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Cathie Ryan On Mountain Stage

Cathy Ryan at North House Folk School Hosting NPR's <em>Mountain Stage</em>.
Stephan Hoglund
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Mountain Stage
Cathy Ryan at North House Folk School Hosting NPR's Mountain Stage.

Cathie Ryan makes her third Mountain Stage appearance in a show recorded on the shore of Lake Superior in Grand Marais, Minn. Unable to bring her entire band along with her from her home in Ireland, Ryan was thrilled to be backed by fellow musicians set to appear later that evening, including Kathy Mattea's longtime guitarist Billy Cooley, Grammy-winning songwriter Jon Vezner singing backup and roots music icon Tim O'Brien on mandolin and fiddle.

Born in Detroit to Irish parents, Ryan spent years fronting the traditional Irish women's ensemble Cherish The Ladies. She struck out on her own in 1995, and quickly built a reputation as one of Irish music's foremost female singers. Her most recent release is The Farthest Wave.

Ryan is followed by the Mountain Stage Band's Julie Adams with her original tune "Long Ago And Far Away."

This show originally aired November 9, 2011.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.