Sam Amidon’s a Gemini, born in Brattleboro, Vermont, his current home is in London. He sings and plays the guitar, the banjo and the fiddle. He’s also one of the most exiting talents in the contemporary folk music world and he’s married to the equally admired singer-songwriter Beth Orton, with whom he has a son. To be sure, «Lily-O» is for the most part all hard-core tradition but the thing with Sam’s kind of folk is that he re-imagines and interprets top 10 songs like Mariah Carey’s «Shake It Off» in his own fashion, giving the song his own unique new slant. Anyways, Louis Armstrong said: «All music is folk music, I ain’t never heard no horse sing a song.»)

The most important collaboration in his life might still be the one with his wife, Beth. But musically, with his voice in the lead, the new album features breathtaking improvisations, created together with an idol from his youth, the great jazz guitar Bill Frisell. «I layed down the base structure of a song vocally and we did a few takes and went right on to the next one. Perhaps there were a couple of overdubs, but generally you can hear exactly the way we played it». It’s a work that’s deceptively understated, maybe the sign of all great art. This gem was produced by Valgeir Sigurosson, no stranger to Feist, Bonnie «Prince» Billy and Björk.

If September was a big month for Sam, November’s a big month for us: The guy who titled his 2007 album «But This Chicken Proved Falsehearted» will be up on our stage, laying a golden egg.