”](PITTSFIELD, Mass.) –  Singer-songwriter Bobby Sweet will celebrate the release of his latest recording, Cowboys and Poets, with a concert on Saturday, June 18, at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, Mass. Sweet’s new folk/Americana style has drawn comparisons to John Prine, Jackson Browne, Guy Clark, and “a countrified Bruce Springsteen.” An engaging storyteller and dynamic performer, he is a sixth-generation musician who began his performing career in his father’s band at age 7.

 

Sweet, who was profiled by writer Amanda Gordon in Berkshire Living magazine in 2007, has shared the bill with many country and folk artists, including Vince Gill, Bill Staines, Bill Morrissey, Martin Sexton, Arlo Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Jonathan Edwards.

Sweet was selected as a Kerrville New Folk Finalist in 2011. His songs have received honorable mentions from the New York Songwriter’s Circle Songwriting Contest, the UK Songwriting Contest, the Billboard Songwriting Contest, and the Mountain Stage NewSong Contest. He has also written songs that have aired on hit television series such as Touched By an Angel, CSI, Walker Texas Ranger, Soul Food, and Judging Amy.

As a much-sought-after lead guitarist, he has played shows opening for George Jones, Asleep at the Wheel, Willie Nelson, the Bellamy Brothers, and Waylon Jennings. In 2008-2009, he toured with Arlo Guthrie’s Lost World Tour, and has just returned home from Guthrie’s 2010-2011 Journey On Tour. His instrumental and vocal work have been featured on recordings by Arlo Guthrie, Sarah Lee Guthrie, Johnny Irion, and a host of other independent album projects.

Sweet will be performing at the Colonial with his BSweet Band, featuring Pete Adams (pedal steel guitar), Rick Leab (drums), Bruce Mandel (bass), and Abe Guthrie (keyboards). The show begins at 8; doors open at 7:30. Tickets are available at the Colonial box office. For advance tickets call 413. 997.4444 or visit the Colonial Theatre online.