Mary Smith - Singer of Traditional Songs
Of Rogues and Lovers
"Of Rogues and Lovers", released in 2003, contains nine traditional ballads and two songs by Andrew Connell. Guitarist Tomas Salcedoelped work out the arrangements, and we recorded the vocals and guitar in a studio here in Virginia. I then took this rough mix to Northern Ireland, where Chris Caldwell(bodhran), Brendan Monahan (whistle and bones) and Stevie Mulholland (fiddle, mandolin) added their accompaniment. Click here to read a review in "The Rambles" on-line magazine. Below are some sound clips from the album.
The Snows They Melt The Soonest
The album is available at CD Baby, where you can listen to samples and download individual tracks
Reviews
“…one of the most remarkable aspects of Smith's singing is her complete absorption in, and assimilation of Irish and Scottish approaches to songs and ballads. There is no suggestion here of an outsider donning a disguise. Instead Smith is affected by the very same muses which give rise to the vocal styles of native Irish and Scottish singers. (Indeed many native singers will envy her compelling blend of rawness and purity and her ability even in the longest ballads to command the listener's attention until the very last note!)…a singer with a superb repertoire and an instinctive feel for delivery. Aiden Crossey, on-line Trad Music Magazine “Pay the Reckoning” out of London.
“A rich, expressive voice and an instinctive feel for traditional singing, she delves into the essence of a song and draws in the listener – never forgetting that the point of a ballad is to tell a story. An extensive repertoire from the American, Irish, Scottish and English traditions, well researched and well delivered.” Kevin Donleavy, WJTU Radio in Charlottesville, VA (historian and musicologist, author of “Strings of Life – Stories and Recollections of Old-Time Musicians from North Carolina and Virginia”
