Run Mountain
Annapolis, Maryland, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
Gary Wright and Leah Weiss have performed with various bands at numerous venues throughout the U.S. and Europe. These include:
Festivals
Appalachian String Band Festival (Clifftop, WV)
Birmingham City Stages (Birmingham, AL)
Blue Heron Festival (Jamestown, NY)
Bread and Roses Festival (Lawrence, MA)
Cajun and Bluegrass Festival (Escoheag, RI)
Cambridge River Festival (Cambridge, MA)
Champlain Valley Festival (Ferrisburg, VT)
City Stages (Birmingham, AL)
Eisteddfod Music Festival (North Dartmouth, MA)
First Night (Boston, Worcester, and Northampton, MA)
Grassroots Fingerlakes Festival (Trumansburg, NY)
Harvest Moon Festival (Rudins Farm, NY)
Hiawatha Festival (Marquette, MI)
Lake Eden Arts Festival (Asheville, NC)
Santa Fe Bluegrass and Old Time Music Festival (Santa Fe, NM)
Seven Stars Music and Arts Festival (Phoenixville, PA)
Strawberry Music Festival (Yosemite, CA)
Tonder Folk and Jazz Festival (Tonder, Denmark)
Wheatland Festival (Remus, MI)
Music and Dance Camps
Buffalo Gap Country Dance Weekend (Capon Bridge, WV)
Chesapeake Bay Dance Weekend (Mayo, MD)
Fiddlehead Dance Camp (Black Mountain, NC)
Pinewoods English & American Week (Plymouth, MA)
Sierra Swing American Dance Week (Kings Canyon, CA)
Snow Ball Dance Weekend (Gulfport, FL)
Clubs and Coffeehouses
49 West Coffeehouse (Annapolis, MD)
Café Bartof (Copenhagen, Denmark)
Club Passim (Cambridge, MA)
Del Rossi's Trattoria (Dublin, NH)
Down Home (Johnson City, TN)
Electric Factory (Philadelphia, PA)
The Folkway (Peterborough, NH)
The Freight & Salvage (Berkeley, CA)
Gravity Lounge (Charlottesville, VA)
Iota Club (Arlington, VA)
Iron Horse (Northampton, MA)
Johnny D's (Somerville, MA)
Left Bank Café (Blue Hill, ME)
North Star (Philadelphia, PA)
The Prism Coffeehouse (Charlottesville, VA)
Rams Head Tavern (Annapolis, Crownsville, and Rehoboth, MD)
The Rongovian Embassy (Trumansburg, NY)
Stone Soup Coffeehouse (Providence, RI)
The Tin Angel (Philadelphia, PA)
- Run Mountain
Discography
"Down this Road" presents a solid array of roots-Americana music from Gary Wright & Leah Weiss, accompanied by Al Tharp. It is a sweet blend of originals, reinvented old-time traditional songs, and innovative covers by Townes Van Zandt, Ralph Stanley, and Merle Travis. "The music is strong," says The Chesapeake Music Guide of this recording, "the musicians and arrangements shine." Tharp also engineered co-produced the recording. Songs can be heard at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/leahweiss
Other selected discography:
The Hix, Sweet Sunny South, 1998
The Hix, (self-titled) 1994
The Poodles, Unleashed, 1993
The Poodles and Labrador, Square Dance Tonight, vol. 4, 1993
The Poodles (self-titled) 1986
(for more information, see: www.garyandeah.com)
James Leva and Purgatory Mountain, Winkin' Eye, 2007
Freewill Savages, (self titled) 1995
Plank Road String Band, (self titled) 1978
For Beausoleil discography, see: http://www.rosebudus.com/beausoleil/discography.html
Photos
Bio
Run Mountain plays roots-Americana music steeped in the Appalachian tradition. Driving fiddle lines and tight harmony singing are trademarks of their sound. Run Mountain's repertoire is a blend of originals, traditional and reinvented songs and tunes, and innovative contemporary covers. Influences range from traditional fiddlers of North Carolina and Kentucky, The Carter Family and Ralph Stanley, to roots musicians such as Bob Dylan, Gram Parsons, The Band, Buddy & Julie Miller, and Steve Earle.
For nine years, Gary Wright was guitarist in The Hix, a Philadelphia-based electric-roots band, that was described by the Philadelphia Music Press as: "They sound like Doc Boggs meets David Byrne on the way to Lou Reed's house." He grew up playing electric guitar in rock and country bands and later immersed himself in traditional music -- including West African guitar and old-time Appalachian styles. His expressive singing style is reminiscent of The Band's Rick Danko.
For nearly 15 years, Leah Weiss performed with the Boston-based, all-female string band, The Poodles. Considered "rising stars on Boston's music scene" by The Boston Globe, The Poodles toured all over New England and Europe, playing at clubs and festivals. Weiss is a much sought after square- and contra-dance fiddler and fiddle teacher. Her keening vocals blend stunningly with Wright's.
In 2001, Wright and Weiss left their respective sideman roles to take center stage together. Based in Annapolis, Maryland, they began performing as a duo, singing traditional country duets, and soon branched out to a more alternative-country influenced sound. They perform locally with drummer and vocalist Tom Fridrich (The Remnants) and bassist Jeff Muller (Karl Straub Combo, Nadine Rae and Rich Chorne), as well as with Ruben Dobbs (Swampcandy), Dean Rosenthal, and Mark Schatz (Nickel Creek).
Al Tharp is an astounding multi-instrumentalist with infectious enthusiasm. He was a founding member of the legendary Plank Road String Band of Rockbridge County, VA, which took the folk music revival scene by storm with its furiously upbeat sound. A resident of New Orleans since the early 1980s, he joined the Cajun band Beausoleil. Initally enlisted as a sound and production guru, his Grammy-nominated recording and production efforts earned him a full place in the performing line-up, where he played bass, banjo, and fiddle. He currently tours with James Leva and Purgatory Mountain and works as a recording engineer out of his own Carryon Studios.
While Wright, Weiss, and Tharp were working together, recording "Down This Road" in 2003, the beginnings of Run Mountain took shape. Their diverse musical interests easily complemented each other, and their joy of exploring, arranging, and playing music together became apparent. They decided to hit the road in 2007. Run Mountain is versatile, seasoned, and engaging. Their music appeals to a range of crowds -- from intimate settings such as house concerts and weddings, to barn dances, to clubs and festival stages.
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