Happy Summer everyone! This is my favorite time of year to hit the road, so come out and see us somewhere. The band is currently firing on all cylinders.

We just finished up a week in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Perfect weather, lovely outdoor venues, and thousands of folks coming to laze in the sun and listen to music.  4 of our 5 shows last week were co-headlining shows with Mary Chapin Carpenter.  The last time i saw Mary Chapin was probably 1993 or so when we both performed at the Telluride Bluegrass festival.
I had remembered her set as a thing of beauty, and i'm happy to say that nothing's changed. She is one of the great singer-songwriters of the last 25 years, and it was an honor to share the stage with her and the MCC band.  I'm sure we'll do it again sometime.
If you're not familiar with Chapin's music, listen to a song called Stones In The Road as a good starting off point.

I wanted to share a particularly lovely moment with you that occurred while i was signing cds after the show in Seattle.

Not that long ago, during an interview, i was asked what the first record i ever bought was. It was...and still is...one of my favorite singles and vocal performances of all time; Angel of the Morning by Merrilee Rush. I was about 6 or 7 when it came out i think. Even though it was years later when i actually realized what the story of the song was really about, as a kid i had imbued it with my own experience and longing. (Exactly what the songwriter hopes for!)  For me, it was a song about... or some kind of message from... my mother who i'd lost a few years earlier. That line  "just touch my cheek before you leave me" was like a message from the great beyond. Have i mentioned all of this before?

Anyway...all of this is to say, that after nearly an hour of cd signing last Sunday night, a slight, lovely looking woman walked up to me, leaned in and whispered "Hi Marc, i'm Merrilee Rush. I heard that you liked my song." It took me a few seconds to process that this was REALLY HER...45 years later...at MY SHOW!! There were lots more people waiting, so we only talked for a few moments. We hugged, took some photos together and she was gone. I was honored and thrilled to meet one of my favorite singers of course. A few days later though...it feels like another message from the great beyond.

Have a safe, sunny and soulful summer everyone. Looking forward to seeing you.

-marc