[Harp-L] Rhonda Rucker and L'il Rev

["Beck, Peter" <6beck@xxxxxxxx>]

At the end of his set on Monday at the Fox Valley Folk Festival, L'il Rev invited Rhonda Rucker to join him for a song. She played harp and he played uke and sang. It was bliss.

I've heard Rhonda Rucker perform many times-typically with her husband, Sparky, as the duo Sparky & Rhonda Rucker-and I always come away impressed with her musicianship, not least with her skill on the harp. She is, ahem, vastly underappreciated.

L'il Rev is a dynamite harp player himself, and I was really pleased that he included Rhonda, and I wish you all could have heard them together. Yes, she took a lively break, but the best thing about her involvement was the overall beautiful interaction of the three elements-harp, vocal, uke-and the way she knew how to fulfill a back-up role with taste and pizzazz. We've all heard players who interfere with the singing of the song; Rhonda was the exact opposite, where you were glad the harp was there and it really added depth and resonance.

Bright moments,
Peter Beck