Singer/Songwriters Marty Atkinson & Katy Boyd Join Forces
to Form Blue Cactus Choir & Will Release Their Debut CD, Once in a
Bluegrass Moon, on Porgy Records January 15
MENLO PARK, CA – San Francisco Bay Area-based
singer/songwriters Marty Atkinson and Katy Boyd have joined forces to form Blue
Cactus Choir and will release their debut album, Once in a Bluegrass
Moon, January 15 on Porgy Records. Beautifully recorded by Thom Jutz
(Nanci Griffith) at his studio in Nashville, the new CD was produced by Jutz,
Atkinson and Boyd and features 21 original songs that focus on relationships, as
well as funny, insightful stories and some rough tales of the road, all accented
with luxurious vocal harmonies that recall Crosby, Stills & Nash and
Fleetwood Mac. Backing the duo is a cadre of Nashville A-list players including
Justin Moses (banjo, mandolin, fiddle) and Mark Fein (bass), both of Ricky
Skaggs’ band; as well as Fats Kaplin (steel guitar), Gary Smith (piano), Lynn
Williams and Steve Brewster (drums) and Thomm Jutz (guitars,
keyboards).
On Once in a Blue Moon, Atkinson and Boyd craft
a relaxing blend of bluegrass, country and folk sounds that fit like a
comfortable pair of boots. The new CD is a ramble through the southwest, where
the banjo meets the gut string guitar and the harmonies flow freely. Marty’s
love affair with Mexico is evident on songs such as “Blue Moon Over Mexico,”
“Southern Bird,” and “Blind Date at Juanito’s;” while he cuts straight to the
truth on “I Wish You Were Mine” and “Sweet Love.” Katy puts her distinctive
stamp on whimsical songs such as “A Cat Called Ginger and a Dog Called Fred
Astaire” and “Love in the Emergency Room,” while offering up tender remembrances
on “Going Home,” “Hey Grandpa” and “Dad’s Song.”
Bluegrass picker Marty Atkinson’s original band, Cactus
Choir, had a convoluted, but passionate affair with several major labels,
including a combined 10 years signed to Atlantic Records, EMI and then
Curb/Universal. Their debut album on Curb/Universal was a finely woven blend of
Marty’s choral harmonies, first-rate songs and superb musicianship, which also
spawned a single that cracked the Billboard magazine Hot Country
Top 100 for eight weeks. But the changing country music climate at the time
resulted in Cactus Choir falling victim to a roster cut.
Witty, spicy singer/songwriter Katy Boyd has been compared to
Tom Waits, Janis Ian and Townes Van Zandt, weaving poignant stories that are
personal in their origins, but universal in their appeal. Her 2011 CD,
Paper Hearts, drew rave reviews and strong radio airplay both in
the U.S. and in England. A native Californian, Katy Boyd grew up listening to
American and Irish folk music, as well as Tchaikovsky. After a few chance
meetings with folk music legend Joan Baez, Katy taught herself to play guitar
and later won a Northern California songwriting contest. A short courtship with
Virgin Records brought her to the UK, and although a deal never happened, she
stayed in England for many years.
Katy gave up playing music for some time and devoted herself
to raising her children, but found the time to continue to make films and work
on sailboats, two of her other passions. She went back to playing music
full-time in 2004 and landed a small record deal with a British label, which
resulted in her debut album, Ain’t No Fairy Tale, produced by Neil
Brockbank (Nick Lowe). That album resonated in the top 50 of the Roots
Music Report folk chart several times during the summer of 2010.
In 2011, Katy was invited to perform at the Belfast Nashville
Songwriters Festival, where she met Thomm Jutz, producer and long-time guitar
player for Nanci Griffiths. This meeting was the catalyst for her to come to
Nashville and record Paper Hearts. That same year, she met up with
Marty Atkinson and began the musical relationship that would lead to the
formation of Blue Cactus Choir.
