Passing an afternoon on a front porch has long been one of the pleasures of the South. That tradition continues on Friday, Sept. 5, from 2-4 p.m., with a free performance at one of the most famous porches in Asheville, the “Old Kentucky Home.” Join Buddy Davis, Carol Rifkin and Jamie Soesbee as they present an eclectic mix of early country, bluegrass, folk, old-time and traditional mountain music as a part of the “Pickin’ on the Porch” series at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial.
A Madison County, N.C., native and seventh generation singer, Buddy Davis is a Grammy Award-nominated multi-instrumentalist. He has recorded with Doc Watson, Sam Bush and others and co-produced the Nashville Network television series “Fire on the Mountain.”
Carol Rifkin’s distinctive vocals and guitar playing are integral to the trio’s sound. She has performed at the Smithsonian Institution, MerleFest, and the Philadelphia Folk Festival and can be heard in the film “Songcatcher.”
Rounding out the trio’s three-part harmonies, upright bass player Jamie Soesbee, a Buncombe County native, has played in a variety of jazz and dance bands and worked as a session musician.
Visitors are invited to bring lawn chairs or blankets to the performance. This is the second performance in a series at the Thomas Wolfe Memorial. For more information about this series, please contact the Thomas Wolfe Memorial at (828) 253-8304.
The goal of the Thomas Wolfe Memorial State Historical Site is to preserve and interpret the history of author Thomas Wolfe and his mother’s boardinghouse as depicted in his novel “Look Homeward Angel.” It is located at 52 N. Market Street in downtown Asheville. For more information about this program, contact the Thomas Wolfe Memorial at 828-253-8304, or email contactus@wolfememorial.com.
The Thomas Wolfe Memorial is an agency of the Division of State Historic sites, N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, a state agency dedicated to the promotion and protection of North Carolina’s arts, history, and culture through such programs as “Telling Our Stories,” a yearlong celebration of North Carolina’s stories of struggle and freedom, memorable characters and colorful daily life. For more information, visit www.ncculture.com or call (919) 807-7385.