CD, release party, a hit for Brann

Published 9:33 am Wednesday, June 19, 2019

It was standing room only at the OK Theatre for the CD release party of musician extraordinaire Meredith Brann, daughter of theatre owners, Darrell and Christie Brann. The Friday, June 14 concert celebrated the release of Brann’s first CD, Balance, a mixture of originals and covers that Brann locally recorded with family and friends.

A pleased Darrell Brann emceed the show, while up-and-coming artist, Ariana Samples opened the show with three stellar numbers while accompanied by her father, Caleb Samples.

A virtual all-star cast of musicians played with Brann through the evening including most, if not all, of her family. Uncle Craig Brann and his wife came all the way from New York, while her paternal grandparents made the trip from Maine for the event.

The 17-year-old singer opened the show with an original number, “Skipping Down the Road,” before performing a shimmering duet with her mother on the staple, “To Know Him is to Love Him,” before launching into “Crazy,” and later, a stunning rendition of the Beatles’ “Come Together” with a full band.

Brann didn’t neglect the violin, her favorite musical instrument, playing it on select numbers while she also showed her guitar skills during the second half of the show.

Finishing the first half of the show with the title song of her album, Brann started the second half with a number of duets, starting with her violin teacher, Rebecca Lenahan, followed by duets with two of her aunts and even performed a sweet version of the Judds’ classic, “Grandpa,” with her grandmother, Ina Brann.

Brann’s sister, Bella, also got in on the act performing a lovely version of the Everly Brothers’ “Dream.” Playing solo acoustic, Brann ended the show with the closing song on her album, “Love,” from the Disney version of Robin Hood.

The audience called Brann back up to the stage for an encore in which she and many of the musicians did a smoking version of “Hit the Road, Jack,” nearly bringing down the house.

Darrell Brann said CD sales were brisk as were sales from online platforms.

“I think she’s covered all her expenses at this point,” Brann said. “She’s starting to make some money on it, so that’s pretty cool.”