Greg Klyma Trifecta

Greg Klyma got on my radar when I saw him open for Anthony da Costa (who got on my radar from opening for Graham, but more on him later) at Caffe Lena, sometime back in the fall.

Greg Klyma is 'the Rust Belt Vagabond' from Buffalo, NY (which is also the title of his latest album). He travels around the country in a Toyota minivan. After that first show I bought his CDs (3 f0r 30) and got hooked.

Now, Greg Klyma is a singer/songwriter, a folksinger, and seeing him live is really a treat. For one thing, he is so funny, his stories make you laugh, and his songs can make you think, or they touch your heart. His song 'Two Degrees in Buffalo" is totally a love song to the place he came from, and I think it is a masterpiece (I appreciate it and I've never even been there!)

The thing that really grabs me about him is that he has so much heart. He is intelligent and respectful, and just seems like the ANTI-angry young man. In the introduction to the song "New Clothes" he told a story about how a fan/friend shared with him the impact that song had on her. He said something like "People give you their stories and then they become part of you". But it was such a touching story that now that story has become part of me too, and I don't think I could hear that song without thinking of that other girl....

So after seeing him the first time, I got on his mailing list - got an invite to a house party where he was playing, so got to see him again in early March. Then I saw he was playing Binghamton (well within my 2.5 hour travel time for music) called an old friend I have there, and we went to see him together. It was a great time, and I am totally hooked on Klyma.