Guitar

Liner Notes: Hard Won, John Cody, ole red dot, 2017

JOHN CODY HARD WON   LINER NOTES: APRIL 4, 2017   Nick Krewen     It was a race against time. The circumstances behind the recording of John Cody‘s fourth album, Hard Won, may sound panicked and urgent, but there’s a reason for it: they were. In May 2016, the Montréal-based singer and songwriter received the news that no one wants to hear, especially if you’re a musician: his larynx,…


Commentary: Rock of Ages…

We’re barely six weeks into 2018 and this year is already shaping up to be a cold, hard truth for music lovers: mortality is rearing its ugly head. The ailment avalanche, affecting some of our greatest pop and rock performers, began in mid-January and seemingly hasn’t let up since. The first shocking admission occurred during a Globe and Mail interview published on January 16 with Rush guitarist extraordinaire Alex Lifeson,…


Future of pop music is in great hands with Bruno Mars: review

Mars’s 90-minute set Saturday night at the ACC demonstrated the pop star’s gifted intuition for pop music. Nick Krewen Music, Sun., Aug. 27, 2017 Bruno Mars at the Air Canada Centre, Aug. 26, 2017 He had razzle. He had dazzle. And on Saturday night, for the first of two hotly anticipated Air Canada Centre sell-out concerts, Bruno Mars had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand with…


10-time Grammy winner Bonnie Raitt learned her craft from country blues greats

The singer-songwriter, who will return to the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts on June 9, says she wasn’t aware of how much impact she’s made during her career. Nick Krewen, Music, Sat. June 3, 2017 A master of the Stratocaster, 10-time Grammy Award recipient Bonnie Raitt has always been perceived as a trail-blazing role model who inspires female musicians to pick up the guitar and express their individuality. But it…


Fred Penner grabs Basia Bulat, Bahamas, Ron Sexsmith for new album

Celebrated kids’ entertainer recruited a lot of well-known grown-up musicians for the easygoing creation of his new album. Nick Krewen Music, Thu., April 20, 2017 The cat is back — and he’s brought along some cool friends. At 70, beloved children’s entertainer Fred Penner, best known perhaps for his 1979 gem “The Cat Came Back” and his memorable Fred Penner’s Place TV series, has returned with album No. 13, Hear…