Mary Stoyke

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Mary Stoyke has been writing songs since she was about eleven years old. Her dad gave he her first guitar then, and her sister Marcie taught her three chords and a Bob Dylan song, and she was hooked. Mary loves guitars - all types of them - and likes to watch her husband play his classical guitar and listen to the strings magically turn her mind into a Fantasia scene. Stoyke and her husband fix up old guitars that have been abandoned and polish and shine them until they are back into the sound world again.

Stoyke notes that she is writing from the heart, and that it seems to work for her and for the guys she play with in the band. Stoyke has a strong belief in the healing powers of our tears and emotional reaction of the connection to sound and lyric.

Mary Stoyke works full time for a Life Enrichment program for people with developmental disabilities. She uses her music in a therapeutic capacity to engage the senses and quiet the pain.

Of the title track of her first CD, Blow a Kiss to You, Mary says it "was written to my Mother as she was leaving this earth. It is about the innate reaction of looking up to the sky, and blowing a kiss to our loved ones, who are no longer tactile or physically present. This simple act of blowing a kiss for me, is an innocent and natural reaction. I find it brings me immediately to my childhood self and I often wonder if it is a universal gesture. My hope for those who are grieving is that they find solace in some parts of this song."

Blow a Kiss to You Mary Stoyke's first album. Music about traveling through changes of the heart and navigating the edge of heartache. "Mary Stoyke's new CD, Blow a Kiss to You, is a refreshing change from the standard folk fare. Mary's voice is both clear and beautiful and it seems that she can do whatever she wants with it. Her voice is a surprise in that Mary is not content with standard simple melody's and rhythms; her songs are sprinkled with delightful rhythmic shifts, interesting phrasing, and well crafted lyrics. I've listened to a pile of music in the past many years and it's rare for me to make it through a whole CD. I listened to this one several times and couldn't get some of the songs out of my head. The arrangements, musicianship, and production are all quite good, but it's Mary's voice that really shines through." Chip Stewart of The Amazing Grace Cafe in Duluth, MN. CD Price: $14.97

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