Nancy Walker is at her best as an organizer, and if her song craft has earned her distinction, her leadership talents are a quality that makes her distinctive.  She has applied a generous dose of business and marketing principles (to indie musicians, an occupation that frequently could not be more at odds with this); added a helping of Midwestern common sense; and the result is “Female Songwriters You Wanna Hear”: a congenial collective of outstanding artistic women who put forth a variety of original music and, more often than not, harmonize on each other’s melodies. By setting up the forum and the springboard, the talent is given a chance to grow. In the Midwest, the roster has included Cathy Braaten and Kelly Kessler (from the Texas Rubies), and many others. The highly anticipated release of “Layers of Rust and Time” should add further credit and accolades to what has already been a highly credentialed biography for Nancy Walker. She could always write her own ticket, but Nancy considers it only part of the joy of the music: it is the ability to bring people along on her journeys—both colleagues and audiences—that will for her be the best measure of her accomplishments.