For more than twenty years Devonsquare has defined the sound of contemporary folk across northern New England. Occasional collaborator Rex Fowler of Aztec Two-Step once labeled the Portland, ME-based trio the “original folk and roll band,” a description that still fits their warm three-part harmonies wrapped around hook-driven, acoustic-centered arrangements.
Since forming in 1979 as the Devon Square Trio, the group has traveled a long arc of change. Its original lineup—tenor vocalist, band manager, and attorney Herb Ludwig alongside Jeff Rice and Steve Romanoff—drew from Kingston Trio influences; Ludwig, who had performed with the Romanoff brothers as a member of Schooner Fare, brought early choir experience to the mix.
The early 1980s marked a decisive shift when Ludwig’s long-term partners Alana MacDonald and Tom Deal joined the fold. MacDonald, a classically trained violinist who also plays with the Portland Symphony Orchestra, and Deal, a self-taught guitarist who had previously worked with Ludwig in a six-piece rock incarnation of the band, completed the enduring trio.
The self-released albums Devonsquare (1984) and Night Sail (1985) sharpened a pop sensibility that led to a 1988 contract with Atlantic. Their label debut, Walking on Ice, placed its title track in the Top 20. The follow-up, Bye Bye Route 66 (1992), delivered the harder-edged singles “If You Could See Me Now” and the title song, featured guest appearances by Stephen Stills and bassist Anthony Jackson, and earned the band a Boston Music Award nomination for Best New Act despite nearly a decade together. Although Atlantic did not extend the deal, Devonsquare persisted; the 1996 release Industrial Twilight, issued on Ludwig’s own Dev imprint and shaped by the spirit of Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation, was followed three years later by Ludwig’s debut solo album, Your Own Backyard.
