Life is a gamble, particularly in the music business, where the slight push in one direction or another can mean fame and fortune or toil and obscurity. But sometimes, things can be recognized much later and still have an impact on the artist. Maybe the most famous recent example is Sixto Rodríguez, who had a short lived career in the US the late 60’s to 70’s, but when the Sugar Man’s music found wild success in Australia and South Africa, it eventually led to a complete revival of his music career from the late 1990’s until his death in 2023. Over at Turf Club in Saint Paul, it was another example of late re-discovery as Robert Lester Folsom brought his Southern 1970’s songwriting to town.

Things got started with Oscar Lindsey, a young Nashville singer and songwriter. He self-released his debut album Glitter in 2025, and now having been signed to Mom + Pop Music, will release the LP Sunshine in October 2026. The comparison to the lofi aesthetic of Alex G gives a sense of Lindsey’s style. Coming to stage solo and seated with acoustic guitar, Lindsey jumped into Painting the Walls, a song that “came out three or four days ago”. He jumped to the title track of the new album, and his higher tenor vocals paired with the clean guitar was a calm but emphatic folk sound. He noted this was his first time in Minnesota and told an amusing story about a school era crush who moved to Minneapolis, so his gut reaction was “F that place, but now that I’m here, it’s pretty cool”. This was a simple, down to earth songwriting even as it hit themes of anguish and confusion, and Apples to Apples was a good distillation of Lindsey’s set. He noted that “this one man show thing is terrifying”, but outwardly he was holding it together just fine. Ruby was a lovelorn song and Lindsey seemed a little looser vocally then told a story of being in Asheville and randomly getting punched by a stranger, which led into the song Punch Yourself in the Face, much more about the mental torment we bring to ourselves. The lyric “don’t listen to advice from idiots” was both funny and brutal and showed some pretty good insight. Finishing up with the lead single, Metal Through Her Lip brought a guest vocalist and instrumentalist to stage and Oscar Lindsey closed with his most engaging number and we’ll be looking forward to the new album.

Headliner Robert Lester Folsom was up next. The Georgia native could easily have been lost to history, as his only album for decades was the 1976 self-release of Music and Dreams. But that album of the singer, songwriter and guitarist found some life in the world and was eventually re-issued by indie label Mexican Summer, who seem to have found a niche in finding and bringing attention to these historical finds. In Folsom’s case, this has led to working through hundreds of demos and recorded numbers the release of three archival albums, most recently If You Wanna Laugh, You Gotta Cry Sometimes: Archives Vol. 3, 1972-1975. It’s also given Folsom a late chance to truly live the life of the musician and I think there’s a lot to love about this. This was a big band, appearing as a septet (vocals/guitar, guitar/vocals, bass, steel guitar, keyboards/saxophone/flute, chimes/xylophone/vocals, and drums) and they went right into that 70’s southern folk rock sound on Ode to a Rainy Day. After a bit of a technical issue (it turned out to be a faulty cable), they were back on track and Folsom took off again. Situations was the band at its best, full music and great vocals. A bit of banter about confusing relationships led to a nearly yacht rock song in Nobody Wants Me, and it was easy to see why this work had been rediscovered and found a wanting audience. This was simply great rock and the authentic 70’s vibe really placed this in a fairly unique space. Folsom sounded great as a singer and the band enveloped him in support, making this a richly dynamic sound. And the crowd was into it. What Are You Thinking Of? was off the newest archival record and had the percussion player on co-lead vocals.

This was so much more than a niche southern rock sound, as Sitting on the Moon was a blasting rock number that included some great sax. The audience was pumped and there was a buzz as people were locked into this performance. Strolling Along had a strong psych rock intro, and a little choreography to boot as the steel guitar took over on that instrumental number. The title track of the second album, Sunshine Only Sometimes, was dedicated to the late Dolly Parton, and really was the most country number of the evening. Folsom and the band had played across a number of genres that were all held in place by that 70’s ethos. As if to prove the point, they went into a funk disco sound on Are You the Answer? that had some real verve and an appropriate guitar interlude. Music and Dreams had Folsom so thankful that the record had resurfaced and allows him to tour and was a message to keep after your dreams no matter what. Biding My Time was for his 90 year old mother, who still thinks it’s his best song, and it was a cute moment. He noted that the song April Suzanne was being covered by Beach House and it was a delight to see how proud he was. See You Later, I’m Gone hit that southern country tone, and this got a pair of actual lighters in the audience going, which was the absolutely correct fossil of concert feel going for this evening. A call for “a hazy IPA” had Turf Club staff kill it, with Folsom barely getting to blink after the request before the beer was in his hand. Closing on Singing in the Shower, had Folsom takeover on xylophone and the sax back at it. Robert Lester Folsom had shown dreams can come true, if sometimes very delayed and not the way you expect.