The wife
and husband duo of Laurie Rose Griffith & Peter Mealy have been performing
together since 1995. They have been nominated for the Governor’s Award for
Artistic Achievement in Virginia, and their first CD, Tocoi Light,
was voted Best Debut Album of The Year by the Washington Area Music
Association (WAMA). Tocoi Light
has been hailed by the Washington Post for the duo's "lovely
voices, deft guitar work and fine songs." Their new CD, Something Good, has been hailed by Dirty
Linen for their fine singing, writing and interpretive skills.
Laurie is a compelling singer and gifted interpreter whose
rich soprano draws every nuance and emotion from a lyric. She was voted Best Singer of 2005 in Fredericksburg VA’s annual Front Porch
readers poll, and World Folk Music Association’s Dick Cerri, says,
"Laurie has the ability to get right to the heart of a song....
It's easy to fall in love when you hear her sing." While steeped in
the tradition of great interpreters like Judy Collins and Joan Baez, she can
deliver a blues or country rocker with authority, or finesse a jazz standard
with style and intensity. She has been instrumental in bringing to the stage
great songs written by songwriters who otherwise would have remained in
obscurity. As a guitarist, she is a strong, versatile player with an impeccable
sense of rhythm and groove.
Peter has been hailed for his "superlative
compositional and technical skills” (Northern Virginia Rhythm),
and has been nominated for Contemporary Folk Instrumentalist of the Year by
the Washington Area Music Association. He’s been a first place winner in
the Mid-Atlantic Songwriting Competition, and his songs brought the duo
to the finals in the Kerrville Folk Festival’s national song
competition. He is the author of Melodic
Fingerstyle Guitar, a collection of solo guitar arrangements, and has contributed columns and features to a variety
of publications, including Bluegrass Unlimited, Acoustic Musician and
the Freelance Star.
Since releasing their first CD, Laurie and Peter have traveled through twenty countries in the developing world. Laurie’s extensive international background and passion for travel have taken them through Asia, Africa and South America, and a broad worldview is evident throughout their music, both in song choices and original compositions.
Laurie and Peter’s music is the result of
two established artists versed in many styles and traditions combining
complimentary talents, skills, and personalities. Whether they are drawing from
their large body of original work, singing a Jazz ballad, or spinning out an
Irish jig, they use their formidable musical skills simply to give an audience
a complete, memorable musical experience.