Grammy Award nominated John Fullbright comes to Marblehead on November 21

On Friday, November 21, John Fullbright makes his me&thee debut. This young Oklahoman has already had a Grammy nominated album and in August made an appearance on the David Letterman show. Come see what all the fuss is about – the buzz about Johnis deafening. Opening is Greg Klyma, a man hellbent on becoming Buffalo’s own Woody Guthrie. Doors open at 7:30 PM for this 8:00 PM show at the me&thee coffeehouse which is located at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead at 28 Mugford Street.

“What’s so bad about happy?” John Fullbright sings on the opening track of his new album, Songs. It’s a play on the writer’s curse, the notion that new material can only come through heartbreak or depression, that great art is only born from suffering. “A normal person, if they find themselves in a position of turmoil or grief, they’ll say, ‘I need to get out of this as fast as I can,’” says Fullbright. “A writer will say, ‘How long can I stay in this until I get something good?’” he laughs. That plainspoken approach is part of what’s fueled the young Oklahoman’s remarkable rise. It was just two years ago that Fullbrightreleased his debut studio album, From The Ground Up, to a swarm of critical acclaim. The LA Times called the record “preternaturally self­assured,” while NPR hailed him as one of the 10 Artists You Should Have Known in 2012, saying “it’s not every day a new artist…earns comparisons to great songwriters like Townes Van Zandt and Randy Newman, but Fullbright’s music makes sense in such lofty company.” The Wall Street Journal crowned him as giving one of the year’s 10 best live performances, and the album also earned him the ASCAP Foundation’s Harold Adamson Lyric Award. If there was any doubt that his debut announced the arrival of a songwriting force to be reckoned with, it was put to rest when From The Ground Up was nominated for Best Americana Album at the GRAMMY Awards, which placed Fullbright alongside some of the genre’s most iconic figures, including Bonnie Raitt. Master songwriter, Jimmy Webb (“By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “Wichita Lineman,” “McArthur Park,” and “Up, Up and Away”) says “I have no doubt that in a short time, John Fullbrightwill be a household name in American music.”

Greg Klyma is a prolific songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and seasoned performer, bringing to every stage a catalog of material that assumes his audiences are both smart and able to laugh. His birth date puts him squarely in the middle of Generation X, but Greg is an old-school troubadour. His enduring themes, articulate and amusing stories, and populist ideals make him one of those rare artists who is carrying the torch of Woody and Ramblin’ Jack. He rolls in off the road, pulls out a guitar, and proceeds to take us back to the basics: family, love, gratitude, and laughter. It’s the timeless art of the true troubadour, keeping alive the American folk tradition.

Tickets for the performance by John Fullbright with Greg Klyma opening are $18 in advance and $21 at the door. Tickets are available online at www.meandthee.org and can be purchased in person at the Spirit of ’76 Bookstore or the Arnould Gallery in Marblehead. The Landing Restaurant at 81 Front Street, Marblehead offers a 10% discount on dinner if you show your ticket or receipt. Enjoy a meal before the show! As at all me & thee coffeehouse events, refreshments are available, including homemade pastries, coffee, and teas. The me & thee has a handicapped-accessible entrance and an accessible bathroom, is a smoke-free environment, and is easily reached by MBTA bus. The me & thee is one of the oldest continually running acoustic coffeehouses in New England, and probably the country. It has been and will always be a volunteer, non-profit organization sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead. For information and directions, call 781-631-8987 or check the website at www.meandthee.org.

Next concert: December 12, 2014 – Griffin House with special guest Connor Garvey