Country Girl’s Blue Moon

‘Me’ is Don Depoy and ‘Martha’ is Martha Hills and they are based in the town of Swoope, Virginia. Originally Martha Hills is from the coastal town of Belfast, Maine where she learned to love the area’s music. Around 1990, she heard live bluegrass and was strongly attracted to it. In 2000, Don Depoy met Hills while on a trip to a Maine festival and the two soon become a couple. They formed “Me & Martha” in 2003, and subsequently moved to Virginia in 2008. Since then, they have played extensively throughout the area, have hosted a local television program, and even showcased at the 2023 IBMA World of Bluegrass where Depoy also hosted a banjo workshop.          This new project from the couple is a mix of covers with traditional arrangements of the bluegrass, country and old-timey tunes. The recording features Depoy (vocals, guitar, banjo, autoharp, mt. dulcimer), Hills (vocals, bass), Jim Almarode (mandolin), William Hayes (piano, accordion), Mike Mitchell (fiddle), and Larry DeLawder (harmonica).

There are arrangements of tunes like “Storms Are On The Ocean,” “Cluck Old Hen-Old Joe Clark,” “Marcha de Zacatecas,” “Cornbread And Butterbeans,” Monroe’s “Sweetheart Of Mine,” Larry Cordle’s “Highway 40 Blues,” and more like Buffy St. Marie’s “Country Girl,” “Blue Moon,” Tim Stafford’s “Window Of A Train,” Hank Williams’ “Move It On Over,” and “Indian Summer.”

The selections are nicely produced with Depoy and Hill sharing and swapping the lead vocals and pleasant harmonies, while the musicians provide great background. This is a nice new effort from this talented duo.

meandmartha.info