To kick off this year’s Series – all the way from The Hammer – one of the best guitarists and singer/songwriters in the country – Steve Strongman. Born and raised in Kitchener Steve fell in love with the Blues as a teenager after seeing the great Mel Brown perform. Mel recognized his talent immediately and helped mentor Steve to become the fabulous guitarist that he is today. Steve won the Mel Brown Blues Award in 2009 – a distinction he still treasures highly. In the early 2000’s Steve married a Hamilton girl and moved to that city. He broke on to the scene with a roar in 2006 with the release of his debut album “Honey”. Since then he’s recorded 4 more CD’s – and a DVD – each one pushing his boundaries in new directions. His 2013 album “A Natural Fact” won him the Juno that year and the two that followed - “Let Me Prove It To You” (2014) and “No Time Like Now” (2017) also both earned Juno nominations. He’s also been nominated for and/or won multiple Hamilton Music Awards and Maple Blues Awards in the categories of Guitarist, Songwriter, Recording, Electric Act, Acoustic Act and Entertainer of the Year. Some of the Blues greats that Steve has played with over the years include B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Joe Cocker & Randy Bachman. This is his 5th visit to BOTR @ The Cove making him one of the most popular artists to play the series.

When we say this band is full of Allstars we ain’t kiddin’! 5 members from Canada’s legendary Downchild Blues Band - Chuck Jackson (vocals), Michael Fonfara (keyboards), Pat Carey (sax), Gary Kendall (bass) & Mike Fitzpatrick (drums) plus Teddy Leonard on guitar (formerly with Fathead). Both of these bands have received multiple Juno Awards over the years and all of members have either won or been nominated for an MBA in their respective instrument categories. Together they represent almost 300 years of Blues-playing experience and it shows. Led by dynamic singer/showman/front man Chuck Jackson these guys mix it up with their unique renditions of old Blues/Soul and R&B classics along with original songs. This marks The Hoggies 5th return visit to BOTR making them another one of the all time favourites of the Series. The most commonly used adjective to describe this band on the Comment Cards is “AWESOME!” Note: The Hogtown Allstars have SOLD OUT every show at BOTR @ The Cove in the past so don’t wait too long before reserving your tickets for this night!

Canada’s King Of The Blues guitar – and a great singer/songwriter as well. Born in England and raised in Hamilton where he apprenticed under the late, great King Biscuit Boy Jack plays classic Blues-Rock with scorching guitar work in the style of Hendrix, Page and Clapton. He also fronts one of the hardest working and most talented Blues bands in the country: Nick Succi on keyboards, Alan Duffy on bass, Richard Thornton on sax and Gary Donaldson on drums. You get elements of Rock, Funk, Swing and Jazz in Jack’s Blues and it’s all good! A 2X Juno and 7X Maple Blues Award winner he’s another all time favourite at BOTR (this is his 8th visit) thus the two night stand so we can accommodate everybody. All of his previous shows have SOLD OUT so this is another show that you want to reserve early for.

Ria is another great Montreal chanteuse. She has a beautiful, powerful, soulful voice and sings Blues, Rock, Soul & R&B with a depth and feeling that belies her young age evoking memories of Aretha Franklin, Etta James & Koko Taylor. Backed by her guitarist/husband Andre Chevarie, Ria and the band hit the scene in 2013 with the release of their debut album “Out All Night”. It got airplay around the world and positive reviews from as far away as Kenya, Los Angeles, Atlanta and London. They were nominated for 4 Quebec Lys Blues Awards that year and were finalists in the Toronto Blues Society’s Talent Search. After seeing her perform at the Canadian Blues Summit in Toronto in 2015 I was so impressed I booked her immediately to play BOTR @ The Cove and as expected she blew the house away. Anyone who was there that night knows why they want to be back to see her again. For those of you who haven’t experienced her yet – come and find out what all the talk is about. Ria and the band have a new album coming out shortly and will no doubt be playing lots from it at this show.

Rick and Suzie are two of the finest singer/songwriter/guitarists in Canada. Either one of them is well worth the price of admission but together, with a great band behind them, they make an incredible double bill – fabulous guitar, vocals and harmonies! They first met almost 25 years ago in Ottawa while Rick was still a member of the famed Jackson Delta Trio and Suzie had just moved there from Saskatoon. They’ve remained friends ever since and still perform together periodically. Both have enjoyed fabulous solo careers – Suzie has been nominated for a Juno and won 10 (count ‘em) Maple Blues Awards and a Canadian Folk Music Award. Rick (as part of Jackson Delta) has received a nomination for a Juno and American W.C. Handy Award as well as multiple Maple Blues Awards and an International Songwriting Award in 2003 for his solo career. In 2006 they released an album together called “Nothing Halfway” which earned them the Maple Blues Award for “Songwriters Of The Year”. Last year they both released new albums – Suzie did “Shake The Love Around” and Rick’s is called “Driving Home” both of which are highly recommended. This is their 5th visit to BOTR together and we are SO lucky to have them back. They’ve sold the place out every time so – here we go again – we highly recommend that you make your reservations early for this show if you want to come!

CALL THE COVE (613) 273-3636 or 1-888-COVE-INN
or email info@coveinn.com