Album Notes

Many people are struck by how quiet Margo Valiante is—considering she has “a voice that can stop a room,” says Gordon Thompson, her former music professor. Margo began singing with her father at an early age and has since made music her profession in Jackson Hole, WY where she was raised. She has a passion for many different styles of music, which is reflected in her singing and guitar playing. She combines influences of folk, jazz, blues and gospel to create an emotive style that changes with her environment; don’t be surprised if she sings a song or two in Spanish either. As a songwriter, Margo says her music “can’t be named as one specific style. I love the freedom of singing jazz, the sound of Eva Cassidy’s voice and the style of Gillian Welch’s songwriting, why not combine it all?”

A recent graduate and Music Major from Skidmore College, Margo has loved returning to see a musically rich environment in her hometown. “I used to have to sneak into bars to play at open mics just to be heard,” but Margo has now become a part of an extremely active music culture in Jackson, WY. In addition to keeping a heavy schedule of local performances, Margo has had the pleasure of opening for artists Dar Williams, The Subdudes and Kris Delmhorst and has recorded and performed with amazing local talent like Ben Winship and Anne and Pete Sibley. Margo’s song ‘Mama Don’t Know’ will be featured in the documentary film The Young Americans Project, that was submitted to various film festivals. She also ran a local music festival for two summers, Music for Literacy, to raise funds for the Teton Literacy Program.


Currently, when Margo is not over Teton Pass in Victor, ID working on her second solo album with engineer and mandolin player Ben Winship, she can be found playing solo or playing into late into the night at many of Jackson’s local hotspots with her band, Boondocks.

For more info check out www.margovaliante.com or www.myspace.com/margov