Thank YOU, thank YOU, thank YOU. Hello Again! Welcome to another wonderful collaboration between East Side Story and The Post. Let me be the first to officially, whole-heartedly welcome you to the recap and recording of the 126th epic edition of East Side Storytellin’! Like the 125, I repeat … 125, previous shows East Side Story has put together, we all decided to take a break from our busy schedules all over town in order to sit back and relax and get everyone cultured up just right in the form of a Nashville writer reading from original prose, followed by an amazing local musician performing and talking about their original music, and then a round-up creative conversation with all featured guests of this event to talk about their individual journeys and personal ties to Nashville. Without further ado, fulfilling the entertainment portion of your day, this is the recap and recording of East Side Storytellin’ 126. Let us begin, again.
The first featured artist of the night is an artist who was born in Savannah, TN, during the biggest full moon the Earth has ever seen in Hardin County. He is an 8th generation descendant of said county’s founder, no relation to the full moon though. He is a graduate of Austin Peay State University with a BS in English and a MFA in Poetry from the University of Alabama (Roll Tide!). He is the author of 2 chapbooks, Deep in the Shallows and The Slow Hill Out, as well as 5 collections of poetry, because he is such a slacker. Speaking of brilliant slackers, this artist has been known to go on a literary road trip or two with fellow Nashville scribe Tony Earley. I believe a movie about one of the trips is under development. At the very least, it should be, but we’ll talk more about that after the reading and the music. He’s been published in The Southern Review, North American Review, The Gettysburg Review, and basically every single publication that ends in Review. He’s this good, y’all. Some people may know him as a professor of English at Columbia State Community College or the editor for the online journal One, but we are delighted to know him as just friend. The room was packed and the applause was plentiful for our dear friend, Jeff Hardin.
Jeff opened his reading by paying tribute to a near and dear friend and fellow poet, Michael Williams. Michael had passed away suddenly in the middle of the night the night before this show and two days before he was scheduled to read his own poetry at Scarritt Bennett. I only met Michael in passing once or twice, but it is fairly obvious to anyone who met him or heard him speak in church or read his original work in public that this was a soul that the universe needed to have and hear during the times we are currently living in. Jeff said a few kind words and then shared one of Michaels’ poems that he had received as part of a poem-a-day swap with Michael not too long ago. It was the perfect way to set the tone of the night and the rainy/snowy weather on the first official day of Spring in Nashville. You can see a beautiful quote and picture from Jeff to Michael at the very bottom of this blog.
Jeff then jumped head and heart into his own material. Lately, Jeff told me that he has been delightfully experiencing an extreme period of output out of the blue. In the past few weeks, he has churned out some quality poems that have connected with the concept derived from an older original work that included the phrase and charge of “taking up the cause of …” Jeff mentioned that this sort of thing happens to him quite frequently when the mighty muses show up on his front door step. What happens a lot of times in Jeff’s creative process is that he is struck with a lightning bolt of a concept that then sparks the wildfire of productivity. On top of the “taking up the cause of …”, Jeff mentioned another poem that was involved in a series that started with the thought of “a poem is …” I was not the only one in the crowd who really appreciated both the honesty and the big reveal behind the process of what works best for a master wordsmith like Jeff, but when you match the process with someone with so much natural talent who practices to be a better artist daily, it really is something special to write home about. In fact, I wrote my mom and dad a text about it after the show.
It won’t take you very long at all to notice in the recording of the show how Jeff’s work is a beautiful blend of elements of nature, humanity, humility, and hope, wrapped in a perfect size combination for you to digest comfortably in one sitting. His work is simple and true. It made me feel like I was watching a professional athlete to their thing on the field of play. You know, when they are so good that it makes everything look so easy and that everyone should be able to do it. Right after the set was finished, Drew asked me if I wrote poetry while he was helping set up the music. I told him not really, but I feel like I should. That’s another gift that Jeff Hardin has within his personality and prose. He paints majestic paintings that anyone with sight can see and relate to on so many levels, but his work also inspires you to want to practice more to become an artist in your own right. I’m not sure there is a better gift that any artist can take away from their work. I can write for days about each poem he shared, but I’d rather you take the time to listen to him read his work in the recording below. He writes and reads it much better than I could ever review or speculate. You’ll thank me in the morning.
Our featured musician of the night is no stranger to the East Side Storytellin’ family. She once sang back-up for our mutual friend and local artist by the name of Drew Kohl (You can read about and listen to that show here- http://eastsidestorytn.com/east-side-storytellin-87-when-we-celebrated-drews-birthday-with-great-music-and-amazing-poetry/). She is her own front man-front person, if you will, for this evening. Occasionally, other special guests, like Drew and more, will intervene and help share the stage to incorporate more music makers, movers, and shakers into her songs. She originally hails from Hammond, IN, where, interesting note, her great great grandmother invented the first Hammond organ (we didn’t have anyone in the crowd fact checking or denying that claim so just continue to go with it then). She is now a Nashville-based Americana artist inspired by folk and roots music. As you will soon bear witness to, she is filled with dynamic vocals and haunting storytelling. Her songs walk a tightrope, planting each step equally with both the grace at the heart of folk music and the steadfast confidence of an experienced rock and roller soul. Point being, this artist is a collective breath of fresh air. Reunited with her good friend Drew and feeling so good, it was an honor to formally put the featured spotlight on the amazingly talented Kiely Connell!
Not to jump to the end of the set in the first paragraph, but I just did. After the final song ended and Jeff joined Kiely and me on stage for the interview portion of the show, Jeff mentioned that he and his friend in the crowd leaned over at the same time after the first two songs were sung and they both said that they had just experienced genius work and storytelling. I couldn’t agree more. Kiely came out of the gates with nothing but her best. One was a song about a diner, Caroline’s Corner Café to be exact, and another song about the blues that really burn. Both songs were layered as thick as Jeff’s poetry and just as wonderful to digest. Plus Kiely’s voice is pretty much sent from the heavens and shot out of a cannon that bypasses your ear drums and smacks your soul.
But one of the great things about this night was that Kiely and Drew reunited together. Like I said before, Kiely’s voice is from another dimension, and her lyrics read like short stories inspired by real life dramas from the old Western front and South of the border too, but the simple melodies brought by the addition of Drew’s backing vocals and intricate guitar picking add just the right flavor to the finished cuisine. The way Drew added a few finger-picking moments in between choruses at just the right moments (that never once stole the spotlight even once), felt like a meal that had just the right spices added to the already perfectly cooked meal that you never expected to have on a random night. I’m not really sure why I’m talking so much about eating and food and digesting with this particular show. I already ate before writing this so I know I’m not writing this or shopping while hungry. I guess what I’m trying to say is that with this show I really just want to eat it all up every single day. Maybe we all are starving for more truth and honesty in this day and age, back to what Jeff mentioned at the beginning of the show in regards to Michael Williams being a model of love and what a man should be today.
Kiely and Drew ended their set with a song about someone looking like they’ve gone through the ringer, but it really ain’t nobody’s business but their own. It was another outstanding mix of melodies and lyrics that took us all all the way home for the night. It was a great closer that opened the gates for me to ask more personal questions to both Kiely and Jeff during the interview portion. As usual, both featured artists went above and beyond the call of duty to answer as honestly and openly and candidly as I could ever ask of any guests. I loved the fact that Kiely had her family in the crowd to witness this special occasion and support her in her next big steps towards releasing her first full length album this year. I also really loved how Jeff spoke about his college buddy in the crowd who used to call him out about his poetry that reminded others of Duran Duran during their college days. A lot of us thought that would be an excellent theme or title to his next book. Either way you look at it, it was another unforgettable show that provided just the right amount of love and attention and talent to the table for everyone to appreciate for days and years to come. I know I’m a more inspired artist and human after experiencing everything these artists shared on this given night. I am eternally grateful to call these people friends.
So, here is the edited recording of East Side Storytellin’ 126, the night when Jeff Hardin and Kiely Connell (& Drew Kohl) shared their time and talents with everyone who was fully present to appreciate it. We recorded the show at The Post East on Tuesday, March 20, 2018. You can listen to and share this link with all of your family and friends and strangers alike. Thank you for your time, and enjoy the show!
Before I say goodbye for this round of fun, I’d like to give a big round of thanks for Jeff & Kiely (& Drew) for sharing their stories, talents, and time with us.
You can read more about Jeff’s work here- jeffhardin.weebly.com
You can listen to more of Kiely’s music here – https://soundcloud.com/kiely-connell
You can listen to this show, edited, soon, alongside the previous shows too, on our website, www.eastsidestorytn.com, at our In Our Own Words Tab – see here – www.eastsidestorytn.com/in-our-own-words
I’ll keep the gratitude going for Tom Eizonas, my lovely wife and most talented artist in Emily Harper Beard (efharper), and everyone that came out live to support the show … and to everyone who has helped continue to spread the word and support the show online afterwards.
Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to give one last shout out to Tonya and Chris for making The Post so welcoming and positively life-changing for the East Nashville community at large.
Our next show will be
East Side Storytellin’ 127
Tuesday, April 3rd
at The Post (1701 Fatherland Street) at 7pm
reading- John Winston Heacock
singing- Pepper Said (Madison Pepper)
That said, that’s all for East Side Storytellin’ 126 and another fabulous event at The Post with East Side Story at the helm. Thanks for coming out and sharing the good word and giving some love to all of these great Nashville artists and our creative ideas. Please remember to be nice to one another out there. I repeat, please be nice to one another.
Much love,
mE
PS- As promised, here is the tribute post by Jeff Hardin for his friend Michael Williams on the morning of this extraordinary show, hours after Michael passed away. I thought this post and picture were very fitting for most everyone who is also in mourning because another great human has left us too soon.
Jeff wrote, “Oh there is weeping today among so many in the Nashville writing community (and beyond) for the loss of this beautiful man, Michael Williams. What a grand and great joy he was. What a brilliant miracle of God. He filled everything and everyone with love. It poured out of him with ease and warmth. We need more men like him.”
