Nanci & Townes: Remembering two Texas troubadours

Sunday, October 23rd, 5 P.M. at The Long Island Museum, Stony Brook

WUSB’S Sunday Series returns and continues its tradition of honoring seminal singer-songwriters with an evening devoted to the songs of Nanci Griffith and Townes Van Zandt, two Texas-based artists.

Participating are Gene Casey, Delaney Hafener (of the Belle Curves), Caroline Doctorow, Bryan Gallo, Ray Lambiase, Mary Lamont w/ Jim Marchese, Pete Mancini, Dave March, Gerry McKeveny, and Quarter Horse. 

Pete Mancini will emcee the evening which will benefit the Sunday Street Series and WUSB.

The event is co-produced by Pete and Charlie Backfish and a collaboration of WUSB’s Sunday Street Series, The Long Island Museum, and The Greater Port Jefferson Art’s Council.

Nanci Griffith’s passing on August 13, 2021 was universally mourned in the music world. This Austin native received critical acclaim for a career that included sixteen original studio albums as well as two ‘covers’ collections, paying homage to songwriters who influenced her own writing. On the first of those two collections, ‘Other Voices, Other Rooms, she included her version of Townes Van Zandt’s ‘Tecumseh Valley.’ Her song, Up Against the Rain is about Van Zandt.

Townes Van Zandt, from Fort Worth, has been considered influential not only by Nanci Griffith but by countless artists cutting across several musical genres. Many of his songs are regarded as masterpieces of songwriting with Steve Earle recently recording an entire album of them. Van Zandt passed away on New Year’s Day, 1997, at age 52. In the 2000’s, extensive interest in him resulted in two books and a documentary film.

Tickets are $20.00 at www.sundaystreet.org