Misty River

Since emerging on the Portland acoustic music scene in 1997, the four-woman band MISTY RIVER has earned an enviable reputation as one of the finest, most entertaining bands in the Pacific Northwest. MISTY RIVER blends folk, bluegrass, country, Celtic and original music into a seamless and highly distinctive Americana sound that has entranced thousands of fans. Whether performing at a large concert hall or an intimate house concert, MISTY RIVER makes an emotional connection with its audiences, thoroughly captivating listeners with beautiful and moving music and a natural, friendly presentation.

The members of MISTY RIVER are Carol Harley (guitar, banjo, ukulele & mandolin), Chris Kokesh (fiddle, guitar), Laura Quigley (acoustic bass) and Dana Abel (accordion, guitar). All four women are excellent lead and harmony vocalists, giving the band a vocal depth few groups can match, as well as tremendous flexibility when it comes to arrangements. Victory Review hails the band for “lush, pitch-perfect harmonies, gentle tasteful arrangements [and] fresh interpretation of songs.” Bluegrass Unlimited agrees, describing MISTY RIVER as “excellent singers [whose] voices blend like milk and honey.”

Though flattered by critics’ frequent comparisons with the neo-bluegrass approach of Alison Krauss and Emmylou Harris, the members of MISTY RIVER are intent on creating their own signature sound. Strong original material is at the heart of that sound. The band’s discography to date - four CDs - features songs written by group members Chris Kokesh, Dana Abel Laura Quigley and Carol Harley. The band’s original songs are augmented by fresh arrangements of traditional material and well-chosen covers from such contemporary artists as Gillian Welch, Lyle Lovett, Tom Paxton, Shawn Colvin, Bill Staines, Tim O’Brien, Lynn Morris and Dave Carter.
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In addition to winning over countless fans, radio DJs and critics, MISTY RIVER and its members have received several prestigious individual and band honors. Chris Kokesh has won several awards for her songwriting, from the Portland Songwriters Association, the Columbia Gorge Bluegrass Festival and the Maryhill Winery Amphitheater. Laura Quigley, who has toured Europe with Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum as well as Ireland with the “Oh Sister, Where Art Thou” tour, won the Best Bass Player award at the Washington State Bluegrass Championships in 2001. The Source Weekly, Bend, OR named Misty River’s show the “Best Old Style Concert” in 2003.

A road-tested, professional touring band that has played more than 100 engagements each year, MISTY RIVER has delighted audiences throughout North America and beyond, most recently representing the United States at the Shanghai International Music Festival in China. Other notable festival appearances include the Strawberry Music Festival in California, the Walnut Valley Festival in Kansas, Wintergrass in Washington, the Sisters Folk Festival in Oregon and the Oklahoma International Bluegrass Festival. Misty River has also appeared at Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee; Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri; and in official showcases at the Folk Alliance, International Bluegrass Music Association and NW Booking conferences.

MISTY RIVER has recorded five CD’s: Rising, released in 2000, Live at the Backgate Stage, released in 2002, Willow, released June 2004 and “Midwinter – Songs of Christmas” released November 2004. The most recent CD, Stories, was just released May 2007. The Misty River CDs have received rave reviews and extensive radio airplay in the U.S. and Canada, as well as in such countries as Australia, New Zealand, China, Spain, England, Italy, Germany, France, Ireland and Belgium. Over the last nine years total Misty River CD sales have exceeded 50,000 and are regular top five sellers in the Oregonian’s Best of the NW CD Sales List during any of Misty River’s CD Release Concerts. ♪