Murdoch & Sparrow
Live at Sunset Saloon (house concert, West Winnipeg) Wednesday, November 21, 2012
7:30
Suggested donation $15-20
All are welcome (bring the kids, friends, family, people off the street, whatever)
As usual, you can bring a beverage of your choice or food to share, but we’ll have plenty of both on hand, so feel free to enjoy whatever’s on hand! Facebook event
Questions? RSVP? Fill out the contact form below!
James Murdoch and Jay Sparrow met years ago at the beginning of their diverging musical careers. Although Murdoch had a pop singer-songwriter background and Sparrow leaned toward the punk rock vein, their paths often crossed as they traversed the globe on respective tours and music festivals.
James and Jay both garnered the attention of the Canadian music industry, media and music fans at large as they progressed and grew as songwriters.
Eventually, James and Jay got together and spent 10 days in Nashville writing a concept album that culminated in a LIVE recording at The Arden Theatre in February, 2012.
The result is a collection of songs that follow the lives of two characters as they make their way across turn-of-the-century Canada through heartbreak, tragedy and love.
Murdoch & Sparrow weave heartfelt storytelling with beautiful, often haunting melodies, into a record that is distinctly, “Canadiana”.
“We really feel that this album is greater than the sum of its parts and we’re excited to send it out into the world.”, says Murdoch.
Murdoch & Sparrow release their album “DOMINION DAY”, in June 2012.
We are very pleased to welcome back our very first headliner at Sunset Saloon, and definitely one of our most popular, Brock Zeman on November 5! He christened the Sunset Saloon back in 2009 and returned for another great show in 2010, but it’s been a couple of years, which means that he’s written a lot of great songs since then, including the ones that make up his most recent, and one of the very best albums of 2011, Me Then You.
Brock Zeman (trio) Monday, November 5 7:30 Suggested donation $15-20
All are welcome (bring the kids, friends, family, people off the street, whatever)
As usual, you can bring a beverage of your choice or food to share, but we’ll have plenty of both on hand, so feel free to enjoy whatever’s on hand!
Brock Zeman isn’t all that old (he was born in the 80s!), but he’s obviously got an old soul, because he writes with a depth and wisdom well beyond his years. He’s also got a songwriting style and quality that fits in with the Texas songwriting greats, even though he’s from Southern Ontario. The guy’s too prolific and too talented to be believed, yet there’s wonderful authenticity in everything he does.
Brock’s right-hand man, the multi-talented Blair Hogan
Over the course of 9 albums and countless tours, Zeman has established himself as a respected and renowned songwriter who has played concerts and festivals all over North America. Whether it’s solo, or with a backing band, Zeman’s shows are always engaging and intimate, but you won’t find a more intimate and amazing environment to catch a show than my living room. He’ll be bringing his talented rhythm section along for a memorable performance at The Sunset Saloon on Nov. 5.
In addition to songwriting and performing, Zeman also founded Mud Records a few years ago to help spread the word about other artists that he’s passionate about. Recently, he produced an album for Tennessee songwriting legend Tom House, which has been hailed as House’s finest work, largely thanks to the input and guidance of Brock Zeman.
He’ll have a million songs to draw from and a whole bunch of stories to tell.
Jeremy Messersmith‘s Supper Club Tour
Live @ Sunset Saloon (house concert, West Winnipeg, contact us for address and info)
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
7:30 doors, 8:00 show, over by 10:00 Tickets $15 in advance:
Please bring a pot-luck style dish to share (if you are able) and adult beverages of your choice (if you wish)
All are welcome, family friendly
A few notes about Jeremy, in case you’re not familiar:
Based out of Minneapolis, Jeremy is widely known as the premier songwriter of the bustling Minneapolis music scene. He has been named so several times by each of the major print publications around town
National Public Radio (NPR) named Jeremy’s last album, The Reluctant Graveyard, as one of the Top 10 albums of 2010
Jeremy’s video for Tatooine was a viral sensation, landing in online publications like Wired, USA Today, BoingBoing, Yahoo! (Front Page), etc
Jeremy opened up for President Obama in Minneapolis! Democrat or Republic anytime you can whip the crowd into a frenzy before POTUS its a remarkable thing! 🙂
I often get credit for the great music on the show, but the reality is, a lot of the best tips come from listeners. Such is the case with Jeremy Messersmith, who was introduced to me by listener Tonya, when she lived near Minneapolis. Messersmith is based in the area, and is a darling of the great radio station The Current. Once I heard this guy’s music, I was hooked, and I know that you will be also.
He’s got a knack for irresistable pop hooks and some wonderful production on his albums, but at the core, he’s a singer/songwriter with a keen eye, a delicate heart, and a way with words – just the way we like ’em. His albums just keep getting better, and his star just keeps rising. In the Minneapolis area, he can fill huge rooms (like First Avenue) and take part in huge bills (such as the show at the Minnesota State Fair, where he’s co-billed along with The Jayhawks and a rare and eagerly anticipated reunion of Semisonic), but he’s about to embark on an intimate tour of house concerts/pot luck dinners, called The Supper Club Tour.
We always encourage folks to bring food and make a meal of it, but this time, Jeremy is upping the pressure. He’s asking folks to bring their favourite family dish to share. Sure, we understand if you can’t/won’t, and we won’t kick you out if you don’t bring the Corning Ware, but we really hope you’ll take us up on the idea this time.
New for this show is the online advance ticket sales. All tickets are supposed to be purchased online, in advance. If that isn’t possible for you, please drop us a line below and we’ll negotiate, but it would make things much easier (and less stressful) if you’d do your part and buy a ticket online. It’s cheap, easy, and much appreciated:
Due to some scheduling difficulties, the Shannon Lyon show originally scheduled for this weekend has been moved up to June 18, that’s TONIGHT!
Tell the Band to Go Home and The Sunset Saloon are very excited to present:
Shannon Lyon
Outdoor potluck dinner & entertainment spectacular
July 18, 2012
6:00 dinner, 7:00 show
Suggested donation $15-20 (price flexible, all proceeds to a talented musician making his way across this vast country)
Bring a lawn chair if the weather is nice (perhaps bug spray…)
All are welcome (bring the kids, friends, family, people off the street, whatever)
Questions? RSVP? Fill out the contact form below!
We’re rolling out all the stops this time for a super show at Sunset Saloon, featuring Shannon Lyon. We’re going to try doing the show in the back yard, if the weather and the bugs don’t ruin the party. With that in mind, we want to get things rolling and over somewhat early, so we’re adding in a dinner component. If you want to come a bit early, bring a dish for a good old fashioned pot-luck. In reality, you don’t have to bring a thing, because we’ve always got you covered. But some kind and generous folks usually bring stuff anyway (we love ’em for it), and really, who doesn’t love a good pot-luck? You can opt in or out of the dinner festivities without guilt. We’ll be here. If you show up to eat, we’ll feed you. If not, we hope to see you at the show. It promises to be amazing.
The first time I heard Shannon Lyon was around the time of the release of his 2003 breakthrough album, “Wandered.” He was the first Canadian artist signed to Richard Branson’s V2 label, and as such, his album got sent out to media dorks like me. I hope that most of them had the same reaction as I did, “WOW!” That album remains one of my all-time favourite releases. It’s gritty and worn, but tender and melodic. It’s powerful and intense, but it contains some really beautiful lyrics. I got to see Shannon live once, when he opened for Luther Wright & The Wrongs at The West End Cultural Centre on their big “Rebuild the Wall” tour. I was blown away. I gave him my business card and told him to keep in touch.
Well, that took a while. I can’t blame the guy, I was a dork and he was on a whirlwind promotional tour. He also lived in Holland. Although from southern Ontario, he moved to Europe and spent most of his time making music and touring overseas. He continued to release terrific albums, most of which were distributed in Canada by the wonderful folks at Busted Flat Records, which has been Shannon’s Canadian base of operations throughout most of his singer/songwriter career (he did record a few early albums as “The Shannon Lyon Pop Explosion.” They’re pretty neat too. I’ll play ’em for you when you come over.) He recorded a bunch of neat stuff in Europe, including a DVD and a rockin’ album of Townes Van Zandt covers. He also put out a really strong album called “This Love This Love,” and eventually, he dropped me a line telling me about it.
Then, a while ago, things really started moving. The long-rumoured Townes CD surfaced online, along with another new CD, “XMas in Korea” as well as a career-spanning retrospective collection, simply called “Songs.” And what songs they are. The amazing thing about all of these albums is that Shannon put them online to download, FREE (although, good-hearted folk are encouraged to pay anyway. Once you hear these songs, you’ll know that they’re worth some money.) He moved back to Canada, ending up in BC, and he started making plans to head across the country this summer, camping and singing along the way. He was looking for places to stop. You can’t get to one end of the country to the other without passing through Winnipeg – it simmply can’t be done – so, probably thanks to Allison Green, he dropped me a line asking if I knew of a place he could play. Uh, YEAH!
He also put up a brand new recording, “Broken Things,” which is definitely one of his best. We made plans to get him to Winnipeg and it’s all happening Wednesday, July 18.
Another amazing opportunity has come our way, and it was too good to pass up. So, making for our most ambitious show and most ambitious week ever, we proudly present:
Joy Kills Sorrow
Live @ Sunset Saloon (house concert, West Winnipeg)
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
7:30 pm
Suggested donation: $20-25 (all proceeds to the artists, and this time, there are 5 of them!)
All are welcome (family friendly, and feel free to bring a friend or forward this info along)
Bring a drink for yourself and/or a snack to share, if you wish.
If the Shannon Lyon show on July 21 goes well, we may consider doing this outdoors as well.
Here’s what that might be like:
We’re branching out a bit with something bigger and a bit different than what we usually present, but this was too great an opportunity to pass up. This super-talented young 5 piece band has wowed audiences at councerts and festivals across North America, including a successful appearance at The Winnipeg Folk Festival last year. You might compare them a bit to Folk Fest favourites Crooked Still or local heroes The Duhks, but this band is definitely unique, and definitely amazing.
The band is based in Boston, but fronted by a Canadian gal from Vancouver Island, named Emma Beaton. If that name sounds familiar, it may be from reading the liner notes to Del Barber’s latest CD, Headwaters. You know, she’s that stunning voice that is featured at the beginning and end of the album, on “Love and Wine.” That alone was enough to get me interested (but I’m a bit Del Barber obsessed…), but one listen to their music, especially tracks from the newest release, “This Unknown Silence,” and I knew this was something worth looking forward to. They’re headed to The Calgary Folk Fest (where Mr. Barber will also appear) and need a place to stop on the way. What better place than The Sunset Saloon?
“Subtle and snazzy, this new jack acoustic outfit merges bluegrass with jazz like it was the most natural combination in the world. Meanwhile, singers and songwriters Emma Beaton and Bridget Kearney bring wry existential intelligence and a haunting, Celtic/Canadian interpretive quality to their delicate yet determined tales of contemporary dislocation and off-kilter love. Kind of like a more accessible, less pleased with themselves Nickel Creek, these are virtuoso art folkies who understand the value of being just folks, too.”
Tell the Band to Go Home and The Sunset Saloon are very excited to present:
Shannon Lyon
Outdoor potluck dinner & entertainment spectacular July 21, 2012
5:00 dinner, 6:00 show
Suggested donation $15-20 (price flexible, all proceeds to a talented musician making his way across this vast country)
Bring a lawn chair if the weather is nice (perhaps bug spray…)
All are welcome (bring the kids, friends, family, people off the street, whatever)
Questions? RSVP? Fill out the contact form below!
We’re rolling out all the stops this time for a super show at Sunset Saloon, featuring Shannon Lyon. We’re going to try doing the show in the back yard, if the weather and the bugs don’t ruin the party. With that in mind, we want to get things rolling and over somewhat early, so we’re adding in a dinner component. If you want to come a bit early, bring a dish for a good old fashioned pot-luck. In reality, you don’t have to bring a thing, because we’ve always got you covered. But some kind and generous folks usually bring stuff anyway (we love ’em for it), and really, who doesn’t love a good pot-luck? You can opt in or out of the dinner festivities without guilt. We’ll be here. If you show up to eat, we’ll feed you. If not, we hope to see you at the show. It promises to be amazing.
The first time I heard Shannon Lyon was around the time of the release of his 2003 breakthrough album, “Wandered.” He was the first Canadian artist signed to Richard Branson’s V2 label, and as such, his album got sent out to media dorks like me. I hope that most of them had the same reaction as I did, “WOW!” That album remains one of my all-time favourite releases. It’s gritty and worn, but tender and melodic. It’s powerful and intense, but it contains some really beautiful lyrics. I got to see Shannon live once, when he opened for Luther Wright & The Wrongs at The West End Cultural Centre on their big “Rebuild the Wall” tour. I was blown away. I gave him my business card and told him to keep in touch.
Well, that took a while. I can’t blame the guy, I was a dork and he was on a whirlwind promotional tour. He also lived in Holland. Although from southern Ontario, he moved to Europe and spent most of his time making music and touring overseas. He continued to release terrific albums, most of which were distributed in Canada by the wonderful folks at Busted Flat Records, which has been Shannon’s Canadian base of operations throughout most of his singer/songwriter career (he did record a few early albums as “The Shannon Lyon Pop Explosion.” They’re pretty neat too. I’ll play ’em for you when you come over.) He recorded a bunch of neat stuff in Europe, including a DVD and a rockin’ album of Townes Van Zandt covers. He also put out a really strong album called “This Love This Love,” and eventually, he dropped me a line telling me about it.
Then, a while ago, things really started moving. The long-rumoured Townes CD surfaced online, along with another new CD, “XMas in Korea” as well as a career-spanning retrospective collection, simply called “Songs.” And what songs they are. The amazing thing about all of these albums is that Shannon put them online to download, FREE (although, good-hearted folk are encouraged to pay anyway. Once you hear these songs, you’ll know that they’re worth some money.) He moved back to Canada, ending up in BC, and he started making plans to head across the country this summer, camping and singing along the way. He was looking for places to stop. You can’t get to one end of the country to the other without passing through Winnipeg – it simmply can’t be done – so, probably thanks to Allison Green, he dropped me a line asking if I knew of a place he could play. Uh, YEAH!
He also put up a brand new recording, “Broken Things,” which is definitely one of his best. We made plans to get him to Winnipeg and keep him here as long as possible. He has a show booked at Pop Soda’s on July 24th. I strongly encourage you to be there; I know I will. But most excitingly for me, we’re also going to have a show at The Sunset Saloon on July 21. That’s a pretty special day in our house, and we’ll be looking to celebrate. We’d love it if you would join us for the party.
You know what dads like? I do. House concerts. It’s true. I’m a dad. I know. See, read this testimonial from an ACTUAL FATHER:
“I love house concerts. There’s nowhere I’d rather be. You get the best up-close entertainment, hang out with great people, and there’s tons of FREE food and beer. What’s not to love about that?” – Jeremy’s dad.
So, with that thought in mind, we’re throwing a party perfect for dads, their families, people who might some day be dads or part of dads’ families, or anybody with a dad at all. We’re family friendly (we’ve got a bunch of kids and a big basement full of toys) and all are welcome, whether you know us yet or not.
It’s a Father’s Day Spectacular, live at the Sunset Saloon, Sunday, June 17, featuring Steven Bowers, free food, beer, and at least one ACTUAL DAD!
Price: negotiable! We’d love for you to give Steven some dough ($15 is a fair amount, but $20’s better, $10 is acceptable, or just be a cheapo and come and eat and drink for FREE! Whatever!)
Time: also negotiable! We’re thinking about doing an early set then a dinner break, then a later set. You can come for the early part and walk out without any guilt, show up later for the free food and stay for the show, or enjoy the afternoon/evening with us and enjoy both – up to you! If feedback dictates that we should just do an early show or a late show, WE WILL! We’re people pleasers like that, so LET US KNOW! (fill out the comment form below or just shoot an email to tellthebandtogohome at gmail dot com.)
We’ll start early and stay late (it is our house, after all.) We’ll serve up dinner, perfect for folks looking to cheap out on Dad’s day! Alternately, you can bring your own grub to share or enjoy yourself or just come before or after whatever else you’d prefer. Wives, kids, friends, relations, strangers, hell, you can even bring your parakeet if dad wants you to!
RSVP? We love it when you do. Knowing that people are going to come lessens my anxiety, but I’m a last-minute decision maker, so we never turn away folks who decide to show up without notice. Even just saying that you might come make it helps, but if not, come on by anyway!
Ice cream? Yes, Jaine’s famous homemade ice cream is a selling feature, but it’s also a LOT of work for her. She hasn’t committed to it yet, but it’s Father’s Day, so I think I might have some extra pull this time. I’ll see what I can do… Be sure to weigh in and increase the pressure if you really want some!
Here’s some more info, in case that sales pitch hasn’t hooked you in already!
In 2009 we christened the Sunset Saloon (my living room) as a place to host amazing shows featuring great artists coming through town (and some who live here) who deserve an intelligent, respectful listening audience. We’ve hosted some greats, as anyone who’s been to a show can attest. One of my favourites of all time was one of the very first, when one of my favourite singer/songwriters in the world, Christina Martin, agreed to come and play for the first time. She was traveling at the time with a young guy from the east coast and asked if he could come and play too. I didn’t know much about him, at the time, but I would have let her bring Beelzebub himself if it meant she’d come and sing for me and my friends.
Luckily, Steven Bowers is only a charming, talented devil, and surely not an evil one. He turned out to be a wonderful discovery with a whole pile of great songs. He’s a thoughtful, literate writer with a delicate voice and a gift with a melody. He’s also got a bunch of great stories and a great personality, so he’s easy to get to know and fall in love with. His songs were great then, but everything he’s put out since then has been leaps and bounds better than the last thing he did. Honestly, I’ve never seen such growth in a songwriter in such a short amount of time. Seriously. He just gets better and better.
He’s on his way across the country to be with his lovely wife who has accepted a job in BC, which has meant too much time apart (a love story! How can you resist a love story!). He’s also got a great album that people need to hear. We’re glad to give him an opportunity to get his songs out to people who need to hear them (that’s YOU!) You can’t go wrong with a house concert, no matter who’s playing, but when it’s someone new and exciting with a promising future, it’s extra enticing.
Whether you saw him in 2009 and enjoyed him then or just want to discover something new and wonderful now, this show’s for you.
You can, if you wish, download his latest wonderful record, Beothuk Words, FREE by visiting: http://www.noisetrade.com/stevenbowers (you can also support the dude by leaving a tip or downloading it from the evil, ubiquitous iTunes store)
Check out this adorable video of Steven with Christina Martin and Jeremy, live at that show in 2009:
The official beautiful video:
Check out this beautiful new video:
or this other nifty recent video:
Fill out the form below to RSVP or send us a note. Whatever info you enter here is emailed directly to me and not made public. If you enter your email, it’s just so we can email you back, but we won’t use your info for any evil purposes.
The info you enter in the fields below will be posted on the site. We’d love to hear from you if you want to encourage other folks to check out the show!
By now hopefully you’ve heard me encouraging you to join us in our living room on Feb. 11 when one of Canada’s finest female singer/songwriters, Christina Martin, returns for her third visit.
If I hadn’t convinced you already, hopefully these gorgeous show posters will do the trick – definitely our finest advertisement yet, and we wouldn’t put this out there unless the show was going to be high class, all the way. Hope you can join us!
Returning for her third appearance live in my living room (on top of a terrific show at the Lo-Pub supporting Cuff the Duke a while back), Christina Martin, February 11, 2012. This time, she’ll have her amazingly talented husband/producer/guitarist Dale Murray along to complement her songs and share some of his own.
As usual, admission price is up to you (although $20 will seem like a bargain, I guarantee you). All are welcome (bring the kids, your friends, your parents, your goldfish Charlie, whomever). We supply the snacks and soft drinks, you bring anything you’d like to enjoy yourself (BYOB) or a snack to share. The only thing you should make sure you bring is money for a CD (or two).
Here’s a small taste of the magic you can expect to enjoy:
Please RSVP if you can (it lessens the anxiety), but last minute and walk-up attendees are welcome too.
Jory Nash (http://www.jorynash.com/main-set.html) Live @ Sunset Saloon (house concert, West Winnipeg) Friday, Oct. 21
8:00 pm
suggested donation $15-20 (all money directly to the artist, price is flexible – pay what you can or what you will)
We’ll supply the snacks, soft drinks, juice, hospitality, and more – bring something for yourself or to share, whatever suits you!
Our house is family friendly (we’ve got 3 kids and plenty of room, so feel free to bring the family), easy-going, friendly, and open to all! If you don’t know us yet, come on down and make some new friends!
PLUS! Once again, Jaine is making her special one-night only homemade ice cream in honour of our guest. You get a taste FREE (but feel free to tip Jory as your thanks). Previous flavours have included Christina Maraschino (Christina Martin), Fort McLeod Fudge (John Wort Hannam), and Chris Caramichael (Chris Carmichael). This time ’round, how could we go wrong with:
Heavenly Nash!
A bit about this show:
When CD submissions started rolling in to me in 2002 or so, one of the first discs that really caught my ear was Lo-Fi Northern Blues, by Jory Nash. The second song is called “The Ballad of Easy Chair;” Jory calls it “a semi-autobiographical tale of hope, perseverance and grand theft candy.” It’s a lighthearted song with a great lyric and an instantly memorable melody. It showcases Jory’s tasteful guitar playing and his unique, wonderful voice. In short, it’s everything I look for in a song, and I love it still. He’s put out three albums since then (as well as a great one before) and each one shows great skill, dedication, and growth.
The primary goal Tell the Band to Go Home is to bring you amazing music that you might not otherwise hear anywhere else, and match you (the open-minded music lover) with talented musicians looking to find an audience. Jory is just the kind of super-talented, hard-working, DIY musician that we love to promote, and I know that once you see and hear him (especially live), you’ll fall in love.
wherever you go, you’ll hear right away that this guy is interested in writing thoughtful, intelligent, interesting lyrics and it’s all presented with tasteful, memorable melodies. He walks a musical line between Gordon Lightfoot and Paul Simon with many stops in between. It’s magical music that will capture your heart and your ears.
And he’s won over plenty of critics, too. His latest album “New Blue Day” was voted Album of the Year in a poll conducted by Penguin Eggs Magazine, voted on by artists, industry folk, and radio dorks like me. That might not mean much to you unless I told you that previous winners include Fred Eaglesmith, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Bob Dylan, Lynn Miles, David Francey & Harry Manx.
Jory is very busy touring most of the year, visiting spots across Canada and into the U.S. He regularly sells out Toronto’s hallowed hall “Hugh’s Room,” (kind of like their version of the West End Cultural Centre), and has appeared at festivals and special events all over. BUT, he NEVER comes to Winnipeg! He played a house show in our city in 2003, stopped by UMFM for a quick visit, and has never come back! I hope it wasn’t something I said! I’ve been bugging him ever since for a return visit, but it hasn’t happened… until now. Heck, one of the reasons I wanted to do house concerts in the first place was so I could convince him (and others like him) to come to town, knowing that there would be a room full of eager and attentive folks waiting to be entertained and enlightened.
So, don’t miss out on this opportunity to see Jory Nash, live in my living room! (after all, it may be another 8 years before he returns!)
Feel free to fill out the contact form below if you have any questions or if you want to reserve your seat (your details aren’t public, just emailed directly to me.)
