Last Saturday my buddy Buzzard and I went to the Dave McCann and The Wildhearts concert at the Station On Jasper on what was a bitterly cold night, which might explain part of the reason for the small turnout.
This would be my third time seeing Dave McCann in concert but first time seeing him with a full band. The previous two times it was Dave McCann playing with Leeroy Stagger and John Wort Hannam (Highway Three Roots Revue). Those shows were acoustic affairs in which each performer played a few songs, a singer/songwriters circle I guess you would call it. I really enjoyed his songs both times, so it was nice to see him come through Edmonton this time with a full band promoting his new album Westbound Til Light.
We got there a little late and only caught the last 3 songs by Jake Ian, an Edmonton musician. What we heard was really quite good, a roots/country based style of music. Wish we had caught more of set. I'll be keeping my eyes open for another show of his.
Jake Ian.
Headliner of the night was Lethbridge based roots singer/songwriter Dave McCann. Dave and his band The Wildhearts sounded great, also sitting in with the band were the Mayhemingways from Ontario. Dave has got a great voice, his music is not only roots based but also a tinge of blues and rock. His harmonica player was good to, I liked that he wasn't overwhelming like some harp players can be. He did of course some new songs from his new album, a lot of the new songs are folklore stories, like the song "Can't Cheat The Mountain" which is about the Frank Slide, which was a rockslide that buried part of the town of Frank in the North West territories. Another new song was called "Swing Your Lantern" about some homeless people caught in a blizzard by Lake Superior in Ontario during the Great Depression.
Dave and his band also played some older songs from his album Dixiebluebird. I wish I knew the titles better, but I did recognize a few songs from that album as I do have that one in my collection. Overall I really enjoyed his show. It's really too bad he didn't get a better turnout for the show, but that certainly didn't stop him from putting on a hell of a show. A big thanks to Cuz for the tickets. Good times!!!
Dave McCann.
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