Ruth Moody

She has planted the seed. Now sit back and enjoy watching her grow.

A budding musician who grew up in the Wolseley neighborhood she lovingly calls “the Granola Belt of Winnipeg,” Australian-born Ruth Moody has sprouted into a beautiful performer after 13 years of touring in Canadian roots bands that have included Scruj MacDuhk and The Wailin’ Jennys.

With the U.S. release of The Garden (Red House Records) in April, her first full-length album, Moody shouldn’t have any trouble, um, branching out on her own. With a voice as lovely as springtime’s freshest daisy, Moody plans to pursue a solo career while simultaneously helping to keep the rising trio, known simply as the Jennys, in full bloom.

Moody was on the phone discussing her latest ground-breaking venture on a day when she and Jennys’ members Nicky Mehta and Heather Masse were about to receive the keys to the city in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. That’s where they returned to play for the first time since their triumphant release of 2009's Live at the Mauch Chunk Opera House.

“Yeah, I’m gonna try my darnedest to do both,” said a gregarious Moody, laughing at the very idea. While the thought of breaking away — even if it’s temporary — is somewhat “scary,” Moody has the tools of the trade to pull it off. Her seductive soprano is pure joy, an irresistible force of nature that comes so effortlessly that it must be a gift from the gods. The fact that she excels on a variety of instruments — including banjo, piano and ukulele — makes the classically trained musician one of the most promising artists in a field bursting at the seams with candidates.

“I knew that at some point I would have to face the fear and do it on my own,” she said in reply to an earlier question about accepting this latest challenge. “And so, in that sense, it was something that I knew I would have to try. I feel like it’s one of those things that, after having done it, I can kinda cross something off my list.” (laughs)

Moody took her single-handed ambitions to SXSW in March, playing a showcase and party for her record label in Austin, then going to Blue Rock Studio in Wimberley, Texas. The once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity came at Blue Rock’s annual birthday bash in a setting she described as “an amazing sort of artist retreat, ranch, studio, you name it.” Lending their support were Lloyd Peterson, a fellow musician and close friend, and Eric Peltoniemi and Ellen Stanley of Red House. That label, which has the Jennys on its long list of established roots artists, is responsible for giving Moody a high-profile spot as the closing act on August 7 at Barnfest, in Red Wing, Minnesota.

The daylong festival (with online tickets still available) will offer other formidable performers, including label-mate Pieta Brown and Carrie Elkin, but it’s Moody who stands to benefit most from her chance to host a Garden Party.

She won’t be entirely on her own, though. The Pines’ Benson Ramsey, son of roots powerhouse guitarist/producer Bo Ramsey, will accompany her on a few tunes, and, of course, she’ll have her gardening tools — a banjo and guitar. Moody was even hoping to talk her father Charles, an English teacher who’s making the eight-hour drive from Winnipeg, into bringing her ukulele. The set will focus heavily on selections from The Garden, but Moody was also considering playing “Heaven When We’re Home,” a song off the Jennys’ Juno Award-winning 40 Days album that first appeared on her 2002 EP, Blue Muse.

Back then, Moody realized she wasn’t ready to go at it alone. But critical acclaim with the Jennys, numerous guest appearances on A Prairie Home Companion and a flourishing spirit of adventure have changed all that.

“You have to find strengths that you don’t need when you’re in a band,” she said. “And so I feel like sort of it’s a real growth experience in that way personally. And the things you learn because you’re learning them on your own are huge, you know? (pauses, then laughs) I haven’t a - Huffington Post

She has planted the seed. Now sit back and enjoy watching her grow.

A budding musician who grew up in the Wolseley neighborhood she lovingly calls “the Granola Belt of Winnipeg,” Australian-born Ruth Moody has sprouted into a beautiful performer after 13 years of touring in Canadian roots bands that have included Scruj MacDuhk and The Wailin’ Jennys.

With the U.S. release of The Garden (Red House Records) in April, her first full-length album, Moody shouldn’t have any trouble, um, branching out on her own. With a voice as lovely as springtime’s freshest daisy, Moody plans to pursue a solo career while simultaneously helping to keep the rising trio, known simply as the Jennys, in full bloom.

Moody was on the phone discussing her latest ground-breaking venture on a day when she and Jennys’ members Nicky Mehta and Heather Masse were about to receive the keys to the city in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. That’s where they returned to play for the first time since their triumphant release of 2009's Live at the Mauch Chunk Opera House.

“Yeah, I’m gonna try my darnedest to do both,” said a gregarious Moody, laughing at the very idea. While the thought of breaking away — even if it’s temporary — is somewhat “scary,” Moody has the tools of the trade to pull it off. Her seductive soprano is pure joy, an irresistible force of nature that comes so effortlessly that it must be a gift from the gods. The fact that she excels on a variety of instruments — including banjo, piano and ukulele — makes the classically trained musician one of the most promising artists in a field bursting at the seams with candidates.

“I knew that at some point I would have to face the fear and do it on my own,” she said in reply to an earlier question about accepting this latest challenge. “And so, in that sense, it was something that I knew I would have to try. I feel like it’s one of those things that, after having done it, I can kinda cross something off my list.” (laughs)

Moody took her single-handed ambitions to SXSW in March, playing a showcase and party for her record label in Austin, then going to Blue Rock Studio in Wimberley, Texas. The once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity came at Blue Rock’s annual birthday bash in a setting she described as “an amazing sort of artist retreat, ranch, studio, you name it.” Lending their support were Lloyd Peterson, a fellow musician and close friend, and Eric Peltoniemi and Ellen Stanley of Red House. That label, which has the Jennys on its long list of established roots artists, is responsible for giving Moody a high-profile spot as the closing act on August 7 at Barnfest, in Red Wing, Minnesota.

The daylong festival (with online tickets still available) will offer other formidable performers, including label-mate Pieta Brown and Carrie Elkin, but it’s Moody who stands to benefit most from her chance to host a Garden Party.

She won’t be entirely on her own, though. The Pines’ Benson Ramsey, son of roots powerhouse guitarist/producer Bo Ramsey, will accompany her on a few tunes, and, of course, she’ll have her gardening tools — a banjo and guitar. Moody was even hoping to talk her father Charles, an English teacher who’s making the eight-hour drive from Winnipeg, into bringing her ukulele. The set will focus heavily on selections from The Garden, but Moody was also considering playing “Heaven When We’re Home,” a song off the Jennys’ Juno Award-winning 40 Days album that first appeared on her 2002 EP, Blue Muse.

Back then, Moody realized she wasn’t ready to go at it alone. But critical acclaim with the Jennys, numerous guest appearances on A Prairie Home Companion and a flourishing spirit of adventure have changed all that.

“You have to find strengths that you don’t need when you’re in a band,” she said. “And so I feel like sort of it’s a real growth experience in that way personally. And the things you learn because you’re learning them on your own are huge, you know? (pauses, then laughs) I haven’t a - Huffington Post