Eatdrink #65 May/June 2017

50 | May/June 2017
Sean McCann
but in a traditional
style
— lots of
fiddle, guitar,
step dancing,
body percussion.
The title
of the new
album may
be an apt
description of
the evening
in store — En
panne de silence (a shortage of silence.) Special
guest this night: Juno-nominated pop-folkster
Andrew McPherson.
On Sunday May 28, there’s a choice of Celtic
fare. Bud Gardens has Irish balladeer Daniel
O’Donnell, the wildly popular star of a string
of PBS specials, and the only artist to have a
new album on the UK charts every year since
1988 (7:30pm, $61.50-$127.) A few blocks away,
The Cuckoo’s Nest Folk Club at Chaucer’s Pub
is bringing in Caim, a vocal-instrumental duo,
“direct from Scotland”: Heather Innes, vocals
and bodhrán (the big drum-tambourine
thing) and Pauline Vallance, harp, flute
and vocals (May 28, 7:30pm, $20/$25.)
On Saturday, June 3 we get a short
break from non-stop Celtic. Blues troubadour
Bonnie Raitt comes to Centennial
Hall (8:00pm, $79.50–$95.50+.) Raitt is
best known for the 1991 hit, “Something
to Talk About.” She’s currently touring her
2016 album — her 17th — Dig in Deep.
Canadian favourite Royal Wood opens.
If you miss them in London, Kitchener’s
Centre In The Square has the same show
Buddy Guy
Wednesday, June 7 ($72.50–$118.)
Meanwhile, back in Celtic town,
Bayfield Town Hall has Sean McCann —
okay, not strictly or exclusively Celtic, but
close enough — on Sunday, June
4 (7pm.) The ex-Great Big Sea
Neema Children’s Choir (Photo: Ian Davies)
frontman, always
an engaging
performer, has
been touring solo
for awhile. On
Friday, June 16
at Aeolian Hall,
Home County
is bringing in
Irish Mythen
(7:00pm/8:00pm,
$25/$30.) Don’t
know Mythen?
The Irish-born Canadian performer, now
based in PEI, plays her own compositions:
contemporary folk meets traditional Celtic.
Irish Mythen
She’s played with greats (Rod Stewart, Gordon
Lightfoot, Lucinda Williams), graced festival
bills the world over, and wows audiences
everywhere.
Then we get seriously un-Celtic with a pair of
music legends to herald the coming of summer.
Budweiser Gardens has ageless bluesman
Buddy Guy on Wednesday, June 21 (7:30pm,
$64.50–$109.50.) What can you say about
Buddy Guy? He is a giant. Guy, 80, didn’t
invent the blues, but he surely helped
define it. Two weeks later, on Thursday,
July 6, the Bud follows up with
Nobel Prize winner Bob Dylan
(8pm,
$59.50–
$89.50.)
Dylan, 75,
helped define
an era. Legends
don’t last forever
folks: catch ’em while
you can.
GERRY BLACKWELL is a
London-based freelance writer.
TD Sunfest celebrates 23 years
of transfiguring Downtown
London’s Victoria Park into
a culturally diverse jewel
for 220,000+ devoted visitors. More than 35 stellar
world music & jazz ensembles from around the planet
will perform on five stages, while 225 exhibitors whet
festivalgoers’ appetites for scrumptious global cuisine
and one-of-a-kind crafts & visual art. Acts include iconic
bands like Kiev’s DakhaBrakha and Brazil’s Bixiga 70 and
returning favourites like Ontario’s Samba Squad and BC’s
Five Alarm Funk. July 6-9, Victoria Park, free admission.