Yodel-Ay-Hee CD-017

Critical Acclaim

The Tunes

1. Sail Away Ladies (trad) / Sail Back Home Again [4:32]
2. Scotty [3:09]
3. Luther / The Last Straw [6:16]
4. The Word in Edgewise [3:08]
5. Lit Splickety / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead [3:40]
6. Pony Boy [3:51]
7. Dirk's Escape [3:13]
8. Woody of the Lake / Neithammer Honeymoon [4:40]
9. Armin's Socks / Sliding Up the Bannister / Common Cold [6:07]
10. Buckeye [2:01]
11. New Valley Forge / Sandy's Shoes [4:23]
12. Mandolin Boomerang [4:34]
13. Race the River Jordan [4:47]

Mark Simos

• Mark Simos: fiddle, piano, mandolin, vocals

MARK SIMOS is, in Mick Moloney's words, a "musician's musician," whose aptitudes extend beyond a single instrument or musical genre. Over the past 20 years he's performed and recorded as a guitar and piano accompanist for many of the great traditional musicians of Ireland and America. A popular contra dance and old-time fiddler and teacher at numerous dance camps and festivals, Mark has penned fiddle tunes played by dance musicians across the country. As a songwriter, Mark's songs have reached the listening public through the voices of respected artists such as Laurie Lewis. Kate Brislin and Jody Stecher, Ranch Romance, and Freyda Epstein and Acoustic Attatude.

In this debut sampling of his own compositions, Mark presents us with more than just a collection of interesting new tunes performed in a good hard-driving way. Playing both in and with the structure of traditional Southern fiddle music, Simos has created a suite of tunes that work together in a coherent fashion, cinematically evoking varied moods and places. This is due in no small part to the stellar cast of musical associates chosen for this project. Led by Mark's fiery fiddling, hot and driving yet thoughtful and melodic, they achieve a tight. concise sound, whether the ensemble be a fiddle-banjo duet or a big-band extravaganza-all captured in a scant three day of recording. The result is an aural concoction of great depth and emotion, played by folks who bring a respectful irreverence to their music. This recording is for all of you out there: musicians searching for new tunes to play, fans of traditional fiddle music. the mix and match set, and those of you that like a good travel tape to make a long trip go faster. Enjoy!

The Friends

• David Cahn: electric bass, mandolin, guitar
• Jere Canote: guitar
• Peter Langston: tenor guitar, acoustic bass, NeXT Cube
• Dirk Powell: fiddle, banjo, mandolin, acoustic bass, Cajun accordeon
• Daniel Steinberg: piano, flute, melodica
• Molly Tenenbaum: banjo
  and guests (also friends)
• Mark Graham: harmonica
• Piper Heisig: snarehead, vocals
• Molly Stouten: vocals

The Technical Details

Producers

Peter Langston and Mark Simos

Recording

Neville Pearsall, to 16-track ADAT at Synergy Studios, Pt. Townsend, WA

Mixing & editing

Neville Pearsall, Peter Langston, & Mark Simos at Synergy Studios

Mastering

David Glasser, Charlie Pilzer, & Mark Simos, at Airshow Studios, Springfield, VA.

Graphic design

Marty Somberg / Somberg Design

Production & manufacturing

Devachian Music; released in cahoots with Yodel-Ay-Hee Records
Yodel-Ay-Hee catalog number: CD-017

Ordering and Further Information

© 1995 Peter Langston, all rights reserved (psl@acm.org )