Since a chance meeting at the University of Denver twenty years ago, Andy Hill and his singing partner Renee Safier have carved out a unique musical niche for themselves in the Los Angeles club scene (and beyond). Their performances – more than two-hundred a year – are as much social gathering as musical event. Part fan family reunion, part rock & roll tent revival, their incomparable live shows attract a large, enthusiastic, and fiercely loyal group of fans.
As a songwriter, Andy Hill is a student of the folk and rock classics – Van Morrison, The Band, Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan – and it shows. Boundary-pushing use of the language, sweeping vocal harmonies, unforgettable melodic content, and tightly crafted arrangements are all hallmarks of his writing and producing style.
Andy & Renee, along with their band Hard Rain, have taken their unique sound and multi-instrumental skills (as well as being riveting vocalists, they both play guitars and keyboards) to venues large and small all over the world. Local Southern California highlights include House of Blues and the Rio Theatre in Hollywood, and the Hermosa Beach Civic Center. They have also played at Kerrville Folk Festival, Napa Valley Folk Festival, Sierra Songwriter’s Festival, and the Bob Dylan Festival in Italy.
Their seven independent CD releases have won them countless awards, including: 2007 LA Music Awards "Americana Group of the Year", Best Duo/Group at the 2005 International Acoustic Music Awards, Qweevak.com “Top-40 CDs of the year (for their latest: “A River is Goneâ€), runner-up for best folk act at the 1999 Crossroads Music Awards, and a two year run in the Musician Magazine “Best Unsigned Band†Semifinals.
In 2005, Renee Safier, showcasing her prodigious blues and jazz vocal chops, won the Telluride Blues Festival Acoustic Blues Competition, receiving a rousing response from the 5,000-plus festival crowd.
In addition to all this, Andy Hill and Renee Safier are about to celebrate their 18th year hosting their own Bob Dylan Festival. What started out as a small once-a-year backyard party where a loose conglomerate of close friends would take turns performing Dylan classics all day and well into the night (or until the cops came), has evolved into a full-blown music festival attended by hundreds of fans and featuring many of L.A.’s top musicians. This year the festival will take place at Club 705 in Hermosa Beach, CA.
Andy Hill and Renee Safier both live in the South Bay area of Los Angeles.
