Switchback

by Tanya O'Connor

Switchback's Brian FitzGerald picks mandolin like a seamstress might quilt: stitches effortless, skill apparent, and plenty of stories still to sew while the needle is nimble. And if FitzGerald, who hangs his guitars in Lansing, IA, threads the story that is Switchback together, it's his bass-toting partner Marty McCormack of Woodstock, IL, that carries the color for the duo. Whether he's bellowing out a Switchback original or a bawdy Irish bar tune, McCormack's bit of brogue, gift of gab, and generally wandering way of being has waxed productive since the duo met 16 years ago. After all, it takes a couple of dreamy optimists to call a score of clubs their living rooms and the entire Midwest, running like one long train track from Chicago, IL, to Winona, MN, their rambling home.

Switchback may show their Celtic souls with the best of 'em, yet they've gone a note further than many of their contemporaries, taking the dirt-driven tenacity of their potato-planting ancestors and gnawing out serious American roots. FitzGerald and McCormack, whether playing as a duo or a four-piece band with cellist Cathy Kuna and percussionist Alpha Stewart, continue to contribute to the increasingly popular grassroots Americana music movement. Evidence to their growth is Switchback's current, full-band recording of The Fire That Burns with legendary music producer, Texan Lloyd Maines. The CD, due for release in Autumn 2002, has "taken the duo sound," said McCormack, "and worked it sensitively into a full-band performance." This will be their seventh album to date.

Indefinable, irreverent, and inescapably American, Switchback songs are known to make even the most sedentary acknowledge their feet. Having something for everyone, it seems, hasn't watered down what's for dinner at a Switchback show. Instead, hitting the heart of what unites us as Midwesterners is a central part of their increasing success.

website: http://www.waygoodmusic.com/switchback