Nokomis to Saskatoon, SK

And which object is different? Nokomis Main St. at 7:00 AM.

It's been fun, but after a great breakfast with Little Miss Higgens and her family- we're back on the open road.

The soft, prairie landscape will eventually suck everything back. Here, a barn sits, half swallowed, tail up like a diving duck in the rain.

We play Saskatoon, SK tonight. I really appreciate the great work the Saskatoon Blues Society does here. Supporting this tour with a Tuesday night show helps us across the West. We get a good crowd out for the show. Morgan and I have both got quite a few fans in this town. It is so great to roll in and see familiar faces in the crowd- even some wearing National Steel tour jackets!

Morgan entertains some folks outside the venue. He's also a top notch air guitar player!

Our pal Lynn Victoria won the Tour jacket! Nope- it wasn't fixed!! Congrats, Lynn, I know you wanted one of these!!

Thanks to all the volunteers and members of the Saskatoon Blues Society who helped make this show happen- promo, sound, lights, door, merch table... Without your efforts there would be a lot less going on in not only your town, but in other places across the map. Keep up the great work, and know that you are appreciated!

Flatland Adventures

Our deck at Capone's. We stayed on an extra day, played again at Kergano's, and spent time exploring the town. I went for a run in the afternoon and did about 10 km to check out the back streets...





Living up to it's name, our hotel- specifically Morgan's room- featured the Murder Tub.

A drive-by shooting in the digital age. Moose Jaw still has plenty of cool signs, and we stopped to admire and document a few of them...

The first great thrift store adventure of the Tour! A wild, wild, Peavy head, and...

A war time Gibson. Nice, eh?

On the road. We're on our way to Nokomis, SK today...

Hey, we've arrived! An interesting drive across the flatlands. Smoke overhead as farmers burn off some of the stubble. Kind of a toast smell in the air. Birds overhead on this major flightway. Every hotel for miles around is filled with duck and goose hunters- but we're lucky. My friend Tanya is able to get us a couple of rooms at her downtown, Nokomis Hotel...

After dinner Morgan and I play some songs for the hunters. They buy the scotch, we play the tunes. It's pretty casual, and a short night as these fellas need to be up at 5:AM!!

Our pals Little Miss Higgens and Foy dropped by the Hotel to visit with us and catch up on the crazy lives we all lead. They did Europe with k.d. lang last year, so plenty of adventures to relate from both sides of the table. We don't get to visit enough! We do get invited over for breakfast- so it's early to bed and early to rise. We play Saskatoon tomorrow night and are very much looking forward to it.

On the Road with Morgan

Under blue skies, this Tour is looking good- and sounding even better. After a great, kick-off gig in Brandon, MB last night I'm sure both Morgan and myself are feeling relieved. We knew this was going to work- but, if our start off show is any indication at all- this is going to be an absolute blast!

Travel is good. We've got the cruise switched on and the big Lincoln is just eating up the miles across Manitoba into Saskatchewan. Morgan and I have travelled these roads individually for years, so we are enjoying the ride together today.

"Did you ever stop here?"

"Do you know what's back there?"

"Let's check this out..."

We've got a live Skip James CD cranked up, a couple of big Tim's coffees on the go, and we're talking Moose Jaw before we know it.

"If you're goin' down to Moose Jaw, take the right hand road..."

 It's a brand new venue for us in this town- traditionally a pretty difficult place to book roots and blues music into. I've recently discovered Kergano's, and it looks like it will be a quality venue.

We are not disappointed! Host/owner/master chef Tye makes us welcome and feeds us one of the best meals I've had in years. Hard to believe this is Moose Jaw! This town is changing and fast. We are quickly set up, sound checked, and before you know it the place is full and ready for action.

It's a real nice crowd, and our sets go by quickly for us- in spite of being over an hour in length. I sure do like playing with Morgan. He's definitely the king of groove. When he settles in under one of my songs I feel free on top of it. "Dead Men Walking" is a real stand out for me this evening. We both tell stories. I play guitar, harmonica and washboard behind Morgan. We each do a few solo numbers. I love Morgan's Robert Johnson stuff, so I sit back and listen with everyone else. Nothing else is required! I am so blessed to be sharing a stage with Morgan! It's hard to believe we've known each other for nearly 40 years and have never done this before. And that cigar box of his sounds amazing- the most fun I've had playing harmonica in years, dropping notes in around it. I can hardly wait for the next show to do it again. I haven't been able to play like this since Colin Linden and I were a duo, since we played out as the BBQ Boys with Sam Chatmon, Sunnyland Slim, and so many others...

We end the night with an encore, and then it's back to the Hideaway Motel. The night is still young in Moose Jaw, and the pickup trucks are in from the farms. I prop my room door open and listen to the tires on the road outside; the laughter of girls on the sidewalk, the roar of the Harley Davidsons waiting for green. There's a guy selling hot dogs. I buy one, and bust open a beer on the door jamb. It's been a good day. This is going to be a good Tour. What we are doing is very strong and unique right out of the gate. I knew this was going to work! The Blues Medicine is strong. Dreamland is coming, and the wild geese are flying overhead.

On the road with Doc

Well now, I caught that train out of Halifax on Monday and chugged my way through the Merry-Times, awoke to a Quebec sunrise early next morning, then through Montreal and to Toronto to get aboard the "Canadian" - VIA's Transcontinental, 1955 built, stainless steel train to the west. To hell with those nasty jets I gotta take so often....the train is the way to travel.....
 Arrived in Winnipeg early Thursday morning and checked into my luxurious digs at the Carlton Hotel and awaited the arrival of Doc Maclean to begin our tour to the west coast and back to Winnipeg. Next day, sure enough, Doc and the big Lincoln were outside.  I loaded up and we were off to Brandon, after quick stops to rent gear and coffee up.
   Doc and I have known each other for 40 years, having been introducted by our mutual friend, Colin Linden. In fact, Colin produced my first record, and has either recorded/mixed or played on just about every record I have made over the last 30 years and he recorded Doc's most recent disc as well. Doc and Colin go back a long ways, to when they were teenagers, and Doc has been entertaining me with stories of their trips down south to meet their bluesical heroes. Although Doc and I have  been on the blues highway for all those years, we had never before played together, let alone toured together, so when Doc proposed this tour a couple years ago over breakfast in Fredericton, I was eager to go.
 Although we both saw snow in northern Ontario, the prairies are sunny and warm this second week of October. I am writing from the Capone's Hideaway Motel in Moosejaw, and it is 16 degrees and mild. Doc is out for a jog and I am in for a blog - HA!
  We have two gigs behind us, already finding a few nice grooves. Doc and I are essentially solo performers, have been for many long years....I find myself often just listening and watching Doc play, on account of there is nothing more really needed musically, but when I hear a part, I will slide it on in and see how it feels. Doc, being a multi-instrumentalist (lotta folks don't know he served 3 years for multi-instumentalism down in Angola) can always find a part on harmonica or washboard when I play a tune.

   Last night in Moosejaw we had a full house that was diggin' the music, and a happy restaurant owner. We have a night off this evening, and will prob'ly head down to their open mike night to check it out.

Farewell PEI

Catherine, not Blues Emergency for Calgary Date!

I had brunch this morning with Catherine MacLellan, a great PEI singer-songwriter whom you probably know already. We were comparing Tour notes and discovered that we were both scheduled to play the same Calgary venue on the same day! Oops. Morgan and I will not be at the Ironwood after all, in fact we are now looking to fill Thursday, Oct 25 elsewhere in the region!! House concert, anyone?


Stuff like this happens once in a while, but not often. The Ironwood is one of Canada's top venues, so Morgan and I are going to miss playing it this year. Gotta roll with this stuff! At least the error was discovered now, not at the door of the venue! I've put some feelers out to try and fill this date elsewhere in the region. The Ironwood has been advertising us for Saturday, October 27, but we will be in Golden, BC that day- as you see on the Tour schedule sidebar and posters. Sorry Calgary is going to miss the Blues Emergency, but you can catch Catherine MacLellan!

Blues with Joe Murphy- Windsor, NS

 What it looks like rolling out of NewBrunswick. Rain. Empty roads. Trucks full of logs. Dead bear on the side of the road...

High gas prices today. I don't know what's going on, but I'm going into higher priced Nova Scotia with a full tank. As I cut across rural Nova Scotia I see gas posted for $1.47.3. That's pretty scary in the context of driving 25 thousand km. And recently I've heard talk here in the Maritimes that a $20 ticket is too much. One theatre has insisted on $10 tics AND a cut of the box office. Damn... that's not much more than a beer and a tip in a bar. My share will buy a couple of litres of gas. It's a good thing I don't smoke...

Windsor, Nova Scotia is the Spitfire Arms and a much anticipated date with Maritime legend, Joe Murphy. We played together a little bit last year and had fun, so we thought we'd need to do it again.

The venue is way better than I had remembered! Joe and I play two relaxed, fun sets, for a listening crowd. If I can pry Joe away from Halifax for a few weeks next year... Serious blues from a guy who can do it all. I'm just very grateful to have had the opportunity to share one night of this Tour with him! Thanks, Joe!!