Even before they head to the studio to record, well-known musicians Joe Newberry and April are hard at work - brainstorming, practicing, writing, and identifying themes that echo and underscore the world around them. In their new album, “Blessing On The Wing,” the powerhouse duo blends fiddle, guitar, banjo, and two singular voices to celebrate the seasons that pass and the things that mark that passage - birds, sunrises and sunsets, traditions, and love.

“Blessing On The Wing” marks a new and exciting turn for Newberry and Verch. In their previous duo projects, in addition to beautiful found fiddle tunes and songs, they brought pieces they had written on their own or with talented collaborators. The new album features plenty of that, but also two numbers written together especially for the recording - “Thankful For You” and “Turtle Dove” - and “Heaven’s In My View / Cardinal” which combines a song Newberry wrote with Bluegrass icon Jim Lauderdale with a tune composed by April Verch. Other original songs and tunes include “Honky Tonk Heaven,” “Robin On The Wagon Wheel,” “Where The Songs Come From,” and “Tune Thy Heart.”

Of course, no Newberry and Verch album would be complete without tunes that draw from Newberry’s Ozarks traditions and Verch’s Ottawa Valley traditions, such as “Red Fox Waltz / Red Fox.” The only number on the album that doesn’t come from the pen of either Newberry or Verch is the beautiful “Neighbors,” popularized by Grandpa Jones. It is particularly fitting, as the duo has always experienced a true kinship through their music, and have always felt that they could have grown up being neighbors!