Song
Chico audiences are becoming familiar with Vermont fiddler/folksinger Lissa Schneckenburger, thanks in part to the intimate backyard concerts she’s played, most recently this past June with her trio, rounded out by her new hubby, upright bassist and tenor guitarist Corey DiMario (who also plays bass with Boston alt-bluegrass band Crooked Still), and tenor banjo player Dave Cory. DiMario and Cory appear alongside Schneckenburger on her new CD, Song, along with a stellar crew of musicians, including Irish superstar accordionist Sharon Shannon. Song is a beautiful, peaceful, musically delicious collection of songs largely culled from the 1939 Maine Woods Songster, a songbook of early American music from Schneckenburger’s native state of Maine. “The Logger’s Boast” and “Lumberman in Town/Go Ken Go” feature Schneckenburger’s pretty voice and fine fiddling, and are typical of the logging songs included in the Songster and in Schneckenburger’s concerts. “Harmony,” a New England song from the 1700s, is the vocal standout on this disc, for its sheer beauty and the lovely vocal harmonies between Schneckenburger and guest vocalists Stefan and Sam Amidon.