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ruthwyand.com
Review by Tom Harland
I wasn't sure what to expect when I made my virgin foray
to Christchurch Folk Club, in their new venue "The
Commerce Club" on Kilmore Street, on the eve of Guinness
soaked Paddy's Day. I found that folk clubs are clearly
similar whether one is in the northern or southern hemisphere,
the same mix of tweed waistcoat clad fifty-somethings, the
same raffle, the only thing that was missing was the zest
of Edinburgh Folk Club's Paddy Bort to announce what proved
to be a surprisingly good act, American guitarist, singer
and songwriter Ruth Wyand in her third tour of New Zealand.
I must confess that when I arrived and heard the dulcet
tones of an American with a Dobro doing the sound check
my spirits lowered as I expected to be subjected to some
overly-emotional, country and western, line dancing type
of nonsense.
Thankfully Ruth proved me wrong with a fiesty, fire and
brimstone, JD-drenched and bleached by years on the road,
Jannis Joplinesque voice matched by remarkably powerful
fingerpicking on her guitars and a humorous stage personilty
layered with entertaining annecdaotes of life on the road
as a travelling folkie.
The first thing that strikes you when listening to Ruth
is her powerful playing on guitar and Dobro (the latter
sporting a hub cap which was the only part of her ex-husband's
car Wyand manged to scoop!). Her fingerstyle technique has
great latitude due to the variety of tunings she uses, combined
with swing picking and slide guitar.
Drawing on country, folk and American roots music she moved
through a number of classics (from Janis Joplin to Jimi
Hendrix) along with her own offerings reflecting a compassionate
nature and weather-beaten personilty.
While I rue missing Andy Irvine at the same venue several
weeks previous, Ruth Wyand proved to be a great initial
showcase for the type of acts this far-flung folk club can
attract.
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