“The Mary Maguire Band was one of our best shows ever!”

Emily Prigot, Director, The Open Book Coffeehouse, Canton, Massachusetts

The Band

 

Mary Maguire

Blizzards and flat tires notwithstanding, the magic carpet ride of performing musicians has lifted Mary’s voice across the airwaves from Los Angeles to Boston, from France to Russia and China, and has floated her onto stages shared with the talented likes of John Sebastian, Tom Rush, Livingston Taylor, Christine Lavin, Dave Mallett, T. Graham Brown, Billy Novick and Guy Van Duser, Lincoln Meyers, Devonsquare, Moondi Klein, Harvey Reid, and others. For the past 10 years Mary and Jeff have presented vocal harmony workshops at New York's Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival, at the Boston Bluegrass Union’s Joe Val Bluegrass Festival, Maine's Thomas Point Beach Bluegrass Festival and Connecticut's Podunk Bluegrass Festival!

As a soloist since age 16, the native Northeasterner also toured with her band of New England favorites Sweet, Hot & Sassy! for twelve years. Fans continue to seek out that acclaimed acoustic swing/vocal group's four albums, which feature some of Mary's original songs. Mary’s 2003 solo CD, the sultry, jazz-influenced ‘Round Midnight presents clever Mary originals along with well chosen gems from Horace Silver, Jesse Winchester, and others. Having been bitten by the bluegrass bug years ago, Mary accepted the invitation to join the talented NH bluegrass band, Second Wind, for their 2004 concert tour. In between working with students and developing workshops, Mary currently is working on more original compositions for a recording with The Mary Maguire Band.

As the new millennium dawned, Mary and Jeff Horton met and soon discovered their voices created a very unique, rich blend ‘you don’t just find anywhere’. Such a find drives them to cross two states to sing together.


Jeff Horton

Jeff Horton's powerful bass-to-the-sky vocal range is well known to the New England bluegrass scene. His solid acoustic bass drove the talented and entertaining Neon Valley Boys before the highly acclaimed contemporary bluegrass band Northern Lights brought him into their fold in 1990. Jeff was with Northern Lights for six years, playing hundreds of concerts, traveling thousands of miles, and performing with greats like Vassar Clements, Tim O'Brien, Peter Rowan, Jonathan Edwards and Dave Mallett. With Jeff on board Northern Lights released two really fine albums on Flying Fish Records that each spent 9 months in the Top Ten on Bluegrass Unlimited's Chart, and another on Red House Records. The next few years saw Horton performing with Irish, country and bluegrass groups, "looking for something with a bit more meat, better vocals, and professional musicianship." When Jeff met Mary Maguire and sang with her, both saw the musical possibilities—lots of meat, great vocals and a professional attitude—resulting in a very powerful sound.

On upright bass and bass guitar, Jeff's punctuating bass lines provide the unstoppable Tom Yoder a springboard from which his fiddle and mandolin leads take off, always into a fresh unknown that fits each song perfectly.


Tom Yoder

The Seacoast Region of New Hampshire is home to singer/songwriter Tom Yoder. Firmly rooted in bluegrass and folk, Tom has recorded and performed with artists as diverse as Dickie Betts, Garnet Rogers, Peter Rowan, Travis Tritt, Jonathan Edwards, Jo Dee Messina, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. Prior to his solo career, he played fiddle for The Don Campbell Band and performed at the Grand Ole Opry as winners of a national talent contest, Tom stealing the show with his electric live performance. Tom so cleverly laid out ideally-styled originals in his 2001 CD of originals and other gems, Layin’ Down Roots. And word is getting out that his groove-packed 2008 release, Never Get Enough, is a well-produced treat sporting many originals of this talented multi-instrumentalist. His wit and on-stage energy along with his mandolin and fiddle prowess and vocal creativity complete the recipe that is The Mary Maguire Band.

 

 

John Tibert

 

A  long, tall talent from Shrewsbury, Mass., John Tibert brings a uniquely warm and wonderful mandolin sound, and harmony vocals to the group with his nice natural baritone. An adept guitarist too, John is known to render downt-to-earth originals. The Mary Maguire Band is arranging some of his fine songs as we speak...


 

Photo credits:
Top photo of Mary by Kevin Riel
Jeff photo by Barrett Bacall
Tom Yoder photo by Christine Nimetz
Band photo by Wayne Garriepy

John photo by Steve Ide


 

 
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