Both are deft instrumentalists, and they’ve spent years playing in others’ bands before coming together as a unit. They’re bound by music and an uncommon depth of companionship, they’re good enough to make Steve Earle swoon, and all of that sounds quite nice.
Until 16 and a half seconds into track one, when Eleanor Whitmore begins singing, “The twitch in my left eye came back today.” “Yeah, we’re not exactly gazing lovingly at each other while we’re playing these songs,” says guitarist Chris Masterson. “Sometimes the ‘couple’ thing can seem a bit schmaltzy. We’re more a band than a duo, and we’re not going to be George and Tammy. We might not even be John and Exene.”
That’s not to say that these folks don’t love each other, or that they aren’t of a piece. It’s just that listening to The Mastersons – either live or on their immediately engaging, musically expansive debut album, Birds Fly South (due out April 10 on New West Records) – isn’t akin to eavesdropping on two soulmates’ impossibly intimate conversation. This is more fun than that, with bright melodies that lead to dark lyrics, inventive harmonies and enough sparkle and twang to fashion a Porter Wagoner suit. Together, Whitmore (who plays guitar, violin, mandolin and most anything else with strings) and Masterson arrive at a singular blend that Emmylou Harris speaks of as “the third voice,” one distinct from its individual elements.
“Eleanor on her own has a beautiful voice, far better than mine,” Masterson says. “But when we come together, something bigger happens.”
That “something bigger” is captured in full on Birds Fly South, an album with soul and groove and teeth and not an ounce of schmaltz. Like the Jayhawks or Buddy & Julie Miller, it exists in an expansive territory that encompasses rock, pop, blues and country, but this is not an “If you like x, then you’ll like y” kind of record. It’s an unexpected and frequently astonishing melding of sensibilities, from two unique yet perfectly-matched artists.
Both the Denton, Texas-born Whitmore and Houston-reared Masterson have been musicians for as long as they can recall. Whitmore’s parents were both musicians, her mother an opera singer and her dad a folksinger who piloted Delta airplanes for a living. She began playing fiddle at age four, and she and sister Bonnie (now a touring songwriter) played in the family band as kids, and she studied fiddle with Texas swing master Johnny Gimble. Masterson was playing searing blues in Houston clubs at age 13, and he spent his adolescence as a disciple of blues greats Big Walter Price and T-Bone Walker.
“We were both doomed from the start,” Whitmore laughs. “Actually, we were lucky. It’s rare to have supportive parents that believed and expected we would play music and be successful. Most people that have a passion for music aren’t that fortunate.”
Whitmore and Masterson apprenticed for years with other musicians, she with Regina Spektor, Susan Gibson, Kelly Willis, Diana Ross, Will Hoge and others, he in the bands of Jack Ingram, Son Volt, Bobby Bare Jr. and more. They met in 2005 and each released solo debuts (hers was 2008’s Airplanes and his was an EP called The Late Great Chris Masterson), but found themselves compelled to write and sing together.
“It all started coming together organically,” Whitmore says. “And the songs started to sound like a band, not like a song swap.”
To capture that sound, The Mastersons headed from their Brooklyn home back down to Texas, where they worked with a core group of close friends (Grammy-winning engineer Steve Chrisensen, bass man George Reiff and drummer Falcon Valdez) to co-produce Birds Fly South. To capture the harmonies, Whitmore and Masterson sang together, into one microphone. That didn’t mean the proceedings were free from arguments or eye-twitching.
“It’s weird working with someone you love,” Masterson says. “The highs are higher, and the lows are lower. The way Eleanor and I treat each other, you’d never treat someone else on a session or gig. There’s a candor there that’s insane sometimes, and we both believe in what we’re doing so much and neither is willing to back down.”
With the album complete, Whitmore and Masterson headed back to New York, and in May of 2011 they joined Earle’s group, The Dukes and Duchesses. Each night on the world tour, Earle moved aside to let his spotlight shine on The Mastersons, whose efforts were met with reviews like “scintillating” (London’s The Telegraph). Whitmore and Masterson remain integral players in Earle’s band.
“Playing with Steve has been so great for us,” Masterson says. “We’ve both learned so much from working with other people. We’ve learned to have something succinct to say onstage and learned a whole lot about work ethic. And we’ve learned to handle so many many different scenarios.”
The release of Birds Fly South should provide for some more of those scenarios, though The Mastersons aren’t making any predictions.
“I’m not in the outcomes business,” says Masterson. He and Whitmore are more concerned with the action than the consequence, more about the offering than the reception.
Eye-twitching or no, Birds Fly South is a lovely offering.
The Mastersons.
Husband and wife, singing and playing together.
I Found You
The Mastersons Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cause I always made things seem so hard
I complicate 'em and fail to see things how they are
And you might be the find of the century
You could be my good luck charm
I didn't know that I was searching for you all along
Now I believe that love
would swallow up the blue
that I found you
I found peace in simple things
an easy truth that we both know
you found angel wings but spoke to me in earthly tones
Now I believe that love
would swallow up the blue
it's all or nothing now
that I found you
You and me we're shining bright
We paid the piper, we'll call a tune
We finally got it right, I think the stars I fell for you
Now I believe that love
would swallow up the blue
it's all or nothing now
that I found you
Cause we believe in love
and we've learned a thing or two
it's all or nothing now
that I found you
I found you
The Mastersons' song, "I Found You," is a testament to the transformative power of love. The lyrics describe the singer's realization that they have been overcomplicating their life and that love has the ability to bring simplicity and peace. The singer acknowledges that they had been searching for love all along and had finally found it in the person they are singing to. The song is an expression of gratitude for having found love and not letting it slip away.
The first stanza of the song sets the tone for the rest of the piece. The singer states that they had always made things seem hard, and they overcomplicated everything. However, they've found someone who makes everything easy, and they realize that they've been searching for this person all along. The second stanza describes how they find peace in the simplicity of their relationship - they describe it as an "easy truth." The singer also acknowledges that their partner is someone special and grateful for this person's presence in their life.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the transformative power of love. The singer sings, "Now I believe that love would swallow up the blue / It's all or nothing now that I found you." The blue is a metaphor for sadness or depression, and the singer is saying that love has the ability to heal them completely. The subsequent stanzas describe how happy the singer is in their relationship and how they feel like they've finally gotten things right. The final chorus emphasizes that they've learned a thing or two about love, and it's all or nothing now that they've found their partner.
Line by Line Meaning
I never knew it could be so easy
The person is surprised how easy love can be and how they always made it complicated.
Cause I always made things seem so hard
The person is reflecting on how they made love difficult in the past.
I complicate 'em and fail to see things how they are
The person admits they have a tendency to overthink and not see things clearly.
And you might be the find of the century
The person acknowledges the other as someone special and rare.
You could be my good luck charm
The person believes the other brings them luck and success.
I didn't know that I was searching for you all along
The person realizes they were looking for the other, even though they didn't know it.
Now I believe that love would swallow up the blue
The person is optimistic that love can fix any sadness.
it's all or nothing now that I found you
The person is committed to making their relationship work, now that they have found the other.
I found peace in simple things an easy truth that we both know
The person has found contentment in the simple things with the other, and they both understand each other well.
you found angel wings but spoke to me in earthly tones
The person sees the other as angelic, but they talk to each other in a way that is down-to-earth and relatable.
You and me we're shining bright
The person and the other have a bright, radiant relationship together.
We paid the piper, we'll call a tune
The person and the other have overcome challenges and now have control over their relationship.
We finally got it right, I think the stars I fell for you
The person is grateful for their relationship and feels they have finally found the right person.
Cause we believe in love and we've learned a thing or two
The person and the other believe in love and have gained wisdom from their experiences.
it's all or nothing now that I found you
The person reiterates their commitment to the other now that they have found them.
I found you
The person affirms that they have found the other and are happy in their relationship.
Contributed by Emily T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@folklectic
One of the finest love songs ever sung and written.
@bernadetteconnor8543
I love listening to this couple. Beautiful voices! Beautiful people!
@jacicrimmccrary
Eleanor and Chris sang and played this beautiful love song during the wedding of Steve Poltz and Sharon Daddi on the last day of the 2020 Cayamo Cruise and it's continued to play in my head ever since. It's especially appropriate to remember today, February 14th, 2020!
@maunaowakea777
So so so so sooooo beautiful! Thank you!!!!
@tommccabe2247
Melanie Burns
@matthewe.johnson1760
email sent in regards to williams and zimmerman
@robmoore4574
We had The Mastersons and The Whitmore sisters booked at the Old Parcels Office in Scarborough UK in February - they postponed and set a new date with us for May 7th 2022 . We had sold most of the tickets and with around three weeks to go they have cancelled both UK dates leaving us high and dry . Apparently not enough money in it for them even though the fee was set and agreed many moons ago . Makes us look unprofessional and leaves and in the UK concert less. We will not be booking them ever again and we are alerting other venues about their unreliability.