An enigmatic singer-songwriter, master guitarist, and a powerful, evocative singer, Richard Shindell veers from the bitterly comic to the profoundly spiritual. An expatriate New Yorker now living in Argentina, and a former seminary student, he began composing during the late 1980s, quickly earning a word-of-mouth cult following as a meticulous craftsman of song. After several solo albums, Richard teamed with Dar Williams and Lucy Kaplansky in the group Cry Cry Cry. The trio toured for two years and released a widely acclaimed, self-titled album. Returning to his solo career, in 2000 Richard released Somewhere Near Paterson (Signature), a powerful, dark, yet ultimately irresistible experience that secures his place as a master among songwriters. Last year he followed with the live album Courier (Signature Sounds), a collection of performances that captures his singular intensity and inventive spirit.