Lennie Gallant
Friday, March 6th 2009

Lennie Gallant hosted a good old fashioned Maritime kitchen party at the club last Friday night and the show became one of our best ever. With Sean Kemp on violin / fiddle and Jamie Alcorn on guitar, the musicianship was superb. Introducing most songs with the story behind the song, Lennie also shared a few jokes and experiences from life on the road (amorous Bedouin camels !?!) that had the audience in stitches. Featured numbers included "The Pull of the Fundy Tide", "Peter's Dream", "Pieces of You", "Meet me at the Oasis" and "47 Angels on Her Front Lawn", a crowd favorite. Asking the audience whether the band should do one or two songs for the encore, the choice was obvious.

Scotish born, Canadian raised artist Ryan Donn provided an outstanding opening set featuring songs from his new album, "This Life". Alternating between pop ("yeah Yeah") and folk, Ryan, an educator by profession, even managed to teach the crowd a few Scottish expressions on songs like "Cannyboy". Be sure to check out his full band the next time that you're vacationing in Kelowna.

Lennie Gallant

The Borderlanders
Saturday , January 31st 2009

The folk club got the chance to experience 4 talented singer-songwriters with a visit by the Borderlanders featuring Sylvia Tyson, Ron Hynes, Gretchen Peters, and Graham Isaacson. Spanning the continent from St. John's Newfoundland (Ron), Portland Maine (Graham), Chatham Ontario (Sylvia) and Nashville Tennessee (Gretchen), each individual has garnished a variety of awards on both sides of the border but it was however only the third that they had performed together as a group.

Sylvia opened the night's songfest-in-the-round and was supported throughout the evening by her very talented lap steel guitarist, Christine Bougie. Highlights for Sylvia included Four Strong Winds and You Were On My Mind. Next up Ron Hynes brought all his wisdom and wit to bear. Having instigated a loud sing-along from the audience, Ron then requested that only the men over 40 sing to the resulting sounds of silence and subsequent laughter. With a remarkably sweet voice, Gretchen Peters, accompanied by her keyboardist Barry Walsh, performed a strong repertoire of songs including Independence Day, a song about planned parenthood surprisingly endorsed by Sarah Palin. As she explained, "Politicians always seem to listen only to the chorus...". Rounding out the group was relative newcomer Graham Isaacson who provided a deep soulful voice to the songs of his latest CD, Memories in Shadow. Truly an evening that gave credence to the old idiom, "Variety is the spice of life".

TUB - Tom Taylor, Shari Ulrich & Barney Bentall
Friday , November 7th 2008

Shari Ulrich, the girl who loves to play in trios with boys, returned to the folk club with another great group including Barney Bentall and Tom Taylor. Alternating songs from each songwriters extensive repertoire, the trio performed two lively sets also featuring tunes from their latest CDs. Tom Taylor, member of the Vancouver band She Stole My Beer, provided stunning guitar fills all evenings besides for lead vocals on songs such as "I'll Be Your Only". Barney, a native Calgarian, shared good and bad stories of his ranching days while acknowledging that the audience is more appreciative for his on stage performance. Shari, the group ringleader, alternated between guitar, mandolin and violin while providing exceptional vocals throughout the evening.

Paul Rumbolt and his trio, Jonathan Lewis on fiddle and Rob Levesque on keyboard, opened with a spectacular set featuring songs from Paul's latest CD, Songsmith, once again demonstrating the wealth of talent in our area.

Wil
Friday, October 10th 2008

Intensity coupled with hard work would be an apt description of a concert headlined by Wil. Accompanied by his drummer Jason Cook and supported by a legion of loyal fans, this duo rocked the sold-out audience at the Cochrane RancheHouse. Fan favorites from his two CDs, "Both Hands" and "By December", kept the crowd in a lively mood with songs such as Mama, Rain On and Tell You Twice. One of the highlights of the evening was an extended version of Honey Pie which showcased Wil's fine blues guitar playing. Keeping true to the name of his website, IBreakStrings, Wil managed to snap a string or two which will likely be transformed into fine jewelry fashioned by his wife, Caroline, and hopefully available to some fan at a future return engagement at the Cochrane Valley Folk Club.

Leading off the show from Calgary was Jared (JR) Shore with co-vocalist Jan McKittrick. Showcasing songs from his new CD, "An Impeccable Shine", JR established the mood for a night of excellent music with songs such as Run to Reno, The Grandest View, and the Ballad of Jesus Rodriguez, JR's ode to bee infestation and an extermination gone wrong.

Wil