Gordon Peery has been playing for contra dances for over 30 years, and is widely regarded as one of the most energetic and driving players in the genre. His style has been described as barrelhouse Irish, and though the music is (usually) traditional New England tunes, he cites influences as diverse as Oscar Peterson, The Rolling Stones, and Brian Wilson.
From 1985 – 1995 Gordon played with fiddler Kerry Elkin in the renowed contra dance band Fresh Fish, and in this capacity toured throughout the United States and was on the staff of many dance camps including Pinewoods, Ashokan, Buffalo Gap, the New England Folk Festival, Champlain Valley Folk Festival, and Old Songs. With Gordon and Kerry at the core, Fresh Fish were often joined by additional musicians. Their 1991 album Turning of the Tide included David Surette, Danny Novick, Dirk Powell and Ruthi Dornfeld.
During this time Gordon also formed the New Hampshire Fiddlers Union, Randy Miller, Rodney Miller, and Skip Gorman. The group came together specifically to record The Music of John Taggart, an album of fiddle tunes discovered in the memiors of John Taggart, who lived from 1854 to 1943.
In 2007 Gordon emerged from a 10 -year hiatus to rejoin the contra dance scene. He plays most every week at the Monday night dance in Nelson, New Hampshire, and is once again traveling both within New England, and at various dances and events throughout the country.
In addition to playing New England contra dance music, Gordon covers the standard swing repertiore, and enjoys accompanying various vocalists in folk, rock, jazz and blues. He can provide instrumental music for wedding, funerals, and other meaningful gatherings, as well as parties or public events where instrumental music provides background support.
In addition to music, Gordon has a web design consultancy, Center Pond Communications, which provides web site creation and management, focusing on sites for artists, musicians, and small business. He also works part time as the business manager for Our Town Landscaping in Hancock, New Hampshire.
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