By Tricia Cherry —
Song Farmers is a musical event that occurs at Miami’s Hamilton Downtown Center. It’s advertised as an acoustic jam session in which anyone who played an instrument was welcome to join, regardless of skill level.
The three performers who showed up were gentlemen who all played acoustic guitar. One of them, Jim Richardson, was also the host of the event—who, in addition to his guitar, played a foot-operated tambourine. As its name suggests, such a tambourine is crafted to allow the rhythmic tapping of feet on it to produce its sound, unlike its more well-known relative, the typical tambourine. The other two players were a man named Frank Doria, and the third player wished to remain anonymous. The three of them seemed very attuned with each other and able to read each other, but when asked, they claimed to not be in a band together.
To pass the time, the three performers sang and played, hoping to draw people in. Most songs were country-leaning and religious, as Jim is associated with the church. The song “My God Is An Awesome God” and “Knock, Knock, Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” were played, as was a lesser-known piece about the resurrection of Jesus. Other tunes include the Elvis song “If I Can’t Dream” and Willie Nelson’s “Remember Me.”
When asked what inspired him in his music, Jim said he’d grown up with the church and was inspired by their music. In the late 1970s and into the 1980s, he was introduced to bands such as Kings and The Beatles. He started out on the drums and later moved to guitar. Today, Jim plays for his church and also runs the events at the center.
When asked the same, Frank said that his father played the mountain guitar in his childhood and came from a big, musical family. “We’re Italian,” he joked. One day, Frank says, he picked up a guitar and just started playing.
The center holds these events every other Wednesday and have been doing so for at least a decade. The next event will be on September 24th. In the future, lovers of music are encouraged to stop by and join the fun.
The Hamilton Downtown Center is affiliated with Miami University. The address to the center is 221 Highstreet, in the Robinson-Shwenn Building.
