Album Notes

The Moxie Chicks are all long-time members of Milwaukee’s acoustic music scene, having met each other at coffeehouses, music parties, and providing back-up work on various recording projects. Chris Straw, Carol Lee Hopkins, Jonnie Guernsey, Jym Mooney, and Jon Pagenkopf combine their years of experience and talent into an exciting and always entertaining package. Their musical motto is “Sweet harmony with an attitude!”

Cross Me, Fool! features 14 delightful songs showcasing The Moxie Chicks’ trademark three-part harmony singing backed by tasteful musicianship. Eleven of the songs were written by the band, and range from the sublime (“If You Knew Who Walked Beside You,” “Wash Away/Talk About Suffering”) to the ridiculous (“Springtime In Ohio,” which honors the annual arrival in Hinckley, Ohio of migrating vultures, and the hilarious title track, an ode to the physical and emotional changes that face a woman entering her middle years). There are also love songs (“Finding Your Way To Love,” “Take My Time”), as well as songs exploring timeless and topical issues such as homelessness (“Down In New Orleans”), domestic abuse (“Like A Moth To A Flame”), and the folly of war (“Let Peace Prevail” and “I Have Come To Take My Boy Home”).

Guest musicians on the album include Ben Sanders (three-time Wisconsin State Fiddle Champion), Lisa Horngren (of The Tennessee Three and The Reedy Buzzards), Tom Haines (formerly with the Rick Nelson band), mountain dulcimer whiz Joseph T. Ruback, and keyboardist Patty Stevenson, plus Sweet Diversity and WAMI-award winners Larry Penn and Barb & Tom Webber.

"A collection of straightforward, earnest, acoustic folk originals about the usual suspects - war and peace, domestic violence, homelessness, fundamentalism - balanced by several songs of love or gentle spirituality. The group musters some nice vocal harmonies throughout."
Dirty Linen