March 17
$12.00

Joyce Andersen is such a talented fiddler, singer and songwriter, it’s hard to start describing her, so we’ll let Minnesota Public Radio do it for us. They had this to say about the York, Maine-based artist: “Youth and strength flow through her voice. She’s got power and conviction. . . She's writing new songs and retelling old stories, and there’s still something mysterious in her music that sounds like comes from an ancient and pure source.”

Andersen’s live performances reveal her depth as an American roots musician and highlight her sophisticated musicianship and her great versatility as a singer-songwriter, song interpreter and incredible fiddler. Joyce has toured with the McKrells, John Lincoln Wright, Marshall Crenshaw, the New England Bluegrass Band, the Childsplay Fiddle Orchestra, Eric Andersen, and John Herald, among others. She has played in coffeehouses and taverns as well as on the stage at Carnegie Hall and on the Conan O’Brien show.

Before she launched her solo career, Andersen spent a decade as “side-gal” and played fiddle in country, swing, bluegrass, Celtic, and folk groups as well as being a studio musician on a large number of recordings. In addition to her solo CDs, she has collaborated with her husband, Harvey Reid (a name of note in folk circles nationwide), and has produced some magnificent recordings. Their latest recording is “Christmas Morning,” which was actually recorded on Christmas Day 2004. The thoughtful songs, impeccable instrumental playing, and the underlying poignancy weld this body of songs and instrumentals together into a cohesive and enduring statement.

Andersen’s CD “Right Where I Should Be” garnered high praise from Sing Out magazine: “It places her right up there with any of the songwriters out there performing their songs today.” In addition, the Boston Globe had this to say: “That neo-traditional current is starting to be felt among the ranks of New England songwriters . . . among the hottest . . . fiddler-singer Joyce Andersen.”

Joyce’s fourth solo recording, “Love & Thirst” has been well received by fans and critics alike. One particularly sweet review in The Wire magazine notes: “Andersen has a voice like light wisps of incense smoke that invite you to breathe deeply, taking in every aspect of a song. It’s soft, dusky and supple, curving around a melody and making it her own with the slight bend of a note.” Songs like “Thirsty Girl” and “Misled” are catchy tunes that you’d expect to hear on mainstream radio, while “Riding on a Train” and “Sound of Hearts” fit into blues / country / rock / eclectic. That’s what’s so wonderful about Joyce Andersen: Wait a minute and the musical genre changes. The trio of songs that close this recording are poignant, especially “For What was Gained,” which was penned by folk icon Eric Andersen (no relation, but the two have played together in the past) as well as “Filled With Love,” a touching and powerful song written prior to the U.S. invasion of Iraq that holds out hope despite its anti-war sentiment.