Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ Massey Hall

[caption id="attachment_1364" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ Massey Hall[/caption]

. : : May 4th, 2018 : : .

Concert-going wise, I have a few regrets.

Many of them either before I was old enough to afford my own tickets or after I started a family of my own, and expendable income became a distant, laughable memory or the past.

From the latter category: Kathleen Edwards, seemingly out of nowhere, was advertised to have an opening slot for Matt Mays at Massey Hall.

Now, I'm not gonna lie: I have no idea who Matt Mays is. I'm an admittedly horrible Canadian. But I do know Massey Hall, and I've written here before about how it's probably my least favourite venue in the city.

Posted inReviews

Kathleen Edwards at Fixed Hinge Recording

[caption id="attachment_1356" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ Fixed Hinge Recording[/caption]

. : : August 25th, 2020 : : .

Kathleen Edward's Total Freedom album came as a bit of a surprise to me.

I mean, I knew she'd started live performances again but these shows seemed sporadic and without much fanfare; I thought them little more than a way for her to pay some favors, pad the pockets, and perhaps even provide a wee bit of ego bolstering.

When clips of her in the studio started showing up on Instagram, I must admit: it still didn't feel real. It had been too long. She had been too adamant. But then the pre-order page went live.

Test pressings, autographed vinyls, CDs, t-shirts, Quitters Coffee, and all kinds of incentives littered the campaign. There was one in particular that caught my eye, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic...

A private, online concert for a fan and up to 24 friends.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ City Winery, NY

[caption id="attachment_1336" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ City Winery[/caption]

. : : January 31st, 2013 : : .

There's something to be said about wineries.

Not content to merely be fancified drinking holes, North American wineries have diversified into premiere hot spots of arts and culture.

It is hardly any wonder that musicians, perhaps some of the greatest patrons of potent potables, seem to flock to them like moths to lamplight.

As a sober person, I can see and appreciate the appeal. It extends the relaxation and social aspects of concert-going throughout the afternoon. Or, if you're there for the booze, you get to top your day off with a musical performance.

Because it's not their primary purpose, these wineries are often smaller, intimate venues. The wine barrels give them warm, rustic ambiance. All-in-all, pretty great places for artist and fan to see a show.

City Winery is a chain of wineries throughout the US, and although I can't claim to have visited one, "Keith from NY"'s recording of Kathleen Edwards performing there in 2013 makes a strong case.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ BBC Radio

[caption id="attachment_1299" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ BBC[/caption]

. : : June 7th, 2007 : : .

Bob Harris' radio show for BBC Radio 2 co-sponsored the NXNE event that first introduced me to Kathleen Edwards. Harris was fond of the roots rock scene in Canada, and was known to promote it on the other side of the pond whenever possible.

It's hard to say whether or not that concert -- you know, the one that introduced me to Kathleen, Jim Bryson, Luke Doucet, Melissa McClelland, Justin Rutledge, Oh Susanna, etc. -- would have still happened without his support and the Beeb's agreement to record it for airing on his program. I like to imagine it wouldn't have: it was a confluence of random happenstance that brought all these acts together, and me to that room.

I then have to give a lot of credit to Bob and the BBC for their part in my obsession with deep fondness of these performers and their music.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ KCRW Studios

[caption id="attachment_1290" align="aligncenter" width="498"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ KCRW[/caption]

. : : March 24th, 2005 : : .

How are you all enjoying the all-Kathleen Edwards end of summer special?

Hopefully, you're finding something new in all the something old. I have a few more up my sleeve, starting with this set Kathleen and band performed for LA radio station KCRW on their famed Morning Becomes Eclectic show back in 2005.

KCRW gave the band space for a generous 7-song set and interview and they took full advantage. The group played about half of Back To Me -- an album that was only three weeks old at the time, but recently celebrated its 15th birthday -- a note-worthy version of Somewhere Else where Kathleen and original writer Jim Bryson trade off vocals, and Unknown Legend, a great Neil Young cover!

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ National Public Radio

[caption id="attachment_1265" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ NPR[/caption]

One More Song The Radio Won't Like?

How about a couple dozen Kathleen Edwards songs that the radio obviously did like?

Here's a compilation of performances for NPR, presented in chronological order, as captured by Manillo and shared on DimeADozen. As they are all FM-sourced and originally professionally recorded, the sound quality is excellent throughout.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ Phoenix Concert Theatre

[caption id="attachment_1261" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ Phoenix Concert Theatre[/caption]

. : : April 23rd, 2008 : : .

Of course, I remember being charmed by Kathleen Edwards' set at NXNE for Six Shooter Records Outlaws & Gunslingers showcase in 2007. I was introduced to a lot of great new music that night, so I don't remember quite what it was that lead me to investigate Kathleen's recorded music specifically shortly thereafter.

But I do clearly remember queuing up the Asking For Flowers album for the very first time. I remember the intimacy of the sound of the piano bench creaking under the sparse but powerful chords of Buffalo. I remember the drums and guitar kicking in, matching intensity with a literal and metaphorical storm chasing the song's protagonist across the Canada-US border.

I was instantly and irrevocably smitten.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ Xponential Festival

[caption id="attachment_1246" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ XPNfest 2019[/caption]

. : : July 28th, 2019 : : .

Here's yet another professionally recorded festival performance from Kathleen Edwards and company!

Originally captured last summer at Xponential Festival in Philadelphia, and as such, has a handful of songs not performed during the 2012 festival circuit as posted in the Bonaroo a few days ago.

Chief among them are the two new songs, then-previews from her now-freshly released album Total Freedom, which only recently has come to see the light of day.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ Quitters Coffee

[caption id="attachment_1310" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ Quitters Coffee[/caption]

. : : August 14, 2020 : : .

Future readers (hello from the past!) may not immediately connect the dots, but summer of 2020 is ... different. We're in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the doors to public places have been shuttered indefinitely. Live music venues, legally unable to assemble audiences and artists but still obligated to pay rent, are closing up shop all over the world. Restaurants struggle with having been shut down for months; some have begun re-opening with extremely limiting restrictions, others have likewise been unable to stay afloat and closed their doors permanently.

Kathleen Edwards, six years after retiring from music and opening a coffee shop in the Ottawa suburb of Stittsville, picked one hell of a time to try and transition back to music.

Posted inLive Recordings

Kathleen Edwards @ Bonnaroo Festival 2012

[caption id="attachment_1241" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Kathleen Edwards Kathleen Edwards @ Bonnaroo 2012[/caption]

. : : June 10th, 2012 : : .

I'm going to try something a little bit different.

Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, the lack of on-going live concerts, and my ever-shrinking budget, I'm going to start sharing some recordings made by other fans from time-to-time.

Where else to start, but with perennial favourite Kathleen Edwards, who is being celebrated upon the release of her first album in eight years, Total Freedom.