Sexton grew up the tenth of twelve children in a working class Irish-American family. He acquired his first guitar, a Sears & Roebuck acoustic, at the age of 14 and later played in local rock ‘n roll bands. Looking to find his own voice, he left home when he was 22 years old and began busking as a street performer in Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In November 1990, with $800 and some borrowed equipment, Sexton recorded a demo cassette In the Journey, eventually selling more than 20,000 copies, mostly at local gigs. His strong live performances won him a Boston Music Award for “Best New Artist” and led to...

McKenna started writing songs as a teenager, and became a professional songwriter at the age of 27, when she was already married and had three children. She began singing at open mike nights in Boston, notably at the Blackthorn Tavern in nearby Easton, and eventually at her own shows. Working with her then manager Gabriel Unger, McKenna released four critically acclaimed independent CDs: Paper Wings and Halos(produced by Seth Connelly), Pieces of Me (produced by Crit Harmon), The Kitchen Tapes (self-produced demos), and Bittertown (produced by Lorne Entress). During this period she recorded for Signature Sounds, won awards from ASCAP and...