Taylor Martin and band pack punch as ‘opener’

Todd Shaeffer, lead singer and chief songwriter  for Americana-based newgrass band Railroad Earth, performed as a solo act and captivated the crowd during a concert Nov. 21 at Isis Restaurant & Music Hall in West Asheville.

Some of his folks songs were reminiscent of the works by Bob Dylan and Neil Young, but Sheaffer added his own unique spin to them, along with his stellar musicianship and vocals. 

Indeed, the English literature graduate from Columbia University not only has written clever song lyrics, but the very names he has given to some of his songs show his literary flare, such as “Black Elk Speaks,” “Like a Buddha” and “Jupiter and the 119.”

Even his New Jersey-based band Railroad Earth’s name was borrowed from the Jack Kerouac short story “October in the Railroad Earth.” (The band also has a song by the same name.)

Sheaffer, who previously was the frontman for From Good Homes, is the real thing as a folksinger, as he paid his dues developing his chops early in his career in the Greenwich Village, N.Y., folk circuit. 

Shaeffer showed a terrific ability to connect with the crowd, and his performance inspired some singles and couples — at times — to get up and dance enthusiastically.

While the show featured a pleasing combination of his guitar- and harmonica-playing and singing, it would have been even better if Sheaffer had performed his terrific songs with a full band, providing more structure and rhythm, along with that joyous phenomenon — vocal harmony.

Opening the show was Asheville-based Taylor Martin & His Acoustic Band, which, like Sheaffer, mainly performed originals, but also performed memorable covers of Neil Young’s “Don’t Let It Bring You Down” and  “Music Arcade” and Tom Waite’s “Jockey Full of Bourbon.”

Martin, a singer-songwriter classified in the Americana genre who grew up in Richmond, Va., is known for writing song lyrics with a dark-edge that somehow come out with a cheerful flare.

He has a voice reminiscent of famed singer John Hiatt. Martin’s hangdog expression and shy smile, combined with a mesmerizing deep baritone, raspy voice — bordering at times on Louis Armstrong, seem to naturally make him a crowd favorite.

Among Martin and band’s top songs were “‘Pon My Door,” “Devils in the Barroom,” “Drive Through the Years,” “Travel for Travel Wide,” “Hallowed Crowd,” “Engine” and “White Buffalo.”

Of those originals, “‘Pon My Door” and “Engine” stood out most, showing Martin has much potential to go far.

An especially memorable aspect of Martin’s performance were two songs, including one that he said was inspired by seeing a one-eyed woman crying on West Asehville’s Haywood Road and the other that, he claimed, was about about “the Charlotte Street Pub (in North Asheville) and the people who go there.”