Catie Curtis was one of the artists at the centre of the American acoustic singer/songwriter revival in the mid 90s, and since then has become one of the most established and celebrated artists in the genre, with appearances ranging from touring with the Lilith Fair, songs on hit TV shows, right through to performing at the Obama inauguration in Washington, D.C.
Over the past 15 years Curtis has released nine consistently strong albums, but the release of ‘Hello, Stranger’ marks a high watermark with an all-star group of backing musicians, beautiful recordings and a balanced set of songs.
The eleven songs here are a mixture of her own material and an inspired and unusual group of covers that include Richard Thompson’s ‘Walking on a Wire’ and John Martyn’s ‘Don’t Want to Know’.
Where this album marks a departure for Curtis is that by using some of Nashville’s finest musicians (Alison Brown, Stuart Duncan, Todd Phillips, Darrell Scott, Mary Gauthier) the album feels a little more loose, organic and less produced than her previous releases. This new found intimacy works perfectly, and as a showcase for her vocal, songwriting and interpretation skills then ‘Hello, Stranger’ deserves to win her many new fans.
Highlights include the stunning reading of ‘Walking on a Wire’, an unlikely duet with Gauthier on the Carter Family’s ‘Hello Stranger’, and a beautiful version of her own co-write with Mark Erelli ‘Passing Through’, but in truth the whole album is an absolute joy from start to finish.

Track listing
1 100 Miles
2 Walking On A Wire
3 Hello Stranger
4 Tuesday's Dead
5 Be Sixteen With Me
6 Don't Want To Know (No Evil)
7 Dad's Yard
8 I Wish I Knew
9 Passing Through
10 Deliver Me
11 Saint Lucy

£12.99