Cheryl Wheeler & Tony Deyo will perform during Lyrics and Laughs for Habitat.

Cheryl Wheeler has to be seen to be appreciated. Nothing you read and nothing you hear from her albums prepares you for how good a performer she is.

You may not be familiar with Cheryl, but you have probably heard her music. She is very respected as a songwriter by her peers, which can be seen by how many of them record her songs. Chery’s songs have been covered by artists as diverse as Dan Seals, Peter Paul and Mary, Kenny Loggins, Garth Brooks, Suzy Boggus, Melanie, Bette Midler, Maura O’Connell, Sylvia, Kathy Mattea, and Holly Near. If they think she is great, then you owe it to yourself to learn more if you aren’t familiar with her.

From her albums you can tell that she is a gifted songwriter with a beautiful voice. From other people’s comments about her you can learn that she is a natural story teller with a fantastic sense of humor. But until you see her in person, you never really believe what you’ve been told about her. Besides, almost half of the songs she does during her shows haven’t been recorded!

If you have never seen her do a live concert, then by all means do so! I get e-mail from people all the time thanking me for spreading the word about Cheryl. They go to the concert knowing they will enjoy it, and often find it even better than they had thought it would be. If she doesn’t ever perform near you, then try to find a copy of her video or her live album. and see what you are missing. You can find some clips of her on YouTube, but they are usually only the songs, and not the stories. If she ever performs near you, do what you can to attend. If you don’t, you will kick yourself later for missing a great show.

Her Concerts:

If your idea of a folk singer/songwriter concert is a bunch of people clapping politely after songs, and then sitting quietly while the performer says things like “This next song is about …”, well, you’ve never seen a Cheryl Wheeler concert before.

Cheryl’s concerts are more like what you would find at a comedy club than expect to find at a folk music concert. She will tell a story that has you rolling in the aisles, and then sing a song that leaves you wiping tears from your eyes. She will talk about some serious current event, and then sing a song that will have you howling with laughter. Her entire concert is an emotional roller coaster.

Her set list is usually a crumpled piece of paper with a bunch of song titles. After each song, she’ll look at the list and decide what to do next. If somebody calls out a request, and her guitar is in the right key, she might try it, even if she hasn’t done it in a while. If she just finished writing a song, she will usually try it out in front of the next audience. If she has two sets back to back, she almost never does the same (or even similar) group of songs.

Her funny stories between songs show as much diversity. Each time she tells a story, it will be a little bit different, so even if you’ve heard it before, you still find yourself laughing.

To repeat, there is no way you can read about Cheryl and get a good picture of what she or her concerts are like. You have to see one. If she is performing in your area, do whatever it takes to get to her concert. You won’t be sorry.

www.cherylwheeler.com

Tony Deyo is a stand-up comedian known most notably for his sharp, quick material and near-perfect comedic timing almost certainly gained from his years as a professional symphony musician. New York City’s Village Voice calls him “one of the tightest joke writers in the business.”

In 2013, he made his late night television debut on CONAN.  Within a year, he had added appearances on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, AXS TV’s Gotham Comedy Live, and Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen.  His latest album, Comedy Road Trip, landed on the Billboard Magazine comedy chart, and debuted as the #1 selling stand-up album on iTunes.  With over 50 stand-up clips available, he has steadily become one of the most prolific comedians on YouTube.

He performed at the prestigious HBO Aspen Comedy Festival, was named one of the year’s best by the New York Post, and can be heard regularly on SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

TonyDeyo.com