Cary Fridley and Down South




				about CARY FRIDLEY AND DOWN SOUTH Cary Fridley and Down South is as grounded in the tradition of Southern music as Fridley’s music has ever been. But by combining her new songs with the old time, blues and classic-country recipes, she’s serving up a swinging plate of something new. In her new band Fridley’s powerful vocal styles soar on an all-star group featuring honky-tonk guitar and country rhythms, spiced with bluesy pedal-steel and hot Appalachian fiddle stylings. Born and raised in Covington, Va., music fans first heard Fridley with the western North Carolina-based group The Freight Hoppers. This high-energy old-time string band toured the national festival circuit in the 90s, and showcased her versions of the ballads and songs she learned dropping in on the fiddler’s conventions and late-night jam sessions peppering coal country. Fridley and Down South are now performing in support of her new recording, also called “Down South.” Her first since her acclaimed 2001 release “Neighbor Girl,” “Down South” shows Fridley’s love for the full spread of Southern music – black and white, rural and urban, mountain and Mississippi delta – and her notable ability to tie it all together. DOWN SOUTH Steve Trismen ~ Fiddle, Vocals Matthew Smith ~ Pedal Steel Daniel Coolik ~ Electric Guitar Seth Kauffman ~ Drums, Vocals PRESS Download press photos here: photo 1 photo 2 cd cover 3 Download pdf press kit here quotes “Down South veers from tradition, delving into reverb-soaked, electric-harp blues, modern-country instrumentation and a sampling of more traditional, Grand Ole Opry-inspired arrangements, all the while employing rich harmonies, electric insruments and drums. What’s more, it does this without sacrificing the authenticity of the songs.” Dane Cook, Mountain Xpress “One of the most poignant traditional artists performing today, Cary moves seamlessly across Memphis electric blues, broken-down honky tonkin' country, and Appalachian Mountain music.” Roy Andrade, The Reeltime Travelers “The rediscovery, rejuvenation and reinterpretation of tunes both long-lost and intimately familiar is a large part of this music’s enduring appeal, and Fridley, despite being several generations removed, realizes that. Kevin Oliver, No Depression “Fridley’s sharp, cutting vocals drive home the sincerity and heart of these seldom-recorded ballads.” Dane Cook, Mountain Xpress “She [Cary Fridley] sounds as if she was born to sing of the troubles and simple joys that define old-timey mountain music.” Brian Beatty All Music Guide “Cary Fridley is becoming one of the finest vocalists alive, categories be damned.” The Oxford American Issue on Southern Music “Fridley is especially worth catching. Her playing is almost punkish in its energy and drive and her voice is capable of hypnotizing a crowd on its own. Joe Tarr, Metro Pulse “ Fridley has great empathy for her material, and it shows not only in her singing, but also in her fresh, compelling arrangements.” Al Riess, Dirty Linen “Cary has stayed true to traditional styles. The former singer and guitarist with the old-time string band The Freight Hoppers has thoroughly absorbed the plaintive, lonesome sound of the region’s music.” -Sing Out “It is a particular pleasure to hear a young woman of the South evoke the musical traditions which preceded her. She is connecting with women singers of Appalachia over a span of a hundred years or more.” John Cohen, Historical Film Maker SELECTED LIST OF PERFORMANCES Lake Eden Arts Festival, Black Mountain, NC Bele Chere, Asheville, NC Merle Watson Memorial Festival, Wilkesboro, NC Philadelphia Folk Festival, Philadelphia, PA Grassroots Festival of Music And Dance, Trumansburg, NY Floyd World Music Festival, Floyd, VA Shakori Hills Southern Grassroots, Silk Hope, NC Rhythm And Roots, Charlestown, RI Strawberry Music Festival, Garden Grove, CA Grass Valley Festival, Grass Valley, CA Old Town School of Folk Music, Chicago, IL Telluride Bluegrass Festival 25 Year Anniversary, Telluride, CO Walnut Valley, Winfield, KS Old Songs, Altamont, NY Lotus Fest, Bloomington, IL Freight And Salvage, Berkeley, CA The Ark, Ann Arbor Stan Rogers Folk Festival, Canso, Nova Scotia Rocky Grass, Lyons, CO Wheatlands, Remus, MI