Finally Fridays at the Harvester with JL Fulks and Matt Dillon
11.10.2023 - This week’s edition of Finally Fridays at the Harvester Event Center in Historic Smithville, Tennessee, featured opener and local songwriter/guitarist/vocalist Matt Dillon and his fiddle-playing buddy, Jonathan Fly from down the Lynchburg, TN, way.
Matt drew a contingent of fans who showed up early and thoroughly enjoyed his performance, right along with the other earlybirds assembled for the evening's festivities. For me, a definite standout in Matt’s set was a “solid as I’ve ever heard” rendition of the classic House of the Rising Sun. STRONG, dead-on pitch vocal!
Matt Dillon “got ‘em where he wanted ‘em” with his set and turned the stage over to the JL Fulks Band and Phil Stafford, Harvester Sound Engineer, to do a quickie soundcheck in order to get the show started on time, and voila! JL took off with a group of original “crowd starter” songs that set the tone for the hard-driving set of mostly original songs that would fit into any country-rock playlist I’ve ever heard.
JL says he moved up to Nashville about three years ago from Florida, and he’s been writing, recording, and performing his original material ever since, and seems to be perfectly comfortable with “where he is” in his musical career journey. JL says he “doesn’t have a publishing deal, but not really looking for one”...That attitude alone gives him the freedom to write what’s really in his soul, which ironically, is what the commercial world is looking for…”the real stuff”.
JL Fulks’ personna, performance, dedication and work ethic all seem to be aligned with writers who dedicate themselves to their profession for what can be a number of unrewarded years, and then suddenly gets blessed with a string of hits. Fate plays a BIG part in all that, but one thing for sure–JL Fulks is ready if hit song lightning ever strikes him–and, he’s got a band of Nashville hot pickers already assembled, ready to hit the road!
One of Bert Driver’s mantras is “It’s all about the music”- we are blessed as supporters, staff, and audience members at the Harvester and Burlap Room to have the opportunity to experience moments in live music performances that are truly “one and done” events…Even though there might be an artist who performs a return engagement, it will be different from those “right here, right now” magical musical/artistic moments that occur on a regular basis at the Harvester and the Burlap Room…at those moments Dear Friends, we ARE the music!
Thank you to Hardwoods Smokehouse food truck for providing their truly unique BBQ specialties, and to the Security & Service Staff of the Harvester for all you do!
The November 2023 Finally Friday Series concludes next week with jazz vocalist extraordinaire Kaleah Wooten on Friday, 11/17, at the Harvester. And mark your calendar for the last show of 2023 on Saturday, 12/2, with The Tiger Beats (a killer blues band direct from Nashville) with opener Anthony Nyugen (formerly of the Smoky Nights). The Harvester will open at 2pm as Downtown Smithville becomes a Norman Rockwell scene with the Smithville Christmas Parade commencing at 4pm, and the parade ends directly in front of The Harvester! So stick around and enjoy live music as The Tiger Beats give a real treat. Stay up-to-date with all the events in the Bert Driver Network (Nursery, Burlap Room, and the Harvester) by signing up for our ‘The Local Vibe’ Newsletter - released every other Tuesday morning straight to your inbox!
Host your next event at the Harvester! Corporate events and parties, weddings, receptions, graduations, baby showers, or whatever you’re celebrating, we can host it! Contact us for more information.
