Laura Baird - I Wish I Was A Sparrow CD

With a musical timeline dating back to her early childhood, Laura
Baird is an exceptionally talented multi-instrumentalist and
singer-songwriter, best known for her projects with her sister, Meg,
as The Baird Sisters, and guitarist Glenn Jones. Baird’s own sound
stems from the Appalachian folk tradition, and she connects to it via
family lineage--her great-great uncle I.G. Greer’s folk recordings for
the Library of Congress are a large influence. Also woven into her
sonic influences are classical composers like Bach and Satie, and
modern day musicians such as Opal and Yo La Tengo.

For her upcoming debut solo album, I Wish I Were A Sparrow, Baird
plays odes to the tradition from which she learned to play, combining
Appalachian balladry, the roughness of old field recordings, and a
dose of dreaminess and solitude that captures the distinct environment
of sleepy central New Jersey. This is where Baird departs from
tradition, leaving the communal origins of folk music and capturing
the singular self. An amalgam of old and new can be found in the
overall sound, as well as the lyrics, with half of the songs on
Sparrow, including "Dreadful Wind and Rain" and "Pretty Polly", being
passed down from the folk tradition, and the other half, including
"Wind Wind "and "Love Song From The Earth To The Moon" coming from
Baird’s own hand. While the most salient part of her last Baird
Sisters project was the melding of familial voices and various
instruments, Baird’s solo effort is centered around the combination of
her virtuosic banjo playing and prominent but airy vocals.