Happy to welcome home this week my old pal Rory Taillion. Rory is opening for Billy Raffoul at the
Biltmore Theatre Thursday, March 23, along with local sound sensation Haddix. Rory is based now in
Ottawa, and he is back on the road after the shutdowns. He is a classically trained rock ‘n roller who
counts Tom Waits and Dan Mangan among his influences. And, of course, his parents, too, for naming
him Rory after the greatest guitarist of them all, the Irishman Rory Gallagher, and with that over your
head, you’ve no choice but to be great.
Haddix is from Brooklin and has been gathering waves of streams on the socials with her singles.
Saw her previously at the Biltmore and was impressed with her passion and action. Headliner Billy
Raffoul, from Leamington, has the gravelly gravitas of Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger, JC
Mellancamp, Ryan Adams et al. Overall this is a great bill built on complementary artists.
Speaking of complementary, the harmonics of the Buttercups will be on the Simcoe Blues and Jazz
stage Friday, March 24. The trio of Anita, Christina Ann and Susan blend together blues and jazz as
well as folk, gospel, and bluegrass for a thoroughly enchanting evening of entertainment.
The entertainment continues at Simcoe on Saturday with Jack De Keyzer, one of Canada’s
preeminent guitarists, a double Juno winner, and repeat winner of the Maple Blues Awards.
Although surrounded with accolades, Jack lives a low-key life in Whitby, but as Bob Dylan said about
Jack, “If you were from Chicago, New York or Los Angeles, you'd be famous.”
Fame in and of itself is an odd bird with eyes on the artist more often than the art, but there is
something to be said for knowing the artists who live among us; We need to do a better job of telling
their stories and allowing them to tell theirs. We can draw inspiration from those extra-ordinary folks
who are our neighbours. They are the best kind of neighbours too as they clear a pathway for us.
Part of this project here is underscoring the local with a double line as society at large spends more
and more time online in a global environment. Part of the project as well is, of course, amplifying
original voices and visions which make this place, this place, a place worth giving your time to.
This brings us to the other places which make 'Shwarock City more than just a wish list.
In this city, we have The Atria, where the Mad Murdocks (fab punk act) join the Filthy Radicals (a
skanking good time) and Doghouse Rose ( for fans of No Doubt’s first album but who gave up after
they made it on to MTV), anyway they are all in on the 24th.
And we have the Wee Pub, which also has the duo Jelliband on its backstage on March 24th.