Three years in the making, island singer and songwriter Joe Panzetta has just released the album “Flowers & Weeds,” which consists of 10 original songs backed by his string arrangements, and features numerous guest appearances including islanders Kat Eggleston, Ara James, Michael Meade, and his former bandmate, Rebekah Kuzma.

Having sung her parts last summer before her tragic death in October, Rebekah is also central to a second new album, the 2-single EP, “Another Time Another Place,” by Saint Ophelia.

“This is the final studio recordings we’ll ever do as Saint Ophelia,” said Panzetta. “The process of finishing these songs has been a very strange gift filled with a lot of emotion.”

Both albums were produced by Martin Feveyear and are available now on streaming platforms.

On Friday, July 25, Panzetta will celebrate the new albums with a show at Snapdragon’s Black Cat Cabaret.

In the first set, he will be backed by a the string trio of Annie Roberts, Madeleine Sosin and Sarah Perlman as well as special guests Kat Eggleston, Ara James and Michael Hayes.

The second set will be the debut performance of Second Verse, the new band formed by the surviving members of St. Ophelia.

“Around three months after Rebekah’s death, Dan, Chuck, Wes and I began jamming again with this approach: let’s not play anything we’ve ever played before,” Panzetta said.

The show starts at 7:30pm. A donation of $20 is suggested at the door.

Two albums just released by Joe Panzetta include contributions from Rebekah Kuzma, his bandmate in St. Ophelia and a beloved island singer who died last year. (Courtesy photo)