Session Americana (Groton Hill Music)

“It’s right there in the name for this ultra-gifted, rotating collective of singers and multi-instrumentalists… The group, whose members have played with a variety of acts including Patty Griffin, Josh Ritter and the J. Geils Band, expertly blends vintage American roots music styles — from country to jazz to rock — in a rowdy but deft fashion.” — Rolling Stone

A group of musicians’ musicians, Session Americana is a cast of top-shelf players, singers, and writers who tour internationally, taking their own songs, plus hundreds more from the American roots songbook, on the road. Whether you catch them in a rock hall or on a festival stage, you’ll be a part of the intimate, raucous scene these players built years ago late one Sunday night in October 2003 around a table in the back of Toad in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  

Looking back, the group has had a natural, almost inevitable evolution from a loose bunch of friends sitting around swapping songs in a bar, to a hot-ticket weekly residency, to a touring collective. Along the way, the band has made nine records (so far), played clubs and festivals across the U.S. and Europe, and developed deep collaborative bonds with a wide community of musicians, including Bonnie Raitt, Los Lobos, Patty Griffin, Lori McKenna, The The, and others.

Session Americana’s diligent avoidance of music business “shoulds” has led the band down a quirky and joyful path through the music world. The result is evident in the musical prowess the players and singers bring to every show. Swapping instruments, trading off lead vocals and sharing songwriting credits, Session Americana is constantly exploring new collaborations and touring like a band out of time, always searching for a welcoming and homey venue, a long lunch with old friends, and a good glass of wine.  

Session Americana is: 

Billy Beard | drums
Jon Bistline |  bass,  vocals
Ry Cavanaugh | guitar, vocals
Dinty Child | vocals, organ, mandocello
Jim Fitting | harmonica, vocals
with special guest Eleanor Buckland!