Right Now by Terry Kitchen

Right Now follows 1999's Blues for

Cain & Abel (a deeply personal collection of songs of doubt and faith, which

includes plus his bluesy rendition of the Beatles' "Let It Be"), 1997's

Blanket (which was heard on over 100 folk radio programs worldwide and voted

#21 best CD of that year by Folk Digest's annual poll) and 1995's I Own This

Town.

Born in Phillipsburg, New Jersey, Kitchen grew up first in Bethlehem,

Pennsylvania and then on Easton, PA's College Hill (home of Lafayette

College), where he was surrounded by the music and spirit of the 1960s. As a

bored teenager in the '70s, Terry roamed the small town streets of Findlay,

Ohio (the setting for "I Own This Town") before escaping to Los Angeles for

college (Occidental) and music school (The Guitar Institute of Technology -

walk down Hollywood Boulevard til you get to Elvis Presley's star, and it's

the first door on the right...). He moved to Boston and fronted the '80s

original pop/rock band LOOSE TIES (whose video was played on MTV exactly

once) before settling on the intimacy of acoustic music as the most natural

setting for his songs.

For the past twelve years Terry has performed on the New England and

national coffeehouse and folk festival circuits (including Club Passim in

Cambridge, Cafe Lena and Fast Folk in New York, Godfrey Daniels in

Pennsylvania, and the Bluebird in Nashville, and the Falcon Ridge, Telluride

and Napa folk festivals) and shared the stage with such artists as John

Gorka, Cheryl Wheeler, Dan Bern, Vance Gilbert, the Nields, and Susan

Werner. He was a finalist in the 1992 Falcon Ridge songwriter showcase (and

a featured performer ever since) and a 1994 Telluride Troubadour. He is the

Grand Prize Winner of the 2000 Mid-Atlantic Song Contest, First Prize Winner

of the 2000 USA Songwriting Competition, and a Runner Up in the 2001 John

Lennon Songwriting Contest.

In addition to his songwriting Kitchen has written 2 plays, a children's

novel, and collection of autobiographical stories. He's worked as a summer

camp counselor, union steward, ice cream scooper and bicycle messenger, has

a brief but distinguished FBI record for anti-nuclear protests, has finished

last in a Boston Marathon, and was once mentioned in a Harlequin romance

novel.

While acoustic based, Right Now incorporates sounds and song forms from

country, bluegrass, rock, Brazilian music, traditional folk, and street

corner doo-wop, reflecting both Terry's growth as a songwriter and his

willingness to take risks as an artist.

While his three previous albums were thematic (1999's Blues for Cain & Abel,

spirituality; 1997's Blanket, family; 1995's I Own This Town, teenage

independence), Right Now is an unbound collection of songs, and Kitchen uses

the freedom to explore character and mood in new ways, from the tornado

survivor of "Today I'm Gonna Laugh" to the sullen teen of "Tomorrowland,"

from the lush harmonics of "Rain on the Roof" to the unadorned melody of

"Bonny Lights of Cavendish." Right Now also includes songs written for

specific causes - "Garden in the City" (community gardening), "Peter Pan"

(drunk driving), "Billy" (gay rights).

The title song "Right Now" won the Grand Prize of the 2000 Mid-Atlantic Song

Contest, First Prize in the 2000 USA Songwriting Competition, and was Runner

Up in the 2000 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. "Inside" has also been

covered by country singer Dale Allaire.

On Right Now Kitchen's distinctive, gentle baritone and supple guitar

playing are backed by some of New England's finest musicians, including John

McGann (mandolin, Wayfaring Strangers), Seth Connelly (bass, Dobro), Alizon

Lissance (keyboards, Lovedogs), Larry Finn (drums), Tim Obetz (pedal steel),

and Brice Buchanan (lead guitar, from Terry's '80s rock band Loose Ties).

At over 60 minutes of playing time, Right Now is an expansive, multi-faceted

album that may take a few listens to digest. But all those facets reflect

Terry Kitchen - Right Now.

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