October

Russell is no stranger to Greenbank, having been a neighbour and friend for many years as well as a regular performer and member favourite! We are delighted that he is helping open our 26th season here in the GFMS digs!

"Russell deCarle has been around the block and done major time in Canada’s prairie roadhouses in a career that’s enjoyed significant success with country rockers Prairie Oyster. With guitarist Steve Briggs, tonight he presents "... a master class in slow burning country, Tex Mex and western swing that’s big on character and grows with the unflashy expertise and spontaneous creativity of . . . Briggs’ instrumental illuminations." Herald Scotland

Also delighted that the very talented Graham Nicholas also will open for Russell. “To my ear, Graham Nicholas is a keen student of the coy wit of John Prine and the understated soul of Gillian Welch." Matt Foster of The Crooked Brothers.

November

From the website:

"Drawing upon traditional melodies that almost biologically are instantly singable, but combining them with emotions, sentiments and stories that are relatable even now. Stan Rogers was able to do it, Ron Hynes was able to do it, Kate McGarrigle was able to do it – and Sarah Jane Scouten is able to do it." - Tom Power, CBC q and Deep Roots

With flavours of Lucinda Williams, Nanci Griffiths and Iris Dement and a wealth of early country music, the three-time Canadian Folk Music Award nominee and Western Canadian Music Award nominee's songs are faithful to a long-standing folk music tradition. Often spilling over into modern themes that are outspoken and edgy, her songwriting tackles issues from poverty and midwifery to tongue-in-cheek heartache songs and unabashed Canadiana. A traditionalist at heart, Sarah Jane Scouten shows her signature flair for the roots of roots music. With respect for these roots, she writes from her own perspective, playing with style to create her own distinct voice. This songwriter is known for hitting hard and close to home, then laughing it off.

Her third full-length album, When the Bloom Falls From the Rose, was recorded in Toronto with veteran Canadian producer Andre Wahl (Hawksley Workman, Jill Barber) in 2017. The album includes ten original songs, ranging in style from classic honky tonk to indie-folk rock, and two virtually unknown traditional Western Canadian songs, discovered on crackly recordings in university archives and given new life through Scouten's haunting arrangements.

December

"Gwen Swick, Caitlin Hanford and Suzie Vinnick have pooled their considerable individual talents to form a group that is pretty well impossible not to love." - Barry Hammond/Penguin Eggs Magazine

January

February

“Michael Jerome Browne... magnifies the magnificence of 1920s and 1930s country blues numbers... A singer of clarity and character, he is as skilled on banjo and mandolin as he is on valuable old guitars.” (4 stars) -Frank-John Hadley, Downbeat

““Arguably the finest acoustic blues artist in this country”-Globe and Mail (Toronto), Jan. 23, 2015

March

Through a life of many relocations and countless months on the road performing, Fearing has become a gifted storyteller and true musical nomad with the ability to enthrall audiences of all sizes and attitudes. “Getting on stage is the fun part, especially when the adrenaline kicks in,” he says, with a broad smile. “People want to escape and be taken on a journey. I build my shows so they do just that.” Five out of Five Stars in “Country Music People Magazine” “Fearing’s music crackles with ideas and collaborative energy… masterful guitar work from acoustic rock rhythm to elegant finger style.” - Acoustic Guitar Magazine

“…a king amongst minstrels.” Halifax Chronicle Herald

April

From Colleen Brown's web site:

Colleen Brown tears at our hearts as she does her own. With versatile songs and a voice akin to Joni Mitchell, she is relentlessly unafraid. In 2015 she released her 4th studio album ‘Direction’ – co-produced by Joel Plaskett – topping college radio charts, and touring Canada, Germany and the UK. Kerry Doole of exclaim.ca says ‘she is the rare vocalist that impresses equally on vibrant soul and quiet folk…travelling in Brown’s Direction is one very pleasing trek.’

The project ‘Major Love’ was conceived in London, UK, in the lamplight of Bedroom Bar, during that first overseas tour. Edmonton rock trio Scenic Route To Alaska were also wrapping their first tour in Germany and the UK, promoting their newest album. The two acts found themselves on the same dimly lit stage in Shoreditch, 7000 kms from their home-town, bonding over an appreciation of vintage Harmony guitars, singalong pop/rock anthems and an affinity for the spacious, soulful recordings released on the Stax and Motown labels in the 1960’s.

An album was tracked live off the floor a month later, during a summer heatwave in Edmonton’s True North Studios with Jesse Northey (Jesse and the Dandelions) on keys and faders. Contributions from multi-instrumentalist Elijah Abrams followed, with mixes and co-production by Toronto- based pedal steel guru Aaron Goldstein, along with Kenneth Meehan (Daniel Romano) and the singalong single ‘So Good’ mixed by Brooklyn’s prodigious hit-makers Gus van Go and Werner F.

May