Well, we’re not even a week into 2017 and it seems like Colorway is making headlines in both Franklin and Hampshire Counties.
There was a very nice story in the Greenfield Recorder on the Warwick Town Hall show that we’re playing on Saturday written by Sheryl Hunter. You can either read it here or I’ll include full text after the jump.
And one of the valley’s most prolific and heralded photographers, Jerrey Roberts of the Daily Hampshire Gazette was on hand at our show at the Parlor Room on First Night and captured a bit of my “Auld Lang Syne” lead in to “Come Back July.”
Check out the bit below.
https://www.facebook.com/DailyHampshireGazette/videos/10154098894622513/
You can see a longer video with some clips for several of the performers during this amazing day-long event here. Many thanks to the Daily Hampshire Gazette for always supporting local, independent musicians.
Here is the full text of the Greenfield Recorder article originally published 1/5/17:
Colorway kicks off winter series
During the winter months, the music scene has a tendency to slow down, but fortunately we live in such a musically rich area, there are still plenty of options out there.
One of these in the winter music series, presented by Wooden Fender, an offshoot of the Warwick Arts Council, is held at the Warwick Town Hall. The kick-off will be with Colorway performing Saturday, Jan 7, at 6 p.m., with a souper supper dinner and concert.
Wooden Fender began to meet in late summer 2005 in an effort to benefit the Jeff Wallace Library Music Fund.
That fall, it adopted the name Wooden Fender and in January 2006 hosted its first musical performance, Dr. G’s Good Medicine Band.
They have presented shows featuring all types of music, including R&B, blues, jazz, rock and even classical. Artists like Trailer Park, Charles Neville and the Skeletons Big Band are a few of the acts that have been part of this winter music series.
Colorway, a pop-rock group from Northampton, is looking forward to kicking off the series’ 2017 season by bringing their melodic, guitar-heavy tunes to Warwick.
The past year was a good one for the band, which wrapped up the year by playing two shows at the Parlor Room in Northampton as part of Northampton’s First Night celebration.
The packed standing-room-only shows saw people bopping in their seats and loudly clapping every time guitarist Alex Johnson delivered one of his trademark guitar solos.
The group led by Johnson, who is also the band’s vocalist and songwriter, spent the early part of 2016 settling in with its new lineup of Riley Godleski on drums and Matt Clegg on bass (replacing original members J.J. O’Connell, the drummer, and bassist Dave Hayes.) But as the year progressed so did the band, and they went on to open sold- out shows for Foreigner, The Yardbirds, Ian Hunter and Richard Lloyd, who called the band, “amazing and inspiring,” in addition to playing their own headlining shows throughout the Northeast.
As far as 2017 goes, the band is gearing up for more shows and plans to record a follow-up to their 2015 album, “The Black Sky Sequined.”
“I have been working on new songs and looking to the future,” said Johnson. “In fact, we have two brand new tunes in the rotation that will most definitely be on the next album we make (and are in the live show). I’m thinking that we’ll book some studio time somewhere this year and put out either a single or an EP. The winter is a great time to slow down and create, and I’m hoping for at least a few more tunes to add to the rotation by the spring.”
Remember to arrive early to Warwick Town Hall, Warwick Common on Route 78,, because all of these shows offer a supper before the show. For this event, The Warwick Arts Council will serve homemade soups, chili, breads and desserts, which will begin at 6 p.m.
The cost of the meal is $5 for adults and $3 for children. Then, head upstairs at 7 p.m. for a night of dancing to the tunes of Colorway.
There is a suggested donation of $5 for the music portion of the evening — that will help pay for the band and support Wooden Fender’s ongoing goal of presenting live music in Warwick.
The series will also feature:
Feb. 11— blues singer Janet Ryan
March (date TBA) — the funky Afrobeat sounds of Shokazoba
April 15 — jazz pianist Khalif Neville
You can also catch Colorway on Sunday, Jan. 22, at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton. They will be opening for British guitarist Davy Knowles.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer who lives in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national magazines. You can contact her at soundslocal@yahoo.com