Mahon About Town Nantucket Blog

One of the most special nights of the summer was an evening spent listening to and meeting singer songwriter Josh Ritter, at a house concert on Saturday night, August 25th, brought to Nantucket through the efforts of Ed Romanoff, Sue Devine, and a dedicated group of other music lovers, pictured here with Josh.

Here are some photos of the audience just before the start and just as Josh got going. In the second photo, note Jesse Kornbluth in the lower left of the photo, and check out his website and newsletter called HeadButler.com, which as Jesse says is “founded on a simple proposition: There’s so much New Stuff you need help finding the Good Stuff.” And that he does, and Josh is one of Jesse’s recent favorites.

One of Josh’s most endearing traits is his smile, but particulary the one that comes over his face as he’s thinking of what to say next, and what he comes up with has already cracked him up, or that same impish smile after he’s just cracked up the audience. Here’s that look:

Josh’s music is beautiful, his playing finely crafted, and his lyrics filled with beauty and smart twists and turns of phrases. From the song he is best known for, ‘Kathleen’:

All the other girls here are stars-you are the Northern Lights.
They try to shine in through your curtains-you’re too close and too bright.
They try and they try but everything that they do
Is the ghost of a trace of a pale imitation of you.
I’ll be the one to drive you back home, Kathleen.

Josh’s official site, and MySpace site.