Cheryl Wheeler
On Saturday, February 7th at 7:30 PM Cheryl Wheeler, a consummate entertainer, will play her brand of folk music at the Rockport Opera House, 6 Central Street in Rockport.
SingOut says Cheryl Wheeler is a “Rare artist…strong poetry, complex melodies, clever wit.”
FAME says: “Cheryl Wheeler is an anomaly on the acoustic music scene. She has a rare gift for writing songs with lush melodies and lyrics of incredible beauty. On the other hand, she is a master of quick wit. Her observational humor has brought us a number of songs describing the utter ridiculousness of the world around us. And then there is the richness of her silky alto telling us what lies in the deepest recesses of her songwriter’s heart.”
It has always seemed as if there were two Cheryl Wheelers, with fans of the New England songwriter relishing watching the two tussle for control of the mic. There is poet-Cheryl, writer of some of the prettiest, most alluring and intelligent ballads on the modern folk scene. And there is her evil twin, comic-Cheryl, a militant trend defier and savagely funny social critic. The result is a delightful contrast between poet and comic.
Poet-Cheryl writes achingly honest songs of love and loss. Contrasting the prosaic landscapes of her native small-town America with the hopelessly rootless life of the traveling performer, she touches the common chords with any who feel the tug between our busy, clamorous times and the timeless longing for simplicity and silence. Her deceptively plain-spun songs have been hits for such mainstream stars as Suzy Bogguss (Aces) and Dan Seals (Addicted), and have been recorded by everyone from Bette Midler, Maura O’Connell, and Peter Paul and Mary; to Juice Newton and Garth Brooks.
Comic-Cheryl comes on like Groucho-in-a-housecoat; a fiercely everyday woman with a barbed-wire tongue. Shredding the mores of our gossipy, greedy, trend-obsessed culture, Wheeler always aims enough darts at herself to never seem sanctimonious. Wheeler was born in the small town of Timonium, Maryland. The wistful rural vistas she glimpses so poignantly through her fleeting windshield really do represent the deep pull of place she feels in her wandering life. With the possible exception of Greg Brown, no modern songwriter comes to mind who can write as convincingly about the sheer, simple-hearted joy of a nice day; whether a warm spring one spent driving down southern back roads, or a chilly gray one spent thinking properly dark thoughts at a bayside hotel. Where others seek the startling image, the ‘Big Event,’ Wheeler wraps her songs around the familiar image, the shared event. When it’s comic-Cheryl’s turn, the poet simply turns over the mic and allows the comic to be displayed in her native habitat: the stage. Wheeler can comically lampoon modern culture while thoughtfully teasing herself and the audience.
As the two forces smooth their conflict, taking their separate turns and melding into the same artistic vision, Wheeler emerges as a gifted and openhearted songwriter approaching the sure summit of her craft. Audience members’ abilities to find their own lives reflected in the sweet spaces of her songs reveals an artist comfortably wearing the austere genius that defines folk music’s best traditions. More confidently and beautifully than ever before, she proves that the poet and the comic are one and the same.
Seating is by general admission, doors open at 6:45 PM to get great seats. Buy your tickets in advance to save two bucks per ticket. Tickets cost $24.75 in adv, $26.75 at the door. Purchase tickets online at www.cerial.com , over the phone 207-542-0070 or in person with cash or a check, in… Camden at the Owl & Turtle Bookshop 32 Washington St. or Wild Rufus 22 Main Street or in Rockland at The Grasshopper Shop on Main St.
Presented by Cerial Concerts – Great Music At Affordable Prices
