by Sheldon Birnie
What can I say about Fred J Eaglesmith that hasn’t already been said, by me or a hundred other writers into the grittiest and roughest roots music out there on the Highway? Not a whole dang lot, at least not in less than 800 words. To put it in terms that Fred himself might deal in, Eaglesmith is, quite simply, the Real Deal.
Grinding out his hardscrabble brand of folk, country, and rock n roll for over 30 years now, Eaglesmith is a relentless road-dog, a tireless champion of the forgotten family farm and the failing small town, and one of the best songwriters in Canada — if not the world of country music itself. He travels the bulk of the calendar year, from Nova Scotia to Texas, Oklahoma City to Victoria, Whitehorse to Winnipeg and back to his home base of Port Dover, Ontario. His Travelling Steam Show features the musical accompaniment of Texas troubadour Bill Posse, the Fabulous Ginn Sisters, and his own handpicked band. The show itself is a mix of Eaglesmith’s hits, obscure tracks from his deep catalogue, and garrulous between tune monologue that’s part stage banter, part stand-up comedy, and part keen, critical almost-bitter roast of the state of roots and country music today, in the year of our Lord 2013. It’s a goddamn good show, least it has been when I’ve seen it.
Fred Eaglesmith stops in town here on Friday, to play a packed Park Theatre before roaring east for a stop at Trout Forest. I will be in the audience in Winnipeg. I am very excited.
Word on the street is that Eaglesmith has a new album in the can, though details as to its title, release, or track listing are scarce. Two years back, when he was in a similar position, he sold hand folded copies of 6 Volts at shows before it was released “officially” later in December. No word as to whether that will be the case on Friday, but it don’t even really matter. I’d be going to the show anyhow. But the chance that we might hear some new Fred tunes, or even pick up a new disc, has got me acting like a junkie over here.
6 Volts is one of my favourite Eaglesmith albums. The recording is done straight to tape, one mic in the middle of Fred’s converted Mason Lodge. The sound is at times rough, at times sublime, and always warm and immediate. Like the old Sun Records that turned Eaglesmith onto rock n roll in the first place. And the songwriting on 6 Volts is supremely on point.
A couple weeks back, when Fred’s sometime writing partner Mary Gauthier was at the Park Theatre, she played a couple Eaglesmith tunes. The first, was “Your Sister Cried,” a tearjerker which Mary’s been playing for years. The second, though, was a new one off 6 Volts, “Cigarette Machine.”
“I thought I’d nailed addiction when I wrote ‘I Drink’,” Gauthier told the audience after “Cigarette Machine,” when the applause had died. “Then Fred just knocked it out of the park with that one.”
6 Volts is full of beauty tunes, but so are all of Eaglesmith’s albums. To even begin to start listing them here would be a pointless endeavour, one undertaken only with a head rattled by hubris. And so, I’ll leave you with just one little tune to tug gently at your heartstrings. This might be my personal favourite, though you never can tell. Maybe he’ll play it on Friday at the Park?
Fred Eaglesmith takes to the stage at the Park Theatre in South Osborne Friday, August 9th. Tickets are $28 in advance, $35 at the door. The show starts at 8:00pm. See you there.