The intimate, indoor Event Gallery at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts will host An Evening with Jimmy Webb on Saturday, November 3 at 8:00 p.m. and Judy Collins: Holiday & Hits on Friday, December 14th at 8:00 p.m. Reserved seating tickets will go on-sale to the general public on Friday, April 20th at 10:00 a.m. at www.BethelWoodsCenter.org.
Plus, prior to the
Jimmy Webb concert, make a night of it and start the evening with a pre-concert, multi-course farm-to-table dinner presented by Bethel Woods' own Executive Chef Armand Vanderstighel, taking place in the Market Sheds. More information about the
Judy Collins pre-show dining experience will be announced soon.
Jimmy Webb is an American songwriter, composer and singer known worldwide as a master of his trade. Not many artists can say they premiered a classical nocturne and had a rap hit with
Kanye West ("Do What You Gotta Do" and "Famous") in the same year, but Jimmy's career is full of surprises. Since his first platinum hit "The Worst That Could Happen," Webb has had numerous hits including "Up, Up and Away," "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," "Wichita Lineman," "Galveston," "All I Know" and "MacArthur Park," and has also become a leader and mentor in the industry as a champion for songwriters.
Webb is the only artist ever to have received Grammy Awards for music, lyrics and orchestration. His numerous accolades include the prestigious Ivor Novella International Award (2012) and the Academy of Country Music's Poet Award (2016). In 2016 Rolling Stone listed Webb as one of the top 50 songwriters of all time.
Jimmy Webb was the youngest person ever inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and served as its Chairman. He has also served proudly as the Vice Chair of ASCAP. Time and again Webb has paved the way for songwriters in an ever-changing media landscape, spearheading the ongoing effort to preserve the rights of songwriters and their intellectual property in a world of free downloads.
Webb is also an author - his memoir The Cake and the Rain (April 2017) brings to life a 15-year span in Webb's unique career, written with the same sense of poetry and story as his many hits. Webb's first book, Tunesmith: Inside the Art of Songwriting, in addition to being a good read, is considered a "bible" among musicians.
Jimmy Webb's songs have been recorded by some of the greatest voices of all time including
Frank Sinatra,
Barbra Streisand,
Elvis Presley,
Isaac Hayes,
Art Garfunkel,
Linda Ronstadt,
Michael Feinstein and
Judy Collins as well as bands like R.E.M. Per BMI, his song "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" was the third most performed song in the 50 years between 1940 and 1990. Webb continues to write and record, and has released ten solo albums since the 1970s, while also writing for other artists. His latest two CDs, Just Across the River and Still Within the Sound of My Voice, feature duets with friends including
Billy Joel,
Jackson Browne,
Vince Gill,
Willie Nelson,
JD Souther,
Glen Campbell, Lucinda Williams,
Mark Knopfler,
Brian Wilson,
Lyle Lovett and
Keith Urban, among others.
Webb currently tours the world (50 concerts in 2016) with a variety of concerts, "An Evening with
Jimmy Webb" - a humorous master class of songs and stories; "
Jimmy Webb: The
Glen Campbell Years" - a multimedia celebration of his friend and collaborator; and a Pops concert. In October 2016 Webb premiered his "Nocturne for Piano and Orchestra (Nocturne for "Lefty")". Webb is happily married to
Laura Savini, a producer and host for PBS. He has five sons, the perfect daughter and is a new grandfather to precious Josephine.
Judy Collins has inspired audiences with sublime vocals, boldly vulnerable songwriting, personal life triumphs, and a firm commitment to social activism. In the 1960s, she evoked both the idealism and steely determination of a generation united against social and environmental injustices. Five decades later, her luminescent presence shines brightly as new generations bask in the glow of her iconic 50-album body of work, and heed inspiration from her spiritual discipline to thrive in the music industry for half a century.
The award-winning singer-songwriter is esteemed for her imaginative interpretations of traditional and contemporary folk standards and her own poetically poignant original compositions. Her stunning rendition of
Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now" from her landmark 1967 album, Wildflowers, has been entered into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Judy's dreamy and sweetly intimate version of "Send in the Clowns," a ballad written by
Stephen Sondheim for the Broadway musical A Little Night Music, won "Song of the Year" at the 1975 Grammy Awards. She's garnered several top-ten hits gold- and platinum-selling albums. Recently, contemporary and classic artists such as
Rufus Wainwright,
Shawn Colvin,
Dolly Parton, Joan Baez, and
Leonard Cohen honored her legacy with the album Born to the Breed: A Tribute to
Judy Collins.
Judy began her impressive music career at 13 as a piano prodigy dazzling audiences performing Mozart's "Concerto for Two Pianos," but the hardluck tales and rugged sensitivity of folk revival music by artists such as
Woody Guthrie and
Pete Seeger seduced her away from a life as a concert pianist. Her path pointed to a lifelong love affair with the guitar and pursuit of emotional truth in lyrics. The focus and regimented practice of classical music, however, would be a source of strength to her inner core as she navigated the highs and lows of the music business.
In 1961, she released her masterful debut, A Maid of Constant Sorrow, which featured interpretative works of social poets of the time such as
Bob Dylan,
Phil Ochs, and
Tom Paxton. This began a wonderfully fertile thirty-five year creative relationship with Jac Holzman and Elektra Records. Around this time Judy became a tastemaker within the thriving Greenwich Village folk community, and brought other singer-songwriters to a wider audience, including poet/musician
Leonard Cohen - and musicians
Joni Mitchell and
Randy Newman. Throughout the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, and up to the present, she has remained a vital artist, enriching her catalog with critically acclaimed albums while balancing a robust touring schedule.
On September 18, 2015, Judy released her first studio album in four years, Strangers Again. She invited a cast of icons and young talents to sing with her on this fresh collection, from
Willie Nelson,
Jackson Browne and
Jeff Bridges to
Glen Hansard,
Ari Hest and Bhi Bhiman. Judy delicately soars over a revitalized "Send In The Clowns" and breathes new life into "Hallelujah." She puts her indelible touch on songs by
Leonard Bernstein,
Randy Newman,
James Taylor and more.
Judy has also authored several books, including the powerful and inspiring, Sanity & Grace. For her most recent title, the memoir Sweet
Judy Blue Eyes: My Life in Music, she reaches deeply inside and, with unflinching candor, recalls her turbulent childhood, extraordinary rise to fame, her romance with
Stephen Stills, her epic victories over depression and alcoholism, and her redemption through embracing a healthy and stable lifestyle and finding true love with
Louis Nelson, her partner of 30 years. In addition, she remains a social activist, representing UNICEF and numerous other causes. She is the director (along with Jill Godmillow) of an Academy Award-nominated film about Antonia Brico - PORTRAIT OF A WOMAN, the first woman to conduct major symphonies around the world-and Judy's classical piano teacher when she was young.
Judy Collins, now 76, is as creatively vigorous as ever, writing, touring worldwide, and nurturing fresh talent. She is a modern day Renaissance woman who is also an accomplished filmmaker, record label head, musical mentor, and an in-demand keynote speaker for mental health and suicide prevention. She continues to create music of hope and healing that lights up the world and speaks to the heart.
A special presale for Bethel Woods Members begins Tuesday, April 10th at 10 a.m. To learn more about additional member benefits and pre-sale access, visit
http://www.bethelwoodscenter.org/supportthearts/membership-opportunities.
The Museum at Bethel Woods is half-priced, three hours before show time every evening Pavilion or Event Gallery concert day. Valid concert ticket required for this special offer. To learn more visit
http://www.bethelwoodscenter.org/the-museum.
For more information about Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, please visit
www.BethelWoodsCenter.org. Be sure to download the Bethel Woods App for up-to-date information and special pre-sale codes.
The Event Gallery Concert Series at Bethel Woods is proudly sponsored by Jim Beam.
Bethel Woods Center for the Arts inspires, educates, and empowers individuals through the arts and humanities by presenting a diverse selection of culturally-rich performances, popular artists, and community and educational programming. Located 90 miles from New York City at the site of the 1969 Woodstock festival in Bethel, NY, the lush 800-acre campus includes a Pavilion Stage amphitheater with seating for 15,000, an intimate 440-seat indoor Event Gallery, the award-winning Museum at Bethel Woods, and a Conservatory for arts education programming.
Through the in-depth study and exhibition of the social, political, and cultural events of the 1960s, as well as the preservation of the historic site of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair, Bethel Woods educates individuals about the issues and lessons of the decade while inspiring a new generation to contribute positively to the world around them. The not-for-profit organization relies on the generous support of individuals, corporations, and foundations to develop and sustain programs that improve the quality of life in the region and beyond.
For more information please visit
www.BethelWoodsCenter.org.
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