Meet Robert Burke Warren as author in Asheboro library talk

Robert Burke Warren

ASHEBORO – After you meet Robert Burke Warren as musician during his wife Holly George-Warren's Friends of the Library Sunset Signature Series talk on May 3, meet Robert Burke Warren as author in a talk featuring his novel "Perfectly Broken," 10 a.m. Saturday, May 5, at the Asheboro Public Library.

His appearance, sponsored by the Friends of the Library and the Randolph County Public Library, is free and the public is invited.

"Perfectly Broken" follows the journey of a former musician who moves with his wife and young son from a New York City apartment to a Catskills farmhouse only to face drastic changes in their marriage, friendships and family.

Warren grew up in Atlanta before becoming a working musician in New York. He played bass with the iconic garage band The Fleshtones and performed the title role in the UK/West End production of the musical "The Buddy Holly Story."

He's a singer-songwriter mentored by Rosanne Cash, and has had a successful career as a children's performer, "Uncle Rock."

His writing has appeared in Paste, Salon and numerous other publications. "Perfectly Broken" was published in 2016.

The library is located at 201 Worth Street. For further information, call 336-318-6803.

Asheboro’s Sunset Series to feature music journalist Holly George-Warren

Holly George-Warren

ASHEBORO – One of the country’s most acclaimed and prolific music journalists, Holly George-Warren, will talk about her adventures interviewing and profiling such legendary figures as Johnny Cash and Tom Petty, and writing full-length biographies of Gene Autry, Alex Chilton and Janis Joplin, in “Alex, Gene and Janis: Holly George-Warren and the art of Pop Culture Biography” at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 3, at downtown Asheboro’s Sunset Theatre.

Her appearance is the third installment of the Friends of the Library Sunset Signature Series sponsored by the Heart of North Carolina Visitors Bureau, the City of Asheboro and the Friends of the Randolph County Public Library. The event is free and the public is invited.

Robert Burke Warren

George-Warren’s talk will be “annotated” by songs associated with the artist she’s discussing, performed by her husband, musician Robert Burke Warren.

Now a freelance writer and adjunct professor of arts journalism at the State University of New York at New Paltz, George-Warren grew up in Asheboro. Her mother, Martha George, was a beloved longtime librarian; her father, Alvis George Jr., designed the award-winning 1964 Asheboro Public Library building and its 1994 expansion.

In 1970s Asheboro, George-Warren immersed herself in all things rock ‘n’ roll, seeking the latest music, traveling to concerts and learning everything she could. In college, she decided to turn her love of music into a career, and headed for the New York scene.

Since then, she has authored 10 books (three of them children’s books) and co-authored more than 30 others. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Village Voice, Entertainment Weekly and many other publications.

Of Public Cowboy No. 1: The Life and Time of Gene Autry, the New York Times said, “Every celebrity could use a biographer like Holly George-Warren.”

She also served as editor of Rolling Stone Press, where she oversaw such projects as The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll, The Rolling Stone Illustrate History of Rock & Roll and the Rolling Stone Album Guide.

She received Grammy nominations for co-producing a 5-CD box set, R-E-S-P-E-C-T: A Century of Women in Music,  and for penning liner notes to Janis Joplin’s The Pearl Sessions album.

George-Warren also is a sought-after commentator for television documentaries on topics including music, pop culture and Western Americana, and has served as a consultant, writer and lecturer at museums and academic institutions.

Robert Burke Warren is an accomplished musician who played bass with the iconic garage band The Fleshtones, and performed the title role in the UK/West End production of the musical The Buddy Holly Story. He’s a singer-songwriter mentored by Rosanne Cash, and has had a successful career as children’s performer “Uncle Rock.”

He also is a writer, with work appearing in Paste, Salon and other publication. In 2016 he published his first novel, Perfectly Broken.

While in town for the Sunset Series event, he will present a reading from his book at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 5, at the Asheboro Public Library.

The Sunset Theatre is located at 234 Sunset Avenue. For further information, call the Heart of North Carolina Visitors Bureau at 800-626-2672.

Asheboro library, Genealogical Society, to offer family research workshops in April

ASHEBORO – Learn  about online genealogy research at the Asheboro Public Library in April, and find out about DNA testing during the Randolph County Genealogical Society’s Spring Workshop, also at the Asheboro library.

The library classes, led by librarian and genealogist Ann Palmer, will feature the two library-provided electronic genealogy resources, Ancestry Library Edition and Heritage Quest.

In “Using Ancestry.com Library Edition,” 6:30-8 p.m. Thursday, April 12, participants can get hands-on to learn the basics of using Ancestry.com, the world’s most-used database for researching family history. The class will explore the major features of Ancestry, plus tips on how to search more effectively.

It also will cover the differences between Ancestry Library Edition, which is available for in-house use at any Randolph County Public Library location, and the subscription version, Ancestry.com. Also covered will be how to send discoveries to your email.

In “Using Heritage Quest,” 6:30-8  p.m. Thursday, April 26, participants will learn how to discover the unique information available through Heritage Quest. This database, while not as broad as Ancestry.com, can be accessed from home or anywhere there’s an Internet connection with your library card or student ID.

A limited number of library laptops is available for each class, so registration is required; participants can bring their own laptops as well. To sign up, call 336-318-6803.

The Randolph County Genealogy Society will explore the use of DNA for genealogy in its spring workshop, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, April 21, at the Asheboro library. The presenter will be Larry Cates, librarian at the High Point Public Library’s Heritage Research Center.

Participants can register for giveaway of a free DNA kit (you must be present to win). Seating is limited to the first 50 arrivals.

A Genealogical Society membership meeting to elect new board members will follow.

The library is located at 201 Worth Street in Asheboro. For further information, call 336-318-6815.

Randolph library Friends to host ‘Trivia on Tap’ fundraiser at Four Saints Brewing Company

ASHEBORO – Test  your knowledge of books, movies, music and local history as the Friends of the Library’s ‘Trivia on Tap’ fundraiser returns for a second year at 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 23, at Four Saints Brewing Company.

Tickets, which are $25 per person and must be purchased in advance, are available at the Asheboro Public Library, 201 Worth Street. Food is included in the cost of admission.

Proceeds support Friends projects including Books for Babies, author visits, musical performances and other cultural events; and library programming for children, teens and adults.

During the friendly competition, Trivia Master Rich Powell will present an evening of general knowledge trivia. Participants will answer three rounds of trivia questions in teams of any number.

Participants may gather a team beforehand, or simply join a team on arrival.

The winning team will have bragging rights and team members’ names will be added to the Friends of the Library Trivia plaque.

There will be a cash bar. Four Saints is located at 218 S. Fayetteville Street in Asheboro.

For further information, call 336-318-6801.

Learn how African American band from NC helped integrate the U.S. Navy in Asheboro library talk

B-1 Band veteran Calvin Morrow
(photo by Eddie Price
Photography).

ASHEBORO --Learn how an African American band in World War II propelled the U.S. Navy towards inclusiveness — and meet one of the musicians — during a talk by East Carolina University professor Alex Albright at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 17, at the Asheboro Public Library.

Albright will be joined by Calvin Morrow of Greensboro, who played French horn in the band. Their appearance, entitled, “B-1: How NC A&T and UNC Integrated the Modern U.S. Navy,” is sponsored by the library’s Robert C. Taylor Jr. Memorial World War II Collection.

It’s free and the public is invited.

The 45-piece B-1 Band, comprised primarily of N.C. A&T students, was assigned to support the Navy’s preflight training school on the then-segregated UNC campus in Chapel Hill. Band members were the first African Americans to serve in the Navy at a general rating, placing them on a par with white sailors.

As such, they also were the first black people to work on-campus in a non-servant capacity. They were a sign of hope among members of Chapel Hill’s African American community, who lined the streets to watch the band march to work from segregated living quarters.

In May 1944, the band was transferred to Pearl Harbor, where its members were among the largest posting of African American sailors in the world.

Albright will explore the unit’s history with images and documents, and musical recordings made while the band was stationed in Hawaii.

He also will delve into the history of blacks and musicians in the U.S. military, and talk about the complicated racial dynamic of the era in North Carolina.

The library is located at 201 Worth Street in Asheboro. For further information, call 336-318-6803