Posts Tagged ‘Ken Roller’
April 2026 VOCAL Songwriters Showcase
On a cool spring night, members of VOCAL got together to hear some hot songs by three of its members: Russell Lawson, Steve Nuckolls, and Ken Roller, performing at O’Toole’s Restaurant.
Beginning the evening was Russell Lawson, a veteran songwriter, who began his set with banjo in hand. He played "Thank You, Pete," a tribute song to Pete Seeger that delineated his career in folk, protest, and civil rights. Switching to guitar, Russell sang "Ice Falling," describing how love can both chill in the past and then melt with the right person.
This was followed by "Mr. Brady’s War," referring to the great Civil War photographer Mathew Brady, who captured images of casualties and destruction. "If You Call Me Now" tells the story of a broken romance from 18 months ago and how the singer is still affected by the breakup; he says even if you call or email now, he won’t respond well.
The next song, "Ol’ Jack and Daddy," described a dual relationship: one, his father’s with Jack Daniel’s whiskey, and two, his own relationship with his family, neither of which had a happy ending. Finally, "The Softness of Early Morning" was a tribute to Russell’s wife, Lynne, saying how she makes him feel and how proud he is to be her man.
Next to perform was Steve Nuckolls, a long time VOCAL member. He began with "Everything's Just Two Good" a word play on the "two" as referred in his lyric by two good arms to hold you , two good eyes to see you etc. "Alcohol" was song with advice about drinking and how it affects those who come in contact with you in this case, daddy. "The Stars of Our Show" describes the wonderment that occurs after dark when the sky fills up with stars. People gather outside on Skyline Drive to look up and celebrate the night, the singer takes his date up on a hill to view the nighttime sky and together claim them as their own . Steve's next song "Wearing My Hometown" says, for the most part, you can move away from your roots, but the aura growing up stays with you wherever you go. "My small town is a blanket that's covered me since birth' says it all.
Christmas songs are everywhere and probably every songwriter has composed one but when have you heard one about living in a snow globe? "Living In A Snow Globe" gives us a great picture of life in the round and under the dome.. It appears pretty much like living in the world at Christmas time. Shaking it up creates snow flakes and kids inside it are making snowmen, carolers are singing and church bells ring out the joyous holiday. In essence, not much different than being outside the dome. he last song in his set "Pedal Steel" doesn't refer to an electric guitar, by far, It's Steve's description of a Sting Ray bike he saw in a catalog and then live in a Walmart parking lot. He was so excited to finally get his own. Riding with the wind in his hair, and the sense of freedom he felt. Years later he found the abandoned bike and took it out for a ride, once again feeling the freedom of speed.
Ken Roller is brings his fine guitar playing to the showcase again, having done one awhile back. He opened his set with "Dream Dance" in which he contemplates a love interest with longing and desire. In one line he states "I want to crawl inside your head for a dream dance with you". In "Share Your Love" the title becomes a mantra for the audience to become part of the show . He is "searching for the key to unlock your love" which may apply to an individual, but invites us all to participate.
"Invisible" is somewhat of a sad tale about wanting to disappear from the world because as he states "The world is no longer mine." the next song, "Oh My Love" is a tribute to his wife and their long marriage. There is longing in his voice as he states "When you're away (I pray) God speeds you home to me" which segues in to his next song "Forgiven" Sort of the opposite idea she is driven away by harsh words and he rues how he spoke, wasting precious night with a drink in his hand. "Your man is broken", he says. Next up, "Can't Find The Sunshine" (The Road) recites the bleakness of life and the many roads the singer has traveled and "Still can't find the sun". To end his set, Ken left us with a love song "Listen To My Heart" in which he tells a lover to "lay your hand on my chest" and "listen to my heart, in will always beat for you".
A great night of music and camaraderie on which to end.
Showcase Photos
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Photo Credits: Matthew Costello, John Ellis, Norman Roscher
September 2024 VOCAL Songwriters Showcase
2024 September VOCAL Showcase
The September 16th showcase featured, Russell Lawson and Ken Roller. Russell has been a long-time member of VOCAL and Ken is a fairly new member.
Russell Lawson
Russell was the first performer. He sings in a clear and understandable vocal style. His first selection was "Montana Wide" a song describing the geography of Montana, the wide-open plains, the clear skies and majestic mountains that could only have been designed by God. This was followed by "Grandma and Me" delivered in the voice of the grandpa talking to the grandkids and assuring them no matter their station in life they will always be welcome back home. "Where Are Your Tears" was a breakup type song where the singer inquired "were you faking it all these years". This was followed by "Lazy Gal Cafe" depicting the patrons who used the cafe as a stopping point as they journeyed along the Santa Fe trail. "Moments" captured the images of the past with a tinge of sadness and heartache. Another cafe stop "Wayne and Maggie's" was about truckers and every folk and country singer who made the cafe a mandatory stop. The song featured Russell's whistling. The last tune in his set was "Penguin Blues" complaining about the cold and ice in his life which was contributing to his blues state of mind.
Ken Roller
Ken Roller kicked off his set, with guitar and drum box, which helped him keep time and add some bass undertones to his songs. First up was a song he wrote for his wife many years ago, "Two Part Harmony" in which he says she was the missing puzzle piece in his life. "The Burn" referred to a relationship in which the other party acted as gasoline to his desire. In "Diversity" despite having different origins and ethnicities we are all made of the same flesh and blood and diversity is what makes life interesting. "Tripping Through These Days" talks about relatability and ignoring the hype we are subject to and accepting each other as we are. "Lines" was a song written with his daughter which talks about how we are connected to each other. "Tell It to My Heart" co-written with Glen King, is a love song in which the singer pleads with his lover to open up and discuss differences so they can come back together. A Pandemic song, "Locked Down", discussed the need for and advantages of vaccines even though some thought they were no magic bullets to stemming Covid. "Live In the Moment" asks us to make the most of each day and find joy in the little things like raking leaves. Next song in his set had Ken reaching out to his audience to "Share Your Love" a 60's type suggestion that we all reach out to each other with unabated love. "In Virginia" was a musical travelogue about the state which Ken wrote in a contest for a state song and extolled the beauty of Shenandoah's fields. Lastly: "Keep Hope Alive" wondered if the singer would get lucky in his pursuit of love for the night.
The 18-song night was enthusiastically received by the attentive audience
Showcase Photos
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Photo Credits: Matthew Costello
July 2023 VOCAL Songwriters Showcase
John Ellis
John kicked off his acoustic-electric set with A Band of Silver, born from overhearing a conversation of a couple discussing the style and purchase of their wedding band. Needless to say, the stone/metal/shine/cost of the ring is nothing compared to the love it should represent! Honestly (featuring really catchy guitar licks) is the tale of the feelings and emotions you experience at the end of a relationship that didn’t go well. Sometimes you just need to let off the steam. He next treated us to his signature tune The Stranger, where he deviated a bit from his usual delivery of this song with a subdued acoustic vibe rather than a driving electric guitar. In this tune he recounts various relationships that were doomed for failure, hence the stranger to love. John ended his set with Autumn Hours, which also has some really cool guitar licks to draw the listener in, dancing around the lyrics of preparing for a cold winter while clearing your mind with cool peaceful nights. Great set, John!
Ken Roller
Ken, a new VOCAL member, then took the stage and treated us to an eclectic variety of tunes. It’s no secret that the love of family is the source of most of his inspiration. Lost Myself in You is a beautiful love song about falling in love with his wife. Goodspeed You Home is another tribute to his wife recounting the time she was traveling and he was home alone with the fireflies and the sunset. Song For David is a very heartfelt song written in memory of his brother whom he dearly loved. Gonna Roll All Night is the reaction to seeing that special look in her eye and not knowing exactly what to make of it (we’ll roll to the left, roll to the right, maybe we’ll roll all night!) Let Me Be There was a tender love song written about his daughter’s birth thirty years ago and which he finally finished with her wedding last year. There were some beautiful images here, always wishing for blue skies but knowing there will be rain, wishing for happiness but knowing there will be pain. The writing of a good song takes time! In Virginia was inspired by an old mill in Hanover County but goes on to describe many of the wonderful treasures in the Commonwealth, such as Shenandoah, Blue Ridge Mountains, Chesapeake Bay, and Mt. Rogers. Diversity is a funky/catchy tune telling us to look beyond the black and white and the prison that enslaves our mind, and instead focus on the beauty within. It Always Beats for You is another song written for his wife at the time their daughter “left the nest”, asking her to put her head on his chest and listen to his heart beating madly for her. Lockdown is another funky groove co-written with Jim Puckett about “Lady Covid” floating in the air, in-between the sheets, etc., a plague topic that we can all relate to! The Road is a minor-keyed number about the churning and grinding, wheels turning, feeling like the road is driving me. Can’t Find The Sunshine For The Rain is a love-gone-south number about hearing distant thunder and seeing the Heavens open up and pour out the truth, reminding me of my love with you. Excellent job, Ken!
Showcase Photos
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April 2023 VOCAL Songwriters Showcase
Monday evening, April 19, marked VOCAL's return to live performances!! Well, sort of...
There were over 20 people gathered at O'Tooles' Forest Hill location, to celebrate our first "live" Songwriters Showcase since the pandemic lockdowns. However, the perfect storm of miscommunications and misunderstandings. Due to the confusion, Jeff Wagner, who was scheduled, wasn't in attendance. He was missed.
Hours before the show it was discovered that O'Toole's closes its kitchen at 9 PM on Mondays and were advised that we shouldn't play past that time as the whole restaurant may close down if there's no bar business. We had a good crowd, and some people had driven a some miles to get there, so someone suggested that we just play without the sound system and see how things went.
So what is one to do? You gather in the bar side of the restaurant, place your drink and food orders, pull your guitars out of their cases, and you stage an unplugged, impromptu "guitar pull"! Erik Gaines, Steve Nuckolls, Jim Puckett, and Ken Roller, passed around their guitars and performed before an appreciative group. Before the evening ended, even a few of the O'Tooles regulars found their way over to our side of the bar.
This reviewer gave up trying to identify titles by the third song, because as good as the songs and performances were, that wasn't the point. What caught my attention were the smiles and hugs, the handshakes and laughter, the music and applause. For the first time since March of 2020, VOCAL was gathered together in the same room, at the same time...that was the point!
And a good time was had by all...
Showcase Photos
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