February 4, 2023 at 7:30 pm
The Linden Tree Coffeehouse continues its 38th season of live performances with the return of long-time area favorites: Harvey Reid and Joyce Andersen on Saturday, February 4th at 7:30 pm. In the social hall of the Unitarian-Universalist Church, 326 Main St. Wakefield, MA.
Joyce Andersen and Harvey Reid have combined their talents to create one of the most potent duo teams in acoustic music. They are both gifted instrumentalists, strong and versatile singers, and prolific songwriters and are comfortable in a dizzying array of styles of roots and Americana music. They jump from showstopping Celtic jigs and old-time fiddle tunes to house-shaking blues rockers, soaring gospel duets, and achingly beautiful ballads. Reid’s legendary acoustic and slide guitar work make a perfect backdrop for Andersen’s powerful fiddling, and they take turns on lead and harmony vocals to showcase a large and interesting repertoire of original, traditional and contemporary music. They have brought audiences to their feet at folk & bluegrass festivals, clubs, coffeehouses, and concert halls across the US and in Europe and have released 32 highly-acclaimed albums of music between them.
After 35 years as a full-time performer, Harvey Reid is a familiar name to acoustic music fans everywhere for his peerless stringed instrument work, pro-found composing and songwriting, lively stage shows, and his in-depth knowledge of traditional music. Raised in the music-rich DC area, in the 1970s, he played street fiddle, as well as guitar, mandolin and dobro in a number of bluegrass and old-time bands before moving to New England and embarking on a solo career in 1979. Reid won the Beanblossom flatpicking contest in 1976, the National Fingerpicking award in 1981, and the International autoharp contest in 1982, and has shared the stage with most of the great pickers of today. His “Solo Guitar Sketchbook” was included in Guitar Player Magazine’s Top 20 acoustic guitar CDs, and “Steel Drivin’ Man” was the only recording of the last 25 years chosen by Acoustic Guitar Magazine in its Top 10 Folk CDs Of All Time list. He also has released the only recording ever devoted entirely to the 6-string banjo and maybe the best autoharp player performing today. Reid has released 17 solo albums to great critical acclaim, exploring traditional as well as his own brand of modern roots music.
Joyce Andersen is a greatly talented and versatile fiddler, songwriter, and singer from New Hampshire who has recently stepped out as a solo artist. She spent over 10 years in New England, New York, and Nashville, playing in numerous bluegrass, swing, Celtic, and country bands, taking her from the club and festival circuit all the way to Carnegie Hall and The Conan O’Brien Show (with Marshall Crenshaw) In Sept 2003 she released her 2nd solo CD, “Right Where I Should Be” which garnered a great deal of national attention. The Boston Globe called her “…an exciting young fiddler-singer with precocious traditional savvy and street-smart contemporary sensibility,” and she has received significant national radio airplay as an emerging artist. She can trade licks with the hottest bluegrass or jazz pickers, tear the house down with a blood-curdling Appalachian-voodoo fiddle & vocal duet, melt you with a Billie Holiday torch song, dash off a flawless set of Swedish fiddle tunes, or hypnotize you with one of her haunting guitar songs.
Harvey Reid & Joyce Andersen form a rare and versatile musical partnership, combining the best of American virtuoso instrumental work with razor-sharp harmony singing and a captivating stage presence. They take to the stage with a rich and varied song bag, an arsenal of stringed instruments, and a deeply-satisfying emotional purity, with a fresh northern New England sensibility, free from showbiz and pretense.
Tickets for those attending are $20, cash, or check at the door. Please reserve your seats by calling 781-246-2836. Mask-wearing is optional to protect the band, volunteers & audience members.
The Linden Tree Coffeehouse operates, in part, with thanks to partial support from Wakefield’s Arts Council of the Massachusetts Cultural Council. For more reservations and information: 781-246-2836, www.LindenTreeCoffeehouse.org
