Hometown native Aaron Burdett and his band will kick off Saluda’s Top of the Grade summer concert series at 7 p.m. on Friday, following the Saluda Tailgate Market.

All performances will be held on the Ella Grace Mintz stage at McCreery Park from 7-9 p.m. right off Main Street in Saluda. Guests are asked to bring their own chairs or blankets, food, soft drinks and coolers.

Burdett is listed as one of the top 10 most important musicians of western North Carolina by WNC Magazine. He has also received critical acclaim as a songwriter, winning Our State Magazine’s Carolina Songs competition in 2012 with “Going Home to Carolina.”

Burdett’s song “Magpie” won third place bluegrass song in the prestigious Chris Austin Songwriting Contest at Merlefest in 2013. Over the years, Burdett has been a finalist in numerous other songwriting competitions, including The Mountain Stage Songwriting Contest, The NC Songwriter’s Cooperative Songwriting Contest and the Hank Williams Songwriting Contest.

Burdett has seven albums: 2017’s “Refuge” on Organic Records; 2015’s “Tinderbox,” on Organic records; 2014’s “Fruits of My Labor” on Organic Records; 2012’s “Breathing Underwater;” 2010’s “Stand Up Eight;” 2008’s “Resolve;” and 2005’s “The Weight of Words.”

The Top of the Grade concerts are organized by the Saluda Downtown Foundation, a designated NC Small Town Main Street program and sponsored by the Saluda Business Association to carry out the vision of Saluda becoming a four-season destination for both local residents and visitors, representatives said.

For more information, people may contact Judy Ward at judyward@charter.net or 828-674-5958, or Cathy Jackson at 828-817-2876 or cathy@saludalifestyles.com.

– Submitted by

Cathy Jackson