Deciding on having a concert highlighting English and Irish rock was the easy part. Picking the songs for that concert was another story altogether.
“It was the hardest thing. There’s so much good music,” said Ryan Abel, who is organizing the Aug. 12 fundraiser for Augusta Players’ Camp Wonderland.
Goin’ British highlights music from the U.K. from the 1960s and 1970s and will be at 7:30 p.m. at the Miller Theater.
When he met with bandleader Keith Jenkins early in planning, Abel knew it was going to be tough.
“My first playlist was 4.5 hours, and his was about the same. Less than half of the songs matched,” he said.
With British rockers such as Elton John, the Rolling Stones, ELO, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and so many more, there is no shortage of artists to choose from, and then deciding on one song from each of the bands made it even more difficult.
Abel said the final decisions on what would be performed were made with less than a week before stage time.
The show will feature works by a multitude of artists with only one song from each. Abel said they opted for some deeper cuts on some of the artists so with the Rolling Stones, for example, you won’t be hearing Satisfaction.
Joining Abel for Goin’ British are some of the town’s favorite performers and Abel’s friends including Keith Petersen, Brooke Lundy, Jaycie Ward and Roger Davis.
The concert is a fundraiser for Augusta Players’ Camp Wonderland, a creative camp for children on the autism spectrum.
Camp Wonderland “goes beyond teaching participants to sing, speak or dance. The camp nurtures creativity, provides a sense of accomplishment, develops friendships and is fun,” according to the Augusta Players website.
It’s led by a team of specialists as well as trained “one to one volunteer ‘buddies.’”
This is the fourth concert this year that Abel has assembled a group of performers to raise money for groups in the area. Other events have gone toward the Junior League of Augusta and the RECing Crew.
He has another event planned for October based on the music of Credence Clearwater Revival.
Tickets are $35-$45 with VIP tickets for $75. Click here for tickets.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News, has covered Augusta’s news for 35 years. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
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