49: Hannah Murphy

Hannah Murphy – Open Mic Spotlight

On this week’s Open Mic Spotlight podcast, Atlanta singer-songwriter Hannah Murphy joining Heather in the studio to discuss their first meeting at Eddie’s Attic at an Atlanta open mic night, how she first picked up the guitar when she was 13 and how her lack of internet led her to see the value of pursuing music as a creative outlet. Armed with just an acoustic guitar and a forceful but gorgeous voice, Murphy evokes the spare and fluid landscapes of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s folk scene, giving each moment here its own distinctive personality. She’s following a line of musicians stretching all the way back to the earliest folk storytellers who first began sharing their experiences at the beginning of the last century.

She delivers a few original tunes and a cover of a Jason Isbell’s “Cover Me Up,” with all the graceful movements of someone who’s been doing this for many, many years. She also spends time talking about some of the artists who’ve had such a powerful influence on her life, including Fleetwood Mac, First Aid Kit, Jason Isbell and Fleet Foxes. But she reserves a special place for legendary folk singer Joni Mitchell, a musician from whom she’s drawn acres of inspiration in regards to her own writing and arranging. By viewing her music as part of a healing process that she shares with her listeners, she is able to communicate a wealth of honest emotion and communal thoughts in a subtle and quietly devastating manner.

Thank you to Jesse Jungkurth for mixing this episode.