596 x 369 pixels - 266 k

339 x 500 pixels - 24 k
1185 x 1746 pixels - 175 k

353 x 500 pixels - 41 k

667 x 562 pixels - 55 k
1421 x 1198 pixels - 247 k

664 x 493 pixels - 69 k

Reilly & Maloney Together Again
Reilly & Maloney Music RM2390 (2003)

From the mid-1970s through the late 1980s, the voices-and-guitars duo of Ginny Reilly and David Maloney made delightful harmonies together, and as this new concert CD announces, they're back together after a decade-plus pursuing their solo careers. Old fans will be happy to hear that they've lost none of their vocal magic. Reilly still has one of the sweetest voices in folk music, an ethereal soprano that dances lightly around Maloney's grittier baritone, and the contrast in their voices and their unique sense of harmony makes for some wonderful duets. The largely optimistic-themed and always-thoughtful set list combines a few originals, like Maloney's pensive "Alone in Silence," with a wide range of covers of writers ranging from Tom Paxton and John Prine to Bruce Springsteen and Rogers & Hart. Together Again marks the welcome reunion of two distinctive performers.

Tom Nelligan

Excerpt from reflections on concerts at Prallsville Mill

Perhaps the nicest folk music surprise of the year, however, was the reemergence of Ginny Reilly & David Maloney as a duo once again well worth going out of your way to hear. Their show had a vibrancy and warmth that captivated and enveloped the folks hearing them for the first time as well as the longtime fans like me. Their fine voices and magnificent harmonies remain stunning as does their choice of material. More than half the concert was new songs, some from mostly little-known songwriters as well as several fine new songs of their own. Now, when people ask me what new music I'm excited about, I find myself recommending Reilly & Maloney. Unfortunately, they are still giving very few shows away from their home turfs in California and Seattle, but with a little luck maybe word will start to spread to the people running festivals and other venues around the country.

John Weingart ~ December 2007

• • • • •

Reilly and Maloney -- Together Again

This wonderful album is a reminder of the power of music. Their great voices and gripping harmonies still intact though this is their first new recording in 16 years, Reilly and Maloney once again find terrific songs that have never before been united: Hank Snow and Rogers and Hart seamlessly connected with delights by Iris DeMent, Tom Paxton, John Prine, and others, newer songs from Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, and seven of their own fine compositions.

Without a word of overt politics, Together Again somehow serves as a small antidote to the fear, despair and powerless that is part of our current world. Reilly and Maloney take us on a journey in which at the beginning they sing, "I cannot raise my voice, I cannot find my song" but by the end have us "sailing away to the island of mercy and a brighter day where... there will be love for the children who cry out in the night."

John Weingart ~ 2003

Reilly & Maloney
Together Again

The most endearing duo ever to grace the West Coast Folk and singer-songwriter scene, Ginny Reilly and David Maloney, are playing together again after a ten year hiatus. For 20 years they packed audiences in Seattle, where Ginny was based, and in the San Francisco Bay Area, where David lives, also covering all points in between and further south.

Their early success derived from their direct connection to the popular folk music groups of the 60s, --such as The Weavers and The Kingston Trio. But it was the wonderful blend of Ginny's beautiful voice and David's fine baritone, their ability to mix the best of others' material with their own solid songwriting talents, and their excellent guitar accompaniment and arrangements that separated them from the folk scene pack in the 70s.

They toured nationally, shared stages with the likes of Judy Collins, Tom Paxton and Greg Brown, and put out 7 vinyl LPs together. But, by the end of the 80s, the strain of separate lives, children to raise, and the 1000 mile gap between home bases led them to call it quits after more than 3000 shows together.

David, who played the series two years ago, has since put out 7 solo albums, is a mainstay at the Napa Music Festival, and has steadily increased his musical and storytelling repertoire for children. Ginny has broadened her interests into jazz, while maintaining her folk side which includes "Doodle Dee Doin," an album filled with her songs of motherhood. The present Together Again shows started with a few performances in the Northwest in the summer of 2000. Returning to the Bay Area, Ginny and David say it does not signify a reunion but celebrates a friendship with new and old songs, plus the growth and maturity that 30 years of music can bring to a stage. Be sure to get your tickets early!

Fiddling Cricket Productions

Reilly & Maloney: Together Again
Pelican Records - RM 2390

After too many years apart, Ginny Reilly and David Maloney are indeed singing together again and our planet is more harmonious as a result. This is a simply-performed live recording (primarily at the legendary Freight and Salvage Coffeehouse in Berkeley) in which the light of their voices shines through a collection of classics and several carefully wrought, thought-provoking originals from the songbook of their lives. They lead off with Iris DeMent's "Let the Mystery Be," but there's no mystery as to why their beautiful and seamless harmony singing is so appealing to so many. With the listener in tow they then exchange leads on John Prine's heartbreaking "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness," and never has a dysfunctional relationship sounded so good. Dylan's "Things Have Changed" is true-to-life on the pitfalls of an unpredictable existence and how good intentions can be turned away by a succession of losing hands. The guitar playing on all songs in the set is excellent but always subservient to the story.

There's also a lot of variety here that takes in the scope of a well lived life. Most of us can relate, hopefully with amusement, to "Can't Let Go," a love song in which the singer knows the score but can't separate emotionally. We can also get nostalgic over Tom Paxton's "Early Snow," a song of loss in which the seasons are changing and so are the times. It's classic Paxton, given a treatment so warm it makes everything all right (which is one of the ultimate goals of all art). It's also no stretch for Reilly & Maloney to deliver quality versions of Hank Snow's country chestnut "Golden Rocket," or a Tin Pan Alley tribute with Rogers and Hart's "Spring is Here," Springsteen's contemplative, tragic "Streets of Philadelphia," and Tom Jans' "Loving Arms." Whatever the genre it becomes Reilly & Maloney Music in their hands.

Still, the meat and meaning of this disc lies in the originals in which their well-traveled but fun-loving souls are on display. Ginny's "Sister" rings true as a song of blood that's sentimental without being sappy, while David's "Surrender Me" is beautiful in its vulnerability. He's caught up in the torrents of a life he loves, but is confused and seeking salvation. "Five Ducks" gives David a chance to show off his banjo on an old-timey-style song about an old-fashioned love story. The centerpiece is David's moving solo performance of "Blue Dress," the story of a mother who had "The heart of ten lions and the touch of an angel" as she steered her family through hard times in Old Chicago. The characters will absolutely become visible in front of your eyes. This could turn out to be a classic, as could the closing "Island of Mercy," with its beautiful audience sing-a-long. Friends, this is music to re-energize the folk scene. These old pros with young hearts are giving us simple gifts and we'll always want to hear more. These are our neighbors telling our story in song and with a charm that'll have us singing along. Get a copy for self and/or a loved one and if you're not having fun yet you will be.

Percy Hilo