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Wednesday, September 1
Sojourners
$18 in advance or $20 at the door.
When Canadian blues icon Jim Byrnes called Vancouver based gospel singer Marcus Mosely on the phone a few years ago to ask if he could round up a few friends to record some back up vocals for a new album, no one could have guessed what would happen next.
From the moment Mosely and his pals, Will Sanders and Ron Small stepped up to the microphone and began singing, they realized that they had something very special going on. When Byrnes dubbed the trio The Sojourners the name stuck and – as they say – the rest is history.
Formative years spent singing in the churches of Mosely, Small and Sanders', hometowns – Ralls, Texas, Chicago, Illinois and Alexandria, Louisiana respectively – give The Sojourners' sound an authentic edge that only comes with experience. This is real gospel - blessed with a soul that can't be faked.
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Over the last 15 years, Signature Sounds have been at the forefront of independent acoustic American music, gaining a reputation for supporting young upcoming acts such as Crooked Still, Eilen Jewell, Mark Erelli and more. The release of Joy Kills Sorrow’s first album for Signature is likely to add to their reputation as ‘Darkness Sure Becomes This City’ is not only one of the finest acoustic modern American folk albums, but it feels like an important release that marks the arrival of a special group of fresh, young musicians.
You could loosely categorise Joy Kills Sorrow as Americana in that they merge influences from bluegrass and folk, but it’s all mixed in with hints of Celtic, jazz, indie rock and more to create a sound that is as refreshingly unique as it is familiar – it certainly breaks with tradition, but in the same breath has more than a nod to the music that has gone before it. The Boston-based five piece are obviously all well versed in traditional American music and have respect for the history of the material, but they also have an equal love of contemporary music and on this album it all comes together on this fantastic eleven track album.
They released a debut album a couple of years ago, but several band members later, Joy Kills Sorrow have settled on a line-up of some if the country’s finest young talent with a host of awards and accolades behind them that range from national flat picking champion to 2008 Canadian Folk Awards Young Performer of the year, to a winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest. On paper they look like they should be something special, but the resulting collection of songs is even better!
Vocalist Emma Beaton has a naturally soulful voice that is as comfortable with a band backing her as it is acapella; and Jacob Jolliff is as fine and exciting mandolin player as you could wish to hear (and that includes the legends Grisman & Marshall). Beaton & Jolliff with the banjo of Wesley Corbett provide much of the colour on the disc, but the guitar work of Matthew Arcara and bass of Bridget Kearney are vitally important to the overall quality and much of the overall shape and sound of Joy Kills Sorrow comes from the songwriting style and overall arrangements of Kearney.
The album is a sequence of great songs, all with a slightly different flavour and just a little outside of what you expect, and that’s the beauty of ‘Darkness Sure Becomes This City’, it’s never quite what you expect and after a few listens it becomes apparent this is an important and striking collection of modern American acoustic music. Absolutely not to be missed!
- Fish Records, UK (January 4, 2010) |
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Tuesday, September 7
Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women
$34.50 in advance or $37 at the door.
The poignant journey which culminated in dave alvin's new album Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women began on one of those san Francisco fall days that seemed to melt back into the bay fog as slyly as it emerged. dave alvin was bounding off the stage at the massive, free Hardly strictly Bluegrass Festival. Nearly before he was able to set foot on his beloved California dirt, alvin was grabbed by friend and Yep roc label co-founder Glenn dicker. "We've gotta make a record!" The reason for dicker's excitement - and the excitement of the thousands of music fans who just witnessed it - was the set alvin and all female band The Guilty Women had just laid down moments before. dave and band members Cindy Cashdollar, Nina Gerber, Laurie Lewis, Christy McWilson, sarah Brown, amy Farris and Lisa Pankratz blazed through their set, surprising each other at every turn. "It just felt so natural," says alvin. "It was like I had been playing with them for a hundred years."You couldn't tell, watching him on stage that day, but the events in alvin's life that had led up to it were some of the most trying of his life. six months before, Guilty Men accordionist Chris Gaffney passed away following a valiant battle with cancer. Gaffney wasn't only the accordionist in alvin's band, he was his best friend. as support and well wishes flowed to Gaffney's family from friends and fellow musicians, alvin set out calling some of the biggest names in roots music to come together to honor is fallen friend. The result, Man of Somebody's Dreams: A Tribute to the Songs of Chris Gaffney will be released by Yep roc along side dave alvin & The Guilty Women on 5/26/09. artists and friends like Calexico, Los Lobos, alejandro Escovedo, James McMurtry and many more coalesced for an album of Gaffney songs benefiting his family and the non-profit Hungry for Music, who provide musical instruments to underprivileged children (hungryformusic.org). "The response from the artists was immediate," remarks alvin. "They all wanted a chance to help Chris' family and most of all, a chance to pay tribute to him and his songs!"With the catharsis of the tribute album project in tow, alvin turned his attention to his next musical move. One thing was clear, he knew he wasn't yet ready to record with The Guilty Men again. The wound of Gaffney's death was still too fresh, the space on the stage where he once stood still too empty. alvin decided now was the time for something new. Knowing Hardly strictly was just up the tracks, he called friend and austin-based guitarist Cindy Cashdollar. Cashdollar jumped in with both feet and the other ladies followed suit. Having played together in various incarnations with several Guilty Women in the past, alvin was confident the chemistry would be right. "The reality that we'd never played together as a group and that there was no time to rehearse before our debut performance didn't bother me at all. I knew that they were all master musicians who could easily handle any sort of song I could throw at them. and that's exactly what they did and they did it effortlessly and beautifully."The austin, TX recording sessions progressed in much the same fashion with Christy McWilson contributing two songs, sarah Brown one and an amy Farris/dave alvin co-write. The tunes were built around dave's acoustic guitar work, with the ladies surrounding alvin with an instrumental blanket that made it clear womanly intuition isn't just an emotional asset but a musical one as well
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Thursday & Friday, September 9/10
Greg Brown
$40 in advance or $42.50 at the door.
Greg Brown's mother played electric guitar, his grandfather played banjo, and his father was a Holy Roller preacher in the Hacklebarney section of Iowa, where the Gospel and music are a way of life. Brown's first professional singing job came at age 18 in New York City, running hootenannies (folksinger get-togethers) at the legendary Gerdes Folk City. After a year, Brown moved west to Los Angeles and Las Vegas, where he was a ghostwriter for Buck Ram, founder of the Platters. Tired of the fast-paced life, Brown traveled with a band for a few years, and even quit playing for a while before he moved back to Iowa and began writing songs and playing in midwestern clubs and coffeehouses.
Brown's songwriting has been lauded by many, and his songs have been performed by Willie Nelson, Carlos Santana, Michael Johnson, Shawn Colvin, and Mary Chapin Carpenter. He has also recorded more than a dozen albums, including his 1986 release, Songs of Innocence and of Experience, when he put aside his own songwriting to set poems of William Blake to music. One Big Town, recorded in 1989, earned Brown three and a half stars in Rolling Stone, chart-topping status in AAA and The Gavin Report's Americana rankings and Brown's first Indie Award from NAIRD (National Association of Independent Record Distributors). The Poet Game, his 1994 CD, received another Indie award from NAIRD. His critically acclaimed 1996 release, Further In, was a finalist for the same award. Rolling Stone's four-star review of Further In called Brown "a wickedly sharp observer of the human condition." 1997's Slant 6 Mind (Red House Records) earned Brown his second Grammy nomination. His latest CD, One Night (Red House), is a re-release of a 1983 live performance originally on Minneapolis' Coffeehouse Extemporé Records. |
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Saturday, September 11
Ron Nigrini
$20 in advance or $22 at the door.
Born in 1948, Ron Nigrini started playing as a teenager in 1965 with a duo called The Coachmen from Toronto. Two years later, he was a member of Dan's Heard. In 1970, Nigrini went solo, touring the coffeehouse circuit through the American Midwest, Texas, New Mexico, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. Back in Canada in 1972 he wrote commercials for TV and radio with Michael Hasek, a singer on A&M Records. In July 1974 Nigrini signed a contract with Attic Records and recorded his first single, "Letters" and a self-titled debut album. Two years later, he recorded his own version of the Oscar-winning song "I'm Easy" from the movie Nashville. After a long absence he returned to the recording studio in 1983 and formed his own label, Oasis Records. His first single, "Baby I'm A Lot Like You", was a national hit in Canada and the most played Canadian single of 1984-85. Ron Nigrini is still performing in the Toronto area, with an occasional trip to France. He is releasing a new CD called Above the Noise in the fall of 1998.
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Sunday, September 12
Alfie Zappacosta
$34 in advance or $39 at the door.
He's a lot of things to a lot of people - rock to some, smooth to others, AC to many. Alfie is established enough that he's just Alfie - an incredibly gifted talent beyond any genre tag.
He has long been considered one of the best vocal talents in Canada, yet we know very little about Alfie Zappacosta and his music. Sure you know his chart topping singles, Nothing Can Stand in Your Way, Passion, When I Fall in Love Again, We Should Be Lovers (plus many more), and the fact that he has two JUNOs and an American Music Awards for his contribution of Overload to the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack, but how much do you really know about the artist himself?
Alfie Zappacosta has a distinguished career and still today, he continues to write compelling lyric and melody. Yes Alfie Zappacosta is a songwriter! He is also an accomplished guitarist, premier vocalist and actor. In 1995, Zappacosta left his pop stardom behind to pursue a more intimate style of writing and performing.
The roots of his new sound started when Zappacosta began playing solo before crowds at a Toronto club. Playing only guitar, he explored new harmonies and melodies, later combing rootsy elements such as harmonica and accordion, which eventually manifested itself in a contemporary Jazz/AC sound. “The difficult part was finding an audience that was willing to sit and listen to my songs.” states Zappacosta. I had to believe that a legitimate artist was allowed to grow and could be appreciated and accepted for producing music that was heartfelt and not what the industry felt was appropriate for the times.”
“The older I got, the more uncomfortable I became.” Zappacosta confesses. “There were always elements of what is on the current project in my music. I wanted to get back into a form of music that I knew I was not only capable of doing but also a style of music that would fulfill me both artistically and spiritually. I realized that chasing down fads is really a losing proposition.” His passion for beautiful melodies and grand songs manifested into four stunning CD's - Innocence Ballet, Dark Sided Jewel, Start Again and his brand new CD – Bonafide!.
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Monday, September 13 - Triple Bill
Charlie A'Court, Chris Kirby, Treasa Levasseur
$16 in advance or $18 at the door.
Charlie A'Court
Named as Nova Scotia's top entertainer at the 2009 Music Nova Scotia Awards in November, Charlie A'Court is synonymous with impassioned performances that grip an audience the very moment he takes the stage.
Winner of the East Coast Music Awards 2007 Pop Recording of the Year and 2007 Music Nova Scotia Blues Recording of the Year for his album Bring On The Storm and 2003 Best Blues Artist for his debut album Color Me Gone, Charlie A'Court is an emotionally charged and soul moving performer. Fearlessly bridging genres and challenging stylistic conventions, his music and passionate voice stir up the listeners' emotions, touching the very core of audiences around the world.
Chris Kirby
He's a witty, spitey, pasty white kid from the woods whose style is simply addictive.
With his new record, entitled Vampire Hotel, Chris Kirby gets down to bidness playing funky piano, saucy guitar, and singing as if the fate of his own mother hangs on every word.
Vampire Hotel is Kirby's highly-anticipated sophomore recording, and is produced by Gordie Johnson (Big Sugar, Gov't Mule, Taj Mahal). Production of the record was split between Fat Tracks Studios in St. John's, NL, and Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studios in Austin TX.
Heavily influenced by New Orleans Rhythm & Blues and Motown Soul, but rooted in the rich Newfoundland tradition of storytelling, Vampire Hotel offers a unique and refreshing brand of music from a truly original artist.
Kirby, a 26-year-old son of Norris Arm, NL, moved to the city of St. John's in 2001 where he began playing in a string of bands on the local club scene. With the release of "Chris Kirby on Rum & Religion" in 2006, Chris finally emerged as a solo artist and a captivating songwriter and performer.
Treasa Levasseur
Like everything about Treasa Levasseur — and the songs she writes — it's as true as a carpenter's rule; it not only has the ring of truth, it is true. There are plenty of singers who plumb the depths of personal experience — but very few of them have her sense of humour or the sharpness of her eye for detail.
The passion and fire of her first CD, Not a Straight Line, has been applied to even better songs. And the two years that have passed since that record was released gave her a greater sense of her own potential and a greater understanding of the role that her producer, David Baxter, brings to the studio.
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Tuesday, September 14
Sheila Jordan and Yvette Tollar
$20 in advance or $25 at the door.
Sheila Jordan
Raised in poverty in Pennsylvania's coal-mining country, Jordan began singing as a child and by the time she was in her early teens was working semi-professionally in Detroit clubs. Her first great influence was Charlie Parker and, indeed, most of her influences have been instrumentalists rather than singers. Working chiefly with black musicians, she met with disapproval from the white community but persisted with her career. She was a member of a vocal trio, Skeeter, Mitch And Jean (she was Jean), who sang versions of Parker's solos in a manner akin to that of the later Lambert, Hendricks And Ross.
After moving to New York in the early 50s, she married Parker's pianist, Duke Jordan, and studied with Lennie Tristano, but it was not until the early 60s that she made her first recordings. One of these was under her own name, the other was “The Outer View” with George Russell, which featured a famous 10-minute version of "You Are My Sunshine".
In the mid-60s her work encompassed jazz liturgies sung in churches and extensive club work, but her appeal was narrow even within the confines of jazz. By the late 70s jazz audiences had begun to understand her uncompromising style a little more and her popularity increased - as did her appearances on record, which included albums with pianist Steve Kuhn, whose quartet she joined, and an album, Home, comprising a selection of Robert Creeley's poems set to music and arranged by Steve Swallow.
A 1983 duo set with bassist Harvie Swartz, “Old Time Feeling”, comprises several of the standards Jordan regularly features in her live repertoire, while 1990's “Lost And Found” pays tribute to her bebop roots. Both sets display her unique musical trademarks, such as the frequent and unexpected sweeping changes of pitch, which still tend to confound an uninitiated audience. Her preference to the bass and voice set led to another remarkable collaboration with bassist Cameron Brown, whom she has been performing with all over the world for more than ten years so far and they have released the live albums “I’ve Grown Accustomed to the Bass” and “Celebration”. Entirely non-derivative, Jordan is one of only a tiny handful of jazz singers who fully deserve the appellation and for whom no other term will do.
Yvette Tollar
Yvette was born and raised in Toronto, Canada and began singing professionally at 16. Her expressive vocals are rich and soulful, her delivery of lyrics mature and her technique flawless. She says music is her connection to the source and this reverent approach shines through in her sincere and unaffected performances.
Jazz has always been Yvette’s main focus but growing up in Toronto’s multi-cultural and inclusive society, she was exposed to a myriad of roots and folk music from around the world. By remaining open to the world of influences that surround her, Yvette sports immense versatility by lending her talents to Hungarian, Arabic, Yiddish, Brazillian, Jamaican, African and Indian projects. She has sung in at least 9 different languages and more than a dozen genres including Traditional and Modern Jazz, R&B, Classical and Klezmer music.
Ima and Cactus Flowers are Yvette’s two Modern Jazz offerings. Many of the songs are self-penned but in Ima other songwriters such as Joni Mitchell, brother, Ernie Tollar, Dave Restivo and Kevin Breit also take the spotlight. The arrangements are mainly piano trio and voice but also draw on instruments as diverse as bansuri (bamboo) flute, mbira (African thumb piano), mandolin and tabla.
Ms Tollar, has performed at dozens of Jazz and World Music Festivals while touring across Canada, Europe and South America. She has written music for film, sung for television and live radio broadcasts and has released two Modern Jazz albums under her own name.
The recipient of numerous scholarships and grants, Yvette has studied with Jazz legends, Sheila Jordan, Joe Lovano, Kenny Werner and Dave Holland. She studied voice at The Royal Conservatory of Music and with Canada’s first Speech Level Singing expert, Bill Vincent. As well, she has studied theory, jazz improvisation, composition, Arabic and Hungarian singing, organ and piano.
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Wednesday, September 15
Lynn Hanson - CD Release
$17 in advance or $20 at the door.
Some call it country, some call it roots-and-blues, others call it rougharound- the-edges folk. Lynne Hanson calls her musical style by her own name: porch music with a little Texas red dirt.
It’s a sound that’s been receiving rabid applause from enamoured critics and devoted fans in Canada, the US Southwest, Europe and Australia. Accompanied by fine instrumentation (acoustic guitar, mandolin, banjo, fiddle, dobro, pedal steel, harmonica) and blessed with a soulful voice that’s been compared to Gillian Welch, Lucinda
Williams and Mary Chapin Carpenter, Hanson is one of the most captivating female singer-songwriters on the Americana scene today.
“Canadian country music at its best.” – Maverick Magazine
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Friday & Sunday, September 17 & 19
Raul Malo
$29.50 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
Originally making his mark in the county music world and then slipping into the Latin and jazz arenas via rock & roll, Raul Malo has proven to be an ever-expanding musical talent. Malo, born in Miami of Cuban parents, started playing bass guitar in high school and soon found his way into several small bands. In 1987, he made his first recording with the Basics, and one song, "Paperheart," appeared on the promotional album Unsigned. While the album wasn't a success, the experience whet Malo's appetite for more.
Later in the '80s, Malo and a high school friend, Robert Reynolds (bass), joined together to form their own country band, based on their mutual love for Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, and Patsy Cline. Paul Deakin, with experience in several progressive rock bands, became the drummer, and the group chose the name the Mavericks. This band went on to become one of the outstanding country bands of the '90s.
Under Malo's leadership, the Mavericks released their debut self-titled album in the fall of 1990. The album managed to grab the attention of many big labels, and MCA Records signed the band on in May 1991, when they played their first gig in Nashville. David Lee Holt, who previously played with Carlene Carter, Joe Ely, and Rosie Flores, became the lead guitarist for the band, with Malo concentrating on the songwriting and vocals. MCA released From Hell to Paradise in 1992 and released five more albums for the band during the '90s. Hell to Paradise was critically acclaimed, but not financially a success. However, What a Crying Shame brought forth financial fortunes when it was released in 1994, with its title track reaching the Top 40; the album went platinum by spring 1995.
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Saturday, September 18
Rita Chiarelli
$30 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
"Rita Chiarelli… a voice that can growl at her demons or soar with the angels, a gift for lyric, an ear for melody and the heart to combine them." She is an accomplished singer-songwriter, a gifted vocalist and a skilled musician. Add to that a warm persona and a fine sense of humour and you have all the ingredients for an outstanding performer. Rita Chiarelli's style defies definition. Although dubbed the goddess of Canadian blues by CBC's Shelagh Rogers, Chiarelli is equally comfortable belting out the blues; delivering her original material, crooning an Italian folk song or wailing R&B or an Elvis Presley cover tune. At first listen it's her voice – that three octave range - that garners all the attention! But Rita's songwriting is also outstanding; three of her four JUNO nominations have been for albums consisting largely of original material.
An accomplished entertainer , Chiarelli has been performing since the age of fifteen. As Ronnie Hawkins (with whom she toured in the early days) noted… "once in a lifetime you hear a voice so blue it makes the angels weep.. that voice is Rita Chiarelli". Beyond the blues arena, Chiarelli creates her own unique sound that is a blend of musical influences. Her songs shimmer with blues based rock undertones, jazz riffs, Cajun and country tinged melodies blended with a folk-roots flavour. Few can match the wide range of Chiarelli's vocal stylings and the consistently solid lyrics she pens. Rita Chiarelli is a gifted storyteller, lyricist and master of poetic imagery.
After spending most of the 1980's working in Italy, Chiarelli returned to Canada where "Have You Seen My Shoes" was featured in Bruce McDonald's cult classic, the 1989 film Roadkill. Along with touring Canada, the USA and Europe during the 1990s, Rita Chiarelli released three albums on the Stony Plain and Northern Blues labels. Breakfast at Midnight was nominated for a JUNO in 2001. It, along with 1992's Road Rockets, has just been re-released by Rita's record company Mad Iris Records. Mad Iris also released the JUNO nominated No One to Blame in 2004 and Cuore... the Italian sessions in 2006. Cuore won Rita the 2007 Canadian Folk Music Award for best solo World Music act. As CBC radio's Heather McLeod stated "I didn't understand a word, but my heart understood every note. This album rings with love and respect for Chiarelli's Italian heritage, and her skill as a singer and an artist. I couldn't bear to pry it out of my CD player."
Uptown Goes Downtown Tonight... Rita Chiarelli with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra is Chiarelli's most ambitious recording project to date. Eleven of her songs were arranged and charted for the symphony, recorded in November 2007 & released in March 2008. You may have heard Rita Chiarelli in concert, but you've never heard her with a back up band like this one!
Rita Chiarelli has a JUNO win and four nominations, and has won multiple Maple Blues Awards, Canadian Folk Music, and Toronto Independent Music awards. She is an honourary lifetime member of The Manitoba Blues Society, and the 2002 recipient of CBC's Great Canadian Blues Award. Her albums are distributed by Festival Distribution in Canada and Burnside Distribution in the USA. Chiarelli continues to tour incessantly, appearing at festivals and theatres across North America and throughout Europe. Rita Chiarelli is currently "road testing" her new original material which will be featured on the upcoming album Back to Blue.
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Wednesday, September 22
Terry Gillespie - CD Release
$12 in advance or $15 at the door.
Terry Gillespie, singer, songwriter and founder of the renowned Heaven's Radio is best known for his love of rhythm, his musical intensity and his unique soulful voice. He is considered one of the forefathers of the cultural dissemination of American music into Canada. The highly regarded critic Tim Holek has called him Canada's King of Roots Music. Though raised in England, he was born in Edmonton, but it was in the '60s, that he cut his musical teeth, playing with Blues legends Howlin Wolf, Albert Collins, John Lee Hooker, and Buddy Guy. Today his voice is frequently compared to Van Morrison and Bob Dylan while his guitar is reminiscent of Mark Knopfler. Richard Ludmerer, Vice-President, New York Blues and Jazz Society describes Gillespie's music " Terry Gillespie possess a magic that seems to occur right in the middle of each song. It's what causes the hairs to rise on the back of your neck. " Terry delivers something that you have never heard - digging deep in to the roots of today's americana music. Sue Foley & Peter Karp call Terry "a musical shaman" after the assistance he gave them on their #1 selling CD He Said /She Said.
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Thursday, September 23
Seeley & Baldori
$30 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
Two Bob's, four Hands, twenty fingers, 100 years of experience!
The two phenomenal performers have combined their talents for an evening of extraordinary jazz, blues, boogie, stride and rock – all on two grand pianos. Bob Seeley and Bob Baldori are both living connections to a musical heritage that is the backbone of American music. The incomparable Bob Seeley, spent his formative years playing with Meade Lux Lewis and is known as the best boogie woogie and stride player in the world. Living legend, Bob Baldori, has been playing piano and harmonica with Chuck Berry since the '60s and has spent years refining the art of boogie, rock, and blues. Seeley & Baldori have toured throughout the world including Chicago Jazz Festival, The Gem Theatre Detroit, Birdland in New York, Glenn Gould Theater in Toronto and performing arts venues in Russia and Europe.
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Sunday, September 26
Number 9 Audio Group and George Rondina present
"World Jazz for Haiti" CD Launch
Music Director - George Koller
Featuring John McDermott, Laila Biali, Aaron Davis, Mike Janzen, Luanda Jones, Maninho Costa, Mark Mosca, DK Ibomeka, Shuffle Demons, Andre Roy, Tim Reynolds Trio, Jane Bunnett and more TBA.
$22.50 in advance or $25 at the door.
All Proceeds go to the Canadian Red Cross Haiti Relief Fund.
On January 12, 2010, the nation of Haiti was torn apart by a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 earthquake. An estimated 3,000,000 people were affected by the quake and the 52 subsequent aftershocks. The Haitian Government estimated that 230,000 people had died, 300,000 had been injured, and 1,000,000 were made homeless as a direct result of this disaster. Over 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings were damaged or utterly destroyed.
George Rondina – managing director of Number 9 Audio Group – felt he could not simply sit idly by without trying to contribute to the relief effort in some way. Utilizing his music industry contacts and studio resources, George kick-started a truly uplifting idea: gather together some of the greatest talents in the Canadian music industry to record a World Jazz For Haiti album. When released, the album will raise funds for the Red Cross’s Haitian disaster relief effort and create awareness of the continuing struggles faced by Haitian people.
Number 9 Audio Group in Toronto is proud to be producing this once-in-a-lifetime album with world-class artists for an extremely worthwhile international cause. Musical director/producer George Koeller and associate producer Jesse Capon have put together an eclectic mix of talent for the album, including industry veterans David Clayton-Thomas, Holly Cole, and John McDermott. The final release is due out this August and is sure to be both a stunning music compilation and a major boon for Haiti’s disaster relief efforts.
If you are interested in learning more about the crisis in Haiti, here is a compilation of media and news stories related to the disaster. Even though the earthquake hit over six months ago, the Haitian people are still in desperate need of more assistance!
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Wednesday, September 29
Peirson Ross - A LIVE FOcUS Part Two
$18 in advance or $20 at the door.
A LIVE FOcUS Part Two is a solo show recorded live, featuring Peirson's material stripped down with the same instrumentation as he's performed at his most intimate concerts. Passionately delivered with a single voice, seven acoustic guitars to choose from and the occasional guest accompaniment, this performance will cater to those who love and appreciate Peirson in his rawest form. "It's not really 'unplugged' but that's only because I love the sound people at Hugh's Room. Thanks to Gibson guitars, I am delighted to play a variety of my original songs with a number of my favourite instruments".
Singer-songwriter Peirson Ross is crossing the boundaries of traditional folk music with his experimental, world-influenced melodies. His openness and intuitive understanding of musical instrumentation are exhibited in his natural ability to "sing on the fly". "I love taking something old and putting new life into it". For Peirson, life is an ongoing conversation or improvisation. The best music in his ears, are song-oriented pieces that evolve around a dialogue. "It has to make you think beyond the dichotomy, help you embrace your paradoxes and move your soul to feel the love, the pain, the death, the life. If it's not soul-moving, there is no life and for me there is no music". Rich Terfry aka Buck 65 of CBC Radio 2 says "You don't encounter this everyday, I haven't encountered it as often as I'd like but here's a guy who seems to embody music. Another way to describe it is that music takes over his body. It's as if he can't help himself when the music runs through his veins. It's an impressive thing to listen to and an equally impressive thing to watch". iTunes has called Peirson a "poet with six-string's vocals who reminds fans of a cross between Dave Matthews, Jeff Buckley and Nick Drake". This year, Peirson completed two 6 song EPs entitled Reverse & Ready (Side A & B). In conjunction with Reverse & Ready, Peirson has continued to perform at reputable Halls and stages in New York while co-producing his latest band project with friend and Brooklyn bassist Jason Mercer (Ani Defranco, Ron Sexsmith, Luther Wright & the Wrongs). Peirson's latest songs were recorded live-off-the-floor in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Endearingly referred to as The Stoop Sale Sessions, the album includes sounds of a snare case kick drum/minimalist kit played by Marshall Bureau, an upright bass plucked and bowed by Jason Mercer, a bluesy harmonica and piano played by Josh Williams and sweet and smoky vocals by Rebecca Ramone. Although the majority of the tracks were recorded live at Mercer's, a few overdubs (piano & percussion) were added due to a last minute invitation to record at a legendary studio facility on West 54th St.
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Thursday, September 30
"Let's Put On A Show"
Starring Mickey Rooney & Jan Rooney
featuring Julian Gallo, tenor & Lenni Stewart, soprano
.. plus a trio of musicians.
$90 in advance or $100 at the door.
Hugh's Room is very excited to announce that
MICKEY ROONEY
one of the greatest song and dance men ever, will be live on stage at Hugh's Room on September 30, 2010. What an opportunity to see this great film star in an intimate 200 seat setting. Mr. Rooney will be appearing with a trio of support musicians, but we expect his stories and personal reminisences will make this a night not to miss. Tickets will go quickly for this, once in a lifetime, event so order soon to assure your spot. Remember, at Hugh's Room they have to walk by your table to get to the stage - how special is that!
Joe Yule Jr., also known as Mickey Rooney, was born September 23, 1920 in Brooklyn, New York. His parents, chorus girl Nell Carter and comic Joe Yule Sr., were vaudeville performers. Two weeks after Mickey's birth, he was on the road with the circuit traveling throughout North America.
At 17 months old, his talent surfaced by accident. While hiding underneath a shoeshine stand in a Chicago theatre, fascinated by his father's act, he let out a sneeze. The noise caused a spotlight to find him in the crowd. Not knowing what to do he stood up and blew on his tiny toy mouth organ that was hanging on a string around his neck. The audience erupted with laughter. The show's manager got him a pint-sized tuxedo after the incident, and young Mickey began performing small ballads and speeches on stage.
Mickey's parents divorced when he was three. Mickey's mother took him to Kansas City, Missouri so they could live with her sister. The normal way of life they had there was short lived, for in 1924, Mickey's mother decided he would be perfect for Hal Roach's "Our Gang" series. They headed west to Hollywood so Mickey could try out for the role. Once there, however, they realized the pay was insufficient. Penniless, they drove back to Kansas City. They returned to California again in 1926. This time Mickey landed his first film role in the movie "Not To Be Trusted," in which he played a midget.
His big break came in 1927 when he was cast for "Mickey 'Himself' McGuire," a series based on a comic strip. His mother wanted to legally change his name to Mickey McGuire for publicity reasons, but the comic's creator did not approve this. Instead she renamed him Mickey Rooney after getting approval from his manager. In 1934, Mickey was competing in a table tennis tournament in Los Angles and was showing off to the audience. MGM producer David O. Selznick noticed his antics. He told MGM studio chief Louis Mayer that he had found a kid that was a "goldmine" and begged him to sign Mickey to MGM. Mayer was reluctant to do so. Selznick made a role for Mickey in the film "Manhattan Melodrama," which was later made famous when notorious gangster John Dillinger was shot and killed while leaving the theater where he had been watching it. Mickey's work on the film led him to being signed to a long-term contract with MGM. Although he had the reputation of being a troublemaker, he put his all into acting and began to receive rave reviews. Short in stature, but never short in confidence, Mickey was the number one box office actor in the United States from 1939-41. He became known for his work on films such as: "A Midsummer Nights Dream," "Boys Town," "Babes In Arms" and the hit "Andy Hardy" series. He also starred with many Hollywood leading ladies including Lana Turner, Anne Rutherford and Judy Garland.
During the 1950s, he worked on a television series called "Hey Mulligan." It was short-lived and could not compete with the likes of "The Jackie Gleason Show " which was scheduled in the same time slot.
Mickey never was one to settle down, which explains his eight marriages. In 1942, he married Hollywood star Ava Gardner, but they soon divorced. After entering the service for 21 months in 1944 to entertain the troops in WWII, he married Betty Jane Rase. This marriage was followed by similar experiences with Martha Vickers in 1949 and Elaine Mahnken in 1952. In 1958 Rooney married Barbara Ann Thompson, but tragedy struck when she was murdered in 1966. Stumbling into deep depression, he married Barbara's friend, Marge Lane, who helped him take care of his young children. The marriage lasted only 100 days. He married Carolyn Hockett from 1969-1974, but financial instability ended the relationship. Finally, in 1978 Rooney married Jan Chamberlin, his current wife, with whom he lives in Los Angeles, California.
In the early 1970s, Mickey undertook several short-lived financial ventures and acted in various dinner theatres. He reluctantly went back to the stage in the burlesque production of "Sugar Babies" in 1979. The production ended up being a phenomenal success, and his career was reborn.
All in all, Mickey is a man with over 200 films under his belt. He earned an Honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement, a special Juvenile Oscar he shared with Deana Durbin in 1939, five Oscar nominations, one Emmy Award, five Emmy Nominations and two Golden Globes. Mickey's career has extended through many generations and in many different directions. Mickey Rooney: actor, survivor, inventor and Hollywood living legend.
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Friday, October 1
Ken Whiteley - CD Release
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Ken Whiteley is a Canadian roots music legend. His musical journey has taken him from jug band, folk and swing to blues, gospel and children's music. Among numerous accolades, he has won a Canadian Folk Music Award, Genie Award for Best Original Song in a Canadian film, Lifetime achievement awards from the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals and Mariposa Folk Festival. Ken has been nominated for 7 Juno awards and 13 Maple Blues Awards. Ken’s live performances showcase his outstanding musicianship on guitars and mandolin, award winning original songs and his powerful vocals, called "...a cross between Pete Seeger and Tony Bennett on 11!" Whether leading his own group, solo or collaborating with peers at blues, folk, children’s festivals and concerts of all sizes, his “...deep knowledge and infectious passion” guarantee good times for all. As a producer of over 125 recording projects, Ken’s productions have garnered 10 Canadian Gold and Platinum records, 4 American Gold records, 22 Juno and 2 Grammy nominations, and sold over 8 million copies.
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Saturday, October 2
Jimmy Webb
$45 in advance or $50 at the door.
The critical acclaim composer Jimmy Webb has received during his more than forty years of success is as remarkable as the accomplishments they honor: Webb is the only artist to ever receive Grammy awards for music, lyrics, and orchestration, he is a member of the National Academy of Popular Music Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, and, according to BMI, his “By The Time I Get To Phoenix,” has been the third most performed song in the last fifty years, with “Up, Up and Away” on the same list in the top thirty. Webb’s, “Wichita Lineman” has been listed in MOJO Magazine’s worldwide survey of the best one hundred singles of all time in the top fifty, and was singled out in the Oct/Nov 2001 issue of Blender as “The Greatest Song Ever.” Even singer/songwriter James Taylor was nominated for a Grammy this past year for "Best Male Pop Vocal" for his rendition of the song. The National Academy of Songwriters also named Jimmy as 1993’s recipient of their Lifetime Achievement Award, although TIME Magazine was early to acknowledge Jimmy Webb’s range and proficiency back in 1968 when it referred to his astonishing string of hits, and commented on “Webb’s gift for strong, varied rhythms, inventive structures, and rich, sometimes surprising harmonies.” In 1999 Jimmy was inducted by actor Michael Douglas into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame as one of the State’s most celebrated sons, he was inducted onto the Board of Directors for The Songwriters’ Hall of Fame in early 2000, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for ASCAP.
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Sunday, October 3
Jenny Whiteley with Dan Whiteley & Riley Baugus
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Show starts at 2 pm.
A new CD from Jenny Whiteley is always something to celebrate, but for her growing number of fans the release of ‘Forgive or Forget’ will prove more than worth the wait.
Those who have heard Jenny sing as she’s crisscrossed the country over the past dozen or so years know that an evening spent listening to her songs is like a long delayed meeting with an old dear friend. Laughter and sorrow are shared, barriers dissolve, and life’s burdens suddenly don’t seem so heavy anymore.
Great music has the power to heal, and if Jenny’s concerts are like a reunion that passes all too quickly, her CDs take their time and sink in deeply like a letter from that same long lost friend to be treasured and re-read over time.
‘Forgive or Forget’ features ten original new songs that sound not so much written as torn from the cloth of hard won experience. Whiteley’s integrity and commitment emanate from every syllable she sings as she shares her tales of life on the road less traveled. Her voice has taken on a deeper resonance than ever before as she takes her time to share what may be the best collection of songs she’s ever offered.
Jenny Whiteley often jokes that she was a late bloomer and didn’t fully commit to music until the age of 24, but she’s been making up for lost time ever since. She first came to national attention while singing and playing with Heartbreak Hill, the groundbreaking bluegrass group from Ontario who were nominated for a Juno award in 1999. But, that was an honour that had to wait until her self-produced debut came out in 2000 and Jenny won the roots album of the year award. By 2003, things really got rolling with her second Juno winning release ‘Hopetown’, the first CD produced by Steve Dawson for his Black Hen Music label, marking the beginning of a fruitful and productive working relationship that continued with 2006’s ‘Dear’ and has reached its highest point with ‘Forgive or Forget’.
The songs on ‘Forgive or Forget’ trace the arc of love relationships as they wax and wane with the passage of time. From the optimistic joy of love’s new sheen reflected in “Ripple Effect” to the decline and fall of “Cold Kisses” and “Final Season”, Whiteley proves that there is a place for heartfelt love songs that reflect the realities of an adult world. As deeply personal as Dylan’s ‘Blood on the Tracks’, these songs of love, renewal, and dusting oneself off to start all over again will send shivers down listeners’ spines no matter how many times they’re played and heard.
Like all of Steve Dawson’s productions, ‘Forgive or Forget’ is full of stellar instrumental performances. Grounded by the rock solid rhythm section of John Raham (Be Good Tanyas/Po’Girl) on drums and Darren Paris on bass, Whiteley and her band travel through some very exhilarating musical territory as they bring these songs to life. Dawson’s heartfelt pedal steel that graces “Day Without Words” and Joey Wright’s (Sarah Harmer) impassioned archtop guitar and mandolin work on “Slack” and “Raining in My Heart” show that Jenny hasn’t forgotten her bluegrass roots. Add to that the crunching electric riffs that punctuate “Final Season” and “There was love”, and it’s obvious that ‘Forgive or Forget’ is a string lover’s delight. And, as if to prove that good music stands outside of time and fashion, the album features an array of keyboard textures ranging from funky organ wails to seventies Mellotron flourishes contributed by Chris Gestrin. (Randy Bachman/KOS)
Four years in the making, ‘Forgive or Forget’ is more than worth the wait. As a reward for her faithful fans’ patience, Jenny Whiteley has returned with what is surely the best album of her career. For those familiar with her music, it is a perfect addition to her already impressive canon of songs. For those new to Whiteley’s art, ‘Forgive or Forget’ is the perfect place to start the journey. Listening to it is an experience not to be missed.
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Monday, October 4
Steve Raiken CD Release
with Andrew Hermant, Ruth Jenkins, Terry Wilkins & Claude Desjardins.
$10 in advance or $12 at the door.
Steve Raiken has been hailed as " ... without a doubt one of the most talented fingerpickers in the GTA..." by Gary 17, publisher and editor of Toronto Moon Magazine. Steve will be performing the songs from his new CD, "Stages," on vocals, acoustic guitar and slide guitar which was produced by Andrew Hermant. The talented instrumentalists listed above who accompanied him on the CD will be at Hugh's Room to perform the songs and create the special mood on this remarkable new CD.
Steve has a YouTube video, playing slide guitar, with over 61,000 viewings to date: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4IL-qLbdQY
More information on Steve's music is available from his electronic press kit: www.sonicbids.com/steveraiken
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Tuesday & Wednesday, October 5 & 6
Strawbs
$55 in advance or $60 at the door.
The Strawbs began life in the mid 1960s when Dave Cousins and Tony Hooper formed the bluegrass duo, Strawberry Hill Boys in London. The double bass player, Ron Chesterman, joined them and they then recorded an album with Sandy Denny which remained unreleased for several years. Sandy then left to join Fairport Convention and keyboard player Rick Wakeman, bassist John Ford and drummer Richard Hudson joined in 1970. This line-up lasted for two albums until Wakeman left in 1971 to be replaced by Blue Weaver, formerly of Amen Corner. The album Grave New World followed in 1972, after which Tony Hooper left the band and Dave Lambert joined.
The next album contained two hit singles, Lay Down and Part of the Union which was written by Hudson and Ford. Hudson and Ford left the band and formed a moderately successful duo as Hudson Ford and had a handful of hit singles. Blue Weaver also left to join the Bee Gees, so three new members were drafted in; Chas Cronk on Bass, Rod Coombes on Drums and John Hawken on keyboards. Two albums, Hero and Heroine and Ghosts were recorded with this line-up before Hawken left the band. The quartet of Cousins, Lambert, Cronk and Coombes produced a further three albums, Nomadness, Deep Cuts and Burning for You followed by Deadlines on which Tony Fernandez replaced Coombes on drums.
Dave Cousins then accepted a job as programme controller at Radio Tees, effectively spelling the end of the band, despite the addition of Brian Willoughby on guitar. Occasional line-ups performed during the '80s and '90s including the Dave Cousins and Brian Willoughby duo which gave us two albums, Old School Songs and The Bridge. The 30th anniversary concert at Chiswick in 1998 brought together nearly all the past members of the band for a musical feast and since then the Strawbs have been touring, either as a six-piece electric or a three-piece acoustic band and 2001 saw them release a new acoustic album, Baroque and Roll which made Rolling Stone's Richie Unterberger's top ten album list of 2002.
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With a songwriting career that spans more than 30 years, Ron Hynes is a six-time East Coast Music Award winner, a Genie Award winner and a past Juno, CCMA and Canadian Folk Music Awards nominee. He's been recipient of both Artist of The Year and the prestigious Arts Achievement Award from the Newfoundland & Labrador Arts Council, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award from the St. John's Folk Arts Council. Ron Hynes also holds an Honorary PhD from Memorial University for his songwriting and cont ribution to the cultural life of his beloved home province of Newfoundland (Canada).
Frequently referred to as the "man of a thousand songs", Ron Hynes' songs have been covered by dozens of artists worldwide, including Emmylou Harris, Christy Moore, Mary Black, Denny Doherty, Murray McLauchlan, Valdy, John McDermott, Terry Kelly, Prairie Oyster, The Good Brothers, Shaye, The Cottars and most recently, classical soprano Hayley Westenra.
Ron Hynes began his career as a singer-songwriter on the coffeehouse circuit in the early seventies and while on a Canadian theatre tour with The Mummers Troupe in '76, he composed a song called "Sonny's Dream" that's become a folk classic performed and recorded by artists all over the world. He was a founding member of the Wonderful Grand Band, a musical comedy show featuring a six-piece traditional/folk/rock band together with various members of Codco. The group produced two albums of original work, forty-one half-hour television shows (plus specials) for CBC-TV, and tour ed the country non-stop during its six-year history.
Ron Hynes recorded two original albums for EMI: "Cryer's Paradise" ('93) and "Face To The Gale" ('97). The independently produced "11:11 Nfld. Women Sing" is a collection of songs co-written by Ron and Connie Hynes, sung by Newfoundland's best female singers. Ron's 1998 independent release "Standing In Line In The Rain" was awarded Best New Album from MusicNL. |
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Jayme Stone keeps an ear to the ground. His curiosity and unlikely set of reference points started early with the quirky physics of the banjo, led to a mysterious librarian who stocked his local public library with a vast trove of banjo recordings, and landed him long-lasting lessons with a series of maestros, from Béla Fleck to Bill Frisell. Influenced by Japanese poetry and Brazilian literature and featuring what he calls a "tiny symphony that takes place inside an imaginary light bulb", Stone's album, The Utmost, won the 2008 Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the Year.
The most recent chapter in Stone's musical travelogue takes place in Africa. He went knowing what's still news to most: that the hide-covered instrument with an "extra" drone string we call the banjo actually comes from West Africa. He became particularly curious about the music that may not have made it across the ocean on slave ships headed west from Senegal and Mali in the 1700- 1800's. An eight-week trip to Mali was supported by a prestigious Chalmers Arts Fellowship and found Stone sitting in with Toumani Diabate and the Symmetric Orchestra in downtown Bamako, lost in circles of Wassoulou polyrhythms and in a rural Dogon village with no electricity where he inadvertently discovered a banjo predecessor unheard of in the West. The resulting album, Africa to Appalachia, is a boundary-crossing musical collaboration with singer and kora maestro Mansa Sissoko. Produced by David Travers-Smith and featuring celebrated ngoni master Bassekou Kouyate, the recording won the 2009 Juno Award for World Music Album of the Year.
Stone is at work on new album that explores music based on folk dances from around the world: hornpipes, mazurkas, straphspeys and sambas from Sweden, Scotland, Brazil, North America and more. The album will feature fiddle pioneer Casey Driessen, gravity-defying guitarist Grant Gordy, Gaelic songbird Julie Fowlis, nyckelharpa craftsman Olov Johansson, trumpet great Kevin Turcotte and others. Recording is set for spring 2010 with an album release in fall 2010 (Canada) and spring 2011 (US and Europe). |
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Thursday, October 14
Alex Pangman
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Alex Pangman makes the music of the past "captivatingly present". As an homage to the era she inhabits musically, "33" is her first jazz recording in several years, featuring songs popular in 1933 & inspired by that golden era of songwriting. The album, being released as a 33rpm (an "LP") as well as on CD and to itunes, (and coincidentally recorded while Pangman was 33) includes guest appearances from Ron Sexsmith (I Surrender Dear), and Denzal Sinclaire (You Brought a New Kind of Love to Me), as well as string arrangements by longtime Alleycat, Drew Jurecka (Jill Barber, Jeff Healey's Jazz Wizards) with stellar Alleycat horn section which includes Ross Wooldridge on reeds, & Kevin Clark on trumpet. The result is a rollicking and genuine set of "the spirit of '33" and Pangman is most firmly in command, with a pluckiness and a softness to her voice, on standards like "One Hundred Years from Today," and lesser known gems such as, "Hummin' To Myself". One finds Pangman's lyrics touched with great meaning, on songs like "Shine", where she sings with sincerity, "because I'm glad I'm living": the singer had a successful double lung transplant in 2008 and is now an active advocate for the cause.
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Saturday, October 16
Tom Paxton
$30 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
He was born October 31, 1937 in Chicago, Illinois, the youngest child of Burton and Esther Paxton. The Paxton family moved to Bristow, Oklahoma in 1948, where Tom grew to adulthood and which he still considers home. He attended the University of Oklahoma, where he majored in drama and developed an interest in folk music.
After time in the Army Reserves, Paxton moved to New York City where he frequented the city's Greenwich Village coffeehouse circuit. His early success in Greenwich Village coffeehouses led to an ever-increasing circle of work. He made his professional debut at the Gaslight, the renowned folk haunt that also issued the singer's first album. In 1962 Gaslight Records would press 2,000 copies of his debut album, I'm The Man Who Built The Bridges.
Paxton also auditioned to join the Chad Mitchell Trio, but although he failed, the group enjoyed a 1963 hit with "The Marvelous Toy," one of his early songs. Paxton performed at the 1963 Newport Folk Festival, a performance that would be recorded and released by Vanguard Records. Paxton would go on to record a second album with Vanguard at the Newport Folk Festival the following year, but his association with that record company lapsed and it would not be until the year 2000 that Vanguard once again released a Tom Paxton album (Tom Paxton: Best of the Vanguard Years). In 1964 Paxton was signed to Elektra Records for whom he recorded his best-known work. Then in 1965 he made his first tour of the United Kingdom — the beginning of a still-thriving professional relationship that has included many tours of the country in succeeding years.
He and his wife Midge have been married since 1963 and have two daughters; Jennifer and Kate. All three women have served as inspiration for many of Paxton's songs. He now has three grandsons; Christopher, Sean, and Peter.
In addition to songwriting, Tom Paxton has written many critically acclaimed children's books, some of which were inspired by his songs for children.
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Sunday, October 17
Michelle Wright
$32 in advance or $35 at the door.
It's been ten years since Michelle Wright delivered a full slate of country material and with the release of Everything And More one would have to agree that the return home is a welcome one.
Does the return to sounds and signatures that brought this award-winning artist to the dance come as a surprise?
It shouldn't. Artists who have worked for the kind of success that Wright has enjoyed over the past two decades eventually come full circle.
With Everything And More the award-winning singer marries her immediately identifiable voice with an impressive collection of new material that mirrors so many of the changes in attitude and emotion that Wright has experienced as new chapters of her life have been written.
Some songs are celebrations that come from first hand experiences, while others come from that place of insightful observation that has always worked so well for this Ontario-born artist who first established herself as a force back in the early 'nineties during her tenure with Arista Records Nashville.
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Tuesday, October 19
Judy Collins
$90 in advance or $100 at the door.
Judy Collins has thrilled audiences worldwide with her unique blend of interpretative folksongs and contemporary themes. Her impressive career has spanned more than 40 years. At 13, Judy Collins made her public debut performing Mozart's "Concerto for Two Pianos" but it was the music of such artists as Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, as well as the traditional songs of the folk revival, that sparked Judy Collins' love of lyrics. She soon moved away from the classical piano and began her lifelong love with the guitar. In 1961, Judy Collins released her first album, A Maid of Constant Sorrow, at the age of 22 and began a thirty-five year association with Jac Holzman and Elektra Records.
Judy Collins is also noted for her rendition of Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now" on her classic 1967 album, Wildflowers. "Both Sides Now" has since been entered into the Grammy's Hall of Fame. Winning "Song of the Year" at the 1975 Grammy's Awards show was Judy's version of "Send in the Clowns," a ballad written by Stephen Sondheim for the Broadway musical "A Little Night Music."
Released on September 29th, Judy's new book, Sanity and Grace, A Journey of Suicide, Survival and Strength, is a deeply moving memoir, focusing on the death of her only son and the healing process following the tragedy. The book speaks to all who have endured the sorrow of losing a loved one before their time. In the depths of her suffering, Judy found relief by reaching out to others for help and support. Now, she extends her hand to comfort other survivors whose lives have been affected by similar tragedy.
In a recent appearance on ABC's Good Morning America, Judy performed "Wings of Angels," the heartbreaking ballad that she wrote about the loss of her son. The song is currently available on the newly released Judy Collins Wildflower Festival CD and DVD, which also feature guest artists Arlo Guthrie, Tom Rush and Eric Andersen. This extraordinary concert was filmed at the famed Humphrey's By the Bay in San Diego, CA. The concert was the culmination of a 25 city national tour.
Judy Collins continues to create music of hope and healing that lights up the world and speaks to the heart.
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Wednesday & Thursday, October 20 & 21
Dave Borins
$30 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
On January 22nd, 2009, Dave Borins played his One Hundredth Gig. It was a sold out affair at the prestigious Hugh's Room. It helped raise funds for a brand new EP, and spawned a cross canada tour in Fall 2009! It is an exciting time, and a milestone for a man who lives and breathes for performing music!
Borins is an expert backcountry guide who has trekked all over the world from Himalayan mountains to Ancient Incan trails. By lugging his guitar from place to place Dave gained first hand knowledge of the power of music as a unifying force. His songs explore the paradox that despite having unprecedented access to others through modern technology, it has grown more difficult to connect in genuine and significant ways.
Performance is Dave Borins' version of living a fantasy. The weight of the world is lifted from his shoulders, and his personality is revealed, naked, unchecked and unapologetic. In addition to his original compositions, he also draws on an enormous and eclectic repertoire of great songs by other artists. Dave is known for dynamic live performances in venues of all shapes and sizes. A relative newcomer to the music world, Borins was nominated for "Best Live Acoustic Performer" and "Best Folk Artist" at the 2008 "Toronto Indie Music Awards." He's only 26 years old, and has played sold out shows in NY city, and all over Southern Ontario.
Dave grew up in Toronto, but his songwriting and performances have been shaped by his experience working as canoe trip guide in Algonquin National Park, and studying literature and politics at McGill university in Montreal.
He performs with artists all over Toronto, and contributes to a songwriting collective known as four corners. Other members include bluesman, Sean Pinchin, songbird, Robyn Dell'Unto, everyman, Mike Celia, guitar genius, Maneli Jemal, and jack of all trades Blaise Alleyne.
Dave also teaches writes and performs traditional folk and children's music at schools across Toronto, and campfires across the country
Although folk, classic rock and roots music is the cornerstone of his musical background, Dave refuses to confine himself to one genre. He thought he completed his Debut album "Songs of Sense and Colour" near the end of 2007, but Dave began working with Ricki Landers Friedlander, entertainment executive producer, and Bob Gallo, the legendary music producer (James Brown, Ben E King, Aretha Franklin) of RLF Entertainment Productions, Ltd. In to Phase One studios he recut some of the tracks, and a major promotional campaign was launched throughout the united states. "Songs of sense and Colour" was originally written, recorded and performed by Dave, the debut album is dear to his heart, and was a diverse and powerful writing and recording debut.
Dave plays with one ear in the sky, and one in the dirt. Nothing is sacred, but all things are respected. Old-fashioned, roots-based music and themes are fused with modern ideas, characters and situations. His music is catchy and familiar, yet somehow otherworldly. His lyrics are deeply influenced by literature and poetry, adding depth and subtlety to the infectious melodies, but this music is truly inclusive. He mixes the sweet with the bold, the old with the new, and believes in the power of song as a means to unify and understand life in all its peaks and canyons.
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Friday & Saturday, October 22 & 23
Ian Tyson - Concert and Book Release
$45 in advance or $50 at the door.
Internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter and multi award winner, Ian Tyson, is celebrating 5 decades of performance in 2010 with a full schedule of concerts and the release of a new book to be published by Random House of Canada. With shows planned from coast to coast in both Canada and the United States, Tyson continues to keep his loyal fans in awe with songs that range from his classics – Four Strong Winds, Someday Soon, and Navajo Rug, to his newest works which he continues to write with inspired vigor. Throughout 2008, Tyson shot a TV Music/Documentary Special for Canada’s Bravo Chanel which aired in January 2010. Now in his mid 70’s, Tyson maintains a busy touring performance schedule which he combines with the work on his Alberta ranch, nestled in the foothills of the Rockies south of Calgary. It’s a workload that would exceed that of most people generations his junior.
Ian Tyson is one of a kind . . . authentic and durable. In the tough world of show business where an Artist can consider himself lucky to have one hit and a few good years, Ian Tyson has had two distinctly brilliant careers. Spanning 5 decades, Tyson has forged a trail of musical innovation. Starting with the legendary folk duo of Ian and Sylvia in the 60’s, the trail has culminated with the seminal Cowboyography collection reaching platinum status in the mid 90’s.
At the age f 24, Tyson left behind the itinerant logging and rodeo life of British Columbia and hitchhiked to Toronto. Caught up in the folk music revival, he formed, along with a very young Sylvia Fricker, the legendary duo of Ian and Sylvia.
The influential folk duo, Ian and Sylvia, married in 1964, recorded over a dozen timeless albums, including their best known and often covered hits – Ian’s Four Strong Winds and Someday Soon, and Sylvia’s You Were On My Mind.
During the British Invasion, Ian and Sylvia evolved into pioneers of country-rock. Their band, Great Speckled Bird, rivaled the Byrds and other groups which helped create modern country, a decade before the Urban Cowboy phase of contemporary “new traditionalists”.
After hosting a national Canadian television music show from 1970 to 1975, Tyson realized his dream of returning to the Canadian West. The music and marriage of Ian and Sylvia had ended and it was now or never. Disillusioned with the Canadian country music scene, Tyson decided the time had come to return to his first love – training horses in the ranch country of southern Alberta.
After three idyllic years cowboying in the Rockies at Pincher Creek, Tyson recorded the album Old Corrals & Sagebrush, consisting if cowboy songs, both traditional and new. “Kind of a musical Christmas card for my friends” he recalls. “We weren’t looking for a ‘hit radio’ play or anything like that”. Unbeknownst to Tyson and his friends, the cowboy renaissance was about to find expression at the inaugural Elko Cowboy Poetry Gathering in 1983. A small coterie of saddle makers, rawhide braiders, cowboy poets and pickers discovered one another in this small cow town in Northern Nevada. Tyson was invited to perform his “new western music” and the overwhelming response at Stockman’s Casino brought Tyson the realization the he had found his true audience.
Tyson considers himself a very fortunate man. His second music career takes him to concerts all over North America, where he is able to ride the deserts and sage hills with his friends from Alberta to Mexico. “I like to surround myself with the most talented musicians,” Tyson says, “so that people not directly from the ranch culture can enjoy an evening with us through the music alone. Everyone, it seems, can relate to a song like Someday Soon and that’s the kind of communication I strive for.”
The striving continues and the songs keep coming from this word painter of the west. His current album, Yellowhead to Yellowstone and other Love Stories – SPCD 1339 – was recorded in 2008 and has been critically acclaimed in both Canada and the United States. This latest CD is the 13th release in Tyson’s steady stream of recordings since 1973. In 2000, Tyson’s “Four Strong Winds” was voted Canada’s top song of the 20th Century by CBC listeners.
Ian Tyson is the recipient of The Order of Canada and has been inducted into 5 industry Halls of Fame. He has garnered 3 Honorary Doctorates and received numerous citations and awards from every corner of the entertainment industry. He is exclusively represented by fellow Canadian, Paul Mascioli of Mascioli Entertainment Corporation, Orlando, FL.
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Sunday & Monday, October 24 & 25
Tom Rush
$45 in advance or $50 at the door.
Tom Rush is a gifted musician and performer, whose shows offer a musical celebration...a journey into the tradition and spectrum of what music has been, can be, and will become. His distinctive guitar style, wry humor and warm, expressive voice have made him both a legend and a lure to audiences around the world. His shows are filled with the rib-aching laughter of terrific story-telling, the sweet melancholy of ballads and the passion of gritty blues.
Rush's impact on the American music scene has been profound. He helped shape the folk revival in the '60s and the renaissance of the '80s and '90s, his music having left its stamp on generations of artists. James Taylor told Rolling Stone, "Tom was not only one of my early heroes, but also one of my main influences." Country music star Garth Brooks has credited Rush with being one of his top five musical influences. Rush has long championed emerging artists. His early recordings introduced the world to the work of Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne and James Taylor, and in more recent years his Club 47 concerts have brought artists such as Nanci Griffith and Shawn Colvin to wider audiences when they were just beginning to build their own reputations.
Tom Rush began his musical career in the early '60s playing the Boston-area clubs while a Harvard student. The Club 47 was the flagship of the coffee house fleet, and he was soon holding down a weekly spot there, learning from the legendary artists who came to play, honing his skills and growing into his talent. He had released two albums by the time he graduated.
Rush displayed then, as he does today, an uncanny knack for finding wonderful songs, and writing his own - many of which have become classics re-interpreted by new generations. (It is testimony to the universality of his appeal that his songs have been folk hits, country hits, heavy metal and rap hits.) Signed by Elektra in 1965, Rush made three albums for them, culminating in The Circle Game, which, according to Rolling Stone, ushered in the singer/songwriter era.
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Tuesday, October 26
Paisley Jura CD Release
$17 in advance or $20 at the door.
The cover of Paisley Jura's debut album Time In Between draws you into its tranquility like a Renoir painting. The artist reclines in that most Canadian of symbols: a red cedar-strip canoe. Her long, dark tresses flowing over the side, fingertips grazing the surface of the water, Paisley shares the canoe with her one true love – her two-hundred-year -old Italian double bass.
These days Paisley and her bass hop from plane to train and automobile (as well as the occasional canoe) as they traverse Canada. She takes her bass with her almost everywhere, but it's not to play in a classical orchestra this time around. Now she calls the tune – and the tunes are her own collection of sophisticated pop songs delivered with a voice as clear as a bell.
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Wednesday, October 27
ROSEMARY PHELAN with Jason LaPrade and Band (Jason LaPrade on guitar and dobro, Ian Tamblyn on piano, flutes, vocals and hammered dulcimer, Adam Warner on percussion and drums, & Murray Foster on bass and vocals.)
CD release - What Sings in the Blood
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Opening set: Ian Tamblyn, Jon Brooks, and one more very special guest TBA!
"... an incisive lyricist... songs that deserve a close listen." David Francey
"Amidst an identity challenged folk music industry desperately enamoured with cuteness, nostalgia, and escapism, Rosemary Phelan reminds us the true folksinger's vocation: to sing out, with love and moral conscience, our happinesses and our sufferings.” Jon Brooks
"There is something in Rosemary Phelan's voice and songs that moves me to tears each time I hear her; even the happy songs. Her voice and words go straight to my heart, and my response to her work is involuntary - I simply surrender." Ian Tamblyn
" 'what sings in the blood' is a major breakthrough; strong content, perfectly paced... it provides a depth of understanding of both the simple miracles of every day life, and a vision for change in the collective hearts of the world community. " Spencer Lewis, Quartz Recordings (U.S.A.)
Rosemary Phelan has run the gamut from calling square dances in the hills of northern Vermont to singing Mozart in the halls of the Royal Conservatory. Somewhere between the barn and the recital hall she found the music of her heart.
The grace and losses encountered during a tumultuous, nomadic childhood, time spent eking out a hard-won living in the bush, and her years as a community nurse in the urban core live in Rosemary's songs. She sincerely hopes the goodness she unearthed at the root of it all can be found there, too.
"... let her gorgeous voice wash over you..." Sing Out! magazine
"... like love at first sight..." Roger Wise, Restless Mornings
"... full of heart and soul." Mark Michaelis, Acoustic Harmony
"... the performances cut to the bone..." Bill Garrett, Borealis Records
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Thursday, October 28
Eric Andersen
Layah Jane with Oliver Johnson
$30 in advance or $32.50 at the door.
ERIC ANDERSEN'S songs, voice, and guitar have created a career, spanning over 40 years, that includes 25 albums of original songs, and numerous tours of North America, Europe, and Japan. His songs; have been recorded by artists all over the world, including Judy Collins, Fairport Convention, Peter Paul and Mary, Rick Nelson, Linda Ronstadt, The Grateful Dead, and Francoise Hardy.
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Friday, October 29 - Double Bill
Jory Nash & Jason Fowler
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
About Jory Nash
Jory Nash blends elements of folk, jazz, blues, soul and pop into an original stew of sound. He has recorded 5 critically-acclaimed CDs, including 2004's curiously titled "Spaz Loves Weezie". A master storyteller and a lover of hats, Jory tours across North America, playing mostly solo. Acoustic guitar, piano and banjo are Jory's main instruments. Jory is a past winner of the Ontario Council of Folk Festival's Songs From the Heart Songwriting Award, and has showcased at NXNE, NERFA, Ontario COntact and OCFF. Jory is a fixture on the summerfolk festival circuit, having played such great festivals as Hillside, Summerfolk, Mariposa, Winterfolk, Toronto City Roots, Home County, Live From The Rock, Shelter Valley, and numerous others. Jory's music can often be heard on CBC Radio, and on college stations across North America. Jory's music can be purchased (in CD or MP3 form) from www.maplemusic.com or at live concerts.
Jason Fowler is a Toronto singer/songwriter, session guitarist and producer.
His latest release, Buckets Of Rain, was recorded at his home studio and is a collection of Jason's favorite songs that he's been singing for most of his life; songs by Mississippi John Hurt, Blind Blake, Doc Watson, Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Bruce Cockburn, Murray McLauchlan and Hoyt Axton. Jason plays his custom-made Oskar Graf Cutaway as well as his National Style-O resophonic guitar, complete with etched palm trees and nickel-plated bell brass body.
A two-time winner at the Walnut Valley National Guitar Championships in both the Fingerpicking and Flatpicking categories, Jason is acknowledged as one of Canada's most gifted guitarists. He holds a degree in Classical Guitar Performance from McGill University and was the inaugural winner of the OCFF (Ontario Council of Folk Festivals) Instrumental Composition of the Year Award.
He is a consummate musician with an encyclopedic knowledge of musical styles from folk, country and bluegrass, to blues, rock, jazz and classical.
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Saturday, October 30
Betty & The Bobs - Halloween Bash
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
BETTY AND THE BOBS was formed as an extracurricular vehicle for a group
of Toronto musicians and friends who had worked together in different combinations. The mandate is
to do all the songs they have ever wanted to do, but would never get around to doing in their own
bands. This includes a bunch of old tunes they grew up with -- country, blues, R&B, Beatles,
gospel, old jazz, as well as some wacky original songs.
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Sunday, October 31
Ken Whiteley - Gospel Matinee
Special Guests TBA
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Show starts at 2pm.
Ken Whiteley is a Canadian roots music legend. His musical journey has taken him from jug band, folk and swing to blues, gospel and children's music. Among numerous accolades, he has won a Canadian Folk Music Award, Genie Award for Best Original Song in a Canadian film, Lifetime achievement awards from the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals and Mariposa Folk Festival. Ken has been nominated for 7 Juno awards and 13 Maple Blues Awards. Ken’s live performances showcase his outstanding musicianship on guitars and mandolin, award winning original songs and his powerful vocals, called "...a cross between Pete Seeger and Tony Bennett on 11!" Whether leading his own group, solo or collaborating with peers at blues, folk, children’s festivals and concerts of all sizes, his “...deep knowledge and infectious passion” guarantee good times for all. As a producer of over 125 recording projects, Ken’s productions have garnered 10 Canadian Gold and Platinum records, 4 American Gold records, 22 Juno and 2 Grammy nominations, and sold over 8 million copies.
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Wednesday, November 3
Micah Barnes
$18 in advance or $20 at the door.
Singer/pianist/composer Micah and his brother Daniel Barnes have a rich musical history together reaching back to early childhood, where they played the piano and drums respectively in their family living room with plenty of encouragement from their father classical composer Milton and their mother Television writer Lilly Barnes.
In their teens the brothers had established themselves as The Micah Barnes Trio, regularly played to packed houses in the top Jazz and Cabaret rooms of Toronto. By the mid 80's the brothers had found a home on Toronto's blossoming Queen Street Scene as The Micah Barnes Band. They shared stages nationally with Jane Siberry, Carole Pope and The Parachute Club joining established jazz acts like Holly Cole and Molly Johnson in concert. Much Music, CBC and the national press helped created a huge buzz about The Micah Barnes Band, resulting in opening gigs for international acts such as Natalie Cole at The O'Keefe Centre.
In 1989 Micah joined the internationally popular recording and concert act The Nylons, replacing founding member Paul Cooper. He wrote, arranged and recorded the CD's "Four On The Floor" and "Live To Love" with the A Capella group, helping lead to Urban Radio play and heavy rotation on BET in the USA, as well as 1993's Juno nomination for R&B single for their hit cover of "Don't Look Any Further". Their recording of "Oh Canada" with Micah singing Baritone in both French and English is still played every morning in schools across Canada to this day. The Nylons' busy touring and performing schedule brought Micah to concert audiences all over the world including Asia, Europe, Australia and the U.S.A., and found him sharing stages with performers like Harry Connick Jr, Gladys Knight, Michael Bolton, The Spinners and The Commodores. Micah appeared with The Nylons on dozens of television shows in North America, Europe and Australia as well as a popular PBS special "Live From Chataqua".
In 1996 Micah left The Nylons and relocated to California where he released his first solo recording, "LoudBoy Radio" in 1999. This collection of hard hitting club tracks, created with N' Sync's producer, Brad Daymond, won him a new fan base, TV play on "Party Of Five" and the critics' praises in the U.S., including a nod from Rolling Stone as an indie pop artist worth watching. His tour dates included hot underground venues across the nation from the legendary CBGB's in New York to LA's Viper room and his adventures are covered in the chapter "Revenge Of The Canadian Loudmouth" in the book "Homocore" published by Alyson Books in 2005The success of Micah's first solo recording caught the attention of hot remix team Thunderpuss, (responsible for over top 10 crossover hits for the likes of Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera ), who in 2003 created the song "Welcome To My Head" especially written for Micah. "Welcome To My Head" became a favorite of the club DJ's internationally and was included on countless club disc's, as well being played on the top rated TV show "Will and Grace" which helped push the song into the number one position on Billboard's club chart. Micahs touring schedule expanded to include top club and concert performances in Las Vegas, Miami, San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.
While touring with his club hit, Micah was developing material for a new direction, going back to his roots as a songwriter and singing at the piano. He started trying out the new songs at intimate hot spots like Les Deux Café in Hollywood and The Living Room in New York City before cutting the self titled C.D. "Micah Barnes" in Los Angeles with legendary producer Geza X.,(Meridith Brooks, Black Flag etc.).
Moving back to his hometownToronto in 2006 Micah has found himself embraced by fans and critics alike for the intense passion of his matured song-writing and performances, including dates at the Toronto Jazz Festival and a standing room only CD release concert at the prestigious Hugh's Room. In summer of '07 CBC Radio's highest rated national program "Sunday Edition" created and broadcast a 1/2 hour documentary about Micah's career to date including his years with "The Nylons" and his solo journey. Most recently, Micah has been on tour opening for his pal jazz diva Molly Johnson on her Canadian concert dates.
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Friday, November 5
Sultans of String
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Sultans of String take audiences on a riveting musical adventure, serving up a spicy stew of Spanish Flamenco, Middle Eastern folk, French Manouche gypsy jazz, and Cuban rhythms. Seamlessly traversing diverse themes of heart, place and tradition, fiery violin dances with kinetic guitar while a funk bass lays down unstoppable grooves. Throughout, acoustic strings meet electronic wizardry to create layers and depth of sound.
Since their formation only 3 years ago, Sultans of String have been riding a wave of success, from their debut CD "Luna" hitting # 1 on world/international music charts in Canada, to their triple 2009 Canadian Folk Music Award nomination, winning Instrumental Group of the Year.
In the past few months alone, they've acquired a JUNO nomination for their new CD, "Yalla Yalla", U.S. representation from acclaimed promoter David Wilkes (Emmylou Harris, Jesse Cook, Bela Fleck), and booking representation in Australia. They also garnered a 2010 CMW Indies nomination and took home 1st place in the International Songwriting Competition... exciting times for the band!
“Canada’s ambassadors of musical diversity” include 6-string violinist Chris McKhool who has guest starred with Jesse Cook and Pavlo, duelling guitar czars Kevin Laliberté (The Chieftains) and Eddie Paton (Robert Michaels), bass master Drew Birston (Chantal Kreviazuk, Amanda Martinez), and the jaw dropping talent of Cuban percussionist Chendy Leon!
“Canada is a real meeting places of styles and musical influences from around the world” says McKhool. “At the same time, as a band we try to tell uniquely Canadian stories, putting forth our vision of the world as one family.” Chris’ paternal Makhoul grandparents immigrated to Canada from Lebanon in the early 1900s, and his Egyptian-born mother, an accomplished pianist, also has paternal Lebanese ancestry. “Growing up, I was surrounded by global sounds and the teachings of respect for all peoples and celebration of culture.” This has fueled McKhool’s unbridled passion for exploring world rhythms and melodies, and has led him to the far corners of the globe, incorporating instruments and styles along the way.
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Sunday, November 7
Susan Cogan & The Weeds - CD Release - Friends of Friendship
with Bobby Cohen, David Woodhead & Michael Rosen
Cameo performances by Tara MacLean, Brent Titcomb, Marianne Girard and more TBA
$10in advance or $12 at the door.
SHOW STARTS AT 2:00 P.M.
Susan Cogan's newest CD, Gypsy Hill, co-produced with Paul Brosseau, recorded at Nomad Music on Salt Spring Island, BC, features such talented performers as Jerome Jarvis, Kerry Galloway, Wyckham Porteous, and Bill Henderson. With an alchemy of folk, world-beat, Middle Eastern and contemporary sounds, Susan Cogan's original music transcends cultural differences to inspire the core of our shared humanity. An extraordinary woman of vast experience, Susan charms her listeners with her versatile vocal range and her ability to fuse elements of seemingly diverse styles into soulful, moving music.
An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and passionate entertainer, Susan's career spans three decades and two continents. Her first public performances were in between sets of her uncle's big band, and launched Susan on the path she follows today. Her songs are 'standards' on Israeli radio. After relocating to Jerusalem, she joined what became the popular duo "Susan and Fran". Many performances, television appearances, and heavy rotation radio play followed as the two women built a loyal fan base that still exists today. In Canada, Susan has performed her one-woman multi-media show One Artist in Search of a Song at the Vancouver and Victoria Fringe Festivals, sang concerts throughout North America, and released several recordings, which have been heard on radio stations across North America and Europe. Music from Susan's CD, Space Age Primitives, was recently featured in the BC-made film, Fury for the Sound.
"I am a gypsy caravan of one. My hair is white, my daughter is grown and my dishes are done. I'm taking my guitar, my dumbek and my new CD and hopping into my van nicknamed 'The Spirit Princess'. For four months I'll be crossing this vast country to Newfoundland and back, bringing my music to new audiences and renewing contact with old fans. These are my songs. This is my Earthwalk."
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Sunday, November 7
Leon Redbone
$47.50 in advance or $50 at the door.
For a man whose music seems timeless, Leon Redbone prefers to immerse himself in the here and now.
"What I do and what I record only work for the moment," Redbone says in his unmistakably croaky drawl. "That's basically all I hope for in a performance, because that's what I think a song is: It has to reach out and grab you for one moment. It can even be a single note which defines the entire song."
On AnyTime, Redbone's eleventh record and his first for the Blue Thumb label, the singer-guitarist continues his very real love affair with tunes from the turn-of-the-century, flapper-era radio ditties, Depression-spawned ragtime and folk-jazz. Yet there is always something oddly modern about this musician—his lyrical satire and emotional cynicism tend to wear well with any generation.
"After my first few records, some had dubbed what I did as camp. Of course, these were insensitive people who didn't understand the depth of my artistic passion," Redbone says, sarcasm in tow. "No doubt it seemed that way to some—but fortunately they haven't been heard from lately."
The entire mood of AnyTime conjures images of a more relaxed period of American history—when pop music meant melodies, harmonies, and finesse, all unaffected by modern gloss and gadgetry. But the record percolates with a conviction that, like its title, is appealing to any audience, any time.
"The art of recording, as much as it has progressed over the years, hasn't actually improved much," Redbone says. "I still maintain that most of the great sounds captured come from the 1920s and a little later, but certainly not recently."
Since his 1975 Warner Brothers gold record debut, On the Track, Redbone has defied other people's expectations while consistently building up his own myth. Beyond what he has exposed through his music, the artist prefers to reveal nothing else. There is no consensus on how he first flirted with—and eventually came to personify—the vast styles associated with the gramophone era.
Redbone just seems to be perpetually famous, whether making numerous television appearances (his network debut came on the second season of Saturday Night Live), popularizing the classic beer jingle "This Bud's For You," adding his deft touch to various soundtracks, or even being lampooned in a Far Side cartoon.
It's been nearly seven years since Redbone's last recording. During that time, he's kept a fairly grueling international tour schedule. "It took about a year," he says of recording AnyTime, his first new studio effort since 1994's Whistling in the Wind. "I'm working toward the perfect time between records: a decade."
For AnyTime, Redbone gathered an arsenal of gifted musicians, who contribute everything from trombone to clarinet to fife. While the majority of solos on the album are taken by guitarist Frank Vignola—on a borrowed Gibson guitar of Redbone's that was once owned by 1920s jazz virtuoso Eddie Lang—the primary acoustic and occasional banjo is performed by the songster.
"I use a style which allows me to sing and play at the same time," Redbone explains. "It doesn't really lend itself to playing single note lead lines: those notes are incorporated into the rhythm. It's a fingerpicking style similar to certain Portuguese accompaniment."
Redbone's fingerstyle skill leaps out on tunes such as "In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree," where his dueling banjo and acoustic work ripens during a double-time breakdown. His signature vocals are in rare form on AnyTime, whether lazily crooning on "Apple Tree" while backed by the legendary a capella act The Persuasions, or oozing charm like a rural Bing Crosby on "So Tired of Livin' All Alone."
Another standout is the whimsical "Your Feet's Too Big," recorded several years ago for use as the title song of TV's Harry and the Hendersons and only now making its appearance on disc. The album's highlight (and consequently Redbone's favorite track) may be the torch song "Blossoms On Broadway," recorded in England during one of his many junkets there. With a haunting piano score flanked by harmonica and clarinet, Redbone reinterprets this New York City tribute as a torch song lament to a vintage era.
In conjunction with the release of AnyTime, five of Redbone's previous albums will be reissued, including Red to Blue, No Regrets, Sugar, and Up A Lazy River, all on Blue Thumb Records. Christmas Island will be available for Christmas 2001.
The musician will embark on a widespread road trip in support of AnyTime, where his front-porch delivery and cagey demeanor will be introduced to a new generation of music lovers. What manner of mental process will be brewing beneath his ubiquitous fedora and dark glasses is anybody's guess.
"There are two ways of performing: One is to run out onstage and basically let loose and communicate with the audience on a personal level," Redbone explains, "the other one is to completely ignore the entire situation and try to concentrate on what it is you are doing and at the same time, not dwell on it, disconnect from your physical surroundings—which is contrary to performing, really. So I don't know if performing is necessarily a good definition for what I do. It may be closer to a séance than anything else."
The strong material from AnyTime will no doubt make for some entertaining live shows. It's a varied and endearing collection that will please both Redbone's most devoted fans as well as lucky listeners discovering him for the first time. |
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Wednesday, November 10
Denzal Sinclaire
$25 in advance or $27.50 at the door.
Vocalist/pianist/percussionist/actor, Denzal[DEN•zal] Sinclaire is one of Canada’s most popular jazz vocalists and is ranked among the finest jazz singers of his generation. A graduate of McGill University's Jazz Performance program(Montreal, Canada), he possesses that rare ability to achieve, from the moment he steps on stage, a profound emotional interaction with his audience. His passionate and sincere delivery caresses every song he sings. He touches the listener with the purity of the message.
Denzal is a multiple Juno Award(Canada's Grammy Award) nominee, a recipient of the 2004 National Jazz Award for “Best Album”, four - time consecutive recipient of Jazz Report Magazine Award for Male Jazz Vocalist, and 2007 Choc Jazzman Award(France). His admirers include Grammy Award -Winning artists,Diana Krall ("Denzal Sinclaire embodies the tradition of the great singers I love like Nat Cole, yet definitely has his own voice. He is one of my favorite singers..."), Bette Midler, Dianne Reeves,Brantford Marsalis and Michel Bublé as well as growing legions of jazz fans in his native Canada and abroad. From his early days as a canny interpreter ofNat ‘King’ Cole’s mentholated crooning, he’s grown into one of the most distinctive and individualistic singers anywhere.
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Thursday, November 11
Steve Forbert
$25 in advance or $27.50 at the door.
Anointed "the new Dylan" upon his recording debut, folk-rock singer/songwriter Steve Forbert was born in Meridian, MS, in 1955. After learning guitar at age 11, he spent his high school years playing in a variety of local bands before quitting his job as a truck driver and moving to New York City at the age of 21. There, he performed for spare change in Grand Central Station before working his way up to the Manhattan club circuit. After signing to Nemperor, Forbert debuted in 1978 with Alive on Arrival, which earned critical acclaim for its taut, poetic lyrics. The follow-up, 1979's Jackrabbit Slim, was his most successful outing, reaching the Top 20 on the strength of the hit single "Romeo's Tune" (allegedly inspired by the late Supreme Florence Ballard). However, both 1980's Little Stevie Orbit and a self-titled 1982 effort fared poorly, and Forbert was dropped by his label. He spent much of the decade in Nashville, where he continued honing his songwriting skills and performed regularly throughout the South. In 1988, he signed to Geffen, where the E Street Band's Garry Tallent produced his comeback album, Streets of This Town. Pete Anderson took over the production reins for 1992's The American in Me, but Forbert's continued lack of chart success prompted the label to cut him loose. A deal with the Warner Bros.-affiliated Giant label resulted in two more studio albums, 1995's Mission of the Crossroad Palms and 1996's Rocking Horse Head, but in 1998 Forbert moved into independent territory for his next album, the rollicking live set Here's Your Pizza. Forbert signed with Koch Records for his next studio disc, 2000's Evergreen Boy, where he also released Any Old Time (a tribute to country music legend Jimmie Rodgers) in 2002 and Just Like There's Nothin' to It (a collection of new songs) in 2004. During this period, Forbert also released two compilations of rare and unreleased material, Young, Guitar Days and More Young, Guitar Days, as well as several live recordings. On Stage at World Cafe Live appeared in 2007 from Decca Vision as well as a new studio set, Strange Names and New Sensations, from 429 Records that same year. The Place and the Time arrived in 2009. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
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Friday & Saturday, November 12 & 13
Stan Rogers Tribute
Lineup TBA
$25 in advance or $27.50 at the door.
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Sunday, November 14
Darrell Scott
$26.50 in advance or $28.50 at the door.
Darrell Scott became one of the more successful country songwriters of the late '90s and early 2000s, placing songs with the biggest names in country music, including several major chart hits. Garth Brooks, the Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, and many others recorded his work. At the same time, he worked consistently as a studio musician and released a series of his own solo albums.
The son of musician Wayne Scott, James Darrell Scott was born August 6, 1959, on a tobacco farm in London, KY, and moved as a child to East Gary, IN. He was playing professionally by his teens in Southern California, later living in Toronto and Boston. He attended Tufts University, where he studied poetry and literature. Finally, he relocated to Nashville to get into the country music business. In the first half of the 1990s, he appeared on albums by John Lincoln Wright, Catie Curtis, Hypnotic Clambake, Peter Keane, Duke Levine, Suzy Bogguss, and Randy Travis, singing and playing banjo, Dobro, guitar, bass, and pedal steel. In 1995 alone, he was on records by Guy Clark, Kate Wallace, John Berry, Marcus Hummon, Doug Stone, and Martina McBride, and he began to get recordings for his songs. Hummon and Scott co-wrote "Honky Tonk Mona Lisa," which appeared on Hummon's All in Good Time and on Doug Stone's Faith in Me, Faith in You (and was later covered by Neal McCoy); Scott and Hal Ketchum's "An Ordinary Day" was sung by Maura O'Connell on Stories; and Scott and Tim O'Brien's "Daddy's on the Roof Again" was on O'Brien's Rock in My Shoe.
Scott's sideman activities in 1996 included albums by John Berry, Suzy Bogguss, and Twila Paris. He and Verlon Thompson co-wrote "Ol' Joe Clark," which appeared on Sam Bush's album Glamour & Grits. Scott's most successful effort of the year was "No Way Out," a song he wrote with Marcus Hummon that Suzy Bogguss recorded for a country singles chart entry. (It was later covered by Julie Roberts.) Scott appeared on albums by David Beaudry, Bruce Carroll, Chris Rice, Monk Wilson, Jason Sellers, Guy Clark, Michael Peterson, and Tim O'Brien in 1997. With Clark, he co-wrote "Out in the Parking Lot," which was on Clark's album Keepers (and later covered by Kyle Jennings and by Brad Paisley), and with O'Brien he co-wrote "When There's No One Around," which O'Brien recorded on his album When No One's Around and which Garth Brooks covered on his chart-topping, multi-platinum album Sevens. Meanwhile, Scott had been signed to Sugar Hill Records as a solo artist, and on April 22, 1997, Sugar Hill released his debut album, Aloha from Nashville.
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Tuesday, November 16
Porkbelly Futures
$22.50 in advance or $27.50 at the door.
PorkBelly Futures takes writers, rockers, classical musicians and does the only logical thing. It creates a sort of alt. country blues band. The Porkbelly Futures reunite the singer/song-writing team of Paul Quarrington and Martin Worthy, whose 1980 album produced by John Capek and engineered by Daniel Lanois yielded the #1 hit single Baby and the Blues. Quarrington is one of Canada's best-known literary figures, having won awards for his novels, TV scripts, screenplays and songwriting. Completing the band are some of Canada's busiest musicians. Stuart Laughton substituted his classical trumpet for guitar, harmonica and pedal steel, the extraordinary singer Rebecca Campbell adds unusual and ethereal voice, while ace bassist Chas Elliott continues to do what he does best — provide a driving, sold bottom end to the band's sound.
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Wednesday, November 17
Lee Harvey Osmond
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
“Acid folk” was born in an old garage off Clinton Avenue in Toronto, concocted by Tom Wilson from Blackie & the Rodeo Kings, a few Cowboy Junkies, and some Skydiggers. Allowing bass, hypnotic rhythms and a lot of groove into their songwriting circle, the artist collective LeE HARVeY OsMOND created a sound that would creep out of the Northern woods and across the Great Lakes into the South, the same way The Band did forty years before them.
Tom Wilson (guitar and vocals) struck Canadian rock gold in the ’90s as the leader of the much- loved Junkhouse, and then found a whole new audience as a crucial component of roots-rock super- group Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, who have just released a compilation of some of their most loved songs entitled “Swingin’ from The Chains of Love” on True North Records. He released solo albums in 2001 and 2006, and his 2005 collaboration with Bob Lanois, The Shack Recordings, was critically acclaimed.
A Quiet Evil is the first release by LeE HARVeY OsMOND. The CD will be released on Latent Records in 2009, and the group will tour with the Cowboy Junkies in the U.S. to support the release. Whether as a stripped-down solo show by Tom Wilson, or with a full five-piece band, LeE HARVeY OsMOND will take every audience member along on their “Trip”….
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Thursday, November 18
Ruth Moody (of the Wailin' Jennys)
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Australian born, Ruth grew up on the Canadian prairies, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She comes from a musical family and has been singing, playing, and performing since she was a child. Her mother a music teacher and orff-specialist, and her father an English teacher with a passion for Shakespeare, it is no wonder Ruth ended up a professional singer-songwriter who spends most of her time on the stage.
Like her siblings, violist Richard (The Bills), violinist Rachel (Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra) and cellist/psychiatrist Jane (keeping the family sane), she was trained classically, beginning with piano lessons at the age of four. Unlike the rest of her family, she was never drawn to learn a stringed instrument, and when she reached her mid-teens and found herself the odd-one out, she decided to study voice instead. Somewhere along the way she discovered a passion for folk and traditional music, and while still interested in the classical side of voice training, she built up a repertoire of folk songs. She was particularly drawn to Irish and Scottish songs, and learned to sing them in the 'Sean nos' style. It was this love and affinity for the Celtic tradition that eventually led her to decide on a career in folk music.
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Friday, November 19
Shakura S'Aida
$27.50 in advance or $30 at the door.
Born in Brooklyn, New York. Raised in Switzerland. A long-time Canadian who lives in Toronto. Speaks three languages. Performed in a half a dozen different countries in 2009, and will far exceed that in 2010.
Meet Shakura S'Aida, an international artist whose involvement in the Canadian music scene has been ongoing for the past 30 years, enriching the jazz, blues and classic R&B communities with her soulful voice, enthusiastic personality and commitment to music as an art form.
Whether speaking Swiss-German, French or English, Shakura instantly connects with her audience. With her sensational guitarist, Donna Grantis, she delivers a powerful show that always earns standing ovations.
And now, signed to a German record company, she's on the brink of releasing her first CD for Ruf Records.
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Wednesday, November 24
Valdy
$25 in advance or $27.50 at the door.
Valdy, born Valdemar Horsdal in Ottawa, Canada has been part of the fabric of Canadian pop and folk music for over 34 years. A man with a thousand friends, from Newfoundland to Vancouver Island to Texas to New Zealand, he's a singer, guitarist and songwriter who catches the small but telling moments that make up life.
Remembered for Play Me a Rock and Roll Song, his bitter-sweet memory of finding himself, a relaxed and amiable story-teller, facing a rambunctious audience at the Aldergrove Rock Festival circa 1968, Valdy has sold almost half a million copies of his 13 albums, has two Juno Awards (Folk Singer of the Year and Folk Entertainer of the Year), a total of seven Juno nominations and four Gold albums to his credit.
Valdy's recent CDs include "Contenders", a collaboration with friend and fellow singer/songwriter, Gary Fjellgaard, with whom he has an absolute blast touring, and a solo release, "Viva Valdy: Live at Last", a two-CD package, one live, one studio, with a total of 25 tunes, and a lyric booklet.
One of Canada's most influential songwriters, Valdy's composition A Good Song was recorded under the title Just a Man by the venerable Quincy Jones ( he sang lead on the recording!). Play Me a Rock and Roll Song has been recorded by a few artists, including John Kay of Steppenwolf.
Along the way, Valdy has taken his music to a dozen different countries, from Denmark to Australia and been an often-invited performer at the prestigious Kerrville Festival in Texas. His recent television appearances include Canada AM and Open Mike with Mike Bullard. Valdy has also been a panelist on Front Page Challenge, and played a lead role in an episode of The Beachcombers original series.
Today, he is based on Salt Spring Island, where he lives with his wife Kathleen, two dogs and two large cats. All three children are now grown, flown and doing famously living in or near Vancouver.
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Thursday, November 25
Katherine Wheatley and Barbara Lynch
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Ask any songwriter for advice, and the answer is always the same: "Write what you know." It's counsel that Katherine Wheatley has frequently given—and it's advice that she's followed on her emotionally powerful new CD,Landed.
Here is what Wheatley knows: Doubt, betrayal and loss. Courage, strength and discovery. This is what else she knows: how to make songs universal and how to write tunes you remember, lyrics that are believable, and stories that touch the heart and mind.
Christmas comes 'round each December
Robins return every spring
Wild aster blooms each September
But some people don't come back again
The songs on Landed are an intimate reflection on growing up, loyalty, relationship, loss, revenge and—most of all—resilience. And when Wheatley sings about making it work, you feel like dancing.
Monday, the boys have basketball
Tuesday, they wait for you to call
Wednesday, I get them to the rink by five
Thursday, car pool, my turn to drive
Friday comes and Saturday goes.
Sunday, heaven knows....
It's taken 10 years for Katherine to release her third album. She started the project four years ago, and then—with big changes in her life—she put the album on hold until new songs emerged. She asked two others songwriters,Lynn Miles and Scott Merritt, to produce the record. They demanded that Katherine meet this standard for every line of every song: "Will people believe it?" A line that seemed maudlin? An awkward phrase? A verse that needed clarity? Scott and Lynn insisted Katherine get the eraser and sharpener out. They insisted she be truthful.
The result: Landed is a collection of 11 songs that are not only Wheatley's very best work, but give a perfect indication of the grace, power and emotional impact of her live performance.
This is a strong woman, a survivor, and a person who has indeed—despite the bumpy journey—landed. As the title song puts it:
I landed, I made it through
I landed without help from you
When I landed, it felt so sweet....
...'Cause I landed on my own two feet.
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Fri, Nov 26 -
A Man Called Wrycraft presents the Heart of Saturday Night - A Tom Waits Tribute - Line up TBA-
$25/$27.50
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Sunday, November 28
Ken Whiteley
Special Guests TBA
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Show starts at 2pm.
Ken Whiteley is a Canadian roots music legend. His musical journey has taken him from jug band, folk and swing to blues, gospel and children's music. Among numerous accolades, he has won a Canadian Folk Music Award, Genie Award for Best Original Song in a Canadian film, Lifetime achievement awards from the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals and Mariposa Folk Festival. Ken has been nominated for 7 Juno awards and 13 Maple Blues Awards. Ken’s live performances showcase his outstanding musicianship on guitars and mandolin, award winning original songs and his powerful vocals, called "...a cross between Pete Seeger and Tony Bennett on 11!" Whether leading his own group, solo or collaborating with peers at blues, folk, children’s festivals and concerts of all sizes, his “...deep knowledge and infectious passion” guarantee good times for all. As a producer of over 125 recording projects, Ken’s productions have garnered 10 Canadian Gold and Platinum records, 4 American Gold records, 22 Juno and 2 Grammy nominations, and sold over 8 million copies.
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Saturday & Sunday, November 27 & 28
Old Man Luedecke
$20 in advance or $22.50 at the door.
Old Man Luedecke, is one of Canada’s best loved and most intriguing roots singer-songwriters. “An original, he is a musical singularity to be savoured and shared”, says the Vancouver Folk Festival. His memorable melodies, poetic sense and easy charisma appeal to anyone searching for new growth from old roots.
Old Man Luedecke was born in Toronto but has made his home for years in the music rich maritime province of Nova Scotia, on the east coast of Canada. There his music has been wholeheartedly adopted and is becoming representative for its traditional storytelling folk elements. It speaks to a new generation of people craving such meaning in their music.
Luedecke is a young man with an old soul who doesn’t sugar coat his fears and this lets his songs breathe with a fresh breeze of bittersweet hopefulness. He channels a refreshing energy from folk giants like
Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger with maybe a hint of Loudon Wainwright III. But it’s Luedecke’s contemporary lyrics coupled with the irresistible rhythm of the old time banjo that connect and make him so loved with his audiences. Anchored in his music’s melodic confidence is an ability to tap into a common muddled and dark search for meaning. This keeps people singing his songs and praises after he’s traveled on.
His performances are exciting and totally entertaining. His uncliched banjo playing sparkles beautifully and dynamically. This coupled with his thumping foot creates a complete sound. People are drawn into singing along. His singing is his own. Clear and unadorned it is totally emotive and suits the sincerity of his tunes. In the breaks between songs come wild and charming stories of meeting heroes and easygoing but gripping musings on things ridiculous and sublime that may have a wink of contemporary vaudeville. Equally at home on festival main stages, theatres and living rooms, he can hold court in the occasional indie rock bar. Luedecke has been a featured performer at all the major folk festivals in Canada and Australia and an increasing number of American festivals, like Strawberry in California. He has appeared with and shared the stage at concerts and soft seaters with such performers as Feist, Tim O’Brien, Joel Plaskett, David Francey, Buck 65, The Be Good Tanyas and Jill Barber. He’s shared festival stages alongside Bela Fleck, Tim O’Brien, Jack Elliot, Kris Kristofferson, Ashley MacIsaac, and countless others.
Old Man Luedecke was commissioned in 2008/09 by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to write and collaborate on symphonic music that he performed with Symphony Nova Scotia to great acclaim and an outpouring of joy. That show united the high and low aspects of the folksinger’s art.
His three albums have brought growing acclaim for his music and have provided a broader canvas for his songs. The latest, Proof of Love won the prestigious 2009 Juno Award (the Canadian Grammy) for Roots Solo album and won legions of new fans at home and abroad. The album is a gathering of musicians making music in a room (Vancouver’s famed Factory Studio) with Luedecke’s tunes. It’s nothing fancy but is an exciting and unique roots album combining OML’s trademark clawhammer style, compelling originals and full band. His next album tentatively titled “My hands are on fire and other love songs” will be released March 16 on Black Hen Music in Canada and will be again produced by Steve Dawson. It will feature an exciting batch of new tunes and instrumental and vocal contributions from American bluegrass singing/songwriting whiz Tim O’Brien.
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