Saturday, July 17
Concert: An Evening with Stephan Smith
$10 ($7 for Friends of The Commonspace), all ages, 7:30 p.m., amanda@thecommonspace.org, www.stephansmith.com
Attendance: 23
He's back! Our generation's Woody Guthrie — and the voice behind last year's peace anthem "The Bell" — made a special request to play The Commonspace on his new national tour, to promote the new album "Slash and Burn." Stephan boasts a unique biography (son of an Iraqi dad and American mom, grew up in Virginia, dropped out of college to work with migrant farm laborers, and so on), and his songs are informed by all of these experiences. Plus, he plays a kick-ass fiddle when he wants to. This is a great show for activists in the peace and social justice arenas, as Stephan's songs are sure to inspire and amuse. A portion of the proceeds from the show will benefit the Eastern Missouri Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.