THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “If any band was uniquely positioned to withstand the impossible demands made by despicable COVID-19, it was Blackie And The Rodeo Kings. The proof is in their blazing 11th album O Glory.
While much of the planet struggled to find new ways of working, singer-songwriters and guitarists Stephen Fearing, Colin Linden and Tom Wilson coolly leveraged the flexibility that’s sustained them for 25 years, sheltering in their respective home bases of Victoria, Nashville and Hamilton while using technology to bridge the chasm separating them from each other and from their rhythm section of Gary Craig and John Dymond.
With Linden producing from his Nashville digs, Blackie and the Rodeo Kings wrote and recorded 13 alternately roots-rock, folk, country, and Americana-style songs, ultimately crafting what Linden confirms is the band’s most “spiritual and political” musical statement to date.
Adds Fearing, “Like a lot of musicians, after the initial shock of the pandemic lockdown, the impetus became finding ways to connect with the world. Technology has come so far in the last few years, and it has made remote recording possible. I pounced on it. Colin gave me a lot of advice and took charge musically. It was then a matter of coming up with songs and getting them to each other.”
As they have since forming as a one-off to honour late folk hero Willie P. Bennett — and continuing as smitten audiences demanded it — the Juno–winning Blackie And The Rodeo Kings continue to chase musical excellence while having a ball playing with their friends. Talk about a great gig.”
