The Roches
Background information
Origin	New Jersey,
Genre(s)	Rock Folk
Years active	1973 — Present
Label(s)	Columbia Records Warner Bros. MCA 429 Records
Website	http://www.roches.com
Members
Maggie Roche Terre Roche Suzzy Roche

The Roches, a female vocal group of three songwriting sisters from New Jersey (Maggie, Terre and Suzzy Roche), known for their unusual and rich harmonies, quirky lyrics and casually comedic stage performances. In recent years the sisters have performed alone or in pairs, but current appearances (as of January 2007) are featuring the trio.^[1] Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Official language(s) English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area  Ranked 47th  - Total 8,729 sq mi (22,608 km²)  - Width 70 miles (110 km)  - Length 150 miles (240 km)  - % water 14. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including: Traditional music: The original meaning of the term folk music was synonymous with the term Traditional music, also often including World Music and Roots music; the term Traditional music was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the... See also: 1970s in music. ... Present may mean: present (time): time that is neither past nor future a gift: thing given free of charge, gratis This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Columbia Records is the oldest brand name in recorded sound, dating back to 1888, and was the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. ... Warner Bros. ... MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by Music Corporation of America (MCA). ... Suzzy Roche is best known for her work with the female vocal group The Roches. ... Official language(s) English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area  Ranked 47th  - Total 8,729 sq mi (22,608 km²)  - Width 70 miles (110 km)  - Length 150 miles (240 km)  - % water 14. ...

Career

In the late '60s, eldest sister Margaret and middle sister Terre (pronounced "Terry") quit school to tour as a duo. Maggie wrote most of the songs, with Terre contributing to a few. The sisters got a break when Paul Simon brought them in as backup singers on his album There Goes Rhymin' Simon (1973). They returned the favor, so to speak, by getting his assistance (along with an appearance by The Oak Ridge Boys) on their only album as a duo, Seductive Reasoning (1975). Shortly after that, youngest sister Suzzy (rhymes with "fuzzy") chimed in to form The Roches trio. Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, half of the folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel who continues a successful solo career. ... Press photo of The Oak Ridge Boys. ...

Around this time, they parlayed bartending jobs at famous Greenwich Village folk venue Gerde's Folk City into stage appearances, an experience they commemorated in their song, "Face Down at Folk City" (from Another World, 1985). It was here that they met many of their future singing and songwriting collaborators. Terre was now writing songs as well, and by the time of their first album as a trio, The Roches (1979), Suzzy also caught the writing bug. Robert Fripp produced the musically sparse album that allowed the sisters' harmonies to shine through. Maggie's "The Married Men" from this album was eventually to become the biggest hit of the songwriting trio — not for them, but for Phoebe Snow, as often happens to singer-songwriters. Gerdes Folk City was a legendary venue in the West Village. ... The Roches is a 1979 album by The Roches. ... Robert Fripp (born May 16, 1946 in Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England) is a guitarist, record producer and a composer, perhaps best known for being the guitarist for, and only constant member of King Crimson. ... Phoebe Laub (born July 17, 1952 in New York City) is a singer-songwriter, who performs under the stage name Phoebe Snow. ...

Throughout the 1980s, The Roches continued to release their intriguing combination of quirky music to small but appreciative audiences, little or no air play, and only modest record sales. In 1990, they returned to their Christmas carolling roots with the release of the 24-track We Three Kings, which included the haunting a cappella "Star of Wonder", written by Terre. After another pop album (A Dove, 1992), they recorded an entire album of children's songs entitled Will You Be My Friend?, featuring a song by brother David and a gaggle of young backup singers, including Suzzy's daughter Lucy. A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ...

After a tour that was interrupted by the death of their father, The Roches crafted a more somber and thoughtful album, Can We Go Home Now (1995), the last original recording they released as a trio until 2007.

In 1997, the three sisters formally put The Roches group on a long-term hold. They continued to work on solo projects and often collaborated on albums and performances. Terre teaches guitar workshops and has released a solo album. Suzzy, who has acted on the stage and in several movies, released two of her own albums and two with Maggie, with whom she has recently toured. All three sisters can be found periodically participating in New York-area events. At the end of 2005, the three Roches (with brother Dave) reunited for a short but highly successful holiday tour. Several more appearances in the U.S. and Canada have been scheduled for 2006-2007.

After a 12-year hiatus, a new studio album, Moonswept, is available from the Roches' website and is scheduled to be in stores on March 13, 2007.^[2] is the 72nd day of the year (73rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ...

A musical family

Maggie has a contralto voice that provides an unusual bass element for all-female harmonies. Terre provides a soprano that brackets the upper range of the sisters, while Suzzy fills in the middle range. While touring, the sisters accompany guitars and keyboards, frequently without additional musicians.

Musical talent runs further in the family. Brother David is also a singer-songwriter with his own solo album, and has often backed up the trio on their recordings. Maggie's son, Felix McTeigue, has recorded two albums (one with his group Filo). Suzzy's daughter Lucy Roche has also contributed vocals on the Roches' and McTeigue's albums. Lucy Wainwright Roche (born 1981) is a singer-songwriter like her parents Suzzy Roche and Loudon Wainwright III, her maternal aunts The Roches and paternal half-siblings Martha Wainwright and Rufus Wainwright, with all of whom she has sung. ...

The majority of Roches songs are written by the three sisters, alone, in every combination, and occasionally collaborating with other songwriters. They have also recorded their own arrangements of songs from a variety of New York folk artists, as well as a few covers of famous songs. (Their three-part arrangement of the normally four-part "Hallelujah Chorus" from Handel's "Messiah", featured on Keep on Doing [1982], is legendary in a cappella circles.) George Frideric Handel, 1733 George Frideric Handel (23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-born British Baroque composer who was a leading composer of concerti grossi, operas and oratorios. ... Messiah (1741) is an oratorio by George Frideric Handel. ...

Discography

Maggie & Terre Roche

• Seductive Reasoning (Columbia, 1975).

The Roches

• The Roches (Warner, 1979).
• Nurds (Warner, 1980).
• Keep On Doing (Warner, 1982).
• Another World (Warner, 1985).
• No Trespassing (Real Live Records, 1986).
• Speak (MCA, 1989).
• We Three Kings (MCA, 1990).
• A Dove (MCA, 1992).
• Will You Be My Friend? (Baby Boom, 1994).
• Can We Go Home Now (Rykodisc, 1995).
• Collected Works of the Roches (Rhino/Warner, 2003).
• Moonswept (429 Records, 2007).

The Roches is a 1979 album by The Roches. ...

Suzzy Roche

• Holy Smokes (Red House, 1997).
• Songs From An Unmarried Housewife And Mother, Greenwich Village, USA (Red House, 2000).

Terre Roche

• The Sound of a Tree Falling (Earth Rock Wreckerds, 1998).

Suzzy & Maggie Roche

• Zero Church (Red House, 2001).
• Why The Long Face (Red House Records, 2004).

Other appearances

• Soundstage (1983). The Roches were the featured group in one episode of this televised music series.
• Songs from Liquid Days (1986). The Roches are featured in two songs in this collection of music composed by Philip Glass.
• Crossing Delancey (1988), starring Amy Irving. Suzzy played Marilyn, a friend of Isabelle (Irving). The Roches provided several songs for the soundtrack.
• Stay Awake (1988). The Roches contributed to this tribute album.
• Tiny Toons Adventures, episode "New Character Day" (20 Feb 1991). The Roches appropriately played a trio of singing roaches.
• A Family Concert (K-Tel VHS, 1995). Includes performances by The Roches and The Music Workshop For Kids.
• Anthem (Intersound, 1996), by the Desolation Angels, an über-group consisting of The Roches, Karla DeVito, Kit Hain, Deborah Berg, the Blister Sisters, and Jane Kelly Williams.
• Christmas Songs (One Voice/Satellites Records, 1996), by the Carolling Carollers, another über-group consisting of The Roches, Ilana Iguana, Margaret Dorn, Libby Mclaren, and Bonnie Mann.
• Tracey Takes On..., episode "Music" (30 Apr 1997).
• Moms That Cook (Baby Boom, 1999), by The Music Workshop For Kids. Suzzy produced as well as performed on this album by various artists.
• Some Assembly Required (Shanachie, 2002), by the Four Bitchin' Babes. Suzzy was one of the latter-day Babes in this rotating-membership pop-folk group founded by Christine Lavin.

Songs from Liquid Days is a collection of songs composed by minimalist composer Philip Glass with lyrics by Paul Simon, Suzanne Vega, David Byrne and Laurie Anderson. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Crossing Delancey is a romantic comedy film released in 1988. ... Amy Irving (born September 10, 1953 in Palo Alto, California) is an American actress. ... Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films is a 1988 tribute album recorded by Various artists performing songs from Disney films. ... A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of a specific artists songs. ... Tiny Toon Adventures is an animated television series created by the Warner Bros. ... Karla DeVito was born in 1953 in Mokena, Illinois, a small farming town southwest of Chicago, At Loyola University, she majored in theater. ... The Four Bitchin Babes lineup as of 2006. ... Christine Lavin is a New York City based singer, songwriter, and promoter of contemporary folk music. ...

Other musical associations

• Laurie Anderson
• Robert Fripp
• Philip Glass
• Jack Hardy
• Richard Barone
• Indigo Girls
• Mark Johnson
• Edd Kalehoff
• Christine Lavin
• David Massengill
• Kate and Anna McGarrigle
• Felix McTeigue
• Paul Simon
• Loudon Wainwright III

Laurie Anderson (born Laura Phillips Anderson, on June 5, 1947, in Glen Ellyn, Illinois) is an American experimental performance artist and musician. ... Robert Fripp (born May 16, 1946 in Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England) is a guitarist, record producer and a composer, perhaps best known for being the guitarist for, and only constant member of King Crimson. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... Jack Studebaker Hardy is a singer-songwriter and playwright who has been influential in the Greenwich Village folk music scene for decades. ... Richard Barone is a musician, formerly the vocalist and leader in the New Jersey band The Bongos. ... Indigo Girls are an American folk rock duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. ... Edward Woodley Edd Kalehoff is a music composer who specializes in compositions for television. ... Christine Lavin is a New York City based singer, songwriter, and promoter of contemporary folk music. ... David Massengill (born in 1951 in Bristol, Tennessee) is an American folk singer/songwriter. ... Kate and Anna McGarrigle are a Canadian folk music duo from Quebec. ... Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, half of the folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel who continues a successful solo career. ... Loudon Wainwright III (born September 5, 1946 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina) is an American songwriter, folk singer, humorist, and actor. ...

Footnotes

1. ^ "Calendar of Appearances & Events". Roches' official website. Retrieved on 2007-01-21.
2. ^ "The Roches" (home page). Roches official website. Retrieved on 2007-01-21.

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

• O'Dair, Barbara, ed. Trouble Girls: The Rolling Stone Book of Women in Rock (1997). ISBN 0-679-76874-2.
• Woliver, Robbie. Bringing It All Back Home: 25 Years of American Music at Folk City (1986). ISBN 0-394-74068-8.
• discography liner notes

Liner notes are the booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or any sound recording container. ...

External links

• "The Roches" website
• IMDb: Suzzy Roche
• The Roches' MySpace page
• Interview/performance on The Current