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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260813T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260813T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260513T163427Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T005611Z
UID:10001008-1786647600-1786647600@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Allen Stone
DESCRIPTION:Allen Stone\, a soul/R&B luminary\, has enraptured global audiences with his electrifying performances and soulful melodies\, embodying the essence of classic soul legends. His genre-defying style\, blending funk\, gospel\, folk-rock\, and soul\, has garnered critical acclaim and a devoted following. Stone’s journey to musical stardom commenced in Chewelah\, Washington\, where his upbringing immersed him in gospel music as a pastor’s son. Relocating to Seattle\, he tirelessly toured the West Coast in his ’87 Buick\, swiftly gaining acclaim for his dynamic live shows\, often playing up to 200 dates annually alongside luminaries such as Stevie Wonder\, Al Green\, Dave Matthews Band\, Erykah Badu\, and Gary Clark Jr. Notably\, and Chris Stapleton\, further solidifying his status as a tour de force in the music industry. Alongside his prolific touring schedule\, Stone has graced national television screens\, including The Kelly Clarkson Show\, Jimmy Kimmel Live\, The Today show\, and a Celebrity Mentor on ABC’s American Idol.  Stone continues to garner critical acclaim with his latest body of work\, Mystery\, featuring the title track in collaboration with PJ Morton. This release brings infectious rhythms and emotional depth\, solidifying Stone’s place as a powerful voice in modern soul music. You can see on the road this summer with Chris Stapleton and Lainey Wilson on the Great American Road Show.  \n  \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/allen-stone-2
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE-12.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260815T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260815T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260522T163806Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T005743Z
UID:10001015-1786820400-1786820400@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Caiola
DESCRIPTION:Jordan Caiola (CAI•OLA) is a songwriter/musician/producer based out of Philadelphia. He founded the indie rock band Mo Lowda & The Humble in 2010 and due to its intense touring schedule\, the band became his main priority along with his side project NightSeason (founded 2016)- an indie/electro-pop producer duo. Though he always felt writing folk songs was his true “wheelhouse”\, it wasn’t until the nationwide lockdown in early 2020 that he finally put aside the time to record a collection of those songs for his first solo album ‘Only Real When Shared’.  Now\, Caiola tours year-round with both Mo Lowda and his solo project.  His second solo record was released in 2024. \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/caiola
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE-Caiola.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260819T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260819T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260513T163731Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T010022Z
UID:10001009-1787166000-1787166000@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Madi Diaz
DESCRIPTION:Madi Diaz is an artist who cuts to the emotional core of her own experiences with startling precision. Her last two albums\, 2021’s History of a Feeling and 2024’s two-time Grammy-nominated Weird Faith\, set off a breakthrough for the professional songwriter. These records won over critics\, audiences\, and other collaborators with well-crafted songs and a compelling arc: first there’s the difficult breakup\, then a mourning period and slowly\, a sense of reinvention; when love comes around again\, Weird Faith seemed to say\, it’s worth fighting through the fear and uncertainty. Fatal Optimist\, the Nashville singer-songwriter’s forthcoming LP\, could be considered the final chapter in this heartache trilogy\, and also its rawest entry. This time Diaz is asking audiences to lean closer in to hear what she has to say. \nAfter ending a relationship with someone she once envisioned marrying\, Diaz turned away from everyone and everything she knew and took herself to an island. This heartbreak felt different. Every one of them does. Admittedly\, she was embarrassed to be in this position again. How was she going to write about this? “I put myself on an island\,” Diaz wrote in her journal during that time. “I was already describing myself as an emotional island swimming in so much of an ocean of feelings… It was the perfect physical manifestation\, alone with all of my disappointment.” She began to navigate isolation\, and the good things that can come from it. Although people often warn others about isolating\, Madi’s time alone emerged as a powerful\, insightful period of introspection. Rage\, embarrassment and romantic grief shifted into inner wholeness and the pieces of Fatal Optimist started falling into place. “I didn’t know that I hadn’t chosen myself yet\,” she says. “The only person I’m never gonna leave is myself.” \nSolitude called to Diaz again during the initial recording sessions for Fatal Optimist. After entering a New Jersey studio with friends to flesh out the songs\, she later realized it wasn’t right. The album needed to sound like isolation\, to mirror her experience of being completely alone. She wanted to capture the sound of self-soothing. Diaz started over in Southern California with a new co-producer\, Gabe Wax (Soccer Mommy\, Zach Bryan) at his Infinite Family Studio. “This was the first time in my career that I stayed in this heavy place with the songs after leaving the studio\,” she says\, “rather than trying to escape it.” While you’ll find subtle accompaniment from an occasional baritone guitar or bass\, Fatal Optimist comes down to Diaz alone in a room with her acoustic guitar. This is her Unplugged moment\, her stripped-down version\, the Madi Diaz album most likely to haunt you with its starkness. Simplicity can be much more difficult to nail than camouflaging a song with layers of production. It is exactly what these songs needed. \nSong by song\, she traces the phases of dissolution and rebirth like the moon waxing and waning in the night sky for all to see. Opener “Hope Less” unpacks the experience of being offered less than you deserve and trying miserably to shrink your needs. On “Ambivalence\,” Diaz makes a meal out of a shitty feeling and turns that four-syllable word into a quietly anthemic chorus about not being sure if crumbs are enough. The romantic spell is fully broken on “Feel Something\,” where Diaz captures the futility of reaching for emotional connection after it’s already been lost. Instead of calling her ex she wrote this song. It captures the oscillating emotions of post-break-up limbo with energetic acoustic strumming\, and languid electric guitar. \nThe sparse\, devastating “Heavy Metal” was a late addition to the album. It pulls off the songwriting trick of cleverly repurposing a common phrase into a personal mantra: her heart is not precious like gold or silver\, it’s built to endure pain and battle like heavy metal and her mother. Here her voice aches with vulnerability. “I really wanted to write a song that feels as hardcore as I am\,” she says. “I am emotionally heavy metal\, but everything comes out soft.” \nIt’s not like there aren’t moments of weakness\, backslides\, as Diaz waits for time to heal all wounds. She chronicles her not-so-proud moments with just as much gall-force clarity\, grabbing the listener from the very first line on melancholic country song “Why’d You Have to Bring Me Flowers”: “My toxic trait is hanging on\, your toxic trait is showing up.” Just because Diaz chose herself doesn’t mean her heart isn’t broken\, too. But she takes it as a sign that\, at her core\, she still believes in love. \nThe closing title track speaks to her innate hope for something magical despite all the known risks. Here\, Diaz is enveloped by a noisy\, full-band rock sound for the first time on the album\, as if to switch from black and white to technicolor just in time for the story’s cathartic ending. “Making the record felt like walking through fire alone\,” she explains of the sonic shift\, “the reward was getting my friends back and the color back into my world and getting to have this communal sound.” \nIn Diaz’s words\, “Fatal Optimism is the innate hope for something magical. It’s the weird faith that kicks in while knowing that there is just plain risk that comes with wanting someone or something. It’s when you have no control over the outcome\, but still choose to experience every moment that happens\, and put your whole heart in it.” \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/madi-diaz
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE-Madi-Diaz.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260821T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260821T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260513T165134Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T010045Z
UID:10001010-1787338800-1787338800@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Fantastic Cat
DESCRIPTION:Fantastic Cat almost died. Each member also individually (but at separate times) faced devastating heartbreak\, went to jail\, got sober\, almost quit music entirely\, reconnected with a long-estranged family member\, started making music again\, hit rock bottom\, had a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger who changed their perspective on life\, almost quit music entirely a second time\, reconciled their progressive\, liberal ways with their strict\, conservative upbringing\, and embraced the raw power of their sexuality. It was quite a summer. \nAnd sure\, you may be reading this right now saying\, “Wow\, that kind of sounds like the band just basically jammed every bio cliché they could think of into a single paragraph without anything to back it up in a pathetically transparent attempt to generate press coverage.” But that kind of cynical thinking is exactly why GQ owns Pitchfork now (or whatever the hell happened there). \nAnyway\, it’s all real\, and if it makes for the kind of inspirational headline that editors and advertisers alike both find highly clickable\, then so be it. \nYou see\, two years ago\, Fantastic Cat was nothing more than a little-known rock and roll band with a cult following (their fans were primarily members of Heaven’s Gate). That all changed with the release of their award-eligible debut\, The Very Best Of Fantastic Cat\, which garnered the kind of press you simply can’t make up. USA Today proclaimed\, “we don’t have a music writer anymore\,” while NPR received multiple copies of the album in the mail\, and The New York Times’ Jon Pareles declared\, “I’m currently out of the office and will respond when I return.” \nSuccess went to the supergroup’s head\, though\, and through a series of dramatic events almost too unbelievable to recount in specific\, verifiable detail\, they nearly lost everything\, only to triumphantly overcome their seemingly insurmountable setbacks in a way that just begs for a Judd Apatow-produced HBO Max documentary (or at the very least\, a decent Spotify playlist placement somewhere closer to the top than the bottom). \nToday\, Fantastic Cat is back and older than ever\, taking America (and the nicer parts of Europe) by storm with their smash hit new album\, Now That’s What I Call Fantastic Cat\, which\, as of this writing\, hasn’t technically been released yet\, but seems almost certain to be a huge success based on industry trends and corporate forecasting. \nGalvanized by a transformative journey into the spiritual vortices of the Pocono Mountains\, the band found inspiration for their sophomore effort in the world of mind-expanding psychedelics: they dropped antacids\, experimented with mushrooms (primarily porcini)\, and even began microdosing a variety of hard seltzers. The result was an album that could only be described as “Christopher Cross crossed with Kris Kristofferson\,” a bewildering blend of stepdad rock and inlaw country destined to solidify their status as your least favorite songwriter’s favorite songwriters. But no one hit the record button\, and the sessions went mercifully undocumented. \nInstead\, the album they turned in to the label is an entirely different collection\, one that meets (but does not exceed) the minimum Grammy® eligibility requirements in all major televised categories. Now That’s What I Call Fantastic Cat! \n  \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/fantastic-cat
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260828T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260828T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260515T183843Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T010210Z
UID:10001012-1787943600-1787943600@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Langhorne Slim
DESCRIPTION:Langhorne Slim\, a beloved and acclaimed American singer\, songwriter and performer. Over the last 2 decades he has merged a stew of styles to create a sound that is unique\, powerful and raw. From campfires to dive bars\, and theatres to arenas\, Slim brings an intimacy and edge through his innate ability to connect with his audiences. Though he’s been at this for the better part of his days\, it somehow feels like he’s just getting started. \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/langhorne-slim-2
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE-Langhorne-Slim-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260829T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260829T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260515T185350Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260603T135130Z
UID:10001013-1788030000-1788030000@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:The Devil Makes Three
DESCRIPTION:The Devil Makes Three has always thrived in the spaces between genres\, where the grit of folk\, the soul of blues\, and the rebellious spirit of punk collide. Their music doesn’t just follow the American storytelling tradition—it redefines it. Whether evoking the deep melancholy of Delta blues or the frenetic energy of punk\, their sound is raw\, powerful\, and unmistakably their own. For over two decades\, this genre-defying trio has carved out a place in the American roots scene\, delivering high-energy performances that leave audiences captivated and wanting more. They’ve released seven studio albums and three live recordings\, with their latest\, Spirits\, marking a return to their stripped-down roots. \n  \nFormed in 2002 in Santa Cruz\, California by Pete Bernhard and Cooper McBean\, the trio\, now featuring longtime collaborator MorganEve Swain (taking over on upright bass and vocals for Lucia Turino)\, has continued to evolve musically while staying rooted in their core sound. The Devil Makes Three has built a devoted fanbase by embracing the raw\, unpolished edge of acoustic music\, and their latest album\, Spirits\, adds yet another layer to this ever-expanding sonic palette. \n  \nThe new album\, produced by Grammy-winner Ted Hutt (Old Crow Medicine Show\, Dropkick Murphys\, The Gaslight Anthem and Violent Femmes among others)\, takes listeners through a journey of grief\, addiction\, division\, and personal resilience. Songs like “Lights on Me” and “Spirits” delve into the emotional weight of loss and death\, reflecting Bernhard’s experience of losing close family members and friends during the album’s creation. Meanwhile\, tracks like “Half as High” and “Divide and Conquer” tackle broader social themes\, speaking to the ever-widening economic divide and political fragmentation in today’s volatile climate.  \n  \nWith frequent collaborator MorganEve Swain (from longtime tourmates Brown Bird)  taking over on upright bass and vocals for Lucia Turino on upright bass and vocals—the band recorded Spirits at Dreamland\, a converted church studio outside Woodstock\, New York\, where haunting thunderstorms mirrored the album’s somber\, introspective mood. The result is a powerful collection that marries the band’s signature Americana sound with new depth\, capturing the essence of resilience in the face of adversity. \n  \n“There’s definitely a theme of ghosts and death running through this album\,” says Bernhard\, who reflects on personal loss\, as well as the social and political struggles of our time. “We wanted this record to speak to the challenges people face today\, whether it’s loss\, addiction\, or the divisions tearing people apart.” \n  \nYet\, despite these heavy themes\, The Devil Makes Three maintains their core identity as a rhythm-driven\, live band meant for dancing and celebration. Their shows continue to bring together a diverse and dedicated fanbase\, where revelry and catharsis meet in equal measure. \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/the-devil-makes-three
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.prescottpark.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SQUARE-14.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260906T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260906T190000
DTSTAMP:20260613T075659
CREATED:20260515T192324Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260610T134904Z
UID:10001014-1788721200-1788721200@www.prescottpark.org
SUMMARY:Margo Price
DESCRIPTION:Nearly a decade ago\, Margo Price turned Nashville on its head with her breakthrough\, beloved debut solo album\, Midwest Farmer’s Daughter. Released in the throes of bro-country and before pop stars were crossing over into the genre left and right\, it showcased an artist completely unafraid to double down not only on herself\, but what she’d always loved: classic country songs written from the intellect and the gut\, hell-bent on truth-telling and both timeless and urgent all at once. Respected by her peers\, praised by critics and beloved by her fans\, Price created a lane where independent-minded\, insurgent country music can exist and thrive alongside the mainstream\, and became an ardent fighter for her beliefs in a genre where the norm is to shut up and sing. A trailblazer and a champion for the craft\, Price redefined what it meant to be a modern country artist. \nAnd now she’s back with an exquisite\, truly timeless album that reconnects with her roots and pays tribute to the art of the country song\, inspired in part by the legends whom she now calls colleagues and friends. Hard Headed Woman is both a look forward and a look back: a way to march forward while staying true to yourself when the path of less resistance is right there in front of us\, and short cuts are around every corner. And a way to look back when we need to trim what is no longer working\, and to stay connected with where we’re from. It is a promise and a manifesto\, a love song to both a city and a genre\, and a defiant cry for individuality. \nIn creating Hard Headed Woman\, Price brought all of her power as one of  our most beloved and respected songwriters to craft a deep exploration of love and America in a time of unprecedented uncertainty. Featuring appearances from Tyler Childers\, co-writes with Rodney Crowell and a Waylon Jennings song that his widow\, Jessi Colter\, urged her to sing\, it is country music as only Price can make it: free of rules\, cherishing tradition\, hard headed to the core but with a delicate\, beating heart.  \nSince releasing Midwest Farmer’s Daughter\, Price has barely slowed down. She’s made four records\, played Saturday Night Live\, been nominated for a Grammy\, toured the world alongside artists like Chris Stapleton and Willie Nelson\, released a lauded memoir (Maybe We’ll Make It\, due on paperback September 2nd)\, became an in-demand producer and was appointed as the first female board member of Nelson’s Farm Aid. And she’s been fearless when it came to genre\, venturing into psychedelic rock on her most recent\, Jonathan Wilson-produced record\, Strays. It would have been easiest to just stay that course\, and keep running. But Price doesn’t follow success or comfort. She follows the art. \nIt took a whole lot of hard work and honesty with herself and others to get there\, but that’s never stopped Price before.  “I made the decision that I had to rebuild everything from the ground up\,” Price says. “There’s all this pressure to be pumping out content\, and I felt the opposite in the way I wanted to approach this record and my life in general.” \nPrice had also established herself as one of the most passionate\, vocal artists in country music and beyond when it came to standing up for political and personal causes\, from the presidential election\, to abortion to gun control: happily hard headed when it came to the fight for equality and justice\, especially for the working class and underserved in our society. Price has always brilliantly woven her activism into her songs\, but her role as a spokesperson had started to overtake\, on occasion\, her role as a songwriter. She wanted to focus on using her written word to deliver the most potent punch of all. \n“I always hope to do like Johnny Cash did\,” Price says\, “which is speak up for the common man and woman. But there have been so many threats and anger and vitriol over the years\, when I am only coming from a place of love.” \nPrice realized she just needed a break from everything outside of the bubble of family life and her art. She started spending more time at home\, writing songs alone and with her husband\, Jeremey Ivey. She started popping up in the dive bars and tiny venues around Nashville where she got her start\, sometimes just to play a country cover or two or dance with the crowd. She refused guidance to write for pop stars or compromise her values for a quick buck. Most of all\, she turned the emphasis in her music back to songwriting\, exactly where she began.          \n“So much of Strays was leaning into this psychedelic\, textural territory\,” says Price. The music lent itself to vibrant\, heavy stage jams\, with Price often hopping behind the drumkit and bruising her thigh from a tambourine beat. She found herself longing for the days when it was just her and her guitar\, playing at an East Nashville dive bar. “I always knew\,” she adds\, “I would come back to this more rooted sound.” \nHard Headed Woman is rooted to its core. Rooted in Price’s history and struggle to make it as a musician for so many years in a town that prizes uniformity and the bottom line\, rooted in the country and folk sounds that have become her signature\, rooted in the simplicity of a few key collaborators instead of songs-by-committee. At the heart of Price’s work is her creative partnership with Ivey\, with whom she describes as having a “soul connection.” “I’m a songwriter\,” Price says. “I’m not somebody who goes out and needs five people to craft a song\, and then tack my name on it. That’s never been my style. I have something to say.” \nSomething to say\, nothing to prove. The first song they wrote for the album that would become Hard Headed Woman was “Close to You\,” a simple\, pining call for a lover that is infused with the sounds of the desert. It’s unfettered and truth-telling\, accented by some flamenco guitar and Price’s gorgeous\, urgent vocals. “We played the jukebox while democracy fell\,” Price sings\, never letting her songs fall out of the context in which they exist. It’s the kind of thing that only she could write\, carrying both love and fear in one single line. \nAs more songs started to form\, an early boost of confidence came from her friends Rodney Crowell and Emmylou Harris\, who heard some of the work at a political fundraiser and encouraged Price to keep going.  “I have both of them to thank for building me up and making me believe in the songs I am writing in this season of my life\,” Price says. Crowell remained not only an inspiration and supporter of the album but a contributor: he co-wrote two songs with Price and Ivey. \nThe album that unfolded from there is drenched in Price’s unique story and unshakeable instincts: while Midwest Farmer’s Daughter was about her journey from childhood to Nashville\, Hard Headed Woman is very much her battle since from dive bars to tour buses\, through parenthood and marriage\, through scrutiny and sacrifice all while fighting constantly for what she believes in\, and the music she loves. It begins with a proclamation on the prelude\, which serves as the album’s mission statement: or\, Price puts it\, “a disclaimer and reminder that I don’t owe you fucking shit.” \nSongs like the album’s lead single\, “Don’t Let the Bastards Get you Down\,” speak for the downtrodden and the forgotten\, an “anthem for people who are being overlooked in society and need to be lifted up\,” Price says\, “because we are up against so much right now.” As so many of Price’s songs do\, it speaks both for the personal and the political all at once. Price was inspired by the message Kris Kristofferson whispered to Sinead O’Connor when she was booed on stage at a Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary show\, and even got Kristofferson’s widow’s blessing to include his name on the credits. “I always admired Kris for how he stood by her in that moment\, instead of pulling her off the stage like they told him\,” Price says. It serves as a reminder to anyone who encounters resistance in the face of fighting for justice to keep going\, especially when it would be so much easier to capitulate and cower. \n“The song was originally written for a movie that never happened\, but it feels so timely with everything that’s going on in the world\,” Price explains. “The phrase\, ‘Don’t Let The Bastards Get You Down’ originates from Margaret Atwood’s brilliant 1985 piece of literature\, The Handmaid’s Tale. It’s referred to in Latin and used as a rallying cry for resistance against the oppressive regime that symbolizes resilience and hope in the face of adversity. Nolite te Bastardes Caborundorum.” \nThat spirit resonates all across the songs of Hard Headed Woman. The blistering “Don’t Wake Me Up” was based around some writings that Ivey stumbled upon in one of Price’s notebooks\, inspired in part by her deep readings of Frank Stanford\, one of her favorite poets due to his freewheeling work free of boundaries. They spun it all into song in minutes that chugs with the essence of Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues”: “The way this world is going\, ain’t where I’m at\,” Price howls in her powerful\, unmistakable voice. “Nowhere is Where\,” turns slow and contemplative\, road-worn but never broken\, the call of someone who has been to the mountain but never forgets the prairie below. And “Losing Streak” whirls in with an organ and out with a weary\, world-worn defiance: our worst times don’t define us\, but they’re always part of who we are. \nThere are songs that go back to the beginning of Price’s early grind\, like the western-tinged “Wild at Heart\,” reflecting on how much her life and the city of Nashville has changed over the years – and how important it is to stay true to exactly who you are despite it all. Another\, called “Red Eye Flight\,” is about both leaving a lover and also leaving her longtime band the Pricetags. “I’ve been with those players for ten\, thirteen years\,” she says. “But I could feel that I needed to make a change\, and to change texturally what’s going on with the band. But it’s a familial bond\, different than a friendship.” \nThere are a few choice covers and cuts\, too: “Love Me Like You Used To Do” is by Price’s friend Steven Knudson\, an unsung Nashville writer on whom she hopes to shine a spotlight (helping to elevate the town’s incredibly talented but buried voices is one of Price’s favorite pastimes). Friend Tyler Childers joins Price on that waltzing country ballad\, while “I Just Don’t Give a Damn” is Price’s “Jolene goes to Memphis” take on the Jimmy Peppers and George Jones classic. And showcasing how Price has been trusted by the greats to lead the next generation of country music renegades\, “Kissin You Goodbye” was given to Price by Jessi Colter\, Waylon Jennings’ widow\, when Price was producing her record. They’re songs chosen to appreciate the past and the present as she sees it – not as Music Row or the algorithm might dictate – and place Price squarely amongst her heroes as a living and breathing part of the new country tradition. \nWhen it came time to record Hard Headed Woman\, it was important for Price to keep that ethos alive\, decamping to Nashville’s RCA Studio A and reuniting with producer Matt Ross-Spang\, with whom she made her first two solo albums. Though she has worked with everyone from Sturgill Simpson to Jonathan Wilson since\, it was Spang’s vocal rebuke of easy studio shortcuts that made her eager to reunite again. “He’s so unpretentious\,” Price says. “He fully believes in me\, he fully believes in my songs. He got us back to feeling it in your gut and not needing everything to be so perfect.” \nIt felt truly significant for Price to make the album in Nashville\, a city where she’s lived for over two decades and played a seminal role in its transformation\, yet somehow never recorded an album in the place she’s called home. The historic RCA Studio A helped connect Price even closer to the legacy of songwriting she holds so dear\, a place where everyone from Dolly Parton to John Prine to Loretta Lynn have made albums. “It felt like there were ghosts and spirits just hanging out\,” Price says. In perfect kismet\, she also launched her own signature Gibson J-45 guitar\, inspired by her 1960’s Gibson she’s had by her side for years as her career took off. It’s all part of the continuity that she wishes to create with her art\, not just with timeless songs but inspiring future generations of women\, mothers and artists in general who don’t want to sacrifice their vision\, moral compass or family life in favor of mainstream success. \nAt its core\, Hard Headed Woman is about that furious instinct to never waver\, especially when ourselves\, our values and our future is so clearly on the line. As she sings on the title track\, “I ain’t ashamed\, I just am what I am.” \n     “I hope this album inspires people to be fearless and take chances and just be unabashedly themselves\,” Price says\, “in a culture that tries as hard as it can to beat us into all being the same.” \n \n\nReservations\nTable and blanket reservations are non-refundable\, but can be transferred to another available date in the 2026 season. \nPlease Note: General Admission Donations do not include reserved seating. This is a way to make your gate donation in advance. \nTable reservations seat four.  \nBlanket reservations are placed in the blankets-only area of lawn and do not allow for chair placement. Blankets are roughly 5′ x 5′\, comfortably fitting 2 adults and 1 child.  \nSee you in the park!
URL:https://www.prescottpark.org/event/margo-price
LOCATION:Prescott Park\, 105 Marcy St\, Portsmouth\, NH\, 03801\, United States
CATEGORIES:Concert Series
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