Okay, so on Wednesday my wife moved a little closer to that magical life milestone—the big 60. I won’t say exactly how close because if I did, she’d quickly remind me, “I’ll still never be older than you!”
And she’s right. I crossed that milestone a couple of years before she did.
Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve found myself thinking about many of the folk singers I’ve loved over the years. One morning I was remembering the passing of Steve Goodman. Then I realized it was the anniversary of Jim Croce’s tragic plane crash in 1973.
With all of that on my mind, I decided it was time to spend a little while with someone who almost always makes me smile—John Gorka.
Maybe it wasn’t exactly an upbeat song, but it certainly fit the week. John was born in 1958—just a youngster compared to me! 😄
The song was “People My Age,” and the video still makes me laugh.
Spambassadors? 😂
Sometimes all it takes is the right song from an old friend to brighten the day.
2026 Update
John Gorka has always has a wonderful gift for mixing humor with wisdom. That’s one of the reasons I’ve kept returning to his music for more than three decades. Whenever life starts taking itself a little too seriously, John usually has a song that reminds me to smile.
So if you’ve read this blog over the last few days you know one of the albums that I’ve been listening to lately is Incident on Willow Street. the new release from Greg Trooper.
Personally, I think that the album is one of this finest works. The opening song “All the Way to Amsterdam” with its images of a young girl dealing with an alcoholic, abusive father by dreaming about skating away on the canals of the Netherlands is as poignant and heartfelt song as I’ve ever heard!!
From there the album just keeps getting better and better, as he follows with “Goodbye Heart”, “Mary of the Scots in Queens” and “Steel Deck Heart”. (not in that order, that’s just the way they came to me) and I could go on and on about the other eight tracks on the album but check it out for yourself!!\
What Others Say About Greg Trooper
So how about I tell you what some of his contemporaries say about Greg:
“Greg Trooper writes great songs, including one of my very favorite songs in the world, Little Sister. On top of all that, there’s his voice – an instrument I have coveted for 15 years.” – Steve Earle
“Greg Trooper has got to be on our list of our finest contemporary songwriters.” – Billy Bragg
“Greg Trooper is a songwriter and performer who deserves about 12 times the attention he’s received. He knows how to play rock against country and folk and position the pressures of adulthood against the longing for adolescent freedom.” – Dave Marsh
Links for Future Explorations of the Music of Greg Trooper
The other night when I was reviewing the East Coast Music Association 2013 Awards, several of the nominees were familiar. One of the familiar artists was Dave Gunning. I don’t remember when I came across his name, but I remember listening to his 2009 release We’re All Leaving.
I remember I enjoyed it, but evidently it was one of those albums that I may have listened to all too briefly, and as I listen to it now, I can’t figure out why?? Because what I hear is great.
Award-Winning Songwriting
Anyway Dave was nominated in several categories and “These Hands” a song he co-wrote with George Canyon was awarded Song of the Year at the 2013 East Coast Music Awards!
Here’ some awards that he’s won…..
His previous release, “… a tribute to John Allan Cameron” was honored with a prestigious 2012 Juno Award nomination and was the winner of two 2011 Canadian Folk Music Awards and two ECMA Awards.
He was the winner of the Indie International Song Contest (for his song, “Hard Workin’ Hands, co-written with Ron Hynes) and a finalist in the Great American Song Contest, the USA Songwriting Competition, the John Lennon Songwriting Contest and the International Songwriting Contest.
All of the hardware and certificates aside, however, it is the personal connection that Gunning’s music engenders that is the greatest testament to his craft.
All this has led Greg Quill, The Toronto Star to write:
“Dave Gunning is the next big thing in the True North of Song, an artist as compelling, as assured and attentive to every nuance of the writing process as Lightfoot, Cockburn and Stan Rogers before him.”
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Listening to No More Pennies
So over the last coupled of days I’ve been listening to Dave’s latest release No More Pennies and really loving his songs about people and life… at times as I’ve been listening I’ve been reminded of the music of Rod Picott (and that’s a good thing!) Here’s some more about No More Penniesfrom Dave’s website:
Dave’s 10th album No More Pennies is inarguably his finest collection of songs to date. The record celebrates the journey and pays tribute to the trials and tribulations, the highs and lows and the goodness at the heart of people
On No More Pennies, Dave has proven to be a deft arranger and a songwriting master craftsman with co-written gems with George Canyon, Jim Dorie, David Francey (duet), Lennie Gallant, Bruce Guthro, Karine Polwart (duet) and record producer, Jamie Robinson.
The lead signature track, These Hands co-written with George Canyon is a ‘call to action’ style song reminiscent of classic Pete Seeger to inspire us to make good in this world. Dave and his song, These Hands were awarded Song of the Year at the 2013 East Coast Music Awards and picked up nominations for Folk Recording and Fans Choice Entertainer of the Year.
Songs About People
In his review Bob Mersereau of CBC – East Coast Living writes”
Dave Gunning’s at it again. Defining our lives, baring our souls, telling what it’s like on the East Coast these days, or for people from the East Coast. From retired railway men to hard-core hockey fans to those who’ve had to pack up and go to Alberta, Gunning’s speaking for them, telling their tales Read more.
This is one young artist to check out….I know that his music is not going to be forgotten this time around!!
Here’s Dave performing the award-winning song “These Hands” and if you’d like you can watch Hard Workin’ Hands here
2026 Update
Looking back, I can see why Dave Gunning’s music appealed to me immediately. Like so many of my favorite songwriters, he writes about ordinary people and everyday life with honesty and compassion.
Reading this post also reminded me how interconnected the Canadian folk scene really is. Dave co-wrote with Ron Hynes, David Francey, Lennie Gallant, Bruce Guthro, George Canyon, and others—many of whom I’ve come to appreciate over the years.
At the time I compared Dave’s songwriting to Rod Picott’s, and I still hear that same ability to tell stories about working people and real life. Those are exactly the kinds of songs that continue to draw me back to folk music.
So what’s been playing on the iPod over these last few days. A couple of the albums are the latest albums for two old favorites.
Slaid Cleaves – Sorrow and Smoke
The first is a two disc live album from Slaid Cleaves titled Sorrow & Smoke: Live at the Horeshoe Lounge. I’ve been a Slaid fan since I first heard him one Sunday night on Gene Shay’s folk show. We’ve been to many of Slaid’s shows here in Philly and this album does a good job of capturing the spirit of his show
.The album was recorded at two shows one in April 4 and the other in September of 2010 at the Horseshoe Lounge in Austin. Helped out by frequent bandmates Michael O’Connor on acoustic lead guitar and vocals and Oliver Steck on accordion, harmonica, trumpet and harmony vocals,
Slaid also covers some Don Walser songs, where Slaid’s yodeling prowess is showcased. One new track “Go for the Gold” closes the show.
There’s really not a bad track on the album highlights for me always include” “Broke Down”, “No Angel Knows” the touching “Lydia” and the audience participation song “Breakfast in Hell” the story of a logging disaster featuring the brave Sandy Gray and this one “Black T Shirt”, Slaid Cleaves co-wrote this song with his bestchildhood best friend Rod Picott.
Tom Russell – Mesabi
The second album is Tom Russell new album Mesabi. This is another great album from (for me) the best Americana songwriter out there!
Looking Forward to Seeing Tom Russell Live
I am going to hold off writing about this album right now and will write a full review later in the week!
This year Elizabeth decided that rather than go to William and Mary’s family weekend (Sept 23-25) we will go to Washington go to the Braves- Nationals game. So when Mesabi came out a few weeks ago I went to Russell’s website and saw he was touring and will be in Vienna, Virginia on Sunday of that weekend.
So I quickly went and purchased tickets and Kathy and I will be going to see Tom on Sunday September 25 at Jammin’ Java!
Tom Russell Performs”Mesabi”
Here’s a Video of the title track Mesabi from 2014 and it looks just like i remeber that night at the Jammin’n Java Check Out my6 post from that night here!
Continue the Journey
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:
Tom Russell Live at Jammin’ Java – My memories of finally seeing one of my favorite songwriters perform Mesabi, “Blue Wing,” “Navajo Rug,” and more in an unforgettable evening of music.
Following Tom Russell into the Old Hotel – How one song from Folk Hotel sent me down another Tom Russell rabbit hole filled with writers, poets, and history.
Originally Posted in July 2011 Updated and Revised July 2026
So the last several days have been hectic around here. My wife has been finding some great deals on Craig’s List on furniture that we desperately need. The furniture we have survived many years of wear and tear of four kids and me!
So on Saturday we bought a new Thomasville entertainment center, big and heavy and tonight with the help of some co-workers and Peter we got it in the house and standing up!
There for a while the standing up part was in doubt! Also my wife bought a laptop, so now I have a computer that’s faster than an abacus! Anyway all that took away time from reading, listening and writing.
I have been listening to some artists though that I will be writing about shortly.
Currently Listening to……Eric Steckel
One blues artist Eric Steckel, who I heard the other night on Bluesville on XM and then came home and listened to his album Havana. So I downloaded the album to liksten mre and then write avout it. Additioanalload and have listened to parts of another album.
Also a folk artist Stephen Simmons whose album The Big Show has gotten a few listens!
The Passing of Bill Morrissey
Speaking of folk artists, I was really saddened when I came home yesterday and a lunchtime read that Bill Morrissey had past away. I know that he had been battling both depression and alcohol over the last few years, but lately he had been touring and seemed to be doing better.
I’ve been a fan of Bill’s since I first heard “Handsome Molly” on a compilation CD of folk music released by Windham Hill in 1989.
The first Bill Morriswy album I bought was a cassette copy of Inside and loved it, still do!
His album Songs of Mississippi John Hurt is on my top ten list of all time favorite albums. I did get to see him once live at the Sunset Concert Series in Haddon Heights, N.J. and he was great!
James Keelaghan is one of those artists whose music I love that often gets lost in the shuffle. His album House of Cards was released back in 2009 and, for the longest time, wasn’t available on Rhapsody or Napster. The other day I finally found it on Rhapsody, and James has another winner!
2026 Update:
Looking back more than fifteen years later, I still think House of Cards ranks among Keelaghan’s finest albums. Revisiting it reminded me just how timeless his storytelling is and why he remains one of my favorite Canadian singer-songwriters.
About James Keelaghan
Keelaghan is another of my many Canadian favorites. He was born in Calgary but now calls Winnipeg home.
He is a Juno Award winner, and many of his songs have a historical basis. “Kiri’s Piano” tells the story of the internment of Japanese Canadians, while “October ’70” was inspired by the FLQ Crisis in Canadian history. Other songs, such as “Cold Missouri Waters,” take listeners south of the border, recounting the story of the 1949 Mann Gulch Fire in Montana.
For me, Keelaghan is the complete package: a rich baritone voice, strong guitar work, and, above all, exceptional storytelling. One of my longtime favorites is “Number 37,” a wonderful song about a young woman and her horse competing in a rodeo.
Keelaghan says this about his songwriting:
“I’ve always had the urge to write,” says the Calgary native who has been calling Winnipeg home for the past few years. “Some things weren’t being said in the way I wanted to say them. Some things were not being written about at all. That’s why I started to write the historical material. That led me to writing my own personal narratives as well.”
He lists his influences as:
Early on: traditional Irish and English ballads, Liam Clancy, Ewan MacColl, sprinkled with Led Zeppelin, Santana, Neil Young, Jesse Winchester, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Cockburn, and Valdy. This was followed by Captain Beefheart, The McGarrigles, King Crimson, Talking Heads, Stan Rogers, Jonathan Edwards, Alan Stivell, Paul Brady, Andy Irvine, Emmylou Harris, Norma Waterson, Nic Jones, Nick Drake, and Pied Pumpkin.
House of Cards
House of Cards (2009) was produced by James Keelaghan and features ten original songs, some co-written with Karine Polwart, David Francey, and others. On my first listen, the tracks that stood out were the title song, “House of Cards,” inspired by the 2008 financial meltdown, and “McConnville’s,” a warm portrait of a neighborhood bar and its regulars.
Here’s how Terry Wickham, producer of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, sums up Keelaghan’s music:
“James has become the complete artist. A brilliant tunesmith who has become one of the most engaging performers of our time. You always know the journey with James is going to be great; you just never know what all the destinations are. That is why the curve on his career continues to rise.”
Here’s James performing “McConnville’s” from House of Cards.
As I was updating this post, which was first published in 2011, I realized just how much things have changed. I admit that I unfortunately lost track of Ron Hynes’ music over the years. Sadly, Ron passed away in 2015, making Stealing Genius his final studio album. Additionally, while No Depression still exists as a website, the community platform I knew back then is gone. Upon discovering Ron’s passing, I feel a strong pull to go back, revisit his earlier albums, and write some posts to help keep his memory and incredible music alive!
The Road to Ron Hynes
The other day on the No Depression website, someone raised the question, “What is Folk Music?” Well, that question has been floating around inside my head for the last several days. While I don’t have any definitive, academic answers, here is my personal take on it.
What is Folk Music?
I guess when I think of “pure” folk music, I think about artists who performed older, traditional songs—legends like Pete Seeger and The Weavers, Jean Ritchie, Elizabeth Cotten, Woody Guthrie, and “Doc” Watson.
But in the 60s, after the rise of popular “folk” groups like The Kingston Trio, The Chad Mitchell Trio, and The Limeliters, the genre took a swing to the left and turned a bit inward as a new wave of musicians arrived on the scene.
This group was led by Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, and Phil Ochs, singing side by side with artists like Tom Rush, Tom Paxton, Eric Andersen, Jerry Jeff Walker, Paul Seibel, Dave Van Ronk, Fred Neil, and many others.
These were the folks who shaped my “Folk” world, and their music was my personal “Folk University.”
Just a man or woman with a guitar, commenting on the human condition. Many times they were political comments, particularly with Ochs and Paxton, but often they were deeply touching songs—moving melodies with real “heart” and “feeling” that made you stop and think. Songs like Tom Paxton’s “Cindy’s Crying,” Paul Seibel’s “Louise,” Fred Neil’s “The Dolphins,” Tom Rapp’s “Rocket Man,” or Ochs’ “Flower Lady.”
The way I like to refer to this music is that it’s “Folk’s Music”—music by folks and about folks! To me, there is nothing better than a good story song about everyday people, like Harry Chapin’s “Mr. Tanner” or Jerry Jeff’s “Stoney.”
Discovering Ron Hynes
Now, all of this is leading up to the artist I’ve been listening to for the last couple of days: Ron Hynes and his album Stealing Genius. Ron Hynes was a legendary Canadian folksinger hailing from Newfoundland, and he spent over 30 years writing brilliant folk songs. One of them, “Sonny’s Dream,” has been recorded worldwide by countless artists and was even named the 41st greatest Canadian song of all time! And to think, I had only just heard of him back when I wrote this (once again, my bad!). But like they say, “better late than never!”
I won’t bore you with a dry biography and a list of accomplishments, but it’s worth noting just how deeply respected his songwriting is. His songs have been covered by dozens of artists worldwide, including Emmylou Harris, Christy Moore, Mary Black, Denny Doherty, Murray McLauchlan, Valdy, John McDermott, Terry Kelly, Prairie Oyster, The Good Brothers, Shaye, The Cottars, and Hayley Westenra.
About – Stealing Genius
Stealing Genius is a collection of fourteen beautifully crafted songs. Reading the liner notes, you can see that Hynes took his craft incredibly seriously, giving each track a lot of thought and care. He often based his songs on the works of other creators he admired (ah, maybe that’s where the title Stealing Genius comes from!). In this way, his approach reminded me a lot of Tom Russell.
While all of the tracks are great, I do have my immediate favorites. They include “My Father’s Ghost,” a touching story about the loss of a father at sea, and “Judgment,” a song about Robert Ford and the shooting of Jesse James.
I guess if I hadn’t known he was Canadian beforehand, I certainly would have after hearing “Sawchuk”—his brilliant song about the legendary hockey goalie Terry Sawchuk.
Sandwiched in between these standout tracks are beautiful songs about life, love, and the sting of loss. If you are like me and have some catching up to do when it comes to Ron Hynes, I highly encourage you to go find his music on your favorite streaming platforms or track down a physical copy on Amazon. I know I still have a lot of his older catalog left to check out!
At the end of this post I wrote that people should check out the music of Old Man Luedecke. Well, this old man didn’t heed his own advice and it seems he missed out on a lot of great music between the time he wrote the following post in 2010bqnd 2026!
Old Man Ludeecke a Second Listen Pays Off
So a while back I wrote that I had listened to Old Man Luedecke’s 2008 release Proof of Love. While I liked that banjo playing and the vocals were ok, it wasn’t what I was looking for that day! Well, after hearing a few of his songs on shuffle and liking them, I gave the album another listen last week and now I think that awarding the 2009 Juno Award (Canadian Grammy) for Roots Solo Album to him was the right thing to do!!
From his website:
…., Proof of Love won the prestigious 2009 Juno Award (the Canadian Grammy) for Roots Solo album and won legions of new fans at home and abroad. The album is a gathering of musicians making music in a room (Vancouver’s famed Factory Studio) with Luedecke’s tunes. It’s nothing fancy but is an exciting and unique roots album combining OML’s trademark clawhammer style, compelling originals and full ballads.
About Old Man Luedecke and Proof of Love
Old Man Luedecke is the performing name of young man with an old soul Chris Luedecke, of Chester, Nova Scotia. There are a lot of great tracks on the album Proof of Love. duh. It won a Juno Award, Edward!
My favorites include the tracks, “Ain’t Goin’ My Way”, “Wake Up Hill” , “Big Group Breakfast”, and “Johnny Gone to Soldier” but like many albums everything is good in it’s own way!
So to enjoy most singer-songwriters you don’t need to be all that Culturally Literate, not so with Ben Bedford. With Bedford it’s always a good idea to have Google or Wikipedia fired up so that you can find out more about the subject of many of his songs.
Take the song “Cahokia” from his latest album What We Lost ,when Ben sings…
Cahokia what secrets do you keep, your bones buried deep inside the hills, Cahokia the river runs it course, Mississippi’s swollin force is never still.
I wasn’t quite sure what he was singing about the first time I heard the song, but a search on Wikipedia revealed.
About the Cahokia Mounds
Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site ( /kəˈhoʊkiə/) is located on the site of an ancient Native American city (c. 600–1400 CE) situated directly across the Mississippi River from modern St. Louis, Missouri. This historic park lies in Southern Illinois between East St. Louis and Collinsville….
Cahokia was the largest and most influential urban settlement in the Mississippian culture which developed advanced societies across much of what is now the Southeastern United States, beginning more than 500 years before European contact.[4] Cahokia’s population at its peak in the 1200s was as large, or larger, than any European city of that time, and its ancient population would not be surpassed by any city in the United States until about the year 1800 Read More at Wikipedia
The American Portrait Songwriting of Ben Bedford
And so it goes, on the album Bedford presents songs about the poet Vachel Lindsay, blues legend Charley Patton and the 1973 standoff between members of The American Indian Movement and federal agents on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
You see Bedford is a songwriter whose songs start with an idea for a story that he would like to tell, a literary approach influenced by two of his favorite authors, John Steinbeck and Toni Morrison.
“Usually it starts with something that I’m inspired by in some way. A person and their life in general, or a certain aspect of their life. I’ll have a line in my head and it will materialize and take off from there,” Bedford said. “The hardest thing about writing a song, for me anyway, is getting that first line. Once I get that first line it can start flowing out.”
Bedford refers to his style as American Portrait Songwriting. Over the course of three albums, the Springfield resident has addressed contemporary issues such as homelessness, but his work mainly focuses on historical subjects and figures — not surprising given that he was a history major in college. He has written songs about John the Baptist, poet and artist Vachel Lindsay, and aviator Amelia Earhart. More
Thoughts About Ben Bedford
What We Lost is Bedford’s third album and each one of them is outstanding! In 2010 Rich Warren of the “Midnight Special” broadcast of WFMT-FM 98.7 listed Bedford on his most significant singer-songwriters of folk in the last 50 years! Being on this listen with one of his main influences Townes Van Zant must have been a thrill for Bedford!
So if you’ve never heard Ben Bedford’s music be sure to check him out, but remember to have Google or Wikipedia near by!!
The Video
Here’s the title track of the album “What We Lost” a song about his Grandfather.
This morning I decided that it was a good day to listen to one of my favorite folk artists so I qued up Jack Williams on the mp3 player and listened to his album Laughing in the Face of the Blues. If you like great guitar picking coupled with great songs about the south and common folks then you’ll like Jack Williams’ music.
Discoverig the Music of Jack Williams
I first stumbled across Jack’s music in the bargain bin of my favorite used record store where I found his album Across the Winterline . I took it home listened to I think the first two songs and I knew that I had a new favorite!
Here’s what others think of Jack’s music:
From his website and CDBaby:
…. his artistry… is nothing short of amazing. Dazzling picking, expressive voice, unique and interesting songs. He is a showman in the best sense of the word and just wowed our audience. I think they would have followed him anywhere.”
Rich Warren, WFMT “Midnight Special”, Chicago IL
Skilled finger picking with a [Southern] rhythmic musical style that’s equal parts folk storytelling and Tin Pan Alley songcraft, delivered with the impassioned soul of an old blues singer…No Depression Magazine
Listening to Laughing in the Face of the Blues
Like all of Jack’s album Laughing in the Face of the Blues is filled with great songs . Recently the album has been on my mp3 player and the songs that usually come up when the player is set to random are “Meet Me Mama”, Laughing in the Face of the Blues” and “A Sucker for Love” all great songs and again so are the rest!
Finally Walkin’ Blues
This afternoon I continued listening to Jack and the other album on the player Walkin’ Dreams. Which is also full of great songs! The album opens with “A Natural Man” written about one of Jack’s heroes Josh White. Other songs include “An English Moment” about returning to the home of his ancestors. “Mr. Cherry” about the Birmingham Church bombing, “Walkin’ Dreams” a song about walking through history and finally
“Me and My Automobile” a fun song about his car troubles that includes an excerpt from Jack’s call to “Click and Clack on NPR!
The other funny song is “In the Texas Sky” which chronicles Jack’s travails while taking his friend Al Grierson’s remains to their final resting place! Of the two albums I think Walkin’ Dreams had more listens.
Looking at his website I see that his new CD The High Road Home is due out this summer and I can’t wait. Oh maybe I’ll pre-order it! Anyway until then I’ll just listen to what I have and watch the DVD High Cotton a collection of live performances.
So if you don’t know Jack’s music check him out you won’t be disappointed –
