Caroline Aiken

Caroline Aiken's is often sighted as one of the cornerstones of the Decatur folk movement. She has long been at the forefront of modern folk and acoustic expression. Her soothing, fine wood-grain voice purrs with a youthful innocence one minute, then growls like a wise old blue singer the next, marking each song with her trademark, time-honed stamp of quality. Independent to the bone with 7CDs, and a Grammy nomination for a Contemporary Folk CD Grammy in 2006, Caroline Aiken has done numerous performances to benefit thousands of causes, and played thousands of shows in 40 years of touring at home and abroad. Writing, producing shows, festivals, theaters, and series, Caroline has also served 12 years as Entertainment Director for the Atlanta Dogwood Festival.

She has recorded with and shared stages with The Indigo Girls, Bonnie Raitt and has been a guest performer at major venues with them such as San Antonio's Majestic Theater, Denver's Red Rocks, and Berkeley's Greek Theater.

"Big voice, big guitar, big talent."

— Marilyn Rae Beyer, Programming Director of WUMB Boston

"She's dangerous. She'll blow the doors off the place."

— Pierce Pettis, Grammy nominated writer and performer

"Sensual voice, expert guitar, masterful songwriting."

— Victory Music in Seattle

"Leaves One Hypnotized"

— Austin Chronicle

Tom Allen & Friends

Tom Allen has been performing around the South Coast for nearly 25 years, both as a solo performer and founding member of such quirky and iconic bands as The Jethros, Wabi Sabi, and The Mighty Choice Tomatoes. His songs are snapshots of modern life, spinning tales of social consciousness and affairs of the heart.

Jake Armerding

The Boston Globe calls singer-violinist Jake Armerding "the most gifted and promising songwriter to emerge from the Boston folk scene in years."

In 2003, Nashville independent label Compass released Jake Armerding, a collection of folk-pop songs written over a year living in Music City. The Washington Post lauded Armerding's instrumental skills as "remarkable," while the Boston Globe heralded him "a master at bending boundaries... his real achievement has been to break the conventions that define country music."

Armerding recently logged his thousandth performance. He has shared the stage with Bela Fleck, Nickel Creek, Josh Ritter, David Wilcox and Toad the Wet Sprocket.

Sally Barris

Nashville-based artist and Wrensong Publishing writer, Sally Barris, has managed to be successful in the mainstream world of country music without giving up her folk & Celtic roots. (her MySpace page).

Her unique style, influenced by artists such as: Tony Rice, Dougie Maclean, Triona Ni Dhomhnaill & Richard Thompson, is what makes her stand out in a city known for "cookie cutter" talent. Whether in her own hands or those of a well-established artist, such as, Lee Ann Womack, or a newcomer like American Idol finalist, Kellie Pickler, Sally.s music is unmistakably recognizable.

The Minnesota native is currently on tour with her 3rd cd: Restless Soul. "Songwriter poised to make the breakthrough to international recognition as a major recording artist Like Nanci Griffith, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Mindy Smith and Allison Moorer, Sally Barris doesn't easily fit into the country genre, but is one of the most talented writers currently working in Nashville," says Alan Cackett in Maverick Magazine.

Beaucoup Blue

Beaucoup Blue is the Americana Philadelphia based group of David and Adrian Mowry. Father and son have been performing their roots based music nationally and internationally as a duo, quartet and on occasion quintet. Bridging many gaps in American music, their soulful traditional and contemporary styles mesh into an innovative and authentic sound. Although blues is a staple in their repertoire, they base their love in music from Folk, Soul, R&B, Jazz, Country and Bluegrass. All these interests and influences come out in their original song-writing in a unique way.

"Their voices work superbly together, frequently attaining a mesmeric panache that must be thrilling to view in person. Beaucoup Blue is a versatile, imaginative team that has something to say and say it with an adventurous sense of personality from the bottom of their hearts."

—Sing Out! Magazine

"David's slide guitar is the first thing you notice. In tandem with Adrian's deft finger-picking it's precision and grace is the aural equivalent of a hot fudge sundae."

—Richard Cucarro, Acoustic Live NYC

"Beaucoup Blue is riveting and haunting, with that kind of beauty you can still hear long after the last note fades away."

—City Paper Rochester, NY.

Richard Berman

"This man has the gift." So said the late Utah Phillips, legendary figure in American folk music, after hearing Richard Berman sing at the Kerrville Folk Festival's Ballad Tree in 1992. And Richard has used that gift to write many songs that tell moving, true stories.

Richard first received national recognition in folk circles for his work by winning the 1992 Napa Valley Folk Festival's Emerging Songwriters Contest. He went on to win the 1995 South Florida Folk Festival's songwriting contest, was selected to showcase at the 1997 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival and was chosen to do so again in 2001. In 1999 Richard won the Sierra Songwriters Festival's songwriting contest.

In 2000 he was a finalist at The Wildflower Festival's songwriting contest, the winner of the Rose Garden Coffeehouse Songwriting Contest and was a finalist in the Kerrville Folk Festival's New Folk songwriting contest, a selection that was repeated in 2001. In 2003 he won the Susquehanna Music and Arts Festival's songwriting contest. Over the past dozen years Richard has performed in coffeehouses, clubs, festivals and house concerts in the Northeast, the Southwest, and California, and has toured England and Wales. Among the clubs he has played at is the Bluebird Café in Nashville, TN, where he was selected to showcase in 1994 and came back to play again in 1996, 1998, 2001,2005, 2007 and 2009.

Benoit Bourque

A versatile artist overflowing with energy and a contagious joie de vivre, Benoit Bourque has been winning the public over for more than 25 years. Charismatic, exuberant, warm, funny, limber and a band's sparkplug are a few words that have been used to describe him. A musician, dancer, singer, and caller, Benoit has been a member of different bands with whom he has toured extensively in North America and in Europe. Éritage, Ad vielle que pourra, Hommage á Alfred Montmarquette, Bourque et Bernard, Matapat, Le Vent du Nord, and presently La Bottine Souriant, are all bands that benefited from his talents and unmistakable charisma.

He is a specialist in Quebec traditional dance and has presented lectures and workshops in many camps and festivals. Benoit has also shred his skill in step dancing and bones playing which is a family tradition as his dad and grandfather were both bones players). Benoit is the recipient of multiple awards including 4 Juno Awards (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammy).

Andrew Calhoun

Andrew Calhoun writes with a paradoxical combination of incandescent intellect and unstudied magic. He is both a lightning rod for "the unconscious rightness of intuitive connection" and a perpetual student of songcraft with deep respect for both tradition and innovation. In the thirty-odd years that he has been a songwriter and performer he has created an impressive collection of songs from which he draws in live performances. On stage he is disarmingly unpretentious, spontaneous, insightful and darkly witty, as he weaves a tapestry that includes not only his original songs, but Scottish ballads that he has translated from dialect, and poems and songs by such exceptional writers as Dave Carter, Mary Oliver and Robert Frost.

At age seven, Andrew memorized W. B. Yeats' "Song of Wandering Aengus," thus earning a nickel from his mother. He got his first guitar in 1967 at the age of ten, and began writing songs at twelve. By the late seventies, he was performing in the Chicago folk scene. He has since toured internationally, performing at folk clubs and festivals, pubs and house concerts. He presents workshops on many topics: "Creative Songwriting," "Song Appreciation," "Scottish Folk Ballads," and "Music Theory for Guitarists." In 1992, Calhoun founded Waterbug Records, an artists' cooperative folk label which has grown to 70 titles, bringing some of the brightest singer-songwriters and folk musicians to an international audience. His own recordings have been released on Hogeye, Flying Fish and Waterbug Records.

Andrew Calhoun's vivid and inspired music is a companion for anyone who has ventured off the well-paved road to forge their own path in this world. Now living in Chicago, he recently released his tenth album, Staring at the Sun (Songs 1973-1981).

Dave Conlon

For the third year in a row, local New Bedford musician Dave Conlon will be performing on the "Busker's Stage."

Accompanying himself on guitar and harmonica, Dave has musical influences ranging from bluegrass to rock. He is one of the favorites at a local open-mike performing over 175 times there as well as at other area cafés and clubs. He brings his own sound and style to well-known classics as well as lesser-known songs.

"A veritable treasure trove of great songs"

—Art Tebbetts (New Bedford's Troubadour).

Ronny Cox

In Hollywood, they say it takes smart actors to play stupid characters, and nice guys to play nasty villains. Ronny Cox is the poster-boy for the latter point. He played slithery corporate snakes in "RoboCop" and "Total Recall;" but as a singer-songwriter, he is a study in easygoing amiability and unforced charisma.

He charms crowds with self-teasing humor, tart progressive insight, and a lulling Southwestern folk sound. His repertoire is a smart mix of witty ditties, bluesy swing tunes, heart-on-sleeve romances, and real-life anthems ("It's a cry in the night/ It's a whispered prayer/ That gets you from here to there").

In his latest album Songs With Repercussions, as well as How I Love Them Old Songs, At The Sebastiani, Ronny Cox Live, Cowboy Savant and Acoustic Eclectricity, Ronny Cox showcases a wonderful acoustic mix of folk, western, jazzy-bluesy and just plain corn ball stuff.

Caroline Doctorow

Caroline Doctorow is a singer/songwriter from Bridgehampton New York who has released six recordings on Narrow Lane Records. Her latest, Another Country, was released three months ago. She grew up in a literary family. Her father is renowned author E.L. Doctorow. Her mother, also a writer, is from North Carolina. Both her parents played folk music as a hobby when she was a child.

Caroline quickly became enamored of the folk stars that she met through her parents, such as Pete Seeger, Judy Collins, Joan Baez and Mimi Fariña, whom she counts as a significant influence. On Another Country, Caroline showcases her velveteen voice while singing the extraordinary songs of 1960's folk icons Mimi and Richard Fariña. Electric sitar, dulcimer, banjo, mandolin and swampy-sounding guitars provide a lush and driving backdrop for Doctorow's silky voice as it wraps around Fariña's dark lyrics. Expertly produced by reknowned multi-instrumentalist Pete Kennedy, Another Country has been received with great acclaim.

Vance Gilbert

Vance Gilbert burst onto the singer/songwriter scene in the early 90's when buzz started spreading in the folk clubs of Boston about an ex-multicultural arts teacher who was knocking 'em dead at open mics. Once word got to New York about this Philadelphia-area born and raised performer, Shawn Colvin invited Gilbert to be a special guest on her Fat City tour. Gilbert took audiences across the country by storm. "With the voice of an angel, the wit of a devil, and the guitar playing of a god, it was enough to earn him that rarity: an encore for an opener" wrote the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in its review of a show from that tour.

Up On Rockfield, his newest CD release, is indeed Vance Gilbert's career-crowning achievement. This tour de force of borrowed styles is classic Vance Gilbert original songwriting at its most timeless, compelling best. Gilbert unflinchingly renders blame and absolution, trapped hearts and free-riders, class and station, uncertainty and resolution, the spiritual and the visceral, the forever and the now, all side by side in song. His is a presentation steeped in deep humanism and bravery, stunning artistry and soul, and unbridled joy. No great surprise to the learned acoustic listener.

This is Vance Gilbert, after all.

John Gorka

Rising from a milieu of lovelorn singer/songwriters, John Gorka illuminates instead with his trademark wordplay, twisting, tuning and typing words and phrases in the way a balloon artist creates complex creatures from simple balloons. Few contemporary songwriters coax language as deftly as he does. For over two decades, John's keen ear has picked up the stories of those along his path, folding them into poetry and song. His keen perceptiveness inspires people from all over the world to share their stories. By involving those tales in his music, he escapes the trap of introspection that hobbles less gifted singer/songwriters. John Gorka flies below the pop culture radar with an almost cult-like following that never fails to fill concerts. Speak with any of his fans and one instantly feels their enthusiasm and genuine affection. His shy, almost self-effacing stage presence rightfully focuses attention on the songs. His versatility on guitar and piano keeps his sets musically interesting, while his rich baritone effortlessly executes his bidding. And he's never short of the sly comment or clever joke that invariably ignites his audience.

"The preeminent male singer-songwriter of the New Folk Movement."

—Rolling Stone

"Gorka is widely heralded for the sophisticated intelligence and provocative originality of his songs."

—Boston Globe

Jack Hardy

"With the reissuing of Hardy's first 10 albums, the full range of his talents is showcased for the first time. [...] With his songs set firmly in the centuries-old tradition of Celtic balladry, Hardy shapes his metaphors in a vision that successfully blends history, mythology, romanticism, and politics."- Boston Globe review of new boxed sets, The Collected Works of Jack Hardy

Jack Hardy has devoted his lengthy career to the art and the craft of songwriting. Shunning the pop world of fame and fortune, he has created an alternative universe of songwriters workshops, indie record labels, recorded magazines, all championing the song as an art form. He has issued sixteen albums—not counting compilations, tributes, and duos—starting in 1970, on his own Great Divide label. He has had eight of his plays produced. He founded and edited The Fast Folk Musical Magazine, which issued 105 compilation recordings of (then) unknown artists over its fifteen years, now residing in the Smithsonian. It helped to shape and spearhead the folk and acoustic revival of the '80s and '90s. He started and still hosts the country's longest-running weekly songwriters workshop, now in its 34th year, at his Greenwich Village apartment. In 1997 he was awarded the Kate Wolf Memorial Award, given to "an artist who makes a difference through his music" by the World Folk Music Association.

Jack's songs run the gambit from Celtic to western/country, from love songs to social commentary, from political to mystical. When pontificating on the bardic tradition (a favorite subject) he loves to point out that the ancient bards had to master three powers: enchantment, invocation, and curse. Hardy has certainly mastered all these and more, championing a form of literature that is more at home in the pub than in the classroom. That and his forty-five years of experience performing and traveling makes him a unique and engaging (and thoroughly entertaining) character on stage and off, weaving stories, anecdotes, and songs into a fascinating web.

Anne Hills

As a singer, actress, writer, and musician Anne Hills has continuously built a reputation of merit. Though collaborative work is the keystone in Anne's career, it is her singing and interpretive gifts that have received the most attention. 1998 saw the release of Anne's performances on two of the most talked about compilations of the year, placing her voice along side Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, The Roches, Ani DiFranco and The Indigo Girls on Where Have All the Flowers Gone? (The Songs of Pete Seeger) and What's That I Hear? (The Songs of Phil Ochs). Throughout her career, Anne has taken time to do occasional theater projects such as Quilters (Buffalo's Studio Arena and Chicago's Northlight, 1985-86), The Courtship of Carl Sandburg with Bob Gibson (in 1984 at Chicago's Apollo and Northlight and Lansing' s Boarshead) and co-writing the music with Jay Ansill for, as well as performing in, Lovers (Philadelphia's Arden Theater 1995). Scarlet Confessions (Victory Gardens Theater July 2002) and The Heartsongs of Opal Whiteley (a multi-media production) at The Maureen Stapleton Theater in Troy, NY September 2007.

The Jethros

The Jethros comprise Homer Jethro (Tom Allen) on guitar, banjo, and vocals; Rufus Jethro (Rick Smith) on trumpet, trombone, and vocals, Chester Jethro (Jeremy Houle) on bass, and Boney Jethro (Jonathan Danforth) on fiddle, bones, and other percussion. This unusual lineup, combined with the catchy, danceable, and thought-provoking songs of Allen and Smith, have helped the Jethros become a sought-after and well-recognized act in SouthCoast contemporary folk music.

James Keelaghan

James 11th CD, House of Cards was released on October 12 2009 by Borealis records. 10 new originals, some of them co-writes with such folk luminaries as David Francey, Karine Polwart and Rose Cousins make it one of his best yet. Called Canada's finest singer-songwriter by one of the most respected music journalists of the last 50 years, James Keelaghan is an artist who has proven to be a man for all seasons.

As the calendar pages have turned, for almost a quarter of a century now, this poet laureate of the folk and roots music world has gone about his work with a combination of passion, curiosity intent and intensity. His masterful story telling has, over the course of nine recordings, been part of the bedrock of his success, earning Keelaghan nominations and awards— including a Juno (Canada's Grammy)—and acclaim from Australia to Scandinavia.

The Kennedys

Inspiration is where you find it—and where it finds you. Open to every moment, the much-traveled married duo of Pete and Maura Kennedy have spun their personal experiences, musical influences and philosophical beliefs into nine previous albums of winsome original songs, frequently seasoned with exquisitely-performed cover tunes, that blend acoustic-based folk, rock, country, pop and secular gospel into an inclusively delightful sound that's all their own.

The story of Pete and Maura Kennedy's personal and professional relationship, now in its second decade, is somewhere between fate and a fairytale. How else can you explain a chance meeting in Austin between two East Coast-born musicians that immediately sparked a songwriting collaboration, a first date at Buddy Holly's grave, an enduring romance, and a creative partnership that radiates warmth, positive energy, and captivating music? After Pete and Maura's fateful 1992 meeting (the subject of their first Appleseed CD's title song, "Half a Million Miles") and several years of touring and recording with Nanci Griffith, the duo seceded amicably from Griffith's Blue Moon Orchestra and became The Kennedys, recording CDs that encompass their favorite musical styles while incorporating the naturalistic, transcendental and mythological teachings of Joseph Campbell, Eckhart Tolle, Walt Whitman, and various Eastern-oriented philosophers into their songs and lives. The body of work The Kennedys have created since their 1994 wedding is a reflection of their musical and philosophical influences and experiences separately and as a couple. Their goal is to live in the moment, appreciating every second of sensation, which imbues their music with a constant sense of wonder and freshness.

John Kirk & Trish Miller

Lively fiddle tunes, folksongs and fancy footwork are featured from John & Trish from upstate New York. In concert, they liven up the place with quick pickin' tunes and sentimental songs in harmony. After many years of playing together, these musicians have developed a diverse repertoire and their shows appeal to all ages. The fiddler, John leads the way playing selections from Americana, Canadian and Celtic styles. Trish rounds out the sound with guitar, banjo and fancy footwork. These two multi-instrumentalists interchange instruments, adding occasional mandolin, ukelele or bass to the mix. Their selections range from Celtic tunes to ballads. Some feature original stories tied to their northeastern home.

Jeremy Kittel

Jeremy Kittel is one of the foremost practitioners among a new breed of fiddlers and violinists who easily navigate a multitude of musical styles and traditions, while cultivating new ground and redefining the role of the instrument.

Jeremy is currently the violist for the Grammy-winning Turtle Island String Quartet. He has toured and recorded with such musical giants as Mark O'Connor, Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile, and Darol Anger. He has appeared on the NPR radio show, A Prarie Home Companion, has been a guest performer with multiple symphony orchestras, and has performed at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.

His latest recording, Chasing Sparks (Compass Records), clearly establishes Jeremy as a formidable composer and arranger, as well as a violinist of the highest technical and musical sensibilities. Of course, this is no surprise given that he has previously released three other CD's spanning the musical spectrum from jazz to celtic, with a strong dose of originality and technical mastery.

Jeremy is a National US Scottish Fiddle champion as well as a multiple winner of Detroit Music Awards and ASTA Alternative Style awards. He has a masters degree in jazz violin as well. He leads his namesake group, The Jeremy Kittel Band, and performs as a duo with the group's cellist, Nathaniel Smith.

Little Johnny England

Little Johnny England are a unit comprising five musicians all of whom have worked within the folk/traditional and mainstream for many years.

As individuals they really do have it covered, credits include Peter Kaye, Fatima Mansions, Show Of Hands, Ruby Turner, The Steve Gibbons Band and Albion Band to pick just a few. They have combined their experiences to become quite simply a live act in every sense, as equally at home working in an acoustic manner as they are in a major concert setting. Their aim, to take traditional and contemporary folk music to a wider audience, is not only achievable but is coming to fruition.

Joel Mabus

Joel Mabus may be called a singer-songwriter, but he doesn't sound like one. He's the son of a 1930's old time fiddle champ and a banjo-pickin' farm girl. His performing career began in college during the Vietnam era, where he studied anthropology and literature by day and played coffeehouses by night. One critic writes, "Joel Mabus knows his way around the English language and American culture just as well as he knows his way around a fretboard."

Born in 1953 in the southern Illinois town of Belleville, Joel has recorded 19 solo albums of original and traditional music since his recording career started in 1978. The Banjo Monologues, Joel's unique blend of old-time banjo and storytelling, placed #6 in the Folk Radio charts for 2007. He placed #4 in the same charts for 2008 with his latest, Retold—some of his original songs revisited. A one-off in the folk world, Mabus defies any easy pigeon-hole. His palette ranges from mountain banjo to jazz guitar—from sensitive introspection to wicked satire. He's both picker & poet, and from coast to coast over the past 30 years this Midwesterner has brought audiences to their feet, wanting more.

Russ Mello

Russ Mello, A native of New Bedford and the founding member of the Ruckus Brothers String Band, began his musical career as a fingerstyle blues player. He was recently over taken by a feeling of giddyness that he just can't shake... Get ready for some good time, foot stomping, Jug, String band and old timey blues music.

Anaïs Mitchell

From her current home base in a 200-year-old farmhouse in rural Vermont, Anaïs ("uh-NAY-iss") Mitchell writes songs that are as intimate as conversations and as rich in detail as short stories. The daughter of "hippie back-to-the-landers" whose father was a novelist and English professor, she remembers her family's home (another farmhouse in the same state) containing "a library full of novels, and lots of old folk and psychedelic rock albums. The books and the records all lived in the same room, which I am sure led to me thinking of songwriting as a kind of literature, a noble poetic enterprise." No surprise, then, that the reference points of her music may seem to come from all over the map while still interconnected: the country ballads of the Carter Family, the hard-edged cabaret of Brecht and Weill, the story-songs of Randy Newman, the vast narrative scope of Pink Floyd's The Wall, and the intricately crafted tales of her namesake, bohemian feminist Anaïs Nin, to name afew.

"A songwriter of startling clarity and depth, equally skilled at turning a melody or lyrical phrase into what you didn't know you needed until you heard it... fearlessly emotive...like Dylan, Cohen, and Welch, Mitchell weaves her stories into an effortlessly beautiful and cohesive tapestry with the skill of an artisan's carpenter, showing no seams."

—Acoustic Guitar Magazine

Peter Mulvey

Over the past 20 years, Pete Mulvey has pursued a restless, eclectic path as a writer and musician—immersing himself in Tin PanAlley jazz, modern acoustic, poetry, narrative, and Americana stylings. Relentlessly touring as a headliner —his attitude is, "When you love what you do, you can work all the time,"—he has also shared the stage with luminaries such as Emmylou Harris, Richard Thompson, Ani diFranco, Indigo Girls, and Greg Brown, and has attracted an audience that stretches from Anchorage to Amsterdam. As a complement to his touring and recording, Peter has also kept a hand in education; teaching guitar and songwriting workshops across the country. His songs and deep baritone voice have been heard in documentary films, major television shows, and by dance and theater companies.

Mustard's Retreat

"Mustard's Retreat represents everything that is best about folk music. Their music is community music. It comes from our common roots and traditions, pays tribute to those roots and traditions and expands on them. It is music that speaks to people's hearts and lives and binds them together as an audience."

—Garnet Rogers

Everything Mustard's Retreat does on a stage is aimed at pleasing, moving and engaging their audience. Whether singing their own gentle love songs and vivid ballads, telling tall tales or offering treasures from America's vast traditional song bag, a Mustard's Retreat show always feels like it's designed for the people who have come to see them that day, in that coffeehouse, school, concert hall or festival. Audiences sense this from the moment David and Michael hit the stage, are drawn to it like hungry kids to Sunday supper and reward it the best way they know how. They come to see Mustard's Retreat again and again.

Paul McKenna Band

Combining their love for traditional and folk music as well as original songs and tunes the Paul McKenna Band have been playing to audiences throughout the UK since 2006. With a contemporary approach to songs, although not straying too far from their roots, their arrangements are both fresh and innovative. Their exciting sound is created through outstanding vocals, driving Guitar and Bouzouki, intense Fiddle playing, a warm pairing of Flute and Whistles and dynamic Bodhrán and percussion.

"A band with the potential to dominate the Scottish/Irish traditional scene for the next twenty years and be spoken about in the same breath as Boys Of The Lough."

—Fatea Magazine

"The best band of their generation"

—The Living Tradition

"Great songs, great muscianship and, best of all, great enthusiasm. This outfit really enjoy their music and it shows. Audiences give an ecstatic response wherever they play."

—Edinburgh Folk Club

NewFound Road

One of the most exciting bands to emerge on the national bluegrass scene in the new millennium, NewFound Road specializes in a powerfully streamlined sound delivered with heartfelt honesty and passion. NewFound Road is contemporary bluegrass at its most soulful and sincere.

"...a sound at once effortlessly modern and deeply traditional."

—AllMusic Guide

"Led by the remarkable lead singing of Tim Shelton, this quartet shines with deep gospel roots and bluesy material, tight harmonies, and a driving groove."

—CMT Magazine

Chris Pahud

"Chris Pahud sings with all his heart, and his heart is huge. His voice and songs come from such a beautiful place, I smile every time I hear him sing... and witness him doing what comes so natural to him..."

—Mary Gauthier, Lost Highway recording artist

Chris Pahud ('PAY hood') grew up in Needham Massachusetts and currently resides in Quincy Massachusetts. Chris started playing guitar and singing in the local Boston area around a decade ago. Chris's new CD Red Sky in Morning was released this past summer of 2009. Produced and mastered by Seth Connelly, it also includes Seth on bass, piano, mandolin and guitars, Garnet Rogers on guitars and vocals, Youngbloods co-founder Jerry Corbitt on guitars and fretless bass, former Del Fuego percussionist, Joe Donnelly, Jr. on drums, Hatrack Gallager on harmonicas and Steafan Hannigan on whistles, Uilleann pipes, bouzouki and bodhran.

Po'Girl

The interplay between Allison Russell, Awna Teixeira, Benny Sidelinger, and Mikey "Lightning" August is truly something to behold.

They are distinct voices with incredible harmonies; multiple instrumentalists who bring the perfect sound to each song and songwriters who pen poetic tunes you'll find yourself humming. Po'Girl showcases a wide array of instruments—from gutbucket bass, accordion, clarinet, banjo, dobro, guitar, to electric bass, glockenspiel, piano, harmonica, bicycle bells, drums—and they all frequently trade off instruments with each song. Their fluid and joyous musicality is one of the group's most endearing and irresistible features.

Pumpkinhead Ted

It has been a long journey for Pumpkinhead Ted from their beginnings as a pick-up trio playing in downtown New Bedford 15 years ago. Now a 5-piece, they may have become a bit more sophisticated acoustically, but one thing has remained constantÉ a passion for funky eclectic music that comes from a variety of traditions with a variety of textures that makes you want to clap your hands, stomp your feet, and dance your heart out. Consisting of Tom Short (flute, sax, clarinet), John Nieman (guitar, percussion), Jason Smith (guitar, percussion), Kathy Crowley (vocals, bones), and Matt Wall (bass), their latest CD, "New Bedford Knockabout," has become a favorite locally and wherever it is heard.

John Roberts & Tony Barrand

Widely acclaimed for their lively and entertaining presentations of English folksongs, John Roberts and Tony Barrand have performed at major festivals, colleges, clubs and coffee-houses throughout the United States, Canada, and their native Britain. They sing the ballads and songs of the sea, of rural pursuits, of social and sociable situations, of industrial toil and strife, and much more, typically arranging their material thematically to better illustrate the lives and the social history of the people who made and sang the songs. Their songs are punctuated with tales, monologues, dances and tunes, giving a more complete appreciation of the wealth, diversity, and vitality of the English folk tradition. Both are active in the folk dance arena as well as in song. Tony is well-known as a Morris and clog dancer, and though he has now hung up his bells his teaching is still in demand across England and North America. His book Six Fools And A Dancer has been hailed as the definitive work on Morris Dance in the United States.

Eric Robertson & the Boston Boys

"Eric Robertson and the Boston Boys are at the absolute forefront of the acoustic string scene in the U.S.—a scene which is on fire!—but no one is more on fire with groove and creativity then they are."

—Matt Glaser, Berklee College of Music

The Boston Boys—named after a Bill Monroe tune—is composed entirely of Berklee students and alumni, some already well-known in the bluegrass world: Eric Robertson on mandolin, first-semester bassist Sam Grisman, Nick Falk '06, Nate Leath '07, and fourth-semester guitarist Stash Wyslouch.

Before becoming a Boston Boy, Eric Robertson was a North Carolina boy in Greensboro, studying classical guitar from the age of 12. But he turned off the paved road and onto the dirt two years later when a family friend who collected mandolins "just gave me a mandolin off the wall," Robertson says. That was that. Playing the instrument "made sense and felt right," he says. He gained that authority in part by going out to small towns "where you find a lot of the original backwoods players" plus festivals where he met Sam Grisman (son of mandolin master David) and many other impressive young pickers.

Mark T. Small

Mark T. Small was hooked on the blues at the age of 12 and knew that music was his path for life. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist and vocalist, Mark has traveled with a variety of band types that ranged from bluegrass to Chicago style blues. His solo show includes many traditional delta blues numbers with a Chicago blues slant that transforms each tune into a "tour de force". Included are the blazing flatpicking techniques that grabbed audiences in Mark's bluegrass days, the hot slide guitar playing that creates a mood and timbre change in each set and, the showmanship that was developed from years of experience as a band frontman. the end result is a performance of blues and boogie woogie that canÕt be beat.

Nathaniel Smith

Nathaniel Smithbegan touring professionally as a cellist with Mark O'Connor in 2006. He is a prolific composer and released a compilation of original cello compositions, Arrhythmia, in 2009, as well as The Nathaniel Smith Jazz Project.

Nathaniel has been the cellist for Natalie MacMaster since 2007, touring extensively throughout the U.S. and Canada. He collaborated with internationally renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma on the Grammy-winning recording, Songs of Joy and Peace. Nathaniel has performed with such musical luminaries as Bela Fleck, Abigail Washburn, Sarah Jarosz, Tim O'Brien, Darol Anger, and Mike Marshall. He joined the Jeremy Kittel Band in 2009 and performs as a duo with Jeremy as well.

Nathaniel recently performed on the classical music program, From the Top, broadcast over National Public Radio. He also appeared on the CBC television broadcast of Holiday on Ice along with Natalie MacMaster and several Olympic ice skating medalists.

Chris Smither

"Back in the old days," muses resilient troubadour Chris Smither, "writing new songs and making new albums were just chores. My priority was, and still is, performing live. I guess I still write the songs and make the records so that I can go out and play—except that now I actually look forward to it. I've learned how to do it, and I'm very eager to get stuff recorded once I've written it." Recorded in only three days, Time Stands Still is just the eleventh studio album of a career that now spans over four decades. Time Stands Still (Signature Sounds/Mighty Albert) is both pensive and visceral—an album whose songs alternately ponder life's mysteries in some moments, and let them lie undisturbed in others. Featuring eight new original compositions and a song apiece from Bob Dylan, Mark Knopfler, and 1920s country-blues songster Frank Hutchison, Time Stands Still's immediate, intimate sound is the direct result of one gig, and the challenge it presented.

Art Tebbetts

New Bedford's own troubadour and a cornerstone of Summerfest both as performer and stage host. Art Tebbetts is a seasoned guitarist-singer-performer averaging 200 to 260 gigs a year, who also hosts the Open Mics held at the Café Arpeggio. He plays coffeehouses, festivals, bars, pubs, fairs, and more. His "day gig" is "Music For the Ages" that specializes in playing for seniors in nursing homes, assisted living, senior day care, Councils on Aging, & church gatherings.

Tesseract

Tesseract—Joan Akin, Joanne Doherty and Mary Beth Soares—are known for their rich vocal harmonies and skillful instrumental work covering a wide range of music that includes traditional, contemporary, nostalgic, as well as original songs.

This is a Machine

This is a Machine is the moniker under which singer-songwriter Anthony Savino frequently records and performs. A New Bedford native, the young performer is known for a long string of performances at Café Arpeggio's open mic nights. Also the vocalist in local pop/punk outfit Half Hearted Hero, Anthony's musical endeavors cover a range of genres and styles. This is a Machine is a more intimate project, with Anthony performing small shows in coffee shops and open mics, and busking on the street corners and subway stations of Greater Boston. With the winter 2010 release of "Equinox," Anthony's display of his abilities as an adept storyteller and songwriter show through quiet, meditative and often experimental folk songs. His influence is drawn from melodic indie, classic country, and modern folk, as well as the works of his contemporaries of all ages, resulting in a refreshing take on the standard formula of a young man's analysis of the modern world from the city perspective. In true devotion to artists such as Simon & Garfunkel, Bright Eyes, The Beatles and Neutral Milk Hotel, as well as a long-standing appreciation for the classical and baroque, Anthony as This is a Machine always makes it a point to craft a thoughtful and serious folk song for the new world, or whoever else is listening.

TradMore

As their name suggests, TradMore draws from a variety of traditions plus contemporary songs that are rooted in those traditions and settings of poems by Rudyard Kipling and others.

David Kleiman is a multi-instrumentalist and singer, who also performs with Water Sign. He is the president of Heritage Muse, dedicated to publishing classic works of literature, history, folklore, and folk music.

A singer and arranger of traditional/roots music—sea songs and chanteys, gospel, blues, ballads, and worksongs—Ken Schatz performs regularly at folk music clubs, festivals, and concert venues.

Heather Wood was in the Young Tradition, "that most notable of English folk groups" (The Stage, U.K.), which toured extensively in the U.K., U.S., and Canada during the late sixties. She is the author of several songs.

TradMore's attitude to traditional music is that it should be enjoyed, and not enshrined.

Trì

Emerging Celtic music ensemble Trì includes 3 of New England's most sought after traditional Celtic musicians. The trio consists of award winning bagpiper Matthew Phelps, highly acclaimed fiddler Doug Lamey, and the band's MC and guitarist Cliff McGann. They will be joined by amazing Cape Breton step dancers Pamela Campbell and Christine Morrison.

Sloan Wainwright

Folk-pop artist Sloan Wainwright belongs to a musical dynasty of impossibly gifted singer-songwriters. Her family tree (brother and folk-music luminary Loudon Wainwright, sister-in-law Kate McGarrigle, nephew Rufus Wainwright, nieces Martha Wainwright and Lucy Wainwright Roche) reads like a who's who of contemporary folk music. Sloan's incredible gift is not only her unique songwriting ability but her dramatically voiced rendition of her original songs.

"She's folk-influenced, obviously (you can't grow up in the First Family of Folk and not be, one imagines), but the real star here is her voice. Warm and smoky and smooth, it makes her earthy, ominous lyrics seem all the more intense."

Defying standard categorization, singer/songwriter Sloan Wainwright consistently demonstrates her easy command of a variety of American musical styles—pop, folk, jazz and blues—held together by the melodious tone of her rich contralto. The end result, a unique and soulful hybrid.

"...Sloan Wainwright, whose regal voice could fell a redwood."

—The Boston Globe

"...earth mother voice that she pours into unexpectedly sensitive blends of folk, jazz, blues and funk."

—The New York Times

Jeff Warner

With warmth, humor and understated scholarship, Jeff Warner connects 21st century audiences with the music and everyday lives of 19th century people. He presents musical traditions from the Outer Banks fishing villages of North Carolina, to the lumber camps of the Adirondack Mountains and the whaling ports of New England. His songs have "the stamp of authority and real experience" (Tykes News, Yorkshire, UK). He has honed his craft in front of audiences across the country at festivals, museums, clubs and schools. His songs, rich in local history and a sense of place, bring us the latest news from the distant past.

Warner is a Folklorist and Community Scholar for the New Hampshire Council on the Arts, has been named an Arts Council Fellow for 2007, and is on the Speaker's Roster for the New Hampshire Humanities Council. He has toured nationally for the Smithsonian Institution and has recorded for Flying Fish/Rounder and other labels. His 1995 recording Two Little Boys: More Old Time Songs for Kids, received a Parents' Choice Award.

He is the editor of Traditional American Folk Songs: From the Anne and Frank Warner Collection, (Syracuse University Press, 1984), and producer of the 2-CD set Her Bright Smile Haunts Me Still: The Warner Collection, (Appleseed Recordings, 2000). Her Bright Smile is the actual voices of singers who were born from 1860 to 1900, recorded on early disk recorders by the Warners. Both publications make available the work of his parents, who were pioneer collectors of songs from rural America.

Jeff Warner is past president of the Country Dance and Song Society, a past officer of the North American Folk Music and Dance Alliance, has been an artist for Virginia, Utah and Ohio Arts Councils and a producer of the Portsmouth Maritime Folk Festival. He is on the Artist Roster of the New England Foundation for the Arts.

Susan Werner

Over the course of her colorful career, singer songwriter Susan Werner has cultivated a reputation as a daring and innovative songwriter with a killer live show. She boldly endeavors to weave old with new to create altogether new genres of music when existing ones do not suit her muse, and she regularly keeps audiences guessing and laughing simultaneously. Most of her work infuses traditional music styles and methods with her unmistakable contemporary worldview, constantly challenging listeners to experience music from a fresh and unexpected perspective. Susan Werner's new release Classics asks no less of her distinguished audience or herself.

Chuck Williams

Raised in Toledo, Ohio, Chuck Williams has lived most of his adult life in Massachusetts. He has been traveling New England sowing seeds of his songs along the way. His lyrics and melodies are a musical journey reflecting emotions of everyday life. He has been steadily been gaining notice throughout New England songwriting circles, and has earned several awards for his finely tuned craft. He just released his 5th CD Lightning in a Bottle in April 2010.