My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden and Dayna Kurtz Swap Songs

My Brightest Diamond's Shara Worden and renowned jazzy singer-songwriter Dayna Kurtz will swap songs for a split seven-inch single, to be released on vinyl and digitally Jul. 20. While Worden covers Kurtz's acclaimed 'Postcards From Downtown,' from her 2002 album of that name, Kurtz redoes MBD's haunting 'Gone Away.'

A couple of weeks ago, the pair joined up with MBD labelmate Liz Janes for the opening of the Indianapolis Museum of Art's new sculpture park. The trio performed their co-composed three-part a cappella vocal piece, titled 'Instill,' which was commissioned for the event.

But it was several years ago that Worden and Kurtz began their mutual appreciation society. Before Worden broke out as My Brightest Diamond with her 2006 debut 'Bring Me the Workhorse,' which features 'Gone Away,' she saw Kurtz perform at New York's Living Room. Then, a few years later, the roles were reversed and MBD was on stage at the Living Room and Kurtz was in the audience, a place she doesn't often find herself.

"She knew who I was because she'd seen me play and she's a fan," Kurtz tells Spinner. "I knew who she was because my husband is a publisher and he was signing her at the time. He doesn't ask me to see much, because he knows I'm much pickier than he is," she says with a laugh. "He said you have to come with me tonight to see her at the Living Room and I gave in. She blew my head off and we became mutual fan-friends.

The idea for this single came later, but the seed was planted that night for Kurtz. "I knew I was going to cover 'Gone Away,' she says. "That was the song that knocked me on my ass the first time I saw her. It was so beautiful and so sad. I knew I was going to cover that at some point."

Three years ago, Kurtz took Worden on the road in the Netherlands as her opener. "Her record wasn't even out. She can now probably take me as her opener," says Kurtz. What with Worden currently busy being very pregnant -- "She's about to pop," declares Kurtz happily -- the pair have no further performances planned.