Come check out a special performance from Manchester’s own Jeff Conley, a singer-songwriter who performs on his custom-built “chopped” guitars. He plays mellow, yet upbeat folk tunes in the vein of Jack Johnson, G. Love, and The Suitcase Junket. Conley was a touring folk-rock singer and musician for fifteen years, always playing on a variety of vintage guitars. An unfortunate event then changed his career trajectory: In his own words:
I have been collecting guitars since I was 10 years old. Years later, I decided to sell dozens of those guitars in order to buy two 1960’s Gibsons. When those Gibsons were stolen from a venue in 2008, I decided to never buy a guitar again. From then on I would only build & play choppers.
And thus a business was born: Chopped Guitars. Conley’s custom “chopped” guitars and electric foot drums have become much in demand, with several musicians using them on stage, including Chadwick Stokes of Dispatch and Grammy Award-winning percussionist, Zakir Hussain.
Opening Act: Reed Foehl
Born in a small country town in New England and into a musical family, Grammy-nominated songwriter Reed Foehl writes stories of the human condition with a lyric and voice which push boundaries while paying homage to tradition. Dusty and patient, his music is genuine Folk/Americana.
Foehl released his sixth studio album – “Wild Wild Love” – in May 2022 which was recorded with The Band of Heathens in Austin, TX. “ From traditional folk ballads to barroom sing-alongs, this tunesmith’s emotional, deeply personal lyrics and indelibly infectious choruses…leave the listener with an overriding sense of optimism” (Glide Magazine) — something we could all use a little more of these days. He was nominated for a Grammy Award for his song “Fly” co-written with Brent Cobb which was covered by country legend Lee Ann Womack. Foehl now resides in the Green Mountains of Vermont and continues to tour across the globe.