Gail (Roach) Smith: Singing, Songwriting & Guitars

CMC Breckenridge once held several singer-songwriting workshops. For me it began when I performed at a CMC “talent show” held sometime in the mid-1980’s.

Tom Hart, who was a CMC program director at the time, heard my performance and asked if I would like to teach a beginning guitar class. The following semester, I had prepared my syllabus, secured a “textbook” (Fretboard Theory and Technique by Dan Fox and Dick Weissman) and had a full class of beginning guitar students. Favorite song to learn was “A Horse With No Name” as it only had two chords.

After this experience, I attended several singer-songwriting workshops held at CMC. My friend and fellow musician, Nancy Cook (also a CMC guitar teacher), helped to organize these workshop sessions. Guest musician Jim Salestrom and Dick Weissman were a couple of the clinicians.

But the best surprise of all time was a guest appearance by Don Henley (Yes! Don Henley of the Eagles). It might have been 1993 or so. The Eagles were going to be performing at Red Rocks and Henley just happened to be in Breckenridge due to an invite from a CMC employee that went to high school with him back in Texas.

Regardless of how it all got put together, in came Don Henley to the Breckenridge CMC theater. He sat up on a stool on stage, and then chatted and answered questions for us about songwriting and performing for about an hour. It was a thrill. Thanks CMC for these wonderful memories!