Bob Knetzger: pedal steel, dobro, banjo;
Paul Elliott: fiddle;
Traci Hoveskeland: cello;
Chris Spencer: electric guitar;
Nancy K. Dillon: voice;
Thornton Bowman: voice;
Paula Walters: upright bass;
Doug Miller: upright bass;
Aimee Zoe Tubbs: drums/percussion;
MJ: voice, acoustic guitar, accordion
THE VIDEO ON THIS PAGE is a live version of This Way & That, recorded at the student concert at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop (www.psgw.org) on August 15, 2007 (engineered by Chip Hayward and Coty Hogue, mastered by Chip Hayward, and then slightly tweaked by Moe Provencher (with additional tweakage by Doug Haire) at Jack Straw Studios).
The incredible back-up band behind me is:
Ivan Rosenberg, dobro
Stacy Phillips, fiddle
David Keenan, banjo
Piper Heisig, upright bass
Marie Eaton, back-up vocals
And approx. 120 more backing voices from the audience - students and instructors from camp - whooooosh! :)
Influences
Patsy Cline, Hank Williams, k.d. lang, Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Bonnie Raitt, Mary Gauthier, Eliza Gilkyson, Lynn Miles, Slaid Cleaves, Gerald Collier, Thornton Bowman, Nancy K. Dillon
Sounds Like
I've been told I sound like Patsy Cline, k.d. lang, Natalie Merchant, Kim Richey, Dar Williams, Rory Block, Indigo Girls, Cowboy Junkies, Carole King and even Karen Carpenter ("I'm on the top of the world looking down on creation" - come on people, sing it with me!)
I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)
Live Performance of This Way & That (Copyright 2007 MJ Bishop) at www.psgw.org - August 2007
Tidbits on Pull Of The Moon:
"Your incredible new CD arrived at my office this week. I have been listening to it in the car for the past two days. Sometimes I'm so wrapped up in it I run through Stop Signs. You should put a warning label on the cover. Comparisons to Patsy Kline, Emmy Lou Harris etc. do not do you justice..."
Tim O'Leary, Tucson, AZ
MJ's song Hobo Dreams (Pull Of The Moon) just received Honorable Mention in the May/June 2008 issue of American Songwriter Magazine lyric contest. Ain't that nice?
"I love it when your voice breaks... it's a classic country voice!"
- Peter Langston - musician/computer whiz/college level instructor in audio recording and computer science/organizer, instigator and general merriment provider of the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop
* * * * *
MJ Bishop is an acoustic folk Americana solo artist out of Seattle who has performed steadily since 1998 in and around Seattle, and has also taken her music to Oregon, California, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Montana, Michigan and Florida.
Her long-awaited third album, Pull Of The Moon, sees her rolling up her sleeves and plunging into the grittiness that is Americana, through the sweet, familiar melodies of folk. The added trim around the edges reveals her deep roots in country, jazz, rock and pop.
On these 12 tracks, MJ’s unwavering smoky vocals start from the dirt in the crawl space, climb the stairs to the kitchen, the bedrooms, the attic, and finally blast through the roof. She takes you on a journey starting with the evocative opener “Up North” (about her small home town in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula), weaving a story around the life of a guitar, life’s pushes and pulls, love, loss, heartache, freedom from the nine-to-five job, and the appeal of the open road. You will be conflicted by the lyrics as they first lure you with the promise of good times before abruptly dropping you into a chasm of loneliness and heartache.
MJ will be chauffeured by her muse through Tennessee, Indiana, Michigan and North Carolina this summer to share and promote Pull Of The Moon.
"MJ dishes up some tasty treats with her sparkling vocal."
- Rich Hinrichsen - bassist/composer
"She's more than a little bit country with a healthy helping of soul, and she produces a pretty big sound armed with only a single guitar and her vocal chords." - Englewood Herald-Tribune, FL
Hope you're having a great time touring!! Hope Michigan is treating you well!!! I'm not going to Michigan until the 23rd of July now. I'm going to the "All Years Reunion" Hopefully it'll be fun!! Have a great day!!
MJ, thanks for playing Lafayette last night, and for including Indiana in your tour. It has been a real pleasure getting to know you and your songs. Thanks for the memories, have fun tonight in New Buffalo, and the rest of your swing through Michigan!
Darlin! Thanks so much for the sneaky mail! I am loving it. I hear a deep, authentic, mature artist in your new work. It's also one of the saddest records I've heard in a long time. In a good way. Missing you on the arterial; it's sunny and perfect and everything's fine. xoxo
Hey you. You know I'm terrible with this MySpace thang. You should also know that i love you and your voice and gifts. I look forward to the july show. Glad you're having fun.
hi mj! hope you are having a fun tour. thinking of you . . . i'm playing tonight with my girls. one's never sung w/ me before. they're covering a Wreckers song and a Colby Callait song:) keep cool. luv ya!
Great blog entry about your travels from Kerrville on. Highway 411 along the Appalachians? Not to be confused with the information highway, right? (get it? 411...) Safe and savored travels. Signed, Cracking myself up in Seattle.
