Life & Work with Skylark of Boulder, Colorado

Today we’d like to introduce you to Skylark.

Hi Skylark, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Skylark is a Fleetwood Mac cover trio based in Boulder, Colorado that showcases stripped-down, acoustic renditions of beloved Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks hits. Vocalist Larae Jones, lead guitarist Cisco Manzo, and rhythm guitarist/bassist Ken Viscidi have been playing together for just over a year and began performing shows at the end of 2025.

Larae possessed a love for singing at a young age and immersed herself in anything related to music growing up in order to learn as much as she could. Her dedication paid off and she had the opportunity to sing in professional recording studios starting at the age of 13, won NACMAI’s “Vocalist of the Year” award at 15 for the state of Florida, was teaching musical theater professionally at only 17 years old, and was offered a development record deal at the age of 18. She decided to finish school before starting a singing career since she was on a full academic scholarship, and as fate would have it, she ended up switching creative paths and degrees from musical theater to graphic design and had a successful career as an art director in New York City after college.

When Larae moved back to her home state of Colorado with her husband Ian, her passion for singing was reignighted and she decided to seek out a band to perform with in 2019. Serendipitously, Cisco was looking for a vocalist for a classic rock band he was in and they hit it off right away. It was a fantastic experience, but unfortunately the band didn’t get out of the rehearsal stage due to the pandemic in 2020 and Larae welcoming her first child. After her second baby was born, Larae was ready to start a creative project again but wasn’t sure exactly what that would be. The idea of a Fleetwood Mac tribute came naturally as it had always been her favorite band and she knew she’d never tire of singing their songs. She contacted Cisco with the idea and they picked up right where they had left off.

Unlike most cover bands, they didn’t aim to be a carbon copy. Instead, they embraced intimate, acoustic-focused arrangements that showcased the brilliance of Fleetwood Mac’s songwriting and musicianship. A few months into rehearsals, they felt their sound could use a rhythm guitarist. Ken had recently moved from Ventura, California and auditioned for them, instantly winning them over with his Travis-style picking (famously used by Lindsey Buckingham). That moment marked the birth of Skylark. The name comes from one of their favorite Fleetwood Mac songs to perform, Rhiannon.

Cisco started playing guitar at the age of 14, learning on a rundown guitar that was given to him for Christmas that year. He didn’t do very well with it at first due to the quality of the guitar, but he got his first decent instrument when he was 16 and living in Florida. He never felt he was very good, but still kept up with it. In 1991, he bought a beautiful Guild Jumbo acoustic guitar and became more skilled at playing open chords with “terrible poetry” that he turned into songs. He sold that guitar in 1993 and used the money to move to Boulder. For the next 19 years he didn’t play guitar at all, but in 2012 he met a friend who inspired him to get back into playing and gave him books and magazine articles about how to read a fretboard and play leads. From then on the passion grew and he buckled down, spending an average of eight hours a day playing guitar. He currently owns 16 of them!

Ken was a late musical bloomer and didn’t start playing guitar until the age of 22. It seemed like all his buddies played guitar and were having so much fun weaving chords on the porch that he had to learn. It started off with just strumming cowboy chords to simple campfire sing-a-longs, but eventually he found himself immersed in the bluegrass community (not incredibly surprising since he lived in West Virginia at the time). He went through a strictly bluegrass phase for a few years, but then started branching out into other genres.

Over the next few decades he moved from state to state and played in classic rock, bluegrass and Americana bands in West Virginia, Illinois, Oregon and California. He spent the last few years in California playing in two bands before making the move to Colorado about a year ago. He was playing bass in an original rock band and acoustic guitar in a 3-piece acoustic rock cover band. The latter had a wholesome charm that really resonated with him, so after moving to Colorado he was thrilled to see that Cisco and Larae were looking for an acoustic guitarist to join them. He really loved the idea of creating a textured backdrop that complemented Cisco’s guitar solos and melodic lines and Larae’s magnetic voice.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
As a newer band, finding regular shows can sometimes be a challenge, but we are confident that once the momentum builds, many opportunities will follow. In the meantime, playing open mic nights and supporting local benefits and fundraisers (like those for the Boulder Ballet and Nederland Fire Victims) has given us the chance to already perform at some great venues in Boulder, Longmont and Lyons. We hope our music gives people a chance to step away from their everyday stresses and enjoy a few hours of connection to reset and unwind.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Skylark specializes in acoustic arrangements of Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks hits, delivering ethereal yet powerful vocals alongside beautifully intricate guitar lines that have people singing along and dancing out of their seats. Our repertoire spans all of the top Fleetwood Mac classics like “Silver Springs,” “Dreams,” “Rhiannon,” “Go Your Own Way,” and “Don’t Stop”, as well as lesser-known gems such as “I’m So Afraid” and “Over My Head.” We perform the pre-Buckingham and Nicks throwback “Black Magic Woman,” Stevie Nicks solo hits and iconic duets like “Leather and Lace,” “Stop Dragging My Heart Around,” “Edge of Seventeen,” “Stand Back,” and many, many more.

As a trio, Skylark offers a unique versatility- we can command larger stages at breweries, festivals, and corporate events, yet we seamlessly adapt to intimate spaces like coffee shops, bars, or private events where a full 5 or 6 piece band might overwhelm the room. We pride ourselves on intimate acoustic arrangements and a fresh approach to Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks classics, making the songs our own without losing the spirit and magic of the originals.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
They can contact Skylark at SkylarkBandCO@gmail.com for booking inquiries, follow on social media (Instagram and Facebook) and can help spread the word around the community! Skylark plays corporate and private events, breweries, festivals, weddings, bars, restaurants, coffee shops and everything in between.

Pricing:

• For pricing inquiries please email Skylark at SkylarkBandCO@gmail.com

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @skylark_theband
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1GAj6iCZ1Y/?mibextid=wwXIfr
• Other: Email: SkylarkBandCO@gmail.com