P.A. Kane Upcoming Events:

 

—Cozy Fall Book Crawl - Saturday, October 10, 2026, 9- 2 p.m. Historic Palace Theatre, 2 East Ave, Lockport, NY 14094. Join me and other WNY authors for this unique event at various locations throughout Lockport.

—Lit of Art Bookfair - Saturday November 7, 2026, 12-3 p.m. 1201 Pine Avenue, Niagara Falls, NY 14301. Local author event sponsored Niagara Arts Cultural Center.

—Noir at The Bar- Sunday, November 8, 2026. Charlie's Boat Yard, 1111 Fuhrmann Blvd. Buffalo, NY. A great collection of WNY noir writers will present and sell their work at this popular event. I'll also be presenting my first-ever noir piece. 

—The Road To Writing - Wednesday, November 11, 2026, 6-8 p.m. Springville Center for the Arts, 02 Buffalo Street (Art's Cafe), 5 E. Main Street, Springville, NY 14141. Join me for a reading and conversation about my path to being a writer at the fabulous art's cafe.

—Burchfield Penny Art Center Book Club - Thursday January 7, 2026, 6:30-7:30 p.m. @Burchfield Penny on the campus of Buffalo State University- 1300 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, NY. A book club discussion of my latest novel Larry Plumb Is Still Here. 

"Ballad of The Kingsmen" Todd Snider

Todd Snider passed away from pneumonia on November 14, 2025.
This essay is from my 2020 book: The Last Playlist (A Sonic Epitaph)  

Todd Snider's 2004 release, East Nashville Skyline, is a modern classic in every sense of the word. It's a great and tumultuous ride into Hank Williams's Cadillac Coupe DeVille, Mike Tyson's entourage, and the head of a jumper on a ledge who receives some divine intervention from St. Peter. Although Snider's entire catalog is pretty great, this album is his London Calling or Exile on Main Street.

Originally from Oregon, Todd Snider is a modern-day troubadour wandering the country with a guitar slung over his back, a harmonica fixed to his neck, and a head full of hard-luck stories. His songs are a mixed bag of country, rock, and blues jumbled together with minimal instrumentation and production. He delivers his songs in an affable, shaky voice that sometimes borders on preachy but is utterly sincere. Lyrically, many are story songs, often focusing on characters living on the fringes of society with a penchant for ending up in handcuffs with no more than a prayer for bail. His songs make you laugh, cry, and think—the holy trinity of songwriting.