Every Wednesday from May 29th through Labor Day weekend, 5pm-7pm, you can listen to some free music behind Willy East. Bring a chair or just stop by for a tune or three! We'll be adding more artists, so please check back. We may cancel a session without advance notice due to inclement weather, poor air quality, or other reasons. All artist bios/descriptions are provided by the artist.May 29th: Delvis
Delvis picked up the guitar at age 45. Wanting to learn to play he played the same tune continually but didn't drive Lynn (Mrs. Delvis) crazy. After his first time in front of an audience he was hooked and got the Delvis moniker. Delvis continues to play Hank, Johnny, Tom Waits and a bunch of old country and old pop tunes. Having fun is the best. Come out and we'll have a good time!
June 5th: David Sewell
This week we have David Sewell: Madison’s legendary country troubadour is at it again. Authentic country.
June 12th: Jeff Burkhart
This week we have Jeff Burkhart. He is a songwriter and performer who has been featured on PBS Wisconsin, and has performed at the Waterfront Festival, High Noon Saloon, Willy Street Fair, The Bur Oak, Harmony Bar, and many other venues.
Growing up in small town Indiana, he cut class to find adventures on the backroads, bounced around in North Carolina for a couple of years, then landed in Madison WI, where he found many great musical collaborators in various bands playing locally and regionally at coffeeshops, barrooms, taverns and outdoor festivals.
The Dirty Shirts’ album Two-Dollar Turpentine is a Madison honky-tonk classic of his original songs and was selected as one of the best albums of the year by Isthmus in 2010.
His latest album, Just a Kid was entirely self-recorded in a beautifully open old warehouse on the near eastside of Madison and was released in April of 2022.
June 19th: Eric De Los Santos [CANCELED DUE TO WEATHER]
Better known as the Madison Marimba Man, Eric De Los Santos is a professional marimba player who is often spotted busking on State St. Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Eric has made Madison his home since 2014. It wasn’t until he was 11 years old when Eric began formal music training with the middle school band program. Eric’s journey through learning and mastering marimba went into high gear in the summers of 1997, 1998 and 1999 when he was recruited and competed with the Pioneer Drum and Bugle Corps. Along with several solo performances, Eric is a part of the Beni Daiko Taiko group and Toco Beach Steel Pan - both based out of Madison.
June 26th: Amanda Jane Hoffman
Amanda Jane Hoffman, queer lefty Jew, continues to play our favorite songs from the radio, stage, and campfire. This juicy somebody has sung-and-strummed sweetly across the country in theaters, cafes, pubs, and restaurants, sharing her genre-spanning and decade-spanning covers with warmth, humor, and passion.
July 3rd: Hemlock N' Key
Hemlock n’ Key is a trio of nature-loving sweethearts inspired by chance encounters to form a Folk band. This soulful, acoustic blend of strings and vocal harmonies based in Madison, WI is composed of Ryan Hartkopf, Colleen Robinson, Ethry Fields, and the occasional drums heartbeat of Pablo Chuliver. They light up the stage with their combined repertoire of original Folk songs, classic Blues melodies, and even a Pop hit or two.
July 10th: Ethry Fields
Ethry Fields is an Indie-Folk Singer-Songwriter. You can expect to hear multiple stringed instruments, lyrics coated in heartfelt experience, and imagery from the natural world sprinkled on top of every original song in her repertoire. Forever a lover of intriguing stories, shimmery harmonies, and sweet lullabies.
July 17th: Annie Emmenegger
Annie Emmenegger is a Wisconsin-based roots singer-songwriter whose style has a strong connection to an older era of American folk and bluegrass. Emmenegger’s vocals are rich and soulful, she is lead singer for Madison based bluegrass band Annie and the Oakies. Performing since 2009, she has been a part of several other musical groups with a broad range of musical genres including alternative country and folk rock. Her influences include Gillian Welch, Tony Rice, Townes Van Zandt, as well as the Cascade Mountains where she lived and played for almost 10 years.
July 24th: Mitch Lundquist
Mitch's solo acoustic performance focuses on rootsy renditions of country classics, old time blues and more recognizable folk/pop songs. Influenced by an array of genres including country, folk, blues and jazz, Mitch seeks to personalize the music of John Prine, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams, Steve Earle and others with the respect and sincerity these great artists so deserve.
July 31st: Jeff Burkhart
This week we have Jeff Burkhart. He is a songwriter and performer who has been featured on PBS Wisconsin, and has performed at the Waterfront Festival, High Noon Saloon, Willy Street Fair, The Bur Oak, Harmony Bar, and many other venues.
Growing up in small town Indiana, he cut class to find adventures on the backroads, bounced around in North Carolina for a couple of years, then landed in Madison WI, where he found many great musical collaborators in various bands playing locally and regionally at coffeeshops, barrooms, taverns and outdoor festivals.
The Dirty Shirts’ album Two-Dollar Turpentine is a Madison honky-tonk classic of his original songs and was selected as one of the best albums of the year by Isthmus in 2010.
His latest album, Just a Kid was entirely self-recorded in a beautifully open old warehouse on the near eastside of Madison and was released in April of 2022
August 7th: Eric De Los Santos
Better known as the Madison Marimba Man, Eric De Los Santos is a professional marimba player who is often spotted busking on State St. Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Eric has made Madison his home since 2014. It wasn’t until he was 11 years old when Eric began formal music training with the middle school band program. Eric’s journey through learning and mastering marimba went into high gear in the summers of 1997, 1998 and 1999 when he was recruited and competed with the Pioneer Drum and Bugle Corps. Along with several solo performances, Eric is a part of the Beni Daiko Taiko group and Toco Beach Steel Pan - both based out of Madison.