Bloom WNC to host Craig Carothers

Prolific Nashville singer-songwriter brings summer show to Black Mountain

Jessica Klarp
Guest contributor
The Valley Echo
July 17, 2023

Nashville singer-songwriter Craig Carothers will take the stage, July 21, at the Bloom WNC flower farm, as the Black Mountain venue continues its annual summer outdoor concert series. Photo courtesy of Bloom WNC

The summer concert series at a Black Mountain specialty cut flower farm will continue at 6 p.m., Friday, July 21, when Bloom WNC welcomes Craig Carothers to its outdoor stage.

Tickets to the show featuring the prolific Nashville-based singer-songwriter are $25 and are available through the Bloom website.

“Craig is one of my favorite singer-songwriters from my beloved hometown of Portland Oregon,” said farm owner Abigail Moffitt. “I am incredibly grateful he has agreed to sing in our little valley and we welcome him to our flower farm.”

An accomplished musician, Carothers has recorded more than 20 albums in his career, including his most recent release, 39 Pink Flamingos.

Carothers lived in Portland before it was hip and moved to Nashville before it was ready for prime time. He’s always been a little ahead of the curve and an old school kind of cool. His music is heartbreakingly beautiful and scathingly funny, delivered with a lively deadpan smile and a voice that’s downright swoony. Too folk for rock, too pop for folk, too jazz for country, too tall to be a jockey.

But the wide-ranging influences of Carother’s music-teacher parents can be heard in each of his albums. He’s a songwriter’s songwriter, sharing co-writing credits with Bruce Hornsby, Marty Stewart, Don Henry, Maia Sharp and Don Schlitz, to name a few. He’s had songs recorded by Trisha Yearwood, Kathy Mattea, Lorrie Morgan, Russell Hitchcock and Peter, Paul and Mary, as well as numerous international artists.

As a touring musician and a regular at the Bluebird Café in Nashville, Carothers has shared the stage with the likes of Richard Thompson, Janis Ian, Donovan, David Wilcox, John Gorka, Catie Curtis, Greg Brown, Patty Larkin, Michael McDonald and Kim Richey.

For the last 10 years he has shared his songwriting expertise through online and in-person workshops across the U.S. and Europe, and as a professor at the University of Miami.

Those attending the Bloom WNC outdoor concert are asked to bring chairs and bug spray and advised to arrive early. HomeSlice Pizza mobile oven will be onsite offering cash-only $5 slices and beverages from 5-7 p.m. Outside food and beverages are allowed, but concertgoers are asked to leave dogs at home.

The outdoor concert series will continue, Friday, Aug. 15, as Cast Iron Bluegrass returns to the farm.

Bloom WNC is located at 806 North Fork Road. Flowers will be available for purchase at intermission. To purchase tickets and get more information visit the events page at bloomwnc.com.