Alternate Routes

Long Time Courting's debut album, Alternate Routes, captures the range of this band's music: from blistering reels to poignant, intimate songs sung with close harmonies. Their music draws from the oldest traditional sources and from the contemporary flowering of new tunes and songs in a traditional style. Listening to Long Time Courting, I'm struck by their precision and creativity- this is not a 'girl band' for the sake of being so. These women are true masters of their craft.' -Aoife O'Donovan, vocalist and songwriter, Crooked Still 'Long Time Courting infuses traditional ballads, jigs, and reels with fresh life and energy and vocal harmonies that are nothing short of sublime... Their rendition of Barbara Allen is beautiful enough to break your heart.' - The Nashua Telegraph 'Maggie Dean, featuring the lilting voice and inventive phrasing of flautist Shannon Heaton, tells the story of a woman seeking work aboard a ship, traditionally a man's place. When the heartbreaking chorus enters, the women sing together 'this fair maid she stole away to seek a trade' atop lush drones provided by the haunting tones of Ariel Friedman's cello and Sarah Blair's fiddle. As guitarist Liz Simmons joins Heaton with a soprano line supporting the verse, we are swept away in the story of Maggie, who proves herself to be quite able to work in a man's world.' We're lucky to be living in an age where gender stereotypes are fading away, yet I continue to feel that music is dominated by men. Listening to Long Time Courting, I'm struck by their precision and creativity- this is not a 'girl band' for the sake of being so. These women are true masters of their craft. Their driving rhythms are decidedly feminine, and I mean that in the best way. Friedman's cello becomes an alto voice or a percussive tool, the melodies are taken to a new level with the glorious playing of Heaton and Blair on flute and fiddle, respectively, and Simmons provides a deep groove with the guitar. Each woman sings beautifully, and when they all join together, the effect is tremendous. I'm a sucker for inventive harmonies, and Long Time Courting delivers every time. - Aoife O'Donovan, vocalist and songwriter, Crooked Still.