The Wailin' Jennys

Canadian folk trio the Wailin' Jennys began as a one-off grouping of three singer/songwriters, but musical chemistry and audience response turned them into an ongoing band. Alto Cara Luft, the daughter of professional folksingers, had played with the Lilith Fair tour in Calgary and released her own album; mezzo-soprano Nicky Mehta also had her own disc, Weather Vane; and soprano Ruth Moody, lead singer for the roots band Scruj MacDuhk, had issued Blue Muse. But when they played together at a guitar shop in Winnipeg in January 2002, the results led to more bookings. Later that year, they released an EP, Wailin' Jennys. American independent folk label Red House Records licensed their full-length debut CD, 40 Days, and issued it in the U.S. in August 2004. That same year, Luft left the band to pursue her solo career, but the Jennys soon found her replacement in Montreal-based Annabelle Chvostek, who added her own alto to the group’s sophomore album, Firecracker. Alto Heather Masse joined the band in 2007, replacing Chvostek. Live at the Mauch Chunk Opera House arrived in 2009, followed by the trio’s third studio album, Bright Morning Stars, in 2011. In 2017, the Wailin' Jennys celebrated the 15th anniversary of their first gig, and to mark the occasion they released a studio album, fittingly named Fifteen. ~ William Ruhlmann