Chris and Sally Jones, Dead Ends Live, Edmonton March 18, 2023

A rare opportunity to see and hear members of the bluegrass family playing an intimate duo gig this evening. DeadEnds Live, a two-day fest of Grateful Dead-related music in downtown Edmonton, made its second appearance this weekend, and all reports from those in attendance were that it was incredible. I managed to convince myself to…

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The Burnt Pines- Don’t Look Down review

The Burnt Pines Don’t Look Down TheBurntPines.com  “Sex and lies make it snow,A burning house behind us…” I’m not exactly sure how those words from “Angels and Violence” work together poetically, but a rather stark image is created within my little mind, one that stuck with me during my (many) visits to The Burnt Pines…

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Tim Stafford & Thomm Jutz- Lost Voices review

A few weeks ago I was asked by Country Standard Time to review the latest from Tim Stafford and the prolific Thomm Jutz. The review was published in a fairly timely manner, but I neglected to cross-post it here: so the review can be found at the CST site. My unedited version is posted below;…

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Buddy Mondlock- Filament review

Buddy Mondlock Filament BuddyMondlock.com Until this week, I hadn’t listened to a Buddy Mondlock album since Poetic Justice, an album that is as fresh heard today as when first encountered. Something drew me to that discarded copy of Poetic Justice in the used disc store many years ago, likely shortly after its 1998 release. Darrell…

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Dead Ends Live, Edmonton, Alberta- March 17-18, 2023

From the press release: The weekend of March 17 and 18, 2023, marks the return of Edmonton’s newest winter music festival, Dead Ends Live. Born out of a love for the Grateful Dead songbook and the jam band culture, the inaugural Dead Ends Live thrilled fans of this broad musical canvas last spring, just as things were shifting to some…

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John Reischman & the Jaybirds and River City Playboys- Bluegrass @ SilverSkateFestival, 2023.02.19

It was late on Sunday afternoon, as I watched the local team blow another three-goal lead, that a tweet caught my eye- John Reischman & the Jaybirds were playing two sets a half-hour away from my trusty recliner. And the River City Playboys were also appearing! It takes a lot for me to change plans…

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Maggie Fraser- The Way That I Wish It Was review

Maggie Fraser The Way That I Wish It Was MaggieFraserMusic.com Before one can express their own words, they need to listen. I suspect Toronto’s Maggie Fraser is a very acute listener. The songs on her debut album The Way That I Wish It Was display keen details, the type one acquires through a life of…

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Starlett & Big John- Living in the South review

Starlett & Big John Living in the South Rebel Records Rebel Records, going back a generation and continuing with Mark Freeman, has always found a way to identify groups ready to ascend to ‘the next level.’ Starlett & Big John is the latest. In 2021 Turnberry Records put out the duo’s debut, Till the End…

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Helene Cronin- Landmarks review

Helene Cronin Landmarks HeleneCronin.com Since writing about Helene Cronin’s standout album of 2019 Old Ghosts & Lost Causes, I haven’t heard any news from the (I think) Nashville-based singer and songwriter. That was an incredibly powerful, impacting release, one I have returned to a few times since. And then there was the pandemic… By all…

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Austin Mayse- Bridges and Kerosene review

Austin Mayse Bridges and Kerosene AustinMayse.com I encounter a lot of music, most of it very enjoyable. It all blurs together sometimes, one singer-songwriter’s hard-earned insight flowing into the next set heard. But sometimes my ears perk-up because they’ve heard something so very fresh. Sometimes it is a different voice, a timbre of originality. It…

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