Reviews of "Kindling the Fire"    

The new collaboration

by HARVEY REID & JOYCE ANDERSEN

  Singer/multi-instrumentalist Harvey Reid & singer/fiddler Joyce Andersen live along the often chilly coast of Maine, but their musical souls are warmed by the traditional sounds of the American South. Both have recorded solo in the past, in Reid's case 17 albums over nearly 30 tears. Now their recent marriage has led to this splendidly synchronous duo project in which Reid's gritty, weathered voice and Andersen's sweet alto complement each other in a classic brambles-and-roses pairing, on a set of smartly chosen and creatively arranged traditional and traditional-sounding songs.
Reid is a master of many stringed instruments, so the duo's sound is diversified through his use of six and 12-string guitars, slide guitar, Dobro, mandolin and octave mandolin, autoharp and the rare 6-string banjo, all complementing Andersen's smooth, mellow fiddle and guitar in arrangements that sound both precise and spontaneous. The material ranges from an acoustic blues version of the spiritual "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning" with two interlocking voices, slide guitar & fiddle, to the lighthearted tight-harmony country duet "Good Years". The old gambler's lament "Jack of Diamonds" gets a stark mandolin-and-fiddle setting from Appalachian mountain music, while Norman Blake's classic Western ballad "Billy Gray" shines in Andersen's poignant, honey-coated lead vocals backed by mandolin and guitar.
From the repertoire of Mississippi John Hurt the duo borrows his sad farewell to "Louis Collins" and adds resonator guitar, fiddle and melliflouos harmonies, creating a memorable new interpretation, and for a smile there's a barroom-style cover of the 1960's Bobby Gentry chestnut "Ode to Billie Joe" that features some smoking acoustic slide guitar and sly vocals. The disc also includes two instrumental tracks, including an appropriately uplifitng version of the familiar spiritual "I'll Fly Away" that features Reid's lusciously resonating autoharp.
The best musical partnerships always involve people whose talents are intuitley compatible. With Kindlign the Fire, Reid and Andersen demonstrate that they certainly belong in that category.

"Downeast musicians Harvey Reid & Joyce Andersen... have brought each other's music to new heights. The duo's new Woodpecker CD "Kindling the Fire," is a rootsy, warmhearted delight, rambling amiably from traditional gems to their own eloquent, timeless songs. Andersen's fiddling is fresh, fun and spacious, Reid's guitar playing fluid and graceful., and their harmonies-- well, you'd think they were in love..

The best marriages are based on the principle of equality. But what about musical duos who happen to be married? New Hampshire's Joyce Andersen met New England guitar ace Harvey Reid in 1990. At the time, she was a recent college graduate, a violinist since childhood and newly ``into all things nonclassical on fiddle.'' Andersen counts Reid as her first major folk music inspiration. Yet it took the fiddler-singer a dozen years and thousands of miles to achieve musical equality with the man who eventually would become her husband.
Reid and Andersen, who also pursue active solo careers, have just released their second duo album, ``Kindling the Fire,'' on Reid's Woodpecker label. It is their first CD since getting married. One of the old-time folk music gems of the year, "Kindling the Fire'' is a stylistic advance over their previous CD, 2001's "Great Sad River.'' On "Kindling,'' Andersen's fiddling is as soulful as it is inventive, and her own songs dovetail gracefully with traditional material.

The duo plays Club Passim in Cambridge tomorrow. When Andersen met Reid, the troubadour was already known as a veteran master of guitar and autoharp, and as the owner of his own label and recording studio. `He sent me some CDs of work he had done with a fiddle player, and that started me off. I learned a difficult piece and blew him away the next time I saw him,'' said Andersen, 35. The fiddler then began a journey that took her to Berklee School of Music for a year, then into bluegrass and rock groups and the country band of John Lincoln Wright. A residence in Nashville resulted in a year of bus tours with country singer Greg Holland. Then came five years in New York as a freelance fiddler, including stints with the McKrells and Marshall Crenshaw. `Though there was a special connection between us when we met, Harvey was so much more musically developed than I was,'' said Andersen. `I went off and worked on my music for 10 years, never knowing I'd come back to New Hampshire or hook up with Harvey. I've come a long way. On stage and on record, we're interweaving more and more now.'' Reid, 49, concurs. `Joyce is an amazing musician. The only thing I have over her is more experience,'' said Reid, who has been making a full-time living in music for 30 years. `We waited to do a second duo album because I really wanted her to get (professionally) established,'' he said. `I don't want her living in my shadow. It'd be uncomfortable not being equals. The teacher-student relationship was uncomfortable for her, too.'' Reid and Andersen had no doubts about their rapport once they started working. `We're making better decisions together than I make on my own,'' Reid said. `On the road we're with each other 24/7 and we have a blast,'' Andersen said.

Yet there were two fears that occurred to Reid when he first introduced Andersen to his audiences back in 2001. First, he was afraid his fans would think he was egotistically thrusting his girlfriend onstage. And then, after Andersen was accepted wholeheartedly, Reid worried if his fans would ever want to hear his solo act again. Both fears proved unfounded. At this point in her career, though, Andersen has more chance for commercial success than does Reid. She is about to record her third solo album, with, among others, drummer Dave Mattacks and guitarist John Troy. It will be considerably more modern than the subtle, stripped-down work she does with Reid. `I've really accepted the corner of the music world I'm in. I'm not chasing rainbows anymore. But Joyce might actually achieve some popular success,'' said Reid. `For myself, I can't wait to record with her again. We're catching our stride.''

Jack of Diamonds (Trad.)(5:39) Church Bells (J. Andersen)(3:52) Good Years (R. Goldman)(2:29) Keep Your Lamp (Trimmed & Burning)(Trad.)(4:20) Can’t Let Go (R. Weeks)(2:55) Losers in Love (H. Reid)(3:03) The Spring Hill Reel (H. Reid)(2:47) Revelations Roll (K. Long)(3:20) Billy Gray (N. Blake)(4:42) Primitives (T. Burnett)(3:59) Bound for the Promised Land (Trad.)(3:45) I’ll Fly Away (Trad.)(3:04) Louis Collins (Trad.)(3:18) More Precious than Gold (J. Andersen)(4:21) Ode to Bille Joe (B. Gentry)(6:45)

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