Katey Branch and Geoff Warner performed a cozy, folksy set last night at Port City Blue, in Portland, Maine. Between Katey’s warm and vivacious personality and Geoff’s nimble fingers, they charmed the crowd with original tunes and a few old favorites.
Highlighting the evening were their covers of Fats Waller’s, “Ain’t Misbehavin’” and “Summertime” by George Gershwin. Geoff’s skillful guitar work offset Katey’s playful and lighthearted vocals. She makes me think of cute and charming female vocalists such as Ruth Etting or Annette Hanshaw from the 1920s and 30s. When Katey sang Leonard Cohen’s, “Hallelujah”, Geoff and the audience chimed in with befitting harmony.
They performed tunes from their 2008 CD, HeartStones, which is a sweet and restful collection detailing elements of life such as driving, romantic love, fixing things, the futility of war, womanly independence and joy. Geoff’s tenor voice lent just the right touch to his rustic compositions. One song, “Pura Vida” was about their trip to Costa Rica and finished with the screech of a howler monkey aptly done by Geoff, along with some tentative birdcalls and jungle sounds from the audience.
Katey and Geoff were very down to earth, encouraging folks to sing along and treating them like family. My husband and I noticed the same effect last January when we saw Katey perform with her daughter Ruby, at the Smiling Moose Pub in South Paris, Maine. During that concert, friends of Katey arrived in the pub with their two-year old daughter, Rosey. Rosey, dressed in pink, spent the rest of the evening (most certainly past her bedtime) leaning on Katey’s leg, eyes shut, utterly comfortable in the realm of Katey’s music, (unwilling to budge even when her daddy was trying to coax her off the stage).
I was hoping to hear a reprise of her gorgeous version of “Ave Maria”, which we heard then. At the time she said, “I’m going to take a risk and sing opera!” She did a great job and my husband was moved to tears.
One of my favorites at Port City Blue was Katey’s song, “You Were Conceived in Love”, written for her twin daughters. Geoff and Katey finished off the evening with a rousing version of “Night Rider’s Lament”.
Geoff also performs regularly with two other Maine bands, Archipelago, and The Sheep Island Rovers. He plays fiddle, guitar, and mandolin and is also a master furniture maker. Careful hands can do many beautiful things!
Katey also works with teenagers, and is a massage therapist, dancer and artist. Katey’s solo CD, Journeys, was produced in 2000.
You can reach them at http://heartstonesmusic.com
