Photo by Amy Cherry Lee Greenwood performed several holiday medleys, classic Christmas songs and some of his country hits. on Tuesday evening at Ridgway Area High School.

By Amy Cherry

Staff Writer

Sing and songwriter Lee Greenwood entertained a sizable crowd Tuesday evening with a variety of holiday tunes and several of his country hits.

During his performance at Ridgway Area High School, Greenwood interacted with the audience by sharing stories of his family and career.

As part of the show he debuted his newest country song “Why Lie” and numerous selections from Christmas album.

The show, entitled a “Tennessee Christmas,” was set on a holiday backdrop complete with a Christmas tree, a cozy sitting area and fireplace complete with cowboy boot stockings.

Greenwood showcased both his vocal and instrumental talents as he played both the saxophone and keyboard during his performance.

“My vocal style is based on the fact that I enjoy melodies,” Greenwood said, adding that he learned to play piano by ear at an early age.

Although having written over 45 to 50 songs Greenwood said he has no particular favorite.

“I draw inspiration from people, what they say, the Earth itself,” Greenwood said. “Most songs are about relationships as humans, about you and I, and have the title ‘I’ or ‘why’in them. Heartaches, happiness, joy, disaster, crisis, is what most of us write about and all those emotions we feel as people. Happy songs that say the same things as sad songs.”

Among the many musicians who inspired him were famous saxophone players of the jazz era Earl Bostic, Illinois Jacquet and Sam Butera and The Witnesses, which he became a fan of when he lived in Las Vegas for 20-plus years.

“I was raised in the jazz-era so Stan Kenton, the father of American jazz, was my most favorite artist of all time,” Greenwood said.

Vocally Greenwood admires such singers as Sam Cooke, Bobby Darin and Peabo Brycen.

Throughout his career, Greenwood said one of his most memorable performances was on Liberty Island on July 4, 1986, during the re-dedication to the Statue of Liberty.

He recollects singing his signature song “God Bless the USA” while situated atop Liberty Island with the USS John F. Kennedy ship off to his left. During his performance which was being broadcast by one of the major television networks, the camera zoomed in on his wrist as he was wearing a MIA (Missing In Action) bracelet in remembrance of a downed Vietnam F4 pilot. In the same shot the camera captured a shot of the Kennedy naval ship as the Queen Elizabeth II  passed by with a massive American flag draped across its bow.

“Liberty Island was the most meaningful, the one I remember the most. There are many others (performances), the fourth game of the World Series in 2001 right after the terrorist attack, the firemen’s memorial at Yankee Stadium, the policemen’s memorial at Carnegie Hall and a command performance for the president at the White House,” Greenwood said.