Iota Club & Cafe, BOS Music Host Second Annual Dave Daly Scholarship Fund Benefit Concert on November 6, 2004.

2004 Featured Artists

ERIC BRACE (www.lasttrainhome.com)
Best known for his acclaimed "front man" work as lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter with the popular group Last Train Home, Eric has spent the last couple years bringing his music to thousands nationwide. Born in Placerville, CA, Eric Brace is a man of many talents. While attending college in Boston, he played in a bluegrass band (Mystic Valley Mountaineers), where he jammed with a young Bela Fleck. After moving to D.C. in the late '80s, Eric ran Top Records, an indie rock label, and released an EP of his band (B-Time) as well as works by other bands like Frontier Theory, Carnival of Souls, Sleep of Reason, Young Caucasians. Eric played bass with Kevin Johnson & the Linemen in the early '90s and then began working as a music writer for the Washington Post. In 2003, Brace took to the road, heading off on a sabbatical from the Post to fulfill his own musical dreams and ambitions with Last Train Home in Nashville. When he's not playing his songs in Last Train Home, Eric's tunes are being pitched around Music City and beyond by Larry Shell, who signed Eric to a publishing deal with Americana Entertainment, Inc

AMY SPEACE (www.AmySpeace.com)
Amy Speace has been on so many "one to watch" lists lately that it's obvious something exciting is about to happen. Her debut solo release, Fable (2002, Twangirl Records), was received with widespread critical praise and was spun on over 100 radio stations worldwide (without the help of any promotional team). Her follow-up record will feature numerous guest appearances, including E-Street Band member Soozie Tyrell. Completely independently, Amy tours over 150 dates a year, sharing the stage with Ricky Skaggs, Steve Forbert, Eddie From Ohio, Catie Curtis and Lucy Kaplansky; she has showcased at many festivals and conferences and has had her songs placed in films and commercials (her song "Why Not Wyoming" is being used in a national TV and Radio promotion for tourism for the State of Wyoming and is being spun on Clear Channel stations throughout that state). Recently, Amy scored an endorsement deal with Epiphone Guitars and is featured in their 2005 Calendar along with Joan Osborne. Consistenly named a "Critic's Pick" of The Village Voice with her monthly shows in NYC, Amy and her band The Tearjerks pack the house. Critics have compared her to a wide variety of female artists like kd lang, early Linda Rondstadt, Maria McKee and Jill Sobule, and even early Joan Baez, and her whipsmart, hooky writing bends the genre lines of folk, country and pop/rock. Amy takes the country folk of Emmylou Harris and puts it through the grinder of the lower east side of NYC. The Nashville Rage has called her "alt-country's answer to Jill Sobule" and Time Out New York has called her "authentically Nashville without being hokey." As cheesy as it might sound, she's a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll, and she's one of the most exciting artists to emerge from the NYC acoustic pop underground.

JULIA OTHMER (www.JuliaOthmer.com)
Hailed as a "fresh, new, intoxicating talent," newcomer Julia Othmer offers a unique blend of soulful, earthy-magnetism and fiery-passion. She undulates behind the keys delivering intense and intriguing performances. Accompanied by Hoagy Wing on banjo and percussion (including cajon, tubano and dumbek), she made her musical debut as a solo artist this past summer. Already, Julia has garnered a fast-growing fan base from performances at Philadelphia's Tin Angel, the Point, and North Star Bar, as well as New York City's Sidewalk CafÚ and CB's 313 Gallery. Raised in Kansas City, Julia grew up on her older brothers' records and classical music. "I had a serious crush on Beethoven. My study of classical piano came from wanting to have a conversation with him that I couldn't otherwise have." Julia spent formative time in Russia, Spain, and India; studied in New York City; and returned to Kansas City to manage a theatre company engaging youth in the arts. Working primarily in the inner city, her experience of the congruity of making music and making a difference was pivotal. "For the first time, I was clear that I could pursue my passion with a true sense of purpose." After her theatrical residency, Julia recorded 3 songs with producer Myron Dove - rhythm guitarist / piccolo bass with Santana - in San Francisco. Those sessions also involved Tony Lindsay (lead vocals) of Santana and Ed Roth (keyboards) of Mya.

STEVE YUTZY-BURKEY (www.TheSwimmers.com)
Frontman for the popular Philadelphia band "One Star Hotel," filled in for the ailing James O'Brien. Steve now fronts a band called the Swimmers. Their new material is already getting rave reviews and a steady stream of new fans.