Me&Thee Coffeehouse, Marblehead, Mass. | Friday night concerts from September to June

The New York Times describes Buskin and Batteau best: “Versatile, sophisticated . . . by turns acerbic, funny and plaintive. Buskin and Batteau are breathing new life into the genre of the folk-pop singer/ songwriter.” ¶ Opening will be Beggar’s Ride, one of the best female-led, vocally-driven folk groups around.

David Buskin and Robin Batteau have been winning hearts and minds with their soulful acoustic balladry and fun-filled performances for more years than they care to remember.“We’re not from the Cambridge, came-over-on-the-Mayflower first wave of folkies [Joan Baez, Tom Rush, Eric Von Schmidt ],” says Buskin, “but we’d like to think we’ve stolen many of their licks.” The Washington Post called their work “an irresistible amalgam of melodic, sensual pop, folkie grit and killer wit.” And while their humor runs the gamut from topical irony (“Second Homeless”) to terminal silliness (“Jews Don’t Camp”), it’s their unique combination of instrumental virtuosity (piano and violin, primarily, though both play other instruments as well), soaring vocal harmonies and unparalleled lyric-writing that prompts the standing ovations and rhapsodic reviews: “The most musically sophisticated act in folk” — the New York Times; “Acoustic Heaven” — the Boston Globe. And with the help of uber-percussionist Marshal Rosenberg, they manage to kick the rhythm pretty hard for a couple of seasoned troubadours.

Famous in the eighties as superstar jingle writers —Batteau’s “Heartbeat of America” heads a list of a hundred or more hits — they’ve also divided their time between writing songs for other artists — e.g., Judy Collins, Tom Rush, Astrud Gilberto, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Peter, Paul and Mary and Bette Midler; helping a diverse group of non-profits — Paul Newman’s Hole-In-The-Wall Camps, Harry Chapin’s Why Hunger, Roger Payne’s Ocean Alliance, among others; and hosting their quirky, unpredictable Radio B&B show on WPKN-FM and WPKN.org. Buskin and Batteau will be celebrating the release of their latest CD, Love Remembered, Love Forgot, which has rocketed up the Folk DJ charts since its release. The CD was produced locally by folk producer extraordinaire, Neale Eckstein.

Photo: Jake Jacobson

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Baltimore based Beggar’s Ride is the contemporary folk duo of award winning songwriters Claudia SanSoucie and Kate Maguire. Formed in 2010, their combined talents leave you feeling they’ve performed together for a lifetime. In sync harmonies, intricate guitar arrangements, melancholy yet hopeful lyrics beg the listener to take a smooth ride on sweet melody. Claudia and Kate honed separate music careers until meeting in late 2008 officially forming Beggar’s Ride in 2010.

Beggar’s Ride has opened for Vance Gilbert, Carolann Solebello, and been invited to perform at the esteemed Club Passim “Campfire Festival” and also enjoyed performing at venues such as Focus Music, Burlap and Bean, World Café, Live at the Queen, among others. The two aren’t new to the music business, but the similarities in their lives are uncanny and notable. The duo reveals a twin spirit, yet voices that become one in harmony. Influenced by many of the masters of song such as Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Bruce Cockburn, Neil Young, and Wes Montgomery, Beggar’s Ride’s songwriting and musical style has led to their self-titled debut album recorded and mixed at Signature Sounds Studio, produced by David Goodrich and chief engineer Mark Thayer.