John Lilly in Concert: January 21st...

John Lilly, multi-talented acoustic music performer from Charleston, West Virginia, will perform on Saturday,January 21st at 7:30 p.m.  Lilly specializes in Americana, country roots, and traditional folk music, writing new songs that sound as old as the hills, and performing older songs like they were made yesterday. According to one reviewer, “If Hank Williams had a sunny disposition, he’d be John Lilly.” Tickets for the 7:30 Evening Series show are $13 for adults, $11 for seniors, and $5 for students. Tickets can be purchased at the RCCAC office by phone at (304) 637-2355, with credit or debit card, or at the door while they last. Doors will open thirty minutes before show time.

Lilly has released six self-produced CDs. His latest, “Cold Comfort,” debuted at the #1 position on the Freeform American Root (FAR) radio chart and features guest artists Bill Kirchen, Sonny Landreth and Tim O’Brien. “Haunted Honky Tonk” achieved the #1 position on both the Freeform American Roots (FAR) and the Euro Americana radio charts in 2007. Bluegrass Unlimited magazine called John’s 2002 “Broken Moon” release one of the “most unusual and interesting acoustic disks of the year.” His 2005 CD “Blue Highway” is a collaboration with legendary Tennessee fiddler Ralph Blizard. "John Lilly Live on Red Barn Radio," released in 2010, features Lilly in an intimate solo setting.

Lilly is recognized internationally as a powerful performing songwriter. He was the winner of the 2010 “Next Great Road Song” contest, sponsored by Midas and Spin. His song “Come and Go” placed first in the acoustic category, out of more than 1,200 song entries. In 2005, he won the national Ghost Writers In the Sky songwriting contest, sponsored by HankFest, a Chicago-based festival honoring the music of Hank Williams. John won a customized guitar for his original song “Blue Highway.” He was a finalist in the 2002 Chris Austin Songwriting Competition at MerleFest in Wilkesboro, North Carolina, chosen from 853 entries and placing third in the Country category for his song "Broken Moon." John Lilly’s 2008 and 2010 Mountain Stage radio performances are available at NPR Music.

Lilly was born in Illinois in 1954 and has traveled and performed widely, including three tours of Scotland and visits to 48 states. A former member of the Green Grass Cloggers dance team, John spent years playing traditional string band music with groups including Ralph Blizard and the New Southern Ramblers. He is a former tour guide at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, and is currently editor of West Virginia’s Goldenseal magazine.

“My years in Elkins, from 1992 until 1997, was a magical and rewarding time for me,” recalls Lilly. “I worked for the Augusta Heritage Center and graduated from Davis & Elkins College; my wife and I bought our first home and had both of our children there. We were members of Davis Memorial Presbyterian Church, and I was a frequent emcee at the Augusta concerts.”

Lilly continues, “This will be my first full concert performance there since leaving Elkins nearly 15 years ago. I still have many friends in Elkins and Randolph County and hope to see many familiar faces. I am so looking forward to catching up with old friends and sharing new music. It will be what we used to call ‘Old Home Week!’”

Sponsors for the Family Concert Series and the Evening Concert Series, as well as the RCCAC Outreach Program, are Allegheny Insurance, The Inter-Mountain, WDNE Radio, FirstEnergy Foundation, Graceland Inn and Conference Center, Family Dental Practice, Davis Health Systems, Parrack Insurance, and several anonymous donors. In addition, the series are funded by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, and the National Endowment for the Arts, with approval from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts, as well as Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour (a program developed and funded by The Heinz Endowments), the William Penn Foundation, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (a state agency), and The Pew Charitable Trusts, and administered by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.