Garvey to play April 28 fundraiser at MHS
A former son of South Berwick who is now known on the national music scene will be performing later this month at Marshwood High School, where he graduated in 2002.
Connor Garvey, who lives in Portland now, and his six-piece studio band will hit the high school stage 7 pm Friday, April 28 to raise funds for South Berwick’s summer concert series.
“I’m beyond excited to have Connor and his band bringing their remarkable musical offerings to Marshwood High School,” said musician Chip Harding, who recorded Garvey when he was still a teenager. “Local folks should have a chance to witness what one of their own is doing on the national folk scene.”
For Garvey, the chance to return to his hometown and to help the concert series was a no-brainer.
“When Chip asked me to bring the band down to do this show, it was only a matter of finding the date, the ‘yes’ was unquestionable,” said Garvey.
Marshwood sophomore Mackie Bogh of South Berwick, who has performed at the Hot Summer Nights concerts, will open for Garvey.
Known for meaningful lyrics and good story-telling, Garvey’s 2002 debut album, “Hello Life,” was recorded in Harding’s studio. Since then, Garvey has won awards from Kerrville Folk Fest, Rocky Mountain Folks Fest, SolarFest and Wildflower Art and Music Festival. He also won the Most Wanted artist title at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival in 2014 and was named a top singer-songwriter by the Sirius SM show “The Coffeehouse.”
“Another End of a Year,” his eighth album, was recently released with 11 songs.
“Connor isn’t afraid to tackle some heavy-duty subjects” according to one reviewer.
Harding, who is producing the fundraiser with the Hot Summer Nights committee, remembers being impressed right away with Connor as he and his junior high school band, Electric Hazard, recorded an album.
“I was impressed with Connor’s songwriting even then,” said Harding, who sets up the lineup of young openers for Hot Summer Nights. “But I was just blown away by it when he recorded his first solo album.”
In talking about his early days in music, Garvey noted that his parents were part of the Salmon Falls Friends of Music, which brought together musicians in the Seacoast and “set the stage for me to love acoustic music.”
He also credited teachers at Marshwood, including Reenie Martin, Nancy Oliver-Gruen and Nicole St. Pierre, who founded the Hot Summer Nights concert series more than 20 years ago. He recalls being the opening act at Hot Summer Nights for the nationally known Slaid Cleaves of South Berwick, whose lyrics and music had been introduced by St. Pierre in language arts classes.
And finally, Garvey said playing acoustic sets at SoBo Books and Coffee was part of his early growth as a musician.
“We had open mics and some of our first acoustic shows were there,” he said. “I still search out that feeling every time I perform.”
Though he often plays in Portsmouth and has sold out the Music Hall Loft, Garvey says the truest version of a hometown show is a Hot Summer Nights show in the auditorium at Marshwood.
“I’m sure I’ll close my eyes,” he said, “and 20 plus years of life will vanish and I’ll be in touch with the core.”
Tickets for Connor Garvey and his band are $25 and available through sobocentral.org
