Roy Schneider

Artist Information

Biography

"A heavy dose of ramblin’ Americana, complete with believable folk delivery and splattered with old-timey charm, Roy Schneider’s music is rooted in way that ties him to the outlaw singers of the past — the part where there is no latching onto someone else’s bootstraps, just playing what you believe."
~Scott Recker, eCurrent.com

Roy Schneider is a joyful player of most things stringed; Blues Matters! magazine describes his music as "A beguiling and tasty stew of blues, country, folk, and Americana." Schneider has twice been a finalist in the Kerrville Folk Festival's Grassy Hill New Folk Competition as well as numerous other national competitions. "Walls that Talk," Roy's September 2012 CD release, debuted at #3 on the American Folk DJ charts. He frequently tours with his wife and musical partner, Kim Mayfield, and has been known to indulge any good excuse to pull a band together.

"Damn I love this album! [Erleichda] is a stellar example of good Americana."
~ Minor 7th

"......like the best Americana should be, a compelling mix of narrative and instrumental beauty."
~ Flyinshoes Review

"While the world is littered with people toting acoustic guitars and second-hand Hallmark card verses masquerading as insights, Schneider is a cut above the hordes... Sometimes he sounds like he's auditioning for Little Feat (he'd get in, too), sometimes he's light and jazzy and sometimes he's a proper acoustic rocker. All the time he's interesting, with the changes of pace keeping the listener on their toes, not least in wondering how he manages to be good at it all."
~Maverick Magazine, UK

Instrumentation

Roy Schneider - Vocals, Guitar, Harmonica, mandolin, Stomp Box
Kim Mayfield - Vocals, Guitar, Piano, mandolin

Discography

"Walls that Talk"
Shiny Gnu Records
SG 102
Released Sept 1, 2012

A wonderful new collection of 11 original songs by Roy Schneider and 2 covers sprinkled in from heroes David Crosby and Guy Clark. The CD and its first track, "The Signs", debuted at #3 on the American Folk DJ charts in September 2012.

Roy is joined by returning musical genii Charlie McCoy (harmonica), Keven Aland (violin), Kim Mayfield (piano, vocals) and Linda Kallinger (fiddle) with the added talents of Erik Alvar on upright bass, Hans York providing sweet guitar embellishments and Chicago Dan Fidanze guesting on rollicking piano on a couple of numbers.


"Erleichda"
Shiny Gnu Records
SG 101
Released May 1, 2010

Remained in the top 50 on Roots Music Reports roots radio charts for over 7 months. Selected as one of the top 10 of 2010 by Folk Alley's DJ poll. Guests include the legendary Charlie McCoy (Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson), bass master David C. Johnson (Aaron Neville) and fiddle guru Keven Aland (Leftover Salmon, Gypsy Wind, The Kind).



"Roy Schneider and The Roadside Turtle Rescue"
Released May 2008

A collection of songs about humanity, peace, war, joy, sorrow, love, anger, life, death, family, friends, rivers and dreams.

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"The Humble Sessions"
Released January 2007

A collection of songs and instrumentals inspired by Roy's formerly nationally-syndicated comic strip, "The Humble Stumble." Music for all ages with depth, warmth, silliness and quality instrumentation.

Official Website

http://www.royschneider.com

Links

• Roy Schneider on ReverbNation
• Facebook

Audio

• Fill the Well
  Listen  
• The Signs
  Listen  
• One for the Rabbits
  Listen  
• Soldier's Joy 1864
  Listen  

Lyrics

• The Signs
• Fill the Well
• One for the Rabbits

Video

Rabbits_Boston_2012.avi

Photo Gallery

Press

• Review of Roy Schneider/Kim Mayfield @ Zoom @ The Moon SE24 11/9/10 [+ Show ]
  

  Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield at Zoom @ the Moon SE24/ Herne Hill, London. There’s a lot to be sai...Roy Schneider & Kim Mayfield at Zoom @ the Moon SE24/ Herne Hill, London.
  
  There’s a lot to be said for harmony singing and generating a vibe. And Roy Schneider and Kim Mayfield provided an object lesson in the art of both with a spellbinding performance at their short notice Zoom @ the Moon show.
  Playing their first ever UK tour, the estimable Florida duo have taken a low profile approach to their tour, with gigs sprinkled over a number of folk clubs, blues clubs and acoustic rooms, either side of an anchor festival date. But their approach and their music is already paying dividends. As at Herne Hill, they may not yet be playing to huge crowds, but in terms of making new fans and racking up cd sales, they are doing fine thank you very much.
  And what a cd it is. 'Erleichda' (prounced err-LIKE-da) is much like their live show, simply mesmerising. The songs are snapshots of a life being lived to the full. Each lyric and each harmony accompaniment filled the gaps between Roy’s acoustic and Kim’s mandolin (and vice versa). Schneider’s songs are much like a painter, who painstakingly fills a canvas with slightly different colours and subtle additions to bring a sparkling coherence to the whole. And while many of the songs start in an understated way they quickly gathering momentum on the back of a Schneider vocal sweep, or and often as not, some high intensity rhythm guitar. Kim added gentle chord changes and mellifluous notes on a Korg, while Roy impercetibly shifted from colourful narratives to an occasional falsetto to emphasise a lyric or mood. And moods and feelings were very much to the fore in a set that drew the audience in, and left them hanging on every nuance.
  Billed as an evening of Americana, Roy Schneider is the kind of talent whose songs will surely bring him rich reward in the future. He’s already shared bills with the likes of Rodney Crowell and Fred Eaglesmith and he‘s obviously influenced by the likes of Guy Clarke, Neil Young, Steve Earle, and inevitably Dylan. But his multi dimensional approach included some sumptuous Eagles style harmony singing on ‘South in the Summertime,' and he added an uplifting feel on the flighty melody line of ‘On Hill Time’. And being an evening of Americana he came close to JJ Cale on the slighty funky ‘Keep It Simple’. In between times there was also the occasional dash of humour, set alongside some seriously good playing on an unlikely but exhilarating mandolin led cover of ‘The Thrill is Gone’
  But best of all was his self penned ‘Carriage’, a rumination of life that featured Kim’s accompanying harmonies and delicate keyboard work. It was one of the defining moments of a memorable night when things went up a notch, as the song soared and Roy's ascending top line floated rounded the room and filled it with a beautiful melody. Equally good, was the emotive down-home feel of ‘People of New Orleans’, - with the prescient line ‘weeping for the people’. It’s the kind of song you could image Dr. John might have penned, but Roy’s lyrics are all his own, and it provided another one of those moments when you could hear a pin drop as the deo and crowd were locked in the moment. Roy briefly switched to a brace of acoustic solo numbers before leading a crowd sing-along (of sorts) with a cover of the Grateful Dead’s love song ‘Brokedown Palace’
  Roy Schneider is that rare species, a troubadour who sings with passion, plays with a natural fluency and writes from the heart. The live show proved to be an extension of his song writing craft. Each anecdote and each observation seemed to be a genuine positive take on life as it comes. ‘Erleichda’ is the album, Roy Schneider is the name, check out the remaining dates and see him if you can.
  Pete Feenstra
  

• "Erleichda" Review [+ Show ]
  

  Roy Schneider is another of those fine singer/songwriters who lurk in the long grass beyond the reac...Roy Schneider is another of those fine singer/songwriters who lurk in the long grass beyond the reach of major label interest just waiting for patient hunters of fine music to find him. Well, that's not quite fair; he's been working hard to make the world aware of this new album (pronounced Er Like Duh) and is just embarking on a huge tour across the states to spread his message.
  
  Well as far as this album goes, I'd make Roy Schneider one part child of the 60s and one part Huck Finn; his songs are full of sentiments about being free and easy and showing your love for the world but there's also a whole stack of boyish enthusiasm for the simple pleasures to be had mucking around in the country. The album opens with a song about the joys of cruising around the ' South in the Summertime' and introduces a lot of the elements that make this a very fine piece of work. Roy himself plays most things stringed and his picking style combines an easy flow with a joyful vigour - he sounds like he's having lots of fun making those strings dance for him and the sense of fun is infectious. To help him along, he's got some very fine players, most especially Keven Aland on fiddle and Charlie McCoy on harmonica. Keven Aland plays a very fine, smooth folk style that heads in the direction of Hot Club style at times and it's a joy to hear his contributions throughout this album.
  
  Roy's got a fine singing voice, too; he's able to modulate it to suit the material and doesn't sound like he's stretching too far on the higher or longer notes. There's quite a soulful quality in there that comes over quite often and there's a warmth that's ever present. He takes a break from singing for one instrumental track, Dancing With a Horse, and this is really a showcase for some fine guitar picking as the horse dances along with a joyful spring in it's step. There's just a hint of a 60's vibe going on here - a little Mason Williams, perhaps - and Roy himself provides a little flute in the arrangement - a nod to his Jethro Tull enthusiasm he says.
  
  The album closes with a cover of a Greatful Dead song, Brokedown Palace. I don't know the original but I like the stately nature of this performance, it feels true to the spirit of the song. Erleichda is a value for money collection, the most part of an hour of some very fine playing and some realy nice songs. There's quite a summery feel to the whole thing but then the guy is based in Florida - I guess he's not going to write about ice storms much.
  John Davy
  

• another "Erleichda" review [+ Show ]
  

  "Erleichda," 2010 Damn I love this album. It makes me wanna jump in my car on a warm summer day and... "Erleichda," 2010 Damn I love this album. It makes me wanna jump in my car on a warm summer day and just zoom all over the countryside, this album blasting away. It's not surprising that many of these tunes were conceived while he was on tour. He plays almost every instrument on the planet (guitar, mandolin, banjo and more) but gets help from Charlie McCoy on harmonica (Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson), David. C. Johnson on bass and others on fiddle, vocals and piano. This collection of originals plus the Dead's "Brokedown Palace" is a stellar example of good Americana with down-home vocals, sing along choruses and a groove that'll have you wiggling your hiney on the nearest dance floor, provided, of course, that you're not behind the wheel. Great harmonies abound, reminding me of the best of 70's country rock like the Eagles -- it's not dated at all, but fresh and fun. "South in the Summertime" is a good opener for the disc, its upbeat message fueled by some great banjo work. Many of his songs are centered around a hooky guitar riff and "Keep it Simple" is no exception. There's some damn fine fiddle work from Keven Aland (Leftover Salmon, Widespread Panic) on the moody "Strange Wind" and the bluesy "Let It Shine" has a tight arrangement of mandolin, banjo, harmonica and more. "Dancing With a Horse" is a pleasing instrumental based on a sprightly finger picked guitar in what sounds like an open tuning. This disc will get a lot of airplay on my iPod. Yours too. © Jamie Anderson
  

Setlist

A typical set for listening audiences will consist primarily of Roy's original songs, some goofy stories and a sprinkling of favorite classic and contemporary covers (carefully avoiding cliched hits/standards)

Can perform up to a 2 hour show of all-original music
Up to 4 hours with covers

Basic Requirements

Calendar