BIOGRAPHY

Influences

Many moons before Carey dreamed of making albums, her Dad used to play Tin Pan Alley tunes on the piano pretty much every day of her childhood...which was probably the impetus for her crafting her first songs on piano. Wafting through the home were also the sounds of Elisabeth Schwartzkopf (the opera singer), London Symphony ballet music, musicals, and 1930’s college sing-alongs. Under Carey's pillow was a transistor radio where she would listen late into the night to far-away rock and roll stations. Just like so many other kids, she experienced epiphanies upon seeing on Peter, Paul and Mary sing Bob Dylan's political "Blowin' in the Wind" and the Beatles' exuberant American debut. As a young adult, Carey composed and performed her own songs at anti-war protests and downtown D.C. coffeehouses.

Performing

Over the years she has performed solo, but also with a jug band, big band, jazz duo—plus rock, Black gospel and Celtic groups. Genre-jumping has led to collaborations with many other artists; Carey has been a guest performer on more than 20 album projects. Other highlights have included appearing as a soloist for three Joni Mitchell Tributes: at Strathmore Music Center’s mammoth production by Bandhouse Gigs; at the Institute of Musical Traditions Concert Series, and at the Takoma Park Folk Festival.

Photo by Peg Kay, Vertech Inc.

Some long-lasting group commitments in which Carey has been a soloist include Greentree (pictured here at Potomac Overlook Regional Park), Connemara, Mosaic Harmony, Doc Scantlin and His Imperial Palms Orchestra (pictured in black and white photo above), and St. Augustine Black Gospel Choir. Finnegan’s Jig (with Jody Marshall (hammered dulcimer), Andrea Hoag (fiddle), and Zan McLeod (guitar and mandolin) is in its third year, and more recently, a great guitarist has teamed up with Carey to form a duo: Bob Williams of Rock Creek Jazz and Steppin’ Out (formerly of the Peptonz, Grass Menagerie).

Recording

Carey's latest CD, Peace of Wild Things, was released by Azalea City Recordings to a SRO crowd of 240 at a CD party/benefit concert for city- and county-wide interfaith charities. Mike Joyce of The Washington Post reviewed the CD, praising the music's "whimsical...tender...acoustic charms." The award-winning album has gone on to be played on many community and public radio stations here and abroad.

I'll Know You, Carey's 2003 release on Azalea City Recordings, includes folk radio magnets, Home-coming (a Leonie Adams poem she set to music), Chloe by Jack Bond, Now I Know and the title cut by Carey. These songs have also been part of Focus and Azalea City compilation CDs.

Looking way back to 1992, Carey made her first CD, Plum Branch. This recording of all-original music came about as a result of major changes in her life: music and poetry became lifelines as she dealt with the death of her husband, Jim Creed-Detorie, and also with her own struggles with potentially life-threatening illness.

Jim had been an ESL teacher who became friends with his students (who were mostly refugees). He had given Carey a home-made card he created which quoted an ancient Vietnamese poem by Man Giac entitled Rebirth. After Jim died, she set the poem to music.

The album title evolved from Man Giac's description of a plum branch blossoming even after Spring was gone; the poem came from a book edited and translated by Nguyen Ngoc Bich: One Thousand Years of Vietnamese Poetry—a special gift to Jim from one of his students.

Grace Griffith's version of Rebirth (on Blix Streets Records) has been broadcast on NPR's syndicated show, Midnight Special. My Life, Grace's latest CD on Blix, features Carey's setting of another poem, this time by photographer/poet Fred Sisson: Passing Thoughts.

For information about all the people who have helped to bring Carey’s recordings into being, plus music clips, please visit the Recordings page.

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