The Roches

Noted for their lush harmonies, quirky songs, and impressive stylistic range, the three Roche sisters -- Maggie, Terre, and Suzzy -- were among contemporary folk music's most endearing artists. The Roches began singing together while growing up in New York during the late '50s and early '60s, taking to the streets of the city each holiday season to regale passersby with Christmas carols. At the end of the decade both Maggie (the oldest) and Terre (the middle daughter) quit school to begin touring professionally as a duo. In 1970 they met Paul Simon, who tapped them to sing backup on his There Goes Rhymin' Simon album. He also helped get them a contract with Columbia; their debut LP, Seductive Reasoning, followed in 1975, but went largely unnoticed. For a time, the Roches considered quitting the music business, even leaving New York to retreat to Louisiana; eventually they returned north, at which time Suzzy left college to join the group full-time. Restored to a trio, the Roches became a staple of the Greenwich Village folk circuit and a favorite of local critics. In 1979, they signed to Warner Bros. to issue a self-titled LP produced by Robert Fripp, earning acclaim for their exquisite harmonies (equal parts Terre's ethereal upper register, Maggie's near-baritone low notes, and Suzzy's midrange acrobatics). While the track "The Married Men" later scored a successful cover by Phoebe Snow, The Roches itself was not a hit. For 1980's Nurds, they changed direction, augmenting their basic folk sound with a rock rhythm section comprised of former Television bassist Fred Smith and Patti Smith Group drummer Jay Dee Daugherty. Fripp returned to produce 1982's Keep on Doing, a largely acoustic effort featuring cameos from members of his band King Crimson. When neither it nor its...