Lowen & Navarro have been called "an acoustic Hall & Oates" and a "modern-day Simon & Garfunkel." (We know, 'cause we've called them both!) But however you classify their music, they are certainly one of our very favorites and we're thrilled to have them back at Russ & Julie's House Concerts. (Their first show here was back in November 1997.)

For more than a decade, Eric Lowen and Dan Navarro have written, recorded and toured for a growing national audience. Their five CDs showcase self-penned songs of experience, colored by supple acoustic-based arrangements centered around their intertwined voices.

Songwriters of notable cachet, their works have been recorded by artists as diverse as Pat Benatar (the worldwide Top 5 hit "We Belong"), The Bangles, The Four Tops, Dave Edmunds, The Temptations and a host of others. Out of their success as songwriters came the impetus for forming Lowen & Navarro: They wanted to sing their songs themselves.

In 1988, they began a weekly residency at The Breakaway in Venice, CA and played what they pleased. They didn't actively promote the shows or invite their music business friends. Yet within a year, crowds were growing and a buzz started that coincided with an emerging "Nu-Folk" scene in LA. By the end of 1989 they were recording their first album.

In 1990, their debut, Walking On A Wire, was released by Chameleon Records to rave reviews. Produced by Jim Scott (BoDeans, Samples, Whiskeytown), the album built a radio base with the songs "Walking On A Wire" and "The Spell You're Under". They toured relentlessly and found responsive audiences nationwide, particularly in Washington DC, Baltimore, Chicago, Minneapolis and Denver, cities that remain L &N strongholds to this day.

Three years later, Parachute-Mercury Records issued the lovely Broken Moon as the label's inaugural release. The disc was a hit at Triple-A radio with "All Is Quiet", "Constant As The Night" and "Just To See You". Months of touring followed, some of it in the subzero cold snap of 1994. With their fan base growing, Mercury purchased Walking On A Wire in 1994 and reissued it with three bonus tracks, including "Rapt In You", another Triple-A hit.

They followed in 1995 with the enigmatic Pendulum, where their sound was honed to a fine edge by lean arrangements and a close vocal presence. It took to the airwaves featuring not only new songs from their own pens but showing off L&N's collaboration abilities. Eric & Dan wrote with such greats as Jules Shear, Billy Steinberg and Gretchen Peters. The latter, a writer with several Top 10 Country tunes and a Grammy to her credit helped pen "Cry", a tune Dan describes as "a sad love song with a happy tempo".

Signing with Intersound Records in 1997, they released Live Wire, a 1989 club performance that earned them their first press attention and two record deals. Their newest album, Scratch At The Door, was released in mid-1998. Self-produced, it addresses new subjects as their lives enter new phases. The first single, "When The Lights Go Down", is a wry ode to life in the middle lane and has received substantial national air play. The driving follow-up, "Do With Me What You Will," hit radio in March, 1999.

It is through their live shows that Lowen & Navarro have built their greatest reputation. Whether as a duo or with rhythm section backing, they always deliver dynamic, emotional, uplifting performances to fiercely loyal audiences. Through the years, Lowen & Navarro continue to document humanity's dignity and frailty, to examine life's losses and lessons. Their songs are all conveyed with an urgency and immediacy that is the hallmark of their commitment to their music and their audience.

Their August 2001 concert at Russ & Julie's House Concerts was a huge success. Performing before a standing room only audience, the duo performed songs from all phases of their careers and won rave reviews from everyone in attendance. Please be sure to visit the Lowen & Navarro website at www.lownav.com.