MARTHA SCHUYLER THOMPSON: No Visible Means Of Support

Martha Schuyler Thompson

No Visible Means Of Support

© 2003 Martha Schuyler Thompson/Cottage Industry Music (ASCAP) (638311009025)

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Thompson seamlessly blends Blues, Jazz, Gospel, Pop, Alternative Country and Folk with such diverse elements as Latin, Celtic, Industrial and even Orchestral Rock into this powerful body of work to define the contemporary voice of American Roots Music.

tracks

1 Monkey Off My Back
2 A Single Soul
3 Little Wonder
4 Time Stands Still
5 In My Corner Now
6 Vagabond Love
7 Dream
8 Novena
9 Just Clare
10 Workin' Overtime
11 Is That Love I Hear
12 Vagabond Waltz (Reprise)

notes

Cottage Industry Music is pleased to announce the release of Martha Schuyler Thompson's newest CD of twelve songs entitled, No Visible Means Of Support (her seventh on the independent label). Ultimately a collection of songs about faith and faithlessness, this mature and poignant body of work concerns itself with the myriad strengths and vulnerabilities experienced by human beings facing monumental losses, absences, profound vacancies and voids in the modern world. The album reveals Martha Schuyler Thompson as a contemporary writer in peak form flexing yet another new muscle; a hidden chamber of the human heart.

Says Thompson, "I initially began writing songs for this album while living abroad in Ireland so certain pieces are set against a backdrop of the recent economic and technological booms there as well as the dissolution of the Church. For this reason also, much of the earlier work completed for the record deals with the theme of faith; however, I soon found that in order to adequately address the issue of faith in the modern world, I had to devote myself to the examination of faithlessness as well in subsequent pieces. As a writer, the exploration of these two extremes enabled me to develop some interesting characters and events for this particular body of work." Indeed, No Visible Means Of Support is replete with vagabonds, liars and thieves intertwined with honest, stable, committed individuals all dealing with the vagaries of contemporary life.

No Visible Means Of Support is inclusive of global events in our collective present as well. Says Thompson, "I returned home to the states shortly before the terrorist attacks of 9/11. The events still unfolding daily in the aftermath serve as an important reminder for us all to cherish our faith in humankind as we witness people continually come together to reinforce and celebrate the very best qualities of humanity in the face of such monumental losses." When loss is manifested in our lives under these extreme circumstances there comes a moment at which we must ultimately choose either faith or faithlessness to fill the remaining void. The characters in Thompson's songs exhibit a full range of emotional successes and failures when making this choice as they ask themselves just what they believe in when the underpinnings of their lives are no longer readily visible. These pieces reflect us all as a people with tremendous heart and spirit struggling to comprehend the complexities of belief in contemporary culture. As Thompson continues to write with immediacy in documenting this period of our time, it is clear that thematically, her work has expanded to include hope as well as faith; for, herein lies the strength of the human heart.

No Visible Means Of Support features the following stellar supporting musicians: George Mitchell (Diana Ross Band, Sheila E. & Leroy Vinnegar) on keyboards; Gordon Rencher (Randy Newman, Dave Brubeck & Mark O'Connor) on drums and percussion; Brian Casey (Mel Brown, Conjunto Allegre & Pink Martini) on bass; and Martha Schuyler Thompson on lead & backing vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, resonator guitars, bouzouki, mandola, harmonica, pennywhistle, glass bottles and socket wrench.

CRITICAL ACCLAIM:
"This lady from Oregon can sing! Martha Schuyler Thompson performs wonderfully on this album. Her persona shines with this selection of songs all written by Martha, including some fantastic Irish storytelling. Mixing, Production, Vocal and Songwriting all done by a lady with the talent few have achieved. This record will surely receive the radio airplay it deserves."
-Roots Music Report

"There is an irony in the title of Martha Schuyler Thompson's seventh CD. Although the songs on 'No Visible Means of Support' variously explore people in challenging circumstances that they're not always up to, there is a fierce, determined strength, an emotional maturity, behind them all. Thompson conveys that strength through her carefully controlled vocals and the spare production on these rootsy, Celtic-influenced original folk songs that emphasize Thompson's virtuosic fretwork on an array of stringed instruments, with subtle, painterly, atmospheric accompaniment provided by bass, percussion and keyboards."
-The Berkshire Eagle, Spins

"Martha Schuyler Thompson has been crafting her own music for over a decade in what she calls a cottage industry, which in fact, is a small cottage behind her home. She produced and mixed the recording herself, leaving only the engineering to someone else. Thompson never followed the crowd. You won't mistake her for a Joni or Ani wannabe. Her music craftily fuses techno-pop, rock and acoustic folk. Her voice mutters, growls, sweeps and soars. She plays about a dozen instruments on this recording, with a trio of accompanists also playing multiple instruments that range from guitar and bouzouki to socket wrench, tuning gear ratios, bagpipes, glass bottles and pick axe. The sound is far from anarchy, although it will make you sit up and take notice. There are some fairly simple folk-style tracks such as "A Single Soul," "Novena" and "Is That Love I Hear," the latter a song for peace in our troubled time. Most of the subject matter of her eleven original songs stem from a year she recently spent in Ireland. Even when the topics don't deal directly with Ireland they are imbued with the spirit. Thompson sings with absolute conviction in her idiosyncratic style that you won't confuse with a record shelf of navel gazers. If you're in search of something poetic and refreshingly original, Thompson may be the artist for whom you've been searching."
-Sing Out! The Folksong Magazine

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