Mountain City's Singer/Songwriter
John T. Woodall

All photos and illustrations by Pat Johns ©2008
All Rights Reserved
See links to article references at the end of the article.

May 2008

John Woodall is a talented singer and songwriter who lives just 20 minutes from Watauga Lake in Mountain City, Tennessee and who performs throughout the region.

On May 8 he performed with musicians Ben Bradford and Billy Gambill at the popular Craig's Coffee House and restaurant in Mountain City. Diners enjoyed the fresh, flavorful meals at the restaurant while listening to the great sounds of Woodall and the band. Selections included popular, jazz and blues favorites and several of Woodall's original songs.

John Woodall was born in Raleigh, North Carolina and grew up singing gospel and R&B music. He is a graduate of the School of Music at Appalachian State University in nearby Boone, North Carolina. While there he worked at a Blowing Rock establishment, The Farm House Inn and Restaurant, where employees not only cooked, waited tables and cleaned but also sang in the parlor of the inn.

After graduation, Woodall left for New York City to attend the NYU School for Film and Television. He appeared in small roles in several films including "A Beautiful Mind" and in larger roles in independent films. Along the way he also developed a love of jazz and blues music and began to develop his own musical style.

After re-connecting with and then marrying a longtime friend, John and Amy Woodall lived in Nashville, Tennessee where he continued to write and perform in clubs such as the Blue Bird Café. They were persuaded to move to the Mountain City area by his former employers from the Farm House Inn who were opening a new restaurant in the Mountain City area. His wife Amy now teaches music at the Mountain City Elementary School and they both give private lessons to local talented students.

Today, John Woodall has become a popular performer in the Mountain City area and in the region. He has recorded and this summer will release his first CD, titled "How Far Would I Go?". It will be available on CDFreedom.com (search for John T. Woodall) and iTunes.

To book John for a performance, call Stage One Management at (423) 727-4085. Click here to e-mail John. His website will be available this summer. Check back here for a link.

Craig's Coffee House is in Mountain City across from the elementary school. Click here to learn more about this unique and popular coffee house and restaurant.

Some interesting links related to this article:

• Mountain Times article about the Farm House Inn and John Woodall
• DejaVu Band with Ben Bradford, Billy Gambill and John Woodall