not his only forte; Miché is an amazing singer with skills that equally match that of his guitar playing. He’s got a soaring tenor, and a talent for writing poignant songs only adds to the equation. And you don’t get the final result until you factor in the way that he fuses elements of flamenco, jazz, classical, pop and soul into a style all his own. Put it all together and you’ve got what one critic described as “a fantastic performance unlike any I’ve ever heard.”
Miché has toured the U.S. and Canada during the past several years, finding enthusiastic audiences in both major cities and tiny towns. He brings a professional attitude, a light-hearted sense of humor, and a musical show that is often called “a breath of fresh air” to festivals, concert halls, house concerts, coffeehouses and colleges everywhere and anywhere. Miché radiates energetic happiness and a generous spirit, the power of a man following his own compass. The bottom line is that Miché knows how to entertain; and he does it well.
No less than Rolling Stone Magazine dubbed Miché, “…a quiet storm,” and Dirty Linen magazine said “he sometimes sounds strangely reminiscent of an improvisationally-inclined James Taylor who’s had a strict musical upbringing.”
If there is a knock on Miche, it’s that he hasn’t played in our part of the world much. That makes him something of an unknown around here, and people don’t seem to like to take chances on unknowns. But we’re hoping that all of you think about some of your favorite Sundilla performers, people that you would stand in line to pay extra money to see. At one time, those performers were unknown to you, too; aren’t you glad you took the chance on them? Why stop now? You’re on a roll!!
So please take a chance this Friday, and come experience Miche Fambro at Sundilla. Showtime is 7:30, and admission is still just $10, $8 for students, and free for children 12 and under. We’ll have free coffee, tea, water and food, though as always you are welcome to bring whatever food or beverage you prefer. For more information, go to www.sundilla.org, and to hear that wonderful interview, go to www.offbeatauburn.com.
