Nick Annis, Sally Spring to Perform in Mt. Vernon

Come Friday evening, all folksongs fans’ steps will lead to St. Aidan’s where award-winning singer-songwriters Nick Annis and Sally Spring will be sharing the stage as part of Focus Music concert series.

Spring said the two musicians will take the stage at different times and will not be complementing each other.

“We are really two different acts,” Spring said. “We are doing what is called co-billing—in other words, we are both featured artists on one stage at different times. He will do his material and his songs, and I will do mine with my husband.

Spring’s husband, Ted Lyons, who sometimes accompanies her, will be on an acoustic resonator guitar and harmonies.

Spring said she started singing long before she could talk. She gets her inspiration from The Beatles, Hank Williams and Bob Dylan among others. She said she might do a Johnny Cash cover (another one of her key influences) on Friday to connect with members of the audience who may not be familiar with her American folksong compositions. She said there were no limits to her sources of inspiration.

“I get inspiration from everywhere,” Spring said. “I get it from friends, from life experiences, from newspapers, from just the way things are working or not working out. It is just inspirational to work through challenges life might impose.” 

Annis—the other evening show—started his musical career after winning an open mic contest at a coffeehouse in Florida 10 years ago. He blends spoken word with music, like his influences Paul Simon, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce and others. Annis said he finds the spoken word, either plain or set to music and accompanied by instruments, more alive than anything written.

While he has not performed for anyone famous, Annis said his career is "a hundred times better" than what he dreamed it could be.

 “It's folk music,” Annis said. “There is no fame or associated fame to be found. We strive to be slightly less obscure than we once were.”

Annis, who sometimes creates his performance set with inspiration from attendee’s bumper stickers said he did not know what songs he would perform, although “Home Depot” and “You Can't Be The Good Guy If You Do What The Bad Guys Do” were sure to be on the list as well as some new compositions.

Fame or not, Annis said connection with the audience is what keeps him coming back to Virginia.

“The idea of getting paid to do something that I would do for free is the lure that hooks you in,” Annis said. “But I think that most performers in this genre are not much different. We put in our time because something happens at a live show when it's done well, we have a shared experience that we can't really find elsewhere.  That's what brings us back.”

The show is set to go live at 7 p.m. Tickets are $18 for general admission, or $15 in advance at www.focusmusic.org