MUSIC

Anderson Fair presents Across the Water.

True to their name, Across The Water is an all-acoustic repertoire comes from both sides of the Atlantic – just like the players. Steve Goodchild hails from the north of England, and Bob Lahmeyer and Paul Cooper are natives, respectively, of Missouri and Texas.

Despite diverse geographic roots, they share some key things in common. All three play guitar. Bob can pick a hard-as-nails bluegrass banjo on one number, and then turn a deft hand to the bass on the next one. Paul plays backup and solo mandolin, and has recently been seen behind more exotic things like bouzoukis and octave mandolins, holding Steve totally accountable for his new fascination for things with more than six strings! Depending on the performance, Steve might come out toting a mandolin, mandola, a cittern or even the mandocello he calls “Bloodaxe”.

Stir three capable voices into the instrumental mix and you have all the ingredients for a veritable smorgasbord of new and traditional music from their respective countries and regions. They have also been known to put aside the wood & wire and, without the benefit of that safety-net, deliver the occasional unaccompanied number in distinctive tight, three-part harmony.