Lily-o

2014 release, an album of re-imagined Folk songs by Vermont-born singer/fiddler/banjoist/guitarist Sam Amidon. The album was produced by Valgeir Sigurdsson (Bjork, Bonnie Prince Billy, Feist) and features the innovative jazz guitarist and composer Bill Frisell, along with Amidon's other frequent collaborators, bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Chris Vatalaro. Lily-O's ten songs are mostly traditional Folk songs gathered from disparate sources and refashioned in Amidon's signature way. The interplay between the four musicians is informed by their backgrounds in improvised music and the spontaneous nature of the sessions. As always, the central element is Amidon's voice, which, in his deceptively understated manner, tells tales of adventure, love, violence and redemption.