Ray LaMontagne

Music is important to us and while we have definitely transitioned into middle agers, we still enjoy a good concert here are there. We have a list of musicians that we will always pay to see when they come and Ray LaMontagne was on the list. He hasn't been on the music scene that long but has quickly become one of our favorite artists. We were thrilled to find out he was stopping in Salt Lake and we saw him last night at Saltair. Here is a little bit of a Ray's bio:

With a voice that recalls a huskier, sandpaper version of Van Morrison and Tim Buckley,
Ray LaMontagne joins such artists as Iron & Wine in creating folk songs that are alternately lush and intimately earthy. The songwriter was born in Nashua, New Hampshire in 1973; his parents split up shortly after his birth, and his mother began a pattern of moving her six children to any locale that could offer her employment and housing. As a result, LaMontagne grew up as the perennial new kid in school (when and if he went to school at all). He did graduate high school, however, and found himself working in a shoe factory in Maine when he heard Stephen Stills' "Tree Top Flyer" on the radio. The song amounted to an epiphany for LaMontagne, who made up his mind on the spot to become a singer and musician.

The guy is amazing to watch. He is a really shy guy and chooses to play left of center stage as though he is just another musician in his band. But when he plays, you lose yourself in his music. In a couple of his solo acoustic numbers, the venue was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

It was a show we will remember for a long time and we will definitely see Ray again if he comes back to Salt Lake. If you are looking for some new music, this guy comes highly recommended.