Arts & Culture

Canadian musician to make local tour stop

By Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins

Published 3:29 PST, Fri March 4, 2022

Last Updated: 3:54 PDT, Tue March 29, 2022

Canadian music icon Colin James, a seven-time Juno winner, will stop in Vancouver on Sept. 30. While his local stop was originally scheduled for early March, the tour for his latest album Open Road was postponed due to ongoing venue capacity restrictions.

Our City Tonight sat down recently with James to chat about his career and upcoming Canadian tour.


Your latest album is getting great reviews. Tell us about the creation of Open Road and choosing the songs. 

Like with any other record, I’m simply going through songs I have always loved, kept in my back pocket and never got to. I try and figure out if (I’m) doing the song any favours, is (my) voice or treatment of the song bringing something new to (it)? If the answer is “no,” then (the song is) left off. And then (I) try and find diversity in the tempos and what the songs bring. I also tend to throw a lot at the wall when it comes to making a record—I don’t just record exactly what’s going to be there, I tend to overshoot. I’ll do 10 to 12 (additional) songs that won’t make it on the record. 


You have covered a number of musical genres in your long career. With your success in the genre of blues—and you have played with some blues greats—do you feel a need to keep this musical genre alive?

There is some element (of) that. I was lucky enough to see some greats as well, including the late Muddy Waters. So many of the second generation of “Chicago Blues” musicians are gone, so there will always be room for people who love this music and put the kind of energy into it and shine a light on the blues. I felt privileged that as a kid, (age) 16, 17, that I fell in love with the medium and I hoped that one day I could make a mark on it. Also getting to play with legendary artists like Albert Collins and to see what a genius he was, there was no one else like him. Still isn’t.


You’ve started a Canadian tour and then after that, you’ll head to America to tour with another great artist, Buddy Guy. How are you feeling about getting in front of a live audience again?

We couldn’t wait to get back out there. We did a small, acoustic tour late last year, a trio of us, and it was so cathartic to be back on a guitar and playing shows. It’s something I’ve done most of my life and when you don’t do that for nearly two years it can be quite shocking, like part of your life is gone.

 

You do the popular “On the Couch” series on YouTube and there is often a dog with you on the couch.

That’s our oldest dog, Maggie. We don’t put her there, she just loves to be on the couch. I love that dog, she’s one of four dogs we have, two of which are rescues.


For the video interview, click here.

Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins are contributing writers to the Richmond Sentinel.

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