Even if you may not know singer/songwriter Joe Costa, when you hear his music, chances are you’ll think you’re listening to a talented old friend—or a far better known professional whose name and work somehow passed you by. Costa’s easy tenor voice, with a russet-and-gold patina like the maple syrup of Vermont, where he lives, goes down easy, but his telling lyrics, often casually and offhandedly poetic and laced with the wisdom and sometimes regret of experience, draw one in to listen—something that so few words in music manage to do in this day and age. This second compilation of highly personal songs is a fine bookend to his first; let’s hope there are more to come.
— Patricia Bayer, writer/editor
Currently at work on a third CD, Joe plans to play only at venues that encourage a listening atmosphere.
Born in Harrison, N.Y., in 1949, Joe played in rock bands (The Elegants, The New Breed) all through high school. After graduating with a degree in recreation from West Virginia University in 1971, he formed a Westchester-based folk/rock duo, Imagery, in the late 1970s. Imagery morphed into Shinbone Alley, a seven-member country/southern rock/bluegrass band featuring Joe on lead vocals, drums, and guitar. At this time Joe enrolled in Manhattan’s New School of Music, where he studied songwriting and vocals, with Paul Simon’s younger brother, Eddie, among other professors. Joe did most of the songwriting for Shinbone Alley. After nearly a decade the successful group called it quits.
Joe then began writing the songs for his previous and current projects, and the lyrics are pulled from personal experiences. He notes that some songs are written after he has had an argument with his wife (and manager), Janine Stanley-Dunham, who, he jokes, complains that he gets good material from the battles, and free therapy for himself but does not seem to actually learn from them. One song, “No Tears for the Crier,” is based on his return to performing in public, during which he sang at an open-mic night. On “Another Restless Night,” he turns to alcohol with disastrous results to help him deal with feeling inferior at a social gathering. The CD’s music also comes from personal experience in that it pulls elements from many of the different types of music he has played or enjoyed listening to throughout his life. And it is indeed difficult to categorize: the listener will hear a combination of folk, easy listening, country, jazz, and other forms of music. Some would call it acoustic new folk or folk rock.
Currently at work on a third CD, Joe plans to play only at venues that encourage a listening atmosphere.Contact Joe:
joecosta@wildblue.net