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Daryl Ann Beeghley, Sandra Lambert, David Ledgerwood, Gerald Sheppard, and Darris Stanley will share their original music during April’s Songwriters Showcase.
Daryl Ann Beeghley is a Canadian-born singer/songwriter who has lived all over the U.S., and now resides in Abingdon, Va. She has always loved words and music and wrote her first song at age 17. She relishes the challenge of writing across different styles: Americana, folk, country, devotional, and blues, and appreciates the way music can help us tell our stories. Daryl Ann is an active member of SoHA (Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia).
Sandra Lambert grew up East Tennessee and is now enjoying retirement with her husband Rich. In 2018 during her pre-retirement years, she started learning the mountain dulcimer and wrote her first song. She credits the mountain dulcimer as her gate-way instrument that led her to learning the ukulele, tenor guitar, bowed psaltery and writing more songs. She has more than 50 songs under her belt and learns a little more about the craft of songwriting with each song she writes. She is a member of the Knoxville Area Dulcimer Club, the Songwriters of Highland Appalachia, and helped to start the Boones Creek Dulcimer Clan monthly jam. Occasionally, she and her husband perform as The Butternuts. She likes all kinds of music and enjoys songs that tell a story. A few of her songs are on her YouTube channel and she has plans to get her songs loaded to a streaming platform.
David Ledgerwood was born in 1957 in Bluefield, W.Va. As a child, he quickly found music to be one of his favorite pursuits (shame it wasn’t academics), his father giving him an acoustic guitar when he was nine years old. As a child, the air around him was soaked with diverse and creative music; rock, soul, funk, folk, and he loved it all. He sang myself to sleep many nights, keeping a transistor radio by his pillow. Focusing more on electric guitar in his youth and then on acoustic guitar in his 30s and 40s, he has learned to travel and enjoy “both lanes” of the guitar highway. Now well into his 60s, David shares his love of music with his cherished wife (Ann), performing acoustically as a duet and also in leading the Ledgerwood Blues Band, playing every fourth Friday at Sweetbay Brewing Company in Abingdon, Va. Joining our local Songwriter’s of Highlands Appalachia writers group has encouraged him to develop his songwriting skills and offer a part of who he is to others, packaged in a song….what a great blessing. David and Ann live in Glade Spring along with their pet family, Duke, Dolly, Spanky, Rocky, Stevie Ray, Eddie Van, Ruthie Grace, Bootsy, Franky, and Alfie.
Originally from the Tri-Cities area of Northeast Tennessee, Gerald Sheppard has actively pursued his passion of music since he was a child when he started beating around on the family upright piano at the age of five. As a graduate from East Tennessee State University, he worked in the Engineering Division of a large chemical company for many years before taking early retirement. He has actively played fingerstyle guitar since he was a teen, and has worked as a guitarist, playing “cocktail” guitar music in venues and for special occasions for many years. His instrumental music consists of both popular covers and original compositions. Gerald also enjoyed a successful guitar-building career for twenty-five years. His high-end instruments are world-renowned as some of the finest guitars in the world. In 2005, one of his instruments was used as the cover model for the Grammy-Award-winning CD for Best Instrumental Album, “Henry Mancini: Pink Guitar” (an instrumental guitar tribute to Henry Mancini). Gerald began writing and performing his own lyrical songs in 2018. His interest is primarily in writing ballads and story songs. He currently incorporates them into his performances in local venues where they are well received for their often emotionally touching and heartwarming content. His high-resolution content and music may be enjoyed on his YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@gdshepp.
Darris Stanley grew up in the coal fields of Southwest Virginia, and currently lives in Northeast Tennessee. He is an artist, musician, songwriter, and poet, as well as a former professional boxer. He has written more than 200 songs, made two studio albums of original music, and was formerly on the label of Houston River records.
The quarterly Songwriters Circle Showcase is an extension of the weekly Songwriters Circle program, organized by Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia, and will consist of artists who participate in the weekly Circle. The Showcase event is structured similarly to “in the round” events, with each songwriter introducing themselves and their song, which will be performed with or without accompaniment. The songwriter will then hold a discussion about the piece–the origins of the song, its structure, and inspiration–and take questions.
Led by Mary Munsey, a local musician, educator and founder of Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia, the weekly Songwriters Circle is open to songwriters of all ages and skill levels. The Circle encourages participants to share songs, brainstorm ideas, and support one another in their creative endeavors. Songwriter Circles are held the second Saturday of each month at the museum, 2-5 p.m. There is no cost to participate.
“The Songwriters Circle aims to foster a collaborative environment for songwriting,” said Munsey. “Importantly, aspiring songwriters do not need to play an instrument to join in the fun.”
The Songwriters Circle not only provides an opportunity for performance and networking, but also emphasizes the importance of clarity and storytelling in songwriting. The group’s mission is to encourage creativity, introduce songwriting shows to regional audiences, and elevate the appreciation of songwriting as a valuable art form.
About Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia
Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia is led by Mary Munsey, a local musician and educator, recently retired from Virginia Highlands Community College. The program offers a great deal of flexibility in its format for attendees, with varied songwriting interests and abilities. Some of the attendees play instruments and some are curious about songwriting and the process. Lyrics can sometimes only pare up with others that play instruments and put music with the words. Some writers don’t sing, but enjoy hearing others perform their songs. Some of the performances can be a cappella. Some members of the group write one to three songs between sessions and some write more. Sometimes as busy as life gets, writers don’t get to write new material between meetings. We don’t pressure anyone to write, and we don’t criticize anyone. We treat each other with respect. We don’t discuss politics, use profanity, or write antagonistic lyrics.
The focus is not on the beauty of the voice or skill of the instrumentation, but the clearness of the pronunciation and the effect of the song. We work on making sure the audience can hear every word. We are not professional musicians but we are creators of musical stories and that is the beauty of it. The sessions are open to anyone visiting the museum. Genres are not specified. Songs can be instrumental, folk, country, bluegrass, Americana, blues, humorous, jazz, R&B, electronic, and even pop, to name a few. Writers are allowed to bring CDs for sale and to accept tips after performances.
For more information about the Songwriters Showcase and Songwriters Circle programs, visit the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org. For more information on Songwriters of Highlands Appalachia, HighlandsAppalachia.org.
