CROSSROADS MUSIC COMPANY LIVES

by
Maryann Miller

Stephen Marshall, who is the new owner of Crossroads Music Company in Winnsboro, doesn't like to think of himself as "owner."

"I don't like to call it that," he said. "There is something spiritual about this place that transcends ownership, and I'm just the caretaker here."

Stephen was referring to the spirit that infused Crossroads Coffee House & Music Company under the leadership of Lindy Hearne and Lynn Adler. "They created a listening room," Stephen said. "A place unlike most concert halls where the music is blasting. Here, people feel music in their hearts. It's a very special place."

When he took over the venue the first of June, it was important to him that the name stay as close to the original as possible. "There are a lot of reasons that the name is so significant," he said. "It's connected to the history of Winnsboro. (Which was originally known as The Crossroads) And through the efforts of Lynn and Lindy, it has built a strong reputation as a great place for music. We need to keep that momentum going."

A native of East Texas, Stephen moved back to the area two years ago after selling his successful bakery in Fort Worth. He operated the Kolache Shoppe Bakery for eighteen years, but he said his heart was never truly in it. "It was an opportunity that came up, so I took it," he said. "And I'm not sorry I did. I learned a lot about food service and dealing with the public."

Both will serve him well as he introduces lunches at Crossroads, starting out with healthy wraps and what he refers to as "healthy chile". He was quick to point out that people shouldn't be daunted by the term "healthy".

"I know a lot of people are purists about chile," he said. "But I have had people not only tell me the chile is good, they come back for seconds. I figure that is more than them just being polite."

Stephen plans to continue with weekend concerts, but will also keep the doors open during the day for lunches from 11 to 2. In the evenings, he will also serve food, and plans to have a number of activities Tuesdays through Saturdays. One of those will be a movie night. He already has the screen in place and hopes to have a schedule of movies out soon. Other activities will include evenings for dancing, but he said the emphasis will still be on music.

When asked how he came to step into this role as "caretaker of Crossroads", he laughed. "It's kind of serendipitious, and a bit of a long story," he said. "But I was here for the concert when Lynn and Lindy announced that they were going to step down. They talked about what Crossroads meant to them and to the community and said they hoped someone could take over who would keep the venue going.

"It just hit me," Stephen continued. "I said to myself, 'I should do this.'"

A few days later, he was talking to Janice Schma, who is with Burton Star Properties, and the conversation drifted into the subject of the future of Crossroads. Janice looked at Stephen and said, "You should run it." She then set up a meeting with Al Stillman, who owns the building, to see if they could work out an arrangement.

"And we did," Stephen said to finish the story. "Al very much wanted to keep the music venue going, and he has been very gracious to work with."

Stephen, who moved here to be closer to extended family that stretches from Paris to Pittsburg to Mt. Pleasant down to Tyler, is a gifted photographer. His photography business is Stephen Marshall Photography, and he will do photographs for any special event. He also does photo restoration. He explained that when he is shooting an event, he does not take the traditional approach. "I don't do posed pictures," he said. "So if someone wants the standard wedding shots, I tell them to hire a different photographer."

What Stephen does is shoot candid stills, along with video, then he edits it all together in a short film, maybe 30 minutes. "It's like making a documentary of the event," he said.

(To see some of the short films he has created visit his SITE on YouTube. It has a wonderful clip running that he did for Winnsboro.)

Along with Conrad Wolfman, who has shot videos of concerts at Crossroads since it opened, Stephen hopes to expand the video business to include making music art films. "When artists play here we can make a documentary film for them," he said. "Not just shooting the concert itself, but including stills and narratives."

Stephen is very excited as he starts this new journey in his life. He said he has fallen in love with Winnsboro and sees this venture as a way for him to help the city, and in turn help grow his artistic interests. "I've always been an artist," he said. "I just took a few side roads before I finally decided to follow my heart."

One of the other things that means a great deal to him is the fact that he was able to come here before his mother died. She had multiple sclerosis and for several years he made the trip from Fort Worth every week to spend time with her. Toward the end, he decided that he wanted to be with her full time, so he sold the bakery and moved. Then he found out that his sister, Jayme Gowins and her husband, Scott, were moving to Winnsboro. "I didn't even know they were thinking about it," he said. "So it was sort of miraculous that we all got here before Mom died."

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For the latest information about Crossroads visit the Web site or call 903.342.1854

To contact Stephen for the photography business call: 903.342.1854 or e-mail