Fred Eaglesmith, Tif Ginn

$25

There are many reasons FRED is legendary.

Eaglesmith, a songwriter’s songwriter, has a depth that is informed by miles of experience as a true road dog. Fred is not only the star of show but also the bus driver and chief mechanic while on tour, keeping him and his band on the road. Unlike many of today’s artists, touring is not something he does some of the time or only in support of a new record. Touring is his life and The Fred Eaglesmith Travelling Steam Show is one of the last full time travelling shows today. Their busy itinerary added up to more than 270 days on the road last year and saw Fred only returning home long enough to play a handful of local shows and to go into the studio to record the new album.

A typical day in the life of Eaglesmith will find him driving an average of four to eight hours between shows in his converted 1990 Bluebird tour bus. He outfitted the bus with a system of filters and pumps which he designed himself to enable them to run on waste vegetable oil recycled from deep fryers in venues and restaurants along the road. This past year included seeing Fred astonish many local mechanics by changing his own blown bus transmission on the side of a highway in rural Alberta without missing one gig.

Adding a touch of the theatrics to every show, Eaglesmith dubbed his band The Traveling Steam Show and they began performing in steampunk-ish outfits a few years ago when he released his Latin-influenced rock album Cha Cha Cha. “It harkens back to the ’60s and ’70s variety shows that were on TV,” Eaglesmith told the Albuquerque Journal. “It’s a show. It’s a lot more than a concert. I like to pay attention to what’s cutting edge and bring that into the live show.”

And with such great attention to giving the best in his performances both live and recorded, critics have taken notice. The Bend Bulletin praised Fred as “a singer-songwriter with a loyal fan base: a raconteur known for his funny stories and sometimes funny, sometimes poignant songs…a figure to whom ‘entertainer,’ ‘humorous’ and ‘original’ can be applied in equal measure.” And the Los Angeles Times, in a live review, noted: “Eaglesmith snarled out lyrics that underscore his overriding attitude that music and musicians ought to be cherished in the here-and-now and valued for the quality of their art, not the size of their bank accounts or TV ratings.”

Eaglesmith’s songwriting has also earned him multiple International awards and his songs have been covered by some of the biggest names in Nashville including Toby Keith, Alan Jackson and Miranda Lambert. His music has been featured in films and television scores including those of True Blood and Grimm. Fred and his band have also performed as the musical guest on Late Show With David Letterman. This past year has also seen the launch of a highly successful musical theatre production Dear Johnny Deere inspired by and based on Fred’s songs.

Despite all of these accomplishments you are more likely to see him playing to 150 of his fans in a small town community hall rather than at a large capacity theatre or concert venue. Likewise it is more probable to hear about his next show via a hand-stencilled roadside sign and to find Fred sleeping in his bus in a Walmart parking lot or local campground over a 5-star hotel.

Fred will appear with TIF GINN. Tif Ginn is a gutsy, amazing singer and a transcendent songwriter who has spent most of her adult life touring North America playing music professionally. Ginn toured first as half of the Fabulous Ginn Sisters, releasing 3 critically acclaimed CDs then as part of the Fred Eaglesmith Traveling Show. Now she takes a turn as a solo artist, fronting the band she has been playing with for the last several years.

Fred Eaglesmith, produced her first solo record “Tif Ginn” and it was recorded with his road-weathered band at Eaglesmith’s studio in Southern Ontario, Canada. Eaglesmith used his trademark one-mic approach, utilizing just one channel, sending the mono/analog signal to quarter-inch tape. Nine of the twelve songs were co-written by Eaglesmith, who is himself an iconic Americana songwriter. The songs indirectly reflect the kind of ‘struggle’ that is living in a motorhome and touring for years without much time to relax or regroup. They are songs of single moms, lovesick fools, trailer park life, and abuse.

Eaglesmith’s analog approach yields a rounded, smoky atmosphere that perfectly suits both the subject matter and the tour-tightened band. The bare, honest and emotional sound is the real thing and the result is a beautiful yet edgy sound. Stylistically, the CD runs from sultry, jazzy country to angry punk, embracing pop, Americana and folk along the way. The trademark sound ties it all together delivering a mature and well-rounded product that is at once fearless and remarkably listenable.