Chicory

Chicory, the band, is a bit like Chicory, the flower. There, in the midst of a weedy, sturdy, roadside patch of music, is a burst of beauty, a turn of phrase, an new harmony that just makes you happy.

Chicory is a dance band. Not fancy. A couple of fiddles, a guitar, a bass, but it puts energy into the dancers' feet and makes them never want to stop. Chicory plays a New England style repertoire with a Midwestern sensibility - beautiful tunes with lots of color and that insistent forward drive that gets you from St. Louis to Champaign-Urbana in under three hours.

Chicory is Martha Edwards and Ben Schreiber on fiddles. They hide their classical training when they can, but it comes out. Martha is a veteran of Stringdancer and Summer Lightening and Reel Women, and Ben is a young phenom with a bluesy creativity that pops up in unexpected places. Together they play in a fiddler's sandbox, trading off melody and harmony, building sand castles.

Chicory is Michael Shapiro on guitar. It's powerful playing, rich in (sometimes strange) harmonies. Michael's solid, but never on autopilot. A guitarist who also plays with U4, Michael's got the musical mind of a guy who listens to too much world music, a mind that's always working, always inventing.

Chicory is Mike Brown on bass. Mike puts the there in the music, he is the solid foundation. He stays grounded so the rest can soar. Plus, he's the snappy dresser, and keeps everyone smiling.

Contact Info

Martha
E-mail: meedwards@westendweb.com

Michael
E-mail: mshapiro51@gmail.com
Phone:217-637-8466

Some Technical Details

Microphones, chairs, lighting, coffee and cookies.

Music

Click the play button to hear Chicory play Flying Home to Shelley, Lady Ann Montgomery, and Troll Soup. This is not a studio recording, and your PC, like ours, may not give you the best experience. Try it with earphones.

Pictures

Click on the link, then right-click for the menu that lets you save it to your hard drive.