Archie Fisher & Garnet Rogers

Archie Fisher was born in Glasgow into a large singing family, which yielded three professional singers—Archie and his sisters Ray and Cilla Fisher. His father’s appreciation of many musical styles (opera, vaudeville, traditional ballads) proved to be a heavy influence on Archie’s music while his mother, a native Gaelic speaker from the Outer Hebrides, influenced the lyrical quality of his songwriting.

Archie first became interested in folk music during the Skiffle era of the late 1950’s and such performers as Lonnie Donegan and Johnny Duncan. Later, the recording of the Weavers at Carnegie Hall also had a profound effect on his approach to music and his political outlook. During the TV folk boom of the 1960’s and 70’s he appeared regularly with his younger sister Ray on magazine programs and the BBC Hootenanny series. He was based in Edinburgh at the time in the contemporary company of musicians such as Robin Williamson, Clive Palmer and Mike Heron (who together formed The Incredible String Band) and was an early guitar colleague of Bert Jansch.

Archie’s first self-titled album was recorded in 1968 with the fiddle and mandolin of John McKinnon and whistle player John Doonan. During the mid 1970’s he formed a long-term partnership with Dundee musician Allan Barty, which was later grafted onto the revived pairing of Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy. As well as performing as a backing musician and arranger for the Makem and Clancy duo, he also produced a series of albums with them. Meanwhile, Archie got involved in record production with the dynamic Scottish band Silly Wizard. During the 1980’s he turned his attention to freelance radio work and originated several series of documentary programs with his local station Radio Tweed. He then returned to the recording studio during what he describes as one of his most creative songwriting periods. It was around this time that he began a partnership with Canadian songwriter Garnet Rogers. They toured throughout North America together, and Garnet produced two Fisher albums including the highly acclaimed Sunsets I’ve Galloped Into, which was released on Red House Records in 1996.

Garnet Rogers was born in Hamilton, Ontario to parents of Nova Scotian descent, spent many hours in front of the old floor model radio listening to Grand Ol' Opry broadcasts and harmonizing with his brother, the late folk legend Stan Rogers. Two years later, Garnet was playing the definitive 8-year-old's version of "Desolation Row" on his ukulele. He soon abandoned that instrument to teach himself the flute, violin and guitar. At 18, Garnet was on the road as a full-time working musician with brother Stan. Together they formed what has come to be accepted as one of the most influential duos in the history of North American folk music. Garnet acted as producer and arranger for his older brother from 1973 to 1983, when Stan died tragically in a plane crash. Since then, Garnet has courageously established himself as a formidable solo artist. His music, like the man himself, is literate, passionate, highly sensitive, and deeply purposeful. Cinematic in detail, his songs give expression to the unspoken language of the heart. An optimist at heart, Garnet sings extraordinary songs about people who are not obvious heroes and of the small everyday victories. As memorable as his songs, his over-the-top humor and lightning-quick wit move his audiences from tears to laughter and back again. Rogers has been the featured performer on numerous television and radio programs including Much Music, Mountain Stage, and All Things Considered. He has been a headliner at concert venues and festivals such as Wolf Trap, Lincoln Center, and Art Park; sharing the stage with performers such as Mary Chapin Carpenter, Billy Bragg, Bill Monroe, Ferron, Greg Brown, and Guy Clark. Though Garnet has enjoyed much popularity over the years, he remains resolutely independent, turning down offers from major labels to ensure that he continues doing music his own way

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