![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/grey_eagle_gaither.jpg\")
<\/p>\nContinued from Part One…<\/i><\/p>\n
Food and photos<\/b>
\nOver the years, the Grey Eagle has also been home to some quality food options. Whitworth, manager John A. Zara and current owners Russ and Sarah Keith all reminisce warmly about the various eateries that have had runs at the venue. They mention Yo Mama’s Snackeria, Sassafras Cafe, Thibadeaux Jones, Twin Cousins, Roots and Taqueria Con Cuida. That last-named formed \u201cthe foundation of what we have now, the Grey Eagle Taqueria,\u201d says Whitworth.<\/p>\n
Anyone who has visited the Grey Eagle has been struck by the gallery of photographs adorning its walls. Sandlin Gaither started out the same way as had Whitworth. In fact when he moved to Asheville from Chareston \u2013 the two had been house mates there \u2013 he initially crashed on Whitworth’s couch. \u201cAnd I started bugging Tyler,\u201d Whitworth says. \u201c’There’s this great guy in town \u2013 he’s on my couch right now \u2013 and he’d love to do something here.\u201d Gaither initially worked the door before moving behind the bar.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
With their permisison, Gaither started taking photos of performers. \u201cHe had a crappy little point-and-shoot Sony camera,\u201d Whitworth says with a laugh, \u201cthe size of a cell phone.\u201d An onstage shot of Sparklehorse \u2013 shot with that camera and the oldest Gaither portrait \u2013 still graces the walls of the Grey Eagle.<\/p>\n
Today it’s a rite of passage to have one’s image captured by Gaither, who has long since upgraded to professional gear. A highly in-demand portrait photographer, he’s shot hundreds of artist photos; many acts use his work in their official press kit and website. His classic portrait of Vic Chesnutt \u2013 shot from the venue’s roof looking down into the patio \u2013 was used on a Grammy telecast during its \u201cin memoriam\u201d presentation. Today the Grey Eagle’s walls are covered with iconic photos of artists in every genre; they’re as much a part of its character as the music.<\/p>\n
The Grey Eagle today<\/b>
\nAs Whitworth and his wife anticipated the birth of their second child, the decision was made to sell to the Keiths. But he’d stay on as talent booker, a role he still plays today.<\/p>\n
Russ Keith had initially come on board as a minor partner. \u201cI started gathering the finances with the help of Mountain Bizworks,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd we went through the foundation\u2019s courses there on running a business.\u201d Keith says that when he took over, he added a storage space for 250 chairs as well as a monitor console, further improving the room’s sound.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/grey_eagle_patio.jpg\")
And he grew the staff. \u201cJeff started with five people,\u201d Keith says. \u201cWe’re at almost 20 employees now.\u201d Though doing so adds compliance headaches, he also got a liquor license; the bar at the Grey Eagle now features spirits alongside its beer, wine and cider offerings.<\/p>\n
But the biggest change Russ Keith made was to the volume of activity. \u201cI told Jeff, ‘Man, I want music in here every night. I have employees here I need to support.’\u201d The venue added outdoor patio shows, and Sarah Keith focused on scheduling events \u2013 like a recent crawfish boil \u2013 that expand beyond just music. He says that today, the Grey Eagle \u201cmight have ten dark days a year.\u201d<\/p>\n
The patio shows present an opportunity for local acts to get a foothold and build an audience. \u201cA classic example is Brody Hunt,\u201d says Keith. The Asheville honky tonk singer-songwriter started out at the Grey Eagle playing on the patio. \u201cAnd then he opened up for JD McPherson the other night: sold out, 550 people.\u201d<\/p>\n
For his part, Whitworth says that Keith’s more-music mandate meant that he \u201chad to get more creative with booking, which is great.\u201d He says he often heard from people who keep an eye on the Grey Eagle’s calendar: \u201cThey’ll tell me, ‘Thank you for hosting metal shows at the Grey Eagle. What a perfect room for it,’ or, ‘I’m glad somebody\u2019s booking real hip hop shows.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Today the Grey Eagle is woven into the fabric of the region’s community and culture. \u201cWe try to give back to the community a lot,\u201d says Sarah Keith. \u201cI\u2019ve been working on doing fundraisers for nonprofits and collaborating within the community to do events. Daytime events, too. Because we\u2019re always open to that; it just adds to the excitement.\u201d<\/p>\n
A new projection system allows the room to be used to show sporting events; touring musicians use it for special effects, too. A closed-circuit camera captures the bands onstage, and displays those moving images on a large screen in the bar\/restaurant area \u201cfor people who want to sit down,\u201d Sarah Keith says. While the Keiths have to be mindful of expenditures \u2013 of, as Russ Keith puts it, \u201cputting money into things when the building’s not yours\u201d \u2013 they make sensible improvements when they can. \u201cWe want to keep our bar raised to a standard for the artist and as well as the customer,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Sarah Keith credits much of the Grey Eagle’s enduring success over the last quarter-century to \u201ckeeping it in the family.\u201d Speaking in reference to former owner Whitworth, previous owners and herself and husband Russ, she says, \u201cWe\u2019re not looking to sell to somebody who’s moving here from wherever, who has no idea what the history is. It\u2019s such an intimate listening room, and everybody involved is like family.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/grey_eagle_soundboard.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Whitworth agrees. \u201cI would have hated to see this become a Live Nation venue.\u201d He reveals that when he decided to sell the Grey Eagle, he had other offers. \u201cThose didn’t feel right, and I walked away,\u201d he says. \u201cAnd one of the big things when I was selling to Russ was, ‘I don\u2019t want to sell it unless I can still be involved.’\u201d<\/p>\n
Russ Keith chimes in. \u201cAnd I said, ‘I don\u2019t want to do this if you\u2019re not<\/i> going to be involved.’\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRuss is all about preserving the legacy and maintaining what was already building,\u201d says Whitworth. And 25 years after it began, the Grey Eagle builds upon what has always made it special. \u201cThe interaction between performer and artist is unparalleled in this room,\u201d Whitworth says. \u201cThat\u2019s the big draw for me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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