Songwriter Showcase presented by Jud Caswell

"Songwriter Showcase, presented by Jud Caswell" featuring Gordon Thomas Ward, Ben Hunsberger and Ashley Lepre

Gordon Thomas Ward: Gordon Thomas Ward is a GRAMMY-balloted, award-winning, multidimensional artist who’s taken an unconventional road in his career. A storyteller, who uses music and poetry to mix the ethereal world and the human condition, Gordon can touch your soul like a summer breeze winding through soft cedar branches or a winter Nor’easter battering the coast. His songs, like the places and the people we love, are beautiful and dramatic in all their seasons. With four albums, five books, four #1 songs, and other compositions that have charted in the U.S. and abroad, he's recorded with notable musicians such as Noel Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul, and Mary), Kevin Barry (Jackson Browne, James Taylor), Eric Troyer and Mik Kaminski of the Electric Light Orchestra, and shared the stage and billing with Natalie Merchant, Christine Lavin, and Bill Staines. Whispers from the Woods is Gordon’s fourth and most recent album, which was hailed as “a modern-day masterpiece that comes straight from the heart” by Skope Magazine. His music, says Matheson's Entertainment Blog, "Will grab you by the heart and never let go." Upcoming in 2024 is a studio album called Halo, and the first installment of a children’s literature book series.

Ben Hunsberger: Blending a lifelong passion for music with his unique perspectives on life, love, politics, and nature, Ben’s music is seasoned with flavors of Jackson Browne and The Beatles, and echoes of Brubeck and Mose Allison. Clear vocals backed by keyboard and guitar highlight his live performances. Ben has played with many well-known area musicians including Ted DeMille, Chris Moore, Magic 8 Ball, Leopard Girls, Jenny Lou Drew, and Jud Caswell. He has recorded nine original albums, and his latest effort, Shelter in a Quiet Place is now available at bandcamp, spotify, and your favorite streaming services.

Ashley Lepre: Ashley Lepre’s "acoustic pop punk" music is the coalition of her love for free verse and formal poetry, early 2000s punk rock, and good humor. Dr. Seuss, Wendy Cope, Shel Silverstein and Philip Larkin all feature prominently on her list of poetic inspirations. In 2021, she began performing her music publicly at open mics throughout the Portland area. Taken by the local singer/songwriter community, she went on to host an open mic in Westbrook, Maine.  Since then, she has  headlined shows throughout Southern Maine as well as performed alongside her twin sister, Nicole Lepre, in Bridgeport, Boston and DC. In 2023, Ashley, in collaboration with her twin sister, recorded and released her original song “Bad Haircut”. She recently collaborated with “Space Fog”, a Maine-based musical collective, to record her original song “Debbie” which will be available on Spotify in March of 2024. Currently, she is working on recording a handful of her and her sister’s original music for release in 2024.

Jud Caswell: Jud Caswell is an award-winning songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has been performing in his native state of Maine and beyond for more than 25 years. In 2006 he made a splash on the national scene, winning the legendary Kerrville New Folk competition. He’s had his songs taught at Berklee, recorded by Judy Collins, and named “#4 Song of the Decade” by New York’s WFUV. His record “Live at the Seagull Shop” was the number 1 album on the Folk Alliance International radio charts in March of 2020. Jud is currently releasing a series of albums of music that he recorded during the early months of the pandemic.