Doors 3:00pm • Music 9:00pm

Don't miss the Abilene debut of..
What About Jane

What About Jane is an acoustic group that performs a variety of material from the ‘60s through the double-00s, including modern & classic country & pop & rock classics, arranged for 3 & even 4 part harmony! WAJ delivers a unique blend of country, gospel, bluegrass, pop & jazz influences using acoustic guitar, acoustic bass & nylon-string synth-guitar to support the tightly woven harmonies. Don’t be surprised to hear banjo, organ, strings, flute, & even sitar, depending on the song!

WAJ was formed by husband & wife Ronda & Gary Smith. Gary’s brother Tom Smith became part of the group on bass, lead & harmony vocals soon after. Jan-Mikael Erakare (no relation) joined in early 2019 & WAJ’s unique blend of musical influences was complete! Fun fact: Gary & Ronda, & Tom & Jan & their spouses have 20 children in total!!

Ronda, born & raised in Louisville, KY, studied Worship Performance at Christ For the Nations Institute, under the tutelage of Kevin Jonas (father of those Jonas brothers!). She wrote & published her 1st song for Jamie Page (renowned CCM artist) at 14, taught music education privately & owned her own music & art studio for years in Elizabethtown, KY, as well as here in Western NY. Ronda’s ability to sing effortlessly across many genres with grace, power & her own style makes her the ideal lead & harmony vocalist for What About Jane…

Gary was born & raised in Albion, NY. He started out his musical journey on drums, playing in rock, blues, church worship & even wedding bands over the course of his career! He occasionally doubled on bass & acoustic guitar, eventually packing away his sticks to focus on vocals & acoustic guitar when he met Ronda. She introduced Gary to country music, starting a musical journey that would culminate in What About Jane…the duo! Gary also sings lead & harmony vocals along with his rhythm guitar playing…

Tom, also from Albion, started singing & playing bass in his teens, & soon developed a melodic approach inspired by singing bass-players like Paul McCartney & Timothy B Schmidt of The Eagles. He is also a fine acoustic guitarist & mandolinist. Tom made his living for many years as a professional photographer, & between raising 6 kids & his role as a worship leader for the earliest Free Methodist Church in existence, he found time to play, record & tour around WNY for many years with the band PS100. His expressive & flexible lead & harmony vocals coupled with his melodic, groove-oriented bass-playing, make him critical to the sound & feel of WAJ…

Jan-Mikael Erakare was born in Finland, grew up in Australia, moved to the USA & married his college sweetheart. He has lived in WNY since 2003, & has owned & operated Erakare Recording since then. His love of harmony & theory influences his writing & arranging, & he is a multi-instrumentalist specializing in guitar, upright & fretless electric bass. He contributes background & the occasional lead vocal, & his unique approach to finger-style synth-guitar provides a textural backdrop & the rhythmic drive for What About Jane…
http://whataboutjaneband.com/

Cover: $5