Tret Fure in Erie November 22

by Kate Hentz

Independent recording artist Tret Fure brings her music to Erie for a first-ever concert at 8:00 PM Saturday, November 22nd at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation.

Fure has always been known for breaking rules. She was only 19 when she toured and recorded "Mousetrap" with Spencer Davis, and wrote the record's first single. At 21, Lowell George (Little Feat) produced her self-titled debut record on MCA. There followed work with Yes, Poco, the J. Geils Band, and most notably, Cris Williamson. The advent of Women's Music gave Tret a platform for using her engineering gifts and multiple talents as a singer-songwriter.

When Tret returned to recording solo, she won 2001 Album of the Year (Back Home) and Single of the Year ("Angel of Love") awards from Outvoice Top 40. She brings old favorites and brand new music to Erie with her just released My Shoes, a mix of high energy rockers, sweet piano ballads, and as always, a nod to her family origins. My Shoes (Tomboy Girl 83102) has already won critical acclaim from such notable trade publications as Sing Out! and Dirty Linen.

From Sing Out!

"Tret Fure has seldom gotten her due from the folk music world because of her penchant for opening for rock acts, a tendency to pigeonhole her work as `women's music' (though she helped create that very label), and because her work was often subsumed in her duo act with Cris Williamson. After a highly publicized breakup with Williamson _ explored in the album's title cut - Fure's new solo venture signals her intent to do more than just move on. This album soars. And forget all the labels because My Shoes touches upon universal themes like love, longing, peace, and social justice. It's also a real potpourri of musical styles, with touches of rock, pop, folk, and country shining through. The title track is rendered in a country folk style that's a cross between Waylon Jennings and Steve Goodman, whereas `The Wedding' is almost a torch ballad. Tender love songs like "Dream Time" stand cheek-by-jowl with slapdash bits of giddiness like `How in the World.' And only someone made of stone could listen without tearing up to `Three Generations,' a song that connects Fure to her mother and grandmother through a wedding band. (The song is made all the more poignant in that Fure recently lost her mother.) Given the insanity of world events these days, it's hard not to find resonance in Fure's `Hawk and Dove.' She has never sounded better, reaching down for husky low notes one moment, then climbing to the top of the scales the next. This mature effort surely ranks among Fure's finest works and will be savored by old-time fans and new fans alike." -

~R. Weir Sing Out! Vol. 47; #2, Summer 2003

From Dirty Linen: The magazine of folk and world music. (ACE)

"Tret Fure has spent 30-plus years in the music business, having released her first solo album in 1973. She's worked with some of the biggest names in popular music, including Spencer Davis, Bonnie Raitt, Yes, and J. Geils Band. In recent years, Fure has blazed a trail in the women's acoustic music movement. Following up her successful 2001 release Back Home is My Shoes, a thoughtful blend of folk and pop. The album's 13 tracks tackle such topics as war and peace (`Hawk and the Dove'), murder (`Noel Evans'), and poverty (`The Apartment'), in addition to a variety of personal relationships. Fure's lyrics are candid and refreshingly honest, as in the title track, which seeks understanding for her lifestyle rather than judgment."

~(ACE) Dirty Linen, August/September '03, #107

Tour Tret's website www.tretfure.com and you'll see that not only is she a gifted singer/songwriter with a fulltime national touring schedule; she and partner Jane Weldon have opened a retail business, Tomboy girl in Madison, Wisconsin; she's an accomplished cook with a published a cookbook of her own gourmet recipes; she holds office in her musicians' union Local 1000, and she's a talented carpenter, plumber, and electrician. There doesn't seem to be much this Tomboy girl wouldn't dare attempt.

Tret headlines the concert at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 7180 Perry Highway in Erie at 8 PM on Saturday, November 22, 2003. Guest artist Leah Zicari will perform an opening set. Tickets $15 are available at Aromas Coffeehouse, 2174 West 8th Street in Erie, or online at www.tomboygirl.com.

Tret and Jane be selling items from their Tomboy girl line of clothing before the show, at intermission, and afterward, and you can have anything you purchase signed by Tret. Tree Hug Trading will have a table of wares to sell as well, so it will be a fine opportunity for some holiday shopping. And of course, Aromas Coffeehouse will be on hand to serve hot beverages for a festive night out.

Kate Hentz is a freelance writer in Westfield, NY; she can be reached at [email protected]