House Party In Strafford | Burke•Surette Family Band & Dead Duo

Friday, August 3, 2012
6-10 PM
74 Spruce Pond Drive Strafford NH
Surette Family Band
Dead Duo
Bring: a dish to share, drinks & lawn chairs
$12 performance donation

Warmth, vitality, and spontaneity mark the performances of Susie Burke and David Surette, and have earned them a reputation as one of the finest acts on the lively New England folk scene. Susie’s beautiful, complex voice and David’s graceful, nimble-fingered string playing combine with extraordinary results on their own blend of contemporary, traditional, and original folk and acoustic music. Together since 1988, Susie and David have built a steady following for their music, a following that has continued to grow with the release of their When the Small Birds Sweetly Sing CD in 2008.
   Recipients of Individual Artist Fellowship awards from the NH State Council on the Arts, Susie and David are also on the Council's Touring Arts roster. Between their solo and duo projects, they have released ten albums since 1990 on the Madrina Music label, to positive response from both critics and audiences. Together, they bring skill, taste, feeling, and pure enjoyment to their music, and are bringing their music to an ever-widening circle of listeners. For this show they will be joined by their daughter Isa Burke on fiddle, guitar, banjo, and vocals. Isa is an exceptional young musician who already has several years of performing experience to her credit, She will be attending Berklee College of Music in the fall.

  Steve Roy & Dave Surette are a duo dedicated to the music of the Grateful Dead. Both Steve and Dave have  been stalwarts of the New England folk/bluegrass/roots music scene, and this sound is apparent in their acoustic arrangements of a wide range of Dead classics, featuring Steve on mandolin and vocals and Dave on acoustic guitar and vocals. Their repertoire draws heavily on the Dead material from the early 70s, especially albums such as American Beauty, Workingman’s Dead, and Europe 72, yet they perform songs from all phases of the Dead’s career, and have an extensive working repertoire. In addition to presenting the songs of the classic Garcia/Hunter songwriting collaboration, they also play a wide range of cover material that was performed by the Dead: blues, country, rock, and traditional folk songs. They also cover a number of Dylan songs that were part of the Dead’s repertoire. Rootsy acoustic sound, harmony vocals, high-quality musicianship and extensive improvisation mark their live performances, and create an exciting evening of music that should appeal to Deadheads as well as fans of folk, bluegrass and old-time.