Posts Tagged Cayamo
Edie Carey on Bring The Sea
Edie Carey
I have wanted to interview urban folk/pop singer/songwriter Edie Carey since seeing her in concert at Cayamo this past February. She’s got a new album set for release by late October 2010, called Bring The Sea. In preparation for its release (and thanks to Carey for her time [as well as Concerts in Your Home founder Fran Snyder for putting me in contact with Carey]) we discussed her music in this brief email interview.
Tim O’Shea: When a singer/songwriter goes to a country like Tanzania for two weeks on vacation as you recently did, do you typically get inspired to write a song or two. Or when you take a vacation do you decide to give your songwriting part of your brain a break as well?
Edie Carey: I definitely relished the opportunity to get on a plane without my guitar in tow for once. I love my job, but it can make me a bit single-minded sometimes. It’s good to remember the things that I loved to do before I ever started doing this….camping, exploring other countries, learning about history, architecture, science….It was a great mental break after finishing the new album.
Andy Levine on Sixthman
Sixthman
If I was not already blessed with a great full-time job and a spectacular boss, I imagine Sixthman founder Andy Levine would be my ideal kind of boss. In 2001, Levine established the Atlanta-based self-described “affinity travel company … that creates unique experiences by bringing together like-minded people in exclusive, interactive and intimate environments … Sixthman currently delivers experiences aboard cruise ships for more than 30,000 fans of artists such as John Mayer, Barenaked Ladies, Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jillian Michaels, and Sister Hazel”. I first became aware of Sixthman in 2009, when my wife and I signed on for Cayamo 2010, the journey of song, which I blogged about here, here and here. Coming out of the cruise, with some invaluable assistance from Sixthman’s Becki Carr, I was able to question Levine about Sixthman. My thanks also to Levine for his time and thoughts. And lest you need convincing how much I like Sixthman and Cayamo in particular, my wife and I have already committed to our cabin for Cayamo Cruise 2011.
Tim O’Shea: Cayamo 2010 was a different experience for you, in one way, as you were on vacation with your family, rather than running the event. How odd and/or refreshing did that feel to experience in that way?
Andy Levine: It was an extremely vulnerable yet liberating moment, because I was scared that I was not needed anymore. Then I was also really proud to see everyone step up and do such a great job–not that they don’t always step up. But for me, the best part was that I got to be a guest and I got to feel a little bit about what I think our guests feel–which is that: “When it’s working, it’s working. It’s right.” I got to experience that and it was awesome.
Tori Sparks on Her Music
Posted by admin in Music, Uncategorized on March 31, 2010
Tori Sparks
The way I discovered Tori Sparks‘ music was a fortunate fluke. One late night/early morning on the Cayamo cruise, after most of the music had ended for the evening–I went looking for where any jam sessions might have been happening. And that’s when I discovered Sparks performing an impromptu show in the ship’s library. I so enjoyed her witty storytelling and performance skills, I decided to get an email interview with her. We got to discuss last year’s release, as detailed here: “Tori’s third album, The Scorpion in the Story, was co-produced with indie rock veteran David Henry (R.E.M., Ben Folds, Josh Rouse, Widespread Panic, Cowboy Junkies) , and features players such as Steve Bowman (Counting Crows), Will Kimbrough (Rodney Crowell), Viktor Krauss (Lyle Lovett, Mindy Smith, Allison Krauss), Fats Kaplin (Mark Knopfler, Kevin Welch), and Barry Walsh (Gretchen Peters) … The Scorpion in the Story is a tale in thirteen chapters, a tour diary in the form of a concept album . Each song was written about one of the many colorful individuals Tori met while touring across the U.S. last year. The album includes a French version of the song ‘Merry Go-Round,’ (‘Le Manege’), and was released on Glass Mountain Records in June 2009.” As evidenced by some of our discourse, in addition to her musical talents, she’s also quite effective in terms of marketing. My thanks to Sparks for her time.
Tim O’Shea: How did the duet with Shawn Mullins on Letter to a Wretch #2 come about–what is it about Mullins’ voice (and how it interacts/plays off/compliments yours) that motivated you to want to duet with him?
Tori Sparks: I contacted Shawn and asked him if he’d be willing to sing on the song, and was very happy when he said yes. He’s a very gracious guy, and extremely supportive of independent music too – he worked on his own for about ten years before ever signing a record deal, so he knows what it’s like to have to be out there working for it. I’ve always loved the range and the timbre of his voice, and of course his songs as well. Both always ring true to my ears. He sings and writes from the heart.
Looking Forward to Cayamo: Edie Carey
In my run-up to next week’s Cayamo 2010 cruise, I am trying to focus on certain new artists I am just learning about prior to the cruise. Today I am focusing upon Edie Carey. Go to her site, listen to her music.
Given how much of a Shawn Colvin fan that I am, I’m shocked I’ve not run across Carey before. I’ve never heard anyone sound so much like Colvin–and as you can guess that’s a compliment, not an insult. She has her own distinctive songwriting style, however, and I look forward to seeing her perform live next week.
Looking Forward to Cayamo: Buddy & Julie Miller
This time next week, I will be on vacation, on a cruise–for the first time in my life. I’m not really drawn to cruises honestly. One thing might get me to board a boat. Well two things, my lovely wife being the main reason. The second reason is if that boat was loaded with damn good musicians.
Well the Cayamo 2010 cruise is going to feature an amazing collection of musicians, including Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Brandi Carlile, Buddy Miller (with wife and fellow musician Julie Miller), John Hiatt, Darrell Scott, Shawn Mullins, Vienna Teng and Katie Herzig, as well as Steve Earle, Robert Earl Keen (solo), Allison Moorer, Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers and Rachael Yamagata.
I had not heard of Buddy Miller until recently, when I saw Miller play with Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin and Patty Griffin on PBS’ Soundstage. Soon after that, a friend heard I was going on the cruise and he insisted I made sure to go see the Buddy and Julie Miller play together. They’ve been knocking around music circles for a number of years–since the early 1990s at the very least. Buddy Miller is also known as a producer. Be sure to go the musicians’ website as you can get a good listen to their music there, as well as an idea of all the people they have worked with over the years.
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