Tone Rangers @ The Local, Monday

Those masked men of bluegrass – Chris Quinn, Andrew Collins, Adam Shier & James McEleney – return to The Local on Monday at 9 pm.

Col. Tom's Swinging Door w/ mandolin marvel Andrew Collins @ Cameron House, Sunday

Creaking Tree Stringer and Tone Ranger Andrew Collins sits in with Col. Tom Parker and crew from 6 pm to 8 pm. 

The Tone Rangers launch May residency at the Cameron House, Tuesday

Chris Quinn, Andrew Collins, James McEleney & Adam Shier play bluegrass right at the Cameron from 6-8 pm tonight.

Toronto's Tone Rangers launch their debut album @ Hugh's Room, Dec 5

The Tone Rangers string band recorded their much-anticipated Tone On The Ranger album live "off the floor" in just two days! 

Here's the scoop from Tone Ranger Andrew Collins...

Just over a year ago, Chris Quinn, Adam Shier, James McEleney and I got together in a barn, set up some recording gear, a bunch of cameras and recorded our first full album as the Tone Rangers. We recorded 9 tracks on that day, had a follow up half day session this summer to complete recording and we're now excited to announce the official release of our live off the floor album "Tone On The Ranger".  For those who have been following along, we've slowly been putting out singles and videos, so you have a sense of what's on the album.  If you're in the Toronto area, we invite you to celebrate our release on December 5 at the new Hugh's Room Live (296 Broadview Ave) at 8 pm.  Tickets are available right here.

Our new single Half Past Four is out now!  We learned this one from Ed Haley and while it's usually an old time fiddle tune, we've turned it into a bluegrass mandolin tune featuring our mandolin slinger Ace.  You can now stream this anywhere you usually stream music. Facebook friends can check out the footage of "Half Past Four" shot by Mitch Fillion right here. You can also view the Tone Rangers' version of Tom T. Hall's "That's How I Got To Memphis" featuring the smooth vocals of bassist James "Big Mac" McEleney over here. 

We have a few more singles to come, so stay tuned for more! Check out a couple of performances following the Tone Rangers' theme below. 

Jeff Scroggins & Colorado w/ Foggy Hogtown Boys @ Junction City Music Hall, Thursday

Foggy Hogtown Boys' CD Release Party @ Hugh's Room, tonight

Toronto's own Foggy Hogtown Boys launch their Animals, Insects and People album at Hugh's this evening. 

Foggy Hogtown Boys behaving badly?

Toronto's unstoppable bluegrass force, the Foggy Hogtown Boys, have always been better known for their super-tight ensemble play than their sense of humour but don't be fooled by the clean-cut stage presentation and all that ridiculously proficient picking. Once the house lights come up and their stringed companions are put to bed, Chris Quinn, Andrew Collins, John Showman, Chris Coole and Max Heineman are inveterate cut-ups and it's about time folks outside the group's small circle of elbow-bending buddies knew it.   

For their new self-released Scotch & Sofa disc – which they'll be unveiling at their release party on Friday (June 11) at Hugh's Room (2261 Dundas West) –  the typically neat 'n' tidy Foggy Five decided to get down 'n' dirty for their high concept CD sleeve photo shoot with hilarious results. It all fits perfectly with their chosen repertoire for the album which delves into the tried and true themes of drinking, gambling, rambling and cheating. It's just the sort of stuff that once made for classic country songs way back in the days before Nashville's finest left the honky tonks for hot tubs. But then, these hombres have made a career out of being more country than country.  

The great thing about the Foggy Hogtown Boys is that while they remain deeply immersed in old-school bluegrass tradition, enough to still have their Bill Monroe moments on Scotch & Sofa along with nods to the Stanley Brothers and Flatt & Scruggs, they're anything but bound by it. Listen closely  and you'll also hear the influence of Jimmie Rodgers and maybe a little Papa Charlie Jackson too. Over the course of making five albums without interference from producers or labels, they've developed a uniquely Canuck approach to playing the bluegrass and old-time music they love which is somehow simultaneously both rootsier and more adventurous than what's currently being done by their similarly banjo-driven Southern counterparts.

Each virtuosic member continues to have numerous simultaneous side-projects on the go but that hasn't undermined what they do together as the Foggy Hogtown Boys. In fact, just the opposite is true as demonstrated by the broad range of song styles and structures on Scotch & Sofa which you simply won't encounter on contemporary bluegrass recordings. And if the sleeve images are any indication, they're still having a great time doing it.

Get In Line Brother at the Almonte Old Town Hall on Feb 6, 2010



  
LINKS
site http://foggyhogtownboys.com
myspace http://www.myspace.com/thefoggyhogtownboys
Hugh's Room http://www.hughsroom.com

Lickin' Good Fried Do The Dakota

photo by Beth Hamill

The next best thing to happen to Sundays since Brett Favre started playing like a 26-year-old again is Lickin' Good Fried's weekly honky-tonk hoedown at the Dakota Tavern (249 Ossington) from 7 till 9 pm.
Those lamenting the premature demise of The Backstabbers will be thrilled to find that frontman Col. Tom Parker has hit his stride as a singer, songwriter and guitar picker with the old-school country concept of Lickin' Good Fried with superb support from moonlighting Creaking Tree String Quartet members Andrew Collins on mandolin and fiddler John Showman along with upright bassist Sam Petite.
Of course, Lickin' Good Fried's not-so-secret ingredient is Parker's partner in rhyme, sensational singer Alex Pangman who has miraculously bounced back from her double lung transplant to croon dynamic duets and add gorgeous harmonies when not soaring solo.

As fantastic as Lickin' Good Fried certainly are on their recently released Say Uncle! (Rooster Sandwich), they're even better in the comfortably rustic setting of the Dakota where their sweet renditions of George Jones, Louvin Brothers, Roger Miller and Hank Snow favourites go down exceedingly well with some tasty Southern fried chicken and a cold brew.
Be fore warned, Lickin' Good Fried is habit forming – see them once and you may become a Dakota Sunday regular hollering requests for Red Headed Woman (in a Dirty Corvette) and two-stepping around Brian Connelly. PWYC




LINKS
Lickin' Good Fried  http://www.lickingoodfried.com 
myspace  http://www.myspace.com/lickingoodfried 
Alex Pangman http://www.alexpangman.com/
Andrew Collins http://www.myspace.com/sytesounds
John Showman http://www.myspace.com/newcountryrehab
Creaking Tree String Quartet http://www.myspace.com/creakingtree
Dakota Tavern http://www.myspace.com/thedakotatavern
Beth Hamill http://www.rockpaperpixels.com/
Philip Curwen http://www.philipcurwen.com/

Photo by Philip Curwen