Audience Members Got Lucky With Lucky 13 Show

The three members of Lucky 13 are indeed lucky — they are talented, versatile, and clearly are doing something they love. The audience certainly lucked out too when the female folk trio came to the Port Washington Public Library to perform on Friday evening.

The only thing I was a bit unhappy about was the lack of publicity regarding this concert by the library. This was a wonderful show with top-rate performers and it deserved way more attention than it got. Plus, it was competing with one of the first perfect weather Friday evenings that we've had lately. Still, no one who showed up at this concert was sorry that they spent the two hours indoors.

Lucky 13 came together in 2008 when the independent record label, Sonic Underground, released a compilation CD to celebrate its 13th year in business. The album was called "Lucky 13" and included the work of three Sonic Underground artists — Marci Geller (Sonic Underground founder and co-owner), Cathy Kreger and Susan DeVita. The release went so well that the three decided to go on tour together, using the name Lucky 13. In January of this year, DeVita departed and was replaced by Diane Garisto.

All three women have had long and illustrious backgrounds in music, including radio and TV appearances, acting as back-up vocalists for major artists, and touring extensively. But possibly the best thing about this talented trio is the fact that each member is able to write music. Each is a talented singer-songwriter in her own right, but together they are an extremely powerful musical force.

They were introduced by WFUV's John Platt, who (aptly) described them as "Crosby, Stills and Nash with estrogen." (They were slightly more crudely described as "Crosby, Stills and Nash with boobs" in a recent Long Island Pulse article.) The CSN analogy, however, was appropriate as the trio's harmonies were tight and strong. The three took turns singing lead on their own songs, with Geller on the piano, Kreger on guitar, and Garisto playing some percussion. The sound was marvelous. Songs ranged from bluesy to folk to pop ballad, with a few "Beatles-esque" moments thrown in.

Some of the highlights for me included Kreger's "Monsters in the Dark" which provided a great foil for the lower range of her smooth alto, and "Day I Disappeared," a gorgeous piano-based ballad featuring Geller. Garisto had her solo moments as well, with her own song "My Island" and one of DeVita's songs, "Nobody Says Sweetheart." Their lyrics were intelligent and frequently touching, paired with strong melodies, harmonies and rhythms.

I'd recently seen another female folk trio, Red Molly, also with tight harmonies and original songs. But Lucky 13 was definitely more pop-folk (as opposed to country-folk) … evoking (as mentioned earlier) Crosby, Stills and Nash, Wilson Phillips, with a hint of Tori Amos and Joan Osborne thrown in. All in all, it was an excellent show, and I look forward to seeing them again in the future. The trio may go by the name Lucky 13, but, in this case, the members of the audience were the lucky ones.

For more information about Lucky 13, visit their website at www.lucky13.fm.