ROOTS HQ is located on the southeast corner of the Fayetteville Square, in a historic 1880's building that was home to the Guisinger Music House from 1925 to 1981. The ROOTS HQ plays host to intimate listening room concerts year-round.
All floor tickets for this show are general admission, but seated unless otherwise noted)
(VIP tables are available at this show: Mezzanine Level "Table for 4 or Table for 6" )
John Smith BIO
https://www.johnsmithjohnsmith.com
‘The Fray’ is Smith’s sixth studio album, written and recorded in a universally difficult 2020, and his vulnerability throughout is offered to his listeners, unadorned. “It’s been a hell of a year, but I feel I’ve created my most honest work as a result, and as a necessity. A lot of these songs are about accepting that life is hard, but just holding on and trying to enjoy it anyway.” Smith’s stubborn optimism in tough circumstances shines through on the title track, in which he sings “Holding onto hope / I don’t need a decent reason / Yes and though it disappears sometimes / It returns with every season”.
Smith co-produced ‘The Fray’ with long-time friend and producer Sam Lakeman. They recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studio, with pianist Jason Rebello (Sting, John Mayer), bass player Ben Nicholls (Seth Lakeman, Nadine Shah), Drummer Jay Sikora (Paolo Nutini) and Jessica Staveley-Taylor of The Staves. The album is a true reflection of the times, with American collaborators Sarah Jarosz, Courtney Hartman, The Milk Carton Kids and Bill Frisell recording remotely and sending contributions over international borders. John’s frequent touring partner Lisa Hannigan contributed via a virtual studio session in Dublin.
Smith co-wrote a couple of songs for the album whilst on tour before the pandemic. Driving a rental car from Asheville to Nashville, John stopped to write the standout track ‘Eye to Eye’ with North Carolina-based Sarah Siskind. The Americana influence is a red thread throughout the album which beautifully compliments Smith’s unmistakable British Folk roots.
With 10 weeks in the US Americana top 50 charts, and with strong coverage in AP, Mojo, Sunday Times, No Depression, Guitar Magazine, and The Fretboard Journal, backed up with over 2million streams in the first two months of release alone, ‘The Fray’ is set to become John’s most successful and critically acclaimed album.
Smith was born in Essex and raised on the Devon seaside. Known for his intimate songwriting, his honey-on-gravel voice and pioneering guitar playing, he has spent the last fifteen years touring internationally and has amassed over 55 million streams on Spotify. As a session musician he has played guitar with artists as diverse as Joan Baez, David Gray, Joe Henry, Lianne La Havas and Tom Jones.
'Smith's voice is a rare and deeply soulful combination of granite and velvet’ - THE SUNDAY TIMES
‘Aching, doggedly optimistic and gently spangled with hooks’ - MOJO
‘There’s a comforting sway to the album’s melodic folk-pop, built on Smith’s subtle guitar work...12 tunes of resilience, devotion and hope, with determination
in the lyrics and buoyancy in the music.’ - ASSOCIATED PRESS
‘An album of searing honesty and lithe beauty whose songs amplify the emotions and experiences of so many of us this year—the reassessed relationships, the self-reflection, and the ultimate search for hope.’ - THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION
FOLK SCHOOL OF FAYETTEVILLE is a 501(c)3 non-profit music organization popularly known as Fayetteville Roots.
For over a 13 years we have carried out our mission to connnect community through music and food. Over that time we have fostered concerts & community/educational events in Northwest Arkansas. We believe in our music community and strive to create opportunies for connections and learning.
In 2022 one of our signature events, the Fayetteville Roots Festival, was paused. 2023 brings a new chapter and a new location for our organization. The Folk School of Fayetteville, located in the historic Walker Stone House near the Fayetteville Square, will open in late Spring 2023 with space for lessons, classes, workshops, jams, and more.
What is a Folk School and why do you need to know about it?
Folk Schools originated as a way for communities to learn from each other, especially vital to communities that didn’t have access to “formal education”. Folk Schools create an environment that encourages People teaching People, rather than a classical education approach of Professor and Student.
Folk School of Fayetteville is continuing this model by providing space for musicians to learn from each other, for new players to learn, and for long time musicians to develop new technique and skills — and this is available to ALL the FOLKS (people). Folk School is open to all genres, identities, and cultures, and is excited to host music that is as dynamic and varied as our community.
Folk School of Fayetteville is buit on the body of work (13 years) of Fayetteville Roots Festival, and is fostered on many of its guiding principles:
Create opportunities for our music community
Support and present multivaried music genres, identities, & cultures
Commitment to free & low-cost community learning
Creative re-use of existing urban spaces
Collaboration with the community & music/arts organizations
Low waste & low impact sustainable events
Find more Folk School of Fayetteville Events and Music events in Fayetteville
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