MusicViews - Music as a Bloodstream

Last night I had the honor of seeing Moira Smiley and VOCO at One Longfellow Square in Portland Maine. Without a doubt it was one of the most astounding live performances I’ve ever witnessed. These four women interpreted songs using their voices and bodies to vocalize liquid prayers, intricate waterfalls, bold visions, tender murmurings and clattering, percussive, stompings of joy. more

Ramblin’ Red, a foursome of very talented ladies from Portland, Maine, opened Friday, August 7th, for Moira Smiley and VOCO at One Longfellow Square. They performed a set of very classy and original tunes with enthusiasm and rich harmony. more

Being fans of the gypsy jazz style of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli, we attended with much anticipation. more

Banjo Dan and the Mid-nite Plowboys brought their musical fire to One Longfellow Square in Portland Maine, this past Thursday night. Landing on the stage in a flurry of whiskers and instruments, the five piece bluegrass band commenced to ignite the audience with an evening of tight-tight-tight harmonies and fearsome pickin’. more

Karen Trump’s album, Safely Home, is a cozy collection of twelve original songs that evoke the country atmosphere of her Virginia home. The songs are biographical stories, incidents and insights into life. She has a very mellow, alto voice and is accompanied by a tight group of accomplished musicians. more

Ladies of the Lake, based in the state of Maine, are a foursome of accomplished, musical women who have combined their talents to form a traditional Celtic band. more

It was an unequivocal joy to watch him accompany everyone. What a gentleman. He supported the other headliners with an intuitive sense, playing guitar beautifully, singing backup and generally adding to the atmosphere with a sweet smile and kind demeanor. He never attempted to draw attention to himself no matter how dazzlingly well he played. more

Genevieve and I were winding our way up (or down?) a staircase on the ship and two handsome young men were passing us and we engaged in a bit of small talk with them. Genevieve asked them if they were performing on the ship and it turned out that one of them was - Evan McHugh. His friend’s name was Garrett Moore and it turns out that he is a musician too, although he didn’t sing on the ship (that I know of). more

Oh my holy potato, Gaelic Storm! They had the good fortune to play on the same Lido deck as Evan McHugh except that they had the advantage of being a large band with a large sound that could command the space. more

After Lyle Lovett and possibly dinner, I can’t remember in which order, we sashayed to the Red and Black Lounge which sounds satanic but wasn’t. There, sequestered, or sea-questered, as we were at sea, were the long, lovely, lean and blond Bowman twins. “Womb-mates” as my twin friends, Edy and Betsy, always say. more