Singer-songwriter Edie Carey will be giving an all-ages concert on Wednesday, Oct. 18th at The Sticks and Stones Comedy Club” at the SCC in Southampton. Listening to Edie Carey sing for the first time is an experience that can only be equated to encountering something instantly memorable and profoundly special. Her voice has the unique ability to reach deep into one’s soul and illuminate precisely where it’s needed.
This show presents a unique opportunity to witness the talent of Edie Carey up close and “live” as this will be her first appearance in the Hamptons. Although she has performed at the Newport Folk Festival and other major festivals, like Telluride in Colorado, she is genuinely excited about her Southampton show. Edie Carey resides with her family in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and is a mother to Luca and Emmy.
In an exclusive interview for Hamptons.com, Edie Carey revealed that, while she had been a singer from an early age, she didn’t start songwriting and playing the guitar until her time as a student at Barnard College in New York City, where she majored in Italian. During a year of studying in Bologna, Italy, Edie said she “busked for the Italians and learned about performing. Since no one could understand the words of my songs, I felt confident. The Italians were shy, but generous.”
Speaking about her identity as a performing artist, Ms. Carey said, “I am absolutely not a commercial artist. I was greatly influenced by Shawn Colvin even before I began playing the guitar. I went from buying her record as a fifteen-year-old to opening up for her years later, which was one of the most significant moments of my career.”
Edie Carey boasts a discography that includes ten albums, starting with her 1998 debut, “The Falling Places,” and culminating in her 2022 release titled “The Veil.” Her songwriting is superb, featuring some tracks as soft and delicate as if she were singing just to you around a campfire or in front of a fireplace during a snowstorm. Other songs evoke thoughts of love, loyalty, and the apprehensions that true love encompasses. Her voice can reach certain notes that produce a purity akin to the sounds of sweet wind chimes with early morning birds joyfully joining in.
She expressed her excitement about returning to New York, where she lived for a decade, to perform in Southampton and reconnect with many old friends. “So many of my friends that I lived with in Brooklyn and Manhattan now reside in that area (the east end). So, it’s going to be so much fun to come back all these years later.” Clearly, she has a loyal and dedicated following who know every note of every song. If you truly listen to her tunes, you may become a fan too.
Ms. Carey also shared, “What’s fun about live shows is that I get to tell some stories and weave the songs together. I try to make the show as engaging as possible. When people already know the songs, I can share a little backstory that might reveal a whole other side of the song.”
Her first guitar was an Alvarez, which she bought at a small music store in her hometown of Dedham, Massachusetts. Recently, she gifted that guitar to her niece and nephew. On Wednesday, Oct. 18th, she will be standing on the stage at Southampton Cultural Center with her slender 1997 Martin 00016, creating “so much beautiful rich, dark sound.”
