Sylvia & Friends at Smyrna Opera House

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Smyrna Opera House, 7 West South Street, Smyrna, DE 19977

During her tenure as a solo artist with RCA Records between 1979 and 1987, Sylvia became one of the most celebrated women in country music. She released five albums with a dozen #1 and Top Ten hits, sold over four million records, and won multiple awards including the Academy of Country Music’s Female Vocalist of the Year and Billboard’s #1 Country Female Artist. She enjoyed crossover music success with her single "Nobody" in 1982. It reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100, #9 on the Cashbox Top 100, and #1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. The song earned her a gold record certification and a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.

Joining Sylvia on stage will be her talented accompaniest John Mock, her dear friends Thom Schuyler and Craig Bickhardt and local singer/songwriter Sol Knopf.

Thom Schuyler was inducted into the Nashville Songwriter's Hall of Fame in 2011. He wrote songs recorded by more than 200 various artists including "16th Avenue" for Lacy J. Dalton, "Love Will Turn You Around" for Kenny Rogers, and "A Long Line of Love" for Michael Martin Murphey.

Not only is Schuyler known for being a prolific songwriter and tremendous performer, he was eventually made chairman of the Country Music Association. He also headed RCA Records' Nashville division from 1992 to 1995. In that role he signed singer Kenny Chesney, the band Lonestar and also had a significant role in launching the career of Martina McBride and Sara Evans.

Craig Bickhardt is known and revered industrywide as a songwriter's songwriter. The list of legends that have recorded his songs include Ray Charles, BB King, Johnny Cash, Martina McBride, The Judds and too many more to list. He has penned four #1 Country hits and nine top 10 hits. Not only is Bickhardt a prolific writer, he is virtuoso guitarist and brilliant solo artist.

John Mock-Widely sought after as a composer, arranger, and multi-instrumentalist, John has worked with such notable artists as the Dixie Chicks, James Taylor, Dolly Parton, Nanci Griffith, Maura O’Connell, Sylvia, Kathy Mattea, and Mark O’Connor. John’s credits as composer and featured soloist include performances with the Nashville Chamber Orchestra, the Nexus Chamber Orchestra, the Nashville Philharmonic, the Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra, and the National Orchestra of Ireland. He has also worked extensively across the country as a solo performer.

Sol Knopf-Sol Knopf is an award winning, Americana singer/songwriter and solo performer from Delaware best known for his distinctive baritone voice and timeless original songs. His moving single “My Baby Girl” has become one of the most requested, independently released, father/daughter dance songs at weddings across the USA and abroad. In September 2015 "My Baby Girl" became the theme song for "Daughter's Lives Matter".... a Million Father March in San Bernardino County California. Sol headlined the event and received a Certificate of Recognition from the county for his continued advocacy of fatherhood importance and engagement. Then, in 2016 the song won 1st place in the Folk Music Category at the 2016 Smokey Mountain Songwriters Festival in Gatlinburg, TN. The official "My Baby Girl" YouTube video has been viewed over one million times.