The Storytellers Cabaret
To arrange interviews and media opportunities:
Kirsten Andrews
Kirmedia
(604) 638-7047
andrews@slfa.com
Please direct all interview requests to Kirsten as she is in direct daily contact with the tour.
What happens when you combine two of Canada’s most respected Juno award winning songwriters together with a jazz poet, an ex-punk, an alt-country rising star and a beatnik folksinger? You get an intimate and interactive acoustic evening of The Storytellers Cabaret. In what promises to be an regular event, this inaugural production stars Juno Award winner Tom Wilson (Junkhouse, Blackie And The Rodeo Kings), four-time Juno Award winner Paul Hyde (Payolas, Rock & Hyde), Ralph (author: "This Is For The Night People"), Dave Rave (Teenage Head, Daniel Lanois), Kathleen Edwards ("Men With Brooms" soundtrack), and Lauren Agnelli (The Washington Squares, Brave Combo). Kathleen Edwards is on the Western leg of the tour up to Winnipeg. Lauren Agnelli joins the tour starting in Hamilton. An innovative evening of stories and songs in a casual atmosphere, The Storytellers Cabaret is comprised of two distinct parts. In the first half of the show, each artist performs in a short individual set. Following the intermission, the second half of the show is a songwriters- in-the-round format with all performers on stage, each taking a turn on a song and accompanying each other. Throughout it all there will be conversation about each artist's career, stories behind the music, the craft of songwriting, anecdotes and tall tales from the road. To conclude, the storytellers will take questions and requests from the audience.
MC for the evening will be Ralph Alfonso (aka Ralph), who developed the concept with Vancouver’s Paul Mercs Concerts. "We didn’t want it to be just a bunch of disparate people on stage singing songs," says Ralph. "Tom, Paul, Dave and myself have all worked with each other in various capacities over the years, with roots in 70s punk and 80s new music culture. There are a lot of stories to tell, both personal and about our experiences in the music industry. I can’t recommend this enough for both the music fan and the musician for a rare inside glimpse at the machinery of songwriting and the stories behind the music. But you also have the female perspective with Kathleen Edwards chronicling her rise to stardom thanks to a featured spot on the MEN WITH BROOMS film and cd soundtrack. Lauren Agnelli, on the other hard, is an accomplished New York musician/songwriter/journalist who’s travelled the world, been nominated for a Grammy and worked with such people as Patti Smith and Allen Ginsberg amongst others; she is one of the pioneering women in rock (and in the book of the same name).
"The spontaneity of musical friends together, along with audience interaction means it’s a fresh show every night," adds promoter Paul Mercs. "Honestly, that’s what attracted me to the concept. It’s exciting to hear songs at their purest level in a comfortable and intimate environment. This tour will be the start of an exciting series that we can build on and provide good value for people who like music." "I haven’t toured across Canada in almost 10 years," comments Paul Hyde. "This tour is fantastic, not only because it’s a great combination of people, but because it’s in intimate theatres; you can listen and be involved without the usual distractions." The Storytellers Cabaret Tour travels across Canada April 10-May 4.
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Tom Wilson is a veteran of the Canadian music scene; a larger-than-life figure of a man whose unstoppable personality can fill a room. His dynamic solo performances are legendary. He has electrified audiences on recent shows with Jann Arden, Joe Strummer, Ron Sexsmith, David Gray, Ronnie Hawkins, Colin James, Jeff Beck, Big Wreck, David Usher, and others. Tom Wilson's eclectic, character-driven musical style has run the gamut from the psychobilly punch of Hamilton new wave stalwarts the Florida Razors, the folk-blues sensibilities of Blackie & The Rodeo Kings (2 cds), to the funk/blues inspired hard rock of Junkhouse (3 cds). The Juno-award winning Wilson is currently on the charts with his biggest hit to date, the incendiary "Dig It" from his debut solo lp, Planet Love (the title track is also on the soundtrack of the hit comedy film, MEN WITH BROOMS). A prolific visual artist, Tom's paintings are currently on exhibit at the Spin Gallery, Toronto, alongside work by Michael Stipe and Chris Stein (Blondie). Tom Wilson is the consummate storyteller; a master narrator and chronicler of life's margins, defeats and triumphs. NEW: Tom just won a 2002 Canadian Radio Music Award for Best New Solo Artist (Rock).
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Paul Hyde burst on the music scene in 1979 as the voice of the Payola$, a band he formed with guitarist and co-writer Bob Rock. With well-crafted pop songs and powerful lyrics, the Payola$ released six albums, garnered gold and platinum records, considerable air play and scores of music awards, most notably four Junos. The group dissolved in 1988 (including one lp as Rock and Hyde) and Hyde, a native of Yorkshire, England, went to work on a solo project and in 1990 released Turtle Island. After a leave of absence, he returned in 1996 for his second solo effort Love and the Great Depression. Fall 2000 saw the release of a third album, Living off the Radar, which reunited Hyde with old partner Bob Rock, one of the most sought after producers in music today. "It felt really good," says Hyde about working with Rock, adding they may do so again soon. "We have a lot of respect for each other." Aside from his own projects, Hyde has produced several artists such as Spirit of the West and Art Bergmann. Most recently Paul has turned a different, more acoustic ear towards his music. He has been busy writing new material as well as playing live, including recent dates with the legendary Everly Brothers.
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With two books and four cds, Ralph Alfonso celebrates life's moments with understated snapshots of everyday victories, longings and nostalgia wrapped in musical morsels of jazz, folk, funk, and garage rock. A modern beatnik, Ralph's extensive pop culture resume includes journalist (Toronto Star, New York Rocker, etc), managing Canada's first punk club (Toronto's Crash 'n'Burn) and first Canadian punk band signed to a major (the Diodes), award-winning executive (Canadian promo director of the year) at three major labels (Attic, Warner, EMI), management (Honeymoon Suite), graphic designer (Blue Rodeo, Nettwerk, Bif Naked, Colin James, Mae Moore, etc), poet/author (RALPH:Coffee Jazz and Poetry zine), and performing artist (with the RALPH group, whose This Is For The Night People cd made Top 20 on Canadian campus radio and #5 on the campus jazz chart). His new book, This Is For The Night People, is on its second printing. As a photographer, his work is on cds by Bif Naked, Rhino Records, etc. A documentary on his life directed by Patrick Jenkins debuted at the 2001 Montreal Film Festival and aired nationally on CBC-TV, March 17, 2002. With 30 years in the music industry, Ralph has LOTS of stories to tell; recently contributing this expertise as Managing Editor of The Indie Band Bible, a book by Mark Makoway (Moist).
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Dave Rave (aka David DesRoches) is a musician's musician. To the general public, he's the manic Teenage Head rhythm guitarist who graduated to lead singer and catapulted the band back on the charts; but musicians know him as a valued session player (Alex Chilton, Steve Wynn, Ralph, Daniel Lanois, Andrew Loog Oldham, Tim Gibbons, and countless others) who can play the best version of a song he hasn't heard yet. Often referred to as a Canadian Nick Lowe, Dave was one of the first North American artists to sign to the Russian Melodyia record label and go over to record and tour (in the old Soviet Union, he could only collect his royalties in cheese exports). That album, Valentino's Pirates, has been re-released on cd by Bullseye Records, who are taking the hook-laden "Weight Of The World" single to radio. He's been discovered by the American pop underground, and been a featured performer at the International Pop Overthrow festivals in LA, New York, and Chicago. He's constantly co-writing and producing (most recently with Michelle Rumball, ex-Grievous Angels). His experiment in jazz with guitarist Mark McCarron, Another Side Of Love, is receiving airplay on jazz radio in France. Dave divides his year between NYC and his home in Hamilton. On this tour, Dave will accompany the other performers as a utility player. His chemistry with Tom Wilson (two Hamilton music veterans who've worked together many times) will be full of surprises.
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Lauren Agnelli is surely a Renaissance Woman of music. In the 70s, she was a writer for the legendary Creem magazine under the alias Trixie A. Balm. As a freelancer, she wrote the early bios/press releases for Patti Smith. As a musician, she was part of the CBGB's 1977 nerve-center with her band Nervus Rex (debut lp with Blondie/Pat Benatar producer Mike Chapman). In 1983, she forms neo-beatnik folksters The Washington Squares (nominated for a Grammy Award), who spearhead the 80s folk revival with two albums and a non-stop international touring schedule; performing with such legendary figures as Allen Ginsberg. In the 90s, the duo of Agnelli-Rave rack up rave reviews with ex-Television drummer Billy Ficca touring and recording in Russia for Melodyia Records. Lauren's lp of torch songs with Brave Combo makes the Japanese Top 100 chart. A singer/guitarist/bass-player/songwriter, Lauren is currently performing smoky jazz orginals and standards in Manhattan clubs, with her first ever solo album to follow in the fall.
"A modern-day Julie London" - The Village Voice
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Born in Ottawa, Ontario 23 years ago, Kathleen's lyrics and voice belie her age. Spending her formative years in various countries, her father is a diplomat, Kathleen was exposed to many cultures and experiences. Inspired by the alt-country movement, Kathleen absorbed the music of artists like Whiskeytown and Richard Buckner and began writing songs of her own. Her engaging, emotionally driven lyrics and soulful delivery fuel her debut full-length album, Failer (mixed and mastered by John Whynot); an exploration into the depth of the human soul, relationships and tales of Canadian landscapes. Kathleen's song, "Hockey Skates" is a featured track on the hit comedy Men With Brooms film soundtrack and cd (it has the coveted #2 slot on the song order). She's been invited to perform at this year's SXSW industry showcase festival in Austin, Texas, and we'll be hearing a lot more from this rising star in the months ahead.
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