July 1st is Canada Day…

I don’t think it influenced the first hour of The Stew because I had planned
to pay tribute to a lost friend..the Bard of the  Boards…Kelly J/Blake
Fordham.

Leader of Crowbar, one of Canada’s grandest bands.

When all others were wimping out behind Tony Orlando and Dawn/Osmond  wanna
be’s, bands like Crowbar carried the flag of rock and roll.

All passion and grit..belief in the mission they were on.

And at the head of the parade was Kelly J…Captain Canada.  All Fire and no
brake.

Great chops as a lead singer but World Class as a boogie piano player.

Well, the fire finally burned itself out. What we are left with is memories
and his music.

So we play the music..a remember the man.

First, four tracks go

Crowbar with King Biscuit Boy

Then King Biscuit Boy with Crowbar

The Band

And the band Crowbar would open for at Fillmore East Joe Cocker.  Mad Dogs
and Englishmen.

There’s 2 of the greatest voices…Aaron Neville and Mavis Staples – singing
together.

Avett Bros

John Fogerty

John Prine

Norah Jones

Funky Nassau

Jimmy Vaughn

The second hour of the show is all Canadian…

Starting with an Interview with Jim Cuddy who, with the Cuddy Band, just
released their 5th album Countrywide Soul.

Recorded in just 3 days in Jim’s barn in southern Ontario.

Only the very best musicians can create this magic.

Some of the songs are Jim’s from previous Cuddy Band albums and Blue Rodeo
as well.

He didn’t re-record them to claim ownership. He did it because he felt they
were different songs now. They needed a different shape and texture.

8 of the songs are Jim’s

2 cover from George Jones and Glen Campbell (Rhinestone Cowboy)

And two new songs were written for the album.

Life is crazy busy for Jim Cuddy.  He’s playing dates with the Cuddy band
and at the same time hitting the road for a very busy Summer with Blue
Rodeo.

Some songs like  Everybody Cries are unchanged  but they’re deeper and more
meaningful.

Some have quietly transformed such as All in Time. It used to rock like a
truck. Now it glides like an Air Stream.

Just like the guy who wrote the song.

The Canada Day Stew finishes with an all Canadian line-up

Leeroy Stagger

Colin James

Whitehorse

Serena Ryder

Dan Mangan

Then – the finish…

Two outstanding tracks. Two outstanding moments in music history.

First The Last Waltz at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco
Thanksgiving 1976.  I was there.

There came a moment when this all-star American spectacle was taken over by
The Canadians.

Four of the 5 Band members were proudly  Canadian

Neil Young sang

Joni Mitchell sang..then they all sand together on the one song  they
identified with – Acadian Driftwood

Goosebumps my friends.

We finish The Stew on another stage – The Commodore Ballroom. Almost  2
years ago

A concert honoring John Mann of Spirit of the West. John was fighting
Alzheimer’s

Happy Dominion Day  – enjoy every minute

-TDM

Cuddy Band
July 16
Salmon Arm Roots and Blues
July 19
Fitzpatrick Family Vineyard
Summerland.
Aug 15
Butchart  Gardens Victoria

Blue Rodeo dates
July 6
Can Alta Medicine Hat
July 7
Shaw Amphitheatre Banff
Aug 10
Edmonton Folk Festival
Aug 17
PNE Vancouver
Aug 18
Bear Creek Folk Festival
Grand Prairie

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