The year before the Sandy Hook tragedy propelled Newtown into the hearts and minds of people across the globe, resident and finance industry expert Hayden Bates set out to bring a broader range of world-class artists in to play in the intimate Edmond Town Hall Theater, in part to raise funds to improve the classic Main Street venue.

Eight shows into his self-promoted “Live at Edmond Town Hall” concert series, Bates’s efforts have come full circle as he prepares to welcome the eclectic singer-songwriter Mark Kozelek for a headline set Saturday, September 20. Among the songs the former Red House Painters and Sun Kil Moon frontman is expected to perform is a ballad he wrote, that was inspired by the events of 12/14.

Besides material he has created and released with collaborating musicians under the Sun Kil Moon handle, Kozelek has been the subject of a feature documentary, and has licensed his songs to numerous television shows including The O.C., The Big C, Revenge, Brothers and Sisters, Friday Night Lights and Sons of Anarchy, as well as several films including Tarnation, Against The Current, The Elephant In The Livingroom,, Excess Baggage, and Vanilla Sky.

Kozelek scored original music for the films Farewell Bender, Last Ball and Lorena Ochoa: el Camino a la Cima. And he also released a tribute project to one of his own musical heroes with Take Me Home: A Tribute to John Denver; a two-CD collection featuring various rarities and live tracks alongside favorite Red House Painters material.

He has additionally showcased his talents as an actor in Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous and Vanilla Sky.

In a pre-show chat with Mr Bates, he expressed great excitement as well as some disbelief that his concert series has come so far in such a relatively short time.

“I think this is probably the most high profile show yet in the series,” he said. “This is eight shows in, which is hard to believe.”

He said Kozelek comes to Newtown with “an impressive history,” given his dedicated following of Red House Painters fans, and the notable solo work he has amassed over the past five years.

“He’s a guy who is kind of hitting his commercial stride with his most recent album, Benji.

“Pitchfork has named it one of its top 10 albums of the year, and it’s being recognized similarly by a ton of other music reviewers sites and publications,” Bates said.

He said it was a local Kozelek fan who first wrote to the artist influencing a song following the Sandy Hook School shootings, “Pray for Newtown.”

“After 12/14, this fan wrote a letter to Mark asking him to pray for Newtown,” Bates said. “And as Mark says in the song, he isn’t one to pray but he’s one to sing and play, and he ended up writing a song dedicated to the victims and the community.”

Bates said while the song is Newtown-centric, he believes it resonates with individuals and communities that have been touched by similar tragedies involving gun violence.

“It’s interesting how Mark works the material in Benji where every song is based in the present in some respect,” Bates noted, adding that at age 47, Kozelek connects in some creative way to the many experiences he’s had over the years. “This album is very much a watershed moment for him."

While the Kozelek appearance is sure to be one to remember, Bates is cautioning patrons planning to attend Saturday’s 7:30 pm show to leave the kids at home — at least the younger ones.

“We don’t have a firm guideline for that, but there will be lots of adult language and adult themes in his material,” Bates said. “He’s a great artist and a nice guy, but given the adult language I’ve heard and read about in his shows, I would argue this performance is for an 18 and over crowd — maybe mature high school age at the youngest.”

Bates is also excited that his biggest show yet can be a mid-month pivot point for the Newtown Arts Festival, and he’s already looking forward to booking an even bigger act for the same slot next year.

“Unfortunately I can’t bring in the two acts I dreamed of hosting — Levon Helm and Dave Brubeck — but I am working on bringing Brubeck’s sons in, as well as Levon’s daughter Amy Helm,” Bates said. “I’d also like to bring Sonny Rollins in, and I’m looking at Jeff Tweedy of Wilco.”

All profits from this show and the series continue to go toward ongoing renovations of Edmond Town Hall Theater. Tickets are $25 each and are available at www.edmondtownhall.org/liveateth.