Joyce Andersen and Harvey Reid with special guest Dave Mattacks open fall season at the me and thee!

Joyce Andersen and Harvey Reid will open the season at the me&thee coffeehouse in Marblehead on Friday, September 9 at 8:00 PM. This amazing husband-wife acoustic duo from Maine have invited their good friend, Marbleheader Dave Mattacks to join them for the show. Harvey and Joyce have compiled impressive solo careers and they often combine their talents in shared concerts and this show with drummer extraordinaire, Dave Mattacks, makes for a dynamite way to start the fall season at this legendary coffeehouse. The me & thee is located at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead at 28 Mugford Street in Marblehead.

Harvey Reid started playing guitar in his early teens in Maryland, and fell in with the now-legendary DC-area bluegrass scene. After street-fiddling and playing old-time and bluegrass music for close to eight years, he moved into his van in the late 1970s and began pursuing solo acoustic songs & instrumental music, primarily fingerstyle acoustic guitar and autoharp. After stints in a bluegrass band in Colorado, playing Telecaster in a country band in Virginia, and a winter in Nashville, Reid migrated to Northern New England, playing five nights a week on the "blue-collar" folk circuit in Maine and New Hampshire, while developing his own personal blend of American acoustic music.

Reid's skills and versatility on the guitar alone mark him as an important new voice in acoustic music. He won the 1981 National Fingerpicking Guitar Competition and the 1982 International Autoharp competition. Yet he's also a veteran musician with a long list of studio and band credits, a strong flat picker who has won the Bean Blossom Bluegrass guitar contest, a versatile and engaging singer, a powerful lyricist, prolific composer, arranger and songwriter, a solid mandolin and bouzouki player, and a seasoned performer and captivating entertainer. And he plays the 6-string banjo and the autoharp like you've never heard. Guitar geeks know Harvey as being in the forefront of the partial capo and specialized guitar tunings; he’s written numerous books related to his guitar wizardry secrets. He needs to be seen to be believed.

Joyce Andersen’s live shows and recordings showcase her versatility as a vocalist and violinist who thrives on writing and interpreting songs across many genres from old-time, rock and Americana, to folk, pop and swing. She’s been a "side-gal" fiddler playing in country bands (out of Nashville) as well as swing, bluegrass and Celtic groups and playing a dizzying number of studio sessions, Joyce Andersen moved swiftly to center stage as a solo artist. She has many critically-acclaimed CDs (many collaborations with husband Harvey Reid) which shine the spotlight on her guitar, her sophisticated songwriting, her haunting and unique voice, and her powerful fiddling. Her clear and powerful vocal/fiddle duets are a sound that is all her own. Joyce does it all. Period.

As if this show wasn’t going to be spectacular enough, Harvey and Joyce have asked their good friend, Dave Mattacks, to join them. Dave is one of the most respected drummers in the music world. His resume is almost too incredible to be true. But, yes, he has played with Richard Thompson as part of Fairport Convention and he’s also played with Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Billy Joel, Roseanne Cash, Jethro Tull, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Elton John, XTC, and on and on.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $23 at the door and are available at www.meandthee.org and at both the Spirit of ’76 Bookstore, Arnould Gallery, and at the door. Those who purchase tickets online are automatically chosen as participants for prizes on the night of the event. We strongly advise buying ahead. As at all me & thee coffeehouse events, refreshments are available, including homemade pastries, coffee, and teas. The me & thee has a handicapped-accessible entrance, is a smoke-free environment, and is easily reached by MBTA bus.

The me & thee coffeehouse is the oldest continually running acoustic music coffeehouse in New England.. For its entire history, the me & thee has been and will always be a volunteer, non-profit organization sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead. For information and directions, call 781-631-8987 or visit www.meandthee.org.

Next concert – September 16: Lula Wiles AND Susie Burke & David Surette. Two generations of great musicians joining together in song.