Festival and "summer show" season is upon us!! This week on Georgian Bay Roots Radio join host Kailey Jane Hawkins as she spins tunes from artists playing at Mariposa 2023, music from artists playing Summerfolk 48, songs from artists performing at Harbour Nights and the Music at the Market series here in Owen Sound, AND some brand new tracks hot off the presses from your friends and neighbours right here in Grey and Bruce! There's so much happening it's hard to pack it all in!! 

Featuring tracks by Coco Love Alcorn, KT Tunstall, Drew McIvor, David Hartt, Ken Dunn, Rufus Wainwright, Rob Elder, Sharon Lois and Bram, Julian Taylor, Josh Ritchie, The Realmwalkers, Danny Michel and Paige Warner!

Georgian Bay Roots #346 June 4 2023 (with Kailey)

"You don't sound like anyone else," said Danny Thompson - renowned bass player for Nick Drake and Joe Strummer - about English musician Conil.

The GRAMMY-winning engineer for Tom Waits and Elvis Costello, Tchad Blake said: "Strange Part of the Country is an awesome album! I still listen to it."

Fleetwood Mac legend Peter Green liked Conil's music so much he stopped by Conil’s house to record with him. They recorded a version of Conil's homage to the jazz greats "Round Midnight". 

Strange Part of the Country never conformed to any current trends and has remained timeless. Now, people are discovering this album and it is becoming an all-time favourite. 

When the album was released in the UK, it received some amazing press. Britain's biggest selling music monthly Q magazine gave it: "Four stars - Q Recommends". Blues Matters magazine wrote: "One of the most original artists out there". In the next issue, Blues Matters put him on the front cover.

Conil left London after Strange Part of the Country was released and has spent the last ten years living in the United States and Europe - including New Orleans, New York City, and Berlin.

David Michael Hartt is a singer/songwriter originally from Timmins, but now living in Owen Sound ON. He has worked with many talented musicians from Shania Twain to Larry Jensen.  His writing style is in more of a storytelling vein as can be seen in his first album “Our Stories” which has songs that tell 10 stories of his hometown of Timmins, ON.  This is to be followed up in late 2023 with a second 10 song collection called “More Stories” which will continue to tell the stories of events and people of note. 
The newest release is “Keep On Driving”. The songs on this album were written mostly over the last few years with a reworking of a 1986 song, “When You Look Up At Night” and the inclusion of “All My Life” a song recorded with his old band “Longshot” in 1987.
David likes to inject a little humour in his songwriting but can write a great love song and does not shy away from wearing his strongly held beliefs on his sleeve. 
Apart from the aforementioned Longshot song and first single “Demon Seed” produced by the very talented Michael Lanteigne of Canadian Country Band Johnson’s Creek, the rest of the album was recorded, mixed and mastered at David’s home studio, with him playing or programming all of the instruments. 
As he is a prolific songwriter, another album is on the horizon for mid-2024 tentatively titled “We’ll Always Have Main St” which will contain some collaborations with other songwriters and musicians.
Presently he is looking into assembling a band to perform the songs from “Keep On Driving”, as apart from the odd open mic, he has not performed live in over 20 years.

For 8 years we were a weekly radio show based in Owen Sound, Ontario and presented by the Georgian Bay Folk Society. We shared music made in and played in Grey and Bruce counties with folk and roots music from across Canada and around the world thrown into the mix.

The show sunsetted on December 29th, 2024. Thanks for listening!