Monday, October 13, 2008

Meet Paul Curreri and Devon Sproule (Valentine Duets)

Sometimes, fortuity simply blows in the wind, and I'll stumble across a gem that more people need to be digging. Such was the luck I encountered whilst I was doing my daily blog perusing, and I happened across a track by Paul Curreri and Devon Sproule. Cover Me posted their wonderful latest piece on Randy Newman's “Sail Away”, and they posted the couple's version of “You Can Leave Your Hat On”. Damnation, thought I, this is some mighty fine music here. Let's go see what more I can find. Just a few minutes of googling later, and I was led to Paul's site. I quickly found the Valentine Duets section and knew I was in the right place.

I'd like to give you a bit more background on the duo, but the site isn't the most informative (the bio seems more like an exercise in creativity than anything else), but it appears the two started putting out an annual series of covers every Valentine's Day starting in 2003 and going through this year. It must have worked out well for the two of them, based on the fact that according to the press materials, they've since married. Beyond that, we're on our own to discover what makes this native Virginian tick. I'd like to think there are stories aplenty of run ins with UFOs, drunken bets made with high ranking clergymen and lost sex tapes, but that's really just conjecture on my part.

For your part, all you have to do is listen to some of the Valentine tracks I found most enjoyable. "Cigarettes and Whiskey" is a family favorite, my grandfather having sung it often. The rest are just enjoyable takes on classics. You can check out Paul's site above for even more acoustic, kinda bluesy, kinda folksy goodness above.

mp3: Honky Tonkin'

mp3: Blue Skies (I. Berlin)

mp3: Cigarettes & Whiskey


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