A prolific songwriter, Doug MacLeod performs his own work. Others like it, too, including the likes of Albert King and Albert Collins, who have covered his songs. MacLeod, winner of two 2014 Blues Music Awards, the perennial Blues Music Award Nominee, is a singer-songwriter in the American tradition. He is a traveling artist that writes and sings original songs that are based on his own life and experiences. In performance, MacLeod is known for his unique, unorthodox and powerfully rhythmic acoustic guitar style that incorporates a churning beat to complement his intricate bottleneck and finger-style technique. At the heart of this is his knack for storytelling, bringing characters-from the faceless to the legendary-to strikingly real life. MacLeod is performing live at Blues Vespers in Tacoma.

DOUG MACLEOD, 5 p.m., Blues Vespers at Immanuel Presbyterian Church, 901 N. J St., Tacoma, free admission, 253.627.8371