Honkytonks, roadhouses, empty whiskey glasses, and unrequited love are the brick and mortar of country music, and there isn’t a better mason that Bill Hearne. Come see him perform live on April 22!
Hearne calls the history and genre of country music ‘The Road:’ that metaphorical ribbon of honky-tonks, roadhouses, empty whiskey glasses, prison cells and unrequited love lined with signposts and mile markers tattooed with names like Haggard, as in Merle, Williams, as in Hank, Owens, as in Buck and Lovett, as in Lyle. Being legally blind, Bill has never actually driven ‘The Road’ himself, but he sings with such authority of the tales he’s heard while riding shotgun that you’d never know it.
Bill along with his late-wife Bonnie are legends of the early Austin music scene collaborating, recording, and performing with many well-known artists such Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Nanci Griffith, Robert Earl Keen, Jerry Jeff Walker, Butch Hancock, Eliza Gilkyson, and Michael Martin Murphy. Bill has won numerous music-industry awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award from New Mexico Music Commission and is an inductee to the Kerrville Folk Festival Hall of Fame. The film biography, “New Mexico Rain: The Story of Bill and Bonnie Hearne” captures their extraordinary life and career.
After moving to Santa Fe, NM, Bill and Bonnie delighted Santa Feans and countless tourists with their infectious blend of bluegrass, country and swing music for 11 years. In 1997, Bill & Bonnie signed with Warner Bros. and recorded “Diamonds in the Rough.” Produced by country veteran Jim Rooney, it climbed to fifth on the Americana chart that year and led to tours with Lyle Lovett Music Festival, Merlefest, and the Kerrville Folk Festival. The wind seemed to be at their backs, but in 2003, Bonnie’s health deteriorated and she could no longer perform. On his own musically for the first time since meeting Bonnie, Bill formed the Bill Hearne Trio. In the trio, Bill is backed by David Thom on lead guitar and mandolin, and Zeke Severson on bass (our good buddy Dave Toland is Zeke’s alternate for many years). Bill is in his 26th year at the La Fonda and is still singing every Monday & Tuesday night with his Trio.
We’d love to see you and join in supporting Bill as he performs!
(+++ About our opening acts +++)
+++ NO ADVANCE TICKET SALES. ADMISSION IS FIRST-COME, FIRST-SERVED AT THE DOOR. +++
Doors open at 6:15 p.m.; concert starts at 7 p.m. with two opening acts. $15 general admission, $8 members and students with ID; free for ages 12 and younger (Become a member with before or at the show and $tart $aving right away!).
No advance ticket sales. Admission only at the door.
Baked goods, coffee, tea, and water available for purchase in the Community Center.
Please visit our website for the latest on COVID-19 protocols at our shows.