Experience an exclusive and intimate performance of Surrender Hill songs, featuring guest musician David Ellis on fiddle and mandolin. Living Room Live is an acoustic concert series featuring singer-songwriters in the heart of Georgia wine country.
Living Room Live -- Saturday, 3/22 at the Engelheim Vineyards Event Center.
Program Notes:
- Happy Hour with Surrender Hill @ 5:30
- Doors @ 6:00
- Dinner @ 6:00-7:00
- Surrender Hill @ 6:45
Dinner Notes:
- Dinner provided by Bub-Ba-Q in Jasper, GA
- Pulled Pork (bun optional)
- Macaroni & Cheese
- Collard Greens
- Cole Slaw
- Dinner can be pre-ordered or purchased at the concert
Concert Questions: Contact Jason Vaughan -- [email protected]
Surrender Hill - Get Out Of Your Own Way (Official Video)
Surrender Hill - "Sunshine and Silver Linings" Official Video
Surrender Hill - Quiet Western Town (Official Video)
Surrender Hill Bio:
Robin Dean Salmon
Born in Durban, South Africa, Robin came of age in a disjointed country plagued by violence and political turmoil. His father’s disaccord with the apartheid-favoring government led to a pending threat of him becoming a banned person, which at the time carried the sentencing of house arrest that was doggedly enforced. The family fled to America in 1977, settling outside of San Antonio, TX on the largest Longhorn cattle ranch in the country. Life was reinvented and the way of the rancher instilled in the fabric of young Salmon. Spending the impressionable years of a young man’s life in the Texas hill country in the early ’80s, Salmon and his musical roots were a cross-pollination of musical legends Bob Wills, Johnny Cash, and Marty Robbins, and the contemporaries of punk rock – Sex Pistols, U2, The Clash, and The Ramones. At 15, Salmon got his first guitar, wrote his first song, and realized life as a performer was an inescapable dream.
Fresh out of high school, Salmon formed the band See No Evil, which would later prove to be a success for its four young members. While the band was living in Austin and playing every obliging hole in the wall, Salmon penned a song for International Youth Year, a festival held by the General Assembly at the United Nations in New York. The opportunity to perform live before the United Nations, and the intoxication of the vitality and grit that was New York in the ’80s, Salmon and his fellow See No Evil members packed up and moved their outfit to the city. While living in a Greek Community of Queens and surviving on white rice and Kool-Aid, the band played steady gigs at the infamous CBGB. At one of these late-night gigs, legendary producer Richard Robinson, of Lou Reed and David Johansen notoriety, discovered the young musicians. Impressed with the band and particularly Salmon’s songwriting, Robinson secured the band a deal with Epic that would produce two records. See No Evil and Songs, both produced by Robinson, were released to rave reviews.
Nominated for three prestigious New York Music Awards, the band toured tirelessly until 1992, when Salmon was in a motorcycle accident that nearly ended his life. Faced with months of rehabilitation and an arduous recovery, Salmon felt the New York City winters and brazen population were something he was not eager to endure. A lover of the balmy comforts of the South and her soulful music, he relocated to Atlanta.
The inception of FMG Studios, affectionately named for his dog Fat Muddy George, came from the desire to wear the hat of both recording artist and producer. During FMG Studios’ existence, Salmon produced over 40 records spanning virtually every musical genre from Baptist gospel records to heavy metal. He also released several independent records of his own: a 1994 acoustic album, Aiming for the Sun, and 1997's High Energy Alternative Power Pop with his then-band, Christopher Robin.
Evolution as an artist is inevitable and Salmon was no exception with his shift from punk rock Manhattanite to the roots-infused sound of a Bohemian balladeer. Referencing his Texas roots and country influences, Salmon released two albums under the name Jack West, Gunslinger and Suicide Alley, both applauded by the critics. Hal Horowitz of Creative Loafing said, “‘Gunslinger’ fits comfortably into the current crop of alt-country traditionalists.” Heavily influenced by the work of other respected artists, Salmon references Rodney Crowell’s Houston Kid as being a turning point in his musical direction. The honesty of the human condition and rawness of Crowell’s storytelling was something that Salmon responded to and worked to incorporate in his own work. Americana music, undecorated and intelligent, was a genre of music that resonated deeply with a South African refugee raised on a Texas Longhorn ranch.
In 2005, Robin relocated to Nashville, TN, where he worked as a producer and songwriter, before heading to San Diego in 2009 where he continued to perform and write songs. It was in 2011 that he co-founded Surrender Hill in Sedona, AZ, where he was working at a producer and songwriter.
Afton Seekins Salmon
Originally born in Alaska, then moving to Arizona when she was five, Afton spent her childhood traveling back and forth between the two. School years were spent in the frontier town, Camp Verde, in northern Arizona and summers in the great Halibut fishing town, Homer, located on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska. Afton comes from hard-working, frontier people. One grandfather was a preacher, the other a fisherman. Her mother and father were entrepreneurs who started a water hauling business in Alaska and later a heavy construction business in Arizona. All were people who knew how to live off the land and knew the value of family. Hard work and strong ethics were instilled in Afton from a very young age.
As a young girl, music and dance became Afton’s true passion. When she wasn’t concentrating on her studies or finishing her daily chores, she was singing and dancing. In high school, she worked hard and graduated a year early. Immediately, she went to college, and after her third year, she realized she wasn't following her heart and decided to make a change. While contemplating her next move, Afton moved back to Alaska and reacquainted herself with the extremes of the great outdoors. Taking risks became just another one of her passions.
With newfound courage and direction, Afton moved to New York City to pursue professional dance, training at BLADE Dance Academy. With the aid of diligent perseverance and the ability to quickly grasp what she was learning, she was working professionally within months of her entrance into the company. Her work has been featured on many programs including “The Today Show,” “Good Morning America,” MTV, and VH1, to name a few.
After eight years in New York City, Afton felt her roots and the inspiration to challenge herself creatively calling her back home. Afton moved back to Arizona in 2010 to concentrate on her other creative calling, that of a singer-songwriter. She found her personal journal, that had kept her company for so many years, was also her foundation as a songwriter. She taught herself to play guitar and within months was performing her songs in local venues. Afton soon found herself surrounded by local, accomplished musicians who helped teach and nurture her growth as a singer-songwriter.
One of those musicians was former Sony recording artist, songwriter, and producer Robin Dean Salmon. Robin and Afton found an immediate connection, personally and professionally. In early 2014, Afton and Robin started work on their first album as the duo Surrender Hill.
Ten years later, they are married, have thousands of performance hours behind them, seven full-length albums, and a very handsome 5-year-old boy named Wren. Afton and her boys call Ellijay, GA home. To hear Afton sing her songs is to learn about her journey from Homer to Ellijay.
Surrender Hill's “Sunshine and Silver Linings” was nominated as a 2022 American Songwriter's Song of the Year.
For more information, please contact:
Krista Mettler, Skye Media, [email protected]
Visit Surrender Hill Official Website