With shows from Corb Lund, Gord Bamford, Doc Walker, and Michelle Wright, as well as folk rock from Sue Foley, My Son the Hurricane and the Ennis Sisters, it's going to be one hootenanny of an October for country music fans. Add in gigs from the Doobie Brothers, Dan Mangan, and Dizzy, you may as well book yourself a bunk and stay some.
Albertan, Corb Lund follows in the boot-steps of the great Ian Tyson, one-time resident of this area and a progenitor of what we call here, the Black Grass. Lund is considered among the best songwriters, imbuing country music with some punk spirit left over from his days with the Smalls. Sean Burns, from Oshawa, plays in Lund’s band, but this time around, Corb is travelling solo and acoustic. So, maybe next time for Burns, who has a new album of his own called ‘Lost Country.’ Corb Lund will be found at the Biltmore Theatre on Tuesday, October 10.
If one was looking for a two or three-night run, one might consider indie folkster Dan Mangan at the Biltmore on October 20, followed by The Great Canadian Roadtrip at the Regent Theatre on October 21. This is a great bill of country rockers: Doc Walker from Winnipeg, Jason McCoy, along with the fabulous Michelle Wright, member of the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, and stick around for the Juno-winning Ennis Sisters from Newfoundland performing on October 22. This is an afternoon matinee show also at the Regent Theatre.
You could also choose the weekend after with Sue Foley at the Regent Theatre on Thursday, October 26, My Son the Hurricane at the Biltmore Theatre on Friday, October 27 and Gord Bamford at the Biltmore on Saturday, October 29. Foley is bringing her bluesy sounds to Oshawa as part of an extensive tour of North America, which includes four nights in Austin, Texas. My Son the Hurricane is an absolute whirlwind of an experience with much brass and much drumming. From a twelve-piece danceateria to Canadian country music icon Gord Bamford rolling in along with Dallas Alexander, this is something you definitely don't want to miss.
Fans of alt-folk such as '90s-era Daniel Johnston, would do well to drop by the album release party for Katie Dauson on October 29 at the Biltmore. Dauson combines rockabilly, folk, and country stylings to create her own style.
Rock and roll music icons the Doobie Brothers are celebrating five decades of ‘Rockin’ Down the Highway’ with a tour which makes a stop at the Tribute Communities Centre on Tuesday, October 17. The Doobie Brothers formed in California in 1970 and scored hits with ‘China Grove,’ ‘Long Time Runnin’, and ‘Listen to the Music,’ staples of every classic rock station and tracks which still hold up today.
The Spencer Brothers will be in their hometown of Oshawa, along with vocalist Katie Munshaw, on Saturday, October 14. Yes, Juno winners Dizzy will showcase their third and latest album, Dizzy, with a big show at the Biltmore Theatre. Dizzy formed in 2015, and four years later, their debut album, ‘Baby Teeth’ won the Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year. They were also nominated for Breakthrough Group of the Year. Dizzy has continued to break through and is filling up the streams with their headbanger of a new single, “Open Up Wide.”
Junos are also in the conversation around the modern jazz Nick Maclean Quartet, who plays Simcoe Blues and Jazz on October 14. Alongside Nick Maclean on piano in the Quartet are Chris Parnis on bass, Petros Anagnostakos on drums, and Guru’s Jazzmatazz alumni, Brownman Ali on trumpet. The Quartet are releasing their new album titled, wait for it, ‘Convergence’!