The Camel showcase features local musicians
Singer and Songwriter Night is a free event that has been held for almost two years at The Camel and will be celebrating its second anniversary in June.
Samantha Foster
Spectrum Editor
Samantha McCartney
Staff Writer
In the intimate setting of The Camel, singers and songwriters try their hand at performing on stage once a month. On Feb. 13, five artists took the stage to entertain a packed house of local supporters.
Singer and Songwriter Night at The Camel normally draws a crowd with roughly five to eight performers, performing about five songs each. Artists often include acoustic guitar shows, but Singer and Songwriter Night has included hip-hop acts and full bands in the past. The small stage has also featured musicians from Portugal and Ireland.
Singer and Songwriter Night is a free event that has been held for almost two years at The Camel and will be celebrating its second anniversary in June.
Earlier this week, Richmond locals Justin Black, Devin Grubbs, Matt Luger and Paul Willson, as well as VCU kinetic imaging professor John Priestley, played their original compositions at The Camel.
Priestley took to the stage, sitting cross-legged on a chair with no shoes, and performed seven songs on his acoustic guitar, including his own pieces, “The Mud We Are” and “Dancing Alone.”
Black offered a different spin to the night by bringing his electric guitar and effects pedal to the stage. Black usually plays in his Richmond-based band, Black Brothers, which is named for his grandfather, James W. Black.
James W. Black was a well known Richmond jazz pianist in the 1950s and is the namesake for VCU’s James W. Black Music Center, which was named in 2005 after a $1 million donation from W. E. Singleton.
“I’m going to sing some sad love songs to get you in the mood for Valentine’s Day,” Black said, and then continued to play songs about “jail or summer camp,” a waitress in Church Hill and the TV show “Teen Mom.”
Singer and Songwriter Night at The Camel is organized by Paul Willson, and although he is a musician, he does not participate in the events, saying that he likes to give everyone who is interested in performing a chance on the stage.
“It gives everyone a chance for some exposure,” Willson said.
