“Ceremony” by 4 Way Street

Many people are familiar with the acclaimed live album, “4 Way Street”, by folk supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. But you might not be aware of another supergroup of singer-songwriters who were based in Philadelphia and named their band after this CSNY album.

 2003’s “Pretzel Park” is the only album released by Philly-based group 4 Way Street.

4 Way Street marked the convergence of Scott Bricklin, Ben Arnold, Joseph Parsons, and Jim Boggia. While each member is a notable talent in his own right, this collaboration produced a magical chemistry that is hard to find in the music world. Emulating their inspiration, this record boasts no-nonsense songwriting that focuses on melodies and harmonies.

The standout track for me is “Ceremony”, which features lead vocals by Parsons and first appeared on his 1998 solo record, “5am”. This is a haunting yet beautiful song with an inescapable melody made even better with sublime backing vocals.

From the uplifting opener, “Change Gonna Come”, to the sparse eloquence of the closing track, “Barbed Wire”, the record is perfect for a lazy Sunday morning. You also might recognize Jim Boggia’s excellent song, “Several Thousand”, which was on the TV show Men in Trees and later covered by American Idol contestant Constantine Maroulis on his self-titled debut record in 2007.

While some members went back to solo careers, others in the group stayed together to form US Rails.