CLAYTON, N.C. – When Mike Farris debuted his critically acclaimed Salvation in Lights in 2007, people who’d never heard of the former Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelie's frontman – even the most weathered music business veterans – stood with mouths wide open, amazed at how that sound, that soul, could come from such an unlikely source.

In the two years since Salvation In Lights, Farris’ live performances across the country have left music novices, fans and seasoned artists with the same awe-struck response. His live shows, in no small part, led to this music veteran being named the 2008 Americana Music Awards “New/Emerging Artist of the Year.”

Farris brings his music and his band, the Roseland Rhythm Revue, to The Clayton Center on Saturday, April 10, for the final performance of the 2009-2010 Palladian Series.

Heidi Stump, executive director of The Clayton Center, said, “Mike’s music stirs the soul. It’s redemptive, it’s raw and it’s thoughtful. His songs are heartfelt and delivered with tons of energy. This will be a great show to cap off our season.”

Farris specializes in put-your-hands-together-and-can-I-get-an-Amen, rafter-raisin’ gospel music. It’s church music, but not in the traditional sense. It’s a marriage of traditional black gospel, 70s Stax soul and southern blues.

Farris walked away from 15 years of hard rockin’ first, with the Screamin’ Cheetah Wheelies and then, Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Double Trouble. He battled his addictions and found his inspiration in the gospel tunes that he grew up with in rural Tennessee. He reinvented himself and his music and has enjoyed critical accolades and renewed success along the way. He has been featured at some of the music industry’s highest profile events, including Bonnaroo, SXSW, Austin City Limits Festival, and the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, and his vocal performances have been noted by the likes of Peter Frampton, Buddy Miller, Patty Griffin, Ricky Skaggs, Bruce Hornsby, Jackson Browne and Marty Stuart, among others.

Tickets for the 8 p.m. show are $25 plus service fees. Tickets may be purchased by phone at 919-553-1737, at The Clayton Center Box Office, 111 E. Second Street in downtown Clayton, from 10 a.m. until noon and from 1 until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or online at www.theclaytoncenter.com.

Other popular artists presented in past seasons at The Clayton Center include Ricky Skaggs, Kathy Mattea, Johnny Winter, Jesse Cook, Jim Brickman, Doc Watson, Eileen Ivers, Riders In the Sky, the Harlem Gospel Choir and David Sedaris.