James Keelaghan

Bio:

......

Looking for music by James Keelaghan?
Try CDBabyor iTunes

Called Canada’s finest singer-songwriter by one of the most respected music journalists of the last 50 years, James Keelaghan is an artist who has proven to be a man for all seasons.

  As the calendar pages have turned, for almost a quarter of a century now, this poet laureate of the folk and roots music world has gone about his work with a combination of passion, curiosity intent and intensity.

  His masterful story telling has, over the course of nine recordings, been part of the bedrock of his success, earning Keelaghan nominations and awards - including a Juno (Canada's Grammy) - and acclaim from Australia to Scandinavia.

  Possessed of an insatiable appetite for finding the next unique story line, Keelaghan forges his pieces with brilliant craftsmanship and monogrammed artistic vision, making him one of the most distinctive and readily identifiable voices on both the Canadian and international singer-songwriter scenes.

  His journey has attracted fans of literate and layered songwriting to join him on his artistic expeditions, some of which weave their way through marvelously etched historical stories with underlying universal themes, others of which mine the depths of the soul and the emotional trails of human relations.

  His songbook has enlightened, enthralled, and been embraced, by audiences around the world.

  "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 thing 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.” .

  Keelaghan is a disciplined visionary with several aces up his sleeve.  He loves language and history, a subject in which he earned a degree; he is a skilled thespian, which explains his ability to make an immediate connection with a live audience; and he has an ear for memorable melodies and harmonies that make those melodies glisten.

  Says Keelaghan, “I’m good for 80 or so books a year, mostly history and non-fiction, but inspiration can come in many forms. I’m always on the lookout for a good story or idea. My sister told me the story that became Kiri’s Piano, a  song that visits a dark chapter in Canadian history: Japanese interment camps in the Second World War. The image of someone sacrificing their prized possession in order to maintain their dignity was too powerful to ignore."

  Not only does Keelaghan lay claim to a deep catalogue of timeless originals like Kiri's Piano, Fires of Calais, Cold Missouri Waters, Jenny Bryce, and Hillcrest Mine, he is also a possessive interpreter of outside material, a fine example being his gripping take on Gordon Lightfoot’s epic Canadian Railroad Trilogy from the Lighfoot tribute disc Beautiful. There are also a number of illustrations of his interpretive skills on his 2006 recording A Few Simple Verses, an homage to his roots in traditional music. The closing tune on that spellbinding set, My Blood, written with Jez Lowe, is one of many examples from Keelaghan’s career of his inviting collaboration into his creative process.

   “I was at the Celtic Colors Festival in 2008," says Keelaghan, "and the producers locked six of us in a house for a week, and the company included Dave Gunning, David Francey, and Rose Cousins, it was an amazing experience. At the end of it, we had enough material for a complete show.“

Keelaghan has never shied away from collaboration in his live and recorded performances, touring and tracking with master musicians like Oliver Schroer, Oscar Lopez and Hugh McMillan. "If you work with people who are better than you, you become better," he observes.

    The sparks of collaboration and the batting of melodies back and forth have produced some wonderful results, says Keelaghan, who is always finding a balance between examining the lighter and heavier sides of life. He ties it all together with a powerful vocal delivery and a commanding stage presence.

Admiration and respect for his work amongst his peers is reflected in the words of David Francey who recently stated that “James Keelaghan is a voice in contemporary Canadian songwriting that has helped us define who we are as a people. He writes with great humanity and honesty, with an eye to the past and a vision of the future. He has chronicled his times with powerful and abiding songs, with heart and eyes wide open.”

  Terry Wickham, the producer of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, is one of many longtime admirers of Keelaghan’s music, and he sums up the artists appeal by saying, “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.”

   It was Dave Marsh, the award-winning American music critic and historian who not so long ago stated that James Keelaghan is “Canada’s finest songwriter.”  Those few but powerful words of praise say it all about an artist who continues to set the bar at a lofty height.

THIS JUST IN!

Buddy, Where You Been? video recorded live at the Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary, Alberta.

Member Since:

November 23, 2005

Members:

Most Often...... Hugh MacMillan of Spirit fo the West. Multi instumentalist known for his unique Bass stylings, great octave mandolin work and the occassional Pedal steel lick.I've known Hugh for almost twenty five years and he has been on almost every one of the cd's one way or another. He is a brave musically as he is modest personally, but he is one of a handful of bass players ( David Woodhead, Gilles Fournier, Brent Gubbles) that i would play with without hesiation in any circumstance

Also The amazing David Woodhead who has played with everyone on the planet, also a multi instrumentalist and one of the finest humans on the planet

Jaime Rt. She came to me very highly recommended . She is amongst the finest violin/piano players in the country (would I work with anyone that wasn't? You , my audience deserve nothing but the best) and an awful lot of fun to tour with. Ask her about crop circles, or her love of High viz safety wear. You'll see her over in the friends section, she is a performer and composer in her own right. She loves to dance in the disco style. I think you'll enjoy her immensely.

Often, in the past you would have found Oliver Schroer along. Sadly Oliver departed this vale in early July this year (2008). Oli and i knew each other for the better part of 25 years as friends, musical collaborators and road brothers. I can't possibly tell you how much i am going to miss him. He was, and is, quite frankly the best violinist on the planet. What do you want, Trad celtic? Got it. Old tyme? Got it. freaked out yoiking combined with Italian folk tunes and field recordings of squeeking hinges? Got it. He wasn't a human being. He was a soundtrack. If you never saw him, i"m sorry you missed him. But do check out his music

I am playing a lot lately with Oscar Lopez, doin The Compadres thing.Its tremendously exciting and you'll find a couple of track up in the music section...up there, on the right...yeah that's it. Oscar is a force of nature and anyone who has ever seen him play guitar is either inspired or breaking up their instrument for kindling. Truly a brother.

Influences:

early on, Traditional Irish and english Ballads Liam Clancy, Ewan MacColl, sprinkled with Led Zeppelin, Santana, Neil Young, Jesse Winchester, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Cockburn, Valdy This was followed by Captain Beefheart, The McGarrigles, King Crimson, Talking heads, Stan Rogers, Johnathan Edwards, Alan Stivell, Paul Brady, Andy Irvine, Emmy Lou, Norma Waterson, Nic Jones, Nick Drake, Pied Pumpkin I might add that there were a lot of influences that were musical, but might not be people that you have heard of. Ron casat, agreat piano/bass player and band leader in Calgary. Still the best. Gary Bird and Bill Eaglesham, two of the guys I first started touring with. Perhaps the best musical education I ever had. Ones contemporaries have a great influence as well so I would say Jenny Allen, Colleen eccleston, jennifer berezan, david Francey, stephen fearing, the bills, The duhks. I could go on and on

Sounds Like:

Look for music by James Keelaghan at your local Canadian record store, CDBaby and iTunes. You will also want to check out The Compadres for fantastic 'Celtino' music. Sounds like......well, an angel. His voice is smooth and powerful all at the same time. Its like John Denver's voice mixed with Stan Rogers voice mixed with John Gorka's voice. And really, if Sinatra had been a folkie he would have sounded like this. The songs tell big stories about ordinary people, paint landscapes as good as Turner's and can have you believing that a whole novel can be told in 5 minutes.

Record Label:

Jericho Beach ( Canada) Burnside (US) Fellside(UK)