Madison Smartt Bell Releases Second Album With Fellow Writer Wyn Cooper

Release date: April 01, 2008 |

Madison Smartt Bell, Goucher professor of English and chair for distinguished achievement, and poet and songwriter Wyn Cooper recently released Postcards Out of the Blue, their second album.

With lyrics by Cooper, music by novelist Bell, the songs vary from subtle folk to gritty blues to solid rock. The album's tracks were recorded in about five days at Bell's family's farm.

Bell and Cooper, longtime friends and collaborators, are joined by drummer/percussionist Jim Brock; Kenny Vaughan on electric guitar; and bassist Don Dixon, who also produced the album.

Bell and Cooper’s début album, Forty Words for Fear, was released by Gaff Music in 2003. Inspired by Bell’s novel Anything Goes, the album’s blend of blues, spoken word, and rock quickly met with acclaim. The album was featured on NPR's Weekend Edition and World Café and has been written about in The New York Times Magazine; The New York Observer; and Esquire, which named the disc “Obscure Southern Record of the Month” in June 2005.