Folk

Ariel was Stan Rogers’ wife. She has overseen the legacy left behind in the wake of his tragic death and is pleased to be taking part in this evening, paying tribute to his music. An actress and a musician in her own right, she has spent many years on stage and behind the wings in countless productions for community theatre in the Hamilton-Wentworth area. She has four very talented children who have brought her much joy, including the gift of four wonderful grand-daughters. Ariel is now married to singer-songwriter Scott Cameron Smith.

Scott Cameron Smith is a singer and songwriter from Dundas, Ontario.  He was the lead vocalist and a founding member of the award-winning Celtic band Poor Angus. He is a published songwriter, and a seasoned performer spanning 30 years in the music industry both on stage and behind the scenes. Scott has appeared many times in the Stan Rogers Tribute shows that were an annual event at Hugh’s Room Live in Toronto. Welcome back, Scott!

Tannis Slimmon grew up in a large musical family on a farm in Manitoba and moved to Guelph, Ontario in 1980 where she soon became known on the Canadian music scene as a member of the critically acclaimed Bird Sisters. Her exceptional voice “full of gentle grace and unobtrusive dignity” (Penguin Eggs) can be heard on more than 100 albums including those by Willie P. Bennett, Valdy, David Francey and rheostatics. In 2008, she received the CFMA’s Contemporary Vocalist of the Year for her second solo album 'Lucky Blue'.

Paul was Stan’s record producer and a close friend.  He was also a guitar player on Stan’s albums appearing under the pseudonym of “Curly Boy Stubbs”. He has been a key figure in Canada’s folk music scene for almost 50 years. He produced the national CBC Radio folk music program, “Touch the Earth” with Sylvia Tyson in the late seventies. As a record producer he has produced over 200 albums with artists such as Stan, Sharon, Lois & Bram and Ron Hynes. He has also been an active performer and a leader in the folk community. He is the past Chair of the Home County Board and has served on several other Boards over the years. In recognition of his work, Paul was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada.

James Keelaghan is the complete artist. A brilliant tunesmith who is one of the most engaging performers of our time. You always know the journey with James is going to be great, you just never know what all the destinations are. His masterful story telling is the bedrock of his success, earning Keelaghan nominations and awards and acclaim from Australia to Scandinavia.

Allison Lupton is an acclaimed singer-songwriter “…with a voice as clear as a country stream.”  Allison's love of traditional music led her in 1990 to help form the band Killiecrankie which was regularly heard on CBC Radio’s legendary Max Ferguson Show.  She has since recorded 4 solo CDs and in 2015 was awarded Folk Music Ontario’s Songs From Heart Grand Prize for her song "One More Day".  Allison has been honoured with nominations by the Canadian Folk Music Awards including most recently (2020) “Traditional Singer of the Year”.

Multi instrumentalist, and indefatigable, Tom Leighton brings sophisticated colours and novel arrangements to his music that few musicians can match including playing three instruments at the same time! As a solo recording artist, Tom’s “Leighton Tendencies”, and “Leighton Life”, are projects starring his own compositions and arrangements” .... featuring the writing skills and musical dexterity of this wonderful musician.” Whole Note Magazine He has written numerous chorale and stage band arrangements for schools and choirs including Toronto’s Amadeus Choir. He has arranged for many Canadian folk artists. Tom is thrilled to be invited, once again, to accompany such talented soloists and revisit Stan’s wonderful songs. Many thanks to Paul.

Shane Cook is a Canadian and US National fiddle champion. Noted by The Canadian Fiddlers’ Hall of Fame as one of the “finest fiddlers in the world today,” Shane is also a multi-instrumentalist who has distinguished himself as a master of the Canadian old-time fiddle tradition. Shane leads his own band, Shane Cook & The Woodchippers, and performs with The Allison Lupton Band; the PBS hit, Bowfire; and Grammy-nominee, Claire Lynch Band. Several of Shane’s recordings have received CFMA and ECMA nominations, so be on the look out for Shane’s newest record at his release concert in London this fall.

David Woodhead has a wide-ranging musical appetite that always brings energy to his work both as accompanist and with his playful and rambunctious Confabulation band. In the late 70s he contributed to Stan Rogers' first two LPs and many live festival and coffeehouse performances, having previously toured with Perth County Conspiracy. Since then he has appeared on well over 250 recordings, including three of his own, and appeared at innumerable venues across Canada, the US, the UK and Australia, working with innovative artists including Oliver Schroer, James Keelaghan, Scott Merritt, Gil Scott-Heron, David Sanborn, and Brent Titcomb.

Ariel was Stan Rogers’ wife. She has overseen the legacy left behind in the wake of his tragic death and is pleased to be taking part in this evening, paying tribute to his music. An actress and a musician in her own right, she has spent many years on stage and behind the wings in countless productions for community theatre in the Hamilton-Wentworth area. She has four very talented children who have brought her much joy, including the gift of four wonderful grand-daughters. Ariel is now married to singer-songwriter Scott Cameron Smith.

Scott Cameron Smith is a singer and songwriter from Dundas, Ontario.  He was the lead vocalist and a founding member of the award-winning Celtic band Poor Angus. He is a published songwriter, and a seasoned performer spanning 30 years in the music industry both on stage and behind the scenes. Scott has appeared many times in the Stan Rogers Tribute shows that were an annual event at Hugh’s Room Live in Toronto. Welcome back, Scott!

Tannis Slimmon grew up in a large musical family on a farm in Manitoba and moved to Guelph, Ontario in 1980 where she soon became known on the Canadian music scene as a member of the critically acclaimed Bird Sisters. Her exceptional voice “full of gentle grace and unobtrusive dignity” (Penguin Eggs) can be heard on more than 100 albums including those by Willie P. Bennett, Valdy, David Francey and rheostatics. In 2008, she received the CFMA’s Contemporary Vocalist of the Year for her second solo album 'Lucky Blue'.

Paul was Stan’s record producer and a close friend.  He was also a guitar player on Stan’s albums appearing under the pseudonym of “Curly Boy Stubbs”. He has been a key figure in Canada’s folk music scene for almost 50 years. He produced the national CBC Radio folk music program, “Touch the Earth” with Sylvia Tyson in the late seventies. As a record producer he has produced over 200 albums with artists such as Stan, Sharon, Lois & Bram and Ron Hynes. He has also been an active performer and a leader in the folk community. He is the past Chair of the Home County Board and has served on several other Boards over the years. In recognition of his work, Paul was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada.

James Keelaghan is the complete artist. A brilliant tunesmith who is one of the most engaging performers of our time. You always know the journey with James is going to be great, you just never know what all the destinations are. His masterful story telling is the bedrock of his success, earning Keelaghan nominations and awards and acclaim from Australia to Scandinavia.

Allison Lupton is an acclaimed singer-songwriter “…with a voice as clear as a country stream.”  Allison's love of traditional music led her in 1990 to help form the band Killiecrankie which was regularly heard on CBC Radio’s legendary Max Ferguson Show.  She has since recorded 4 solo CDs and in 2015 was awarded Folk Music Ontario’s Songs From Heart Grand Prize for her song "One More Day".  Allison has been honoured with nominations by the Canadian Folk Music Awards including most recently (2020) “Traditional Singer of the Year”.

Multi instrumentalist, and indefatigable, Tom Leighton brings sophisticated colours and novel arrangements to his music that few musicians can match including playing three instruments at the same time! As a solo recording artist, Tom’s “Leighton Tendencies”, and “Leighton Life”, are projects starring his own compositions and arrangements” .... featuring the writing skills and musical dexterity of this wonderful musician.” Whole Note Magazine He has written numerous chorale and stage band arrangements for schools and choirs including Toronto’s Amadeus Choir. He has arranged for many Canadian folk artists. Tom is thrilled to be invited, once again, to accompany such talented soloists and revisit Stan’s wonderful songs. Many thanks to Paul.

Shane Cook is a Canadian and US National fiddle champion. Noted by The Canadian Fiddlers’ Hall of Fame as one of the “finest fiddlers in the world today,” Shane is also a multi-instrumentalist who has distinguished himself as a master of the Canadian old-time fiddle tradition. Shane leads his own band, Shane Cook & The Woodchippers, and performs with The Allison Lupton Band; the PBS hit, Bowfire; and Grammy-nominee, Claire Lynch Band. Several of Shane’s recordings have received CFMA and ECMA nominations, so be on the look out for Shane’s newest record at his release concert in London this fall.

David Woodhead has a wide-ranging musical appetite that always brings energy to his work both as accompanist and with his playful and rambunctious Confabulation band. In the late 70s he contributed to Stan Rogers' first two LPs and many live festival and coffeehouse performances, having previously toured with Perth County Conspiracy. Since then he has appeared on well over 250 recordings, including three of his own, and appeared at innumerable venues across Canada, the US, the UK and Australia, working with innovative artists including Oliver Schroer, James Keelaghan, Scott Merritt, Gil Scott-Heron, David Sanborn, and Brent Titcomb.

Across Stay In Touch, Georgia Harmer captures ineffable moments with expressive detail: the euphoric memory of a summer's day so perfect you want to live inside it forever, the dusty heat of a Texas afternoon, a tingle of melancholy on a solo walk home after a party. With a wisdom and poise that belies her youthful age, Harmer has penned an emotionally resonant collection of songs that articulate the ways in which even the most fleeting experiences can forge bonds between strangers, create families out of friends, and one by one form the joys and sorrows that make up a life.

Harmer has been making music since childhood, recording her own songs since age 10. She hails from an artistic family, including her aunt and labelmate Sarah Harmer (Georgia's parents, both professional musicians, met while playing in Sarah's band). While still a teenager, she hit the road as a backing vocalist for Alessia Cara, touring and playing late night TV for many months. But when it came time to make her own album, Harmer knew she needed to find her own people. After dropping out of university to pursue music full-time, Harmer began jamming with jazz students at Humber College in Toronto; guitarist Dylan Burchell, drummer Julian Psihogios, and bassist David Maclean, and engineer/producer Jasper Smith assembled to record at ArtHaus in Dufferin Grove. "It was nice because we could just play how we're used to playing, crammed in a room together, and capture the natural feeling of that." Smith didn't tell Harmer that he had never engineered a record before until after it was complete.

Stay In Touch spans everything from intimate folk and strummy country to sophisticated jazz and pop-kissed rock. Harmer and her band created musical landscapes that live up to the lyrical richness of the songs. The record sparkles with the lightning in a bottle feel of a band in thrall to their musical chemistry, adding more depth to the record's themes. Stay In Touch is inspired both by the relationships of Harmer's past and the joy of finding your people in the here and now. It's an unforgettable statement from a new artist with a heartbreakingly simple message: when you stay in touch with the experiences that have shaped you, you stay in touch with yourself.

Across Stay In Touch, Georgia Harmer captures ineffable moments with expressive detail: the euphoric memory of a summer's day so perfect you want to live inside it forever, the dusty heat of a Texas afternoon, a tingle of melancholy on a solo walk home after a party. With a wisdom and poise that belies her youthful age, Harmer has penned an emotionally resonant collection of songs that articulate the ways in which even the most fleeting experiences can forge bonds between strangers, create families out of friends, and one by one form the joys and sorrows that make up a life.

Harmer has been making music since childhood, recording her own songs since age 10. She hails from an artistic family, including her aunt and labelmate Sarah Harmer (Georgia's parents, both professional musicians, met while playing in Sarah's band). While still a teenager, she hit the road as a backing vocalist for Alessia Cara, touring and playing late night TV for many months. But when it came time to make her own album, Harmer knew she needed to find her own people. After dropping out of university to pursue music full-time, Harmer began jamming with jazz students at Humber College in Toronto; guitarist Dylan Burchell, drummer Julian Psihogios, and bassist David Maclean, and engineer/producer Jasper Smith assembled to record at ArtHaus in Dufferin Grove. "It was nice because we could just play how we're used to playing, crammed in a room together, and capture the natural feeling of that." Smith didn't tell Harmer that he had never engineered a record before until after it was complete.

Stay In Touch spans everything from intimate folk and strummy country to sophisticated jazz and pop-kissed rock. Harmer and her band created musical landscapes that live up to the lyrical richness of the songs. The record sparkles with the lightning in a bottle feel of a band in thrall to their musical chemistry, adding more depth to the record's themes. Stay In Touch is inspired both by the relationships of Harmer's past and the joy of finding your people in the here and now. It's an unforgettable statement from a new artist with a heartbreakingly simple message: when you stay in touch with the experiences that have shaped you, you stay in touch with yourself.

Lindsay Lou has been making soulful, poignant music for the last decade. An undeniable powerhouse, Lou’s remarkable gifts as a singer, songwriter, musician and performer demand the listener’s attention.  Lou’s voice—and its unique ability to create an expansive, almost physically tangible soundscape—simultaneously embodies fierce intensity and tender intimacy.

Touring nationally and internationally year round, Lindsay Lou and her band continue to collect a mass of friends and fans along the way. The Boot, who featured Lindsay Lou Band as a “Can’t Miss Act at AmericanaFest 2018, says “...Lou brings introspection and masterful vocal work to her live show.”

A prolific songwriter, Lindsay Lou is constantly releasing new material. Most recently, two new original double sided singles -“Ready” and “Keep On Going,” an OurVinyl Session Live EP, and her fourth full length album, Southland.

The singer-songwriter, fulltime family man and part-time farmer lives on his own grid, growing his own produce and raising his own livestock. “It’s a labor of love,” he says. “That’s actually a good way to describe my music. “I don’t want to do anything with my music, with my life, with anything that I do that doesn’t involve love. … I’ve just gone through so many things in my life, especially with music — I’ve gone from rock ’n’ roll to punk to all this different stuff, folk music — it all boils down to doing what I do because it makes me feel good. … My music is a personal thing, just like this farm.”

Though Burton retired his punk stripes and stepped away from his musical supporting roles to go solo in 2014, that year’s underrated, under-the-radar, acoustic-driven LP Don’t Let the World See Your Love just barely scratches the surface of what the singer delivers on his latest, Songs Of. Due out on vanguard Canadian indie label Dine Alone Records, and cut at Nashville’s The Bomb Shelter studio with producer Andrija Tokic (Alabama Shakes, Hurray for the Riff Raff) and session musicians who play for the likes of Margo Price and Daniel Romano, the release brings a rich full-band treatment to the Nick Drake-worthy ghostly vocals, contemplative verses and effortless melodies.

Songs Of standouts like the country-gospel weeper “Broken Hearts and Broken Chains” swells from clock-stopping serenity to a grand finale of pedal-steel and tabernacle-ready choir vocals that show just how deeply Burton is willing to fearlessly invest himself in this record. "There’s something about big, raspy gospel voices that bring just the right amount of drama and beauty to the mix. I've always been a bit dramatic, and I've always had an affinity for beautiful things,” Burton says, recalling without shame how, at 8 years old, he developed a deep relation with Michael Bolton’s overwrought take on Percy Sledge’s “When a Man Loves a Woman.”

By contrast, the album’s uplifting “Unmistakable Love” offers an optimistic view of what can become of the brokenhearted. “It’s the first love song I ever wrote that didn’t end in complete and total misery,” Burton explains. “It reminds me of the start of making my family, although it may or may not be about that.”

And the wistful “End of the Summer” finds Burton ruminating on the most valuable thing a human being has to offer this world — themselves. “I wrote that song for a friend in a time of need,” Burton recalls. “There are many things that fill you with warmth and love in this world, but none stronger than the company of good people. … When you write a song for a friend, every time it's played, it brings thoughts and memories of such feelings. At least for me” Burton might make music for himself, but it’s music that resonates with an emotional core and sage wisdom that all good people can relate to.

It was the hurricane season, in Blackwater 1994 when Van Larkins, a ten year old Australian discovering his gift for music, began what was to be a journey of musical exploration and discovery. Van’s father, an artist and musician, introduced his son to the guitar, which was to become Van’s instrument of choice and access to share his music with friends, family and soon after, a world-wide audience of music connoisseurs.

Van Larkins plays a modern fusion of traditional styles with a “one man band” approach incorporating bass, rhythm, melody and harmony. Van’s music has transitioned from Metallica to finger-style acoustic guitar, playing transpositions of 400-year-old harp songs.

He is now signed as a solo artist with CandyRat Records and completed his first solo album in May 2012. During that time Van has toured New Zealand twice where he recorded his first album with internationally-renowned guitarist Andrew White and played at the Acoustic Masters Series held in Hamilton where he opened three of the shows and also played with Nigel Gavin. Van has also toured America and Canada and in July 2011 performed at the prestigious Canadian Guitar Festival in Kingston, Ontario.