By: Staff
Rick Landers – Photo credit: Mike Davis Photography
Guitar International’s publisher and editor, Rick Landers, and his band Heartland, will be featured on stage and on-line in the number one ranked county in the U.S, Loudoun County, Virginia, and at the county’s premier venue, the Franklin Park Arts Center.
Rick and Heartland’s October 19th performance will be live on stage, as well as offered virtually Eastern Standard Time at 8:00 PM. Their performance will be one of many to feature some of the best performers locally or on tour, at the Center’s new series called, Music for Dessert.
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Award winning songwriter, Landers, mostly busked back in the ’70s in Georgetown, D.C. not far from the legendary Cellar Door and a short walk from D.C. areas cool club, The Bayou. Back in the day, he sang songs of The Beatles, Dion, Tim Buckley, Roy Harper and a handful of his own making. Then he went on a long hiatus, before he ventured into an art center to play an open mic in 2017, to perform two of his newer originals. In 2019, Rick caught the attention of Ron Goad, a seven-time Washington Area Music Awards recipient for its, “Best Promoter” category.
Rick’s published Guitar International since 2004, as a free on-line resource about acoustic and electric guitars for music enthusiasts. He has interviewed such musical icons as: Les Paul, Judy Collins, Jimmy Webb, Roger McGuinn, Arlo Guthrie, Steve Earle, Pat Martino, Randy Bachman, Steve Vai, Eric Johnson, Joe LaMond (President, NAMM), Paul Reed Smith, Chris F. Martin IV, Cindy Cashdollar, Anthony Gourdine (Little Anthony), and many more.
Franklin Park Arts Center – Photo courtesy of Loudoun County, VA. CLICK TO SEE INSIDE!
Since that time, Goad and Landers roamed the DC-Maryland-Virginia music venues as patrons, and more recently as bandmates. Ron had been a session player on over 100 albums, when he joined John Werntz (bass), Jim Nagle (dobro) and Rick (vocals/guitar) and formed, Rick Landers & Heartland. The group teamed up to perform Rick’s originals and a few covers that included songs by Tim Buckley, Neil Diamond, Geoff Byrd and a few others.
Rick has been featured or showcased at local venues, house concerts, the Embassy of the Republic of South Africa, several festivals and more music spots. Recently, he performed in Raton, NM, and at the New Mexico “ghost town” named Dawson, where he paid tribute to nearly four hundred coal miners who tragically died in 1913 and 1923, where he was invited to play his songs, including one about the 1913 and 1923 Dawson miners, “1913 Stag Canon No. 2”.
“We’ve enjoyed all of the places we’ve had opportunities to have played. Being able to play my originals has especially been wonderful. The D.C. area music community has been terrific, they listen, sometimes a few dance. There are a lot of very talented singer-songwriters here, and it’s nice to be welcomed by the community.” said Rick.
(L-R) Ron Goad, Jim Nagle, Rick Landers, John Werntz – Photo credit: Jay Keating
Landers’s songs are an eclectic mix that include: love ballads, jazz, folk-Americana, historical songs about the Civil War, a white whale (“Leviathan”), singer-songwriters Judee Sill and Nick Drake, country and road songs, and more. And Landers takes a bit of time to tell a few stories about how and why he wrote some of them that gives deeper clarity to their meanings.
Many of his songs can be heard for free at his website HERE. Most are rough cuts he recorded in his living room, some with Nagle on dobro, and a couple with Nashville session players.
“We’ve been working out our part of the new Music for Dessert series with Les Thompson, the Center’s technical director, and Elizabeth Bracey, who’s been terrific working out our promotional needs. There’s a reason this is the premier venue in Loudoun County, a county that’s been ranked the best county in the U.S.A.; it really gets down to the professionals running it.” offered Landers.
To see Rick Landers & Heartland play LIVE in person at Franklin Park Arts Center on October 19th at 7:00 – 8:00 pm (EST), the prices are ($15) (Students: $8) or ON-LINE ($8) and using your major credit card, you can pre-order tickets HERE!
PRE-ORDER TICKETS TO SEE RICK LANDERS & HEARTLAND!
