JohnSmith in Concert

JohnSmith is one of our favorite singer-songwriters. The first time we saw him perform was at a house concert in Milwaukee in front of a crowd of about 20 people. We were really impressed and ended up buying two of his CDs (Kickin' This Stone and The Four Directions). We saw him again about a year later at Folk on State in Madison along with Berkley & Hart. At that concert, we bought his newest CD, Break Me Open.

This past summer, John and his former partner, Dan Sabranek (of String Ties) played a couple of times at Ciatti’s in La Crosse. The combination of John and Dan together is great. At one of their shows last summer, we purchased John’s two earliest solo CDs, Traveler and Hole in the Clouds.

So it was a pleasant surprise to find out that John was playing a few shows in Florida while we were there. We chose to see him at Shack in the Back in Southwest Ranches (near Davie), FL, about two hours drive from our base in Port St. Lucie. The concert was well worth the drive.

Before I talk about the show, let me share a little about where the concert was held. Shack in the Back is a converted horse barn that sits behind the home of Ellen Bukstel. What a cool place to have a concert. Ellen has fixed the place up so it is comfortable and a great place for a show. There is room for a food table (there were some great desserts), a big fire pit, and plenty of seating. It was really cool.

As always, John was very good. He seemed very emotional that night in Florida, more than any other time we have seen him. John lives in Trempeleau, WI and this was the first time we have ever seen him outside of Wisconsin. Perhaps he was homesick. Whatever the reason, the emotions in his already emotional songs (like From His Window) were extra strong.

John played songs from all of his CDs, including several from his newest CD (Break Me Open). He also treated the crowd to two new songs that will be on his upcoming CD, due out sometime in 2008. I told John he needs to hurry up with the new CD so we have another one to buy.

If you don’t know anything about JohnSmith (I don’t know why there is no space between his first and last name) you can check him out at www.JohnSmithMusic.com. If you’re in to acoustic singer-songwriters, you’ll love John.