FOUR BITCHIN' BABES

History of the BABES Christine Lavin, the original creative force behind The Four Bitchin' Babes®, had an idea. It was February of 1990, and she had just released "On a Winter's Night," a beautiful compilation CD of winter folk songs by singer songwriter pals. The disc became wildly successful and Chris decided to put together a road show. Women - she chose to tour following summer with "gal pals." She chose Patty Larkin from the Cambridge, MA area, Megon McDonough from Chicago, and Sally Fingerett, from Columbus OH, and off they went. Starting in Chicago, then on to Boulder, Salt Lake City, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, and NY, they ended their tour in DC. By the time they reached DC in August, the girls had arranged and polished fabulous harmonies, shared clothes, laughed more than legally allowed by law, and spent too much cash while shopping on the road. Then, Chris had another idea. For their last show in DC, why not "make a memory," throw a Digital Audio Tape into a machine, and record their gig at the Birchmere in Alexandria VA. And The Bitchin' Babes® were born that night. Buy Me, Bring Me, Take Me, Don't Mess My Hair, Life According to Four Bitchin' Babes Vol I was released on the Philo/Rounder label in 1990, and to this day, is still available. As a live recording, it captures the freshness and excitement of four women, four different songwriters, living four different lives, singing of their own individual experiences as female artists. And individuals they were. Soon after this recording was released, Patty Larkin signed to record for the Windham Hill Label and took off for an international solo tour, bequeathing her "Babe" chair to New Yorker, Julie Gold. Best known for her Grammy-winning tune, From A Distance, Julie settled in for two years of touring as well as joining the Babes® for Buy Me, Bring Me, Take Me, Don't Mess My Hair, Life According to Four Bitchin' Babes® Vol II, Philo/Rounder, 1993. With so many brilliant women musicians in their national community, finding someone to substitute for a Babe, either on maternity leave, or ill was not terribly difficult. With guests like Cheryl Wheeler, Janis Ian, and Mary Travers, there would be new songs, new stories, and of course, new clothes and shoes to borrow. It was the winter of 1993, when DC area songstress Debi Smith boarded a flight with 24 hours notice to sub for the flu stricken Christine Lavin. Without any rehearsal, Debi joined the Babes® on stage, earning her "eyelashes." (Babe version of wings) And so, in February of 1994, when Julie Gold's publisher needed her to be in NY full time, it was a perfect match to invite Debi Smith to become the next permanent Babe. Of course with a new Babe comes a new recording! Those are the rules! Produced by Dan Green (Sally Fingerett's then husband) Fax It, Charge It, Don't Ask Me What's For Dinner: More Life According To Four Bitchin' Babes®, was released on the Shanachie label in 1995. By 1997, founding member Christine Lavin was busy with her own show on NY's WFUV Radio, and had plans to tour a solo theater piece. Retiring from the group, Chris recommended Camille West, a "galvanizing" comedic songwriter she had seen at Cafe Lena's, in upstate NY and "just knew she'd be a perfect fit.” With new member Camille, they once again took to the Birchmere stage to record. With an enormous big boy 24 track-mobile-recording studio-parked outside the club, Gabby Road -Out Of The Mouths Of Babes® (Shanachie 1997) would come to life as the fourth group CD in seven years. Sally Fingerett, Debi Smith, Megon McDonough, and Camille West would continue to traverse the US and Canada, performing together, stopping only in 2000 to make yet another recording. The Babes® – Beyond Bitchin' produced by Jeff Bova (Celine Dion, Billy Joel, Madonna). On the heels of this first class recording experience, the girls filmed an evening at The Southern Theater in Columbus Ohio, producing a wonderful full-length concert Meet the Babes® DVD Shanachie 2001. In 2001, original member Megon McDonough would leave the group to cultivate and tour her one-woman cabaret show "An Interesting Bunch of Gals." To assist the Babes® with yet another evolution, legendary New York singer/songwriter Suzzy Roche (of the Roches) would join the girls adding a quirky lovable urban edge. The Babes® just kept picking up steam, performing for packed houses in theaters and clubs. Once again, it was time to make a record, so the girls thought they would try something completely different. For Some Assembly Required, Shanachie 2002, each babe chose to record three songs in the studio of her choice, gathering for a Babe Recording Slumber Party in Nashville to lay down their signature harmonies as a group – and viola! - assembly accomplished. By 2005, after four years of touring in this configuration, the Babes® had shared so many wonderful concert halls, missed flights, back stage laughs, beautiful hotels, and questionable rental cars. Now it was time for the Babes® to CHANGE AGAIN! Camille West chose to pursue her solo career and Suzzy Roche would accept a role with New York's Wooster Group. This time the Babes' evolution would also be a REVELATION! With their new gal pals, Comedian Deirdre Flint (from Philadelphia) and studio vocalist Nancy Moran (from Nashville) by their side, longstanding members Sally Fingerett and Debi Smith took the steam from their hot flashes and cooked up a whole new concept for this "Fabulous Female Folkestra.” The Babes® vowed to age gracefully, but they would not go quietly! And from this dedication to writing, touring, recording, and traveling with gal pals, came "HORMONAL IMBALANCE…A Mood Swinging Musical Revue" From the theatres across the US and Canada, this show proved to be wildly successful, as women of all ages joined with their book clubs, bowling leagues, college reunion events to attend The Babes® estrogen fueled show, for a "HOT" night of music and laughs with a new cast, new tunes, new hair, and of course a new ATTITUDE! And in 2009, again they evolve and CHANGE, as women are prone to do. They change their minds, their hair, their men, their jobs, their clothes, and so now Sally, Debi, Deirdre and Nancy, change their songs as they release their newest CD "DIVA NATION...Where Music Laughter and Girlfriends Reign." Beginning with their first show in 2005, Sally, Debi, Nancy and Deirdre had mastered the art and coalescence of a well oiled machine, touring almost non-stop from September to June, on the National Performing Arts Circuit. Songs were their business and business was good! It's in 2011, as the Babes’ get to planning a new CD and stage revue, Babe Pal Nancy Moran makes the difficult decision to say goodbye. With a kind and generous 12 month notice, Nancy steps off the Babes-Mobile to join her husband Fett in their Nashville TN recording studio/music business consulting company. But she’s right there in the wings, as she’s committed to being the first stringer, should a Babe become ill and not be able to perform her duties! Yep, who knew that they’d have it in them! But they do, and frankly they can’t believe it either. Re-invention becomes the Babe Mantra as long standing members, Sally Fingerett, Debi Smith, and Deirdre Flint welcome brand new Babe, Marcy Marxer. As a multi-Grammy Award winning musician, Marcy joins the Babes, complimenting her online guitar/ukulele teaching and touring with her musical partner of 31 years, Cathy Fink. Armed with Marcy’s virtuosity on guitar, mandolin, ukulele, and penny whistle along with her crystal pristine voice, the Babes put together not 1 but 2 new shows! “Jingle Babes…Decking the Halls With Songs and Folly” is a spirited evening of ‘shared musical traditions,’ with clever comedy, songs, shtick and stories of that crazy making time of year. This is a seasonal show that will play from Thanksgiving to Christmas, then goes on hiatus till next year! Just like a tree and Menorah! Mid Life Vices…A Guilt Free Musical Revue is the BABES 9TH RECORDING! This show hits both stage and radio to lovingly examine our collective Mid Life Crises and our inherent need for Mid Life Vices!! With songs that wink at our neurosis, passions and misdeeds, once again the Babes take a stab at exhausted perfectionists, organized scatterbrains, boys and their wheels, and of course a universal passion for low lights, Facebook, and CHEESE! Join this Fabulous Female Folkestra, a tour de force musical comedy troupe now considered to be a premiere renegade sorority of musicians, as they revel in the attitude of “been-there-saw-that-ate-that-drank-that-came-back-to kick-back-and-lay-back!” with their songs and stories finding self acceptance, grace and humor, in this celebration of “Whine, Women, and Song!” Members: SALLY FINGERETT: Playing, piano, guitar, and bass, Sally is one of the founding “Mothers” of The Four Bitchin’ Babes, releasing 5 solo CDs, 9 Bitchin’ Babes CDs, and has participated in over 20 compilation recording projects! Sally’s song of compassion and equal rights, “Home Is Where The Heart Is” has been recorded by Holly Near, Ronnie Gilbert, and folk legends, Peter, Paul, and Mary for their CD and PBS special “Lifelines,” and has also been published in “Contemporary Cabaret” a song book celebrating composers Stephen Sondheim, Kander & Ebb, and Andrew Lloyd Weber. Wearing many “showbiz hats,” Sally has sung Radio/TV Jingles for Butterfinger, Hallmark, and Sears, performed with the National Touring Company of the Vagina Monologues, showcased in Putamayo’s Songwriter Festival at NY’s Carnegie Hall, was the musical guest on Michael Feldman’s Whad’Ya Know, NPR’s Mountain Stage, CNN’s Sonya Live, PBS Lifelines, and CBS Sunday Morning. Her comical essays and poetry have been published in Random House’s Life’s A Stitch, a collection of contemporary women’s humor with Erma Bombeck, Gloria Steinem, Joan Rivers and more. With her heart in musical theatre, Sally was commissioned to compose 12 songs for “Hersteria..A Musical Noir” (book by Sharon Bajer) for the Winnipeg Studio Theatre. Her latest solo CD “A Women’s Gotta Do Her Thing” includes guest vocalist and pal Janis Ian. Currently at work on a collection of short stories for her soon to be published, “The Mental Yentl Review,” Sally and husband Michael live in Columbus, Ohio and party all night long having launched 3 kids; Elizabeth (27) in Chicago, Max (25) in Seattle, and Aaron (23) in Columbus. DEBI SMITH: Playing guitar, piano, and Irish bodhran (drum), Debi has received many Washington Area Music Awards and nominations (Wammies). She has been a repeat performer on NPR’s Prairie Home Companion, All Things Considered, Mountain Stage, and Radio Smithsonian and appeared on CBS Sunday Morning, Country Music Television (CMT), and the soundtrack of the Ken Burn’s PBS series, "The National Parks." Having performed at such U.S. venues as The Kennedy Center, Wolftrap, EPCOT Center, Philadelphia’s Keswick, and L.A.’s Wadsworth Theaters, Debi has also toured as far away as Russia. "The Smith Sisters," Debi and sister Megan, released four recordings on Rounder/Flying Fish, accompanied by Doc & Merle Watson and Mark O’Connor. Grammywinner Tom Paxton, among others, have recorded Debi’s songs, which have won ASCAP composer awards and been a finalist for the Virginia state song. Her work as been published in "Look Up at The Hawks," a book she helped write and edit based on her grandmother’s 1930’s-40’s diary, and in Random House Books’ "Life’s a Stitch." Debi has recorded five solo CD’s including her most recent, "The Soprano," a double album which includes a Christmas CD and participated in over 20 albums and compilations. Her CD’s have been selected as the Year’s Best by the Washington Post, as well as featured in Billboard, The New York Times, and USA Today. Debi Smith lives with her husband and son in Falls Church VA, near Washington, D.C. where she’s famous for her impressive "handy-woman" skills, as, wielding her powerless drill, she has installed vertical blinds, wired electric lighting, and laughed in the face of anything that is labeled "some assembly required!" DEIRDRE FLINT: Playing guitar, bass, and piano, Deirdre hangs out at the intersection where folk music and stand-up comedy collide. Lauded by The New York Times and The Christian Science Monitor, Billboard Magazine says “Flint is a crack-you-up lady who knows how to deliver underdog messages with panache.” With two CD projects to her credit, she has performed at The Kennedy Center, The Philadelphia Folk Festival, and has won such premier songwriting contests as The Kerrville Folk Festival and Falcon Ridge. Her wildly popular anthem “The Boob Fairy” has been featured on FX’s Nip/Tuck, while other up to the minute comedy commentary songs have been included in Ireland’s “What Not to Wear,” TLC’s “A Dating Story,” Great Britain’s “Spendaholics,” and the documentary, or if you will frockumentary “Always a Bridesmaid.” Her quirky songs about life’s little tragedies have been heard on over 100 public and commercial radio stations including the infamous Dr. Dimento Radio Hour. In addition to teaching songwriting at The National Guitar Workshop, Deirdre has performed on the nationally syndicated “Bob and Sheri Show,” and NPR’s “The World Café,” where her quick wit has kept her a favorite of DJ’s around the country. Earning a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education from The University of Pennsylvania, teaching is her first love earning her a commission to pen a children’s song honoring the town of Norfolk, VA. Our “Sporty Babe” has completed the Sherox Triathlon and The New Jersey Marathon. However, she claims she does it for the free donuts at the end. Deirdre lives in Philadelphia with her dog Dagger, producing digital graphic art, creating amazing cartoon videos for composers and performers. MARCY MARXER: This formidable (and Blond!) multi-instrumentalist, studio musician, performer, and songwriter is a two-time GRAMMY® winner having worked with acts ranging from Pete Seeger and Tom Paxton to Mary Chapin Carpenter and Eva Cassidy. Her virtuosity on the acoustic & electric guitar, four-string banjo, mandolin, ukulele, and percussion has landed her on The Today Show, NPR’s Morning Edition, and All Things Considered. Performing on stages in Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and the US coast to coast, Marcy is a stellar recording “session player” recording on soundtracks such as Emmy Award winning specials for National Geographic, projects for AT&T, McGraw Hill and performances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts AND The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Marcy and her equally talented musical cohort, Cathy Fink, celebrate one of the most heralded reputations in the field of children’s music, entertainment, and early childhood education earning 14 consecutive GRAMMY nominations in the Children’s, Folk and Production categories and literally hundreds of awards from The Parents’ Choice Foundation, American Library Association, John Lennon Songwriting Contest, and the USA Songwriting Competition. The duo of Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer have produced over 50 recording/video/book projects dedicated to original, roots, folk, bluegrass and children’s music, winning 50 WAMMY Awards (Washington Area Music Association). Marcy also won the Grand Prize in the 2006 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. Spearheading altruistic musical endeavors, Marcy shares her passion for the ukulele by directing The Ukulele Orchestra of Washington, while premier guitar maker, C. F. Martin & Company honored Marcy’s musical achievements by creating a signature guitar for her. Marcy lives in Bethesda, MD with over 200 stringed instruments and her partner of over 32 years.