2009/10 SEASON
October 16 - MIKE GOUDREAU BAND
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on his web site and see if
you don’t agree. It’s been great seeing
Mike’s career blossom over the past 15
years. Over that time he’s recorded10
CD’s(7 Blues, 2 Jazz and a Christmas
album) which have received major airplay across
Canada, the U.S. and overseas. Some of his original
compositions are now being played on movies
and TV Shows in the U.S. (like “Everybody
Hates Chris”). 18 of his songs are on
a recent 4 box set Jazz compilation album being
distributed in Europe and Asia by Sony/BMG.
Andhe plays regular club gigs and major Blues
& Jazz Festivals (like Montreal and Tremblant)
throughout Quebec and eastern Canada every year
– the list goes on. For
this Show Mike will be featuring songs from
his new CD “Blues etcetera” which
is getting lots of airplay across the country
and beyond. Mike (guitar and
lead vocals) is backed for this Show by Gerry
Goodsell on bass & vocals, Alain Blanchet on drums, Kaven
Jalbert on tenor sax and Nino
Fabbi on keyboards. If you’re
looking for a fun night of dancin’ blues
– don’t miss this one.
"A hearty vocalist and effective guitarist who plays snarling, tightly wound leads...A highly enjoyable set. Tom Hyslop, Blues Revue Magazine, USA, Dec/Jan 2008 "Goudreau plays lead guitar with the tone and taste of greats like Otis Rush and Albert King, and writes compelling, original songs". Jeremy Loome, Edmonton Sun, 2007 "Quality Canadian blues...solid and unpretentious...swings with snappy sincerity and crisp energy” Hal Horowitz, Blues Revue Magazine, USA Oct/Nov 2006 Issue Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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November 20 - HARRISON KENNEDY BANDHarrison
Kennedy is making his first appearance
at BOTR @ The Cove – fresh from opening
for Keb ‘Mo on his recent eastern Canadian
tour - and we are pleased and honoured to have
him. A descendant of African slaves who made
it to Canada from Mississipi via the Underground
Railroad in the 1860’s Harrison has a
deep connection to blues and roots music. His
long musical career started in 1970 when he
interrupted his university studies at Trent
University to audition as lead singer for the
hot Detroit R&B band “Chairmen
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Of
The Board” and was accepted. Famous for
tunes like “I’m The Chairman Of
The Board” and “Gimme Just A Little
More Time” the band did the whole U.S.
circuit in the early ‘70’s appearing
on Johnny Carson, American Bandstand, Soul Train
and the famous Apollo Theatre in NYC. They shared
the stage with top artists like B.B. King, James
Brown, Smokey Robinson and many more. After
touring for a number of years Harrison returned
to Canada, got a “real job”with
Allied Chemical and stayed at that until the mid ‘80’swhen he came back to
his music – this time focusing on acoustic
roots/blues. He has released 3 albums ALL of
which have been nominated for a Juno as Best
Blues Album Of The Year - “Sweet Taste”
in 2004, “Voice + Story” in 2006
and “High Country Blues” in 2008
(on ElectoFi.com). He has also had numerous
Maple Blues Award nominations for Acoustic Act,
Male Vocalist and Songwriter Of The Year over
the past 5 years. For this Show Harrison brings
a full band – drums, bass and keyboards
– to support his extraordinarily powerful
and emotive vocals, guitar and harmonica. Expect
a smorgasbord of everything from ‘70’s
R&B, funk & soul to roots/country blues
for his Show. “Kennedy is an urban poet, stripped bare, yet comfortable in his own skin and his adrenaline-fueled, emotionally-charged vocals embrace elements of the blues, funk, folk, gospel and R&B all wrapped in a convincing blanket of soulful abandon”. Eric Thom, Exclaim Magazine “A classy mix of Detroit soul, southern gospel, Latin shuffle and worldbeat African roots....good, clean Hamilton rhythm and blues with Kennedy’s powerfully elastic, soaring vocals”. Graham Rockingham, Hamilton Spectator Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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December 18 - JOHNNY MAX BANDIf
you’re looking for a place to hold your
Christmas party and you like Chicago blues,
R&B & soul and a lot of fun then book
your tickets now for the Johnny Max
Band December 18 at The Cove. Johnny
is a solid singer with a passionate, soulful
voice. He’s also a consummate performer/entertainer /comedian
who always gets the crowd up dancing, sweating,
laughing and enjoying themselves. Born in Glasgow
of Irish parents he was surrounded by music
from day one – Irish traditional but also
Jazz (his dad was a big fan). When the family
moved to Toronto in 1966 he was exposed to soul,
R&B,
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blues and rock that was blossoming
in the city and coming in on the airwaves from
the States, especially Wolfman Jack’s
Show. A career as a wedding DJ and almost professional
kareoke singer got him noticed by one of Toronto’s
bluesmen, Kevin Higgins, and he was got invited
to help form a band. Johnny’s eclectic
background has led to a sound that is unique
and fun – think New Orleans, Memphis,
Motown/Chicago black crossed with Sean Connery! The Johnny Max Band has been
entertaining fans throughout southern Ontario
and beyond now for over 16 years. During that
time he has released 4 CD’s including
“A Lesson I’ve Learned” in
2007 (all original compositions) which garnered
him a Juno nomination and 4 Maple Blues Award
nominations. His band has changed personnel
over time but it has always included some of
the crème de la crème of Toronto’s
blues musicians and it will be no different
for this Show. Get your dancing shoes on and
come on down for a great night. “ ...soulful rich
vocals. He has some of the best blues musicians
in Canada in his band. You mix this talent with
Johnny's energy, stir in his voice and a dash
of the sparkling lyrics and you have a blend
of blues and soul music that tastes just right.
And that's a fact”. Brian
Tosoff, Voodoohead Productions “If I had my own
Record Label/Artist Management Company The Johnny
Max Band would be one of the very first acts
I’d try to sign. Here’s a band that
plays the bars in Southern Ontario dispensing
blue collar Blues to a rabid following and one
can’t help but think aloud “The
world needs to hear these guys…”.
Only a few artists really understand that it’s
all about giving your audience a big present
and that present is the Joy Factor. They dispense
Blues as a soul-fixin’ remedy and connect
with people in a way all bands should. One of
the best working Blues bands in Canada right
now”. Andy Grigg, Real Blues
Magazine
Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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January 15 & 16- DAVID ROTUNDOBlues On The Rideau welcomes back David Rotundo and his fine band to The Cove for a second visit - a two night stand. He last played here in January 2008 for two Sold Out Shows and people are still talking about them. A dynamite harmonica player (winner of the 2007 Maple Blues Award for Harp Player Of The Year and nominated multiple times for that Award), excellent singer and high energy, entertaining performer (nominated for the 2008 Maple Blues Award for Electric Act Of The (Year) David Rotundo has
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| developed a passionately loyal audience in Canada and the U.S., Mexico where he plays a 6 week long engagement every winter) and has even performed in Russia and Cuba. David was inspired to take up the harmonica after seeing James Cotton perform at the El Mocambo in 1991. He then traveled through the States for several years visiting blues hotbeds like New Orleans, Clarksdale, Austin, Memphis and Chicago honing his skills. On his return to Toronto in 1997 he formed David Rotundo & The Blue Canadians and proceeded to rip up the blues circuit. His first CD in 2001 won him Best Blues Album Of The Year by the Canadian Independent Artists Association, a Maple Blues Award for Best New Artist of the Year in 2002 as well as CBC’s Galaxie Rising Star Award. Not a bad start! Since then he has recorded 3 excellent albums (including
“Blues Ignited” with the incredible
Enrico Crivellaro on guitar), played in bands
with blues greats Jack de Keyzer and Ronnie
Hawkins and shared the stage with many blues
legends. His band supports him beautifully having
played together for years with David on vocals & harp, Dan Dufour on lead guitar, Des Brown on
guitar, Shane Scott on bass
& vocals and Chuck Keeping
on drums. If you’ve never seen David Rotundo
before don’t miss this Show. The small,
intimate atmosphere at The Cove is a a perfect
venue to see him up close and personal. You
won’t be disappointed. Get ready to have
a sweaty, rockin’, partyin’ good
time!
“David plays the harp on "Blowin' For Broke" as if madly possessed by the ghosts of Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter and George ‘Harmonica’ Smith”...Blues Beat, Blues Society of Western NY. "David Rotundo plays the blues the way the blues are supposed to be played" Ronnie Hawkins Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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February 19 - JEROME GODBOO BAND Making his first appearance at BOTR @ The Cove is another one of Canada’s best blues harp players/singer/songwriters. Born and raised in Victoria he started his first band in Ottawa then moved to Toronto where he has lived for the last 20 years. Anyone who has ever seen him perform knows what a charismatic, powerful, emotive artist he is. With that patented belt clip full of harmonicas (and a couple of briefcases full of back ups), gyrating stage movements and soaring vocals he comes on like a Blues gunslinger in the style of Mick Jagger and Jim Morrison. You can’t help but stand and watch transfixed. Over the past 20 years he’s recorded 12 albums (including his most recent ‘Humdinger” - which is!) played and toured with artists as diverse as The Phantoms, Alannah Myles, Dutch Mason, Jeff Healey, Ronnie |
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Hawkins, Jack de Keyzer, Jimmy Bowskill, Suzie McNeil, Prince, Pinetop IPerkins, James Cotton, the Tragically Hip, Levon Helm, Billy Ray Cyrus and many more, performing on stages across Canada, the U.S., France, Finland, Portugal, Ukraine and Israel.n short – this man has paid his dues and knows his Blues – inside out. Jerome's great band includes Shawn Kellerman (Mel Brown) or Pat Rush (Jeff Healey Band) alternating on guitar with Alec Fraser on bass (multiple Maple Blues Award nominee and winner of the 2008 Bass Player Of The Year) with Al Cross (Big Sugar) on drums. This will be another “must bring dancing shoes” night at The Cove.
" There is a lovely, intimate ambience on this CD (Humdinger) with the feeling that these are four friends who just set up in your rec room to play some new songs for you… a well-sequenced selection of modern electric blues. Jerome is in excellent voice and this is one fine band with Kellerman being especially inventive" John Valenteyn (2007) Toronto Blues Society "Jerome is a vaudevillian performer for the New Millenium. Besides having good looks, charisma and a fine voice he is one of the best harmonica players in Canada. Humdinger is Jerome Godboo's masterpiece”. Andy ‘Blues Boy” Grigg, Real Blues Magazine Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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March 19 - JOHN CAMPBELLJOHN BANDThe
King of slide guitar, the Cape Breton Celt,
the mighty John Campbelljohn and his Trio are coming back up from Nova Scotia
for a weekend stand at BOTR @ The Cove and boy
are we glad he is - it’s been too long
since his last visit (November 2006). He is
better known in Germany and Europe where he
tours continuously (they flat out love him over
there) that in his own country but darn –
we want to help change that. Whether playing
slide guitar (acoustic or electric), laptop
Dobro or pedal steel JCJ and his power trio
lay down some of the best rockin’ blues
(with a touch of reggae and country thrown in)
you will hear on either side of the Atlantic.
He is also a consummate songwriter.Most of the tunes on his CD’s are originals
and even the covers he does have a unique Campbelljohn
feel to them. And |
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| he has a great voice. Acoustically
John combines the influences of such diverse
players as Fred McDowell, Ry Cooder and John
Hammond while his electric guitar earmarks everyone
from Sonny Landreth to Johnny Winter, Eric Clapton
and Duane Allman. (You can thank the Allman
Brothers for their great rendition of “Statesboro
Blues” back in the early ‘70’s
for starting John on his path to master the
slide guitar). His first album “How
Does It Feel?” came out in 1993 and since
then he has released 7 more including his most
recent “Good To Go” in 2009. I have
enjoyed all of them and unabashedly declare
that he is one of my favourites. I’m not
alone.A quick check under the Awards button on his web site shows that
he has been nominated for or won 17 Maple Blues,
East Coast Music, Real Blues Magazine and Harvest
Jazz & Blues Awards since 1992. The other
two members of the band – Andrew
Lambert on bass and Neil Robertson on drums – are seasoned musicians who
have played with John for years and it shows.
What a full, powerful sound from just 3 guys.
Don’t miss the opportunity to see one
of Canada’s best bluesmen on one of his
rare visits to Upper Canada – especially
in the cozy confines of The Cove. Book your
tickets now before these Shows sell out! “The John Campbelljohn Trio is burning blues/rock the way Johnny Winter once used to hit it in his prime" Rolling Stone, Germany "...furious slide guitar and exceptional songwriting." 708 Blues Magazine, Salzburg, Austria Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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APRIL
23 & 24 - HARMONICA
SHAH BAND
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make your laugh out loud
at times and ache at others. Where does he get
some of those lines? I am told the Shah goes
into the recording studio with nothing more
than a bunch of song titles then takes off on
a stream-of-consciousness run of original tunes
that you would think had been rehearsed for
months. Matching him step for step is 7X Maple
Blues Award winner Jack de Keyzer who lays down
some of the best guitar I have heard in years,
improvising beautifully to match Shah’s
improvisation –
the two playing off each other like a couple
of champion NASCAR drivers swapping the lead.
Alec Fraser (2008 Maple Blues Award winner)
on bass and Al Cross (Big Sugar) on drums provide
a rock solid bottom end. The combination is
magical. When I heard the CD I simply had to
do what it takes to get these 4 guys to come
and play. Each one of them is worth the price
of admission alone. Together this is a Show
that you simply don’t want to miss. Rumour
has it that this night will be recorded by ElectroFi
for a possible LIVE album. So if you’ve
always wanted to be a star....be there! I would
reserve your tickets early for this one. If
these two nights don’t sell out early
I will be shocked.
"Harmonica Shah is just what the Doctor ordered... or warned you about" Blues Revue “Shah’s music has a deep Chicago attitude and honky tonkin' Midwest flavor... a dynamite package." Mark Cole, Big City Blues "De Keyzer displays the mastery of straight-ahead blues, funk and soul that has earned him a reputation as one of the best musicians in this country." Cam Hayden, Vue Weekly (Edmonton) Click here for the review and the You tube video of the night |
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May 14 - BLACKBURN BLACKBURN exploded on to the scene last year with a
wonderful debut CD called “Brotherhood”
that has been tearing up the North American
blues charts and the festival/club circuit
since. The band consists of 3 brothers and
a best friend - Duane Blackburn on lead vocals and Hammond B3, Brooke
Blackburn on guitar, Cory
Blackburn on drums and Mark
Ayee on bass.
Their music is rich
in the tradition of the blues but mixes soul,
funk and R&B influences to create a unique
style and very infectious groove – sort
of New Orleans meets Toronto. These brothers
have deep Blues DNA. The family descends from
American black slaves who made it to freedom
in Canada via the Underground Railroad in
the 1850’s. They brought their wonderful music |
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with them handing it down from generation
to generation. Their father, Bobby Dean Blackburn,
is a highly regarded keyboard player who was
a seminal figure in Toronto’s abundant
Blues and R&B scene in the ‘60’s.
(He also just released a new CD recently). BLACKBURN won the 2010 Maple
Blues Award for Best New Group Of The Year
and is one of several Canadian blues bands
heading down to Memphis for the annual International
Blues Challenge January 20-23. We wish them
good luck to win but even just being nominated
for these awards so early in their career
is an honour. Don’t miss this smooth,
powerful and funky band as they make a rare
visit to this part of Ontario. “A rich, beefy stew of blues slammed into elements of R&B and funk... home-grown talent that channels the best of Detroit, Memphis and Philadelphia seasoned with tough urban flair.... a band to watch” Eric Thom, Exclaim.ca “There are times when an entire family possesses the musical skill that causes you to lift your jaw up off the floor. That characteristic falls squarely in the lap of the Blackburn family. This soulful record made the trip from Canada to my tiny Indiana studios, and grabbed me in an instant. Brotherhood is a wonderful album..” Fulltimeblues.com |
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May 14 - DANNY MARKS & THE BLUES ALL STARS To close out the 09/10 season we have one
of Canada’s best know blues personalities
– Danny Marks - winner of the Toronto
Blues Society’s prestigious Blues With
A Feeling Award for lifetime achievement.
A talented guitarist with a deep baritone
voice and great stage presence Danny will
be accompanied by some of Toronto’s
best session players including Alec Fraser
(2008 Maple Blues Award winner for Bass Player
Of The Year, Jeff Healey Band and many more), Al Cross on drums (Big Sugar) and a few others
yet to be named. Whoever they are you know they will truly fit the description as
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| “The
Blues All Stars”. Danny’s been
playing with them all going back to the years
when the Leafs last won a Stanley Cup!Danny had the urge to play
since the first day he picked up a guitar in
the early ‘60’s. Still in his teens
he joined Toronto’s famous Edward Bear
Band - “Canada’s Beatles”
according to Quentin Tarantino – who had
a series of hits on the Canadian and U.S. charts
in the late ‘60’s and early ‘70’s
(You, Me & Mexico, Last Song).After the group broke up Danny continued to
hone his skill as a session player and member
of Toronto’s famous Albert’s Hall
house band through the ‘80’s where
he got to play with the elite of Canadian and
international blues stars on a regular basis.
He also started his career as a radio DJ at
the same time with a national Show called “Stormy
Monday” and had many acting gigs with
frequent appearances on CBC. For the past 6
years he has hosted one of the biggest blues
radio Shows in the country - BLUZ FM on JAZZ
FM.91 Toronto every Saturday night from 8 pm
to midnight (also on Bell Expressvu, Star Choice
and Rogers Digital) exposing great Canadian
talent to a large, appreciative audience. Guitarist,
singer, showman, actor, DJ – Danny does
it all and he can play everything from rock
‘n roll, pop, R&B, soul and rockabilly
but his original love is for the blues and that’s
what we’re going to get for this Show
– in spades! “...butter-smooth guitar-playing with a comedic sense of showmanship” Anthony Reinhart, Globe & Mail “He succeeds in recapturing the glory days of rock’n roll, rockabilly and everything in-between... Danny’s guitar and voice and brilliant arrangements achieve a casual feel, which is so much harder to pull off than it may seem.” Eric Thom, Exclaim Magazine |
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