I am by no means an expert, but I have more than two decades of experience reviewing music from the rich traditions of Nova Scotia, its subset Cape Breton, and its neighbor Prince Edward Island. I know a lot of the musicians -- and the music they make -- pretty well, and I'm proud to call some of them friends. Although it's been far too long since I've been able to visit the region, I still try to keep abreast of the thriving music scene there.

So I was pleased to receive in the mail the latest CD from Mary Beth Carty. I was not familiar with this singer and multi-instrumentalist from Antigonish, but I am so very happy to make her acquaintance. Crossing the Causeway, her second album according to her press materials, is good. Really good. And so much fun.

Carty has a lovely voice, and she uses it to good effect on a range of songs -- some traditional, some original to the album -- that she sings in English, French and Gaelic. By the time I hit track 3 -- "Trinity Avenue," which is a Gaelic traditional song -- I was a little in love with her vocals. Moody and expressive when she needs to be, she leans hard into the fun-loving spirit of this one, and the fast vocal rhythms and gospel inflections to her lively arrangement makes it impossible not to move a bit to the music.

Other notable tracks include the traditional French-language song "Bon Garcon," Carty's original toe-tapper "Tow Truck Song," Ronnie MacEachern's whimsical "Driver MacIvor" and ... well, I like them all, but those stood out to me on my most recent listen.

Although hailing from a region famous for its fiddlers, Carty prefers to wield the accordion ... plus the guitar, bass, jaw harp, bones and various percussion.

Besides Carty's array of instruments, the album features Donnie Calabrese on double bass; Hilda Chiasson on piano; Colin Grant and Howie MacDonald on fiddle; Heather MacIsaac on whistle and vocals; Mac Morin on piano; Bradley Murphy on piano, fiddle, bodhran and vocals; Morgan Toney on fiddle, djembe and vocals; and Chrissy Crowley, Anna Ludlow, Joe MacMaster and John Pellerin adding extra violins.

Jonathan Andrews, Helen Avakian, Mike Bankhead, Mike Bravener, Veronique Brisebois, Bill Cameron, Robyn Carrigan, Michelle and Nicole Deveau, Kim Drouin-Ratcliffe, Simon Gaboury, Callum Gaudet, Sara Jelley, Pastelle Leblanc, Helen Leger, Cassie, Maggie and Iain-Charles MacDonald, Sine Mairi MacDougall, Jan MacKay, Shawnee Paul, Brad Reid and Patrick Reynolds provide additional vocals.

Obviously, she's not afraid to rely on a little help from her friends.

I don't get as many submissions in the mail from Nova Scotia as I used to, but I'm glad Carty sent this one my way. Crossing the Causeway is a great introduction to her music. Nice job!

[ visit the artist's website ]