Seacoast Songwriters

New Compilation CD Release
Seacoast Songwriters - Volume I

The Seacoast Guitar Society is pleased to announce the Nov 2001 release of its first compilation CD, titled Seacoast Songwriters- Volume I.

It features two cuts each by seven local artists: Cormac McCarthy, Joyce Andersen, Peter Black, Heidi Batchelder, Craig Werth, Kate Redgate and Tom Richter.

The "Seacoast region," as it is called locally, is centered around Portsmouth, NH, but with people in Massachusetts and Southern Maine participating. It has long been a stronghold of the arts, especially music. The folk, rock, jazz & blues communities have continued to produce and attract very talented artists and bands for decades, though the geography of the region has favored solo and duo performers who find work in the taverns, clubs and resorts of Northern New England. Many of the artists have families, other careers and personal roots which keep them local, though a few musicians from the region have made national names for themselves. It is one of the few circuits where musicians can support themselves in an independent way, playing original and contemporary music, and there are hundreds of very skilled and seasoned performers choosing to work in this circuit rather than moving to Nashville or New York.

The intent of this recording and the others that will hopefully follow is to celebrate and call attention to this group of artists, and help them be more appreciated in a star-driven entertainment world that focuses on national and international artists that are controlled by large entertainment corporations. Because so many bands come and go and change members and names so often, the focus of this series is on individuals rather than groups.

The work of these Seacoast songwriters is an interesting study- it is in no way is an imitation of popular styles or artists, nor does it all fit into any model or trend. There is a healthy amount of regional imagery, and underlying is a firm foundation of intelligence, observation and self-awareness. There is no market-chasing or formulas, and here you find a listenable, memorable, communicative and durable body of art that holds up to any set of standards.

Northern New England, which has brought us Robert Frost, E.B. White and many other great, straight-shooting writers, is also quietly bringing us songwriters like these, who deserve to be wider known and better appreciated.

The Songs:

Cormac McCarthy	Light at the Top of the Stairs Wild Beneath My Window
Joyce Andersen	Dizzy With The View Stand Clear
Peter Black	When Trouble Comes When You Call Me
Heidi Batchelder	(So This Is) Silence Mighty Falls
Craig Werth	Once A Farm The Fog Tree Zone
Kate Redgate	Ride the Wind Mississippi Moon
Tom Richter	Columbus Bunkhouse Song

You can purchase your copy of Seacoast Guitarists from the PartialCapo.com online web store

Seacoast Guitar Society
PO Box 815 York, ME 03909
207-363-1886 (phone)

The Seacoast Guitar Society is a not-for-profit 501 c(3) corporation

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