PERFORMANCE: Jaybirds kick off series with folk and bluegrass tunes
By Contributor
Hailing from the variegated ranks of the contemporary West Coast acoustic music scene, each of these ‘birds has certainly earned his wings: the list of projects they have contributed to over the years is nothing less than a short list of acoustic power houses. Together, their seamless ensemble work makes for one of the freshest, most tasteful band-sounds on the folk and bluegrass circuit today.
The 2011-2012 Performance Arts Series in Grand Forks launches its exciting season with John Reischman and the Jaybirds on Thursday, October 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the Grand Forks Secondary School Auditorium.
A top flight band, the Jaybirds delivers a truly fresh blend of original instrumentals, old-time heritage and bluegrass music. Years of European and North American tours, critically acclaimed albums, two Juno nominations and two Canadian Folk Music Award nominations… little wonder, the buzz around John Reischman and The Jaybirds continues to grow.
Stellar Jays, their fifth album featuring nine new songs and tunes from all five founding band members, was released in 2007 and received rave reviews for a trademark, old-time-infused bluegrass sound that respects tradition while advancing the music.
The nomination of Stellar Jays for two 2007 Canadian Folk Music Awards follows praise such as this from Nashville Public Radio: “A masterpiece — a fascinating and fresh-sounding collection of tunes that incorporate the best elements of bluegrass and old-time into a killer new sound.”
With Reischman on mandolin, Jim Nunally on guitar, Trisha Gagnon on bass, Nick Hornbuckle on banjo, and Greg Spatz on fiddle, the Jaybirds has now released their latest album, “Vintage and Unique.”
Like the mandolin player at its helm, the group fashions a stylish, elegant take on bluegrass that is at once innovative and unadorned, sophisticated and stripped-down, happily old-fashioned, yet unselfconsciously new. To see their live show is to believe it.
A genial blend of story-telling and side-show humour provides the backdrop to their studied performance of original songs, instrumentals, and newly arranged traditional material.
For more information about the group and their music visit: www.thejaybirds.com.
Tickets for this lively concert are available at Thistle Pot Gifts and Gallery 2: adult $18, senior $16, youth $5, family $45. At the door tickets are: adult $20, senior $18, youth $7, family $50. Season passes are still available from Erna Gobbett: 250-442-8569.
