Written by Eddie Ferranti
For the past five years Rose and I have enjoyed the Folk Alliance International in Memphis and Kansas City. The abundance of talent on display in whirl wind fashion is staggering to say the least and it is difficult to latch on to a particular group. One big exception to that rule though for us was The Grahams, who welcomed us from the get go to come to their room and showcases exuding a personal touch which was never forgotten. They are a rare duo who have been exploring music together basically their whole lives. Friends since she was 7 and he was 9, they became a couple in their teens, then husband and wife. How ‘bout dem apples?!
Being able to catch them multiple times in hotel rooms and tight showcases made us yearn to see a tour stop in a cool venue. We scored major in that department when they came to one of our fave haunts, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, where the sound quality is so sweet and clean. On top of that they brought a bass and drum to round out a nice foursome. The night featured cuts from 2013’s Riverman’s Daughter, which is a collection of country and rockin’ numbers culled from a trip down the Mississippi River’s historic Great River Road. Here’s the CD review by HMR boss man Samuel Barker.
http://houstonmusicreview.com/wordpress/2014/02/08/the-grahams-rivermans-daughter/
Fitting song to describe their intense bond was “A Good Man” where sassy brassy sweetheart Alyssa looks lovingly at her hubbie Doug with those big eyes of hers showing love. In fact, they have a unique way of doing that a lot which seems to propel their confidence levels throughout the gig. It is so fresh and strong of a rapport that is rarely seen. Storytelling is a strong point of theirs also like “Marnie Hawkins” about a woman in a haunted house . Stellar numbers also included blues fused country “Rio Grand”, “Promised Land” , right from the heart “Mama” about passing of DG’s, solid hook line of “Get in line” on “Revival Time” and great guitar licks on “Cathedral Pines”.
“Glorybound” is their latest release and it was chocked full of goodies like “Annabelle”, steamy sexy “Biscuits”, opener buzz bomb “Griggstown”, tale about NY upbringing “The Spinner”, AG’s fave “The Wild One”, heavy picker “Kansas City” and done deliciously acapella on chairs in the crowd title cut at encore! The dynamic smoothness and ease of showmanship these two display was personified on covers like Texas great Alejandro Escovedo’s “Broken Bottle” and Neil Young chestnut “Down By the River”. I was told after the gig they thought I’d dig it and I DID! DG just lit a match to his guitar and burned the house down bringing roars of appreciation from the stunned audience! Hell , Mr.Young would be damn proud to hear that version……….
In closing, I’d like to use a few quotes from the band themselves. “For us, making music is sort of whimsical. We’re not precious about anything. The dream is to play with as many great people as we can, and share the music as much as we can.” With incredible musicianship, Alyssa’s powerful pipes and that down-to earth feel they exude, these cats have a bright future indeed. Word is the folks at the Mucky Duck feel the same way and already reached out to come back. I know two folks who have that date circled big time. YOU should also………….