finetune artist: Bill Morrissey/Greg Brown

This US singer-songwriter is arguably one of the most gifted storytellers in contemporary folk music, fashioning detailed, impressionistic songs of such quality that his songwriting is frequently mentioned in the same breath as the work of author Raymond Carver. Inevitably, Morrissey's evocative studies of character and location found a literary outlet in the 90s when he signed a publishing deal with Alfred A. Knopf. Morrissey was raised in Hartford, Connecticut and Acton, Massachusetts, the types of small towns with large blue collar communities that figure prominently in his writing. He studied briefly at Plymouth State College, New Hampshire, but graduated to the local folk circuit where he continued to learn his trade and hone his songwriting while working a variety of dead-end day jobs. His accomplished debut album, which was released in 1984, established a folk blues style rooted in the storytelling tradition of Mississippi John Hurt and Mance Lipscomb. Morrissey's big breakthrough came with an excellent set at the following year's Newport Folk Festival. He signed to the Philo subsidiary of Rounder Records and released North, which featured one of his most acclaimed songs, "Married Man". The failure of his own marriage and his subsequent return to small-town Newmarket, resulted in an inspired burst of songwriting, the fruits of which were heard on the excellent Standing Eight. Subtle instrumentation and backing vocals from Suzanne Vega and Shawn Colvin embellished a fine suite of songs, and helped establish Morrissey as one of the leading lights of the new folk movement. In 1991, Morrissey re-recorded his first album for CD release, with four songs added to the original running order. The following year's Inside included a compelling ode to the legendary Robert Johnson, alongside contemporary interpretations ("Off White", "Everybody Warned Me") of the haunted bluesman myth. The Grammy-award nominated Friend Of Mine was recorded with Morrissey's friend and fellow singer-songwriter Greg Brown. The album featured songs the two men had played for many years, alongside autobiographical fare such as Brown's "Fishing With Bill". The subsequent Night Train featured a stand-out duet with David Johansen on the swing blues-styled "Love Arrives". Morrissey's debut novel Edson reworked his familiar themes of bitter disenchantment and possible redemption with some success, earning the singer positive reviews from the literary press. The same year's You'll Never Get To Heaven was recorded in New Orleans, with some of that city's musical vivacity creeping into Morrissey's songs. Songs Of Mississippi John Hurt was also recorded with leading New Orleans musicians, bringing a fresh musical angle to songs by one of his biggest influences. The album was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Traditional Folk Album category.

Listen to Bill Morrissey/Greg Brown at Finetune.

(1993) Friend Of Mine

You Can't Always Get What You Want
Ain't Life A Brook
He Was A Friend Of Mine
Duncan And Brady
Fishing With Bill

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