Always a New Concert with Fred Eaglesmith
TRAVELLING THE BACK ROADS
After playing a great annual festival on Vancouver Island at the end of July, two hard working, diesel-powered Bluebird buses full of gear and talented people are now headed to Ontario. Count ’em: Songwriters Bill Poss and Tiff Ginn, Guitarist and Keyboard player Matty Simpson, Justine the Bass Machine Fischer, Drummer Kori Heppner, and the leader of the band, Singer Songwriter Fred Eaglesmith. This is a “harder than flint” working band, with seven professional musicians, that travels every month of the year. It’s called the Fred Eaglesmith Traveling Steam Show. They play everywhere and they have seen a lot of the back roads and highways of North America.
The annual Western Canada tour in the first half of the 2013 summer season has included shows in Alberta flood regions and huge fundraising pie auctions for High River. There have been breakdowns to solve on the side of the road. This summer in B.C., Fred jumped down the slope of a mountain road to help a truck driver climb out of his wreck. Challenging? Interesting? It’s more like “hellish” some days. There is a daily schedule to follow and hours of driving to get to gigs, set up, check sound, and get ready for a full evening of roots rock and roll.
The Fred Eaglesmith shows attract many repeat fans, known affectionately as “Fred Heads”. Some of this Artist’s diehard music fans will travel to several shows every year. Fred’s fans want to hear the new and old songs, the new and old jokes, and they want to hear the road stories in person. They like the lore of this band and the music. It’s a part of their summer, just like Fred’s annual summer charity picnic at Springwater Conservation Area near Alymer and Paris, Ontario. This family event happens every year in the third weekend of August and showcases new bands and a wide mixture of music.
Here in Northern Ontario, audiences will be able to hear the Fred Eaglesmith band in Ear Falls at the Trout Forest Music Festival, for a play on Saturday, August 10. This festival has some of the best Canadian musicians every year.
Sunday, August 11, they will play near Kakabeka Falls, at the Murillo Community Centre. This is a new rural venue for the band, just outside of Thunder Bay. Advance Tickets for the Murillo show are available at Calico, Steepers, Chaltrek, Murillo Variety and Wilson’s Store in Murillo. The Murillo show starts at 8 pm Sunday August 11.
NORTHSHORE CONCERT
Another new Northern Ontario venue this year is the Marathon Moose Hall, within view of Lake Superior, where Fred’s band will play Monday August 12th at 8 pm.
Tickets for Fred’s concert at the MARATHON MOOSE HALL are available at:
- MARATHON
- Sweet and Saucy Pizza,
- Marathon Motor Sports,
- Casa Di Enza Salon in Marathon,
- MANITOUWADGE
- 2 Doors Down
The band buses will cross over the top of Lake Huron, to reach Blind River on Tuesday August 13, for a show at the Iron Horse Tavern on the main street. Passing by Georgian Bay, they will drive deep into Muskoka to play to a small crowd at the Bala Legion on Wednesday, Aug 14.
Tickets for the Bala Legion show (Aug.14) are available at:
- historic Rosseau General Store,
- Treasures and Trophies in Huntsville,
- Book Store in Gravenurst,
- Bala Muskoka Legion.
Bala’s Legion is one of several Royal Canadian Legions the band will play every year. The legion is a good place to hear Eaglesmith’s music: the atmosphere is relaxed, the band does their own sound, and there is usually room for dancing. There is no greater feeling than being a part of a live music concert as a member of an enthusiastic audience in a good room.
Fred has over 30 years of experience traveling as a musician, and over 19 original albums. He makes himself available to fans after the show every night. His canon of music has been studied, showcased on Youtube, and covered by major artists including Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Bill Chambers, and Alan Jackson. He is a well respected entertainer and songwriter, and a Juno award winner. Fred’s full band has appeared on David Letterman.
ADVANCE TICKETS
Advance Tickets are available at local outlets as well as online at www.fredeaglesmith.com. Advance tickets are $25 each. Tickets at the door will be $30.
