by Sheldon Birnie
Prolific. Tireless. Uncompromising. Cantankerous. These and many more words could, and have, been used to describe Fred Eaglesmith, one of Canada’s finest songwriters and bluntly honest performing musicians alive today. For over thirty years now, Eaglesmith has been charting his own course in the Music Business. Fiercely independent and uncompromising in his artistic and commercial vision, Eaglesmith’s name is revered by songwriters and folk music fans, and simultaneously “cussed” by many in the Business. From his genre defining albums Things is Changing, Drive-In Movies, and Lipstick, Lies, & Gasoline to experiments in style like Dusty, Tinderbox, and Cha Cha Cha, Eaglesmith’s writing is always finely honed, throwing a light on the heartaches that fester behind small town diner counters, in dark corners of collapsing barns, and on the backroads, freeways, and Interstates of North America.
It’s no secret that Eaglesmith is held in high regard here on Hillbilly Highway, not just by myself, but among many of the artists I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with on my own travels. From Todd Snider to Andrew Neville, Hayes Carll to the Reverend Rambler, Eaglesmith’s reputation as an artist is held in the highest esteem. And now, as he prepares yet another tour, in a cycle of seemingly endless touring, to promote his latest album, Tambourine, Fred took some time out to speak with us here at Stylus about charting his own course in the Business. He takes no prisoners. While we in Winnipeg might have to wait a while yet before his next appearance, he provides us here, and on Tambourine especially, with plenty to chew on and ponder until then.
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