by Matheu DeSilva

When Stacey Joy and I were newlywed, she told me her dream of travelling the world in an Airstream Motorhome, to bring her music to people the old-fashioned way, with vibrant, intimate live performances. As a writer, musician and didikai (son of a roma-gypsy), I readily agreed. Then we got pregnant. I asked what she wanted to do now that we had a child on the way, and she replied, “I’d still like to travel the world and share my music, but just with the baby along as well.” That was the beginning of the adventure that has brought our family, five years later, to San Miguel de Allende.

A lot of the town has seen our rather distinctive silver bus at some point over the last two months, and many have wondered who it belongs to and what goes on inside. (We know this because, as aluminium walls aren’t as sound proof as one might think, we’ve heard them speculating outside.)

“It’s not the typical musicians’ tour bus,” my wife insists. “Sure, we have the bunkbeds - with three growing boys, we need them [yes, a mere five years on and already we have three!]. But we also have a lot of bookshelves, tea and toys, albeit mostly musical ones.” As well as now being an award-winning recording artist, Stacey Joy is also mother and home-school teacher to our three young sons, Rafael, Gabriel and Django.

The boys love this life. With a motorhome, they have all the security and cosiness of home, but with the addition of a magic door that opens onto different places all the time; one day the beach, the next mountains, a lake, a forest, and today San Miguel de Allende. They appreciate and value all the peoples and cultures they encounter, from playing new games with the local kids to learning history sitting atop ancient ruins, a life of travel has been one of the best gifts we could have given them. That, and the wealth of time this lifestyle affords us to spend with them.

In the past half-decade, our family has travelled overland (and by boat - bus and all - between Panama and Colombia) through twelve countries. We finance our lifestyle through our work as artists; I’m a ghost-writer and we’re both musicians. (Stacey Joy is the star, I’m ‘the band’.) From performing in large concert halls and festivals in the United States, Canada and Mexico, to playing free on town squares in some of the poorest countries in Latin America, Stacey Joy’s enthusiasm for the life she envisioned has not diminished.

‘When I see our boys picking up instruments and singing for people, it makes me smile, knowing that we made the right decision,” she says. “What kind of example would I have been setting by giving up on what I love just because they came into my life? Much better to share the dream than to abort it.’

Many of you may have heard Stacey Joy singing at the SMA International Jazz Festival or, if you’ve been lucky, guesting at one of the smaller venues around town. Her singing style is reminiscent of Norah Jones or a young Joni Mitchel. (She supplied the vocals in the tribute to that artist at St Paul’s in October when we first arrived.) Her own songs are a seductive mix of jazz, blues, world music and folk. Her last album, The Journey Unfolds was nominated in four categories at the 2017 New Mexico Music Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Singer/Songwriter. She went on to win the award for Best Americana.

Her new album There’s Magic Here is being unveiled for the first time in a special candlelit concert on the solstice here in San Miguel de Allende at St Paul’s Church on Friday, December 21 at 6pm. Unlike The Journey Unfolds, which was described as the ‘ultimate road trip album’, Stacey Joy’s new record is more about journeying inward. There’s Magic Here manages to dance along the fine-line between sophistication and passion, restrained classical order and wild-spirited abandon. The result is haunting, deeply moving; the perfect ‘rainy day’ record.

For the concert, joining Stacey Joy (vocals, piano, guitar) and myself (bass, percussion, flute), we will have two of San Miguel’s finest and most intuitive musicians: David Mendoza (violin, pianos, drums, percussion) and special guest Doug Robinson (pianos, drums). There will also be mulled wine and artisanal chocolates available to enhance the holiday spirit!

It’s going to be a magical, unmissable night. Prepare to be spellbound!

Tickets available @ www.staceyjoymusic/2018/11/tickets
Denise Rosenfeld Postres Artesanales – Mercado Sano, Ancha San Antonio
Tesoros Bookshop – La Biblioteca, Insurgentes 25
The Airstream – Calle Del Cardo

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