When Katie Clarke and Larry LeBlanc perform a free show at the Field Memorial Library in Conway on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. it will be a special theme show that will focus on the pandemic and the healing power of music.
The show came about from a national grant the library received to participate in Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries, an American Library Association (ALA) initiative that helps library workers better serve their small and rural communities. The theme of the grant, Perspective on the Pandemic, seeks to ease the tension and stress caused by the pandemic through gaining perspective on it.
Singer/songwriter Clarke, who also plays claw-hammer banjo and guitar, and multi-instrumentalist and singer LeBlanc, have performed together since 2017. Clarke, who lives in Conway, previously fronted The Green River Band and later was a founding member of the country folk band the Boxcar Lilies which also included Jenny Goodspeed of Ashfield and Stephanie Marshall of Greenfield. As much as she loved playing with the Lilies Clarke left the group in 2016 as their touring schedule was taking off and she simply didn’t want to travel.
“The great thing is that Larry, who is now my duo partner, just sort of appeared at the Conway bluegrass jam like the year after I left the Lilies,” said Clarke in a recent phone conversation. “People were asking me to do gigs, but I didn’t really want to do them by myself — it’s just not my thing. And when I met Larry I was like ‘I have to make music with this guy.’”
At the time the pair met, LeBlanc had recently moved to the Conway from Maine. LeBlanc is a talented singer and multi-instrumentalist who plays guitar, mandolin, dobro, banjo and button accordion and has performed in numerous bands throughout New England including the Greasy Mountain Boys, The Kennebunk River Band, the Nevah Band, and the Moxie Cove Band.
The pair clicked and started playing together covering Clarke’s songs and the music of other artists, exploring country, bluegrass, folk, old time and gospel. They have performed throughout the area at various venues including events like First Night Northampton. “I’m just happy to keep things local, so that’s what we are doing,” said Clarke about the duo’s performance schedule.
Even after the pandemic struck, they were able to continue playing together. “Larry has the world’s hugest basement, so even during the worst of COVID we’d just put our masks on and stand far away from each other and we’d play,” Clarke explained. “It kind of saved my life during last winter.”
For this show at the Field Memorial Library they are putting together a set list that is appropriate for the pandemic theme of the show.
“It’s been lovely to have a chance to think about how music heals and helps us reflect, mourn and also gives strength,” Clarke said. “We are planning some traditional songs such as ‘Hard Times Come Again No More’ which has new meaning for me this year. We will also be playing lots of my originals from my new CD as well as some autumn-themed covers.”
Clarke recently rather quietly released a new album, “Season of My Time.”. She had hoped to host a CD release party to celebrate its arrival, but with COVID continuing to impact live shows she hasn’t felt that it was quite safe enough to schedule such a show.
“Season of My Time” is a collection of eleven songs that Clark had written over the past fifteen years and has been wanting to record or rerecord for quite some time. In addition there were some songs by other songwriters that she loves and had always wanted to put on a record. The album was produced by Dave Chalfant (The Nields) who also plays guitar, bass and ukulele on some tracks. In addition there is an impressive list of guest players that includes fiddle player Eric Lee, singer/fiddle player Rani Arbo, banjo player Andrew Kinsey, drummer JJ O’Connell and multi-instrumentalists Jim Henry and Larry LeBlanc. Her band mates in the Boxcar Lilies, Jenny Goodspeed and Stephanie Marshall, also lend their vocals on a few tracks.
Clarke and Chalfant took their time working on the project, starting work on the album in late 201 8 and not finishing it until August 2020.
“Season of My Time” is a country-folk record veering off into bluegrass on occasion.
“Some of these songs were songs I wanted to do with the Lilies and they just didn’t make it on a record,” Clarke said. “A few others I had recorded a long time ago and wanted to re–record. One of these was ‘June’, a song for June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash, that I wanted to do a different version of and have Rani singing with me. I loved how it turned out.”
There’s also a nice selection of covers including “No Love Today” a song Amherst resident Chris Smither wrote, and “Grandpaw’s Song,” a banjo tune written by Ernie Hansche.
“I really love ‘Grandpaw’s Song’ that my friend Ernie Hansche wrote back in the ’70s and he never recorded it,” Clarke said. “I always wanted to do it and Larry loved the song too. We developed our own version of it, which is a different tempo and different feel from the way Ernie did it, and people just love that song.”
Considering their strong partnership, why isn’t this a Clarke and LeBlanc album instead of a solo album?
“I didn’t do an album with Larry, even though he is on the record, because our duo show is a different thing than what I wanted to do with this record,” said Clarke about her decision on making this a solo album.
“I loved working with Dave Chalfant and I loved his sensibility,” she added. “I wanted his input on what would bring these songs alive, each one differently as opposed to here is what Larry and I do.”
Clarke also stressed that while they will be playing songs off “Season of My Time” at this show, they are playing these songs not because they are on a new album but because they fit in with the show’s theme. The show was originally scheduled to take place inside the library but because of COVID it will be held outside, rain or shine, in front of the library.
“I was very pleased that we were invited to participate in this,” said Clarke. “I love that the library is sponsoring this. Conway is a town which is quite small and our few community connections such as the library are precious.”
“Season of My Time” can be heard on most major streaming services and physical compact discs will be available for purchase at this show.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer who is a native of Greenfield and currently resides in Easthampton. She can be reached at Soundslocal@Yahoo.com