Whether behind the piano on a windswept mountainous cliff, at a hallowed venue such as Carnegie Hall, or playing shoulder-to-shoulder with some of the most legendary musicians in history, solo pianist Holly Bowling subverts convention with virtuosic playing, emotional immersion, and a thirst for invention. In 2015, she arrived as an exciting outlier on “Distillation of a Dream: The Music of Phish Reimagined for Solo Piano.” As her profile rose, she delivered “Better Left Unsung,” only a year later. For this triple-LP, she re-arranged iconic moments from the Grateful Dead on her piano. It bowed in the top 25 of the Billboard Top Classical Albums Chart. She went on to share the stage with everyone from the Dead’s Weir and Phil Lesh to Warren Haynes, John Scofield, Jim James, Branford Marsalis, Don Was, Robert Randolph, Greensky Bluegrass, and more. Along the way, she graced the bills of Lesh’s “Terrapin Crossroads” and Haynes’ annual Christmas jam and unveiled the concert recording live at The Old Church. Simultaneously, she co-founded improvisational rock outfit Ghost Light in 2018. Engaging a faithful audience even in the midst of the “new normal” of 2020, she launched a series of living room livestreams chronicled on the eight-volume “Alone Together: The Living Room Sessions” highlighted by her innovative re-imaginings of Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and many others. This concert comes from 2019, its Holly Bowling live at The Linda.
In fall 2021, shortly after The Linda reopened to live audiences we were graced by multi-genre vocalist, instrumentalist and bandleader, Kimberly Hawkey, who performed songs from her album, “We the Nighthawks.” The album, which pulls art song, jazz, musical theatre and American songbook, takes listeners on a sonic journey that captures human stories of life, love and loss. The project was conceived and driven creatively by songwriters Justin K. Rivers and Lecco Morris. This special evening of classic highly stylistic song is like a time machine back to the days where you had to wear nice shoes to go out of the house. So, close your eyes and head back in time with is for Kimberly Hawkey. Starting with an introduction by songwriter, Justin K. Rivers. Here they are live at The Linda.
The New York Times calls Lucy Kaplansky is a rare vocal talent, “a truly gifted performer...full of enchanting songs.” Blending country, folk and pop styles, she has the unique ability to make every song sound fresh, whether singing her own sweet originals, covering country classics by June Carter Cash and Gram Parsons or singing pop favorites by Lennon/McCartney and Nick Lowe. Lucy’s iconic voice has been featured in film and on television, including commercials like Chevrolet’s iconic “Heartbeat of America” jingle.
Raised by a piano-playing mathematician and a homemaker in Chicago, Lucy began singing in bars when she was still a teenager, even traveling to Norway to perform as a country singer. When she was just out of high school, she took off for New York City, where she became part of the renaissance of the Greenwich Village folk scene centered around folk city and the fast folk recordings. Her compatriots included Suzanne Vega, The Roches, Steve Forbert and John Gorka as well as her frequent duo partner Shawn Colvin. Lucy continues to perform all over the world. When not performing, she lives in New York City, where she enjoys spending time with her husband and nine year-old daughter. In 2017 she played WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio. Here is Lucy Kaplansky live at The Linda.
Thanks for listening to Live At The Linda, recorded live at The Linda: WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio. Tune in next week for our broadcast of Garland Jeffreys 2017, Leslie Mendelson 2021 and Chip Taylor 2010
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