ANDREW MCKNIGHT: Traveler

Andrew McKnight

Traveler

© 1995 Falling Mountain Music (791022078121)

CD IN STOCK. ORDER NOW. Will ship immediately.

SPECIAL: 10% discount if you buy more than one copy of it today!

(About MP3 downloads at CD Baby)

Energetic Shenandoah contemporary rural singer/songwriter with diverse "mountain gumbo" of styles, rich vocals, and standout guitar; "positive, upbeat, magnetic"

notes

Environmental engineer-turned-songwriter Andrew McKnight is a high energy crowd pleaser for audiences nationwide, from intimate unplugged house concerts to large stages such as the New Artist showcases at the Falcon Ridge, Kerrville and Napa Valley Folk Festivals.

A modern-day manifestation of the traditional pioneer folk artist, this Shenandoah Valley songwriter, guitarist and poet's rurally-based music reflects an oral history built on the past while firmly rooted in the present. Andrew frames his stories and observations in a diverse southern " 'mountain gumbo' brand of music that mixes folk, blues and bluegrass in one appealing and energetic sound" (Norwich Bulletin).

Andrew's wry insights, vocal richness and bluesy guitar licks have become distinctive trademarks. "His ability to write songs left me with visions of Staines, Mallett, and Gorka, and I found Andrew McKnight to be one of the most exciting new contemporary talents to come along in years." (Tidewater Friends of Folk Music).

Andrew's environmental background and advocacy for the preservation of rural and historic America often color his characters' personal relationships with their changing landscape, such as the Appalachian lament of a dying "Company Town" to mountaintop mining or the struggle with sprawl faced by "A Town Called Progress". "There are musicians who sing about the environment, and environmentalists who play music, but rarely are talent and passion combined the way that Andrew McKnight unites them." (Appalachian Voice). He will be featured in a forthcoming pictorial book entitled SAVING THE BAY: People Working for the Future of the Chesapeake Bay for his strong environmental ethic and his unique ability to impact listeners through musical storytelling.

Andrew tours nationally as a full-time performer, with his resume including performances at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the Kennedy Center, Appalshop Theatre, the Appalachian Arts Festival and Baltimore's blockbuster Artscape 2000 minus 1 Festival as well as listening rooms, festivals, concert halls and coffeehouses across the US. Andrew is also one third of the exciting Appalachian roots music trio Dang Varmints! (http://www.shenandoahacoustics.com/dv ), whose energetic and eclectic blend of original folk, oldtime, blues, bluegrass and Celtic music, 3-part harmonies and great stories have delighted audiences around the mid-Atlantic states. In addition to a heavy national tour schedule, he occasionally leads workshops on songwriting, various aspects of the acoustic music industry, and environmental issues.

reviews

Please log in to review this album.

  • a distinct and refreshing voice of life-affirming optimism and pointed social cr
    author: All Music Guide (review by Matt Fink)

    Combining the traditional sounds of his native Appalachian mountains with more contemporary folk and pop elements, Andrew McKnight is a distinct and refreshing voice of life-affirming optimism and pointed social criticism. There is a certain tangible honesty, almost vulnerability, in the country-folk nostalgia of "Still Home to Me," "Demon Named Loneliness," and "You Used to Know," though McKnight doesn't allow himself to fall into self-important reflections like so many contemporary folk songwriters. Employing drums and bass with the occasional mandolin, banjo, and fiddle, in addition to his own excellent guitar playing and expressive tenor, McKnight creates pleasantly energetic music and pensive quiet ballads. Possibly most impressive is McKnight's criticism of the corporate world in "Magnolia Tree," dishonesty in politics in the infectious folk-rock of "Election Day," and the displacement of Native Americans and mountaineers in "Gatlinburg." All in all, his sound is lively, his tunes hummable, his lyrics thoughtful, and his debut, very enjoyable.

  • showcases McKnight’s knack for sensitive, insightful lyrics and his wide-ranging
    author: Norwich Bulletin

    McKnight’s music, like (John) Denver’s, reflects a deep love and respect for nature...finding his strongest musical inspiration in the ”almost heaven country” immortalized by Denver - the Blue Ridge foothills and Shenandoah Valley of northwest Virginia. His debut CD Traveler ...showcases McKnight’s knack for sensitive, insightful lyrics and his wide-ranging “mountain gumbo” brand of music - a surprisingly smooth blend of folk, blues, country and bluegrass.

  • as refreshing as a cool breeze in the Shenandoah Valley he calls home
    author: Flint Hills Special (review by Bob McWilliams)

    "McKnight's album is as refreshing as a cool breeze in the Shenandoah Valley he calls home. Summoning up dead-on images of small town and rural America, and both the sense of loss and the sense of survival, McKnight's gentle-country-tinged voice and evocative guitar make for a musical equivalent of a leisurely drive down the back roads. Highlights include "Still Home to Me", where, he notes, "You ain't missin' nothin but you still miss it all." Whether on the Irish-tinged "Patrick McGuire" or the lovely "Weekend In The Country", McKnight conveys a gentle and humane spirit."

  • McKnight combines them all to spin his magic into a new art form -- a kind of "B
    author: Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange (review by Tay Mueller)

    TRAVELER by Andrew McKnight is like a journey around the rim of a wheel: a touch of traditional, a touch of country, a touch of Celtic, a touch of contemporary. Spokes run down from each to a sweet spot at the hub. In that sweet spot, McKnight combines them all to spin his magic into a new art form -- a kind of "Blues-grass". TRAVELER is an album of uncommonly fine love songs. In addition to all varieties of romantic love, there is McKnight's incredible joy and love for his music. You will find an overflowing love for life (in all its forms), as well as a great love for the land and people of the American countryside. There is even a love song sung by two rivers. McKnight describes himself as "a New England folkie who got sidetracked in Appalachia". He slides easily into whatever style or combination of styles will best suit the tone of each song. I wouldn't try to pin too narrow a label on his work. If you like anything from James Taylor to Taj Mahal, you will find something here for you. "Dancing in the Rain" combines a feeling for the farmlands with a real knowledge of the musical styles traditional to them. The verses speak matter-of-factly of the hardships this kind of life can bring, but the chorus celebrates the here-and-now joy of not having lost yet. The simple pleasure of dancing in the rain is also the great delight of being given a chance to continue. It is a song so joyful I want to sing along with it, but frequently can't, because the tears of joy close up my throat. Is it true that only farming is as hard and unpredictable as love, so much so that you're likely to ignore all the hard work you've put into it and sweep it away with a whim like a summer storm? In "Demon Named Loneliness" McKnight makes me believe it. Fortunately, sometimes the unpredictable answer, the one you really don't expect to hear, is Yes! Playing a game recently, I was asked my favorite word. I chose "Shenandoah" (what a sound!). My friends said names weren't allowed, so I chose "confluence." Both its sound and its images touch me deeply. To me, it means a mingling that is complete, beyond sharing. Like life. Like Love. So imagine how my brain exploded when I heard "Atchafalaya" a love song sung to the Atchafalaya River by the Mighty Mississippi. Andrew portrays the rivers as a riparian Romeo and Juliet. They are separated by the concrete and steel of modern attempts to control the waters, but secretly they are waiting for a chance to slip over the wall and be together again. "Atchafalaya" is truly, a flood of passion. Some songs, although great favorites for a short time, soon migrate to a shelf and we hardly ever think of them again. Some music moves into your heart forever. I think of that every time I play the music I loved in the '60's, and still love enough to have on a CD. TRAVELER is like that. In twenty years, when they are installing the portable music chip into the bone behind my ear, TRAVELER will be one of the albums in my hand, a favorite ready to travel with me to a new technology. The sixteen songs on this album are so fine they will become old favorites quicker than a CD can spin. TRAVELER is available on the Falling Mountain label.

email

Please log in to email this artist.