HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2013-05-23, Page 19THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MAY 23, 2013. PAGE 19.
Gospel show ends weekend
Eaglesmith appreciates Ontario’s smaller halls
Shopping to singing
Wayne Harnknock and Friends provided musical entertainment at the grand opening of the
Brussels Farmers’ Market on Friday. The market runs from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Fridays from
the Victoria Day long weekend to October. (Denny Scott photo)
Continued from page 1with mainstream music. Eaglesmithsaid he spent time in Nashville,
Tennessee and then in New York
City, but it was when he returned to
Ontario and kept playing Legions
and small halls that he felt at
home.
He said that he and his band are
always seeking that cozy, intimate
feeling that comes with playing a
small hall. Eaglesmith says that he
feels there’s a legitimacy to those
shows that you can’t find anywhere
else.
Eaglesmith spoke about two
recent shows he had played in Sarnia
and St. Mary’s. One of the shows, he
says, was at an Eagles’ Hall where
he and his band helped the
organization to raise money for a
community project. He says that
when you play in small
communities, people come to the
shows because they want to see the
show, not because it’s a social event
or they’re hoping to be “seen” there,
which is something he has
encountered in some of Canada’s
bigger city centres.“Nobody comes because there’s abuzz or because there’s some
publicist telling them to,”
Eaglesmith says.
He also laments a recent trend of
people going out of their way to
disrupt shows, yelling during songs
and attempting to make themselves
the centre of attention. He says that’s
not what he’s about and he has, in
recent years, had to take control of
his shows in order to curtail that kind
of behaviour. Thanks to his
proaction, he says, the word is out
there and people know he won’t
tolerate with it at his shows.
“I don’t put up with that kind of
stuff at my shows,” Eaglesmith says.
“I’m not a wedding performer.”
His shows have always had a
distinct feel, Eaglesmith says, and he
has aimed to accentuate his
peculiarities, rather than cover them
up, which goes hand in hand with his
resistance to mainstream music.
“People have gone to great lengths
to hide their quirks, so everyone
drives the same car and lives in the
same house,” he says. “You need tobe unique and show your quirk, butthat frightens some people.”
Eaglesmith says that now, turning
56 this year, his style and his
demeanour are the way they’re going
to stay.
“If people don’t get it, if they don’t
like it, then they shouldn’t come,”
Eaglesmith says, adding that he
knows his fanbase quite well after all
these years.
He also says that, as a disciple of
Zen Buddhism, he believes that
adversity in life makes you stronger.
He feels that those who have faced
adversity understand life better and
will pick up on his show, while those
who haven’t faced adversity, who
adhere to the mainstream are just
floating through life and those are
people Eaglesmith says he just
doesn’t have time for.
What Eaglesmith does have time
for, he says, are his fans. He says
that when his shows are over, he
immediately goes to the back of the
hall to meet everyone at the show.
He says he’ll talk to everyone and
he’ll sign every autograph becauseof the tremendous amount of respecthe has for his fans.
Tickets for the show are $25 each
and are still available from the Blyth
Festival box office at
1-877-862-5984 or online at
www.blythfestival.com
The remount of Dear Johnny
Deere, Ken Cameron’s play based
on Eaglesmith’s music, runs from
June 11 to 22, tickets for the play arealso available through the BlythFestival box office.
Continued from page 1
way for the show to end.
In addition to a surprise special
guest, this year the event will feature
the following acts:
• Wendy Mackay Sibley
• Holly Edwards Kiss
• Country Jam
• The Happy Valley Gang
• Rescue Junction
• Dough Dietrich
• Grant Heywood.
The show acts as a fundraiser for
the barn dance society which turns
around and donates to various
groups in Blyth to help the
community grow. In recent years
donations have been made to the
local Lions Club, the Huron Pioneer
Thresher and Hobby Association,
the Blyth Community Centre Leaf
Fund and the Blyth Festival.
“Generally we end up being able
to donate approximately $2,000
back into the community from the
event.”
The event is held on the fourth
weekend of May every year and has
special prices for people camping
overnight.
The first barn dance was
originally put on by W.T. ‘Doc’
Cruickshank who started and ran
CKNX Radio in Wingham. After an
enterprising disc jockey spun some
appropriate music for the title barn
dance, he was called in to
Cruickshank’s office. While he
feared the worst, Cruickshank said
he loved the idea but wanted to run
it live instead of recorded.
For more information, visit the
Barn Dance Society’s website at
www.thebarndance.ca
60th
Wedding Anniversary
The family of
Ross and Mary Procter
would like to invite you
to a
Come and Go
Celebration
of their
60th Wedding
Anniversary
Sunday, June 9, 2013
2:00 - 4:00 pm
Wingham Golf & Curling Club
Best Wishes Only
16th Annual Barn Dance
Jamboree/Campout Weekend
May 23, 24, 25, 26 ~ Blyth Campground
For more information/full schedule
www.thebarndance.ca
519-530-8000
Highlights
Thursday, May 23 ~ Campground Open - Registration
Friday, May 24 ~ Bluegrass Show & Open Stage 7 pm - $6
Saturday, May 25 ~ Flea Market & Silent Auction
~ Barn Dance Show/Dance 8 pm - $25
Sunday, May 26 ~ Gospel Show 10 am - $5
www.redgreen.com
Call 1-877-862-5984 or www.blythfestival.com
SATURDAY, OCT. 19, 2013 – 7 PM - BLYTH MEMORIAL HALL
Call 519-672-1967 or www.centennialhall.london.ca
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 9, 2013 – 7 PM - CENTENNIAL HALL - LONDON
MAKES A GREAT FATHER'S DAY GIFT
273 Hamilton St., Blyth • 519-523-4590
www.blytheastsidedance.com
Blyth East Side Dance
Learn the Tango
Celebrating
55 Years
BILL AND MURIEL COULTES
May 31, 1958
The family of Bill and Muriel
invite you to a
Come and Go Party
Saturday, June 1, 2013
2-4 pm
Belgrave Community Centre
No Gifts Please
If you wish to make a donation to the
Belgrave Community Centre
it would be appreciate.
Happy 50th
May 27
Brian TenPas
Don’t look so happy