Tracy Newman & the Reinforcements play upbeat folk and pop originals with catchy melodies, pleasing harmonies, and clever, insightful lyrics. “I’m embarrassed to say / this relationship works / because we never talk,” she sings in “Fire Up the Weed,” which won first place in the Great American Song Contest in 2011. Her songs tell funny, poignant stories, like the one about a young waitress at a coffee shop who regularly waits on Merle Haggard – “But I can’t imagine / standing in line / to see the man / at Table Nine.” The artful arrangement, with its sweet harmonies and little flourishes on dobro, sets up the lyric perfectly. Tracy comes to folk music from an extensive background in comedy and television. She was a founding member of the groundbreaking Los Angeles improv troupe, the Groundlings, along with her sister Laraine, who went on to fame as an original member of the Not Ready for Primetime Players on Saturday Night Live. Tracy went on to work as a writer and producer on Cheers, the Drew Carey Show, and Ellen. She won an Emmy for co-writing the famous “coming out” episode. The Reinforcements feature Rebecca Leigh and Paula Fong on harmony vocals, Gene Lippman on guitar and harmony vocals, John Cartwright on bass, and Doug Knoll on drums. “The closer you listen,” says the website Folk Works, “the better they get.”

San Diego’s Jack Tempchin is a songwriter’s songwriter, subtle, shrewd, and eloquent. You may not know his name, but you already know many of his songs – “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and “Already Gone,” “Slow Dancing” and “The One You Love” – hits for the Eagles, Johnny Rivers, and Glen Frey – and when you hear him play his own versions, you’ll discover nuances you didn’t know were there. “With a comfortable straight ahead approach,” says the website SD Rock-n-Roll, he “reclaims these songs, returning them to their rightful owner and exposing the beauty in their craft.” Jack’s songs have been used in movies like The Big Lebowski and Thelma and Louise, and he also wrote the theme for TV’s Miami Vice. He recorded his first album in 1977 with the fine but short-lived band The Funky Kings, and has since recorded eight solo albums, including his latest, Live at Tales from the Tavern.

Visit Tracy Newman's website

Visit Jack Tempchin's website

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