A trained classical pianist, La Conner Mayor Ramon Hayes has great appreciation for a variety of musical genres.

He naturally keeps tabs on those playing keyboards. And one of his favorites is La Conner's own Terry Nelson.

"Terry is the epitome, the soul, of La Conner," Hayes told the Weekly News recently. "He's so forward thinking."

A longtime proponent of green energy, having for more than four decades advocated solar heating options, Nelson is also one of a handful of home-grown La Conner musicians who as teenagers were quick to recognize the potential impact of rock-and-roll, then in its i...