Singer guitarist Paul Rishell and Annie Raines, his harmonica blowing sidekick, have fashioned a mighty career for themselves through their refreshing arrangements of vintage blues, mostly the rural sort, to quote Living Blues reviewer Lee Hildebrand. These songs, some decades old, are brought into this century, where they still retain their original integrity. As the years have gone by, the duo continues to add to their interpretations. Annie’s vocals and mandolin mesh perfectly with Paul’s guitar and vocals to make their performances reach a place in one’s heart.

Both Paul and Annie are New England born and bred. Paul got hooked on blues at a young age and immersed himself in old blues recordings until he was able to capture the feel of the vocals and guitars. During the late 70s he was able to play with many of his heroes as he continued to add to his enormous knowledge of the blues. Meanwhile Annie had dropped out of college to become one of the first serious female blues harmonica players in the country. While working with the very first Susan Tedeschi Band, Annie met Paul and it wasn’t long after that the two met and realized that their music tastes and styles were perfect for each other. Their 2000 CD, “Moving to the Country,” won the W.C. Handy award for acoustic blues album of the year.

The duo has performed around the world, from clubs to concert halls, at festivals and workshops. They have appeared on radio and TV on shows ranging from “Arthur” on PBS to “A Prairie Home Companion” to “Late Night with Conan O’Brien.” Susan Tedeschi recorded Paul’s “Blues on a Holiday” with Paul and Annie on her second CD, “Wait for Me.”

Ryan Fitzsimmons

We are delighted to present Ryan Fitzsimmons as the opening act for this show. While still “wet behind the ears,” Ryan was nominated for Best Folk Act in the Providence Phoenix Best Music Poll for 2004. As a teen growing up in central New York, Ryan performed in a number of electric bands but decided to see what he could do without all the amplification. Over the past five years he has been honing his style at venues around the country, along the way sharing the stage with many me&thee favorites (Greg Brown, Antje Duvekot, Peter Mulvey, Vance Gilbert, Brooks Williams). His first CD, “Open all Night,” is a history of what he encountered and learned along the way.

Ryan Fitzsimmons photo by Bryan Rodrigues

 
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Discriminating fans of roots music in southern New England have known it for years. At long last, the rest of the world is catching on to the fact that guitarist Paul Rishell and harmonica player Annie Raines are among the most earnest and entertaining blues artists active today. Ending a two-year hiatus from the studio with this fourth collaborative album, the pair gives ample proof of their gift for granting new life to old neglected blues and gospel numbers — with a band or without. Deep feeling combines with stellar musicianship on pre-World War II classics like Sonny Terry’s risque “Custard Pie” and Leroy Carr’s “Memphis Town,” while the two tradition-bound originals hold up as well. There’s a new depth to Rishell’s vocals here and Raines adds creditable singing and mandolin playing as this talented duo continues to surprise.Frank-John Hadley, Amazon.com

As one of the new breed of young New England singer/songwriters, Ryan Fitzsimmons is the real deal. I happened to catch him as an opening act one night and was knocked out by his singing, songwriting, guitar playing, and poise. He has the chops and smarts to go somewhere and I look forward to catching him again soon when someone else is opening for HIM! Barnes Newberry, host of Highway 61 Revisited, Folk Radio WUMB