Grammy Winner Kris Kristofferson in Acoustic Concert Oct. 17 at the PAC

SAN LUIS OBISPO -- Three-time Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter KRIS KRISTOFFERSON will perform an intimate, solo acoustic concert of both classic hits and new music on Friday, Oct. 17, at 8 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center's Christopher Cohan Center at Cal Poly.

Kristofferson has always identified himself first and foremost as a writer and believes true writers know that what works best is giving a piece of themselves to the listener.

With his latest album, This Old Road, Kristofferson lays a large part of his own soul on every track. This beautifully sparse recording puts an emphasis on his fine lyrics and distinctive voice by featuring only Kristofferson, his guitar, and his harmonica.

This Old Road contains eleven songs that explore love, gratitude, aging, war, and his ever-present theme of freedom. “If you took freedom out of the songs, you’d have very few Kristofferson songs,” he laughs.

“If I had to describe it in one word, I’d say it’s honest,” he says of This Old Road. “It’s all pretty close to the bone, about my own personal journey. It’s about what sense I’ve made of my life up to now.”

Kristofferson’s story is fairly well known: he had a dream, along with the necessary talent and ambition, to become a songwriter. After turning down a teaching position at West Point, the Rhodes Scholar hoped to get his foot in the door of the music business by taking a job as a janitor at Columbia Records.

It wasn't long after arriving in Nashville that he was being hailed as one of America’s clearest and most important voices, having penned such classics as “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” “For the Good Times,” and many others.

His renown as a songwriter triggered Kristofferson’s successful career as a performer and that, in turn, brought him to the attention of Hollywood, leading to his flourishing career as a film actor.

Kristofferson has acted in more than 50 films. In 1977, he won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in A Star Is Born. He’s appeared in cult favorites including the Blade trilogy, Lone Star, A Soldier’s Daughter Never Cries, Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Blume In Love, Cisco Pike, and Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid.

Recent films include Fast Food Nation, The Wendell Baker Story, Dreamer: Inspired By A True Story, The Jacket, Silver City, and Disappearances.

Heralded as an artist’s artist, Kristofferson has recorded 26 albums, including three with friends Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and the late Johnny Cash as part of The Highwaymen.

For Kristofferson’s 70th birthday in 2006, his friends gifted him with a tribute CD, The Pilgrim: A Celebration of Kris Kristofferson. Stars including Willie Nelson, Russell Crowe, Emmylou Harris, Gretchen Wilson, Rosanne Cash, and Brian McKnight recorded 17 of Kristofferson’s compositions for the tribute.

In 2007, Kristofferson was honored with the Johnny Cash Visionary Award from Country Music Television.

Kristofferson has spent three decades performing concerts all over the world; in most recent years, in a solo acoustic setting that puts the focus on the songs.

“There’s an honesty in the sparseness. It feels like direct communication to the listener,” he says. “I still have more fun when I’m with the band, but being alone is freer, somehow. It’s like being an old blues guy, just completely stripped away.”

general public tickets for the KRIS KRISTOFFERSON performance range from $42 & $48, with student discounts available on all seats. All tickets may be purchased at the Performing Arts Ticket Office, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. To order by phone, call 805/756-2787; to order by fax: 805/756-6088. Order on-line at www.calpolyarts.org.